Chuckoblog

Vice President Respectfully Requests That You Experience Rape

2011-10-19T12:16:00.002-04:00

Really... sometimes these things write themselves. I can't elaborate on this any more than what it is.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Joe Biden, classy!

Couldn't Happen to a Better Guy

2011-07-06T15:02:00.002-04:00

It's not often that I cheer bad things happening to anyone, but every now and then I have to step back and nod approvingly when people are terrible enough to warrant it. That being said, never would I wish physical harm or hardship on anyone.

Eliot Spitzer, well documented jackass and noted anti-Catholic from New York, appears to have lost his job. He'll undoubtedly find another one among the smarmy self indulgent MSM, but for now we'll just enjoy the slightly cleaner airwaves.

Casey Anthony: Prosecution Overreaches

2011-07-06T14:53:00.002-04:00

Sad but true, Casey Anthony is going to get off as free as a jaybird with the recent ruling. To be absolutely fair, the jury could not convict based on the evidence provided. It's a crying shame that someone so obviously guilty of child endangerment at best will be walking the streets, making millions from the verdict that set her free, simply because the prosecution was so badly executed and the investigation was so badly mishandled. Having a toddler myself, it's enraging to see something like this happen, but for future investigations and prosecutions here is a textbook example of how not to do it.

It's nice that she was able to obtain an attorney as classy as her.

Little Green Footballs

2011-05-24T13:41:00.002-04:00

I was musing today about what had happened to LGF. I've only been there a smattering of times in recent years, and the change seemed rather dramatic to me.

Check it out.

With the recent ruling....

2010-08-05T08:48:00.003-04:00

As Western culture and society continues the decline that all empires and dominant societies must eventually face, I figured I'd post a few links regarding the ruling yesterday, one of which I believe I've posted in the past:

The Secular Case Against Gay Marriage

The Liberal Case Against Gay Marriage

One thing I've always found fascinating is that a "conservative" position is typically considered, by default, to be wrong, bigoted, unfeeling, or cold. Why is this? On some other sites, I've seen comments in articles that do not mention religion at all basically referring to the author of a well written article as a Bible thumping bigot. Yet, "liberal" positions are almost always full of feeling, caring, warmth, and by default correct. It's somewhat maddening. Until I finally stopped paying constant attention to the fate of our society, and trying to raise the dialogue and correct the course, life was pretty depressing.

The future is inevitable, for reference look at the past.

Sarah Palin on the Super Bowl Ad

2010-01-27T13:03:00.004-05:00

Regarding the "controversial" Super Bowl Ad, Sarah Palin hits it spot-on:

What a ridiculous situation they’re getting themselves into now with their protest of CBS airing a pro-life ad during the upcoming Super Bowl game. The ad will feature Heisman trophy winner Tim Tebow and his mom, and they’ll speak to the sanctity of life and the beautiful potential within every innocent child as Mrs. Tebow acknowledges her choice to give Tim life, despite less than ideal circumstances. Messages like this empower women! This speaks to the strength and commitment and nurturing spirit within women. The message says everything positive and nothing negative about the power of women — and life. Evidently, some women’s rights groups like NOW do not like that message.

I'm not a huge Palin fan, but she speaks the truth. There is absolutely no reason to protest this ad, no one is threatened, no one is insulted. I'm also not a huge Focus on the Family fan, but they've produced a positive ad that effectively explains and nurtures their position on this issue.

The "women's groups" protesting this ad only succeed in making themselves look all the more ridiculous by reflexively reacting to anything that doesn't appear to be Anti-Life.

Patience and Gaming

2009-11-19T12:36:00.004-05:00

Last night, Innuendo had the weekly "farm status" raid. Many brought their alts, and we decided to run Naxxramas for various reasons. As was to be expected, with a few new to the instance players, and badly geared alts, we wiped a couple of times. This was mostly related to the new players and not the gear so much, which brings me to my point. Patience is truly a virtue in a rewarding online game experience. We were all there once. Yes, I'm looking at you Joe Elitist who ever wiped EVAR and soloed Kael'Thas the day after The Eye opened. You were there once. All of us have had a period where we were unsure of how the game mechanics worked, or what "positive side left, negative side right" meant. We recently had a very good player join our guild. He's really a fantastic guy too, which works out very well... positive, good sense of humor, and generally very patient. After 2 wipes on Thaddius, he whispered me with the statement "I f*cking give up." This surprised me given how I'd repeatedly told him our progression status, and how we generally rolled regarding raids. Later, the new guildie apologized and we talked shop for a while. I have to admit at times that when it seems people just don't listen I become very frustrated with the game. After a while though, I remember my early days of raiding Molten Core and Zul'Gurub, how while I studied boss strategies I didn't really "get the big picture." We all have more fun when we help others to be better at their craft. Patience is a virtue. A temporary, reflexive flash of anger is understandable in such an environment. In the long run, however, those that are constantly insulting others because of the way they move their pixels without providing any positive input as to how they can improve have simply become too involved. Too obsessed with something that will be obsolete in a few years.

You're paying good money to play a game. Have fun. Don't ruin the fun of others. That's really our guild's policy in the end, and the policy I base my playstyle around.

Totem Flow Chart

2009-10-21T11:13:00.002-04:00

Really great chart from Healing Way. Blizzard has decided that we aren't allowed to use all of the tools they have given us (stacking buffs, etc etc) to win, so this is extremely helpful. Totems wiping already applied other buffs is just... well... stupid and lazy.

Gaming Addiction

2009-10-20T12:31:00.001-04:00

A great article sent to me by my friend Tyler.

As I was reading it, in my mind I was mocking him for playing a Bard and reading this in another tab. That's when I started thinking uh oh...

Rush Limbaugh

2009-10-15T12:01:00.002-04:00

You know, I've been listening to Rush since he hit it big. I don't necessarily agree with everything he says, or everything he does. It's fair to say that I agree with a majority of his opinions on life and government. Having stated this, he runs a very entertaining show, one that rarely leaves me disappointed for having listened to it. His affable demeanor, and comically high self promotion and confidence put the listener at ease and bring the humorous segments of his show to the front.

But you see, Rush has a problem. Because he is a Republican, he is a racist. This is accepted as fact by the public, as it has been explained to them for decades by the mainstream media. I've stated before I have no idea how conservatism became associated with racism. National Socialism, in the modern American sense of the word, is a very "Liberal" idea. Socialism is clearly more a goal of the left than it is of the right, this is fact. Full governmental control is what the extreme left wing seeks. It's what communism and socialism are all about. The single reason people refer to the "far right" as Nazis is racism, because of course everyone on the right and conservatives are racists. Correct?

To anyone with a brain, this is obviously incorrect. Levels of government control, and individuals opinions thereof, are simply differences in ideology on how nations should be governed. More government versus less government, simple enough. The overwhelming majority of mass media feel the need to promulgate socialism as the cure of all woes in society, they are companies and this is their right. What isn't justifiable is to flat out lie about those you disagree with on such a widely exposed platform, and count it as fact, defaming and ruining those who oppose you.

The article that sparked this entry is here.

Know there are people on both sides in society that can agree and disagree without defaming or attempting to ruin their opponents in ideology. I'm hard pressed to find any of them in the major media rooms of this nation.

VDH on Obama

2009-03-19T10:14:00.003-04:00

The title of this post could cover any number of articles he has written recently, but I found this one to particularly good. VDH, for the record, is a registered Democrat. This of course means nothing in today's age of party ambiguity, but worth a mention for flavor and spice.

Cincinnati Cat Connection

2009-02-11T14:55:00.002-05:00

So, in one of many recent attempts to find a good home for my cats I sent the following email to Cincinnati Cat Connection:

Good morning,

I have 2 wonderful cats, which I have had since they were 8 weeks old (from the same litter) and are now nearing 5 years of age. I love them dearly, however, my fiance is highly allergic and I need to find a new home for both of them. Is there a way I could have them adopted through your organization? If so, how could I go about starting this process, and what information would you need from me? I know that you're probably overburdened by the sheer amount of pets that need to be adopted, but I'd much prefer this route to many others, for the love and health of my kitties.

Thank you for any and all information and help you can provide.

-Chuck

Here is their response:

I am sorry - Cat Connection rarely accepts housecats - we are not a shelter, just a few foster homes.
The most we could offer is to post your cats on PetFinder. In order to do this we would need their medical histories (they must be altered, up to date on basic vaccines and tested), and information about their personalities and up to three photos of each cat
It is VERY difficult to adopt out older cats - most public shelters around here are likely to euthanize them immediately.
I would recommend Zyrtec
NAME REMOVED, CCC

Seems to me that CCC is a very rude organization. The insult that I would trivially give up my two wonderful pets without exhausting every other option first speaks volumes to how they handle their business. Adding an over the counter allergy medicine "recommendation" went above and beyond. I wouldn't recommend them.

Tweedledee and Tweedledum

2009-02-03T10:47:00.002-05:00

Thomas Sowell hacks into my brain and writes an article with what he finds.

The Republicans and Democrats are nearly undiscernable as opposing parties at this point. They're too busy tripping over one another to spend as much of your money as they possibly can to notice what's going on in the nation at large.

Buddhism and Catholicism

2009-02-03T10:43:00.003-05:00

A nice article on the similarities and differences between the two major religions.

The methods that Buddhism incorporates to help one find their inner peace and selves have been integral to my own meditative practices.

Update:

Declaration on the Relation of the Church to non-christian religions.

Finding Peace Within

2009-01-29T10:59:00.003-05:00

When I was attending school, I had some pretty fun times, sometimes they were a little crazier than I should have allowed, but all in all it was a positive life learning experience on several levels. More recently, I've found myself under an amazing amount of stress, something I've deftly avoided for most of my life. Meditation and prayer have helped me find my inner peace on several occasions, and will continue to do so. I've actually considered starting to write about politics again, maybe just start parodying what I see every day in congress, the executive office, and various governments around the nation and world. At this moment, I don't see a whole lot which warrants endorsing, no movements that invoke passion that haven't already been fought and won or lost (mostly lost, but hey, that's the way life goes).

One thing I tell Estee very frequently that there is always a reason to smile. For all of the negative moments of life, the fighting, the anger and hate in the world, all of the reasons to frown, there are so many more to smile.

My family, my mom, dad, brothers, sister in law, niece, and nephews. My love, and the life we will spend together. My God. The beauty of nature in and of itself.

Sometimes, when I used to walk every day in the neighborhood where I grew up, I would look intensely at the trees, grass, sky, and other various items and parts of my surroundings and take them in, understanding that while such beauty occurs naturally, it's all part of a larger plan. Something beyond my control, other than the lives I can touch personally.

Smile.

The reasons to do so outnumber and are greater than the reasons not to. Don't get to wrapped up in things you cannot control.

Animal Crossing, Zen Garden

2009-01-29T08:54:00.002-05:00

With the advent of Animal Crossing: City Folk, my interest in the AC franchise has been renewed. The atmosphere provided in the game, the music, the colors, the interaction with game elements... all seem to be centered on relaxing. Achieving goals, while taking the broader picture into perspective. If anyone has their Wii connected, hit me up and we can exchange info.

William F. Buckley Quote on the Mass

2009-01-28T15:29:00.004-05:00

I'm not sure how this eluded me for so long, but I was cracking up today over it.

As a Catholic, I have abandoned hope for the liturgy, which, in the typical American church, is as ugly and as maladroit as if it had been composed by Robert Ingersoll and H.L. Mencken for the purpose of driving people away.

Incidentally, the modern liturgists are doing a remarkably good job, attendance at Catholic Mass on Sunday having dropped sharply in the 10 years since a few well-meaning cretins got hold of the power to vernacularize the Mass, and the money to scour the earth in search of the most unmusical men and women to preside over the translation.

The next liturgical ceremony conducted primarily for my benefit, since I have no plans to be beatified or remarried, will be my own funeral; and it is a source of great consolation to me that, at my funeral, I shall be quite dead, and will not need to listen to the accepted replacement for the noble old Latin liturgy. Meanwhile, I am practicing Yoga, so that, at church on Sundays, I can develop the power to tune out everything I hear, while attempting, athwart the general calisthenics, to commune with my Maker, and ask Him first to forgive me my own sins, and implore him, second, not to forgive the people who ruined the Mass.

Edit: Corrected quote blocking.

I'm getting married!

2009-01-28T11:03:00.003-05:00

Yep, it's true, I know most of you are wondering about the mental state of someone deciding to spend the rest of her life with me, but I need some tips and help!

My question at the moment is pre-marital counseling. We live pretty far apart, and she will be moving here after the wedding. How, in our limited time together prior to the marriage, can we go through this counseling, and keep it beneficial and productive? Does anyone know of somewhere locally in Cincinnati which could provide such a service, under such circumstances?

Thanks for any help you can provide!

The Second Coming

2009-01-20T12:00:00.004-05:00

I didn't watch the inauguration of the first black POTUS, nor do I intend to watch this one. Having been raised to be colorblind with respect to achievement, I don't see any special reason to do so.

Best wishes to all that continue to fling themselves against the inevitable wave of complete government control that is creeping into our society. It didn't start with Obama, nor will it end with him.

Among other things...

2009-01-08T12:27:00.003-05:00

I've asked that the SOB Alliance remove me from their list, since I update this very infrequently anymore, and it's often not politically oriented. Check out those guys though, they're excellent writers, and I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of it for so long. Who knows, maybe I'll return to political blogging someday. I guess that will happen when there's something worth writing about.

This blog will likely be more personal-oriented from this point forward, covering topics on life, sports, gaming, and other things.

In other news, I'm engaged. :)

Take care all, and without the restrictions of political blogging, I should return soon. Thank you all for being so supportive of me.

Welcome to our Future

2008-11-05T08:49:00.002-05:00

I posted this on Facebook last night, prior to the polls closing. Thought I'd go ahead and post it here. I haven't included the links yet, I may add them later.

So the long awaited, pre ordained Obama victory parade has begun.

The systematic indoctrination of America's youth through traditional institutions of "higher learning" has had it's effect. The media also received the two candidates they felt best offered them a chance at reaching their ideological goals: Barack Obama, the well documented socialist and lifelong America hating appeaser, and John McCain, the old, politically weak candidate who had stabbed his own party in the back so many times that the majority has never forgotten.

Once Barack Obama wins, the "Fairness Doctrine" will likely go back into effect, eliminating the few conservative voices in popular media. Once again, the right to bear firearms will have as many restrictions put upon it as possible (which is why I'm going to go buy a gun sometime very soon), and businesses that have put up with heavy taxation under supposedly "fiscally conservative" regimes will find better, more success-friendly environments overseas. The sky will not fall, but it will lower to us with oppressive taxes, silencing of the opposition, and a suffocating litany of new laws banning, barring, and imposing the beliefs of those in office upon those who are not in power. Ironically, a great tragedy will continue, and likely be promoted.

I support many of the social issues idealists do... in many ways I am in the same sense an idealist, a dreamer, someone who wants to change the world for the better by working for social justice. Unfortunately I understand that this simply can not be implemented by governments or bureaucracies. By the time the money taken from you to give to them is distributed, so much has been filtered out for the friends and supporters of politicians that only a tiny fraction actually reaches its "destination." The rest is spent on paper, process, and drumming up support for expanding government control at the federal level. Many on the left like to speak about "trickle down economics." If this isn't an example that perfectly matches said phrase, I have no idea what is.

I've said before and I will say again, the 16th Amendment to the Constitution of these United States was the beginning of the end. With the New Deal and Great Society, the middle game has already begun to expire. Bill Clinton was more a puppet and a poll governor than anything else. He did manage to gut the military pretty heavily, but he saw the value in attempting to remain as popular as possible, basing his governance not on principles, but on "legacy" if that is possible.

So we reach the end game. As with all great empires and societies of enlightenment, we begin to hasten our already rapid decline. American culture has slid to the point of being almost exclusively based on selling things using shock value or sex, including ourselves. The relentless assault on the power of the government over the past decade is taking it's toll, politicians are solidifying their status, lining their pockets, and continually being re-elected by schmoozing with their media elite friends and camera friendly celebrities. In effect, they are mostly no more than paid entertainers these days, trotting out in front of cameras to posture and puff out their feathers, stomping and humphing about in righteous indignation. Instead of dialogue over legislation, we see personal insults on the television, and frightening rhetoric on certain internet media.

Civilized discourse is ending. Given the unbelievably abrasive attacks on myself, what I believe in, those I've supported, and misrepresentations to hurt me and my beliefs over the past decade, I'm not sure if I want to see it continue now that the other side is in power or see it return to normalcy, once again restoring peace to the union.

That's all I have for now, some random thoughts. I hope this post has found you well, and has caused you to think. There was a time when I was heavily involved in campaigns and issues, but that time has passed. I wasn't even going to vote today aside from my friends and family seeming offended that I had no desire or will to do so.

I voted. I hope you're happy.

Endorsement

2008-10-28T09:46:00.003-04:00

Oddly, I feel obligated to post something here, with the election just around the corner. So many newspapers, media outlets, columnists, celebrities, sports stars, and generally famous people find it within their interests to postulate their opinion on who should be elected when, merely because they are just that: famous or loud. I am neither, thankfully, so I suppose in a sense my opinion matters a little less. Regardless, despite my cynicism, despite having worked extensively on the Bush '92, Dole '96, and Bush '00 campaigns, I'm endorsing only one candidate that I know would fight for change and the future of this great nation. That person is me. When you go to the polls next Tuesday, vote for Chuck Mountel. No one on the ballot has anything to offer me, or stands for anything I believe in.

PBS: Your tax dollars at work!

2008-09-11T07:41:00.001-04:00

Linky!

Does anything else really need to be stated on this?

Camille Paglia: Refreshing

2008-09-10T09:18:00.003-04:00

Admittedly, I didn't know a whole lot about Camille Paglia before reading her article on Sarah Palin. Given that, as I read the article, I was stunned not only with her fair and generally positive appraisal of John McCain's running mate, but her incredibly direct and honest approach to controversial issues such as abortion and capital punishment. Though we are on different ends of the spectrum on both of these issues, as well as others, Paglia takes an approach that many who stand opposite of me do not: she is brazenly forthright and unapologetic about how she feels, and doesn't pretend that the issues are something they are not so as to help sate her conscience.

Warlock 0/21/40

2008-09-09T10:48:00.002-04:00

Wow. That's all I have to say about my spec change for Giblet. Brand new to the spec, my first run through Heroic Mechanar and my dps went from ~600 on a good day in mostly affliction/raid boss debuffing to over 1000 for the whole Mech run. The numbers showing up on my screen were nearly unbelievable, I think I had 3 6k+ crits in a row at one point. Anyway, that's all I have for now. It's definitely reinvigorated my love for playing the Warlock class.

Sarah Palin: I was wrong.

2008-09-08T14:05:00.003-04:00

Here is a great article on Sarah Palin.

In retrospect, I was too quick in judging McCain's pick for vice president. She's clearly a good woman, strong, and brings a lot of energy to the ticket. Not only that, as per the article linked above, in many ways she redefines feminism in America today. I truly hope she shines throughout the campaign, and having her on the national stage even longer would be fantastic.

Despite all of this, I still have major issues casting a ballot for the candidate that no one can really say stands for anything. In many senses, I'm glad he has claimed the lead in most polls. In others, I still feel the sting of no true candidates that represent what I believe will be right for this nation as we carry, presumably, forward.

I would gladly cast my vote for Sarah Palin. Unfortunately, she's not running for the presidency. This time.

McCain\Palin

2008-08-29T11:11:00.003-04:00

So, John McCain decided to announce his pick today. Some even paid attention, and others even went so far as to care!

Sarah Palin is a rising star in the GOP. National review had varied takes on the pick... but seriously folks, Alaska. 3 electoral votes the Republicans have every election. The mighty power of Arizona and Alaska shall swing this election!

Ah well, hopefully things will hold together until 2012 when a candidate I can actually stomach voting for.

Games of Oppression

2008-08-08T08:23:00.003-04:00

China.

Very unique in it's own way, a culture that reaches back thousands of years, with proud moments and shameful moments as any other might have. My post today is about the United States, and our government's hypocrisy in how it treats the People's Republic of China versus the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Cuba.

China's human rights violations are well documented. Aside from the obvious violations, an immense amount of more minor crackdowns occur daily. Most people are well aware of corporate participation in the fun. Microsoft, Google, and Yahoo, have decided that the draw of the yuan is worth much more to them than the rights of individuals to express themselves, or to learn more about the world and how freedom can benefit humanity.

China's religious oppression is also well noted. No faith is safe, including my own Catholicism.

How can this nation be a "most favored" trading partner? How can it not be on the list of human rights violators? The reason is simple... and patently obvious. Currency is the religion of the powerful and the elite. Politicians no longer have to rely on their integrity to stay in power when the almighty dollar has kept them there for 30, even 40 years. Everything is for sale in this digital age, votes and influence are merely another symptom of a quickly declining global culture. China is simply taking advantage of that, and the most powerful corporations in the United States are one hundred percent on their side. They see over one billion consumers and cheap employees. In fact, they may see that they are destroying our culture, as well as many others, but the simply do not care because profits are king.

Congratulations China, you have managed to do something that Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and several other smaller oppressive rights violating dictatorships have been unable to. You have conquered America, using our internal influences to bring us down.

The Beginning of the End of Freedom

2008-07-08T14:02:00.000-04:00

It can all be summed up rather succinctly.

McCain's Service: The Wheels Begin to Turn

2008-06-30T07:20:00.003-04:00

Hmmm... in looking back through my previous posts I didn't realize exactly how little I had commented on the 2004 presidential race. Given that this was a contest about which I actually cared about, it's a bit surprising. Regardless, I'll admit I participated in the critique of John Kerry's military record. Those who did the research would admit that it wasn't nearly as stellar as he would have liked the American public to believe, and this became an issue when he attempted to make it a centerpiece of his campaign. Perhaps his biggest mistake was not challenging his naysayers more forcefully in a public setting. His love of nuance must have simply been too great. Hello 2004, welcome to 2008, where John McCain is running for president while making his military service a centerpiece of his campaign. Ironically, just about the only thing I respect about Senator McCain is, in fact, his service to our great nation. When attacked, his campaign has immediately responded, very forcefully, that this type of criticism will not be tolerated. I also feel that attacks against McCain will have a much different effect than those directed towards Senator Kerry. The Arizona Senator has a much more detailed, graphic account of his time in Vietnam. He spent a long time over there, the majority of which was spent in a prisoner of war camp. The attacks against him will only serve to unite the fractured base, consolidating opposition to Barack Obama. Good luck, critics. The harder you push, the harder the pushback will be.

Nice Article on Tanking

2008-06-27T09:45:00.003-04:00

It's funny how the different classes in the game can lead to different attitudes, unexpected leadership, and great comradery. Those that play know that I am first and foremost, a tank... and a warrior tank. For the interested, here is a great article on what it means to tank in Warcraft.

When I first started playing, I chose a Warlock... and it is still a very fun class for me to play. Perhaps my favorite outside of Warrior at the moment. I chose to level a warrior because there was such a dramatic shortage of meat shields on our server. I never thought I would become the main tank for a large guild, much less be in a role leading several individuals during battle. One of the fundamental things you learn as you gain higher levels is a warrior is people expect you to lead, and know more about what everybody is doing than anyone else. It's a lot of pressure, and at times, a lot of stress. Some would say it is thankless, but the reward comes from the joyous cries over the voice channel when you finally down that boss you've been working on for a week. I've healed, dps'd (ranged and melee), and tanked, but nothing compares to keeping your friends alive, and getting through some of the hardest content under your leadership.

SCOTUS Gets One Right

2008-06-27T09:34:00.003-04:00

Wow! Who would have thought the Supreme Court would actually rule appropriately per the interpretation of written law? Given that in recent times they have decided personal property can be seized for private development, terrorists have citizen rights (for those who had forgotten, this is something the Al'Qaida handbook had counted on), and various other shenanigans, this truly comes as a surprise.

Yeah, I'm a day late. Deal with it.

Big Lebowski Action Figures

2008-06-25T12:34:00.002-04:00

Sooooooo... I was browsing around today, and found these fun little products. Being as The Big Lebowski is one of my favorite movies of all time I was thinking to myself, 'huh, this is pretty cool... whatever...' until I scrolled to the first comment posted under the article. Seriously, if I could figure out how to channel my hate laser like that guy, the world might be in danger.

The Obama Assessment

2008-06-25T12:27:00.002-04:00

Bill Bennett and Seth Leibsohn have written an excellent article on Barack Obama.

I'd also recommend National Review as a leading conservative site to my liberal readers, as it is typically a bit more intellectual than most political sites in general. Well written, very detailed, and never shrewd, bitter, or childish in it's content.

MMOs: Do They Count as "Socialization?"

2008-06-25T11:19:00.002-04:00

In short: yes.

Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMO, or MMORPG for short) involve the coming together of several thousand individuals at a time at any particular moment. The individuals that participate are typically from a vast variety of backgrounds... financial, religious, ideological, and even national and continental. Personally, in the guild I am a part of, we have people from across the entire United States (we even let in a few sneaky Canadians), and I believe every time zone is covered. We chat via typing, and in raids we open up voice chat and get to know one another a little better. Some have formed very close ties within the guild, and it's interesting to watch factions form that specialize in enjoying different tasks within the game.

One thing that causes me a sort of fascination regarding this phenomenon are people online that will sign up for sites that support the game, only to berate the individuals that play it. Some seem desperate, trying to quell the tide of MMOs that are apparently, destroying society at large. Others are very angry with the MMO community, calling it a group of losers and individuals with no lives... which is sort of odd that they would go to the trouble of signing up for such a site, and taking the time to post that on it... but I digress. There are very real communities of friends with common interests within the walls of the respective games, sometimes resulting in even closer relationships (I am currently in a relationship with someone I met while playing WoW, and in fact owe the inspiration for this post to her as she has written an article along the same lines).

Regardless, these games have generated much controversy... some people calling them "addictive," and some actually playing much, much more than they should. Even with these stories, the issue is with the individuals... clearly people that should have not involved themselves in relationships or had children in the first place, let alone been so weak as to rely on a game to replace their very existence. It's the equivalent to blaming a gun for killing a person... as far as I know, guns don't pull their own triggers. That is, unless you're talking about the new super secret bio-engineered guns that also have legs and are currently coming for YOU!

So has the rise of this type of media led to a decline in general socialization within society, or a boost? What do you think?

Free Speech

2008-06-25T11:10:00.002-04:00

Fr. Fox has an excellent post on the continual assault on specific aspects of free speech on his blog (from the 17th). I have a hard time understanding how groups that have traditionally defended this right stand by on the sidelines and western civilization slide into a 1984-esque society. It could be attributed to the slow, massive transformation of the west into a socialist/marxist state. Control is power, eliminating opposing speech is control, eliminating opposing opinions is absolute control, and absolute control corrupts absolutely. We're in for an interesting ride, folks. As for me, I've found some motivation to start posting again, so I'll do what I can from here.

How to Survive in the New Socialist America

2008-06-25T10:50:00.002-04:00

First off, I'd like to congratulate the left wing on their impending victory in 2008. Be it John McCain or more likely Barack Obama, they managed to win even before the general election had really been considered. Most conservatives will be staying home this election cycle, not as a protest or to make a point, but rather because there are simply zero options at the polls for the presidency. I'll likely go, because if I don't I'll have made myself into a huge hypocrite for pestering people to vote in the past, despite their dissatisfaction with all of the potential office holders. Perhaps a nice third party option will present itself, or I'll just vote for myself. Regardless, America is on a new path now... it will be interesting to see how we handle a socialist society created not by well discussed, considered policies and opinions, but rather how the media has presented each party and ideology. Not only will the full-court press (no pun intended) result in an absolute blowout this cycle, it apparently is not enough for Nancy Pelosi, who seeks to eliminate any opposition, no matter how minute, to the new "progressive" society they have envisioned.

Ahhh Yes... BDS

2008-06-25T10:33:00.002-04:00

This article at LGF has a couple of interesting points. Both are related to the fundamental hypocrisy that is commonly displayed among those who choose to ignore the obvious, provided it furthers propagation of their respective ideologies.

Carlin Dead

2008-06-23T08:21:00.002-04:00

Just like the title says. The world becomes a much more quiet and peaceful place. You'll never find me wishing death upon anyone, but a Carlin fan I was not.

The Usual Things

2008-06-02T07:51:00.002-04:00

Again, mostly just tagging this space to let everybody know I'm OK. Things have begun to pick up over here, but hopefully I'll be back on the scene soon enough. I have a few topics in mind, though they don't go along with the traditional focus of this blog. We shall see.

Thanks to everyone who has inquired.

Some Good Articles

2008-02-15T10:42:00.002-05:00

Both from the Weekly Standard:

Michael Makovsky offers the best reason yet to vote for McCain, somehow managing to completely avoid insulting those that have found some very serious disagreements with the Senator. No, this does not mean I'm voting for him.

An awesome writeup from Robert Messenger about German/Russian military strategies in World War II.

Is There Anyone Left to Vote For?

2008-02-11T08:26:00.001-05:00

The answer to the above question is simple: yes. Take the energy and excitement you were going to bring to a presidential campaign, and transfer it to your local and congressional races! Michelle Malkin puts it very well, in an article I had intended to link before, but was too deflated to do so. Congress has always held more real legislative power than the Presidency, and at least House Republicans have held the conservative banner proudly while most others have dropped it. Get fired up! Let's take back the Congress!

Straight talk, indeed!

2008-01-31T11:12:00.000-05:00

As I peruse the various blogs that have decided to support Mitt, I'm seeing a rather bitter streak of McCain supporters leaving comments referring to us as "stupid babies," and to "get over it." While this is classy, the party-line "Rs" have to understand that while politics is a fun game, the results ultimately have consequences. The only way to counter the impending liberal presidency (whether it is McCain, Clinton, or Obama) will be to elect a conservative Congress. That being said, even if you see no point in attempting to discern the differences in opinion of Hillary or John, and refuse to make a vote based on this ambiguity, please vote anyway for the conservative running for congress in your district. This may be the only way we can keep the 2 headed liberal monster from taking the little we have left.

McCain, Schwartznegger, Giuliani, the New York Times. If that's not enough, please research his record.

For those who enjoy labeling and calling names as opposed to policy discussion and reasoned argument, understand that none of this will win me over to your side. If McCain had any sort of internal compass that directed him which was not related to political expediency, I'd have to give him further consideration.

Update (Same Day):

A little insight into McCain's judicial nominating thought process.

Also, regarding the Senator's immigration bill.

McCain Wins!

2008-01-29T23:15:00.001-05:00

And the Republicans move another step closer to losing the entire conservative vote! Ah well, hopefully they'll come to their senses before the general election and nominate someone that we can vote for. The media has convinced everyone that McCain is the only Republican that can beat a Democrat. This is the way they are leading us to defeat. Liberal(D) versus Liberal(R). Not a decision I want to make, nor do I intend to.

Release the Hatred

2008-01-21T10:39:00.000-05:00

The Anchoress has a really great writeup on anger and resentment here.

The reason I'm linking it is that I have been dealing with a similar situation recently (as I believe many of us likely have) and she has a way with words that I do not. It's a beautiful post and well worth the time to read it. I understand how hate is a waste of time, and have tried to train myself to ignore it, and understand how it poisons and controls one's life. Unfortunately, we all succumb to it every now and then, the key is being able to assess what's going on and step back. Distancing myself from the issue seems to help me see the bigger picture and simply let the hate roll by, and allows me to take control back of my mind and emotions.

Blah vs. Blah for Superbowl Title

2008-01-21T09:16:00.000-05:00

Cheaters vs. Whiners in the epic struggle for NFL champ this year. I really didn't have a problem with the Patriots until it came out that they were intercepting plays via radio. Since then, I've not really been a big fan, so to speak. Eli Manning... crybaby... boo hoo, a team that hadn't had much success drafted me, so I'm going to whine until I get traded because my big brother is arguably the best quarterback in the league. I was kind of hoping the Chargers would have made it, and beaten the Giants in what would be a hugely ironic twist. Ah well, I probably won't even be watching it this year, but at least the NFL didn't go on strike/lockout and cancel the Superbowl.

Would Somebody Please Tell Mike Huckabee to SHUT UP?

2008-01-21T08:29:00.001-05:00

First it was the Jesus/Devil Mormon comment. Then it was the campaign commercial the he was "holier than though" on not airing. After that, somebody involved in his campaign (I can't remember who or what) made a rather violent comment regarding one of his competitors for the nomination. Now, Chuck Norris (yes, the immortal, all powerful) has taken on the lapdog role in dissing John McCain's age. You all know I'm no fan of McCain, but amazingly I'm quickly becoming *less* of a fan of Huckabee. Please Mike, just SHUT UP, and if you're going to make a brash comment do it yourself instead of sending pathetic tools to make a comment, then immediately apologize for them. It's pathetic.

Update (Same Day):

The individual that made the comment about Mitt Romney was Huckabee's national campaign manager, Ed Rollins:

"I admire the fact he's trying to change the environment," Rollins says. "What I have to do is make sure that my anger with a guy like Romney, whose teeth I want to knock out, doesn't get in the way of my thought process."

FINALLY!

2008-01-15T23:15:00.000-05:00

Thank goodness, Michigan has provided Romney with a much needed shot in the arm. I never thought I'd say thank you and Michigan in the same sentence. Let's keep the ball rolling!

John McCain

2008-01-14T10:01:00.000-05:00

A little something for the John McCain fans out there.

Why I Can't Listen to Sean Hannity

2008-01-14T08:03:00.000-05:00

It seems like most of the popular talk show hosts go through phases where they are simply "off" their game. Hopefully this is the case for Hannity, though his run has lasted longer than I would have hoped. Where Rush has improved dramatically in recent years after falling off during his... ahem... less reputable days, and Glenn Beck has on and off days, Hannity is in a current slump that he seems to enthusiastically embrace. I can appreciate having strong views and defending them vigorously, but Hannity simply pummels the guests he does not agree with, introduces some callers as "liberals" in a drippingly condescending tone, repeats certain Republican party talking points 3 times in a row, using different words to describe the same thing, and is just generally hard to listen to. I think, of these many things, the one that bothers me most is when reasoned liberal callers attempt to address an issue from their perspective, Hannity will simply insult them repeatedly until they hang up, or he terminates the call. This is confusing for me, as I usually find sympathy with the liberal caller over Sean. Combined with the repeated talking points, to the point of being insufferably annoying, I rarely find myself tuned to the Sean Hannity Show these days. Come back to the fold Sean, stop bullying people and once again address issues with facts and reason.

Raid Leaders: Know the Good Ones

2008-01-14T07:52:00.000-05:00

Several months ago, actually probably nearing a year ago, I formed a guild named Innuendo on the Horde side of the Runetotem server. We were a small guild, made up of local friends and people we'd played with from the game for some time. Well, time passed and Innuendo is, for all intents and purposes, dead. The point in my telling you this is that during that time, I took it upon myself to lead some raids. Personally, I don't think that my raid leadership was very good. Some positives were I really enjoyed researching mobs and bosses. Negatives were when you're tanking, it's tough to even take a second to hit the talk key on Vent and call out orders. Given the makeup of our group, we were fairly successful.

Fast forward to today. The guild in which I currently have my main alliance toon is a good one... they're progressing very well through the 25 man content, given that they are mostly a casual guild. I've experienced some really truly great leaders, and feel that I may be able to step up to the plate when I go into an instance as DPS.

A bit of advice to prospective raid leaders: constantly communicate. Always let people know what is happening, what to expect prior to a fight (including trash mobs), and what to bring into the raid. Above all else, if you are not going to show up, let the 9-24 additional raiders that depend on you to be there about your absence at least 24 hours in advance. It's a game, you're supposed to have fun, but having your time wasted is not fun.

Same ole, same ole...

2008-01-14T07:43:00.000-05:00

Just doesn't seem to be much new to post about lately. I got a job at what seems to be a really great place, so that's nice. Romney has pulled slightly ahead in Michigan, which is good... slightly. Pope Benedict performed several baptisms recently, all using the traditional method of pouring water over the head, as opposed to the new "charismatic" technique of throwing the baby into a pool of water.

The only thing really eating at me is over the weekend a letter was received from my deceased grandmother's nursing home... presumably. There was no return address, no signature, and no zip stamp from the post office. It merely stated that she was abused and peed on, because our family acted like we were "better" than the staff, for whom the letter was collectively written. This comes 2.5 months after her passing. We're taking the letter to be checked for prints, and we're going to have the attorney general investigate the home. Everyone was always very kind to us at the home, so I don't suspect any individual from that place, and actually feel it may have come from someone unrelated to the organization.

To whoever had written this letter, you are a terrible person. We are going to find you, and make sure the world knows.

Clinton Bounces Off the Ropes, McCain Busts Through the Gates

2008-01-11T07:20:00.000-05:00

So here we are again, HRC's clever little tearfest helping her immensely in New Hampshire, and John McCain becoming the latest "inevitable" candidate for the Republicans. At this point I am concerned about Mitt Romney... he has the funds, the intelligence, and the political savvy to become president, but Republican primary voters have opted for less impressive candidates at both major opening votes. Mike Huckabee's comment regarding Romney seeming more like somebody's boss than their coworker hit painfully close to home for the former Massachusetts governor. Perhaps the most concerning thing thus far in the primary season is the quiet campaign of Rudy Giuliani. He's been trounced in Iowa and New Hampshire, but is quietly laying the groundwork for a huge Super Tuesday surprise. If Giuliani wins the nomination, then the Republicans have lost the general before it has even begun, no matter the Democratic candidate.

Clinton, Giuliani on the ropes!

2007-12-04T14:05:00.000-05:00

American voters are beginning to understand what Hillary Clinton is all about. Her husband was an excellent public speaker, able to mesmerize large audiences with his persuasive style. Hillary is a terrible speaker, and once she truly emerges onto the national scene, things could go very badly for the Democrats. I'd like to refer whatever readers I still have to this post from 05/18/06. It's quite possible that I may be the only person in the nation surprised by the Clinton campaign's consistent strength during primary season. I would say the entirety of this success can be attributed to her powerful organization, nearly limitless funds, and national grassroots operation. While Mrs. Rodham Clinton cannot connect to the public through public speaking, she and her husband do have an incredibly efficient and strong political machine. Of course, if she is able to pull defeat from the jaws of victory, it will have been because of her gennnnder. We can't have the big mean men picking on poor widdle Hill in the middle of a campaign to become President of the United States can we?

Polls such as this one have revealed Senator Clinton's worst nightmare. They also reveal that Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, and Pat Robertson may have jumped the gun on their favorite liberal activist Rudy Giuliani. That they would be so quick and willing to throw away the very values they base their careers on creates a giant credibility gap as far as I'm concerned. We may have a Republican candidate I can vote for this cycle yet!

My Wonderful Loving Grandma

2007-11-06T16:59:00.001-05:00

Gram was one of the best people I have ever known. I say this sincerely: she never had a mean thing to say about anyone, ever, as long as I had known her. Devoutly Catholic, and devoted to her wonderful husband (despite gramps passing many years ago) and family until her very last day. We will miss you Emily, and rejoice that you are no longer in pain but rather in a much better place than this one.

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

HUNT, Emily
HUNT Emily (nee Bates)Beloved wife of the late Charles E. Hunt. Gentle and loving mother of Elizabeth (Thomas) Folzenlogen, Margaret (Richard) Mountel, Patrick (Shirley) Hunt, James (Nancy) Hunt, Rosemary (Raymond) Schneider and the late Mary Ellen (survived by James) Smith. Proud grandmother of 25 grandchildren, 44 great -grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren. She lived a peaceful life and died a peaceful death on Saturday, November 3, 2007 in her 100th year. Visitation at St. Gabriel Church, 48 W Sharon Rd., Glendale on Tuesday from 9 A.M. until time of Mass of Christian Burial at 10 A.M. If you wish, memorials may be directed to The Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, 1802 W. Galbraith Rd., Cincinnati, Ohio, 45239 or to Mercy Franciscan Terrace, 100 Compton Rd. Cincinnati, Ohio, 45215.

This 'n That

2007-10-02T14:49:00.000-04:00

I've eliminated the SOB Blog Feed in the right column, because I'm not smart enough to figure out how to format it so it's uniform with the rest of the blog. This doesn't take away from the fact that the links, still at the top right position here at Chuckoblog, are all well informed and extremely well written by good people. Check 'em out.

Warcraft: Hit me up if you play and are looking for people to roll with. I run the guild Innuendo on the Horde side of Runetotem, a small mostly local guild that has a lot of fun. We don't raid much but have hit up Karazhan a couple of times and have a good guild network setup to pull people from.

Last, and definitely not least, I am looking for a job. My computer support credentials are lengthy, but I am willing to look at other positions outside of information technology. Will forward resume on request.

Giuliani, the Pre-Ordained

2007-10-02T14:05:00.000-04:00

A good friend of mine, knowing I had been out of the news cycle for a while, forwarded me a link to an article written by one of my favorite bloggers. I'm pretty sure his intent was to help convince me that voting for a liberal Republican is always better than voting for a liberal Democrat. What it has done, in turn, is given me a chance to think about my vote a little more intensely. The United States was at a crossroads in 2006, as it has been for many of the most recent elections. The Democrats clearly offered a retreatist strategy for the War on Terror, endless litigation for the Bush Administration, a very liberal agenda socially, and higher taxes economically. Sean Hannity frequently asserts they did not run on this agenda however anyone paying attention to politics understood what their intent was. America voted for defeat in Iraq, higher taxes, and liberalism in 2006. The choices were very clear, and several excellent lawmakers were voted out in favor of scrubs with obviously inferior qualifications, due to the frenzy and fake scandals built up by the media and the Democrats.

Despite the clear warnings to voters by reliable sources regarding the election of 2006, the Congress still swung to the other side. This would have been OK if the opposition party had qualified candidates willing to support our nation in a time of war, to defend us and our principles no matter the cost. The Republican party is heading in the same direction, with George W. Bush turning into an incredible disappointment in his second term. He's seeking a legacy no doubt, not unlike Bill Clinton in his second term, it's a lukewarm stream of policy nuance and a shun of the conservative base that elected him twice. I assure you if we vote for Rudy Giuliani to be the Republican nominee in 2008, he will be no better than a President Clinton regardless of what letter stands behind his name. Why must we choose between two liberals, or "be responsible" for a President Clinton? If anything, Giuliani and Clinton should split the vote, allowing a third party conservative candidate to win. I'm not naive enough to believe this would ever happen, but I'm also smart and principled enough to not vote for Giuliani because he danced in front of the cameras during some of America's darkest days.

I cannot vote for Giuliani, and I will not vote for John McCain. Good luck on nominating a qualified candidate this time Republicans. Before party line Republicans start declaring that I'm "throwing my vote away" or some other ridiculous drivel, understand that by voting for Rudy, you are in fact voting for an extreme leftist. Rudy Giuliani would be more qualified to run as a Democratic VP candidate than the Republican nominee.

De Palma Who?

2007-08-31T15:41:00.000-04:00

I know this scenario will stun you, but another Hollywood director has decided it is his obligation to attempt shaping United States foreign policy. The difference between this fellow and most of the others is, at first glance, De Palma has opted to launch a full scale attack on the integrity of the American military. I would highly recommend watching the video provided here. The first part gives us a true view of the director. The embassy attacks, the 2 World Trade Center attacks, the Pentagon attack... all of these are our fault. In his own overly smug way the director lays out his plans for the upcoming film, making clear his view that demonizing soldiers and showing countless dead Iraqis and military coffins will turn the tide of American opinion against the war, similar to the big media/Hollywood tactics related to Vietnam. Will De Palma let viewers know that most of the soldiers involved in this horrific incident have been through court martials? My guess is that if it's even mentioned, it will be to accentuate how terrible our fighting men are, that they should receive such terrible penalties. So it continues, the relentless assault on our beliefs and success by those that can reach gigantic audiences. These fiends, dhimmis, and useful idiots are the reason that we are going to lose this war, and the war for western civilization. Sometimes I wonder if there's something wrong with the air on the coasts.

For those who didn't know (such as myself), De Palma directed Scarface (and other less noteworthy films).

A few quick notes...

2007-08-01T04:57:00.000-04:00

Just to be clear, I do still exist!

My Time Warner adventure never really quite came around... my internet service was down for a full month. I was promised technicians that never showed up, or showed up and continued making excuses about what the root cause of the problem was. That month, I probably spent more time on hold than I did just about anything else. Eventually I just gave up and signed on with Zoomtown again, and it seems to be working very well at the moment. Anyway, that's that, and I'm online.

Other rather dramatic developments in my life (as well as some recreational activities) have kept my attention away from the Chuckoblog. The most (bitterly) amusing was that Chuckoblog.com expired, and I had to purchase it back.

I look forward to posting on a regular basis regarding politics, religion, and World of Warcraft again soon, so stay tuned.

My Time Warner Adventure

2007-03-22T14:16:00.000-04:00

So, I arrived home yesterday preparing to relax, maybe do some gaming, check out the latest news on Drudge and such. Lo and behold, my internet connection was down. I power cycled the modem to no effect. My cable was still up, so I knew that another tree branch had not fallen and disconnected the line. This is when I called Time Warner Cincinnati Roadrunner support and began my adventure. The first person I reached advised me she had to transfer me to local technical support. I felt this would be a good move, since I'm already very technical in these matters and felt maybe a tech support analyst and I could get to the crux of the problem quickly. After asking a few light questions and advising that there was an outage near, not in my area, the local tech support transferred me to the national Roadrunner support line. When I reached this line, the individual had me run through a power cycle of the modem, and when that did not work, transferred me back to local support. This time local support advised I go to the local Time Warner office and replace my modem. Though I was 99% sure the modem was not the issue, I trudged my way to the Tri County Mall and replaced it. Upon arriving home, the same issue was occurring, so I called tech support again. This time, they advised that the issue affecting an area NEAR me was in fact affecting my connectivity. So I waited. Ran downstairs to catch up on Lost (3 episodes worth, about 120mins) coming upstairs between episodes to see if the "network outage" had been resolved. When it had not, I called once again, and was transferred from local support to the Roadrunner desk almost immediately. This time the person at RR actually gave a flying crap about my issue and advised, as I had anticipated from the outset of receiving the new modem, that it had not been updated in the local system. After being transferred back to local support, the individual advised that she was unable to connect to my modem and there must be a larger issue at hand with my line. Now, I get a tech tomorrow at 1:30pm, when I could have had one today if the issue had been identified on my first call. Perhaps my favorite part of the ordeal (so far) is the constant advertisement of the blazing fast internet service while you wait on hold. I also have a strong suspicion that the issue is not with my modem, nor with my cable line, but on the administrative end of things at TWCinci. I'll keep you posted, just needed to get that off my chest. It's infuriating to have to decide between 2 local services that provide immensely terrible service in Cincinnati Bell and Time Warner.

Ahhhh the Left...

2007-03-21T15:57:00.000-04:00

Just thought I'd jump in with a quick reminder that nothing has changed on the left, and they do in fact want us to lose and hate our fighting men and women. Thanks Drudge for periodically exposing their anti-Americanism that would otherwise go uncovered.

New Information on Death Star Attack

2007-03-06T10:44:00.001-05:00

Extree! Extree! Read all about it! Death Star Attack Inside Job!

Chad Vader

2007-01-26T14:23:00.000-05:00

I've got nothing to report today yet really... nothing new anyway.

Here's a little Friday humor.

Other news, Blizzard decided to wield their mighty Sword of Server Downtime last night, and robbed me of 45 minutes in "their" game. This normally would be no big deal, but I'm going to try and make note of every little thing from this point out. As Tom, WD, and myself have discussed, issues such as the ones presented recently are included in the customer service agreement (which essentially says "you will pay us $15 a month, even if you never, ever get to play our game) someone should really take them to task on their abuse of power. Every little thing Blizz, everything.

Loser.

2007-01-25T09:38:00.000-05:00

John Kerry has decided that losing one presidential race is enough for him. He and George Voinovich (quickly becoming my least favorite senator, just ahead of Mike DeWine) should form a Senate support group so grown men that are supposed to be leading the most powerful nation on Earth can continually cry on each others shoulders while Rome is proverbially burning.

Wow! I've really been in a foul mood lately... which is good for blogging, coincidentally. I'm not really this bitter of a person... really... ;)

Dems Display New Power

2007-01-25T09:32:00.000-05:00

I truly hope that the new majority Dems in the house really flex and force the Republicans to grow a collective backbone by doing more of this. If the only thing the Republicans can do about this is snivel and cry, then we truly do need a new conservative party in this nation.

The money quote:

"Whine me a river,'' one senior Democratic House aide said, referring to Republican gripes.

John McCain will NEVER get my vote!

2007-01-24T12:41:00.000-05:00

...unless he's running against Hillary Clinton. The man has lost whatever spine he had while doing time in the Hanoi Hilton. Should McCain win the Republican nomination, which I highly doubt, he will not get my vote or support. He is a political opportunist, much like every single politician in Congress at the moment, except to the extreme (e.g. Bill Clinton). His positions and loyalty sway with the wind, and I do not believe he would be a strong administrator of the War on Terror. Rudy Giuliani is a liberal, and I'd have a hard time voting for him, but he's right in the WoT and actually has clear positions on most issues. It seems like every day I log in, read the news, and John McCain is right there bashing the POTUS, the veep, the secretary of defense, the secretary of state, or anyone else who doesn't fit into the "John McCain for President" worldview. I'm sick of offering up praise for his military service, it's been overdone, he should not be president lest we fail in our goal of making the world a safer place.

Child Rape Scenes

2007-01-24T12:26:00.000-05:00

I was listening to Hannity the other day and he kept going on and on (as he will about any given non-politcal topic on any given day) about Dakota Fanning's rape scene in whatever movie it is being screened at Sundance. First off, I don't know why this should be a political issue. Dakota is a professional actress, and the scene was undoubtedly done in a professional environment with no harm caused. That being said, I know nothing else about the movie, but will likely not see it as about the last thing in the world I wish to observe is a child being raped. The head of Sundace has declared this as "challenging material," and just about anybody knows this is code for "a gimmick to ratchet up popularity and sell more tickets." Let it die on the vine, please. I probably would have never heard of this movie if it weren't for Sean Hannity, so I can only imagine how many people would have missed it entirely if he wasn't scraping the bottom of the barrel for material.

U.S., Israel to be destroyed... yadda yadda yadda...

2007-01-24T12:17:00.000-05:00

To anyone still paying attention. check this link out. I hate to agree with our buddy in Iran, but this nation clearly does not have the will to defend itself. As everyone is aware, yet no one seems to care, Iran absolutely intends to develop nuclear weapons and has declared such. Iran also has officially declared (see link, as well as any number of articles in recent history) that the United States and Israel will be destroyed. Meanwhile, the MSM tosses softball questions at their crackpot leader, and undermines the war effort in Iraq.

Just thought I'd toss that out there. Again. To anybody who cares about what is to come. I wish G.W. Bush would act like he had any confidence in his war plan, but the MSM has decided the fate of this nation and it's hard to campaign against them.

Consumer Alert: Blizzard Entertainment

2007-01-16T10:43:00.000-05:00

A little over a month ago, several addon sites for the World of Warcraft game produced by Blizzard Entertainment were found to have keyloggers as a part of their addons. This, of course, produced a high level of insecurity in several thousand user accounts related to the game. One of those accounts belonged to a friend of mine. He had spent months leveling his character all the way up to ~57 when a keylogger stole his information. The malicious individual wound up selling everything he had, and transferring his 300 gold to another account. Having faith in Blizzard's integrity system, he submitted a ticket.

8,000,000 people give Blizzard $15 a month to play this game.

It took over a month for my buddy to receive ANY contact from Blizzard, despite several attempts to reach them. 1 full month of receiving $15 from 8 million individuals. When they did finally grace him with a response, this is the form letter he received:

Greetings ******,

Thank you for contacting the World of Warcraft Game Master Department.

Account Name: ********
Realm: *******
Character Names: ******, ******, *******

Unfortunately, we were unable to verify the loss of the reported character assets. In order to assist you in continuing with normal play, a basic set of Bind on Equip items have been provided for the above listed characters. These items are not bound. They are for you to use, sell or equip as you deem necessary. The upcoming Burning Crusades will afford you and your character new content that will improve your overall gaming experience.

We sincerely apologize for any frustration you may have experienced as a result of this situation, and hope that this will assist you to return to enjoying the game as quickly as possible.

Please remember that restoration is not always guaranteed. While we make every effort to verify your loss there are times where restoration is not possible.

For further information please check our Restoration Policy located at *********************.

Thank you again for contacting us. We hope you continue to enjoy your experience in World of Warcraft!

*** Please do not respond to this email as all conversations on this matter would be best handled online. ***

Regards,
********
Specialist
Blizzard Entertainment
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com

Customer satisfaction is a top priority here at Blizzard Entertainment,
and we would like your feedback on the level of service you have received.
Please feel free to provide such feedback at the following web address: ***********

Blizzard, you may never see this, but if you do I hope you understand that as a gaming software company you have now jumped the shark. It's a "minor" incident like this that begins the tarnishing of a once stellar reputation. I know of at least 10 individuals who would consider cancelling their accounts as a result of this flippant response to a sincere concern. To those not paying attention, the letter clearly states that Blizzard Entertainment, despite having full control over every transaction in the game and logging most of them to control cheating, could not find the time or energy to research this issue and wound up costing an individual several months of play time due to their own apathy toward their customers.

$120,000,000 a month goes to Blizzard Entertainment from individuals such as my friend and myself.

Update (01/22/07):

Thanks to Tom for the heads-up, put too many zeroes on the post above. Fixed.

Update (01/25/07):

Bizzyblog's great post on this.

Also, WD's great post on personal decisions and choices.

An article from Curse Gaming, originally thought to be the source of many keylogger addons.

Another great article with screenshots of what happens when you decide to "press the issue."

Boise State Wins National Championship

2007-01-11T11:12:00.000-05:00

Just a few quick notes so everybody knows I'm still alive:

Ohio State thoroughly embarrassed the great state of Ohio on Monday night. Buckeyes, you are a much more talented, much better team than the one you showed us in the most important game of the season. Shame on you for playing WELL below your potential. I was shocked and awed by the lack of effort, and Teddy Ginn injuring his foot in a touchdown celebration really was just the icing on the cake. I am deeply disappointed... make no mistake, the Florida Gators are a great team, but not that much better than Ohio State this year.

That being said, I think I'm just about done with watching college football national championship games. Much like the NFL, the season gets longer every year for purely reasons of profit. I'm not against profit, but I am against the exploitation of great national traditions for profit. There does not need to be a 50+ day layoff between the end of the season and the national championship game with a bowl game every single day. Also, the BCS title game does not need to be a seperate game from the other bowls. That's just ridiculous. I think it's almost universally agreed that the BCS is a trainwreck (not much different than the NCAA itself as an organization), and the national championship game should be held on January 1st, period. Also, if you're going to have a single "national championship game," have a playoff, or do not pretend that the winner of a single game is the predetermined champion. Ohio State was blown out by a very good team, but probably not the best team in the nation. Boise State went undefeated and knocked off traditional top 10 power Oklahoma to cap their season and they finish... 5th? Where is the justice in that? I gave up consistently following the NFL a couple of years ago, when the 2nd time out taken in the 3rd quarter was sponsored by A Corporation and presented by B Corporation, with the stats shown at the beginning of the commercials were provided by C Corporation. While I'm on this topic, do we really need spectacular computer generated displays of the offense and defense, and interviews with every player on every team before the game so they can be played during the came? I can't tell you how many times we've had to be brought back into a game midway through a play just because we "need to hear" what a certain player had to say in response to an interview question forced on him.

Well, I feel much better now. In short, I used to be a huge sports fan... every day, I am less so, due to the dilution of event presentation.

/rant

Happy New Year Everyone!

2007-01-03T10:40:00.000-05:00

I'm a little late with this, but I'd like to wish everyone a happy new year.

A couple of quick notes... if you didn't see the end of the Boise State/Oklahoma game, go watch it. Now. It was truly a great finish to a spectacular game.

Turns out Obama has some skeletons, just like any politician or person generally. The difference here is that since he's a Democrat, the media will give him a pass. That the media plays such an important role in determining the outcome of American elections is one of the main reasons for my recent political apathy.

That's it for now! Make this year one to remember!

Trusting A Madman

2006-12-19T12:46:00.001-05:00

This video had me cracking up almost the whole way through. It's very funny... and terrifying. Check it out. NOW!

Tim Johnson Suffers Stroke

2006-12-13T17:08:00.000-05:00

I'm not posting this to write about the potential shakeup in Congress, but to point out the news media taking advantage of a very unfortunate event in the life of Tim Johnson, the newly elected Senator from South Dakota. While I could care less about celebrity news, reports that a senator-elect of the United States has suffered a stroke is certainly important. It disgusts me that Big Media have taken this opportunity to make this into a control of Congress issue. I wish Tim Johnson the absolute best. Though I may disagree with his choice of party, and probably with his ideology, he and his family deserve our prayers.

Update (12/19/06):

I was going to update this several days ago, but other items gained priority. Turns out Sen. Johnson was actually in his second term, and in fact did not suffer a stroke. The point of the post, of course, was to wish him well and point out the rabid, scary nature of the news media.

Blissfully Ignorant in the Post 11/07 World

2006-12-12T15:27:00.000-05:00

I've been enjoying my vacation from "real news," and have been successfully able to avoid even the Drudge Report of late. Recently, however, I happened over to Steve the Pirate's galley and found this little tidbit. Thanks Steve for brightening my day.

Titans Do It Again

2006-12-06T09:20:00.000-05:00

I was pretty shocked to flip through the final NFL scores last week and notice my Tennessee Titans had pulled off an incredibly improbably victory, tying the 2nd biggest comeback in NFL history (I'd venture a guess that most Titans fans recall the BIGGEST comeback... very, very painfully). This week, I was even more shocked to find out that they had pulled off another comeback against a fantastic Colts squad to score their 5th victory in 12 games. Congrats to the Titans on these two victories, which will hopefully mark a turning point back to greatness. Just a few linemen... all we need is a few offensive linemen, and back we will go.

Another sports note... looks like the Buckeyes will be (rightfully) facing the Florida Gators in the Fiesta Bowl. So finally, savoring knocking that team up north out of the national championship game can begin!

WoW Strategy

2006-12-05T11:59:00.000-05:00

So.. I think I have the warlock strategy down pretty much, having run many high level instances many times with many different groups... getting a good feel for the strengths of each class, and what would be required for a successful run. Also made the pickup on my Dreadsteed the other day, thanks to my guildies (and an unfortunately failed run at Molten Core). I am not, however, confident in my ability to play my shaman in a group setting. I can solo pretty well, but not having grouped very often, it's kind of hard to tell what you need to do as a tanking/healing/magey type class. If anyone has extensive experience in this regard, I'd love to hear about it. The general consensus is that restorative shaman are best for end game material. To that end, what are the best talent specs/spell strategies, etc? Also, in my newly formed guild of mostly local friends, my shaman will likely be the most heavily armored and strongest member. I'm thinking I should level my very low level warrior for primary tanking duties rather than rely on the shammy. Ah well, random thoughts from WoW. I appreciate any shammy advice people may contribute.

Update From Chucko

2006-12-05T11:50:00.000-05:00

Hello all... you may have noticed that I have not posted anything new for weeks. It started with a week long vacation, and gradually progressed into a general apathy toward politics and the state of the nation in general. The terrorists have defeated Spain, Italy, and Britain... now they are knocking... nay... pounding on our door, demanding to be let in. We have shown them great weakness in the last election cycle. Will the union survive Nancy, Hillary, Teddy, and Chuckie? We shall see... I sure hope so. I should really be making valuable use of my time on this blog to broadcast messages of positivity, a sort of "keep up the good fight" mentality regarding our future. Over the course of the next few months, however, there may be a sea change here... at least for a limited time. The Republicans are terrible, the Democrats are even worse, so who wants to write about that?

I'll write as often as I find motivation, or things that overwhelmingly call for commentary.

That Coach Up North...

2006-11-17T16:24:00.000-05:00

On a day when the football world will spend most of it's time mourning the loss of a great coach, the only thing a true Ohio State fan can do is offer up a tribute to the greatest college football coach of all time... Woody Hayes.

Woody on Bo Schembechler: "We respected one another so damn much. Now that doesn't mean I didn't get so mad at him that I wanted to kick him in the, uh, groin."

God bless ya Bo. It's a shame you and Woody weren't able to coach against one another for more years than you did.

Food for Thought: MMORPGs

2006-11-17T10:15:00.000-05:00

Article

See?? Games are good for you! Yeah! Now I have an excuse AND justification! Anyway, good article, and it is true about the final raids. Tonight I'll experience one firsthand, Molten Core, and the amount of preparation and coordination that go into a successful expedition are incredible. This is why we will probably not get past the first boss, but it will be good experience for future raids.

Should anyone locally wish to join in on the fun on my server, go to Runetotem and shoot me (Giblet) an in-game email.

Here They Come!

2006-11-15T12:38:00.000-05:00

I hope the troops are digging into their trenches. The Democratic leadership is beginning to emerge in the new Congress. The highlights? Dick "American Troops are Nazis" Durbin and potentially John "American Troops Killing Iraqis in Cold Blood" Murtha, as well as the usual suspects. As I mentioned, this is to be expected. Some conservative Democrats are not anti-military, but the party leadership clearly is. Carl Levin, the new leader of the new chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has declared we are to start leaving Iraq in 4-6 months. God bless the troops as they weather this storm.

On a brighter note, Trent Lott is back in a leadership role in the Senate. Some Republicans disagree, but I've always liked Lott... we'll see how he performs as Minority Whip, beating milquetoast candidate Lamar Alexander by a single vote (somewhat disheartening, this). Hopefully, John Boehner can secure the top spot in the House. Matt at WMD has been a relentless supporter, and it would benefit the nation greatly.

PC Support Advice

2006-11-15T12:11:00.000-05:00

I'm thinking of posting occasionally on support advice regarding PCs, since I've been in the industry now for 8 years, and would like to help out those who have questions or have seen issues. Today's advice: save everything you love and cherish, and wish to keep, in your my documents folder. Today at work, an individual's windows installation corrupted. I tried everything I knew (the big stickler was the administrative password refused to work despite multiple attempts to change it using various means), and eventually wound up having to reimage the hard drive. Because this individual saved files in many folders, on all partitions, I had to create a backup of the entire drive so as not to lose any of their information. The full backup, about 25gb over usb 2.0, took about 45 minutes. The restore may not take as long. The point is, if I knew where the files were that this person wanted to keep, I would not have had to backup the massive windows folders, temp directories, and other extraneous directories. This would have resulted in the backup and restore taking about 5 minutes, and saved both my time and more importantly, theirs.

Group Policy Matters

2006-11-15T08:18:00.000-05:00

The local morning show here featured an interview with Amy of Policy Matters, and I'll paraphrase what I took away from the interview since I unforunately wasn't recording it:

55KRC: So, about this minimum wage increase, people have argued that it is good and bad, what is your take?

Amy: Oh, it's great! Super! Fantastic! Anyone that thinks otherwise is out of touch, and hates workers!

55KRC: But won't this cause prices to be raised at businesses that operate with workers mostly around the minimum wage (restaurants, etc)?

Amy: Pennies on the dollar! Most people are happy to pay more so that minimum wage workers can make more! Higher minimum wage equals MORE jobs in the studies we've done (no citation).

55KRC: But if you look at companies like Ford, where a Mustang may have cost $3,500 dollars 50 years ago, but today costs $35,000 and now they realize as a company that they are going to go bust from raising salaries so much, the evidence appears to be to the contrary.

Amy: You guys and your listeners are out of touch! Since so many people in so many states voted for it, it must be right!

55KRC: Well, Hitler won an election to gain his power...

Amy: Yep, and George W. Bush won an election as well!

*uncomfortable pause*

It was here that I stopped listening.
So there you go. Kudos to Jerry and Craig, who I feel are normally not very good at doing interviews, for asking the right questions here. I wish I had an audio file to share, it was truly... revealing that the left still not only holds a delusional obsession with the president, but feels that those who disagree with them are to be talked down to. Prepare yourself for the next 2 years, and possibly more given that the enemy controls the media.

Update (Same Day):

From an official release -

Policy Matters Ohio is a nonprofit, nonpartisan statewide research institute dedicated to researching how our economy can work better for everyone in Ohio.

Yeah, a "nonpartisan" group whose founder who believes the administration of George W. Bush is comparable to that of Adolf Hitler. No agenda here, move along...

Do Not Be Surprised

2006-11-14T09:42:00.000-05:00

Rush brought up a good point yesterday, and it has changed my perspective somewhat on the outcome of the most recent election. The Democrats are anti-military. Though the Democrats that overwhelmingly gained new seats sold themselves as centrist, the party at large clearly billed itself as anti-military and extremely left wing. We should not be surprised when they take this approach to governance. The American people, for whatever reason, have voted for change. We, as a people, are highly intelligent. Unfortunately most of us are also highly fickle and only pay cursory attention to politics, getting most information from the NYT, WaPo, CNN, or MSNBC. My major concern is not this, it is that our president may not have the backbone to stand up to them. In the news today, Iran has blared that it's nuclear program is nearly complete. Because of the afforementioned media outlets, we will allow them to become a nuclear armed nation. It is an inevitability, and if the American republic unlike the republic of Rome somehow manages to survive the current siege, it will be a historical anomaly. Already, 5 years after the biggest planned assault of the war against our nation (but far from the first), America has begun it's retreat.

Democrats weren't the only ones celebrating one week ago.

As I stated previously, should the Democrats surprise everyone and show themselves to be a party that cares about the continued survival of this nation, and civilization in general, then grand... we can once again have a reasoned debate on domestic issues, while agreeing to fight the War on Terror abroad. Until then, all we can do is hope the populace is in a good mood in 2008 and opts for the survival of the nation over "change."

The Game

2006-11-13T15:30:00.000-05:00

This weekend should be packed full o' football for me. While I've all but given up on my Titans and Bengals in the NFL, the high school game of the year in Ohio will be taking place on (thankfully) Friday at U.C.'s Nippert Stadium. If I'm feeling healthy, which has been rare of late, I may drive down and catch some of the action between Tom's St. Xavier Bombers and the Colerain Cardinals.

The next day, a buddy and I are likely going to hop down to Nippert yet again to catch the mighty Rutgers Scarlet Knights take on U.C.'s Bearcats. We will not be in the stadium after 3:30pm, however, as sticking around any longer than that would prevent us from catching every second of The Game, live.

This rivalry, in my opinion, is the greatest in all of football, at any level of football. The only trophy typically brought home from this game is that of the Big Ten Conference Champions. This year, however, the prize is greater still. A national championship is very likely to ride on the outcome of this game. I was actually moderately surprised to find out that this is the very first time the schools are meeting as numbers 1 and 2 in the nation, and how incredibly fulfilling this matchup is shaping out to be. My brief analysis, and I don't pretend to be unbiased but do attempt it regarding sports prognostications, is that the Michigan Wolverines are a very, very good team. Their defense is probably the best in the nation this year, and the offense has scored enough to get them the wins. Ohio State appears to have the complete package they were lacking in years past. The offense, projected to be outstanding, has not disappointed thanks to the brilliant leadership of Troy Smith. A very young defense did what Tressel defenses do, and came of age early in the season standing up to (at the time) #2 Texas and rolling through the rest of the year. I feel that the Wolverines will have a tough time scoring on the Buckeyes, and feel this game will end in favor of OSU 24-14. It's possible that both teams could wind up in the Fiesta Bowl, and if the game is close, I don't see how they could not.

Best Buy: No Merry Christmas for You!

2006-11-13T12:18:00.000-05:00

ProEcclesia has the story here. It's one thing to let greeters or cashiers decide how to greet individual shoppers during the season, it is another to ban a specific phrase claiming it is "disrespectful." If someone is offended because you wish them a Merry Christmas, then perhaps they shouldn't be roaming the streets, free to take out their oversensatized emotions on whoever or whatever they wish. I would not be offended if someone decided spontaneously to wish me a Happy Hannukah, Kwanzaa, or whatever their faith would allow for during this holiday season. There's a reason I don't go to Best Buy anymore, and that's their overpriced goods and nonexistent store help. Now I have another!

Jay puts it better than I can:

"Best Buy considers the use of "Merry Christmas" to be disrespectful."

And I consider it disrespectful for a retailer to try to make money off of a holy day celebrated by the overwhelming majority of people in this country without even acknowledging it.

Simpsons Jump the Shark

2006-11-13T12:08:00.000-05:00

Wait... this must be like the 24th time this show has jumped the proverbial Fonzie shark. Family Guy and The Simpsons have taken it upon themselves to not only criticize the military, but insult recruiters and the organization itself. Everyone who still watches The Simpsons must only do so out of habit. I stopped watching about 15 years ago, when it became uninspired and started recycling jokes. Once South Park pulled the cover away from the methodology for writing Family Guy shows, and Seth McFarlane decided to start using it as his personal political stage, that show also ceased to be funny. Why is it that when some entertainers find immense fame, they feel an absolute need to taint it with their political leanings? At least Matt and Trey are equal opportunity satirists, this is what helps to keep South Park fresh and interesting. It's too bad about Family Guy and The Simpsons... they were good cartoons, once upon a time.

Blogger Changes

2006-11-13T11:10:00.000-05:00

Looks like Blogger has decided to change something... making it more friendly to java formatting. The S.O.B. feed is now up (thankfully), which helps me to come up with ideas and stay informed throughout the day. Seriously, check them out, it's all good stuff. I've been toying with the idea of giving a rundown and personal commentary on each S.O.B. blog, and may go forward with that idea in the future. I would also like to make some other formatting changes, and we'll see if Blogger's new outlook on blogging life will enable that!

So here we are. The Democrats will control congress for at least the next two years. I, for one, am keeping an open mind. If they decide that keeping the tax cuts (and possibly pushing the tax rates down further) is a good idea, if border control is at the forefront and real change is made, if there is a genuine commitment to winning the war on terror, and if they affirm true constitutionalist judges, then I will abscond the Republican party and vote Democrat next time. If the Republicans can not find their balance and once again push for true conservative ideals, then I will have a hard time voting for THEM in the next election. With so much in the balance, however, control of Congress and the Presidency may once again force my hand to vote for lukewarm candidates that couldn't carry Ronald Reagan's... hat. Once again, we will have to battle the media AND the Democrats, as well as George Soros' money and the powerful Dem 527s.

We shall see.

More Election Followup

2006-11-09T09:55:00.000-05:00

I had meant to post this as an addendum to my previous post, but Tom at BizzyBlog has a great analysis of the election as well, including some great points about Jean Schmidt:

* She won an 11-person special election primary in June 2005 where the Christian Right’s fair-haired voting scofflaw tried to parachute in for a quick victory.
* She survived a nationally-focused special election in August 2005 where her Iraq War vet opponent pretended to be a Bush-supporting Republican on TV while cursing her in personal appearances.
* She survived a challenge in May 2006 from the same voting scofflaw who accepted the help of slash-and-burn artists while pretending to be “dignified” himself.
* And finally, she has survived an opponent who got the help of a gullible (or co-conspiring) newspaper and, I believe, the active assistance of a write-in candidate who (as of this moment) received less than half of votes the non-illustrious David “Mr. 362″ Smith did in 2005 (with 4 times as many votes cast). With their help, she dishonestly played the nuclear NIMBY card in the 2nd District’s easternmost counties. For this reason, and others, Vic Wulsin, and not Jean Schmidt, should be the one wearing the “TLB” tag.

I was fortunately able to vote for Schmidt in her oddly close election this cycle, next time I will be in OH01, however, represented by the Honorable Steve Chabot. As NixGuy puts it:

Chabot showed suprising strength and uncanny political acumen. He let cranley pound on him for weeks on the “changed in DC theme” Then in the last week of the campaign he trots out the house and the old car. Not many other candidates would have had the patience and nerve to withstand that without fighting back, knowing they had a great answer. DeWine certainly didn’t.

We're pretty lucky in this part of Ohio, with Steve Chabot, Jean Schmidt, and John Boehner in such close proximity as legislators. The renewal of the Ohio Republican Party should start here, in districts with real conservatives, the home of Ken Blackwell. The state party needs an absolute overhaul, ridding ourselves of anything Taft, DeWine, Voinovich or their ideological chums bring to the table. There are times I find Hannity palatable to listen to (more often than not, but less often than you might think), and yesterday was one of those days that he was really "on." His advice (or demand, as is his nature) was that Republicans not sulk, hold our heads low, or turn away from our noble goal. Rather, stand up and fight, get mad, understand why and how we lost, and turn it around in 2 years. This is the approach that I am taking. Some columnists, such as LaShawn Barber, are making the argument that Campaign 2008 begins NOW. I certainly do appreciate her zeal and energy, and applaud her decision to jump back into the fray so soon. Personally, and mostly because I did not anticipate Tuesday would go quite so badly, a month out of the game for some soul searching sounds about right for me. I'll still write and comment about various items on the political agenda, and hopefully bring more news to those that read looking for Catholic insight and analysis. In 1996, I left a comment on the USA Today message board regarding the Dole candidacy following the Republican primaries. Only recently it seems to have disappeared from the search engines, but I wrote that for Dole to win, the Republicans would have to unite in the face of adversity and focus on their goals and true values to defeat President Clinton. They did not, and as a result we were rewarded with another 4 years of Democratic policy in the White House.

The time to unite is now. I'd recommend following Barber and Hannity's advice, and if you are feeling motivated, jump back into the fray today. We truly have not a second to spare, and now we have something to run against other than ourselves.

Why We Lost

2006-11-08T10:57:00.000-05:00

The simple, short answer is that we stopped being the party of Ronald Reagan and Newt Gingrich. In 1994, Republicans swept into the House and Senate by nationalizing the election on smaller government, lower taxes, ending corruption, and term limits. They had clearly lost sight of these principles, and it has cost them dearly. Hopefully, though I had hoped this day would not come to pass, the Republicans in Congress will learn a lesson. Compromising your principles does not play well with the people. Over the next two years, we will have to fend off impeachment, completely opened borders (how we will do this, I do not know), higher taxes (likely vetoed by the President), an impression of weakness given to the terrorists, and socialized medicine among other issues. We will no longer get any of our judges through the Senate. Despite what could be called a "typical" 2nd midterm for the President, much will change. The good news? There isn't much, other than that we found out George Allen would not be able to win the presidency before it became a more disastrous situation, and now we have something to "run against" in the Dem majority. Hopefully, the party of not-so-loyal opposition will change their tune and actually show some resolve with regards to the defense of this nation during their stay in power.

One notable item is that conservative bloggers are not crying foul. They are not blaring voter fraud, poll intimidation, or any other conspiracy theories. It seems as though most of the conservative bloggers are turning inward, criticizing the party for what it has done wrong, and offering ideas on how to fix it. This is why we are going to be successful in the future, and need to work on getting our act back together by 2008. Unfortunately, the President offers us a lukewarm champion and spokesman. His betrayal of the base has been stunning, and I hope he can find it within himself to come back and govern in the mold of Reagan.

Dean Barnett has the best article I've seen so far on this. From his post:

In the closing weeks of the campaign season, I felt like I was a lawyer who had a bad client while writing this blog. That client was the Republican Party which had broken its Contract with America from 1994 and had become unmoored from its conservative principles. As its advocate, I couldn’t make a more compelling case for Republicans staying in power than the fact that the Democrats would be worse. I believed in that case, but when that’s all the party gave its advocates to work with, you can honestly conclude that Republicans got this drubbing the old fashioned way – we earned it.

As far as Ohio is concerned, we can directly thank Bob Taft and his ilk. There was little hope from the outset in this state, with much thanks to the Ohio Republican Party for essentially endorsing Petro in the primary, and never really getting excited about the Blackwell candidacy. I reiterate my disappointment that Ken Blackwell had to run this year, hopefully we will see him show up in a future race somewhere in Ohio (maybe as a Voinovich opponent in the next primary). Mike DeWine sealed his own fate by disregarding his constituents and siding with the "Gang of 14" in the Senate. It will be a while before Ohio recovers, we now have a very liberal senator in the mold of Glenn and Metzenbaum for the next 6 years, and a Dick Celeste clone in the Governor's mansion for 4. The disastrous minimum wage increase also passed in my home state, and this means jobs will flee the buckeye state even more quickly than they have been (which is saying something)! At least Jean Schmidt and LaSalle grad Steve Chabot were able to pull out victories.

We now need to regroup, and refocus our message. We need to start acting like conservatives again, or risk not winning elections for some time to come. The polls say people were voting against Bush, not against their respective congressional candidates. Next time, let's give them someone to vote FOR.

Election Eve

2006-11-06T09:26:00.000-05:00

I've not been feeling so well lately, also I've been quite busy. Aside from those usual excuses, here are the Chuckoblog endorsements for tomorrow's election:

Federal:

US Senate - Mike DeWine
US HR 02 - Jean Schmidt

State:

OH Governor - Ken Blackwell
OH HR 28 - Jim Raussen

City:

Cincinnati City Commissioner - Phil Heimlich

These are the elections important to me that I can make a difference in, and will be voting in kind. Personally, though I don't put much trust in polls, I do not see much hope for Ken Blackwell pulling it off. This is a HUGE disappointment for me, as I have followed his career relatively closely, and feel he would be a superb governor. This is, quite frankly, just a bad year to be a Republican in Ohio. Ken has been an incredible campaigner, positive, and full of energy. The voters in Ohio are just not listening. I suppose in large part we can attribute this to the man who has done more for the Ohio Democrat Party than anyone else: Bob Taft. Good riddance to you sir, you have been a terrible governor. Another huge disappointment appears to be the impending doom of Rick Santorum's Senate run. Another fellow who has had relentless energy on the campaign trail, closed the gap several times, but despite this has been unable to surmount Bob Casey's incredibly huge media advantage. It's just depressing to see someone just not campaign or take any stands on real issues, and win against an opponent who has thrown all of his energy and very soul into the race.

Predictions:

United States Senate: GOP Hold

United States House of Representatives: Too Close to Call

I figure I'm going with most of the pundits on this one. Some in the GOP have predicted a hold of the House, I feel this is rather optimistic but in recent days it has arrived as a good possibility. We just need to maintain our energy, and let the GOP GotV effort defy the pundits that are predicting a blue landslide.

VOTE.

Keep the Ball Rolling!

2006-10-23T15:13:00.000-04:00

Barron's has made a bold projection that the GOP will hold both chambers of Congress. I'm beginning to believe again... most of the polls don't show the outlandish leads that so many Democrats and MSM outlets have proffered as reasons that the GOP base should not vote.

Our analysis -- based on a race-by-race examination of campaign-finance data -- suggests that the GOP will hang on to both chambers, at least nominally. We expect the Republican majority in the House to fall by eight seats, to 224 of the chamber's 435. At the very worst, our analysis suggests, the party's loss could be as large as 14 seats, leaving a one-seat majority. But that is still a far cry from the 20-seat loss some are predicting. In the Senate, with 100 seats, we see the GOP winding up with 52, down three.

Mike DeWine (amazingly) appears to lead Sherrod Brown in the latest poll.

This, by the way, is the best site I've found so far for political junkies. "The Blogging Caesar" is offering his premium services free for the day, check it out, sign up. He also offers another great pep-talk to the troops.

P-a-r-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n. Without even the pretense of a real plan for our future, the Democrats have hung their hopes on a depressed conservative base. It is the only way they can win. Swing voters mean little in the polarized political world in which we find ourselves. And the effects of that polarization are magnified in traditionally low-turnout mid-term elections where only the active and energized take part.

The task for our opponents, then, is to win the war of emotional energy. So much of what we are seeing and hearing now from the talking heads in the media and the Democratic party is designed to accomplish two things. First, they hope the never-ending dirge of bad news and scandal will squeeze whatever small number of votes it can from a diminishing pool of fence-sitters. Second, and many times more importantly, they seek to demoralize and deflate the conservative faithful. For they know that every vote not cast by a disgruntled and despairing Republican Eeyore is one less vote they have to overcome in their quest for control.

His title says it all, THE OUTCOME IS IN OUR HANDS. Get excited! Call your friends! We must get every potential Republican voter to the polls come election day. Do not wait, do it NOW!

From the same article:

Don't let it happen. I implore us all to resist that temptation to be driven into mopey political reclusion. Fend off the Eeyore inside that wants to sap your drive to win. For sure our leadership is far from ideal, but think about the alternative. If we lose the House, George W. Bush will be impeached. If we lose this Senate, only David Souter clones will have a prayer of filling any vacancies in the Supreme Court during Bush's final two years and we'll lose by default the critical battle we are now winning in the judiciary. The implications of this election when viewed through the lens of our country’s future history are enormous. We cannot afford to lose.

MST3K Returns

2006-10-19T11:39:00.000-04:00

I was wandering Jimmy Akin's site for Catholic news, and was surprised to find this post. Apparently, Mike and the 'bots are releasing MP3 tracks to go along with certain movies (purchased seperately of course). It's grand to see these fellows, who had such a great idea to start with, come back and provide their particular flavor of humor for free.

Watch out for snakes!

Update (Same Day):

This is NOT free, but it is NOT expensive.

Various Election Links

2006-10-19T09:57:00.000-04:00

Hugh has some good news! Zogby of late has been particularly favorable to the Dems, so this news may be even better than it looks on the surface.

Bizzyblog has a great referral post regarding Ted Strickland. Apparently, he's quite the slimeball (big surprise).

Brain Shavings has a good post on percieved conservative apathy.

Conservative Culture has some great Ohio election coverage here.

LargeBill Pontificates is aware of the media's apparent anger at our inability to concede 3 weeks before the election.

NixGuy has the rundown for Strickland's latest scandal.

VikingSpirit has some info regarding Issue 2 in Ohio... I agree.

Please Support Your Local "R"

2006-10-18T16:01:00.000-04:00

Rightroots can lead you to your candidate.

Here in Ohio:
Ken Blackwell
Mike DeWine

Local:
Jean Schmidt
Steve Chabot

Other Important Races:
Rick Santorum
Michael Steele
George Allen
Bob Corker

These are just a few of the candidates we can support, check your local listings, give all you can in money and service.

Let's PICK UP THE FLAG that the DEFEATISTS HAVE DROPPED! The media has made it seem as though Democrat control of Congress is inevitable. It is not, and if we stay motivated, it's not even likely.

Defeatists, Pre-Mortems, Etc...

2006-10-18T15:37:00.000-04:00

I briefly had a chance to listen to Rush Limbaugh today, and he was going over what he refers to as a "pre-mortem" from some conservative bloggers. There's a reason I delinked the most popular "conservative" blog on the internet, though that it appears to be cheerleading the pre-mortem reinforces my decision. A simple fact of life is that if you expect to lose, you will lose. If you play not to lose, you will lose. If you think you can win, you might win. If you believe that you will win, and bring that enthusiasm with you into the game, election, or board meeting, there's a better chance than not that you will win. I'm sick of hearing Republicans and conservatives bellyache about how the polls are terrible, the RINOs are frustrating, and how we have no chance to save this election. We are going to win, and if we don't, it will be because SOME in the party/cause have decided their ideals and principles just aren't worth driving down the street to spend 2 minutes casting a vote. I'll be DAMNED if I'm going to sit down and let these individuals, so hostile to national security in our dangerous times, take our Congress without a fight.

Skymuse at RedState.com puts it much better than I. Please read this, it inspired me to take up the fight again, and hopefully it will inspire you as well. If you loved Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, you'll love a Democrat controlled Congress.

I understand that conservatives are loathe to "reward" a RINO or misbehaving Republican with re-election. But this is not a ballgame -- by withholding votes from Republicans and costing them seats and possibly control of a chamber, we are effectively giving the other side homefield advantage for the entire next season.

There are plenty of issues that have not been properly addressed according to conservatives -- border control and immigration, permanent tax cuts, SocSec reform, the passing of McCain-Feingold, wishy-washy foreign policy, and many other issues. The situation is decidedly non-ideal.

Some would decide that our current leadership does not deserve any more time at the trough and are planning to stay home on election day or vote 3rd party.

If that happens, we *ALL* lose, not just the Republicans. No lessons will be learned, and we will be in for years of something much worse than NON-IDEAL. It will be catastrophic, and we will all wish that we could simply get back to non-ideal. There are times when it *IS* enough to vote for Republicans simply because they are not Democrats, and we are living in one at this moment.

Please vote. For the future of our great nation, let's not let the media elites dictate our national policy any longer. We are relying on you... to vote, to convince your friends and family to vote. Make it a goal to get at least one more person to the polls this election.

Here in Ohio, we have Mike DeWine maintaining the tradition of Ohio RINOs as well as he can. I supported his opponent in the primary, but the time for petty differences has passed and he will receive my vote in November. We are voting on the future of the nation.

I Figured I'd Better Post Something...

2006-10-10T15:40:00.000-04:00

Before the search parties are sent out. I've just been kind of tired lately, and haven't been posting. Ultimately, I'd like to get back to the point where I'm motivated to pontificate about multiple current affairs daily. It's been several months since my most prolific days, but when I'm enjoying it the posts come easily.

In the mean time, I'd recommend the following blogs in alphabetical order:

The Anchoress
Bizzyblog
Bonfire of the Vanities
The Cafeteria is Closed
Hugh Hewitt
Little Green Footballs
Michelle Malkin
The World According to Oatney

Bill Frist Doesn't Want to be President

2006-10-05T12:58:00.000-04:00

I've never understood the fascination with banning gambling (or smoking, or having an open container of beer in the car, or mandatory seat belt wearing, but I'm letting my libertarian side sneak out a bit), and Bill Frist further distances himself from being a serious presidential contender by slipping an online gambling ban into a PORT SECURITY bill. Congressmen do this all the time, but that doesn't make it right. It's this kind of reasoning that will lead us to national bankruptcy and a totalitarian state, slipping spending and banning provisions into otherwise important and necessary legislation.

Viking Spirit sums it up well:

Shame on Senator Frist for inserting this provision. Not only were his actions wrong by inserting this provision the way he did, his actions are also an assault on our personal liberties as Americans.

Are there any true leaders in the Republican party anymore?

South Park Does World of Warcraft

2006-10-05T12:31:00.002-04:00

Almost everyone I have spoken with disagrees. In a combination of 2 of my favorite things, South Park's season 10 premiere last night focused on the gaming phenomenon World of Warcraft. I love the show, I love the game, but the episode felt rushed. It's kind of like a few other South Park episodes where they had a great idea, but chose to go in only one direction, and put in half the effort they should have. I felt it reflected badly on the game, as the world seemed very small and bland, whereas it is actually a ridiculously large gaming area with many varied climates and terrains. Also, the cleverly interjected actual WoW music seemed out of place in the scenarios with which it was used.

As I write this, I'm realizing I play the game way too much.

Regardless, I'd give this particular episode of SP a 7.0 for lack of effort. It was still an entertaining plot which did portray a portion of WoW's culture, and did have at least one moment that made me cringe and almost look away from the screen. That's the SP touch.

Bush Protest Today!

2006-10-05T09:57:00.000-04:00

This is amusing, from World Can't Wait:

PLEASE JOIN US THURSDAY OCTOBER 5 TO STAND UP IN PROTEST TO THE BUSH WAR PARTY! LET YOUR FELLOW CINCINNATIANS KNOW THAT WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER TO FIGHTING TERRORISTS! WE MUST SPEAK THE TRUTH AND FIGHT FOR JUSTICE, AS IT SEEMS THESE VALUES ARE NO LONGER IMPORTANT TO THE PUBLIC OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON D.C.!!! IF YOU ARE FIGHTING MAD ABOUT THE ENDLESS IRAQ WAR AND THE GOP'S FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC POLICIES...DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! HOLD UP YOUR FIST AND DEMAND THAT OUR PRESIDENT TAKE ACTION TO SECURE AMERICA AND END THE U.S. OCCUPATION OF IRAQ. BRING YOUR SIGNS AND ANY INFORMATION YOU MAY HAVE TO ADD. IF YOU CAN PRINT FLYERS OR HELP IN ANYWAY, PLEASE EMAIL ME ASAP! THANKS AND HOPE TO SEE MANY OF YOU THERE!
dm7harts@earthlink.net

Where is this rally to fight the power and rouse the populace into a frothy froth of indignant resistance?

4 pm - 8pm
Corner of Kenwood and Montgomery - Parking in Kenwood Mall lots

For those that aren't aware, this is in one of the wealthiest areas of Cincinnati, with a great mall, lots of eateries, and likely convenient to the at least 2 that will attend. I wonder if Kenwood Mall has worked with them to arrange this? I'll have to give them a call.

Update (Same Day):

I just called Kenwood Towne Center. They were not aware, but they are now!

Foley Not Making Excuses

2006-10-04T09:31:00.000-04:00

Except every single one he can think of in the limited time before justice is hopefully served. He was an alcoholic... he was abused by an unammed clergyman of an unnamed denomination (Foley claims to be Catholic). Next, he will have been abducted by space aliens and probed, thus creating a scar that stayed with him through his many years and prompted him to send patently obscene messages to young male congressional pages. From Foley's lawyer:

"Mark does not blame the trauma he sustained as a young adolescent for his totally inappropriate" e-mails and instant messages, Roth said. "He continues to offer no excuse whatsoever for his conduct."

Are they serious, or trying to be (not) funny? So now not only is Foley a wannabe child molester, he's insulting the trauma alcoholics go through, and libeling an entire church in a frenzied attempt to get as many excuses out to the public as possible. Even for a Representative, the allure of power can be too much. You're guilty of one thing in particular Mr. Foley, a drunkeness not borne of alcohol, but of power. You, like some in the past, were caught with your hand in the proverbial cookie jar. Fess up, admit to your problem, admit you're a scoundrel and a fool. Is there anyone on your list left to betray?

Update (Same Day):

Pro Ecclesia * Pro Familia * Pro Civitate also has some good commentary on Foley's clerical accusation.

Conservative Culture blames the Church... not only for Foley, but seemingly for the Amish shooting, and just about everything that ails the world.

Update (10/05/06):

My goodness, it seems religious bigotry is once again on the rise in America.