The Soap Box

Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T08:30:00.001-08:00

Today is of course Thanksgiving. A day to be thankful for all that you have in your life, a day to spend time with those you are thankful for to have in your life, and a day to eat massive amounts of turkey, watch football, and fall asleep while watching football.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Thrive: The Debunking

2011-11-20T12:25:00.000-08:00

Last week I saw a trailer for a new documentary called "Thrive: What on Earth will it take" by Foster Gamble .

The trailer starts out fine at first, but within 30 seconds it goes from asking a perfectly legitimate question of whether or not humans can thrive, to pseudo-science, and eventually conspiracy theories.

First, they talk about some secret "code" and "hidden" designs in ancient art work concerning the torus, and how it keeps showing up in so many ancient sites around the world.

This of course means nothing other then different cultures thousands of years ago interacted with each, picking up the pattern from one another, and reproducing it. It has nothing to do with some secret ancient codes (not exactly a secret either since it's right out in public).

While this part raised a red flag to me, I wasn't ready to outright to dismiss it as being nothing more then BS.

Then goes into UFOs, and that the government is covering up the truth about them, and that they have crashed alien space craft.

This raised a few more red flags for me, as that is nothing more then an unproven and probably untrue conspiracy theory, and I felt it was going way off of what I thought this documentary was going to be about.

But again, I was not about to dismiss this documentary as being nothing more then BS.

Then they talked about crop circles being communications from aliens.

This is when I dismissed this documentary as being nothing but BS.

Crop circles, even the very complex ones, are in fact man made. There are multiple websites and videos showing how they can be made in only a few hours, using some rope and a 2x4.

Then they go into where they claim that machines can be built, using the torus design, that can produce unlimited energy.

I won't actually outright say is impossible, but most scientists in the field of physics agree that a machine that could produce unlimited energy (no matter what the design is) is so highly improbable that it is considered to be outright impossible to build.

Then it goes down hill from there.

They then begin making claims that this technology is being suppressed (along with knowledge about UFOs) by large corporations (banks, oil, energy, pharmaceutics) and the government (which is implied is controlled by large corporations) and implies that these corporations are responsible for all the troubles in the world today.

And of course they tell you to "connect the dots", something that many conspiracy theorists do in order to try to prove their conspiracy theories when they have a lack of real evidence (which is almost always).

In my personal opinion, you should not waste your time, or money, on this documentary, but if you do actually wish to see what I am actually talking, here is a link the trailer to the movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OibqdwHyZxk

And if you wish to read a much more in-depth debunking of this documentary, please click on the link below:

http://thrivedebunked.wordpress.com/

When was the last time the LDS was a cult?

2011-10-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

Cult.

The ultimate way to insult another person's religion or belief system is by labeling it a cult.

While some religions or belief systems can be labeled a cult because they do in fact abuse and isolate their members, or encourages it's members to engage in dangerous actions and behavior, for other religions and belief systems it's not warranted because it's really not like that at all.

Recently a Dallas, Texas pastor and Rick Perry presidential supporter Robert Jeffess said in an interview on CNN that Christians should not vote for Mitt Romney because he is a Mormon and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a Cult.

The mainstream Mormon church has been around for about 180 years are so, and is very well established around the world, so I think we can stop labeling it a cult.

Pastor Jeffess is part of the Southern Baptist Convention, and if anyone knows about the Southern Baptists, then you know that they tend to look down on anyone who do not share their religious or political beliefs (kinda cult like in my opinion).

With the exception of them occasionally coming to my door and trying to get me to convert, I really have no problems with Mormons.

They have never tried to use fear tactics, they've never tried to get any money from me, and the

Mormons that I have worked for were all nice and paid in full.

While I have no desire to convert and become one of them, I'm certainly not going to label them as a cult, and I'm certainly not going to not vote for one of them simply because they don't share my beliefs.

Is There Anything Positive about the Anti-Homosexual Movement?

2011-10-02T13:53:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of weeks I've wondering if there is anything positive about the anti-homosexual movement?

This whole wondering began after hearing about the death of Jamey Rodemeyer, a 14-year old boy who committed suicide after being bullied and tormented for years because he was homosexual. What is even worse was that even after this some of the bullies continued their bullying of him even after his death by chanting "you're better off dead" and "we are glad that you're dead" at a recent school dance when a Lady Gaga song was played (Jamey was a big fan of Lady Gaga).

If one person had done this chanting, it could easily have been explained as being the actions of one very disturbed student.

But it was several.

This comes to reason that these kids are being influenced in some way to think that what they have done is perfectly acceptable.

And this gets back to my question: Is there anything positive about the anti-homosexual movement?

The answer to that is: None.

Everything it has done has been pretty much negative from what I've seen.

It's created a situation that has led some kids to believe that it's perfectly okay to harass, torment, and abuse other kids whom either are homosexual, or are suspected of being homosexual, which interns leads to depression and sometimes suicide.

It has created a situation where some people now feel (or made known) that they are not welcome amongst their family, or even their community, because they are homosexual.

It has created a situation where some people believe that violence against homosexuals, and vandalism against churches and other establishments that openly welcome homosexuals, is okay.

It has created a situation where some people believe that homosexuals are either very hostile, and/or are sexual deviants and pedophiles whom actively try to turn children into homosexuals.

It has created a situation where some people believe that homosexuality is a choice, and that a homosexuals can become heterosexual through therapy and prayer.

It has created a situation where some people believe that many of the rights that homosexuals have recently gained should be reversed.

And finally, it has created a situation where people in the anti-homosexual movement are viewed as being a bunch of bigots who are exploiting the Bible to justify their own bigotry, and has also lead to an increased negative view of Christianity.

People Just Go Crazy

2011-01-16T09:23:00.000-08:00

Many people have been speculating about why Jared Loughner, the person who shot and killed six people and wound many others, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, did what he did.

Most people are saying that a combination of his clear mental illness, combined with all the political crap and shear hatefulness between the conservatives and liberals that's been played out on TV and radio and on the Internet.

I don't believe that politics had anything to do with what Loughtner did. From what I have read he prescribed to the extremes of both the left and the right, but that he didn't listen to the news or watch TV or listen to the radio or anything like that, and that he was extremely paranoid, had very odd behavior, and most likely has schizophrenia.

The fact is is that there really isn't anything complex about this at all. The guy's mental condition continued to go down hill, he apparently got no help for his mental illness, he gets a gun, then he goes out and shoots a bunch of people.

Everyone wants to make this more complex then what it really is, but it's not.

He went nuts, he killed a bunch of people, and he is the only person to blame.

Blame Game

2010-09-08T15:03:00.000-07:00

All politics has come down to in the past few years is one giant blame game.

Whenever something bad happens, one side accuses the other side of creating policies that caused the problem, yet no one takes responsibility for their own screw ups.

For the past year and a half the blame game has seem to gotten even worse due to the economy.

Republicans are blaming the Democrats and President Obama for this mess and not wanting to work with them or even listen to them, while the Democrats keep blaming the Republicans and former President Bush because what has happened with the economy started when Bush was in office.

So I say this, to both sides:

To the Democrats: Bush is not in charge anymore, and you do have to work with the Republicans.

To the Republicans: You have to try harder to work with the Democrats, or at least work with the ones who will work with you.

And to both: This situation with the economy has been a long time coming, and you should have seen it and taken care of it a long time ago.

As I said before, we need to stop this "pointing fingers" thing that seems to keep going on and instead of refusing to work with each, both sides need to start working with each other and figure out how to fix this problem with our economy before the country tears itself apart!

Muslim-Phobic Nation?

2010-08-24T19:35:00.000-07:00

Have we become a nation of Muslim-phobics?

In New York City, and across the country, some people are trying to prevent Muslims from building Mosques in several communities. Already, other Mosques across the country have also been vandalized.

One church in Florida will be having a "Burn the Qu'ran Day" to mark the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Muslim women are sometimes told at where they work to not wear a head scarf.

Even being suspected of being a Muslim can make people look at that person in a negative light.

So, are we a Muslim-phobic nation?

It looks like it to me, and the worst part about this is, is that it looks like the majority of people in this country do not have much of a problem with most, if any of the items I listed above.

This needs to be stopped.

One of the main reasons for the founding of this country is because the American people wanted religious freedom.

The first amendment of the Bill of Rights states that we have the right worship whatever god or deity we want to, wherever we want to.

No one has the right to tell another person what they may or may not believe, and no group of people deserves to be intimidated and discriminated against because of what a few nut jobs did.

Irony of and for North Korea

2010-08-20T15:34:00.000-07:00

North Korea.

One of, if not the most repressive government on the planet, now has a Youtube, Twitter, and apparently a Facebook account. Of course that government only uses them to spread propaganda across the internet.

Propaganda, that of course, no one believes.

After reading the articles about this on the internet, I'm not sure if I should laugh at the irony or not.

Here we have a government that is so repressive that if George Orwell was still alive he would probably sue it for copyright infringement, and here they are, using three internet sites that allot people use to express their ideals, many of which would make a average North Korean citizen "disappear" if they themselves expressed the same kinds of ideals.

But, here is the great thing about this! They are going to have to endure the wrath of everyone who hates that regime enough that those people will express their wrath in the form of comments, and there is the very real chance of someone hacking and deleting, or taking over the accounts.

And there is not a thing they can do about it either!

Have fun!

They're A Monster!

2010-08-18T15:47:00.000-07:00

Today I was just reading an article on CNN.com called "What drives a mom to kill?" Now I found the article interesting because I like reading about the psychology of criminals, but I have to disagree with the parts that try to make the people who kill their own children, seem not so monstrous.

To me, any one who kills their own child, or any child for that matter, for whatever reason, no matter how insane they are at the time, then that person is a monster.

But if they are found not guilty by reason of mental illness? Or has major regrets and remorse about what they did?

Well, they still did it.

Just because they were insane at the time, does not mean that what happened is not any less tragic, and it does not mean that they are any less evil for what they did!

And while it is a good thing that many do have regret and remorse, they still should have chosen not to do it!

Plus they did have other options, such as seeking help from the local or state or even federal government.

Heck, it's better just to abandon your child and hand them over to child welfare, because lets face it, it's allot better than killing them.

Activist Judge?

2010-08-16T13:28:00.000-07:00

Activist judge.

Judicial tyranny.

These are the kinds of words that some people (mostly conservatives) cry out against a judge when that judge overturns a law they want, or orders some kind of religious object to be removed from public grounds, or any other number of things that they order to be stopped, because that judge finds whatever it is to be either unconstitutional, or illegal.

I find these words to be annoying and the actions of the people who use these words to be both childish and foolish.

There is a very good reason why the Constitution gives judges the power to declare a law unconstitutional, and thus, illegal.

It's not to create tyranny. It's to prevent it.

If judges did not have the powers to overturn a law, then Congress or any state legislator could create any bill they want to, and unless the President, or the state governor, veto's that bill, then that bill is going to become a law, and unless some future Congress or state legislator passes another bill that voids the previous law, then no one can do anything about it.

This is why we need judges to have the power to throw out a law, and why we have a system of checks and balances in the Constitution. It is not to give judges to much power, but it is to make sure the other two branches of the government do not have to much power.

Stopping Workplace Bullying

2010-08-15T11:53:00.000-07:00

Recently New York passed a law giving workers a right... A right not to be bullied by their boss.

Basically in the law it says that if your boss is engaging in abusive behavior towards you, and the company you work for will not do anything about it, you have the right to sue both your boss and the company you work for.

I feel that this is a great law, and I feel that all states should have the same type of laws as well, because it gives all workers a right in which all people should have a right to... the right not to have to put up with abuse!

The way the economy is, this law is needed, because you just can not quit a job like you could back in the days when there were lots of jobs to get, so you would not have to put up with some abusive boss's behavior.

Plus, on top of that, the unions are not as strong as they were 30 years ago, and they would have dealt with such abusive behavior for you, but because they have been weakened over the years by laws and a negative view towards them, they just do not have the power they use to have.

Now, there are some critics, mostly those who are in management positions, or company executives, who say that such laws would only led to frivolous lawsuits by disgruntled employees, and this I can understand.

Despite the criticism, the fact is is that a law such as this would not be passed unless there was a good reason for it in the first place, just like with sexual harassment laws, and those are rarely result in actual frivolous lawsuits.

So it's time for workers to start standing up for their rights once again and tell bullying bosses "I'm not taking this from you anymore!"

Peoples' Laziness and Government Inefficiency

2010-03-04T17:26:00.000-08:00

Okay, yesterday I had to work all day. I thought I would get done by two, but instead got done by six because a local plumbing and electrical company (that is worth millions) broke a sewer pipe at the local VA hospital and they were having clog ups with it, and they just wanted us to snake it out (which we were not sure we could do because it was a six inch pipe and are snake is made for up to four inch pipe, but we got it) and make sure it was it was either dirt or something else (and that something else was roots and paper towels).

Now quite frankly I'm a bit pissed off about this job, or at least the people involved in it. First, me and dad fixed this on Wednesday, but they broke the pipe on a Monday, but the company that subbed us out only got approval on Wednesday from the people who run the local VA (at least I think that is who they got the approval from) to call us and let us do what we had to do.

Now here is the second thing that pissed me off. This company was originally going to fix the pipe themselves, but since they had us there, they "decided" to let us do it while most of them went home. In fact only one person stayed to help us, and all he did was cut the piece of pipe we needed.

Some People Need to Think Before They Jump

2010-01-19T18:26:00.000-08:00

In our culture rude, anti-social, and even destructive and/or violent behavior seems to be becoming the norm when someone says something to someone or posts something on the internet that they do not agree with, or that maybe they have done some slight to them. Some of the common responses that I have seen on the internet can be as small as flaming and defaming, to very large and possible (or highly) illegal actions such as hacking, phishing, sending viruses, impersonating the person on the internet with the intent to defame, or even finding out personal information about them and posting it. And this is just on the internet. If you have to interact with them in real life and they can not handle being disagreed, or they feel that they have been wronged in some way, it could lead to anything from verbal fights and just avoiding and not talking to each other, to fist fights and shootings, or in the case of road rage, trying to run someone off. So before you go and start ranting off at someone, or decide it's okay to shoot someone in the head because they pissed you off, take a deep breath, think about what you are doing, what the consequences could or would be, and get some help if need be, before that option is taken away.

Lazy People

2009-12-20T18:23:00.000-08:00

Why is it that some people won't shovel the sidewalk in front of their houses after it snows? Now I understand if that person is not physically able to shovel the snow. Say if you are physically disabled, or elderly, or have had surgery recently, or are dead, then I understand not being able to shovel any snow. But if they are someone who is perfectly able to shovel snow, and they won't shovel their sidewalk, then why don't they? What is worse is that some will shovel their walkway, and they will shovel out their driveway, but not they're sidewalk! What is the point in doing that for anyways if you are not going to shovel your sidewalk? I see that and it really makes me mad, because to me it says, "I can do it, but I'm to lazy to do it and don't give enough of a damn about other people to shovel my sidewalk."

Learn or Lose

2009-11-15T14:35:00.000-08:00

Some people really need to learn to either put their dogs on a leash or in a fence. If your dog is a big dog, and tends to go off wondering around the neighborhood and bark at people, then you really do need to do something that will keep it from doing that, otherwise someone will call the dog catcher and haul it off to the pound.

Just 5,000?

2009-11-11T11:21:00.000-08:00

What the heck is the point in having in having a friends limit on Facebook? Myspace doesn't do it. Are they trying to prevent a page from getting to clogged from posts from friends? I think 5,000 friends can do that. Heck, 50 friends can that. It's true, you can create a fan group with an unlimited number of fans, but ...for some people the feeling isn't the same, plus sometimes they're just created and left alone.

Rock Music?

2009-11-08T15:17:00.000-08:00

Apparently there are some people whom have no idea what "rock music" really is. Kenny G (a name I would never put in in the same sentence with either the words "rock" or "music") has, according to AOL music, has done a "rock song" Weezer (another name I would never put in in the same sentence with either the words "rock" or "music"). Does no one know what "rock music" is anymore, or for that matter, what "music" is anymore?

Hard Headed People

2009-11-08T15:14:00.000-08:00

If there is one thing I have learned, it's that people are going to do what they want to do and thats it. You say say whatever you want to say to a person, you can advise them that what they are doing will in the end just break but in the end, they will do what they want.

Be Respectful, Or Shut up

2009-11-02T15:10:00.000-08:00

Is it possible, just possible, to be opposed to something, and not attack people over the Internet, and not act like a complete jackass? I was reading an article about how Maine will end up allowing same gender marriage after the November election if the voters there approve it, but some of the comments that readers could post at the bottom of the page were some of the most ignorant and quite frankly, hate filled things I have read... for the past couple of days at least. And this is just one issue. Everything these days, regardless of what it is, seems to attract people whom seems to think they have every right to start bashing people with language that sounds similar to (or in fact is) hate speech. Maybe those people don't know that it is possible that you can not like something, and still be respectful, or, not say anything at all.

Booze is fine, but Cigarettes are not?

2009-11-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

Anybody here who watches NASCAR knows that these drivers get the majority of their money from sponsors, and some of those drivers are sponsored by companies who's products are alcoholic drinks, something that causes about half of all the automobile fatalities in this country, yet there are no regulations on the sponsorship of such products for NASCAR, but try to put one little advertisement for a cigarette company on a car, and the federal government gets up in an uproar. I've never heard of one smoker ever causing a crash just because they smoked a couple of packs before they got in their car and drove off somewhere, yet I've heard plenty of stories where a person has drank a couple of beers, and had a car crash that killed someone. Now I'm not saying we should make it illegal for beer and whiskey companies to sponsor car races, but let cigarette companies sponsor some drivers too, and make these races look a tad bit less ironic.

Some People are Beyond Mercy

2009-10-31T13:35:00.000-07:00

I am getting sick and tired of hearing about how some people are getting only a few years (or sometimes no time at all) for molesting children, and about how people who murder children do not get a death sentence, and sometimes actually have a chance to get out of prison at some point in time, and not in a pine board box like they should. And the sickest thing is is that some of those people actually try to make excuses for their actions. Well I don't care, because their is no excuse for hurting a child, there is no excuse for molesting a child, and there is defiantly no excuse for murdering a child. Anyone who molests a child should go to jail for till they are old and gray, or until they are dead. And anyone who murders a child should be executed. I understand about showing mercy, but some people are just beyond mercy.

Bring Back REAL Vampires!!!

2009-10-17T17:08:00.000-07:00

What the hell has happened to vampires? Back a few years ago vampires in movies and TV were what vampires were truly meant to be, violent, gory, and blood thirsty (literally). Now with movies like "Twilight" and TV shows like "The Vampires Diaries", and the novels those two franchises come from, vampires are now looking more like they belong on an episode of "One Tree Hill" rather than what they are truly made for, horror, like Dracula, or even better, 30 Days of Night.

The F-bomb. That big of a deal?

2009-09-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

I wonder why people get upset whenever they hear the word "fuck" on TV. It's just a word, and is it really something to get upset about? I know some people, parents especially, get upset whenever they and their kids hear the word "fuck" on TV, but whats the big deal, because it is not as if a kid is not going hear it from someone else like a friend, or someone walking down the street, or the parents themselves.

Common Sense has gone to the Nut House

2009-09-23T12:26:00.000-07:00

This week a mentally ill murderer in California, who had tried to escape once before, was captured and brought back to the asylum from which he was locked up at after he escape on a field trip to a state fair. Let me repeat this, because it bares repeating. This guy is a insane murderer, who tried to escape before, and the doctors and the officials at the asylum that he was at decided it was okay to let this person go to a place that is crowded that he could, obviously now, easily slipped away the hospital workers that were suppose to be watching him, and literally be a danger to everyone. Do these people not have any common sense?

I want it Medium Rare

2009-09-21T14:19:00.000-07:00

The lawmakers in this state passed a law a few years ago requiring restuarants not to cook beef rare or medium rare anymore? I guess the lawmakers did that because of fear of someone dying of food poisoning. I've got allot higher chances of dying because of someone at the bar who's knocked back one to many long island ice teas then I do from a hamburger with pink meat inside of it. I'm an adult, I can drink and smoke if I choose to, I don't need the government to tell me how to eat my steak.

Working on Sunday sucks, especially when you don't need to

2009-09-20T13:52:00.000-07:00

I did my daily walk earlier and I saw something that I felt should not have been happening. The City of Roanoke was having some of it's workers tear up one of the streets to get it ready to be repaved. I don't have any problems with that, but I do have a problem with that being done on a Sunday. I would think that Sunday would be the one day the city wouldn't make anyone work unless it was one of those kinds of jobs where you needed people on the job 24/7. It's not right in my opinion.

Computers do not make things easier

2009-09-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

Who ever said that computers would make our lives easier, was an idiot. That would only be true if the computer was enough to handle whatever programing was on it instantly and never had any errors, and as fare as I can tell, there is no such thing as a computer that does that, except for maybe the older ones from the 80's and early 90's. Even having one error can really piss a person off, but who has ever heard of a computer having just one error, unless they mean on error after another.

Parents and Bad Kids

2009-09-19T13:51:00.000-07:00

Why can't some parents try a little harder to control their children's bad behavior in public places. There have been many times where my nerves have been rattled in a restaurant or some other public place because of some screaming kids who won't stop stop acting up. Whats worse is that many of these times their parents don't even try to take control of their kid's behavior, other than maybe telling them to stop it, which does not work, and sometimes they just let their kids run wild. Please parents, if your kid acts up in public, teach him or her to stop doing that.

Civility on the Internet

2009-09-19T11:12:00.000-07:00

Is it just me, or does it seem that more and more people are losing all sense and civility when they come onto the internet. I understand why some people act differently over the internet, as they feel that they are more free to express themselves, but there is a fine line between being more open and negative, if not destructive behavior over the internet.

The Soap Box

2009-09-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

This is my new blog site which I call "The Soap Box". This is not a place not long, endless blogs, but short rants that everyone would probably read. I will even try to have guests come on and share their own rants.