What Do We Want?

Peace!  When do we want it?  Now!  Who will give us peace?  Ron Paul!

There was just a little bit of excitement as over 6000 people gathered near LBJ fountain on the University of Texas campus to hear Ron Paul speak.  As an active supporter of Ron Paul, it was very nice to see so many other people of like mind.  Maybe there is hope for our country after all.  Ron Paul has been criss-crossing the state of Texas to get out his message of liberty and hope.  He's having to spread his message, 6000 people at a time, because the main stream media is doing everything they can to downplay this movement.  People are catching on anyway; after all, the principles that Ron Paul teaches are the same as those that led to the formation of the most successful nation throughout all history.  Ron Paul teaches the principles of individual liberty, of peace, of doing the right thing and following the law of our land.  These are the principles of our Constitution!


The speech was a great one, and he covered topics ranging from "raw milk" and individual liberty, to war and why we need to end the Federal Reserve system.  I got to see him make the funniest joke that I've ever heard out of the man.  Right after the crowd finished chanting, "End The FED!!!" he says, "Why yes, I agree, that's a great idea, let's do that."   ...you had to be there:

As soon as I finish breaking his speech up into specific topics, I will post them here.  Then everyone can just watch the parts of his speech that they are most interested in without having to watch the whole 40 minute presentation.  So, please come back soon with your liberty hats.  More Ron Paul 2012 action to come!

Austin Really is Weird

As mentioned in the previous entry, I've been ranging into new areas of the forest behind my work ... due to "NO TRESPASSING" signs in my usual "work break walk route."  My most recent discovery has re-affirmed the notion that it is always good to try a new path.  I discovered something that I had been driving past for over two years now.  Here's a picture of it from the road; do you see anything?  It's underneath that big oak tree there behind my mirror.

When I made this discovery, I was walking underneath that power line that you see there.  Below is a picture from the angle of my first approach.  The thing I noticed first was that post there holding up that branch.  That just didn't make any sense to me why someone would have put that there in the middle of nowhere.  That is what made me stop to look closer, but do you see my discovery there in the background?

 

Yeah, me neither.  In fact, I got so close before I saw anything that the old saying is true: "If it were a snake it would have bit me."  The purpose of the post did become apparent; it was to hold that tree up and out of the way of a path up into this hidden area.   I still didn't see anything particularly interesting.  Do you?

Ok, well, then I turned the corner and what is this?  It's a freaking house.  It is made of cedar posts that form a lean up structure, but they are secured with wire all around to keep animals out.  Then, on the ends, it's got welded up steel grates and a door with a padlock to keep people out.  In the yard, there is a bucket to either sit on or collect water.  Also, there is a little feeder for the animals.

The plaque over the door says that this house was established in 1994.  Whoever built it has some animal bones and horns to keep the evil spirits away.  Inside, there is a small tent to keep the sleeping area clean and dry.  I just had to imagine for a moment how much money I could save if I lived in a structure like this since it was so close to my work.  I could use the shower in the gym at work, and I could eat breakfast and lunch at the little cafe in my office building.   All I would need is a bicycle to get to all sorts of places to hang out at in the evenings.   Heck, I could even dress up as a homeless guy and panhandle some very popular nearby intersections.

This has been literally under my nose for the last two years ... and I've been out in these woods exploring.  All the people driving are totally oblivious, even if they almost drive into it, as someone apparently did.  If you look close at the picture below, you can see car parts from where someone ran off the road and crashed into the brush at the back side of this house.  I just bet that even though they were only 10 feet from this structure, that they had no clue it was there.  The things you find in this town, Austin really is weird!

Close up view from road side, and where a car came to rest recently.

I'm Never Going to be "Nice" Again!

I've been hiking around in different areas of the woods behind my work lately.  One of my favorite places has been marked off, "NO TRESPASSING."  Before you judge, it wasn't me that inspired the signs.  Some other folks whom I have not met have been enjoying my secret garden.  I know this because they have been leaving behind large quantities of beer cans for some time now.  In fact, they act as if it were their secret garden, leaving behind chairs and other trash as well.

The other day I was walking through and I came upon a blue tarp that was wrapped neatly around something.  As you can see, even though they put this tarp behind a landscape wall, they didn't even do a very good job of hiding it.  Anybody walking through the area could plainly see it, and who wouldn't be curious about what is under there?  So, of course I checked under the tarp.

Sweet, these guys have gotten too lazy to carry all of their booze in and out of the woods.  What do we have here, only a 5 minute walk from my desk at work?  Ahhhh, half a bottle of rum, half bottle of tequila, plastic beer chugging tube with funnel, cups and beer pong balls.  Hmmm, whatever could be in the cooler?

 Beeeeeeerrrrr!!!!  Cheap beer, hot beer, but potentially free beer.  I swear, this is like a year's supply of cheap beer for me.  As tempting as it was to load all this stuff up into my truck after work, alas, I'm a "nice" guy.  I'm not going to deprive these messy, but creative folks of their good time.   So, I wrapped everything back up as I found it and went back to work.

Now, in the course of time, a rain storm came and the creek below swelled with water.  I could still get to area from work, but I surmise that the owners of the beer were cut off from their stash by the high water.  I refrained for several days, walking by and seeing that the hidden treasure was undisturbed.   There were a couple of days at work when I just wanted to carry a glass of ice and coke out there and at least enjoy some of that rum.  But, I'm a "nice" guy and I'm not going to steal from somebody's supply like that.

Imagine my disappointment when I went out to the secret garden one day only to find a construction crew clearing brush and picking up trash.  I wish I could have been there when they opened up that tarp.  That must have been a nice surprise for them.  I wonder if they were smart enough to hide the find from their boss.  Oh well, the messy people taking over the secret garden didn't get to have their party, nor did I.  And, now there are "No Trespassing" signs everywhere too.  So, that's it, next time I find a pile of beer in the woods, it's going straight to my truck!

Please write your representatives today -- NO to SOPA

Today is a great day to register at www.congress.org.   In one fell swoop, you can send a letter like this to all of your representatives:

Dear ,

The internet has grown into a massive provider of jobs, services, and a richer life experience for people all over the world.  The freedom of communication has created opportunity for poor and rich alike.  There are countless ways for anyone to derive revenue by providing services on the internet. 

Since there are so few rules, a person only has to worry about providing a good service.  The bar for business entry is low.   Commerce on the internet is thriving because of this.  If we increase regulations, fewer people will benefit from commercial activity, this is a simple but absolute fact.  It will be more difficult for the average citizen who you represent to derive revenue.

There are liars among us who claim that they are "losing" money because of the internet and the freedom of exchange of digital media.   This is a ridiculous argument because without the success of the internet, a hugely lower percentage of people would ever even know that their media existed.  Profit in media is derived from audience size.  Which would you rather have, a penny from 5 billion people, or $10 from 100,000 people?   If some businesses are losing money, it is because they need to adapt their business model, NOT because the internet needs to be regulated.

Please, I implore you, protect the freedom that exists on the internet. People in every corner of the world are counting on your opposition to SOPA and PIPA.

Redneck Art?

Worshiping the beer gods?

It is colorful.  It is eye-catching.  Hell, I'd even go so far as to say it's provocative ... or, maybe I'm easily entertained, but I did stop to take a picture.   Some might say it's trash, or maybe a redneck version of a totem pole.  Is it art?  Who am I to judge ... though I must say that I have a preference for angles carved into rock.


My secret garden is kind of an interesting social experiment now.  It's like a little "un-controlled" park.  More have been coming to enjoy this place lately, and I'm happy for that.  Unfortunately, people are freaking messy.  There are beer cans and trash everywhere now.   This is odd to me; people come because the garden is a pretty place to hang out, but people leave their trash everywhere and make it NOT a pretty place anymore.  Oh well, at least I know that if I'm ever homeless and destitute, I can come here for a steady supply of aluminum cans to cash in.


I'd give anything to hear the thought processes that led up to the decorated tree.   "...damn, Bubba-John, this place looks like shit.  We oughtta try fixin' it up a little or somethin'."  "...yeah, that dead tree over there depresses the hell outta me ... it needs some beer-corations."

Ron Paul 2012 - Phone From Home Volunteering

If you really want to get involved in politics this year, please consider joining Ron Paul's phone from home army.  You can sign up for it here:   http://phone.ronpaul2012.com


I just finished my first session.  It's pretty easy, and you can even play games on your laptop while you do it because very few people actually answer the phone.   Most of the time you are just sitting there listening to a phone ring.  I definitely recommend a headset though.   My old elbow got tired pretty quick while holding a flip phone.


I only found 2 people to complete the survey.  One guy was firmly voting for Newt, and another lady was undecided.   I was sad about her because she said that she lost a cousin in Iraq.  She was also firmly convinced that we need to keep Iran from getting nukes.  That made me even more sad because now someone else is going to lose a cousin.   Many more people in Iran are going to lose cousins, and that makes me even more sad.


Couldn't we at least try leaving them alone, and just see if they leave us alone?  I know 9/11 was what got all of this started, but where does it stop?  Someone I think a lot of once said, "If an angry person backhands you up side the head, take a moment to think about why they did that."  It is hard to swallow one's pride and admit that the anger was deserved, but that is the only path to peace.   The world expects nothing less of a strong man, or a strong nation.  We must acknowledge our wrongs, even if we did not personally commit the crimes against others.  America has brought much death to the Middle East over the last few decades; this cannot be denied.


It is time to leave the Middle East.   It does not matter if our armies occupy their lands because of oil or because of our good intentions.  Their people believe that we are there for our own benefit, not theirs.  We can never avoid the conflict of interest or the appearance of evil as long as our troops occupy their soil.  If they bring war to us, we have the right and the duty to defend ourselves.   We do not have the right to bomb a people just because they won't succumb to our will.


P.S.



You don't ever have to hang up your phone once you start making calls.  It took me a bit to figure that out.   If no one answers, the system will automatically disconnect you and call the next person.  If you get an answering machine, there is a button to click for that.  Then you click 'leave a voice message' when you hear the 'beep'.  The computer gets confused if you hang up, so always let it disconnect you and then it will call the next person.   When you need to take a break, there is a little check box you can click when you confirm the results of the call.

Protect IP Act

It appears that my one letter failed to change any minds and "OUR" representatives are still planning to vote to support corporate interests at the expense of free communication of the people.   Perhaps if a few thousand more people write in?


Please go to www.congress.org and set up your profile there. Once you do, it makes it easy to write your reps. on any issues that you care about .... and you can hit them all with one fell swoop.

If you care about preventing censorship on the internet, here's a quick letter you can cut-n-paste and send to your reps. (lol, i promise not to sue if you copy my letter exactly): 

[www.congress.org puts the appropriate header for you]

As a citizen who you represent, I respectfully ask you to oppose the "Protect Intellectual Property Act" in all forms.

Free communication on the internet is an incredibly valuable addition to the human experience for nearly everyone. We should be very careful to protect that freedom from any form of censorship.

It is understandable that content providers have a right to protect their content, but that protection should not come at the expense of free communication for all people. When companies experience pirating losses, they should have every right to sue and attempt to recover losses. They should not, however, have the right to create censorship on the internet without due process.


**************************************************************
Here's the eloquent response I got to explain why the interests of the people should be ignored:
**************************************************************





Dear Friend:


     Thank you for contacting me regarding S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act.  I welcome your thoughts and comments.


     Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced the PROTECT IP Act on May 12, 2011.  The legislation is in response to concerns about online copyright infringement and sale of counterfeit goods.  The bill would allow the Justice Department to seek federal court injunctions to halt online promotion of illegal activities.


     I believe copyright protection is a foundation for innovation.  Intellectual property is the creative core of the information age.  Patent and intellectual property ownership laws offer needed protection for the economic and other interests of inventors, entrepreneurs, performers, and other creative thinkers.  These protections are also important to future growth and employment in important U.S. industries.


     Protecting intellectual property is more challenging than ever before.  Among other things, high speed broadband enables access to the entire catalog of movies, music, books, television, and technology.


     Online promotion of counterfeit goods by foreign entities is also a growing concern.  How to protect copyright, patent, and intellectual property rights — and do so without infringing on consumers’ legitimate interests — requires dealing with a complex series of problems.


     The PROTECT IP Act has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Although I am not a member of that committee, please be assured that I will keep your views in mind should this bill or related legislation be reported for action by the full Senate.


     I appreciate hearing from you, and I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me on any issue that is important to you.




Sincerely,
Kay Bailey Hutchison
United States Senator