Defining the Koda

I signed up for a group a while back called NaBloPoMo. National Blog Posting Month. Basically the idea is that during the month of November every member of the group has to post something every day. I'm going to try my best to do this, but we'll see at the end of November.

So since I'm about to start a month of daily blogging, I figured it would be good to kick it off with a discussion of who and what the Urban Koda stands for...

My identity is somewhat of a secret... A few people know who I am, and I try and keep it that way. I'm not so worried of people finding out my true identity, I'm more worried about people who know my true identity, finding out about the Urban Koda. This worried me a little because I am not one who likes to live a double life, but I have found that certain people, mostly family, just can't handle some of this stuff... So in my normal life I discuss these topics with care, whilst as the Urban Koda, nothing is sacred!

Originally this blog was supposed to be about the power of the human soul... It's somehow morphed into a hodge podge of political commentary, religeous observations and just random thoughts I have had.

So if I were to define the Urban Koda...

• I believe in freedom. No-one is a slave unless they choose to be.
  
• I beleive in the infinite power of the human soul. Your body may limit your physical interaction with the world around you, but your mind and soul are limitless.
  
• Generally religeon is for weak minded individuals who want to be part of the herd. True religeon should help a man realize his full potential. Realizing that full potential shifts power from a religeous organization to the individual, and therein lies the conflict of interest.
  
• I believe in God and Christ. However not in the way most people do. I would tell you, but conversations like this normally end with the other party testifying about Satan and telling me I'm headed straight to hell...
  
• I don't like politicians. Most of greedy self centered scum bags.
  
• I'm not a republican
  
• I'm not a democrat
  
• I don't think you can do something good based on a foundation of deceit. Sorry Bush, but the Iraq war and your plans to form an American Union don't sit well with me for that exact reason.
  
• Everything should be questioned.
  
• Pure Religeon, Pure Science should take us to the same place.
  
• I cannot control you, and you cannot control me. Attempting to do so is the reason for all the crap going on in the world right now.
  
• I love exercise - to the point that it I might have an obsesssion with it. This is new for me, but I hope it continues. I would like to compete in an IronMan triathlon before I turn 40.
  
• I believe that all men are created equal. We're all born into different circumstances, but we can all succeed.
  
• Success is not wealth. Wealth is not success. Success is being headed in the right direction for you.
  
• I'm frequently sarcastic - Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, but it's still a form!!
  
• I abhore violence
  
• I believe in the American Constitution. I choose to believe in it. I think that it should be held up as a light to the world, but never imposed upon them.
  
• I like most music, movies and just life in general.
  
• I would like to strip my life of all prejudices. Prejudice is just another way of defining fear and ignorance.
  

So that's me, or at least part of me... I'll be interested to see where I end up after 30 straight days of posting.

Morons Anonymous

I feel a little like I'm in some 12 step program and I'm up to the part where I'm going around apologizing to people.

About a month or so back I discovered Face-book... In the last month, I have reconnected with people from Elementary School, High School and various other periods in my life. I did a blog about that time about how much I have changed over the last 15-20 years and that still holds true.

Amongst the old friends I have reconnected with, are 2 ex-girlfriends. With one exception none of the girls, I dated and I were still on speaking terms. That one exception was a mutual break-up. She was in New Zealand and me in South Africa, and we both sent a letter about the same time indicating that things probably weren't going to work out. We ended up as excellent friends, although I have kind of lost touch in recent years. It's tricky balancing relationships with past flames and a wife. My wife is incredible, and I would never even consider leaving her, so when it comes down to it, if something is going to jeapardize that relationship, it gets given up really quickly.

Anyway, back to the ex-girlfriends... I was a social moron as a teenager. I approached relationships as an all or nothing type thing, and then followed Hitler's idea of using a strict scorched earth policy if things went wrong - it pretty much worked out as well for me as it did for him though.

For the past decade or so, I've often worried about how I left things with some of these young ladies, and while hopefully I have learned from those experiences, it still bugged me how things ended.

In the last month though I have been able to make contact with 2 of them, and have decent civil email conversations with them. Time is definitely a great healer, but also I have apologized to both for my being a complete moron all those years ago. I have been pleasantly surprized at how good it has felt to get those monkey's off my back, especially when I wasn't even really aware the monkey was there.

I'm hoping at this point though that I can figure out how to help my kids learn these lessons before they start dating. Pretty much the only advise I got from my parents was that "I was being too physical" and then some other really bad advise based on how they perceived the various girls. It seems like they always really liked the ones they shouldn't have, and disliked they should have, thinking they were the other way around.

It feels good to apologize and right past wrongs - Of course it would be better if I learned my lessons earlier rather than later, but I'm sure I'll be finding things to apologize for later in life that I am doing now, because I'm still a moron at times.

Something for everyone...

I remember hearing a montage of John Kerry sound clips back in 2004. Basically they illustrated how he was on both sides of every argument. The end message was that no matter what your view, John Kerry believed the same way as you. Funny in a way, but also a disturbing view of what politics has become.

When you look at the field for the 2008 election season, I think what we have is a field of establishment supported politicians, who care more about their personal comfort than the American people. I find their lack of integrity sickening and am not sure if I would trust any of them to sit the right way on a toilet seat, let alone run a great nation.

2008 will also be the first year that I will be able to participate in the Presidential Election, courtesy of the Immagration and Customs Enforcement agency of Homeland Security, so this is of particular interest to me.

In this field of what could only be described as scum bags, there are however 2 exeptions. Barrock Obama is an interesting candidate, his desire to work for the people and not take money from sources which he feels are corrupting politicians has definitely interested me a lot more in him. I don't know enough about him to make an educated analysis of his platform, but I would definitely like to find out more.

Ron Paul is the other exception, not only in the Presidential Race, but in almost every aspect of politics. The more I read about him, hear him and learn about him, the more I like him. Some of his idea's seem a little extreme, but he has excellent logic to support those ideas. He is a politician of the people who calls it as he sees it, and does not change his views based on what he thinks you want to hear from him.

• If you are against the Iraqi war, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you are for border security, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you are concerned with all the meddling we do in world affairs, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you would like to see America get out of debt and limit government spending, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you would like to help people become self sufficient and succeed, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you believe in freedom, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you believe in Civil Liberties, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  
• If you feel something is very wrong with modern politics, Ron Paul is an excellent candidate.
  

The thing that I like about him the most is that he believes that the more complex an issue, the more localized it needs to be.

Schools shouldn't be handled federally, they should be handled locally, so you can have more say on how things are done.
Abortion and other hot topics are much the same.

Ron Paul is a candidate that will let you live you live and continue to pursue life, liberty and happiness. He is a true American and in the race to make a difference to the country not for himself.

A vote for Ron Paul, isn't a wasted vote, it's a vote for you, me and America.

Gay Marriage

As promised, albeit late here is the posting on Gay Marriage.

I used to be very against gay marriage. I used to think some pretty low things of any one with homosexual leanings. I owe the whole community an apology.

I'm not sure why I felt that way, but the feeling went pretty deep and was significant.

I think the change happened a year or two back, while talking to an excellent friend of mine. He asked me what I was scared of.

That's an interesting question. If you've been reading this blog from the beginning, you'll know my feelings on fear and how overused and abused it is in our society. On the subject of Gay Marriage I have heard the following arguments...

It will destroy the traditional family

It diminishes the sanctity of marriage

It's a sin

OK, first off, how are two people committing to live together going to destroy my family? This is almost a non-argument. They love each other, respect each other and are committed to work together to achieve something better than either could achieve on their own. When you think about it, doesn't America need more people who are willing to make these kinds of decisions.

The sanctity of marriage.... Hmmmm. Britney Spears likes being in the spotlight so lets look at her. She had a 'traditional' marriage, and I'm not sure there was too much sanctity in that one - Actually isn't this marriage #2 for her? Liz Taylor, Pamela Anderson and the list could go on for weeks. How an earth can you claim that our society believes in any kind of sanctity of marriage when this is going on, and don't even get me started on the divorce rate in traditional marriages.

It's a sin! Do you know what I think is worse... Raising kids who are self-righteous bigots. Who determines what is a sin and what isn't. Sure I may not choose to live a homosexual lifestyle, but that doesn't make it a sin.

So before I launch to much further into my tirade, let me summarize my feelings thought and beliefs on Gay Marriage. I think it's a good and fair thing. If two consenting adults want to commit to live together and take care of one another, by all means let them get married. Let them have access to all the benefits of medical insurance of a spouse, tax advantages and everything else. It's the right thing to do, it's fair and I think it would make the world a better place.

Please feel free to disagree, just make sure you back it up with some solid reasons why.

Gay Marriage and My Drug of Choice

Sorry folks, this week has flown by and this will be my first posting for it. If it makes you feel any better, I'm three or four days behind on my reading of the Dilbert blog too...

I'll start off with a discussion on my drug of choice... well, let start off with a funny story! I was involved in a leadership council at the Church I attend. This was about a year ago. At the time I was working full time, had an almost full time home business and was struggling to keep family, sleep and everything else in balance. I figured I could cut down on sleep, but caffeine only helps so far. So there we sit, three or four of us, and an idea comes to mind... Being an idiot, I open my mouth. I say idiot, because invariably when I say something wacky with a straight face, people think I am serious and all kinds of problems ensue. "Do you think God would be OK with us taking Crystal Meth to help us be more effective in our positions as Church leaders? I mean we would have so much more energy and could get a lot more done..." STUNNED SILENCE, and then the stammering..., "Um, uh, well, um, a God would, well um, drugs, bad..." - "No seriously guys, as long as we used it in a responsible way, I don't think he would mind" - "Um uh, well um, I er" Anyway, I am no longer in that council - Not sure if my ideas for greater effectiveness had anything to do with that though.

So why Crystal Meth - well personally, I wouldn't choose to use it purely because of the side effects. I had a friend who tried it once, and he described it as if he had thousands of alarm clocks going off at once, and while he had the energy, he just didn't know how or what to do. I guess the brain damage would be a factor in my decision as well.

I was sick last week, and so the doctor prescribed a bunch of stuff, including some souped up Psuedoephedrine pills. You have to sign all kinds of Department of Justice stuff when you get them, since they are trying to crack down on Meth production (and these are a major ingredient, aparently). I like pseudoephedrine - it ramps up the heart and makes you feel really good. I don't think I've slept more than 4 or 5 hours each night all this week, but even now I feel FanFreakingTastic!

Psuedoephedrine is my drug of choice, now I just need to learn how to spell it right!

I wanted to touch on my opinions on Gay Marriage as well, but this post is getting a wee bit long... Perhaps later in the day!

For the record... I do not endorse Crystal Meth production or use. I was kidding when I raised it at the Church Council meeting. And I only use Psuedoephedrine when I have a major cold or other sinus infection - besides if you use it too much, it does't pack the same punch each time and that just not a responsible way to use drugs!

And the Nobel Prize for Credibility Assassination goes to...

...The Nobel Prize committee.

I have always considered the Nobel Prize to be an award for those who achieve excellence in a particular field.

Recently a University of Utah professor received it for discovering a method to genetically alter DNA in mice to simulate various diseases. Simply amazing stuff.

Nelson Mandela received it for his contribution to world peace, and having heard him speak in person, I think it was very well deserved.

Jimmy Carter got it for peace as well, and while I personally feel he does more to cause problems, you have to admire a man who tries his best to resolves situations without resorting to war.

Al Gore was just nominated to receive the award for his contribution to informing the Globe about the dangers of Climate Change. Well he has done a good job propogating this flawed philosophy, you would think that a committee such as the Nobel Prize committee would be able to rise above the hype that Global Warming has become.

There is one way in which I guess he may have earned it...

With politician on both sides of the political spectrum now running to jump on the Climate Change bandwagon, this is an issue which could have the potential to bring people on all sides together. By focussing on a common enemy (although in this case the enemy is just an illusion) it could have had the potential to bring the world together.

The flaws with this approach though are definitely worse than the potential problems with global climate change.

1. People are being manipulated to stand together on an issue because it is being used to instill fear into them. Fear is a great tool to shut down logical thinking and stimulate a group to follow a single idea, unquestioningly.

2. Almost everytime this is raised by a politician, they invariably end up promising legislation to prevent this calamity. The last thing this world needs is more government intervention and involvement.

3. Global warming is a myth. It's not science and at some point it will be debunked on a global level. I call the resulting effect of this, the 'Santa Claus Effect', because as a child, when I discovered the truth of Santa Claus, I started to wonder what else my parents had lied about. While it will cause people to question what they are told, which is good in and of itself, but it will also cause a significant amount of ill feeling and mistrust. Mistrust is something that politicians and other supporters of Climate Change deserve right now, but I don't think it would form a very good basis for a functional society.

So in summary, while the Nobel prize may indeed be a great honor to receive, awarding it to someone like Al Gore, seriously diminishes that honor. Sorry guys, but you really should have thought this one through.

Scientific Cascades Amongst Others

Scott Adams referred to an article in the New York Times in this morning's blog. He used evolution as an example in explaining the article, but I would like to look at 2 or 3 other examples to which it could be applied. The article itself is very informative, itself using the debate over the benefits of low-fat diets to illustrate the point. I would highly recommend reading it...

NY Times - Diet and Fat: A Severe Case of Mistaken Consensus

So basically what seems to happen is that a scientist or other notable person makes a discovery, observes something, or comes up with a theory. Other scientists then follow his lead, adding their voices to the cause, and before long a significant consensus is built, not based on scientific fact, but simply on the idea that, that many smart people can't be wrong.

So let's look at a few examples:

I posted an entry yesterday on Global Warming. If you reviewed some of the supporting material I provided, you will no doubt have seen that the initial idea about the temperature change was from a graph showing average temperatures with a sharp increase in the early 80's. Recently it was found that a change was made in the way average temperatures were calculated, this change however was not retroactively applied to temperatures prior to the change, and the result was a graph showing irrefutable evidence that the planet is warming.

I have found that human nature seems to see what it wants to see if it approaches a problem with a presumed idea of the outcome. I had a co-worker years ago come and ask me to speak with the boss about a potential idea. I forget the specifics, but lets say the employee thought making widget A was a good idea, but felt that the boss would just shoot it down. We entered the office. Coworker presented the idea that widget A would be a good idea. The boss agreed. The coworker then provided every possible reason as to why widget A was a bad idea, and had no chance of succeeding. The boss listened, and then agreed with him, that it might not be in the best interests of the company. We left the office, and co-worker turned to me, and said something to the effect of... "Did you see how he just shot my idea down? He does it all the time."

Something else where this happens is religeon. A significant leader proposes an idea, whether from a divine source or his own brain. Followers assume he speaks for God and start to teach it as coming from a divine source, and before long, a simple musing or idea turns into a rigid doctrine. Some years ago, a leader in the denomination with which I affiliate made a comment on preparing to be a missionary... He said that it required a certain amount of preparation, and that you could not base your efectiveness purely on "how many kills you had achieved in a video game." He got some good laughs, and I think the intent of his message was not that video games were bad, but that the preparation was needed in other area's of life as well. Last year, our local leader decided that it was innappropriate for any member of the congregation to engage in video game tournaments, citing the point made by the afforementioned leader. Blindly everyone followed - except me! My house went up for sale shorly thereafter! I'd prefer not to live amongst men who abuse their presumed authority and a bunch of sheep who follow them blindly, but that's beside the point!

The more I think about this, the more I can see it in the world around me... Politics, Academics, Sports, and the list goes on and on.

I think the key is getting people to think for themselves. When an idea is articulated by a person, that idea should be judged on it's own merits, rather than on the merits of the person who proposes it.

Egg on my face...

The Salt Lake Tribune had a terrifying headline today, and it just got worse as I read the first paragraph:

Greenhouse pollution: Utah warming faster than anywhere else on Earth

Utah is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions per capita than the rest of the nation. The state is warming faster than anywhere else on the planet. And if nothing changes, prolonged, extreme droughts and heat waves are virtually assured.

The grim findings released Tuesday in the final report from Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s Blue Ribbon Advisory Council on Climate Change are bad news for coming generations. But they also underpin scores of suggestions for an action plan to shrink the state's carbon footprint, a goal the governor intends to pursue.

KSL TV had the same story, only a little less dire.

Task Force Makes Suggestions about Global Warming

Global warming is for real, human activity is likely causing most of it, and it could mean serious consequences for Utah. The Governor's office released those scientific conclusions today, along with recommendations for doing something about the problem.

The governor appointed a Blue Ribbon Task Force on Climate Change more than a year ago. They in turn asked climate experts for a scientific report. But whether you believe the conclusions in their final report issued today, the Task Force is asking you to be part of the solution.

Is the earth's climate warming up? The science report for the Governor's Blue Ribbon Task Force says, "There is no longer any scientific doubt... There is very high confidence that human-generated increases in greenhouse gas concentrations are responsible for most of the global warming observed during the past 50 years."

Let me begin by apologizing to the rest of the world for causing your problems with global warming. I and every other Utah hang our heads in shame.

There are a few tips to follow when telling a good lie. These stories followed half of those tips, but missed the boat on the others.

Tip #1: Clever liars give details, but the cleverest don't. I think this was how my parents knew when I was lying, because it always involved some elaborate story. These two articles contain no details about any scientific evidence what-so-ever. Of course in the case of this article it might be handy to be able to look up those references for yourself, but since there is "No longer any scientific doubt..." I guess I don't need to.

Tip #2: A lie needs to be 95% truth. The idea here is you want the lie to be believable. For so time, I have been seeing reports about Beijing, especially in light of the Olympics there next year. They have problems with pollution, due to all the green house gases being pumped out by power plants. Surprisingly though, UT, a state with an abundance of forests and open land is worse than China - at least that is what the idiot reporters would have us believe.

Seriously though folks, this is the biggest load of CRAP I have even read - well except for when the HR Rep at my last employer tried to explain their compensation philosophy or complete lack there-of, but that could be the subject for another blog!

I have stated before, that I feel it is important to take care of the environment, but I believe we should do that out of personal responsibility, rather than by being manipulated by moron politicians and reporters after a story.

If you would like to understand why this is such a big deal, I would really recommend reading Michael Crichton's State of Fear

Chester the Bear has also written some excellent posts on this matter, and providing this link to an excellent series of video's from the Scientific Community about why the climate data is faulty, as well as the natural cycles of the earth, through which the earth is continuing to go.

As for the reporters, politicians and everyone else involved in the BS that is this 'news' story... Most of probably just well-meaning, yet absolutely and completely ignorant, to which I say... tsk, tsk, tsk!

Look to your left and look to your right ...

one of them is going to become a terrorist. I remember being told this in a high school assemby one morning. Statistics then were that 1 in every 3 youths would run off to join one of the terrorist factions fighting the apartheid regime. Back then I figured it would probably be me. Not that I believed in the principles of terrorism then, or even now. But something was wrong, and needed to be changed.

I do not now, nor have I ever advocated the use of force to overthrow a government.

My wife and I watched "The Interpreter" over the weekend. I've seen it before, but I've been watching a few movies lately with political themes linked to Southern Africa, and it seemed like this would be a good time to see it again. I would highly recommend this movie.

Last weekend I watched a movie called "Stander". This film was based on the true story of a Police Captain turned bank robber in South Africa in the later 70's and early 80's. When I remember them talking about him on the news, I recall that he was always painted as a criminal and little reference was ever made to his political motivations. His story is incredible, although not one with a 'Happily Ever After' ending.

These movies have got me thinking about a lot of things. Most especially about making a difference.

When I was a kid living under the Apartheid government, I knew something was wrong. Subsequent time spent amongst the Zulu people of South Africa, revealed to me the utter hell that this time was for these people, and the incredible deception perpetrated by the government.

I think there is a lot of similar deception going on now with the US government as well, and likely most governments through out the world.

In 'The Interpreter' they speak about how a liberator will use force to free his country from an oppressive dictator, only to turn into an even worse dictator, once he gets a taste of power.

I'm tired of being lied to. I'm tired of corrupt men who have positions of authority, but yet use those positions for selfish means. I'm tired of the polarization of our society.

I think that more than 90% of the worlds population are good decent people. The percentage is likely even higher than that. The problem is that we are taught separation from the time we are kids. We are taught to manipulate others to get them to think the same way as us, because we have a better government, we have a better way of living, we are part of a true church and everyone else is wrong.

This way of think permeates every part of our culture. It's the reason we go to war and probably causes most other problems as well - if not all of them.

I think it would be overly ambitious to believe that I could change the world, but I think I would be failing as a human if I didn't try...

The key is going to be... What is the best way to break out of this horrible cycle?

War is definitely not the answer, but I'm still not sure what is.

Rat Head Safe to Eat

This article in the Salt Lake Tribune is a piece of journalistic genius. It took a while to read, since I kept having to stop to catch my breath from laughing so hard, but it was well worth it.

Rat Head Safe To Eat

6th Continent Added...

I added a tool to this blog a couple of weeks back, to track the locations of my visitors. As of a couple of days ago, it has been visited by people from 6 continents. The final one to fall was Africa, and if it was who I suspect it was, I owe a very special young lass, a huge thank-you. Not only has she had a remarkable effect on my life since I first met her some 20 years ago, but hitting 6 continents in no small accomplishment.

Thanks to all who have read, commented and otherwise influenced this blog - I really appreciate each of you.

As a side note, if anyone visits from Antarctica... Please let me know in a comment - I don't think the map utility knows what or where Antarctica is.

Testify

Before I begin this blog... I just added the Dilbert blog to the list of links on the right. It's a lot more edgy than the cartoon, but Scott Adams raises very valid points, in a very humorous way. Today's contribution tackles Our Alleged Freedom, a very well written analogy of the situation we face in the US, and likely in other countries too.

Now to the topic at hand. First a bit of a warning... I had a friend a long time ago, who tried to get a boycott going against a local radio station because they dared to start a show with the question... "Does God Exist?". If you would have supported him in that move, this blog entry probably isn't for you... Actually, I would think most of the entries in this blog aren't for you! Personally I don't think there is a problem questioning something, as long as your approach is to find truth. If you choose to ignore this warning, and then write nasty comments because you choose to be offended by it, please understand that I do retain the right to tear you down!

So I was at the gym last night, doing a good cardio workout, and my buddy and I were watching a women's soccer game on TV. The station is run by a local religeous school, and often has religeous programming. Following the game, a scene appeared with a women walking through the desert with a pot on her head. I'll be honest that I was expecting the new Ford Focus or the Nissan Rogue to fly out of the dust and have some momentous event happen as part of an ad, but it never did.

Turns out the ad, was actually a program on the story of "The Woman at the Well" in the New Testament... We switched back to the Music station a little while later, but that small portion I did see, got me thinking...

Let me switch to the point of this entry, and then I'll come back to the woman at the well. The religeon I affiliate with, as well as numerous others, teaches the principle of having a testimony, based on your faith. To lay it out, faith is basically believing in something you haven't seen. A testimony is the expression of that faith. A believer might share something like, "I believe in God, I believe in Christ, I believe in the Resurection..." etc.

While religeons may differ in aspects of this, I was taught that this whole process begins with a desire to believe, from then, you start to express this desire as a belief, and the more you share it, the stronger it gets. If you stop sharing it, and working on it, it gradually fades away...

So back to the well. If you are not familiar with the story, the cliffnotes version is this. Lady comes to the well. Jesus is sitting there. He asks her to draw him some water. They discuss some other stuff - cultural differences etc. Jesus tells her that anyone who drinks from the well will thirst again, whereas he can offer a drink that they will never thirst again from.

This story is often used to teach testimonies and other related things with the Gospel. But as I listened to the story, and thought about what I know about testimonies, I see a problem.

The human brain is immensly powerful. So powerful in fact, that it can actually take an illusion and place it as a filter to reality. People who have these illusions (and most do) see things the way they want to see them, and not necessarily as they are. The process to gain a testimony that I described before, is the process of talking yourself into an illusion of God. Ironically, when you compare it with the story, it's like the water from the well. You can drink it, but unless you keep drinking, it goes away, leaving you thirsty.

So what then is the water that will leave you not being thirsty for ever more? I think that it is finding truth, rather than convincing yourself of faith. Finding truths that are verifiable and eternal in nature will start you on a life long journey of finding more truth. You won't have to keep trying to convince people of your beliefs in God and other spiritual things, you'll know what you know, and know that you cannot convince others of it.

I had a testimony as prescribed by my Church until a year or two back. It was kind of like a house of cards, and when one card got moved by a friend, the whole thing came down - not a pleasant experience, let me tell you! But at the same time, it has turned out to be the best experience of my life. I have discovered some amazing things, and will yet discover many more. The best part is, I am no longer being sucked into a religeous fanatical void, where I have to continually convince myself of what is true... I know, and it's definitely not what I thought, and I also know that I know very little too.

Fairness

I heard a quote by Ted Kennedy on the radio the other night... It was in reference to the Childrens Health Insurance Program and how it was a very fair program, and since American's understand fairness, they wanted the bill to be passed.

You might remember good ol' Teddy as the poster child for "It's OK to get drunk and drive your girlfriend into a river, and forget to tell anyone, as long as your family are well connected."

So in a nutshell, here's the deal... People have kids, and then decide that they can't afford to provide them with basic medical care. Since obviously I am to blame for their bad decisions, taxes which are taken from me in an unconstitutional manner are then used to provide insurance for these kids. Sounds fair to me so far, I mean it's all about the kids right?

I am especially proud that the kids of a relative of mine are covered under this program as well. Here you have two people who chose to have kids, who could barely afford a recent trip abroad, fancy furniture for their home and a host of other 'necessities'. Fortunately because we believe in fairness, my taxes pay for their kids insurance, and my kids were more than happy to settle with a big summer vacation which was pretty much just an afternoon at the local swimming pool.

Yes, Mr. Kennedy I understand fairness real well...