In response to the chemical attacks by the Syrian government on it's people, President Trump orders Navy to launch a barrage of over fifty cruise missiles at the air base from which the chemical attack was carried out. Obama said he would draw a line in the sand, Trump carried it out.
However, I find myself conflicted on the strikes, I agree but disagree at the same time. On one hand, the strikes were justified as a response to a clear violation of International Law; and on the other, I don't want us to get involved in another conflict that isn't ours to meddle with. Our involvement in the Lbyia conflict has left the country in civil war since 2014 (a conflict on one talks about).
The United States may have the most powerful military on the planet, but we are not the world's policeman. As humans we do have a responsibility to our fellow man, but it's a responsibility that should be held by all nations. International rules have been established and agreed upon by nearly every nation, and when someone violates those rules, it is the world's responsibility to act, not just the US.
While Trump's actions against Syria were justified as a violation of these rules, I have to agree with Senator Rand Paul that he should gone to Congress before launching the strike. The President's war powers have gotten us into almost never ending war, sixteen years of unrelenting conflict. We can not afford as a nation to continue this policy, it will only push the world further into a struggle that may not have an end.
"There never was a good war, or a bad peace." ~ Benjamin Franklin
Friday, April 14, 2017
Monday, February 27, 2017
Quick Thought: Why I no Longer Debate Politics on Facebook
The function pf a debate is an exchange of ideas, a back and forth discussion t that could lead to the solution of a problem. A good debate can get emotional, can get heated, but remain civil. But, within the confines of social media, it's more like the "Argument Clinic" sketch from Monty Python.
I won't say that all social media debates are useless however. For the first time in human history, millions of people from across the globe can talk and discuss any topic on their mind. But that is also a detriment, as that means anybody; a meaningful debate can suddenly be interrupted by people (or trolls) spewing drivel and flinging insults in every direction. Everyone thinks they're an expert and every response is a "gotcha" statement.
It is honestly the stress brought on from the comments that has made me no longer wish to use social media as a forum to debate. For example; a recent debate I was in over the meaning of the First Amendment, devolved into bashing me as a "stupid American who doesn't understand his own laws." Not a debate that was meaningful over what is the purpose of the Amendment, or what it protects, but a "gotcha" argument.
I'm not trying to sound like some whining millennial, triggered, and running to his"safe space". I'm throwing my hands up and walking away, no longer wasting time in an environment that only fuels my rage. I vent here to provide a subject for thought and perhaps get people to take a more rational view of politics. I'm not saying to keep your emotions bottled up, but not to let them take advantage of you. We are only human.
I won't say that all social media debates are useless however. For the first time in human history, millions of people from across the globe can talk and discuss any topic on their mind. But that is also a detriment, as that means anybody; a meaningful debate can suddenly be interrupted by people (or trolls) spewing drivel and flinging insults in every direction. Everyone thinks they're an expert and every response is a "gotcha" statement.
It is honestly the stress brought on from the comments that has made me no longer wish to use social media as a forum to debate. For example; a recent debate I was in over the meaning of the First Amendment, devolved into bashing me as a "stupid American who doesn't understand his own laws." Not a debate that was meaningful over what is the purpose of the Amendment, or what it protects, but a "gotcha" argument.
I'm not trying to sound like some whining millennial, triggered, and running to his"safe space". I'm throwing my hands up and walking away, no longer wasting time in an environment that only fuels my rage. I vent here to provide a subject for thought and perhaps get people to take a more rational view of politics. I'm not saying to keep your emotions bottled up, but not to let them take advantage of you. We are only human.
Monday, January 30, 2017
A Re: Reintroduction for the New Year!
Let me introduce to reintroduce, Welcome to the Mental Rambler! This a blog that discusses all manor of topics, from politics, to religion, film, and even whether or not Space Marines should be a thing. It's basically what ever subject happens to fly into my head that particular day.
The posting schedule is sporadic to say the least, being one the few employees at a family printshop, my time is often at a premium. So, keep checking back for updates.
If you wish to discuss these various topics that spew out of my brain, each article has a comments section, so feel free to debate as much as you like, just please keep it civil as possible.
Heres what to expect in the next few articles:
Have a Good Year!
The posting schedule is sporadic to say the least, being one the few employees at a family printshop, my time is often at a premium. So, keep checking back for updates.
If you wish to discuss these various topics that spew out of my brain, each article has a comments section, so feel free to debate as much as you like, just please keep it civil as possible.
Heres what to expect in the next few articles:
- A Look at the Obama Presidency.
- 2016 & the belated 2015 in Film
- Thoughts on the American Education System
- "A Request for Sanity", thoughts on Running a Print shop for a year
Have a Good Year!
Friday, December 23, 2016
Apple: Are You Ok?
Apple needs and intervention. A while back I wrote an article on Apple's "thinness", their insatiable desire to make everything as lite as possible. I was, after much thought, going to write a followup saying that perhaps it isn't a bad thing, that most laptops now are following suit, but then the 2016 MacBook Pro happened. At first I thought it wasn't bad, I like the touch bar, the design, the space grey color, and that finally understood what what makes good speakers. As you dig deeper, it goes from an interesting piece of technology, to an overpriced door stop that makes me want to abandon Apple like a sinking ship.
Is there a point where simplifying something so much that it actually becomes more complicated? The YouTube channel "Cold Fusion" (linked below) discussed this in detail in regards to the new MacBook Pro. It seems to be a trend in apple's overall design, simplifying design to the point where function is ignored.
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in the late 1990s, he took a company that had lost it's direction and turned it into a juggernaut that would dominate computer design. He pushed form, function, and power, creating devices that would improve our lives and look good doing it to. Many companies followed Apple's direction (some got sued) and Apple became the trendsetter for computers and devices. Under Jobs they created the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, his introduction of the iMac revolutionized computer styling, and whenApple switched to intel ushering in a new era of powerful desktops and laptop more compatible with their PC brethren.
In 2011, Steve Jobs passed away, bringing an end to his version of the Meiji Restoration. The question was, could Apple continue the momentum? Tim Cook seceded Jobs as the CEO of Apple, while he hasn't pushed Apple back to the Pre-Steve Jobs 1990s era, many would agree that he his moving in that direction. Under Cook, Apple's have become thinner and lighter, but at the expense of the versatility and functionality that made the Macintosh such a reliable machine. The most recent MacBook Pro, for example, has almost no upgradeable parts and USB-C/Thunderbolt-3 ports that aren't universally adopted.
Compare the new MacBook Pro to my Mid-2012 model. While it doesn't have a Retina display and a fast battery, it has interchangeable RAM and Hard Drive (upgraded mine to a 1TB SSD), and a replace able battery. An intel i7 running at 2.9GHz. It still uses MagSafe if someone trips over the cable. A lineup of universally accepted ports. Finally a DVD superdrive that can interchanged with a second hard drive bay. It doesn't use current technology, it could out pace newer laptops and will likely prove itself still useful in the coming years.
The Bloomberg article (linked below) makes Apple's intentions clear, the focus is on the iPad, iPhone, and iOS, and that way of thinking has infected the way new Mac's are made. The iPhone has less ports, and so will the mac, and now there is no division dedicated to the development Mac Os. The Macintosh is a much smaller part of Apple's revenue stream, however a lot of creative professionals use them because of how the hardware and software is attuned to their creative needs. A lot of them are now forced to question that, and we are either being forced to compromise with a dozen dongles and poor battery life, or switch to a windows platform.
It feels like Apple has put more effort into the iPad pro, and with it's keyboard case and "Apple Pen" than it did with the new MacBook Pro with it's gimmicky touch bar. The problem is, the iPad pro can run full adobe programs like the Microsoft Surface line, which now has a touch screen desktop in its line up, something that Apple's resident village idiot Phil Shiller says no one would want (the article below from "Product Review shows a modern reimagine of the iMac G4 that would be amazing). Shiller also feels sad if you use an older Mac, sorry I won't help pay for your second house.
Apple really needs to figure out it's priorities; is it to make high end professional machines or appeal to the fashion sense of Millennial hipsters? Those of us who use Macs in our lives, home and at work have some serious questions to ask ourselves because it's clear that Apple is shifting it's priorities from the Mac line. For now my Mid 2012 MacBook Pro will keep trudging along, and aside from the screen quality, it still feels like a new computer, it doesn't want to quit. Perhaps they'll get the message, there is always hope that if their numbers go down, maybe they'll have a double take. There is always the Hackitosh if that does't work......
Sources:
http://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/23/jony-ive-speculation-role/
http://www.product-reviews.net/2016/11/15/apple-reaffirms-stance-on-touchscreen-imac-will-never-be-released/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xp4ypElIp2M
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-20/how-apple-alienated-mac-loyalists
Is there a point where simplifying something so much that it actually becomes more complicated? The YouTube channel "Cold Fusion" (linked below) discussed this in detail in regards to the new MacBook Pro. It seems to be a trend in apple's overall design, simplifying design to the point where function is ignored.
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in the late 1990s, he took a company that had lost it's direction and turned it into a juggernaut that would dominate computer design. He pushed form, function, and power, creating devices that would improve our lives and look good doing it to. Many companies followed Apple's direction (some got sued) and Apple became the trendsetter for computers and devices. Under Jobs they created the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, his introduction of the iMac revolutionized computer styling, and whenApple switched to intel ushering in a new era of powerful desktops and laptop more compatible with their PC brethren.
In 2011, Steve Jobs passed away, bringing an end to his version of the Meiji Restoration. The question was, could Apple continue the momentum? Tim Cook seceded Jobs as the CEO of Apple, while he hasn't pushed Apple back to the Pre-Steve Jobs 1990s era, many would agree that he his moving in that direction. Under Cook, Apple's have become thinner and lighter, but at the expense of the versatility and functionality that made the Macintosh such a reliable machine. The most recent MacBook Pro, for example, has almost no upgradeable parts and USB-C/Thunderbolt-3 ports that aren't universally adopted.
Compare the new MacBook Pro to my Mid-2012 model. While it doesn't have a Retina display and a fast battery, it has interchangeable RAM and Hard Drive (upgraded mine to a 1TB SSD), and a replace able battery. An intel i7 running at 2.9GHz. It still uses MagSafe if someone trips over the cable. A lineup of universally accepted ports. Finally a DVD superdrive that can interchanged with a second hard drive bay. It doesn't use current technology, it could out pace newer laptops and will likely prove itself still useful in the coming years.
The Bloomberg article (linked below) makes Apple's intentions clear, the focus is on the iPad, iPhone, and iOS, and that way of thinking has infected the way new Mac's are made. The iPhone has less ports, and so will the mac, and now there is no division dedicated to the development Mac Os. The Macintosh is a much smaller part of Apple's revenue stream, however a lot of creative professionals use them because of how the hardware and software is attuned to their creative needs. A lot of them are now forced to question that, and we are either being forced to compromise with a dozen dongles and poor battery life, or switch to a windows platform.
It feels like Apple has put more effort into the iPad pro, and with it's keyboard case and "Apple Pen" than it did with the new MacBook Pro with it's gimmicky touch bar. The problem is, the iPad pro can run full adobe programs like the Microsoft Surface line, which now has a touch screen desktop in its line up, something that Apple's resident village idiot Phil Shiller says no one would want (the article below from "Product Review shows a modern reimagine of the iMac G4 that would be amazing). Shiller also feels sad if you use an older Mac, sorry I won't help pay for your second house.
Apple really needs to figure out it's priorities; is it to make high end professional machines or appeal to the fashion sense of Millennial hipsters? Those of us who use Macs in our lives, home and at work have some serious questions to ask ourselves because it's clear that Apple is shifting it's priorities from the Mac line. For now my Mid 2012 MacBook Pro will keep trudging along, and aside from the screen quality, it still feels like a new computer, it doesn't want to quit. Perhaps they'll get the message, there is always hope that if their numbers go down, maybe they'll have a double take. There is always the Hackitosh if that does't work......
Sources:
http://www.macrumors.com/2016/11/23/jony-ive-speculation-role/
http://www.product-reviews.net/2016/11/15/apple-reaffirms-stance-on-touchscreen-imac-will-never-be-released/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xp4ypElIp2M
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-20/how-apple-alienated-mac-loyalists
Saturday, November 26, 2016
A Final Thought
Before delve into my review of "The Grand Tour" and once more complain about Apple's lack of "Appleness", I will say a fee last words about the election. The level to which people have taken the results of the election two weeks ago forces to the question of whether or we should just abolish the Presidency altogether. Obviously that would be a terrible I idea, but with proliferation of social media and the media's coverage are at the point of being intolerable.
We have no one to blame but ourselves for the results of this election. We're the ones who listened to the media, listened to the candidates, and decided based upon party rather than on principle. Instead of picking from the top shelf in the primaries, we drove our hands directly in the cesspool of American society and politics. Neither candidate was the ideal choice, yet they were made the front runners. And when the third parties tried to give you an alternative, you all still didn't listen.
The American voter is more dazzled by a sensationalized campaign, than a look at the actual facts. We want everything in bite sized tweets so we don't have to think real hard or read for a few seconds. It's probably the reason Apple can make computers that are almost useless and Samsung can make a phone that explodes and still make a profit.
I beg everyone, in 2020, please think about the candidates presented before. Do your research and stop listening to what the main stream media and the hype of social media. It is tiresome have to always pick between the lesser of two evils or a third party no one listens too. This campaign and it's aftermath have probably jaded more people to the political process than any other campaign. Every four years we have two terrible candidates that no one wants, despite being the people's choice, and then complain about the result and blame it on everything else but ourselves.
We have no one to blame but ourselves for the results of this election. We're the ones who listened to the media, listened to the candidates, and decided based upon party rather than on principle. Instead of picking from the top shelf in the primaries, we drove our hands directly in the cesspool of American society and politics. Neither candidate was the ideal choice, yet they were made the front runners. And when the third parties tried to give you an alternative, you all still didn't listen.
The American voter is more dazzled by a sensationalized campaign, than a look at the actual facts. We want everything in bite sized tweets so we don't have to think real hard or read for a few seconds. It's probably the reason Apple can make computers that are almost useless and Samsung can make a phone that explodes and still make a profit.
I beg everyone, in 2020, please think about the candidates presented before. Do your research and stop listening to what the main stream media and the hype of social media. It is tiresome have to always pick between the lesser of two evils or a third party no one listens too. This campaign and it's aftermath have probably jaded more people to the political process than any other campaign. Every four years we have two terrible candidates that no one wants, despite being the people's choice, and then complain about the result and blame it on everything else but ourselves.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
The End Result
Donald J. Trump will now be President of the United States of America, the most powerful world leader on the face of the Earth. In January he will sworn in and assume his new role and take the office. What started as a joke in the minds of Americans has become reality. How did this happen?
Let us go back in time, to the beginning, in 2015. The origins lay in the primaries, the early success of Rand Paul, Trump's rapid rise, and the massive movement behind Bernie Sanders. 2016 was the year of the outsider, a movement against the establishment. Even the third parties, particularly Gary Johnson gained more recognition than any other previous year (though it wasn't enough).
Many Americans are tired of the status quo, the established order. Dissatisfaction with the direction of the country, economy, and the continuous unending wars. People feel tired and disillusioned and are looking for a change. Obama promised "Hope and Change", and yes we did get a new health care system, troops were pulled out of Iraq, Osama Bin Laden is dead, Net Neutrality was protected, and LGBT rights were expanded. However people are facing rising prices on Obama care, the war on terror has expanded, the government's invasion of privacy hasn't ended, and not everyone is seeing an improvement in the economy. Many people see the government as an overbearing parent rather than an institution that is designed to with and for them.
The seeds of what happened last night were sown of the course of the last sixteen years through government regulation, intervention, and poor foreign policy. The President isn't the only one to blame though, one must look at Congress as well. They pass laws, approve the budget, and confirm the President's Supreme Court appointments. Our government was setup with checks and balances that prevent one group or person from having all the power.
I am still trying to comprehend what happened last night, only few times in American politics has anything this unprecedented happened. Though for the reasons stated above, we can understand why this happened. Granted, the requirements for being President are, that you have to be an American citizen and 35 years of age, but most have had some form of political experience.
This has been one of the most amusing, irritating, annoying, and frustrating elections that I have ever seen. What the next four years will entail is a mystery, who can say when the one entering office is an outsider to the political club.
This is a new frontier in American politics and who knows where it will lead, it could be good or bad, hopefully good. The only thing we can do is wait and see.
Let us go back in time, to the beginning, in 2015. The origins lay in the primaries, the early success of Rand Paul, Trump's rapid rise, and the massive movement behind Bernie Sanders. 2016 was the year of the outsider, a movement against the establishment. Even the third parties, particularly Gary Johnson gained more recognition than any other previous year (though it wasn't enough).
Many Americans are tired of the status quo, the established order. Dissatisfaction with the direction of the country, economy, and the continuous unending wars. People feel tired and disillusioned and are looking for a change. Obama promised "Hope and Change", and yes we did get a new health care system, troops were pulled out of Iraq, Osama Bin Laden is dead, Net Neutrality was protected, and LGBT rights were expanded. However people are facing rising prices on Obama care, the war on terror has expanded, the government's invasion of privacy hasn't ended, and not everyone is seeing an improvement in the economy. Many people see the government as an overbearing parent rather than an institution that is designed to with and for them.
The seeds of what happened last night were sown of the course of the last sixteen years through government regulation, intervention, and poor foreign policy. The President isn't the only one to blame though, one must look at Congress as well. They pass laws, approve the budget, and confirm the President's Supreme Court appointments. Our government was setup with checks and balances that prevent one group or person from having all the power.
I am still trying to comprehend what happened last night, only few times in American politics has anything this unprecedented happened. Though for the reasons stated above, we can understand why this happened. Granted, the requirements for being President are, that you have to be an American citizen and 35 years of age, but most have had some form of political experience.
This has been one of the most amusing, irritating, annoying, and frustrating elections that I have ever seen. What the next four years will entail is a mystery, who can say when the one entering office is an outsider to the political club.
This is a new frontier in American politics and who knows where it will lead, it could be good or bad, hopefully good. The only thing we can do is wait and see.
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
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