Hey Powell, Don't let the door hit you in the...
mood: Cautiously Optimistic
As Kickin' Bird noted in a comment a couple of days ago, FCC Chairman Michael Powell is resigning his post effective in March. Since I railed about Mr. Powell in a previous post, I should probably say something about this now.
As noted above, I am cautiously optimistic. But in the back of my mind, I keep hearing an expression that Big Dadddy Greatness uses alot: "Better the devil you know than the devil you don't." Michael Powell has often whined about having "to decide whether this potty-mouth word or that potty-mouth word is a violation of the law." Of course, his policy of complete inconsistency is most assuredly not the right one. In fact, I think most people would prefer a strict definition of what is acceptable and what is not. Then at least you know. But if the FCC were to actually come up with such a thing, they'd have to justify their reasons (or would they?). And that would be one hell of congressional hearing. Honey, bring me the chips and beer, C-SPAN is all cranked up!
As much as I'm glad to see Michael Powell take his long overdue hike, I'm concerned because the Bush Adminstration doesn't appear to understand the definition of a "good winner." In his reappointments thus far, Bush has chosen polarizing, contentious candidates, instead of looking for strong candidates that support his positions but have demeanors and attitudes that are at least understanding of opposing views (like Mr. Powell's father, Colin). I'm afraid he might choose someone with even less of a clue than the current head.
But hey, someone's got to protect our children from Spongebob, right?
Vampire Elf on 01.25.05 @ 07:59 PM EST [link]
Monday, January 24th
Differences
Well, since Raul started off the day with this peachy little thought, I figured I'd throw out a neat link I found on metafilter.
Perverted, God-Hating Frenchies vs. Inbred, Sex-Obsessed Yokels
Having done that, I should also point out that he also made a great post on Whackademia.com about a core problem with modern media, one that is most likely exasperated by the need for ratings/readers/viewers, etc. This extends itself to all sorts of fields, but the main question is this: If the media feels the need to trumpet these "findings" so loudly, why do they stick the rebuttals or refutations on page 16? Why not trumpet them just as loudly? Is it unintentional, or is there really a culture of emminent disaster like Michael Crichton has been suggesting recently.
Vampire Elf on 01.24.05 @ 10:59 AM EST [link]
Tuesday, January 18th
Tuesday Toss-up
Random Things to Mention...
- My mom is doing much better! The new drug appears to be working and the level of bad cancer voodoo (a highly technical term) in her blood has lowered since she started using Faslodex, a delightful, high-powered anti-cancer drug for post-menopausal women. This is the best news the New Year could possibly bring!
- Whackademia is starting to take shape. I've changed it to a Team Blog, so Juls, Raul, and The Greatness are all posting members now. We're tying with a mission statement. My suggestion: "Whackademia - Science, Tech, Art. You like? Cool. You don't? Blow." And now everyone is looking at me funny. Sigh. Story of my life.
- Mrs. Elf is off to Sante Fe for a few days for a work-related conference. You know I don't like flying when I start having bad dreams on nights before she flies. I miss her already and she's still in Atlanta right now. Oh, and go look at the cattle-hauler that that stupid French company Airbus is debuting today. Because, you know, the more annoyed sardine people on a flight, the more fun it is!
- The first component of my multi-stage gift/Rush indoctrination program for Raul and Sarachkah's butterbean arrived this weekend. Muwwwahahahahaahah!
- Speaking of butterbeans, the second bestest news of the New Year - My brother is pregnant. Err, his wife is pregnant. That's right, this old Elf will be an Uncle later this year. Man, I can't wait to start spoiling him rotten.
That's all for now. Go eat your vegetables or something.
Vampire Elf on 01.18.05 @ 10:32 AM EST [
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Thursday, January 13th
Whackademia
It's really rough, but I have a basic version of Whackademia.com is up now, including 6 entries from the past few days. Some of them are more obvious for plot-lines, but some of them, particularly the Edge question, I liked because of the direction they led my mind.
The most recent two items were submitted by Juls and The Greatness. Thank and send more if you see neat things. I'm toying with changing the Whacakdemia model, but I'm going to wait and see how it works out over a few weeks.
Tomorrow is Friday. Barring any unexpectedness at work, I'm going to write Hawaii Day 2 during lunch.
Vampire Elf on 01.13.05 @ 09:11 AM EST [link]
Monday, January 10th
Ch-Ch-Changes
Alright - cruising on into a code-filled, reoprt writing afternoon. I've been up since 5:40. What I wouldn't give for a culture that incorporated the siesta concept right now.
Happy New Year, by the way. Between the holiday season and my mad dash to complete the second phase of my contract job, I haven't had much time to write recently. Hopefully that will change soon. In the next week, I am going to attempt to accomplish the following things:
Vampire Elf on 01.10.05 @ 12:32 PM EST [more..]
It's too early for this.
Dammit, Raul. I haven't even had my freakin' coffee yet. Go read this, but I'm warning you. Not for the feint of heart or mind. Certainly, if you are as foggy-brained as I am this Monday AM, then phrases like "mind-blown" will probably apply.
And for all my readers who lean right, don't let the discussion of Leonard Peltier's letters throw you from the cart. See, the whole point is that's Raul's reality tunnel. Check your immediate reaction and think about what he's saying without the political overtones.
Vampire Elf on 01.10.05 @ 09:44 AM EST [link]
