Brain Splatter

Good afternoon. I am forcing myself to write. I have had the inclination lately but not the inspiration. I don't know why that should stop me. I just haven't felt like trying to bring the thoughts in my head out. Nothing seems to really inspire me to write now, right now. I have got to get back in the swing of it. I have said that before. I never said I wouldn't repeat myself. I figure if I just start it will flow. So here we go...

Maybe that is why I haven't written anything. I have absolutely nothing interesting going on right now. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

So I could write about what is going on in the world but let's be honest here. The world is totally fucked right now. Maybe I shouldn't use such language but it is true. And this is my fucking rant so I think I am gonna let the F-bombs go.

I read and watch the news and it just makes me shake my head. Swine flu? Really? It isn't that I don't believe that there is a disease out there that is going to kill a bunch of people, it is that I don't understand the over reaction. Flu kills thousands every year. If it was something big. A pandemic, epidemic, plague or what have you, is there really anything to do about it? Seems to me you just have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. If there was something that was killing people let and right what would the governments of the world do? Honestly the only choice would be to try to identify and quarantine the infected if not just outright elimination. It is a brutal idea but if you can save 100 million lives by killing 1 million people is it worth it?

See, I told you nothing was good in the world. Then of course the economy which is either about to get better or as I have said before a whole lot worse. I am leaning toward the worse part or the argument but then again that is just me.

Another interesting idea. If a plague ravishes the planet and kills a large majority of the elderly and others with compromised immune systems what does that do for the economic crisis? Think about it. If the United States lost a large percentage of seniors and others with shaky immune systems that would free up approximately a third of the yearly budget spent in social programs. Social Security, Medicare, would suddenly not be as utilized. Hospitals would empty out. The health care system in general would become a lot less utilized. That's just a fact that younger people don't use the doctor as often.

Suddenly with the extra money the budget issues are not that big a burden and the national debt is easier to pay off. All consumer products suddenly have less demand so down goes prices for food, housing, energy. Does the recession end once the bodies are taken care of? I don't know but if 20% of the population just goes away it would change a lot of fiscal models.

So what does this all mean? I am not hoping for any of this stuff to happen. When I am here typing it is easy to imagine what could happen. There is a big line between that and the bodies rotting in the summer heat because there aren't enough cold places to put them all.

I caught a bit of one of those anti-government conspiracy channels and they were saying this could be part of the new world order plans. Big business provides the flu shots, provides the anti-virals, provides the body bags and all the other toys that would be needed to fight a pandemic. And at the same time the government, shadow or otherwise, gets to control us under the guise of protecting us.

Again, I don't know if it is true or not but it is a hell of a lot easier to write about something like that then it would be to plot it out and execute it. Not to mention living though a plague would be hell on Earth. I for one don't want to watch people I care about die from flu. I especially would not want to be the one lying in a pool of my own discharge, drowning in mucas. Not a fun way to go.

One thing that gets on my nerves is the coverage of all this. It is annoying because sometimes I get the feeling that news would love to be able to show piles of bodies being burned by soldiers in Tyvek suits. Of course, they wouldn't want that. They are just on the lookout for the public good and not to earn a buck. I mean information is a good thing but fear keeps the people tuning in. Laterzzz...

Labels: death, news, Swine Flu

// posted by Biff Manly @ 1:11 PM 0 comments

Well Jobless claims have reached a 16 year high. Way to go America! Actually it is very serious because unemployment only goes for so long. So after you lose your job you get to be poor and then if you still can't find work you get to be homeless. Nice country we have here that puts people on the street for just being poor.

At least the holiday shopping season is about to start because this way we can celebrate unchecked consumerism. The news media can avoid reporting on the state of people who don't have enough food and such and stick to reporting on the new Tickle Me Elmo or the scarcity of the Nintendo Wii.

Oh, I love this one, check out this picture.

In this image from NASA TV, a tool kit bag, center, as seen through the helmet camera of astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, floats away from the International Space Station after she lost hold of it during a procedure during a 6 1/2-hour scheduled space walk outside the space station, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2008.(AP Photo/NASA TV)

Fucking excellent.

100 Grand just floating away because someone didn't use a piece of rope. The just shows the whole space program in a nutshell. I am all for the space program. I just think that there is a lot of stuff done wrong. I like the shuttle but it seems a little over blown. We need a more workman like shuttle program. Everything doesn't have to look pretty but it should work. I also think that they need to get some sponsors up on that stuff. If it can work for Nascar, why can't we put stickers on the shuttle? Patches on the spacesuits? The big fuel tank on the launch pad should be decorated to look like a giant can of Diet Pepsi. I say let big business put up a little cash.

I also think they need to sell some rides on the space shuttle. Why just astronauts? How about some millionaires? They would pay for the ride. Or maybe hold a national lottery. You put in a buck and if you win you get to go into space. How many millions could they raise and what would it cost them? A seat? Come on, it's not that difficult to train someone to go into space. I think all that astronaut training is if you need to fix shit or drive the shuttle. Learning to use the toilet and a few other things can't take much longer than a week or two. I would put in a few bucks what the hell?

Ok, here is one good one. A girl went four months without a heart. She had a transplant, the heart wasn't good. Then when there was no heart available the doctors put artifical pumps in her to keep her alive. She had to be attached to a photocopier sized machine to keep it pumping. Then she got a new heart. But for all that time in between, nothing.

Now that is kind of cool. Imagine what it would be like not having a heart beat. I am sure the machines were loud enough but not having the heart beating must have been strange as hell. Usually the only time your heart doesn't beat is right at the end. And usually you have other things on your mind if you are aware of it.

I have wished I wasn't breathing before. But that was when I sick and it hurt to breathe because I had a headache or flu or whatever. Oh, and that one time my nose was whistling and no matter how many times I blew it I had that damn whistle up in there. It damn near drove me insane. At that time I was wishing that I could stop breathing. But then I snorted some nose spray or whatever and all was better. Yay for happy endings.

Ha, Ha! Some assclown at Taco Bell is getting the company sued because they sent a fake letter to 50 Cent (or Fiddy as we say in the hood) to ask him to change his name for a day to 79 Cent, 89 Cent, or 99 Cent to promote the dollar menu. They offered to give $10K to Fiddy's favorite charity. Apparently Fiddy's lawyers figure they can make more with a little green-mail. They filed a lawsuit for trademark infringement. Fiddy must like El Polio Loco or Del Taco. I bet that they get a bit more than 10 grand in the end. Go Fiddy! Get your money! Lawsuits! The better than crime to make money.

Now the hippies are after video game machines. They are saying that the Xbox and the PS3 and to a lesser extent the Wii use a lot of electricity even if they are off. So they want you to turn off your systems when not in use. I really don't have a problem with that. I think that you should turn shit off. It's like people leaving their computers on 24/7. Why? I say turn the damn thing off if it is not being used. It doesn't help that some of the machines make is so hard to turn off. You have to shut down this and wait for that and dock this and its just takes so long. Turning something off should be easy. Hit the off switch and it is off. Is that so damn difficult? Why do things have to be so hard?

Now a new feature--Biff's Awesome Christmas gifts. I almost said "holiday" but fuck that. I celebrate Christmas. And sometimes Xmas. But hell, if you get me a present I will celebrate whatever you want me too. Our first one is the Obama Commemorative Plate. That needs to go on toilet lids or curio cabinets across the nation! Laterzzz...

Labels: gifts, news, Obama, space program

// posted by Biff Manly @ 6:25 PM 0 comments

I watch the news.

Were you aware that prices were going up? I was not aware of this. I was not aware that the money I was making a year ago is just not buying as much shit now as it was then. I was not aware that a fucking 4% raise barely covers the cost of living. And let me be totally clear here, I know that 4% is more than some people get.

The question I have when they are talking about this one news is "why are you surprised?"

I have been saying that this is coming. We have been living in this country like the party will never end. Especially when it comes to the price of gas and with people buying SUV's. Then you have people buying houses that they can't afford. What the hell did they think was going to happen?

You want a fucking example of the fucked up thinking? Vehicle navigation systems. Why the fuck are people buying these things? Buy a damn map asshole. I seriously doubt that most of these thing are ever used. I bet you have a certain group of people who can't use them. They just can't get the hang of them. Then you have the people who use them once, maybe twice. Most people only drive to the same places every damn day. What do they need a five hundred dollar navigation system for? This should be a niche item but they are everywhere. It is just a waste.

That is what we do here in this country. It is like we are kids and can't wait to play with the next new toy. Flat screens, Ipods, Tempurpedics; crap that no one needs.

While we waste our resources on this shit the price of food goes through the roof. People are evicted from their houses. And we piss away our limited money fighting wars in countries around the world. It's fucking insane.

God, what is the answer?

Why is it so hard for the people in this country to see that we have start building up America again? We have to make our country stronger. We need to build roads and transportation systems. We need to make sure that no person ever has to be homeless. We need to make it so that if you lose your job you don't have to worry that you are going to end up on the street, that you will be retrained and as long as you want to work you will get a job. We need to make sure that water and power arrive in each home and that waste is taken away.

This is going to cost. It is going to cost money. It is going to cost time. It is going to cost someone having the balls to step up and say to America, "it isn't going to be easy but the next few years we are all going to have to sacrifice to make sure that this is the best country in the world. Nothing worth while is ever easy and nothing is free."

Ah fuck it. I shouldn't watch the news. It just makes me think. And that is mostly never a good thing.

Laterzzz...

Labels: America, money, news

// posted by Biff Manly @ 10:11 PM 0 comments