Thothblog

First, let me start out by writing that I am a huge Dollhouse fan, I think the show is very good and like Firefly, I am sorry to see it end.

That being stated…STOP BEING POLITICAL IN YOUR TWEETS!  If people wonder why average citizens don’t want to hear celebrities be political I offer the following tweet posted by Eliza:

Aw, WOman: I want Martha Coakley for US Senator! She’s smart, honest, & on the good side of important issues! This is BIGtime

On the good side of important issues….I get not agreeing with someone’s political philosophy.  I get that.  But this whole tweet is sophomoric.  It would make sense if perhaps she were running against Stalin.  Maybe a former KGB officer looking to get back into the game.  However, she is running against Scott Brown, a Massachusetts National guard member (Lt. Col), and holds the Army Commendation Medal.  He also has a pesky Public Servant of the YEAR award.  I am not saying Scott Brown is a saint, but I am saying that maybe he is smart and honest and possibly cares about important issues just as I am sure Martha Coakley does

I don’t feel like I am asking much, I am simply asking that people who have loud voices for whatever reasons at least attempt to fire those silly brain neurons when they weigh in on important issues.  Eliza is rooting for Coakley, not because she has taken the time to learn the issues, nor because she actually knows what this woman stands for but she is rooting for Martha Coakley because she has a D after her name and because she will vote for the Health Care package.  A written package that is longer and more complex than anything ever imagined by this country’s founding fathers.  A package which right or wrong, 65% of the country wants nothing to do with it.  There’s no informed decision here.  Eliza, like many others, has a feel good mentality.  “YAY! we get to give healthcare to millions of uninsured!”  A mentality that is easy to come by when you don’t have to struggle between paying your electric bill and paying your mortgage because taxes went up again.

I plead with Eliza and others like her; before you rally your troops, of which you have many I am sure, can we treat our process and the people participating in the process with a little more dignity than that of a 5 grade recess “who started it” match.  Since Eliza was so fond of MLK day today, here is another quote of his that holds some meaning.

A nation or civilization that continues to produce soft-minded men purchases its own spiritual death on the installment plan. - Martin Luther King

Sorry Eliza, but consider your chops busted!

I enjoy comics.  I do.  I look forward to the weekly Wednesday and/or Saturday trek to my comic store.  I enjoy the look and smell of the new books, the great conversation with the various patrons and store owner.  Its a chance to take a little step out from the regular world and to revel in the enjoyment that is comic books.  As for the comics themselves, the people who are integral to the books, whether they be weekly or monthly or even one-shots, these people get to help create and continue worlds that many people find escape in and find every day enjoyment in.

Brian Cunningham is clearly not one of them.  Don’t get me wrong, his name appears in Teen Titans Issue 78, not on the cover, but inside, in fairly big letters credited with editing the book.  Now in case you aren’t familiar with what an editor does, or you are a DC editor and have NO idea what so ever, I am going to throw out a quick list of things a comic book editor should be doing.  Comic book editors help the overall flow of a universe, they ensure that if say Superman shows up in a Flash book, that some crazy writer has ensured that the character is not dead or actually a solar system away doing something else.  Continuity.  They also make sure that writers and artists are not taking too many liberties with characters and that certain plot lines and such get followed and nobody is swearing up a storm on page 7.

So now that we have an understanding of what comic book editors should be doing most comic fans will be scratching their heads wondering why that doesn’t happen more.  Unfortunately I don’t know, but Brian is a prime example of how comic book editors are milking their books.  I say milking because I would wager that a pothead deciding between hot dogs or Doritos at the local convenience store exerts more brain power in that decision than Brian put into Teen Titans issue 78.  Now, I can forgive the fact that the printer didn’t bother to bind the book with two staples (every copy at my store like this) and there is no way Brian could have stopped this.  I also understand that Brian is stuck with a wickedly lazy creative team so we are going to get 3 panels with the same damn image in it and Rose apparently has her family 5 o’clock shadow going.  Got it.

Ya know what I would not expect to see though is a Slade who is sporting a goatee in most of the book, just not have one at all in a random panel.  Especially when 2 panels away the almost SAME FUCKING IMAGE HAS HIM WITH A GOATEE.  I get that artists and inkers and colorists can be lazy.  BUT AT ANY POINT DID YOU ACTUALLY LOOK AT THE PAGES.  Just add another name to the giant list of editors who don’t do shit for comic books.  Congrats Brian, the list isn’t distinguished but at least its long and for the moment, your on top.

Brian Cunningham and DC comics, consider your chops busted.

Lazy Art

People, people!  Ya gotta stop.

I get that people become impassioned.  I appreciate that passion can drive people to extraordinary measures, to do great things.  Passion is a good thing.  However, don’t let it get in the way of intelligence.  Don’t let passion drive you to stupidity.  I ask this, because I every day use of insignificant sample sizes are driving me batty!  Sample sizes of 1 and isolated incidents don’t mean a whole hell of a lot and impassioned people seem to want to anoint their single blip as the second coming.  What the hell is that about?

Here are some classic examples of passion leading to douschbaggery.  Using a single hot or cold event to help prove your opinion on climate change.  Snow in Houston does not disprove global warming.  A record temperature high does not prove global warming.  I would say leave it to the experts but as we learned earlier this year, that pesky original data is just a bitch to store.

Along those same lines, an off night for a basketball player does not prove him to be a shitty player.  An on night for a basketball player does not cement his greatness.  A strong performance by a player does not prove the validity of a trade, a weak performance in one game does not demonstrate the stupidity of the trade.

Lets shoot for 30, and no cherry picking the data.

Friend-

When I took this job, I made a promise to visit every single one of our state’s sixty-four counties by year’s end.

And in nearly eight months, I’ve visited with folks in every corner of our state, not to talk, but to listen and hear first hand their concerns, ideas and aspirations for the future.

What I’ve found is that people in rural and urban areas across the state want the same things-for themselves and for their families.

They want to earn a decent living for an honest day’s work. They want health care coverage they can count on. They want access to a quality and competitive education for their kids and grandkids.

But they also want a serious conversation on the issues-and they want their opinions heard.

This desire to have a seat at the table is why I made my 64-county promise. It’s why I traveled over 8,000 miles to hear directly from folks across the state about the issues that are important to them.

Folks like Shelly in Frisco, who said we need to stop fighting each other and start fighting for the American people.

Or Dr. Higi in Durango, who told me the health care system we have is making it harder to provide his patients with quality care.

And Randy in Montrose, who’s being crushed by rising health care costs, but isn’t so sure Washington can deliver on meaningful reform.

These are the stories I’ve heard time and time again in my travels across the state-in all 64 counties.

And though I’d much rather stay in Colorado and continue these conversations (Susan and the girls would probably prefer that, too), I’m headed back to Washington all the more convinced that we have some serious work to get done.

Because people all across our state face serious challenges-whether it’s searching for a good-paying job, struggling to pay for health insurance, or trying to put their kids through college.

By putting aside our differences, we can find common-sense solutions to the problems we face and we can build a better future for Colorado’s working families and small businesses.

Sincerely,

Michael F. Bennet
U.S. Senator for Colorado

I am reminded of Ghostbusters II when i read this, as Egon told Louis Tulley, “Short but pointless”.  People want good wages and cheap products.  Really?!  Thank god Bennet went around(on the tax payers dime I would guess) to all 64 counties to figure that out.  People like Nancy Pelosi irritate me because they have shot so far past what is sensible and decent that at least I know if I dialogue with one of them they will be shoveling me shit.  But at least they stand for what they believe.  People like Bennet irritate me even more.  Michael, could you say less with more words???

I could rant and rave about how your policy voting record is shoddy or how you never met a fence you didn’t like to sit on but no real point.  You have once again shown why come the election in 2010 your own party is trying to oust you.  Pick side a man!  Consider your chops busted!

Mysterious, evasive, alluring.  These are all fun things.  I get it, I get the idea of mystery and suspense.  I understand not wanting to be an open book, to hold certain things back about oneself.  I also sympathize with those who are just private people and don’t like talking about themselves.  I fall into that category a little bit myself.  These things are ok.  To be evasive when it comes to oneself or private affairs I totally get that.

This entry is not for those people.  This entry is for those people who wouldn’t know their ass from a appropriate answer.  Are certain professions taught to abandon logical dialogue and reason and just monkey crap out answers that have no purpose.  Or worse yet those who cannot commit to single answer.

This day has been riddled with people who absolutely refuse to answer a question.  All business related of course, so getting a damn thing done went out the window long before lunch.  First up, a lovely chat with my doctor’s office regarding a bill.  I received a call from them requesting an update on payment status.  Ergo I called to update them that the status was it was going back to my insurance carrier because the hospital in question made a billing mistake.  This woman I spoke to takes it upon herself to attempt to fix the problem….well, really to attempt to piss me off.  Mission accomplished!  Below is a synopsis

“Hi, I am calling to update my status on this billing situation, it is going back to the insurance.”

“Sir can you please verify 18 pieces of information for me…”

(5 minutes later)”Ok, so there is your update”

“Sir let me see if we can figure this out, I am pulling up your itemized bill now.”

“Really, cause when I called 6 weeks ago, they couldn’t pull up the bill and had to send it to me, which I only just received”

“Yes I see this is about to go to collections, can we set up a payment plan?”

“How did we get here, the bill is going back to insurance.”

“Sir, I am not going to argue with you, the charges you are arguing are appropriate.  We need to set up a payment plan.”

“I haven’t even told you what charges I am contesting.”

“Very good sir, what are the charges you are contesting?”

“The physician consultations, these never happened.”

“Sir, the charges are appropriate, they wrote reports, when would you like to start the payment plan.”

“I have never seen these reports and neither has my doctor, can I get a copy of these.”

“Sir you can request a copy of each report (there are 2), there will be a 17.95 fee for each report.”

“Of course they are…. I think I will just deal with my insurance company, thanks.”

However, the simple little question that drove me over the line, came from non other than a lawyer.  No, don’t get me wrong, lawyers I assume serve a useful purpose (one I have as yet to identify).  However, these people are masters at complicating every single thing they touch.  Now due to confidentialy I can’t post the exact wordage but here is the break down:

I send an email to a lawyer who routinely does work for us.  The email explain a brief situation involving a friend and ends with the question, do you know someone in Adam’s County DA office?  I would have been happy with a yes or a no.  Instead I get a 2 paragraph email back about how people should hire lawyers and this situation requires a lawyer…. blah blah blah.  So I am thinking, maybe he just got confused it happens.  So I send another email, very brief saying that all makes sense, do you know a deputy DA my friend can call?  This is a simple f$#@ing question.

Here is the response:  Unfortunately no DA, friendly or otherwise is going to talk to me about your friend’s daughters case if I am not representing her.

What does that have to do with anything?!  Maybe I should get thai food tonight, but getting back to the question, DO YOU KNOW A DEPUTY DA IN ADAM’S COUNTY?!

Do you think we could all come together and agree that in every day life if we are poised with simple questions we can just answer them.  I am sitting here sans info because a guy paid to litigate in front of people, to represent people in a court of law is having trouble with a 9 word question!!!  I am reminded of King of the Hill:  Hank to Bobby: “An F in English, damnit Bobby, you speak English.”

People who cannot answer questions, your chops have been BUSTED!