From the Bell Tower

Turns out I have three sisters...

2011-01-21T13:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, two flesh and blood sisters and an ongoing obsession with the band Sister Hazel. Guess which one this post is about.

Oh, my sisters are more than worthy of their own blog posts. Scores of them. But at the end of the day, those relationships have complexity. Nuance.

Today, I'd rather talk about one of the simplest, least nuanced relationships I have. Simply put, Sister Hazel makes music. I get happy. Done.

Mind you, I've rediscovered this great band from my college days only in the past 6 months. Taking advantage of the many, many, many free downloads available in Amazon's mp3 download section I stumbled onto a Sister Hazel tune. And not one from our collective glory days of the mid-90s.

As it turns out this band continues to pump out album after album of amazing music. And they give away songs that most acts would happily lock away into a vault searching for a ridiculous record deal. Songs like "Hello, It's Me," "Walls and Cannonballs," "Everything Else Disappears," "Ghost in the Crowd..." I could go on, but you get the point.

Honestly, my goal here is not to convert you and recruit new "Hazelnuts."

Yes, there is a term for this sickness.

Rather, my aim is to discuss bliss and embracing yours. I know Sister Hazel doesn't do it for everyone. My own lovely wife thinks I'm... Well, I'm not exactly sure what she things about my love of the band, but I doubt it is pretty. For her, it is Dave Matthews. Or sometimes Tool. Or sometimes Willie Nelson. (Damn, she is COOL!)

We all have something different. Music for some of us. Sports. Food. Alcohol. Cigarettes... Some stress relievers are better than others. But we all have one.

This music, these gravelly harmonies, they charge me. I stick in my headphones and crank the iPhone and suddenly I'm not grudgingly slopping through the dishes. My feet start tapping. My neck begins moving independently of my body. This fat old white man's body starts bouncing around almost to the beat. Before you know it, I'm getting household chores done AND giving the poor neighbors a show through our big, curtain-less kitchen window.

So I tell you that to tell you this...

Stress kills. And more so than we thought. On the elliptical this morning I was reading a National Geographic Special on PBS (it's called Closed Captioning, people) called "Killer Stress."

Turns out, stress really does horrific things to us. And when we say it ages you, we aren't talking about a few gray hairs. At the tips of every strand of DNA are these little caps called Telomers.

If you are familiar with cloning science, you are already familiar with telomers. They've been frustrating scientists in that field for years and years. If not, well, think of them as the little plastic tips on your shoelaces, the aglets. Over time, that tip will wear away and then your shoestring starts to fray.

Well, telomers do the same thing for our DNA. They protect it and keep it from unraveling. As we grow older, they grow shorter.

Stress hormones speed up that process.

Yep. Stress LITERALLY can cause you to unravel.

Who says sciences isn't creepy... cool... creepy... creepy and cool.

If you get a chance to go and watch that program, I do recommend it. Very interesting piece of television, with or without the Closed Captioning turned on. Loads more interesting things about stress and its effects on our health and relationships, not to mention the specific, frightening things it does to your brain. Seriously, last minute cram sessions for college kids: horrible idea!

The point, dear patient reader of my rambly, ramblingness, ... Find something. Music. Sports. Blowing bubbles in your milk. I don't care what. Just something that makes you feel light and happy.

I'm convinced that most stress is a choice. As is most joy. The world happens around us as it does. But we decide what to empower. And too often we empower the upsetting and unsettling.

Joy isn't hard to find in this world. But it is awfully easy to dismiss and diminish. So don't. No matter how simple or trivial, embrace your happiness and put down the stress no matter how massive it would seem.

I say this All For You. Change Your Mind and you'll be Happy. So Concede and believe me, and go find your Champagne High.

Speaking of happy. Sister Hazel's acoustic version of "Happy" from the Before the Amplifiers album... Wow.

Texas 4-H Centennial Clover

2008-06-12T14:02:00.001-07:00

What the...

2007-08-28T14:10:00.001-07:00

You might want to read these to know what I'm about to rant about:

http://newsok.com/article/3112638/1188314407
http://www.ocolly.com/2007/08/28/osu-stillwater-moves-up-deadline-for-campus-going-tobacco-free/

I need a few minutes on the soapbox. Hope you don't mind. Feel free to argue. Or agree. Or just laugh at the angry white whale screaming in the street. I just need to vent and you made the list of folks that get suffer through it. Sorry for that. That said, here we go...

---

What the HELL is up with my alma mater?!?!?!?!?!?

Okay, it was bad enough that they threatened (I haven't heard if they actually went through with it, cause I'm stuck in Texas) to use eminent domain to seize private property for that danged athletic village (which the AV idea is cool, but to use ED for THAT, calling that Village a PUBLIC USE???) and now this nanny state smoking ban in the great outdoors of our beloved campus (except of course for outside the Foreign Student dorms, which opens a whole different can of worms, seriously, OSU will work to save the Okie's and even the Jersey kids, but screw the foreigners???) that I'm just now reading about... (I'm in Texas so news travels SLOOOOOOOWLY)...

Berkley I can see doing that. NYU. Sure. Even the danged ole U of Texas in Austin. BUT Oklahoma Friggin' State!?!?!?!

I love my Cowboy's. Always will. I have Cowboy pride in winning years and ramp it up twice as much in losing years. But today I am struggling not to be ashamed.

I understand the logic on the smoking ban. And as a smoker that wishes he'd never started, I can see the glory in a smoke-free campus. I even understand the temptation to use ED for that property for the Village. But both should be SO quickly trumped by the basic guiding principles of freedom, personal responsibility and personal property...These options should NEVER have been seriously considered by our hallowed institution. This is NOT the behavior that they taught me.

And its NOT 'cause I'm a smoker. This could just as easily been banning caffeine or Oreo's or cats from campus cause some people are allergic to cat dander. Its friggin' ridiculous regardless of WHAT is being banned.

What REALLY blew my mind was reading that they would offer free patches and gum to students. It annoys me that its not for faculty too, but that could just be bad reporting. Regardless, its a BAD idea. Nicotine replacement can be dangerous. Throw on three patches at once and you are darn likely to have yourself a heart attack. Hopefully, won't happen. But if it does. Instant, MASSIVE lawsuit. And a lawsuit OSU should lose. And students aren't always smart. I sure wasn't. I knew great brilliant folks at OSU. None of them is even bordering on being a dumbass, but every damned one of them had their dumbass moments. We ALL know I did. The likelihood of a kid facing medical complications from OSU-supplied nicotine replacement products is HIGH.

And worse still, kid comes in and says, "Okay, I'm a smoker. Pack a day. Gimmie patches." They can't verify that the kid does smoke. So who would want them otherwise? ANY kid facing finals or mid-terms. Any Greek during Homecoming week that's class all day and pomp all night. Any of the dateless freshmen that want to stay up for three straight days playing on-line roll playing games. I knew folks that did all that and would have jumped at the chance for a free, effective stimulant.

Lets be clear, nicotine is a stimulant. And it is a dangerous drug if used improperly. And the first idiot that gets the idea that it'll help him through finals, granted maybe should be expelled from the gene pool anyhow, BUT ... Just a BAD idea. Bad. Bad. Bad. Actionably bad idea.

I love my Cowboys. But damn they are making it hard.

Okay, done venting now. I feel a little better. Thank you for this opportunity. I'm gonna go outside and have a smoke to cool off. After all, at least Texas A&M is still, occasionally, somewhat, kinda-sorta free...except for the parking, but that's another rant.

I hope everyone is having a great week. Don't forget the OSU-Georgia game is on ESPN2 Saturday.

Go Pokes, I guess...

Austin

Gotta love Karma...

2007-07-11T18:26:00.001-07:00

Oklahoma must forfeit 2005 football season

By Associated Press
July 11, 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The Oklahoma football program must forfeit its wins from the 2005 season and will lose two scholarships for the 2008-09 and 2009-10 school years. The penalties, announced Wednesday by the NCAA, stem from a case involving two players, including the Sooners' starting quarterback, who were kicked off the team for being paid for work they had not performed at a Norman car dealership.

The NCAA said Wednesday morning it planned to announce its decision about possible sanctions against the Oklahoma football program, more fallout from a case that came to light last year when two players – including the Sooners' starting quarterback – were kicked off the team.

In an e-mail sent to media outlets, the NCAA said a 2 p.m. conference call with Miami athletics director Paul Dee, the acting chairman of the NCAA Committee on Infractions, was scheduled to discuss the case.

On Aug. 3 – the day before the Sooners began preseason practice – Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops dismissed quarterback Rhett Bomar and offensive lineman J.D. Quinn from the team amid allegations that the players had been paid for work they had not performed at a Norman car dealership.

The NCAA subsequently alleged that Oklahoma had failed to adequately monitor the employment of several athletes, including some football players who worked during the academic year. The NCAA said Oklahoma's "failure to monitor" led to the university not detecting NCAA rules violations.

World History as it Really Happened

2007-06-22T10:21:00.001-07:00

I wish I could take credit for writing this. But no, just another wonderful, anonymous forwarded message. Enjoy -Auz

World History as it Really Happened

Humans originally existed as members of small bands of nomad/hunter/gatherers. They lived on deer in the mountains during the summer and would go to the coast and live on fish and lobster in the winter.

The two most important events in all history were the invention of beer and the invention of the wheel. The wheel was invented to get man to the beer. These were the foundation of modern civilization and together were the catalyst for the splitting of humanity into two distinct subgroups: Liberals and Conservatives.

Once beer was discovered, it required grain and that was the beginning of agriculture. Neither the glass bottle nor aluminum can were invented yet, so while our early humans were sitting around waiting for them to be invented, they just stayed close to the brewery. That's how villages were formed.

Some men spent their days tracking and killing animals to BBQ at night while
they were drinking beer. This was the beginning of what is known as the Conservative movement.

Other men who were weaker and less skilled at hunting learned to live off the conservatives by showing up for the nightly B-B-Q's and doing the sewing, fetching and hair dressing. This was the beginning of the Liberal movement. Some of these liberal men eventually evolved into women. The rest became known as "girliemen."

Some noteworthy liberal achievements include the domestication of cats, the invention of group therapy and group hugs and the concept of Democratic voting to decide how to divide the meat and beer that conservatives provided. Over the years conservatives came to be symbolized by the largest, most powerful land animal on earth, the elephant. Liberals are symbolized by the jackass.

Modern liberals like imported beer (with lime added), but most prefer white wine or imported bottled water. They eat raw fish but like their beef well done. Sushi, tofu, and French food are standard liberal fare. Another interesting revolutionary side note: most of their women have higher testosterone levels than their men. Most social workers, personal injury attorneys, journalists, home interior designers, dreamers in Hollywood and group therapists are liberals. Liberals invented the designated hitter
rule because it wasn't fair to make the pitcher also bat.

Conservatives drink domestic beer. They eat red meat and still provide for their women. Conservatives are big-game hunters, rodeo cowboys, lumberjacks, construction workers, firemen, medical doctors, police officers, corporate executives, athletes, Marines, and generally anyone who works productively. Conservatives who own companies hire other conservatives who want to actually work for a living.

Liberals produce little or nothing. They like to govern the producers and decide what to do with the production. Liberals believe Europeans are more enlightened than Americans. That is why most of the liberals remained in Europe when conservatives were coming to America. They crept in after the Wild West was tamed and created a
business of trying to get MORE for nothing.

Here ends today's lesson in world history: It should be noted that a Liberal may have a momentary urge to angrily respond to the above before forwarding it. A Conservative will simply laugh and be so convinced of the absolute truth of this history that it will be forwarded immediately to other true believers. And to more liberals just to tick them off.

YEAR ONE

2007-05-27T16:48:00.001-07:00

My wife married me a year ago today. Foolish girl. Lucky boy.

Simply brilliant...

2007-03-29T16:18:00.000-07:00

What We Call the News | Send To Friends | Funny Animations at JibJab

This Cheese Don't Stink!

2007-02-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

Many thanks to Bud Force for taking the time today to introduce my ears to an unexpected and joyfully decadent auditory experience. I'd explain it here, but better still if you
hear this for yourself.

I invite you all to visit:

http://www.richardcheese.com/

Your best bet is to select "Music Bar" and enjoy.

Auz

Boortz Alert!!!

2007-02-28T07:04:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder: Neal Boortz will be at the College Station Hastings today at 6 pm to sign copies of his new book, "Somebody's Gotta Say It."

FairTax Update: Prebate News

2007-02-26T18:27:00.000-08:00

Good news on the Prebate aspect of the FairTax.

While I do not have the specific details, today on Neal Boortz's show the head of Americans for Fair Taxation spoke of a new wrinkle in the debate.

One of the most common criticisms of the HR 25 is to claim that it will be too expensive to implement, specifically the prebate system. And granted, mailing a check to every American household monthly would be expensive. These arguments ignore the overwhelming numbers of benefit checks regularly mailed by our government currently. They similarly ignore the prevalence of direct deposit and other electronic payment distribution technologies so common in today's society which could cut these costs dramatically.

However, today we learned that a number of financial institutions are actually offering to PAY the Federal government for the ability to distribute this prebate to their customers.

So let's assume that John John's Bank is one of these institutions. And that you have a John John's credit card. So John John's Bank, with your permission, would simply credit your account for the amount of the prebate at the beginning of each month and PAY the Federal government for this privilege. I am still researching this new development, but I believe the same would apply to John John's Bank's checking accounts as well.

Either way, they will pay the government to let them give you the prebate money on the assumption that you'll use their institution to spend the money, which you probably would be doing anyhow. After all, if you have a John John's credit or banking account, you'll be giving them money anyhow. That's where you'd cash the check or sned a payment too anyhow. So everybody wins.

And now, we are not talking about the cost of the government to distribute prebates, but instead about the additional funds the government will GENERATE by distributing the prebate.

I'll keep you posted.

---
As a refresher, the Fairtax is a plan (and bill HR 25) to replace ALL Federal taxes (including income, embedded business, and payroll) with a single 23% sales tax on all NEW goods and services. As a part of this plan, a "prebate" would be enacted. This prebate is intended to ensure that no American pays any taxes on the money they spend up to the poverty line.

In other words, if the poverty line (for example) is $12,000 per year, or $1000 per month for a single individual, then that individual will be given the amount of money they'd be asked to pay in Fairtax on that dollar amount, $230 per month. The payment comes at the first of the month so the money is in place to pay the taxes from the beginning. The amount is based on existing, often updated figures from the Department of Health and Human Services. And this prebate goes to every American household, regardless of income. No American would then pay taxes on the most basic necessities of life.

For more information, explained better than I have here visit fairtax.org

How Okie are you?

2007-02-26T14:25:00.000-08:00

Check out this quiz from Oklahoma Today. I hit a 174. WAY too low for me.

"How Okie are you?" Quiz

I'm a baby on Uranus...

2006-12-20T12:28:00.000-08:00

Turns out I'd be 16 again, if only I lived on Mars. But I'd be a centurian on Mercury.

Thanks to Bob Webster and his Junkmail for this link:

Your Age on Other Worlds

I haven't checked their math, but I don't want to.
So take it as a leap of fate, enter your digits and find out just how young you are in other parts of this solar system.

My gift to you all.
Merry Christmas.

Austin

Tequila Christmas Cake Recipe

2006-12-17T09:16:00.000-08:00

My new, favorite holiday recipe, and easy even for an amateur baker. Enjoy. Merry Christmas all!

Austin

Tequila Christmas Cake

Ingredients:

> 1 cup of water
> 1 tsp baking soda
> 1 cup of sugar
> 1 tsp salt
> 1 cup of brown sugar
> Lemon juice
> 4 large eggs
> Nuts
> 1 bottle tequila
> 2 cups of dried fruit
>
> Sample the tequila to check quality. Take a large bowl, check the tequila again. To be sure it is of the highest quality, pour one level cup and drink. Repeat. Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Add one teaspoon of sugar. Beat again. At this point it's best to make sure the tequila is still OK. Try another cup... just in case. Turn off the mixerer thingy. Break 2 leggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruit.
>
> Pick the frigging fruit up off floor. Mix on the turner. If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers just pry it loose with a drewscriver. Sample the tequila to check for tonsisticity. Next, sift two cups of salt. Or something. Check the tequila. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find. Greash the oven. Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over. Don't forget to beat off the turner.
>
> Finally, throw the bowl through the window. Finish the tequila and wipe counter with the cat.
>
> CHERRY MISTMAS!

The most accurate clock on Earth.

2006-11-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

http://mackgreen.com/signature.php/temp.gif

2006-11-05T16:47:00.000-08:00

Waco Family of Privilege, Chet Edwards Family Ties

Interesting. While I certainly don't always trust 20/20 to get things right, and this one raises a number of questions it doesn't answer, it also raises a number of questions about our incumbent Congressman. Certainly worth watching.

2006-10-26T10:32:00.000-07:00

My Hero...

Tom Mabe Pranks Telemarketer

Liberal Confusion

2006-10-10T08:11:00.000-07:00

I know the Patriot Act is not exactly big in the news these days. But for some reason it was on my mind yesterday afternoon. And once again, it has left me confused by our Liberal brethren.

Basic liberal ideology insists that more government is better. That individual Americans are best served by having more and more of their lives managed by public servants such as myself. Medical Care. Personal Savings. Entitlement programs of every shape, size and color. The ideology is grounded in the belief that government should be an active force within the lives of individuals.

But when it comes to national security and the War on Terror, specifically to the Patriot Act, the liberal arguments insist that the powers granted in that document can and will be abused...by public servants. Cops. DA's. Fed's and so on. Liberals and Democrats suggest that the government should not have that power.

Yet they want the government (these same public servants) in charge of my retirement, my medical records, my charitable giving...

I know a number of you friends are such liberals. So please understand, I'm not looking to start a fight here. I just don't understand the conflict. I don't get how you resolve that within yourself. Is it that you trust all public servants, but hate cops? Is it that you simply have such hatred for Republicans that you'll immediately oppose anything Republicans stand for? What is it? What drives you to such conflicting beliefs? I'd love to hear from you on this.

Signs it will be a LONG day. #1

2006-10-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

You get up for a nice, hard night's sleep. Let the dog out. Dog won't go. Start the coffee. Eat your Cheerios. Take the dog out again. Dog still won't go. Ask your wife to take the dog out while you shower. Dog goes for wife. Get dressed. Fill the thermos. Kiss the wife. Drive to work. Get to the office. Office is cold. Chair is cold. Fire up computer. Throw on coat you keep at the office. As you launch your e-mail, lean back and open thermos to pour a nice, hot cup of... hot water?

You forgot to put coffee in the coffee maker.

It's going to be a LONG day.

I'm tired.

2006-10-05T07:04:00.000-07:00

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Sunrise, Gameday, Traffic, Moving, and Dogster...

2006-09-30T19:44:00.000-07:00

I'm in the mood to ramble. Consider yourself warn-ed.

So I was going to post yesterday morning. It was a great morning. I woke up in a good mood, feeling great. The doctor has me doing a new series of exercises for my back (apparently my overly tight hamstrings have something to do with my back pain) and it really seems to be helping. Add to that a cool morning, good coffee, my lovely wife, and a gorgeous morning sky as I drove to work and I was brimming with joy I couldn't wait to share here in the Bell Tower.

Of course, I couldn't remember my password and didn't seem to be receiving the emails that would allow me to reset that password and you got nothing. BUT I'm back, BABY!!! Now that I've discovered what email address I actually created this account with...

Oops.

Moving right along...

Not all of yesterday was pleasant. Many of you will remember how this past January/February involved moving my office off campus. All in all, this was a great thing. Our old building on campus is old, poorly designed, and really just needs a wrecking ball renovation. The new office is great. Clean, free parking, easy access, sturdy... oh, and is not owned but rather leased by the university.

So, yep, you guessed it, we are moving again, this time to a building owned fully by the school. Still off campus, but we get to pay for parking again all the same. Woo-ha.

So Friday a group of us went to assess our new digs and begin planning for the move. But the building was certainly not designed for a bunch of media folks like us. In a former life it housed a bank, since then its been slightly renovated to best accommodate folks who answer email and push paper... and nothing else (read: cubicle hell). On whole, this isn't something we are unable to work with... except the University doesn't want us getting rid of any of there furniture, and in fact we are supposed to PAY to move anything of theirs we don't want out. Can you believe that? WE pay THEM to remove THEIR stuff or just accept all that doesn't work for us and surplus all of the furniture and equipment that does already work for us... Let's just say that negotiations have begun, and the opening offer was NOT impressive...

Did I mention they want us to pay for off-campus parking?

So today was game day. Aggies v. Tech. And the YR's along with the CR's tailgated for Van Taylor and our local candidates. I wasn't sure what to think. I'd never been anywhere near Kyle Field on game day. Add to that how my wife's ankle was sprained a few days ago in disastrous dog-walking incident...

But the day was great. We parked 362 miles from the field and hobbled our way there. Got things set up, waited for the food to arrive, then we all waited another hour for plastic forks and cups to arrive. But it was a great time. The CR's are a fun bunch and the food (C&J's) was worth waiting for. We were expecting the Gov to arrive about 1:30, but I can't say if he did.

Poor Mel, hobbled there with me, but her real pain was in the arriving. That's when I stuck her in a chair with some ice for her ankle and pretty much made her stay there. So, by 12:30, I'd fed her lunch, and force some cake (Tori's and it was yummy) down her throat. I figured it was time to get her home and take proper care of her. Besides, I've met the Gov before. Nice guy. Fairly standard political-type. He has my vote... though I would have liked to ask him about his conditioning regimen. We don't call him Governor Good Hair for nothing.

So all was good until we got the bright idea to go to Target. The game was still on, after all, so the roads would be ideal.... Dumbass. It was the start of the fourth quarter when we left. I was in the back of the store, surveying the newest good t-shirts ("Jack Bauer for President" is my favorite) when I overheard a store employee's walkie-talkie. It was the manager stating in a frightened voice, "Its over. We lost. They are coming." So I grabbed Mel as fast as I could, but I knew it was too late. Long story short, what should have been a 10-minute drive instead took well over 45 minutes. We did see our share of hilarity. Road rage. Brave Tortilla Tech fans dancing and flashing the Raider guns as they drove through miles and miles of angry Aggies, and one young woman who I swear to you had her cell phone surgically grafted to her face. That young woman elicited a few choice words from me of the sort that I don't use EVER.

Okay, safe and sound and that is all. Really, nothing exciting at all to share here. Just felt like rambling for a while. I appreciate you taking the time to listen, or at least skim. Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend.

Oh, one last note. Something I can't really explain. You'll just have to go and look for yourself:

www.dogster.com

The Internet scares me.

Long weeks row to hoe down at the club over the head....

2006-09-22T14:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, that's how long this week has been. All of my metaphors are running together like a man rollerskating on one leg through a buffalo herd of cats... See what I mean.

Spent the week traveling through North Texas taking agency ID photos as this is 2006 and it seems everyone needs a agency ID...nevermind that most of us already have three... Still. It was nice work and I was able to see lots of old friends and make many new ones. Overton, Dallas, Vernon, and Stephenville. In 4 days. All the staffs were great and wonderfully helpful, but Janet in Vernon gets a gold star for being the best of the best. And that has nothing to do with the fact that she lives on a golf course and invited me to play there next time I'm out. :D

But I'm home now and looking forward to a weekend of nothing but football, napping, and maybe I'll even get lucky if a treat my wife nice. Cross your fingers for me kids.

Oh, and yes, when I'm this exhausted, my "TMI Filter" is worthless.

We are going to have some fun this weekend. For her birthday last year, I got Mel a Easy Bake Oven. She'd never been so fortunate as a child to have one. Well, neither has our other friend Mel ever had one. So this weekend the girls are going to have an Easy Bake party. Fun for them. Football without guilt for me. LOVE IT!!!

Be sure to check out the previous post. I remember once back in high school when Nicole Parker had to give me a ride home to the ranch. My father was Farm Manager on the Turley ranch. David Parker was General Manager at that time. Which made his three daughters (Erin, Nicole, and Shannon) like family to me. Now Erin, who is a year older, and I got along well enough but weren't exactly close. Shannon (a few years younger) and I have been pretty tight over the years. But Nicole... Nicole and I are the same age, graduated in the same class. And because of our situation on the ranch, often got far more of each other than either cared for. It got ugly at times.

Now about this day and this ride home. I think this was after my accident, so I was without a car still, and had no option but to load up in the tiny Parker girl's CRX. Nice tight quarters when you can't stand the person next to you. And this was a 30 minute drive, and that day I'd been a particular pain in Nicole's side. No telling what exactly I'd done, but I'm sure her feelings were justified.

Well, resentful as she was, she dared not leave me behind and face the wrath of her mother. So, we loaded up and headed out. But to make it particularly clear how much Nicole despised me, she put in the cassette single of "Everything About You" by Ugly Kid Joe, played it loudly and played it over and over. But now, I was in a good mood and did I mention how much I love this song? Well, I love it so much I HAVE to sing along, and I did. And she played it louder. And I sang along LOUDER... the whole way home this process repeated. She sped handily, so we made it home fast, but I'm guessing we still had time to hear the song 7 or 8 times. Each time louder than beffore, and all with me singing horribly at the top of my lungs. Still can't believe we aren't both deaf.

God bless Nicole. Since those days we've found a peace and certain respect between us. I really like the person she's grown into, and I hope she likes the man I've become as well. I do consider her a friend now. But lord, how I survived those years and that day in particular without her actually, literally turning me into a bloody, beaten, tragic headline in the Daily Oklahoman...

Well, thank you, Nicole. I'm glad you didn't kill me as I may well have deserved.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Austin

2006-09-22T14:44:00.000-07:00

Ugly Kid Joe - Everything About You

Here's Ugly Kid Joe's "Everything about you". To be clear, this is NOT how I feel about you, whoever you are. It is however a wonderful flashback for me. So everyone enjoy. Sing along. Headbang til your head throbs. Raise your glass and drink with me to the good old days. Happy Friday all.

Update on everything I can think of...

2006-08-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

Well, as usual, I've been horrible about posting. And I'll do what I can to get back in the groove. But for the moment, just a few notes on all that's been going on.

We've held new elections for the Brazos County Young Republicans. So, at last, I'm no longer an officer, however, I'm still on the board. Mel and I, especially Mel, are hoping this will mean less of my free time spent working for hte club. But I'm now the "old man" of the group and expect to still stay plenty busy and involved. So we'll see. We have great new leadership with lots off energy. Really, I hate that I need to step back but my young marriage needs and deserves more of my attention. I'm sure in a few years mel will grow tired of me being around so much and I'll be back in the swing full force.

ChiChi is doing great. We discovered that she has a low thyroid condition and with treatment her energy is up and she's no longer gnawing at her paw. We really like the new vet. Really, Chi's too cute. Always cuddling with me and doesn't beg as loudly for food now, unless we are eating steak. We did have a vomit incident last week involving hot sausage and Daddy being left alone to clean things up. That did not go too well. But in all, life goes on.

Work has been insane. We are smack in the middle of shooting mug shots for ID photos for all of Extension. And I mean ALL. Specialists, Agents, Support Staff and all. Something like 1,200 folks. Campus is this week and next, and then in September I have several long road trips heading out to our district meetings. But today is nice. Its hot, but I'm in the office...editting footage of horse evaluations... and yes, this does involve a vet, a thermometer, annd a horse's patootey. However you spell that... Yea me!

Well, that's most of it. Still haven't won the dang lottery. so I'd best get back to work.

Auz

Joke of the Year...

2006-06-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry I'm still behind in posting. Things are just still so busy after the wedding.

I know this isn't so good as a real post. However, this is the funniest forward I've received in well over a year. Heck, maybe several years. Thanks to Cave for sending me this one.

Austin

-------

A cowboy was herding his cows in a remote pasture when suddenly a brand new BMW appeared out of no where and drove up to him.

The driver, young man in a Brioni suit, Gucci shoes, Ray Ban sunglasses, and a YSL tie, leaned out the window and asked the Cowboy, "If I tell you exactly how many cows and calves you have in your herd, will you give me a calf?"

The Cowboy looked at the man, obviously a Yuppie, then looked at his peacefully grazing herd and calmly answered "Sure, why not?"

The Yuppie parked his car, whipped out his DELL NOTEBOOK computer, connected it to his Cingular RAZR V3 cell phone, surfed to a NASA page on the Internet, where called up a GPS satellite navigation system to get an exact fix on
his location which he then fed to another NASA Satellite that scanned the area in an ultra-high resolution photo. He then opened the digital photo in ADOBE PHOTO SHOP and exported it to an imaging processing facility in Hamburg, Germany. Within seconds, he received an email on his PALM PILOT that the image had been processed and the data stored. He hen accessed a MS-SQL database through an ODBC connected EXCEL spreadsheet with Email on his a BLACKBERRY and, after a few minutes, received a response. He then printed out a full-color, 150 page report on his high-tech miniaturized HP LASERJET printer and turned to the cowboy and said "You have 1,586 cows and calves."

The Cowboy responded that the figure was correct, so he could take one of the calves. The Cowboy watched as the yuppie selected one of the animals, acting amused as he loaded it into his trunk.

The Cowboy then said to the yuppie, " If I can tell you exactly what your business is, will you give me back my calf?"

The Yuppie thought for a minute and replied "Okay, why not?"

"You are a United States Congressman", he retorted.

"Wow!!! That's correct, but, how did you guess that?"

"It's simple "replied the Cowboy, "No guessing involved."

"You showed up here even though nobody called you. You wanted to get paid for an answer I already knew, to a question that I never asked. You tried to show me how much smarter than me you are; and you don't know a damn thing about cows......!

Now give me back my dog.

Busy as a bee...

2006-03-25T12:00:00.000-08:00

So I haven't posted much. I apologize for that. Certainly I've had plenty to talk about. Unfortunately, just not much time of late. Planning a wedding, three receptions, a honeymoon, locating a new residence, and prepping for a garage sale has been plenty to keep me off of here.

I have had a few good months though. Mel and I are more in love every day. We are quite sickening actually.

Early in March I also served as an election judge for the primaries. It was an absolutely wonderful experience. I highly suggest this for anyone looking to serve the public. I even had wonderful Democrat counterparts to work with. It reminds you just how civil our disagreements can be. And offers hope that things can work out and solutions can be found in a positive manner.

Beyond that, March has been somewhat disappointing in terms of basketball. But if nothing else this touri has been a wild ride and a great deal of fun to watch, even if my teams do keep losing. Still, how about them Aggies. Those boys and girls did a great deal to help this community learn what a wonderful sporting world exists outside of football.

Anyhow, got more errands to run and chores to do. Hope all is well with evveryone.
'
Auz

Candidate Meet & Greet...

2006-02-15T11:07:00.000-08:00

This coming Monday evening, Feb. 20th, the BCYR's are hosting a primary candidate "Meet & Greet" featuring all Republican Primary candidates in Brazos County. The free, informal event is at 6:30 in the Brazos Center.

It'll be a casual evening, with a trade show-feel. Just come wihen you can, walk around shake hands, ask questions and get a personal feel for the folks running for local office.

Invite every Republican you can.

Auz

My New World...

2006-02-05T20:16:00.000-08:00

Friends and loved ones,

Tonight I write to you with a heart overflowing. This weekend while celebrating her birthday in San Antonio, Melissa Alexander agreed to become my wife.

I apologize that some of you have not yet had an opportunity to meet Melissa. Lord knows my love life has had its ups and downs over the years, and I guess that has made me a bit quiet in sharing such details. However, those of you who have met her I'm certain know that she is by far the best thing to ever happen to me.

To briefly go through our story, Melissa and I met Memorial weekend before my senior year at Oklahoma State. However I was moving away and foolishly refused to allow our relationship to grow serious.

In the move to Texas, I misplaced her information but always wondered what became of that sweet girl from Tulsa. Then last year, one quiet afternoon at the office, I received a email with a name that seemed strangely familiar. Long story short, she moved to College Station on Memorial weekend of 2005.

It has been the happiest time of my life. She has a heart large enough to envelop all the disjointed sides of my personality, an intellect which forces mine down new and exciting paths daily, and the courage to stare down my obstinance. She loves MASH, Willie, and Oklahoma. And she's even got me to cut back heavily on my smoking. I'll wait for the applause to die down... I'm sure she'll have me stopped altogether in short order. I look forward to a day when you may meet her and see this amazing woman for every glorious trait that makes me love her as I do.

Though still early in the decision making process, we tentatively plan to marry (when else) but Memorial weekend 2006. Because all of our friends and family lives at such distances, and frankly we feel we are too old for a frantic, tense cycle of wedding planning, we'll have a small ceremony with a Justice of the Peace, followed by receptions in College Station, Cheyenne and Tulsa. Once details are established, I'll let you know.

Thank you for all your prayers and support. May god bless you all.

Austin

p.s. Pictures of us, the ring, and our adorable child ChiChi da Dog will follow once we located that darned USB cable for the camera.

Finally, some good news...

2005-11-04T06:07:00.000-08:00

House Vote Counters Eminent Domain Measure

- By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer
Friday, November 4, 2005

(11-04) 01:46 PST WASHINGTON (AP) --

Conservative defenders of private property and liberal protectors of the poor joined in an overwhelming House vote to prevent local and state governments from seizing homes and businesses for use in economic development projects.

The House legislation, passed 376-38, was in response to a widely criticized 5-4 ruling by the Supreme Court last June that allowed eminent domain authority to be used to obtain land for tax revenue-generating commercial purposes.

That decision, said the House's third-ranked Republican, Deborah Pryce of Ohio, "dealt a blow to the rights of property owners across the country."

The bill would withhold for two years all federal economic development funds from states and localities that use economic development as a rationale for property seizures. It also would bar the federal government from using eminent domain powers for economic development.

It now goes to the Senate, where Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, has introduced similar legislation.

The ruling in Kelo v. City of New London allowed the Connecticut city to exercise state eminent domain law to require several homeowners to cede their property for commercial use.

Conservatives were in the forefront in arguing that this was a dangerous interpretation of the "takings clause" in the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution that allows the government to seize property for public use, with just compensation.

"Governments should not be able to bulldoze a person's home or business to benefit other individuals," said Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-Texas.

Liberals warned that it could make it easier to tear down poor neighborhoods. "We don't need you on this one," Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said to those arguing that eminent domain can lead to beneficial urban renewal projects. "We need you to respect the right of those minorities and those poor people to hold on to what is their own."

Opponents of the legislation argued that its exclusion of economic development was too broad and that the federal government should not be interceding in what should be a local issue. "We should not change federal law every time members of Congress disagree with the judgment of a locality when it uses eminent domain for the purpose of economic development," said Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va.

About half the states are also considering changes in their laws to prevent takings for private use.

The Bush administration, backing the House bill, said in a statement that "private property rights are the bedrock of the nation's economy and enjoy constitutionally protected status. They should also receive an appropriate level of protection by the federal government."

The House, by a voice vote, approved a proposal by Rep. Phil Gingrey, R-Ga., to bar states or localities in pursuit of more tax money from exercising eminent domain over nonprofit or tax-exempt religious organizations. Churches, he said, "should not have to fear because God does not pay enough in taxes."

Eminent domain, the right of government to take property for public use, is typically used for projects that benefit an entire community, such as highways, airports or schools.

Justice John Paul Stevens, who wrote the majority opinion in Kelo, said in an August speech that while he had concerns about the results, the ruling was legally correct because the high court has "always allowed local policymakers wide latitude in determining how best to achieve legitimate public goals."

Several lawmakers who opposed the House bill said eminent domain has long been used by local governments for economic development projects such as the Inner Harbor in Baltimore and the cleaning up of Times Square in New York. The District of Columbia is expected to use eminent domain to secure land for a new baseball stadium for the Washington Nationals.

___

On the Net:

Information on the bill, H.R. 4128, can be found at

thomas.loc.gov/

URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2005/11/03/national/w154446S12.DTL

Great truths...

2005-10-29T17:08:00.000-07:00

Just a select few quotes borrowed from Neil Boortz website: boortz.com or www.vicioussob.com

-"America's abundance was created not by public sacrifices to 'the common good,' but by the productive genius of free men who pursued their own personal interests and the making of their own private fortunes. They did not starve the people to pay for America's industrialization. They gave the people better jobs, higher wages and cheaper goods with every new machine they invented, with every scientific discovery or technological advance -- and thus the whole country was moving forward and profiting, not suffering, every step of the way." [Ayn Rand]

-"Politicians never accuse you of 'greed' for wanting other people's money --- only for wanting to keep your own money." [Joseph Sobran]

-"In general the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to the other." [Voltaire]

-"I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution or that have failed their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is "needed" before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents "interests, " I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can." [Barry Goldwater]

-"If you love wealth more than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, depart from us in peace. We ask not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen." [Samuel Adams]

-"There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to runin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation of all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities." [Teddy Roosevelt in a speech before the Knights of Columbus]

-"The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." [Ayn Rand]

-"Do we really think that a government-dominated education is going to produce citizens capable of dominating their government, as the education of a truly vigilant self-governing people requires?" [Alan Keyes]

Media Problems: Wagging the Dog...

2005-10-28T06:32:00.000-07:00

Well, its about time I started ranting about the
media. After all, I spent far too much money getting a
degree in the subject.

This morning I was talking to a friend about "Waggin'
the Dog." If you aren't familiar with the term, this
is when an administrations creates news events to
distract from less favorable news events. I.E. Bush
making a Supreme Court Nomination to distract from the
expected Libby indictment. Or Clinton bombing an
Asprin factory to distract from a stained dress.

Now, TO BE CLEAR, I'm not here to discuss
administrations wagging the dog. Whether you believe
that either of these examples is actually a case of
wagging the dog or not, I DON'T CARE. I gave one of
each so Dem's and Rep's can both like it or not. I
don't want or care for comments about either.

My point here is about the media. And media
susceptibility to wagging the dog.

One of the more disturbing trends in media over the
past twenty years is the tendency toward narrow run
sheets. By that I mean that the number of individual
topics discussed in any broadcast or newpaper in a
given day is decreasing. Much like commercial pop
radio where they play the same songs over and over and
over again.

How many times have you turned to the CBS/ABC/NBC
nightly news and seen the first 15-20 minutes
dedicated to a single story? Worse still are the
24-hour cable news networks (yes, even FoxNews who I
love). They'll list a few different stories at the
news breaks every half hour, and then spend the entire
rest of the hour talking about only 1 or 2 stories.

This narrow focus is begging to be wagged. Pardon the
pun, of course. Narrow news coverage and focus makes
the media FAR more susceptible to media manipulation.
When you are so dedicated to the "top story of the
day", not only do you spend far too much time in
speculation with worthless pundits (of whom I hope to
be one someday), but you leave yourself with no
peripheral vision.. Does anyone else have a clear
vision of the old cartoon where a horse with blinders
has a carrot dangled in front of his face?

The upside is that few of us get our news from the
majors anymore, and those of us addicted to cable news
usually watch such while surfing blogs and news sites
online. So maybe, just maybe there is hope for the
American people, if not for the media.

Still, how sad is it when CBS has to admit, in this
regard at least, that Yahoo has better news coverage.

Coburn tries to kill transportation projects funds

2005-10-27T05:49:00.000-07:00

From the Tulsa World
By JIM MYERS World Washington Bureau
10/26/2005

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn on Tuesday called
for killing funding for special projects approved
earlier in a massive transportation bill as he rolled
out a package to help pay for hurricane relief
efforts.

That part of the package pushed by Coburn, R-Okla.,
and several other senators, however, drew no support
from other Oklahomans, neither in Congress nor back in
the state.

Several expressed outright opposition.

Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., whose major role in putting
together the transportation bill helped boost the
state's share of the money, referred to the millions
earmarked for Interstate 44 in Tulsa as one of those
special projects appropriately prioritized.

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Coburn has attempted
to take the lead in finding spending offsets to pay
for storm relief.

"Congress is learning what the American people already
know," he said. "Charity requires sacrifice."

Coburn was joined in unveiling the new package by
Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona, John Ensign
of Nevada, Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Sam Brownback
of Kansas and John Sununu of New Hampshire. GOP Sen.
Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
also is a member of the group.

With offsets totaling about $125 billion, their
package also calls for a 5 percent, across-the-board
spending cut for nonsecurity programs, a freeze on pay
raises for members of Congress and federal employees,
and a delay in the new Medicare prescription drug
program for all but low-income seniors.

"Among the American people there is a growing rumble
about our unsustainable fiscal course," Coburn said.

"I believe this package will help quiet that rumble
and build a bridge to fiscal sanity and
responsibility."

While other Oklahomans sympathized with his effort to
cut federal spending, they declined to go along with
his call for killing transportation funds.

"We desperately need it in the state of Oklahoma and
around the nation," Inhofe said.

"Besides that, what they are suggesting won't work."

Even if Coburn succeeds in killing all special project
money already signed into law by President Bush, he
said, most of the money would remain in each state
because it is part of the formula used to dole out
road funds.

Inhofe said all Coburn would succeed in doing is
taking away Oklahoma's authority to decide where the
money would go.

Rep. John Sullivan, R-Okla., stood by the project
money he helped get into the bill.

"When it comes to improving the condition of
Oklahoma's roads and bridges," Sullivan said, "the
safety of travelers should not be compromised."

Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., said the funding allocated
for Oklahoma's roads and bridges will be vital to
economic development, job growth and safety.

Gary Ridley, director of the Oklahoma Department of
Transportation, also defended the state's special
projects included in the bill.

Ridley said their funding should remain.

Both Gov. Brad Henry and Rep. Ernest Istook, R-Okla.,
who hopes to challenge Henry next year in the general
election, declined to pick a side in the debate.

Coburn's efforts to kill special project money
triggered an unusual legislative brawl on the Senate
floor last week when he tried to kill funding
earmarked for Alaska projects.

Senators overwhelmingly rejected his efforts.

When the transportation bill passed the Senate, Coburn
joined Inhofe in voting for it as he had promised to
do during his 2004 campaign.

Coburn initially said on Tuesday that he did not know
whether he was sorry he had promised to vote for the
transportation bill, which traditionally is full of
so-called pork barrel projects.

"I didn't know that it was going to be that bad," he
insisted, even though the bill's final passage had
been delayed for years and had been the focus of
numerous news stories and even veto threats from the
Bush administration.

When pressed, Coburn eventually said he was not sorry
he made the campaign pledge.

__________________________________
Start your day with Yahoo! - Make it your home page!
http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs

Candidate Forum Tonight - Reminder

2005-10-27T05:41:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder.

Tonight (Thursday, Oct. 27th) at 7 pm, the Brazos
County Young Republicans will host a Candidates Forum
at the College Station Conference Center at 1300
George Bush Dr.

The forum will feature Republican candidates for
Congressional District 17, Van Taylor and Tucker
Anderson. Each will offer a 10 minute
self-introduction, then draw issue-related questions
prepared by local party leadership. Following the
event, time is scheduled for one-on-one interaction
and media interviews.

Hope to see you there.

Austin Moore
VP - Brazos County Young Republicans

__________________________________
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http://farechase.yahoo.com

The Coburn Amendment... aka... Who's side are they on?

2005-10-23T20:20:00.000-07:00

Not long ago, Congress let us down by passing a gross violation of public trust in the form of a pork-laden transportation bill to an extreme seldom if ever seen before. Then Katrina came along with its massive bill for rebuilding. At that point, so many of us began calling for repeal of the recent transportation bill and all pork removal as a way to pay for Katrina. To most in the House and Senate, this fell on deaf ears. After all, politicians are politicians and its far easier to buy votes than to earn them.

However, there are some true fiscal patriots in the Senate. Both Republicans and Democrats. Senator Coburn of my home state, Oklahoma, is one of these. And last Thursday, he made me truly proud. Knowing the amendment would go down to defeat, he offered it all the same, if for no other reason than to draw a line in the sand and learn just who is on the side of the American taxpayers, and who is clearly not.

"This amendment will transfer funding from the wasteful pork project, the "Bridge to Nowhere" in Alaska, to the repair and reconstruction of the "Twin Spans" bridge in Louisiana. According to published reports, the Alaskan pork project costs $220 million for a 5.9-mile bridge connecting Gravina Island (population 50) to the Alaskan mainland. The cost of the bridge alone would be enough to buy every island resident his own personal Lear jet."

This was but one example of ridiculous pork. These are funds that should have never been taken from our pockets or allocated to a personal pet project. Now that a genuine need exists, no public servant with even an ounce of personal integrity can honestly defend such expenditures. The wretched back room deals that defeated this amendment and all suggestions for like-minded measures to date are the great, loathsome bane of our legislative process. Those who will not stand for us, the American tax-payers, do not deserve even renomination by their own parties.

What follows are the vote details and the results. I am personally ashamed that my two CURRENT Senators, Cornyn and Hutchison, are among those who voted "nay". You may look up the details on thomas.loc.gov. I encourage you to let your voice be heard. If they are going to go out shopping for votes, we can go out shopping for candidates.

------

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 109th Congress - 1st Session as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill
Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate.

Vote Summary
Question: On the Amendment (Coburn Amdt. No. 2165, As Modified )
Vote Number: 262
Vote Date: October 20, 2005, 06:03 PM
Required For Majority: 1/2
Vote Result: Amendment Rejected
Amendment Number: S.Amdt. 2165 to H.R. 3058 (Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, the District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 )
Statement of Purpose: To make a perfecting amendment.

Vote Counts:
YEAs 15
NAYs 82
Not Voting 3

It's all about faith...

2005-10-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

Put aside the issues. They don't really matter anyhow, at least not in the long run.

Abortion wasn't an issue when this country was founded, and 50 years from now it probably won't be a concern either. Whether birth control advances to the point that unwanted pregnancies do not exist, or the tree-huggers are right and we wreck the environment and our health to the point that no man can achieve an erection and all babies are conceived in labs.

The War on Terror could not have been imagined 50 years ago, and 50 years from now it will simply be a chapter, or worse paragraph, in a 6th grade history text book. Maybe my grandchildren will ask me about 9-11 for a school report and I'll be able to bore then to tears.

Even issues like Social Security and Medicare will fade. Eventually they will collapse. When they do we'll replace them with a new program. Better or worse, it will take no time before we begin forget the old way and start to see the new system as the only method we know.

No, my friends, in the long term, conservative vs. liberal is not a matter of issues, nor should it be. There is a bigger, deeper rift. One which dominates these issues and though seldom debated on its own merits is the larger context to every battle we wage within this country. Simply put, it is a matter of faith.

Now, I'm not talking religion here. Its not that kind of faith. I'm talking about the faith you feel in your gut, not what flows forth from a pulpit. I'm talking about the instinctual, tactile faith you have in humanity.

Do you trust the individual? Do you trust the group? Where is your faith?

My faith is and always has been in the individual. My trust is firmly in the conscious, intelligence, resourcefulness, and will-power of a man left to create his own destiny. Because of this, I am conservative. Proudly so.

I think back on my time at Oklahoma State University, and consider the friends I had in the Greek Fraternal system. Talking after class, splitting a pitcher at Joe's, or just walking across campus with any one of these individuals and you were likely to have spent your time engaged in pleasant and occasionally stimulating conversation. Generally nice guys and girls, often with interesting and unique views on the world. But that was on an individual basis. Put more than two frat boys in the same room, and... well you may not have intended to visit Jackass City that particular day and time, but your ticket just got punched all the same.

You see the power of the group is to reduce. To take all the specialized gifts inherent in any collection of individuals, and reduce these to the lowest common denominator. You don't beleive me? Visit a mall the week before Christmas or the day after. Go to any concert featuring the teenie bopper, boy band flavor-of-the-week. Go sit in a bar any night the local team is on ESPN. Or for that matter, sit in the peanut gallery of the US Senate for one afternoon.

Do any of these and you'll understand that the group strives to find common ground, to find what unites. This, of course, leads to a downward shift. The lowest common denominator. The bigger the crowd, the lower they must think.

Consider for a second, the mighty oak.

Forgive me the metaphor, but what is an essay on political philosophy without a metaphor or two.

The higher an oak reaches into the sky, the broader its branches spread. The wind then can whip among the leaves and branches and not damage the tree. In fact branches on opposite sides of the tree can sway in completely opposite direction, and yet the tree survives.

However, to the group, no individual branch or leaf is important, only the base of the trunk matters, for that is what keeps that tree as a whole, intact and upright. So in "tree think", screw the branches. Screw the leaves. All that matters is that trunk.

Now that's all well and good. Nothing wrong with wanting to keep the tree firmly rooted.

Problem is, I want to see the tree grow. I want to see the limbs and branches stretching so high into the sky... I want to stand on the surface of the moon and barely have to stretch as I reach out and pluck the fruit of democracy and freedom from this American oak tree.

Alright, metaphor thoroughly exhausted. So, ridiculous and curious as it is, of course I'll keep referencing it.

Point is...

Liberals for too long have talked about the "mountain top," about broad visions for a perfect society, all the while placing their faith not in individual achievement, but in group think and group control. Their programs call for the government, the base of the tree, to direct the sway and twist of the individual branches and leaves. They don't seem to understand that the only mountain top which can be achieved in a society that operates in the context of its lowest common denominator is a mountain made of dung.

To the contrary, conservatives place our faith in individual achievement. To us, that base of the trunk is just that: a base. It serves to support us, protect us, and little more. Yes, it unites us at the most basic level, but we do not plan from that point. We do not take direction from it. Each leaf, each bud, must be allowed to twist in the wind as best suits it. Allow the individual parts to flourish as best conditions allow them, and the tree will grow, and spread and be beautiful.

Hey, why not another metaphor...

We are all born with that mountain before us and begin to climb. And when someone slips, and slides halfway down, the liberal philosophy is that we should all climb back down to that individual, and restart the climb together, holding hands and singing "Kum Ba Ya."

The conservative philosophy is for each climber to go at his or her own pace, gaining skills and confidence. And then, when you've reached the top, tie a line and toss it down to those below you.

You see, its not about abortion, gay rights, terrorism, prayer in school, welfare, or even the words "under God" in the pledge. Those are only shots, not the war. Its a matter of faith. Misplaced trust in groups, or confidence that within all of us there is a champion, who if encourage yet allowed to develop unique talents and skills can climb to the mountain top, yet who can never be drug there.

My friends, it IS a matter of faith. Where is yours?

Wonder why Texas didn't have looting after Rita?

2005-10-07T12:54:00.000-07:00

The Tao of Jack Burton

2005-10-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

"Just remember what ol' Jack Burton does when the earth quakes, the poison arrows fall from the sky, and the pillars of Heaven shake. Yeah, Jack Burton just looks that big old storm right in the eye and says, 'Give me your best shot. I can take it.'" -- Kurt Russell (as Jack Burton) in Big Trouble in Little China.

"When some wild-eyed, eight-foot-tall maniac grabs your neck, taps the back of your favorite head up against the barroom wall, looks you crooked in the eye and asks you if ya paid your dues, you just stare that big sucker right back in the eye, and you remember what ol' Jack Burton always says at a time like that: 'Have ya paid your dues, Jack?' 'Yessir, the check is in the mail.'" -- Kurt Russell (as Jack Burton) in Big Trouble in Little China.

"Now I'm not saying that I've been everywhere and I've done everything, but I do know it's a pretty amazing planet we live on, and a man would have to be some kind of FOOL to think we're alone in THIS universe." -- Kurt Russell (as Jack Burton) in Big Trouble in Little China.

Nov. 8th Constitutional Amendments

2005-10-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

On November 8th, 2005, we in Texas will be going back to the polls. The focus of this vote is not those seeking public office, but rather a series of proposed constitutional amendments.

Since 1876, Texas voters have approved some 432 amendments to our state constitution, and now we are asked to consider 9 more. I'll save the rant about how ridiculous these numbers are for a future date.

Of course, the second proposed amendment is going to gather most of the press coverage, and at that will capture most of our attention as well. This is the proposal setting a clear definition of marriage. Call it a Defense of Marriage Amendment. Call it a Anti-Gay Amendment. I really don't care which side of the fence you fall on here. Frankly, I still haven't made up my own mind about that particular amendment. And even more frankly, that's NOT the point of this post.

There are 8 other amendments with equal constitutional weight and we must not lose the forest for the trees. Below, I have listed the basic information of each of these amendments as shown at:

http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/voter/2005novconsamend.shtml

These other amendments will be far harder to understand, particularly any far reaching effects. Yet to me, that makes it all that much more important for each and every voter to invest time researching and understanding each of these proposals. And with an expected high turnout over the Marriage Amendment, that means high turn out of underinformed voters who won't have taken two seconds reading the other 8 before they enter the voting booth. We must not be them.

So I beg you, please read through these, ponder them carefully as you consider how you will vote. There are a number of resources on the web to help wade through these topics. As I continue my own research, I'll offer up any and everything that I can find.

-Auz E. Moto

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Prop. 1 HJR 54 Sponsors: McClendon - Staples
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment creating the Texas rail relocation and improvement fund and authorizing grants of money and issuance of obligations for financing the relocation, rehabilitation, and expansion of rail facilities."

Brief Explanation
HJR 54 would create a Texas rail relocation and improvement fund in the state treasury and would authorize grants of state revenue and issuance of public debt to relocate, rehabilitate, and expand privately and publicly owned passenger and freight rail facilities and to construct railroad underpasses and overpasses.

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Prop. 2 HJR 6 Sponsors: Chisum - Staples
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibiting this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage."

Brief Explanation
HJR 6 would provide that marriage in Texas is solely the union of a man and woman, and that the state and its political subdivisions could not create or recognize any legal status identical to or similar to marriage, including such legal status relationships created outside of Texas.

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Prop. 3 HJR80 Sponsors: Krusee - Ogden
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment clarifying that certain economic development programs do not constitute a debt."

Brief Explanation
HJR 80 would provide that local economic development program loans or grants (other than debts secured by a pledge of ad valorem taxes or financed by the issuance of any bonds or other obligations payable from ad valorem taxes) do not constitute or create debt. Any provision of state constitutional law that may prohibit or limit the authority of a political subdivision of the state to incur debt does not apply to those loans or grants.

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Prop. 4 SJR 17 Sponsors: Staples - Gattis
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment authorizing the denial of bail to a criminal defendant who violates a condition of the defendant's release pending trial."

Brief Explanation
SJR 17 would authorize a district judge to deny reinstatement of bail or new bail to a person accused of a felony, if the person's bail had been revoked or forfeited as a result of the person's violation of a condition of release related to the safety of a victim of the alleged offense or to the safety of the community.

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Prop. 5 SJR 21 Sponsors: Averitt - Flynn
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment allowing the legislature to define rates of interest for commercial loans."

Brief Explanation
SJR 21 would authorize the Legislature to exempt commercial loans from state usury laws that set maximum interest rates. "Commercial loans" are loans made primarily for business, commercial, investment, agricultural, or similar purposes and not primarily for personal, family, or household purposes.

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Prop. 6 HJR 87 Sponsors: Farabee - Lindsay
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment to include one additional public member and a constitutional county court judge in the membership of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct."

Brief Explanation
HJR 87 would increase the size of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct from eleven to thirteen members by increasing from four to five the number of public members and by adding a constitutional county court judge. The additions would ensure that the commission has an odd number of members, which is required by another provision of the state constitution.

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Prop. 7 SJR 7 Sponsors: Carona - Hochberg
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment authorizing line-of-credit advances under a reverse mortgage."

Brief Explanation
SJR 7 would authorize new options for reverse mortgage agreements for senior homeowners allowing them to draw advances at unscheduled intervals, if and when needed, and only in the amounts needed, during the loan term. These are in addition to options that would allow a lump sum payment after settlement or regular periodic, predetermined equal amounts over a term of years or the lifetime of the homeowner. Additionally, SJR 7 would: (1) prohibit the agreement from requiring the use of a credit card, debit card or similar device to obtain an advance; (2) prohibit the charge or collection of a transaction fee solely in connection with any debit or advance, after the time the extension of credit is established; and (3) prohibit the lender or holder from unilaterally amending the extension of credit.

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Prop. 8 SJR 40 Sponsors: Eltife - Hughes
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment providing for the clearing of land titles by relinquishing and releasing any state claim to sovereign ownership or title to interest in certain land in Upshur County and in Smith County."

Brief Explanation
SJR 40 would clear individual land titles by relinquishing and releasing all claims of state ownership interests, including mineral interests, in two local areas, namely, a roughly 4,600 acre area located roughly 14 miles southeast of Gilmer, Texas, and a separate 900 acre area located north of Tyler, Texas.

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Prop. 9 HJR 79 Sponsors: Krusee - Staples
Ballot Language
"The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for a six-year term for a board member of a regional mobility authority."

Brief Explanation
HJR 79 would authorize the Legislature to provide staggered six year terms of office for board members serving on regional mobility authorities, with no more than one-third of the board positions being appointed every two years.

Candidate Forum...

2005-10-05T09:08:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't been posting much lately folks. Obviously, I've been simultaneously busy and lazy. Aside from the general crap of work and what not, the YR's are planning a big event here in College Station later this month, and you know me, I'm right in the mix of it.

-Thursday, October 27th, 7pm, College Station Conference Center-

The Brazos County Young Republicans will be hosting a candidates forum at College Station Conference Center. The evening of Oct. 27th at 7 pm, all three candidates for the Republican nomination for Texas Congressional District 17 will be speaking before the crowd and answering questions. Van Taylor, Tucker Anderson and Bentley Neddles (sp?) are vying for the opportunity to challenge incumbent democrat Chet Edwards in the 2006 general election.

So come on out and meet our champions. Its time to take this district back.

WORDS WE CAN'T TAKE BACK

2005-10-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

Have you ever spoken and wished that you could immediately take the words back...or that you could crawl into a hole? Here are the Testimonials of a few women who did...

FIRST TESTIMONY:

I walked into a hair salon with my husband and three kids in tow and asked loudly, "How much do you charge for a shampoo and a blow job?" I turned around and walked back out and never went back. My husband didn't say a word...he knew better.

SECOND TESTIMONY:

I was at the golf store comparing different kinds of golf balls. I was unhappy with the women's type I had been using. After browsing for several minutes, I was approached by one of the good-looking gentlemen who work at the store. He asked if he could help me. Without thinking, I looked at him and said, "I think I like playing with men's balls."

THIRD TESTIMONY:

My sister and I were at the mall and passed by a store that sold a variety of candy and nuts. As we were looking at the display case, the boy behind the counter asked if we needed any help. I replied, "No, I'm just looking at your nuts." My sister started to laugh hysterically, the boy grinned, and I turned beet-red and walked away. To this day, my Sister has never let me forget.

FOURTH TESTIMONY:

While in line at the bank one afternoon, my toddler decided to release some pent-up energy and ran amok. I was finally able to grab hold of her after receiving looks of disgust and annoyance from other patrons. I told her that if she did not start behaving "right now" she would be punished. To my horror, she looked me in the eye and said in a voice just as threatening, "If you don't let me go right now, I will tell Grandma that I saw you kissing Daddy's pee-pee last night!" The silence was deafening after this enlightening exchange. Even the tellers stopped what they were doing. I mustered up the last of my dignity and walked out of the bank with my daughter in tow. The last thing I heard when the door closed behind me
were screams of laughter.

FIFTH TESTIMONY:

Have you ever asked your child a particular question too many times? My three-year-old son had a lot of problems with potty training and I was on him constantly. One day we stopped at Taco Bell for a quick lunch in between errands. It was very busy, with a full dining room. While enjoying my taco, I smelled something funny, so, of course, I checked my seven-month-old
daughter, and she was clean. Then, I realized that Danny had not asked to go potty in a while, so I asked him if he needed to go, and he said "No". I kept thinking, "Oh Lord, that child has had an accident, and I don't have any clothes with me." Then I said, "Danny, are you SURE you didn't have an accident?" "No," he replied. I just KNEW that he must have had an accident,
because the smell was getting worse. Soooooo, I asked one more time, "Danny, did you have an accident?"

This time he jumped up, yanked down his pants, bent over and spread hischeeks and yelled, "SEE MOM, IT'S JUST FARTS!!" While 30 people nearly choked to death on their tacos laughing, he calmly pulled up his pants and sat down. An old couple made me feel better by thanking me for the best laugh they'd ever had!

LAST TESTIMONY:

This had most of the state of Michigan laughing for 2 days and a very embarrassed female news anchor who will, in the future, likely think before she speaks. What happens when you predict snow -- but don't get any....a true story.

We had a female news anchor who, the day after it was supposed to have snowed and didn't, turned to the weatherman and asked: "So Bob, where's that 8 inches you promised me last night?" Not only did HE have to leave the set, but half the crew did too they were laughing so hard!

Unprecedented Child Custody Ruling

2005-10-05T08:06:00.000-07:00

A seven-year-old boy was at the center of a courtroom drama today when he challenged a court ruling over who should have custody of him.

The boy has a history of being beaten by his parents and the judge initially awarded custody to his aunt, in keeping with child custody law and regulations requiring that family unity be maintained to the degree possible.

The boy surprised the court when he proclaimed that his aunt beat him more than his parents and he adamantly refused to live with her.

When the judge then suggested that he live with his grandparents, the boy cried out that they also beat him.

After considering the remainder of the immediate family and learning that domestic violence was apparently a way of life among them, the judge took the unprecedented step of allowing the boy to propose who should have custody of him.

After two recesses to check legal references and conference with child welfare officials, the judge granted temporary custody to the Oklahoma Sooners of the University of Oklahoma, whom the boy firmly believes are not capable of beating anyone.

GO POKES!!!

Yes, this is my town... -OR- Why Aggie Jokes aren't jokes.

2005-10-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

We are the Aggies - the Aggies are we
True to each other as Aggies can be
We've got to FIGHT boys
We've got to fight!
We've got to fight for Maroon and White
After they've boosted all the rest
They will come and join the best
For we are the Aggies - the Aggies are we
We're from Texas AMC

Confirmation...

2005-09-19T16:03:00.000-07:00

Over the past week, several folks have questioned my lack of comment on the John Roberts' confirmation hearings. Well, I guess I'll stop the silence.

As you may have guessed, I was glued to C-Span. I watched these hearings at home, streamed them on my desktop at work, and watched the reruns at night. For geeks like me, this was a true World Series. And I took great joy in seeing it.

Watching Sen. Kennedy question this brilliant judge, well, I have to admit that I could not help but imagine a manatee and a tiger playing tag. Take your own guess as to which was which as Kennedy clearly was reading staff written questions and had no idea what the questions (let alone their answers) meant.

But anyone watching could clearly see that Roberts is a great legal mind. One of the greatest of his generation. Further, he is a gentleman and a man of high moral character, as has been testified to time and time again by a host of witnesses.

So why then was I not outraged by the grilling he received from Democratic members of the committee? Why was I not shocked and appalled at the prevailing winds of disrespect spewed forth by these liberal blow-hards? Why should I be?

Such hearing are primarily pageantry. Certainly most senators knew exactly how they'd vote before the hearing had begun. I doubt any of the undecided were concerned with the questions and answers themselves, but rather will opt to vote as the polls suggest.

This is a fine and beautiful and still educational pageant that offers a great deal of insight into the man who will surely become our next Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Yet it is predictable in its tone. The beauty is in the execution. Maybe rather than a sport, we should compare it to a play. And the actors here were superb. So to me, this was a thing of joy and beauty.

God Bless America.

An Open Letter to Our Republican Representatives

2005-09-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

Like all Texans, and all Americans, my heart aches for the losses
dealt by Katrina. Certainly we must do a great deal to assist in
rebuilding this area and supporting nature's victims as they find
their feet. I watched the President's speech from New Orleans, and
echo his sentiments. Likewise, I support the general concept of the
plans he laid forth.

As always, we who you represent, rely on you to assure that these
plans are carried out in a fiscally responsible, transparent,
accountable, and prudent fashion. Should the authorizing legislation
NOT guarantee sufficient results in these areas, I pray you will find
the moral clarity to correct that situation.

Further, I must urge you, find a fiscally prudent method to pay
for such reforms and relief efforts. That method clearly should be
reduced spending in other areas.
Across the board, non-defense cuts are an obvious option, as is
delaying new programs, or simply wiping a few from the slate entirely.
But I'd also warn you not to over-look recent mistakes.

I'll remind you that the Republican Party is made of a variety of
conservatives. Social, fiscal, foreign policy: yet, we all unite under
one tent: fiscal. Truth is half the Democrats out here in the real
world join us on those principals. Here in our own households we have
to live within our needs, and even less as we try to save for rainy
days. We feel you in Washington should do the same.

Of course I say this to reassure you that the recent universal
failing, in the form of a pork-laden Transportation Bill, has not been
missed here in the trenches. Frankly, we were shocked and outraged. It
is not unusual to see those with only a casual interest in politics
feeling disgusted and distrustful of politicians. But to see these
same feelings of abandonment from within the ranks of the party loyal…
I am truly ashamed and disheartened.

Perhaps this is one of the silver linings we might find from
Katrina, an opportunity for you to step back and right recent wrongs.
To repeal this self-indulgent legislation, strip out the pork and free
up those funds for disaster relief.

Knowing full well that such action may not completely cover
costs, I feel without such a gesture, credibility within the party
will be inevitably lost. This is a vital first step in growing the
confidence of our Republican brethren as we approach mid-term
elections. Our faithful need to know you remain with us. We need to
know that we are electing accurate representation.

God speed and God bless,

Austin Moore

A blog without ideas...

2005-09-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted much lately. Been busy. Been brain dead. Been a long week. I'll try harder next week...

In Tribute to a Passing Great...

2005-09-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

"O thus be it ever when free-men shall stand
Between their lov'd home and the war's desolation;
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust!”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!"
- Star-Spangled Banner v.4, Francis Scott Key, 1814

Farewell, Justice Rehnquist. We shall miss you.

Northgate, Nerds, and Nincompoop Legislatures...

2005-09-05T08:43:00.000-07:00

Okay, so just a quick post of outrage.

So I'm a nerd. And the other day while flipping channels, I stumbled across a rebroadcast of our city council discussing the drinking ban in the Northgate promenade. Yes, I stopped and watched, for a good while I watched. I am a nerd.

Now here's the quick deal about Northgate and the promenade...

Northgate is the main bar district in College Station. Oh, we have restaurants and a few retail shops there as well, but its known for its beer. Ever heard of the Dixie Chicken? Its there. So a few years ago, in order to move drunks off the sidewalks in front of Northgate (one of the busiest streets in town), as well as for economic development and to just make the place look pretty... our city council spent $18 million dollars...still not sure how they did that...creating the Northgate promenade. This is a nice little place behind the bars with brick pavers and benches and whatnot. And its nice. They did a nice job building it even if they over-spent by about 17..5 million

Point was, on a nice night, you could walk out with your beer or drink of choice and sit with your friends in the night air and be safe and joyful. Now, some dipwads started bringing their own booze and blah blah blah, the police claim there was an escalation of crime and so on. Now, I dunno. I'll accept their word.

But how does the city respond, and this is where I get ticked off, by banning drinking in the promenade. Great, they just created an $18 million dollar park that no one would visit unless they were drinking, and they ban drinking there. Brilliant.

But to their credit, its not all their fault. The state regulation on liquor licenses is so bought and paid for by lobbyists, and thus SO complex that the city really didn't have much choice anyhow. It seems there every bar could agree to pay for licensing part of the promenade, so long as they barricaded between these. However, the state is okay with that barricade being cheap orange construction fence, of course...

Basically, its ridiculous. I'm pissed at the city council for wasting $18 million dollars without bothering to even look into legality, I'm pissed at the legislature for making such ridiculous laws, and I'm pissed because writing all of this is making me mighty thirsty for a Killian's, and its only 8:43 am.

Sooner-Loser...

2005-09-03T19:01:00.000-07:00

I just got my new Lexus RX400H, but returned to the dealer the next day, because I couldn't figure out how the radio worked. The salesman explained that the radio was voice activated.

"Watch this," he said. "Nelson!"

The radio replied "Ricky or Willie?"

"Willie!" he said... and "On the Road Again" came from the speakers.

I drove away happy, and for the next few days, every time I'd say "Beethoven" I'd get beautiful classical music, and if I said "Beatles" I'd get one of their awesome songs.

One day, a couple ran a red light, and nearly creamed my new car, but I swerved in time to avoid them. I yelled A**HOLES!" and....

"Boomer Sooner" blared out of my speakers.

GO POKES!!

My Busted Bum...

2005-08-24T18:59:00.000-07:00

Okay, not much to this story, but I couldn't resist the headline. Come on, "My Busted Bum" that's friggin GOLD, baby!!!

So what story there is...

Cave begged, implored, blubbered, and whined until I consented to play racketball tonight. Now, most of you know that if I had an animal spirit guide, it'd be the tree sloth. What can I say, I'm sedate. But hell, even a sloth likes a good sweat now and then.

Let me also add that I haven't played racketball since my freshman year at OSU. 10 or 11 years folks. But none the less, off we trudged to the Rec. Smoking all the way, naturally.

Well, since I still barely remembered the rules, and yes, was coughing my way through the first game, he smoked me. 15-2, if I remember. And I think the 2 was only sympathy, or maybe so as not to ace me.

Regardless, and jumping ahead, I did do fairly well picking the game back up. I managed to rally and take a 9-8 lead in the 3rd before faltering and losing 15-9.

Oh, and to be fair, this was the second time today that Cave played. And during the first set he DID take a racket to the head leaving a goose egg the size of my busted bum, oddly. So its fair to say that at full speed he'd have smoked me straight through.

But now that's not the point then, is it? You wanna know about the broken bum. The poor, aching, sagging lump of flesh I now sit happily on.

Well, somewhere in the 2nd, Cave launched a monster into the corner...shot, not fart. Naturally, I was standing about 5 feet too far forward, but heck, I'm nothing if not stubborn and I CAN hit anything...accuracy not withstanding.

Now remember the "sloth" statement a few paragraphs back. Well, sloths don't actually jump, we stretch. And so I stretched. This was no normal stretch. This was more like Jane Fonda running for President of the NRA. Olympic quality strech. Problem was, I reacted late and so stretched not just up, but back. WAY back. WAY WAY back. (Note: if you find two missing vertebrae on Court 1 of the A&M Rec, gimmie a call, I MIGHT be the long lost owner.) So at some point, the forces of gravity decided to ignore me, then suddenly smother me with affection, in a very S&M sorta way.

I'm not sure, but before I came down, I think I actually achieved a 15% angle from the ground, though I'm not quite sure how high I was at that point. Let's say 90 ft, just to be conservative. Well, needless to say, in the final seconds of my freefall, both me feet and my head had a higher elevation than my ass. And landing on your ass does indeed rattle your teeth.

So, there you have it, the story of my, okay, not broken, but definitely aching, busted bum.

Goodness, that was fun.

Wizard Proud!!!

2005-08-23T11:30:00.000-07:00

In the last week, I've had at least 5 different conversations where different friends hung their head in shame and quietly admitted to loving Harry Potter. Several of those were held in whispered asides, as if there was some great shame in enjoying literature of any sort in this day and time ruled as it is by brain-sucking cathode tubes...and I'm a video producer, I know of what I speak here.

Well, dammit, not me. I LOVE HARRY POTTER, and I'm not afraid to say it. The books are vivid, exciting, escapism at its finest. J.K. Rowling is truly a gifted story-teller with an ability to evolve characters like few others. She is to be adored for her remarkable talent and praised for the beautiful dreams she's writen down so that we may all make her rich.

I wish I had attended Hogwarts. I want to play Quiddich. I can't wait for Ron and Hermione to hook up. And dang it, I wanna give Hagrid a hug! Yes, I admit it, I LOVE the world J.K. has created and can't wait for the final book to come out.

I'm a grown man of nearly 30 years and I am not ashamed.

University Tire Center...

2005-08-18T17:16:00.000-07:00

Okay, not much a curmudgeon thing, BUT, I have to rave for a second on my mechanics. I took my car into them on Tuesday with a wild problem. Dumb engineers. Anyhow, it took them most of the day to varify that the problem was real, and then had to wait overnight to get the part. Once replaced I picked up the car and we shortly discovered that the problem was deeper than we thought, so I took it back today and low and behold, they knocked one out of the park. Got it right, did it with a smile, didn't charge for the extra work, and were all around nice guys. Not something you often see with mechanics these days. But heck, I'm thrilled. So if you are in BCS and need some work done, I highly reccomend the guys at Univeristy Tire Center on South College.

Okay, let the grumpiness return.

Fairtax Part II: Prebates (or Why the Poor love the Fairtax)

2005-08-17T18:41:00.000-07:00

If your ears now perk up and you begin hearing talk about Fairtax in the press, one of the most common complaints you'll hear is that "this plan will be hardest on our poor." EHHHHH, not true. In fact, the Fairtax plan assures that poor Americans do not pay Federal taxes.

This is done through the "prebate". But first, let's recognize two important points. First, consumer costs will remain virtually the same as embedded taxes are removed from retail costs. On average, goods and services have an embedded cost of 22% (the actually cost per sector varies by 4 or 5%, but I don't have the numbers in my head at the moment). So a 23% tax will on some goods will cost slightly more than current prices, for others slightly less, and for most the difference will be negligable because of the second point...

We'll all be bringing home more. Currently, even if the Federal government "refunds" every dime you've paid in taxes, you've still lost money in opportunity costs. You could have invested those funds and earned intrest, or even more likely for many of us, paid off debts (mortgage, credit cards, etc.) and reduced the cost you've incurred from those debts. Under the Fairtax, payroll taxes including Federal Income Taxes, Social Security Taxes, and Medicare Taxes will no long be withheld. In fact, they will be collected through the retail sales tax. So we will all be bringing home more money.

Now the "prebate".

At the begining of each month, every American household will receive a check from the government to reemburse that household to the level of taxation at the poverty line. Let me explain it another way...

Every household has to spend a certain amount of money to subsist, well, at least we can calulate that amount on average. This minimum amount is called the "poverty line". The amount it takes for basic, no frills life. LIke a car with no cd player or air conditioner.

The Fairtax calculates the amount of taxes each household would pay to this limit, then "advances" those funds to each house. In other words, you'd get a check each month to cover the cost of taxes you'd pay to live at the poverty line.

In 2005, a married couple with no children would hit the poverty line at $19,140. The amount of tax you'd pay to that line is $4,402. Divide that by 12, and you'd receive a check each month for $367.

For a single individual such as myself, $9,570 is the poverty line this year. So the first $2,201 in taxes I'd pay would be refunded. That's a monthly check for $183.

And that is BEFORE you pay the tax. In otherwords, this check offsets any taxes you might pay. And if you spend less by growing your own food or making your owe clothes or being energy effiencient as possible, then you can bank the money, invest it, or otherwise spend it how you like.

Keep in mind you paycheck no longer includes withholding. So you are bringing home MORE money. AND prices will remain virtually unchanged.

Another point to be made, that poor and middle class often buy used items. These are never taxed. Used clothes, used cars, used homes. No taxes.

So you can see that the poorest of us will not pay taxes. In fact, studies of spending habits show that this is be a vastly more progressive tax than we currently have in place with the rich paying a far greater share of the national tax burden.

Let's talk taxes...

2005-08-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

Sounds horribly boring, I know. But stay with me for a second, and try
to imagine...

-The term 'take-home pay" loses all meaning since FICA, Social
Security, and Medicare are no longer withheld from your paycheck.

-We stop ranting about our companies moving overseas, and instead
swell with pride as foreign corporation after forgein corporation
moves here.

-The drug dealer down the street is paying every bit as much in taxes
as you are, probably more.

And that's just the start. I'm talking about the Fairtax, of course,
better known as HR 25. That's right, an actual bill before congress,
and the same plan you see flying off bookstore shelves as written by
Neil Boortz and Congressman Lender. The national sales tax.

Now that last phrase is worrisome. A new tax, just what we need,
right? Well, YES. The key being that this single tax replaces Federal
Income Taxes, Social Security Taxes, Medicare Taxes, Corporate and
Business Taxes, Estate Taxes, Capital Gains Taxes and so on and so on
and so on. REPLACES! All current Federal taxes would be stripped away and replaced with a single, simple 23% inclusive tax on new, retail goods.

Does that sound like alot? Its not. You are already paying on average,
22% in retail good on everything you buy. These are embedded costs
from corporate and business taxes currently paid at EVERY level of
manufacturing. Remove those and allow competition to drive down prices
and sudedenly, you are paying roughly the same total amount with the
Fairtax as you pay now without it.

This is not a Republican vs. Democrat plan. The Fairtax is revenue
neutral. We can talk about cutting taxes and spending later. For now,
its about getting a better plan. A better way to pay taxes. And the Fairtax is that.

Our current system is corrupt. Send your tax information to 50
accountants this coming year and you'll get 50 different returns. And
chances are, none of them would be right. Right enough to get by?
Probably. But that's how ridiculous our current system is.

Further, it lends itself to political exploitation. Its based on the
concept of buying votes for tax credits, cuts, or manipulation.And thinkf or a second what our current tax system does. It punishes those that achieve. Those that work to better themselves. At the same time, it rewards those who embrace failure and poverty. Meanwhile the Fairtax neither rewards or punishes behavior. Its simple across the board, buy something new, pay the tax.

Okay, I need to get back to work now, but more to come. In the
meantime, I urge you to visit fairtax.org and see how the experts lay
it out.

Testing things out...

2005-08-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

Just a test. Only a test. If this were a genuine blog is would contain
much self-important ranting and raving.

Quitting sucks...

2005-08-17T06:37:00.000-07:00

Just to be clear, sure and absolute: I LOVE NICOTINE.
I want more in my life, not less. Damn this sucks.

Dang them Gilmores...

2005-08-16T23:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, so you are born. You learn to walk, to read, that girls have cooties, how to hit a slider, that girls don't have cooties, algebra, driving, mom's weep at graduation, keggers are fun, jobs aren't... and then it seems to level out. You are adult, but you don't feel so much different. Very gradually, you've become an adult.

But then one day, out of nowhere, someone walks in and slaps you in the face with a giant rolled-up newspaper featuring a headline in giant black print that reads "You are OLD!!!"

It's not gradual and it hurts.

Tonight, watching Gilmore Girls with my girlfriend, I discovered this about myself. I am old. I am a fogey. A crusty old man. And I am NOT comfortable with Rory as a sexual being.

Just ain't right, dagnab it! Pass me a cane.