July 24th, 2008

Video Redux?

As anyone who reads here knows, almost a year ago, I stopped uploading the home-made Dymersion Video episodes.  Thereafter, I uploaded a couple editorials I did for my college’s newscast.  Then I stopped doing it altogether.

I made no excuses for my actions.  I stopped doing it mainly because I was lazy, and also it was a bit difficult to set it up week after week, and sometimes I had no tapes.  But, no excuses.  I was committed to it, and I didn’t carry it on.

Well, what I did carry on doing was the editorials.  I did one roughly every couple weeks until I graduated in May.  Doing them, in combination with a speech class I took, gave me a lot of experience.  When I first started Dymersion Video, I rarely had a topic that wasn’t decided the same say, or maybe the day before.  Sometimes, I did the videos only after seeing something of interest.  Doing the editorials taught me it needed more planning.  I had known this kind of thing from doing news packages for several years prior to DV, but I thought it’d be easy to do it impromptu.

Well, I don’t do so well speaking impromptu.  I’m just not that kind of guy.  I need some kind of structure as to what I’m going to say before I say it.  So, the new Dymersion Video episodes will be based on what’s happened during the week.  I’ll look at some of the important issues of the week, and make an agenda.  I also learned during the editorials that I also don’t do well speaking off a teleprompter (though I started to get the hang of it), so the episodes will only be planned, not scripted.  If there’s something going on that day that’s important enough, it’ll get added, but mostly, it’ll be things going on that week.

I’m excited to begin doing it again, because to be frank, Dymersion’s gotten a little blah since I started at Poligazette.  Most of my meaty work is there now, and since it can often take a long time to research those posts, I don’t end up having much energy to do it here.  So, I think the video show, along with a possible radio show I have planned, can bring in some new meaty content to replace what’s now mainly at Poligazette.

There will always, of course, be a place for good ‘ol writing at this site.  Since my fanboying of the Libertarian Party and other third parties probably isn’t that interesting to those besides me, a lot of that will stay here.  I’d also like the chance to get going with some old Dymersion Creative materials I’ve kind of left by the wayside, including “The Regime”.

So, I look forward to really reinvigorating this place.  Since, while it’s still primarily for my health and sanity, I hope to have people come here to enjoy it as well.

July 23rd, 2008

It’s Not Robert Novak’s Week

Poor Robert Novak really is having a horrible week.  If you don’t remember him, he’s the guy who first released the identity of former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson.  A well known conservative columnist, here’s an overview of how his week went from bad to worse.

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July 22nd, 2008

“Wardrobe Malfunction” Fine Dropped

The New York Daily News is reported that federal appeals court has dropped the $550,000 fine against CBS for the “wardrobe malfunction” at the 2004 Super Bowl.

The court found that the FCC fine for the “broadcast of a nine-sixteenths of one second glimpse of a bare female breast” deviated from its nearly 30-year practice of fining broadcast indecency only when it was extremely “pervasive.”

Basically, the FCC made up a new rule after the incident and used it against CBS.  The court said they couldn’t go around making up new rules and then fining people without telling them about the rule first.

I think the ruling is fair, as it never made sense to me.  CBS couldn’t possibly have known about this.  MTV did maybe, but CBS was simply the broadcaster.

It was paternalism at its best.

July 21st, 2008

One Reason for Dems to Like Lieberman: His Money

My local newspaper reported today that Connecticut Independent Democrat Senator Joe Lieberman is raking in the money, despite not running for any office this year.

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July 18th, 2008

Why I Like NAIP Candidate Frank McEnulty

As I noted yesterday, I have recently become very interested in the New American Independent Party and their candidate, Frank McEnulty.  Why?  Well, out of every candidate I’ve researched thus far, McEnulty has positions that makes the most sense to me.

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July 17th, 2008

New American Independent Party & Frank McEnulty

Two parties have really caught my attention this year.  The first, the Libertarian Party, with Bob Barr, I’ve written about to some extent.  The second is the New American Independent Party and its candidate Frank McEnulty.

Tomorrow’s entry will provide more information about why I like his positions, but for the time being, check out his website!

July 16th, 2008

Presidential Succession

Like many people, I learned about Presidential succession in school, in the case that the President should die in office.  It goes VP first, then Speaker of the House, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, etc.

Patrick Edaburn over at The Moderate Voice brings up an interesting point regarding succession, particularly about the two current options for President Pro Tempore:

This post is currently held by 90 year old Robert Byrd of West Virginia. If the Republicans were in charge the post would be occupied by 84 year old Ted Stevens of Alaska.

I have nothing against the elderly and know many senior citizens who have done some truly great things. But if we are dealing with a major crisis that resulted in the death of the President, the Vice President and the Speaker of the House I am not sure we would want someone in their 80’s or 90’s to take over.

I think Edaburn has some good points.  Is a man or women that old fit to serve for the Presidency?  Several arguments can be made to that extent, though I think both Byrd and Stevens could do it.  Still, it does bring up questions.  Consider that a lot is being made out of John McCain’s age.  I could see some of the same questions being asked if Byrd or Stevens were to get closer to the Presidency.

Interestingly, the President Pro Tempore was the original position that was second in line to the Presidency in the 1792 act.  It was removed from consideration entirely in the 1886 law, then put into third place in the 1948 law.  From 1792-1886, the holders of the position were younger.  However, since people generally died younger as well, you have to wonder if a 66 year old in 1848 was the same as an 84 year old now.

While I’m not entirely convinced that an older person acting as President is inherently bad (I believe this of John McCain), I agree with Edaburn that it is something to look at.

July 15th, 2008

Are We A Nation of Whiners?

Last Thursday, McCain campaign economic advisor Phil Gramm received a lot of flak for saying the following:

“We have sort of become a nation of whiners. You just hear this constant whining, complaining about a loss of competitiveness, America in decline,” said the former Texas senator. “You’ve heard of mental depression; this is a mental recession.”

Later, Gramm clarified his comments by saying he was referring to the leaders, not the people.  Yet, I think his true meaning was that of the people.  Certainly, leaders can be whiners, but what about the people?

Continue reading »

July 14th, 2008

Says Sessions

A couple days ago, I wrote about an amendment to the PEPFAR bill that would remove the HIV travel restrictions for visitors and immigrants to the U.S.  Not everyone is having it:

Purpose: To continue classifying HIV as a communicable disease of public health significance that renders an alien inadmissible to the United States.

The amendment comes from Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama.

Have you no shame, Senator?  HIV is NOT communicable.  It takes (in most cases) an active effort on another person to get it.  It’s certainly no cough or chicken pox.  And I think you know that.

You can take your homophobia and shove it.

July 13th, 2008

The Moving Chronicles: Keeping Clean for Showings

Overall, I try to keep my areas neat and clean.  I’ve had varying levels of success doing it at home, but at college, I was actually pretty generally clean.  At the very least, people could always come to my dorm room without having to walk in a pigsty.  I’ve had roommates with rooms that were barely walkable.  It started out as a common courtesy when I shared a room in my Freshman year, and simply continued on after I got my own room.  In part, most of help I had was from having a good clothes hamper.  At home, I sometimes have it, and sometimes not.  That’s a weak argument, but there it is.

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