Hey Freak!

So, I've heard that the CEO of WGN Radio in Chicago recently sent out a memo... containing a list of 119 words and phrases that must NEVER be uttered on the radio. Yeah, just another crazy bigwig trying to assert his control over all of the little underlings. And he wants them to police each other. Just ludicrous, I say!

But then, I read why...

“The real goal here is to avoid using words that make you sound like you’re reading, instead of talking — that shatter the image you’re speaking knowledgeably to one person. By not using ‘newsspeak,’ you enhance your reputation as a communicator.”

OK, I guess I can see what he's going for. Well, let me check out the list, first...

Oh. Ohhhh OK. I totally get it. On some, nay, a LOT of these words and phrases? I'm with the guy.

For instance... yeah, I'm totally down with never hearing "5AM in the morning" again (unless we start having 5AM at other times of the day). I don't want to hear the word "Diva" unless you're talking about opera. Maybe Aretha, too. But when I hear people talk about, say, Miley being a diva, I'm going to not believe anything I hear after that.

Some of these other ones just blow me away... "mute point"? Really? You have to tell people that this is wrong? "Hunnert" instead of "hundred"? Why did you hire someone who says hunnert in the first place?

And there are a lot of clichés in there, too. "Giving 110%." "The mother of all..." "Perfect storm." I'm totally on board with not wanting to hear those ever again.

I also have to say, there are a few that I don't understand where the hate is coming from. Flee? Seek? Yeah, I don't know. But most of the other ones, yeah. I understand. He wants his employees to sound knowledegable, and not rely on that newsspeak bullshit that we're all tired of.

But wait. I started reading the comments. People are still mad? "Who would work for this idiot?" "What a joke"? "Stay classy, Chicago?"

Seriously? These people are mad because... he has the temerity to ask that his staff sound educated? I'm getting really sick of people defending their right to be lazy and uneducated. Don't get me wrong - I have nothing wrong against the lazy and uneducated, but I think it's perfectly fair that if you choose to stay that way, then you should lose your jobs. Especially when your job is to inform and educate other people.

Let me restate: I do NOT agree with the micromanaging, the policing of co-workers; his whole way of going about this was awkward at best. But he had the right intentions. I know what he was going for. I don't want my news read to me by someone who I don't think understands the news.

Check out NPR's "Wait Wait Don't Blog Me" and their take on this...

Today, March 10, happens to be the 51st anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising [official statement from the Dalai Lama]. If you don't know, it's in this uprising that the Dalai Lama was exiled (there are even pictures!).

I didn't really know any of this until yesterday... until I read some of the Dalai Lama's tweets.

Yes, I follow His Holiness, the Dalai Lama (or, HHDL for short). If you're so inclined, his Twitter handle is @DalaiLama (natch!).

But I have to say...

When I first started following him, I was expecting little nuggets of wisdom every few days or so. But I'm sad to say, his stream is kinda boring (or, it was until yesterday... and it's still kinda not so interesting). It's more like a PR kind of thing... telling us when he's appearing on Larry King, or showing links to other webcasts... stuff like that. I guess I'm kinda disappointed... I guess I was expecting more philosophy and existentialism talk. Maybe that will come later. I hope so... because I'm still following him (well, on a list). I mean, you can't un-follow HHDL; that would create bad karma, wouldn't it?

Or, does karma even know what Twitter is or how it works? Heh.

In kinda related news, I also started following Neil Degrasse-Tyson (@NeilTyson) recently. And I guess yesterday was the anniversary of the first Barbie doll. The 51st anniversary of the first Barbie doll, even.

So, file under: things I've learned through Twitter:

1. March 9 was the 51st anniversary of the Barbie doll


2. March 10 was the 51st anniversary of HHDL's exile from Tibet


3. Neil Degrasse-Tyson doesn't think much of Barbie dolls


4. Engineer Barbie was (or will be released) in 2010. For reference, the first Barbie Stewardess was released in 1961. The first Barbie astronaut was released in 1965. The Soviet Union, which didn't have Barbie... well, the first female cosmonaut came in 1963... two years before America's first fake female space traveller.


5. If Confucious were still alive, I'd totally follow his tweets

So, why am I blogging about Twitter? Well, obviously, this is much more than just 140 characters. And this happens a lot - I'll get a thought that's just a little long for Twitter. So, here we go. A new category. Too Long for Twitter.

Have a nice day!

OK, so Palin was Governor of AK for... how long? A few years? Keep that in mind for a sec...

I remember way back when I lived in AK, every year, we'd get a dividend check from the state, courtesy of a program called the Alaska Permanent Fund. What it boils down to is that the state is making so much money from oil revenues that it shares money from those revenues with all residents of the state. In other words, residents are paid to live in AK. I remember the first one was for $1000. Sounds great, right? Money from the govt.!

But wait...

Isn't that... SOCIALISM?!?!?!?

Gads, why didn't Palin stop it? From what she's been saying (along with just about every Republican in the country who wants to get re-elected), you'd think that socialism was a scourge that needed to be eradicated FOREVER. And that socialists are also COMMIES and NAZIS and holy fuck Obama is a socialist! He's Hitler reborn! Oh the humanity!

So again, my question is... why didn't Palin stop the socialism that's been running rampant in her neck of the woods since the 80's?

Easy. Nobody complains when you're giving them money.

So why do Republicans attack Obama as a socialist? He wants to give (free health care) to the poor? For shame! Tax the super rich to help the poor? No way! That's taking money OUT of YOUR wallets!!! That's BAD!!! Socialism BAD BAD BAD!

But think about it this way... you know the story of Robin Hood, right? So, who's side are you on? Robin Hood's, or the Sheriff's? Because you know, the Republicans are the Sheriff in this instance...

I digress...

Crap, I already wrote a lot more than I had intended, and have probably lost most (if not all three) of my readers by now, but in case you're still here, this is the new Palin hypocrisy: she used to live close to the Canadian border, just so she could go there for health care. You know, their socialized health care. Seriously.

"We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada," Palin said in her first Canadian appearance since stepping down as governor of Alaska. "And I think now, isn't that ironic?" [read]

Ironic? Well, maybe. But really, it just means you're a fucking hypocrite.

Everybody has goals in life... get married, have kids, travel the world, make a million dollars, etc. I have a few goals like that, too (e.g. I've been figuring out what I want in my dream house (pool, hot tub, solar panels and wind turbines, huge garden for all my hibbies).

But I also have a few goals that... well, the only thing I can do to help accomplish them is to live long.

Like... I want to live long enough so that I can go into space. You know, see it with my own eyes. Feel the weightlessness. See the Earth from... well, there's no "above" so, see the Earth from... NOT the Earth. Hell, I get all excited when I've got a clear view of the moon with my telescope... I can't imagine what seeing our planet from afar would be like. Man, that'd just be the coolest thing.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I'll live long enough. I mean, we can't even build something better than a gas engine; how can we be expected to be smart enough for space travel? Add to that the fact that most people don't give a shit about space, what's out there, or anything that doesn't directly involve them. Or their favorite celebrity. Evidence of water on the moon? On Mars? Who fucking cares? What, so we'll send a big blender up there? Quit wasting my time and tell me some IMPORTANT news, like what's happening with Brangelina, or when the next episode of Jersey Shore is on.

But I'm not here to argue the merits of continuing the space program... I just want to say PLEASE continue the damned thing, so that I might make it into space someday.

update 3/10/2010: This is awesome! What was I saying? We need better engines. And now it looks like we have the technology... the question is... do we have the will to move forward with this?

Funny. A few days ago, I read this article about the intelligence of dolphins...

Dolphins have been declared the world’s second most intelligent creatures after humans, with scientists suggesting they are so bright that they should be treated as “non-human persons”.

Studies into dolphin behaviour have highlighted how similar their communications are to those of humans and that they are brighter than chimpanzees. These have been backed up by anatomical research showing that dolphin brains have many key features associated with high intelligence.

The researchers argue that their work shows it is morally unacceptable to keep such intelligent animals in amusement parks or to kill them for food or by accident when fishing. [entire article]

Interesting prospect.

And then yesterday, this happened:

A SeaWorld killer whale snatched a trainer from a poolside platform Wednesday in its jaws and thrashed the woman around underwater, killing her in front of a horrified audience. [entire article]

Wow. Sounds like someone was kinda tired of doing tricks for fish. Seriously. (remember, killer whales are actually dolphins -- the largest species of dolphin)

Dolphins, killer whales, whales... really, we have no freaking clue how "intelligent" these mammals are. I mean, sure, they're pretty smart, but they don't live "up" to human standards. They can't make art, or compose symphonies, or write great novels. We're obviously much more smerter... [/sarcasm]

But then again...

Dolphins... they know how to round up a whole crapload of fish in a big, scary ball, using only air bubbles, and then feast on the big ball 'o food. Killer whales... well, I saw an article where a killer whale showed that it could take out a great white shark by itself - by stunning it, then holding it upside down, where it would fall in a trance and eventually drown. Shoot, we (humans) didn't figure out that shark trance thing until just recently! I mean, that's pretty bad ass. And people are surprised when a killer whale gets bored of doing stupid tricks?

I think the age of Sea World has passed. These animals are too smart to exploit like this. Let the wild animals go, let the captive ones go to aquariums, and everyone's happy. I dunno... does that sound like a good idea?

Either way, here is a card that someone might want to send to Sea World in FL.

Since I've started blogging again, I figure I should do my best to finish out my "100 Things About Me" section. Where are we at?

51. 98% of the time, I hear music

OK, so, most of the time, when it's quiet and I'm just thinking to myself, I hear music. Usually, it's something I just listened to, or something I heard on a commercial, or sometimes, it's just some random song that got picked out of the archives (this week, it's been the March of Carmen. yeah, bizarre, I know). But there's almost always music. And it's not annoying somehow. It's just like... background music. You know, like you'd listen to when you're doing housework.

Or here's another way it shows up... a lot of times, when I'm just sitting here thinking about stuff (and wanting a Pepsi), I'll just start tapping out rhythms... beats... maybe a little humming to myself. Does anyone else do that? Do you find it hard NOT to do that?

Sometimes, I'll make up words to [whatever song] to match whatever I'm doing... especially if it has to do with Lulu. I don't know how many "feeding a bunny" and "petting a bunny" songs I've made up (and, sadly, sung out loud) in the past year. But I'm pretty sure this isn't weird. I know you dog owners out there sing some weird stuff, too.

But, back to the music in my head thing... does anyone else have this? I've noticed that sometimes I even type to whatever song's in my head. Just sometimes.

What's weird is, I don't even play an instrument. I don't sing. The last thing I played was the violin back in... 9th grade (and yes, I do vividly recall having to practice March of Carmen). But I haven't done anything musically since then... well, unless you count playing Rock Band a couple of times. So why does music still rule me?

One more thing... I know there are people with tin ears. I know that there are people who don't like music.

Who are these people?

I don't mean that in a bad way... I just... well, I just can't imagine NOT liking music, so the concept fascinates me. I would love to hear the thoughts of non-music lovers...

Daddy, Cesar Millan's pit bull and right hand man, died yesterday. Now, you might think I'm crazy for being sad for a dog I've never met, but... well, if you saw the show (The Dog Whisperer), you'd know. You'd be sad, too. He was just such a good dog...

Cesar's official statement is here.

If you'd like to read more about Daddy, you can go here. There's an article with a video tribute to Daddy here. Also, there's an interesting interview with Cesar shortly before Daddy's passing here.

If you'd like to see NatGeo's photo tribute to Daddy, it's here. My favorite picture is this one... the mural is just so... Daddy. In case you're curious, my favorite episode with Daddy is actually one that never aired - it's on the Season 2 DVD set, and it features Jada Pinkett-Smith and her pack (a lot of whom you'll recognize from the dog psychology center) trying to learn how to teach dogs to avoid snakes. Daddy's in there too, of course, and when it comes time to see if he's learned his lesson about snakes, well... I don't want to give away the ending, but his reaction is pretty hilarious.

RIP Daddy. We'll miss you.



Photo: Todd Henderson/MPH - Emery/Sumner Joint Venture