The Hayseeds blog, No. 34 for the week starting October 26, 2003.
October 12, 2003
Hayseeds No. 33
October 26, 2003
Hayseeds No. 34
November 1, 2003
Hayseeds No. 34
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With all appologizes to Ed Muskie, I have to say the 6th sucide of a person as NYU is rather ironic, but not surpising.
How can one actually live in New York City? I don't get it—it seems like the land of oppression. Social distance prevents any degree of privacy there, and irrationality is well wiped out in a city that big—freedom clearly is dead there—it's the living death of freedom
(with all applogizes to the late Goldwater).
Gawd. Albany is bad enough—to say nothing of the college bureaucracy (which has been very friendly and responsive on the upside), and the bureaucracy of Job Y (which I've successfully been able to avoid for the past couple of days (I'm sure they'll call sometime this afternoon).
And lets not forget the Democratic Machine and their iron grip over the city—and their authorative type of leadership. They seem like really nice people, but to know what they do to society and the environment just disgusts me.
The horror! The horror!
Heck, it looks better, and it's on B3 instead of B2, so I guess it's a bit easier to flip too—maybe people will start reading it more and care about politics more.
Then again, they moved the weather to B2, which makes that harder to read—but compared to the state news, the weather is just so unimportant.
Am I the last one to find out about this? I don't know, I really don't.
Or one in the planning in NYC—what good news.
Everybody needs a little bit of open space, some green area—even if it's ontop of a big pile of garbage. But it's putting the land to good use, at least of sorts.
See this story about NYC's JFK airport landfill park in the steps of being completed.
I think it will be cool when Rapp Road closes, and they make that into some kind of park—it would probably have some awsome views, and would permit some nice park area/trails to coincide with the Pine Bush (and the Pine Bush nature center in the SEFCU building).
Why can't everyday be as good as Monday?
Well, actually Monday went downhill quickly after finding out I got only an 86 (ouch!) on BioTerror Test II—something I was less then pleased with. But I guess I'll just have to keep studying hard, and admit it's a tough class—no time for this silly 'god this sucks, I want to die' liberal whinny stuff.
As long as I do okay, I guess, I'll be able to find some kind of menial employement after college (even if it's just raping the environment and flipping hamburgers or something dumb like that—get shotgun out). Blah.
Played with matches a bit on Monday night—I love just starting fires outback—and I'm glad my parents don't know about my pyromania. Theres nothing like watching plastic melt and burn and breathing in all those wonderful toxic chemicals (sigh).
Did a bit of studying for my International Relations Mid-term—I'm hoping that will go okay on Thursday, and are trying to read the book fro Contemporary Political Philosophy—but the one I'm currently reading is so difficult.
I'm disenchanted, can't you tell. I need to go find greener grass, a better America, one with fewer limitations, standard operating procedures, and less bureaucracy. But alas, such a place evidently doesn't exist—at least here on earth.
Or maybe just inspired with something shiny and new. Not some ridgid old Marxist ideology or 'radical' interpration of government—but something truly new—something with hope—for a better tommorow. Everybody is so pessamistic about their government, their representives—and even their future—hell with peoples attitudes, we ougth to just blow our brains out.
Not surpising at all, for those who actually watch (not me) politicians make fools of themselves on TV—I'm all about radio, as some of you know —it improves the imagination and sometimes takes away from the distractions that television and image cause.
CNN takes a look at the political gestures of recent candidates, and how they compare to historial ones (nee... Richard Nixon).
If you ask me, I know one political gesture—and it's a lot like the one that Nelson Rockefeller made so famous after his Vice Presidency.
Seriously though, like anything in politics, it's become rather scripted over the years—politicians want to win, and they'll do any cheap trick to do so—think Machavelli. So they have professionals who figure out how to make politicians attractive—even if it means giving the finger to people.
Maybe they've put the snowmobile insurance issue to bed at last.
The state will/has purchased an insurance policy for snowmobile use on state land paid through snowmobile registration fees, and along with that mandated that the same company offer similiar insurance to snowmobile clubs (if I'm reading this article right—it's late).
See the Newsday/AP Article.
Yet another rainy cold day out there today.
But guess what—were going to get snow tonight—or so they—it's going to be below 32°F and they're predicting over an inch of snow in the hilltowns. Yeah!
Except I have to drive in snow to get to my midterm exam—boo! I'm not expecting that much though.
Let's see—I've done some web work, between studying. This page is now XHTML 1.0 transitional compliant—to many browser bugs to go all the way to strict, at least at this point (plus that's more work then I want to put it in).
Oh, and I've tentatively put up a copy of the old LinuxPPC.org Tanzania page on on PenguinPPC, for your enjoyment—maybe I'll even spend some more time updating that in the future.
I'm just going to be so happy when I get the weight of the IR mid-term off my chest.
It wouldn't surpise me in the least, to be more exact.
Think about it: there are a lot of old cadillacs on the road, and I'm sure there are some poor people who drive beat up 200,000 ones around. Nothing like driving up to the bar in a rusty old caddy, right?
Well, this article doesn't exactly talk about it, but it does show that there are some people in the poorest classes of society who have kids and don't want to work, eventhough the feds are finally mandating it.
See, and there is a reason people dislike welfare so much—because there always has to be some welfare queens around who don't want to work, and abuse the system. I mean, really—many poor people who are not on welfare, don't get any break for having kids—at least not one much longer then 6 months.
Of course, the solution is to have some kind of stable relation between husband and wife (omg! he's calling the moral police), so you don't have the situation. Even if a couple is under the poverty line, at least one can work, and make some income—maybe enough even to half live on.
Or so it would seem (see the many other posts this month for details on my thoughts on sprawl).
Okay kids, this is a great quote (the only reason for posting this article too):
"Everyone's against sprawl, but the problem is they also live in it," said Jeff Tittel, director of the Sierra Club's New Jersey chapter. "It's sort of like being in traffic, where it's the guy next to me who is the problem, not me."
Great... I didn't think anybody in the Sierra Club would have such big brains to say that—see the article for details.
Around noon time today.
I have a few theories on that stuff, coming down on the rain.
First off, I could have been asbestos. They have enough of that miracal mineral around SUNY Albany, and I swear I must breathe in several asbestos fibers each time I go through the tunnel—there is plenty of breeze, and plenty of degraded asbestos pipe wrap around in those tunnels (and above each of the lecture halls, like the one I'm in now, and of course, even exposed in the main hallways.
Got to love that stuff—making people rich, and employing lots more, and of course wasting lots of money and resources removing it—public environmental paranoia is something—more on this later.
Or it could be fly ash from good ole' Shrieden Avenue steam plant. But wait, doesn't the wind below that crap towards Renselear (the ghost city of 30k)?
Then again, they don't burn trash there anymore (it would *cost* too much to upgrade to 1990 Clean Air Act stuff—so, hell, let's just f@ck up some virgin land in Coeymans with a new landfill—more on this another time), but they certainly are burning oil there, which one of the ash covering the city times was the fuel of choice—natural gas is just too darn expensive right now.
Okay, I must admit—it must be snow or sleet, and not those other to possibilities (despite the fact most of us would prefer the first two).
Bad boys—I wonder if John of DOL got you.
Ah, more silly Asbestos stuff—got to love it, don't you. America's mad obession with asbestos, and it's crazed fear that created the insane AHERA act—instead of decent policy.
See, it's impossible for a democracy to make good environmental policy. It's either super-reactionary, or it's about polluting the environment to death, and making corporates super-rich.
Guess what kids—it's about both of them most of the time. Republican, Democrat, Green, or Holestein Cow—they all don't really give a f@ck about the environment, they all just want to make money. Or maybe it's just good intentions pave the road to hell—but nobody at SUNYA would think of that.
Guess what—this time it was an Independent campaigner that was trying to dig up dirt, and screw the city over big time—haha. Environmental loonatics.
So the Plattsburgh DPW has been crushing and burrying transite piping through the city—a pretty common disposal technique for old underground piping—just not the stuff that contains asbestos.
But who knew it contained asbestos. Why should one really care? Is there that much of a risk?
Well the fine taxpayers of Abestos....err.. Plattsburgh are getting milked by AHERA, and some politicians and civil servents are in deep dung for this one—don't you just love asbestos?
At least the dirt in the city will by fire retardent. Give me some asbestos to eat—I've certainly breathed in enough—heck, but who hasn't?
Only a dusting by my house, but some black ice on the way coming in (my tire started to slip a little bit at the end of LaGrange Road).
I got through my International Relations test—I'm so happy. No more mid-terms now, life seems just a little bit better—got that all of my chest.
My schedule is basically set up now, I have to go to the uptown PolSci office, and speak with the secretary for the AVN.
I really need to learn to stick up for what is right, and lay down the law to people.
I see so much moral wrong in society, but yet I don't have the guts to tell people what is right or wrong (except maybe around these parts).
It's rude, it's crude... and it's holding the natural self in—avoiding self expression is one way to remain successful in society.
But it's wrong, all so wrong. We kill, we murder, we screw over our environment, and nobody really seriously cares... nobody.
Going around, telling people to recycle—mandating them—just will end us up in jail—damn it.
I like the political actavists who try to do something about these problems, but all too often they are serious misled, or fail to do the right thing.
Political motivation, does not equal action! Nobody wants to act—everybody is just too afraid to do so.
We'll end up in jail they say—that's the place where us crazy people who want change belong—honest.
Action! Action! Action! That's what I say.
But none of this immoral radical marxist stuff... it's all BS, and we all know it.
The burn barrel commericals and campaigns!
All the usual suspects are gearing up to put on a campaign against open burning and lawn pestasides (let's f@ck over rural people and suburbanites).
At least they are being equal opporunity—except for urbanites. But that's another story—they're crack streets are 'special'. As I noted above, nobody is dieing from this stuff—just like Asbestos (except mine workers and installers).
I think it's all so silly... They've been trying to get this bill passed for something like 14 freaking years!
It all comes back to the issue that Max Weber always loved to bring up—charisma vs. bureaucratic rationalism. Science! Technology! Government! We can fix all the worlds problems, we can cut pollution and save about 3 lives!
But at the same time, make the world unholy, and disenchanted—turn us into a nation of the state and technology—a fully rationalized nation.
I look at it this way: rural areas are rural and charming for one reason: they're irrational. Nobody would really care about the environment and nature, if it weren't for it's irrationality. Irrationality makes the world special, it makes it livable.
We don't have to be a toy of science! We can control our destinys, we can become more natural (and irrational). Suburbs will grow, and they will continue to eat away at societal irrationality—but irrationality can surive—with careful rational government planning (as Andrew starts taking the side of anti-sprawlers).
We don't need green space any more then we don't need irrationality. We need both—irrationality is what we surive on, it's what keeps society ticking and rational—it's the basis for both—the concepts play on each other.
Humans are naturally rational animals (again an anti-thesis that really doesn't make sense). We try to do what will maximize our lives, what will make life enjoyable.
Killing open-burning will take away some of the irrationality of rural life, it will make rural areas less charasmatic—the rugged individual image of the woods, and non-dependence on others will fade.
Admitly, the state legislature can ban burn barrels, but they'll never get anywhere. Some people will obey the law, others will get busted for violating the law (make the state rich ;), and others will just never be caught, because they live in too rural of an area, and somehow they escape the rationality the state is trying to impose on them.
Take Vermont—they ban burning barrels, but in my trip there on Labor Day Weekend, I could have counted dozens—once you get out of the city. And guess what kids—I even smelled burning plastic. See, citzens don't always follow the wishes of some legislature, which believes they are the only legiment force in the state.
It's not 5 o'clock here yet, but I'm sure it somewheres—with all appologizes to Alan Jackson.
Friday will come, and this ever so long weekend will be over. I'm suppost to be going to training tommorow for Job 'Y' I guess—but nobody has called to remind me, so I guess I'm not—Job 'Y' has kind of been off the fire for the past couple of weeks—and I haven't put much initative into it, because I've been busy studying—and I so freaking hate that organization.
Oh, and if this site starts working at 3 PM, and things go dark—blame the sun.
I'm going to briefly look at the sun, and see the sun flare this afternoon—it will be very cool—but I won't blind myself—I swear—honest.
Anybody, any interest group? No, it would seem—they're really ain't any watch dogs for 'government watchdogs'.
An article I stumbled on the web questions NYPIRG's research record, and the many studies they've released—but it nevers questions their claim to 'public interest'.
Personally, in many cases I'm a majoritarian (because it often suits my ideological position ;), so I think that majority positions are what's in the public interest, not the beliefs of an aristocratic minority. But that's my opinion (like everything around these parts).
Non-governmental, non-corporate organizations seem to operate often out of the scruteny of watch dogs, in a shadowy kind of land without much regulation over what they do. They are often super-ideologically charged, and shouldn't be trusted, because they are suppostly non-partisan.
If you have an opinion, your a partisan (as Weber would probably argue). Everybody in reality engages in partisan politics, even though many deny it. Partisanship is often shown through being a member of the Republicans and Democrats—but it's certainly not limited to just that—Americans are far more diverse then some simple binary system can represent.
on the other hand NYPIRG is certainly doing some good stuff.
Their recycling initatives are good ideas, and for the most part are fairly pragmatic and do the right thing. Their opposition to municipal incinerators seems fairly reasonable (burn barrels alas are another issue—see my other post about this month)—they point out that trash trucks can compact trash almost as much an muncipal incinerator—with products in a less volatile and toxic state. Not to mention a real way to burn through lots of municipal money, and make cities dirtier.
In addition, I think the bigger bader bottle bill is a good idea, as is much needed better recycling programs. I can't agree with everything they do, or all there tatics—but what group can one stand with 100% in politics? I can't think of anyone.
See there page on the NYPIRG solid waste campaign.
Politics may be a friend-enemy relation, but sometimes your biggest enemy is clearly your best fan.
Bloomberg is a truly evil person, as we all know—and NYPIRG's points are well taken. Honestly kids—we don't need any of downstates freaking garbage to be shipped upstate. We have enough sprawl and other garbage up here to take care of, not to include to NYC's policy failures.
But my concern of knowing some of the NYPIRG members, is that live by a double standard—their political and private morality are anti-thesis to themselves. They adovcate such cool stuff, then they become the wasteful pigs that consume and don't bother recycling, even though that's what their political ideology seems to demand.
It's a Machevellian-type game—they want power, and they'll do anything to get it—after all private morality is totally seperate from the game of the politics. But when your doing the moral thing in politics, should one not also do the same in personal life? I think so.
Machevelli—err... I'm sorry, Bloomberg, now wants to elimate partisan contests for NYC.
The people at the Democratic Party (yeah, my party—yeah!), oppose this on several grounds:
All those find ideas—sponsered by Brilliant Bloomberg, not unlike his fine ideas of suspending recycling and polluting the city with stinky new incinerators!
Obviously, Bloomberg's interpretation of politics is purely Machevellian, and all he really cares about power, and he doesn't care however he gets it.
He's loved by Alan Chartock and Co. for his way of leading—but I have to ask, what happened to the rest of us? Shouldn't leadership be about more then personal gain?
Denny Farrell puts the record straight today in the NYPost.
Sensationalism to Sell an Animal Rights Agenda.
Or so they say about silly PETA's latest protest at the state capitol.
Of course, one must ask—why are they protesting in Albany, of all places? They'res enough farmers in this area that they are probably outnumbers—especially if they bring their shotguns.
Seriously though—isn't the issue of USDA policy one that the feds control, not some pure state bureaucrats (the only ones around at this point)? Maybe they should have protested at the USDA service center in Voorheesville—at least then the Albany County Police would be nearby to arrest them (versus the state in the Capitol).
Of course, maybe all these vegan actavists have some kind point—no matter how deluted they may be.
First off, there is too much of a good thing. Drink too much beer or milk, and don't get enough exercise, and you'll end up looking like an Albanian like me. See, this academia is making me heavy.
Second, the animal welfare issue is something that probably should be dealt with, and is being dealth with. Obviously, the best solution in the interm to buy locally, or grown/raise your own. If you know and can see what's going on, then you know the condition of the animal and the safety of the food.
Would a sweet little corporation like Entergy do such a thing?
Apparently they've been sending out to minority communities in NYC, little letters telling them that they'll have dirty power plants dumped in their neighboorhoods, if they oppose the renewal of the Indian Point Power plant.
Oh, such nice tatics. Of course as the article notes, such a thing is unlikely. Modern and new natural gas and other fossil fuel plants are quite clean—as they have to face all that really tough environmental regs—unlike all those ole' grandfathered plants which are at best mimimally regulated.
What a surpise—the problem you heard about first here—made it to the Times Union.
As many of us know, Lark Street has been a total mess for quite a while now, and they finally got done putting in those wonderful cobblestone intersections.
The verdict: they're awful slippery when wet—pedistrarians are finding they are unfriendly, and drivers are often skidding off them.
Not to mention they are jarring to drivers—and are probably working to ruin more cars understructure, and eventually leading more junked cars—leading to more potential pollution. Yes, it also forces drivers to slow down—which might sound like a good thing, but it leads to more air pollution (acceleration and decelaration put out the most air pollution - and we know how dirty the air is in downtown Albany).
Yehaw—it's the whole environmentalist menatality—how much can we screw up the environment today?
So how many people are going to get killed or injured on these 'purty' cobblestone intersections, before the city comes to their senses and decides to scrap them?
So drive carefully in Albany (avoid Lark Street and South Pearl St.), and hope the city soon scraps the cobblestone idea, and gets back to their senses.
Hey he has a shinny black cadillac, not unlike other famous Republicans in New York history—I'm thinking Nelson A. Rockefeller.
In some ways, he's more like 'farmer-senator' W.T. Smith, the infamous state senator who used his farm support payments to buy himself a Cadillac (a cheaper version of Rocky's). Maybe Mr. Anderson he used his farm support payments for a down payment?
At least it was a change from the usual pickup truck driving politican/campaigner. I believe he had a black stetson hat, so he wasn't totally foreign to the game of modern politics.
Oh, and I see he gave out a card with the Republican candidates listed, and with a small change made it on—instead of telling people to vote the Conservative line, he crossed it out and wrote Republican. Yeah, why not steal one party's cards and recycle them for your own party?
Does it really matter at this point if you vote Row 'A' or Row 'D' or whatever, for the same person (fussion candidate)? It's not like the gubernatorial election, in which the rank of winner decides the order of the ballot in future elections.
See I should do some kind of Political Science study on this upcoming elections: Do more Republican candidates drive pickup trucks and have burn barrels then Democratic candidates, or is that just a liberal myth for this rural town? Ideologically, and partisan wise, such a conclusion would make sense.
Who will I vote for town supervisor, and town board in November? I don't know. Maybe I won't vote for Micheal Breslin (a Republican County Executive would be cool), but I still need to think about local elections more in the future.
A Ford full-size pickup truck!
Got to love those Ford F-150s, F-250s, F-350s, etc.
Seriously though that comparision really isn't fair, because the Ford F-series is the most popular vechicle model on the road today. No other model sells nearly as many.
Of course, any statistics involving pickup trucks grouped by model tend to be swaded a bit—if only because there are fewer pickup truck models to choose from then sedans.
By model, I obviously mean like make and model 'name-plate'—namely Plymouth Sundance, or Ford F-150. But government regulators basically count the whole F-series as one big model—unlike the seperate Dodge Shadow and Plymouth Sundance models. There are a wide variety of trucks, just they don't have a lot of different names.
The Silverado/Sierra probably would be number one for accidents per model (as it's the best selling model out there), but it's broken into two seperate catagories.
So now we all know about lieing with statistics, and how to make thoes Ford guys really mad—hey, I like the looks of the new F-150, and the other F-series trucks, so don't look at me that way.
If you look around the FARS you'll notice that 'light' trucks have consistantly higher rates for fatalities, even after adjusted for number produced. I have a couple of ideas why.
First off, more pickup trucks are used in rural areas with dangerous twisty icy highways. Second, more are used for jobs that involve more traveling, and on high speed highways. I'm sure following this logic you can come up with much more.
Check out the Fatalities Analysis Reporting System website, and you'll be able to drown yourself in statistics—it's amazing.
It's been a fun weekend, but like most, way to short. At least this time, we got an extra hour.
I did a lot of studying, and work on my essay for Contemporary Political Philosophy. Honestly, it's coming along half decently, though I haven't typed anything—just pages of hand written notes.
I helped my dad strap up the chimney on Saturday (fixed the lisp, cleaned it, inspected the 'not-a-real' crack), so hopefully we will be able to have some real heat in the house instead of that 60°F oil burner heat that is never warm. That woodstove can make the living room easily 80°F and my room in the mid 70s—which is wonderful on a cold winters night with the snow blowing—oil heat just can't compare.
And it has all those great environmental advantages—namely it doesn't use fossil fuel, and wood is renewable resource. But obviously it puts out a lot of air pollution compared to a well-tuned oil burner, but that's not a serious problem in a rural area like around here.
I was up at Renselearville SF for a while with my dad, just to show him the place, and give him some ideas where we might camp on the scout campout on November. We found some pretty nice sites.
Otherwise this site might elude you entirely
, as my RPOS 102 prof says.
My writing style changes from moment to moment, sometimes it's perfectly lucid and serious, other times it purposely is confusing, leaves out ideas, or just plain fustrated. I change styles from time to time, as I try to accurately reflect my feelings here.
But as I always note—that's easier said then done. I can't write down all of my ideas, nor do I want to—it's best to leave the details to your imagination. But it's a lot of fun to point out society's natural contradictions, and to advocate for the devil.
Just a little correction: Carl Anderson is running for Superatendent of Highways not town supervisor, so Richard Rapp has nothing to fear, as they say. I appologize for this, and all the other little mistakes I make around these parts.
As Joan Baez says inside of the Blessed Are... Album: Descrepencies between the actual lyrics and the text are intentional or otherwise
. Listen carefully, and you'll know what she's talking about and maybe even me.
As George Will ever so well put it in the Washington Post today.
Yeap, modern aesthetics often go too far, are too tacky, and way to commerical. Do we really need truck noses as big the Dodge Ram? Maybe, I'm just an intellectual, and I have no sense of aesthetics.
Personally, I like a little bit of styling—it's nice to have some decent curves, and make things at least somewhat eye pleasing, especially if the cost to me and society is little. You can see the extent I like style from my website—I certainly don't distain style, but I personally don't believe my site is boring looking (that would be true only if I didn't have any pictures, and everything was HTML 2.0).
Two of his paragraphs are particularly interesting:
Half a century ago, Adlai Stevenson, Democratic presidential nominee and darling of the intelligentsia, asked: "With the supermarket as our temple and the singing commercial as our litany, are we likely to fire the world with an irresistible vision of America's exalted purposes and inspiring way of life?" His question radiated what was then and still is: Everything changes except the views of "progressives"—the intellectuals' conventional disdain of America's "consumer society."The moral of this story is that moderation is a good thing—it's actually a very good thing.Today, however, thoughtful people have more appreciation of the complex prerequisites—social, political and intellectual—of a society that produces the abundance, and honors the emancipation of choice and desire, that results in supermarkets, advertising and other things that are woven inextricably into the fabric of a free society. Those mundane things actually are related to what exalts America and makes it inspiring.
We need some styling, some excitement, but we need not be wasteful.
