Ron Paul’s Views
Posted by The Gimcracker in Theory & Philosophy on 18. Aug, 2011 | 2 Comments
If you want to know Ron Paul’s views in a nutshell, watch this video. About the only area he tends to veer from a lot of Libertarians’ points of view is the area of abortion, which incidentally is one of the few areas where I tend to disagree as well. This guy shares my political viewpoints almost entirely, at least on the big issues. Check out this interview on CNN:
Why Is No One Paying Attention To Ron Paul???
Posted by The Gimcracker in Seriously?!, Theory & Philosophy on 17. Aug, 2011 | 3 Comments
Two things happened today. First, I found my blog! I went to vacuum under my couch and there it was! It must have rolled under there a few months ago. Second, I watched a clip from The Daily Show with John Stewart and I actually agreed with it! Lately, I have been bothered by the republican presidential candidates and how they endlessly flap their jaws about banning gay marriage (THAT will save our country’s economic crisis!) and blaming democrats for all of the problems in this country. It is just as much the fault of republicans as it is democrats. And if you say any different, ask yourself why Washington has been equally dominated by ONLY these two parties, yet both the government and our nation’s debt has continued to increase over the last century?
So, it really bothers me that when a guy like Ron Paul comes along who does not change his beliefs based on popularity and consistently discusses issues at their philosophical foundations (instead of just flapping his jaw about how dumb and terrible [x] party is), he seems to be almost completely ignored by the media. I don’t watch The Daily Show and from the few clips I’ve seen I generally tend to disagree with it, but they really nailed this issue. Check out this clip that pretty much says it all:
Why We Are All Afraid Of Deep Water
Posted by The Gimcracker in Science, Theory & Philosophy on 24. Mar, 2011 | 19 Comments
One of my biggest fears is deep water. I have always wondered why I’m so afraid of it. One time I was jet skiing in the Cayman Islands and I was cruising around within 50 yards of the shore. One of the boat captains had previously explained to me that about 200 yards off shore the depth of the water sharply dropped off from around 40 feet to a mile. A MILE DEEP. That is 5,280 feet, way deeper than 40! I decided to venture out and see what it was like to cross the “threshold” of depth. I revved my trusty Yamaha and went straight out toward the horizon. Suddenly, all around me, the water turned from light blue to black; I had journeyed over the great shelf. I was immediately filled with an ominous fear I had never experienced before (aside from when Taco Bell took the Volcano Taco off their menu). When I scampered back to safety and calmed down, I posed this question to myself: “Why is it that absolutely nothing changed when I crossed the barrier – my jet ski still worked perfectly, I had the same ability to swim, and the waves remained the same – but I was absolutely horror-stricken?” I researched the answer to this question for 3 solid years and have finally figured out the answer. In keeping with the TGM tradition, this is all totally scientific and full of completely accurate science.
What Would You Do If You Were Rich?
Posted by The Gimcracker in Gimcrackery, News, Theory & Philosophy on 22. Feb, 2011 | 3 Comments
This is probably one of the most popular questions people ask themselves. Well, this and: “should I have another volcano Taco?” The answer to that one’s obvious. But the answer to the former is not so simple, is it? There are a few wise people who answer “I wouldn’t want to be rich.” But for the rest of us, the answer usually consists of a few big ticket material items right off the bat, some aspect of saving or investing, and in a lot of cases, charity. Charity, either because of a true desire to be charitable (in which case the answerer probably already is a charitable person), or because simply having a lot of money seems to bring along a level of guilt (in which case the answerer probably lacks somewhat in the area of charitabilityness).
I, for one, would love to be rich. Being able to partake in the finer things would be awesome. Five-star restaurants. No more broken down cars. Someone else to do my house repairs. A personal trainer to equal out my increase of Volcano Taco consumption. Oh that’d be so grand. However, that stuff would very quickly become boring, I’m sure. So, I’d like to think that I could do something more meaningful with my newfound financial responsibility, such as giving it away, starting my own charity, helping widows & orphans, and spreading the Gospel. You know, Bible stuff. Christian stuff. The trouble is, I don’t really do much of that now, so what makes me think I would increase those activities just because I had more money? More money would probably equal more distractions and stress, which would in all likelihood decrease those activities.
Well, here’s a great example of a few people that did what I’d like to think I would do. And by the way, they were just killed a few hours ago in the pirate-infested waters of Somalia.
Why Do Things Take So Long To Start Up Nowadays?
Posted by The Gimcracker in Theory & Philosophy on 09. Jul, 2010 | 7 Comments
Hey everyone, remember The Gimcrack Miscellany? It’s my blog. You’re on it now, and you’re reading an article. Remember those days? I can’t quit you, TGM! Good old blogging… it is always there to bring me a hot cup of tea when I’m feeling down, and talk to me while I fall asleep.
I have talked before about how it feels like we live in the future because of all the awesome things we have, no? Maybe that’s one of my 27 drafts that are waiting to be finished. In any case – cell phones, man. How in the heck can we talk to whoever we want with no delay? Also – flat panel TVs, dude. Do you realize we are seeing a crystal clear, insanely bright, fifty-five inch wide, high resolution image on an apparatus that is less than an inch thick? That’s a far cry from the overhead projectors we had in school. Oh and – the Internet. Think about that one. You can carry around a sleek little netbook and have access to EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD from almost ANY PUBLIC PLACE.
I have said that to say this: you’d think that in a world with iPhones, organic LED TVs, and Internet everywhere, everything else would follow suit and get better and faster. You’d be wrong. I’m about to point out something in the following sentences that you’ve never consciously noticed, but has been driving you crazy. Sort of like when someone finally turns off a device that has been making a bunch of background noise all along and you suddenly realize how annoying it was once they turn it off.
Another Guatemalan Sinkhole!
Posted by The Gimcracker in Amazing on 01. Jun, 2010 | 2 Comments
Remember when I posted an article entitled The Guatemala Sinkhole? Well that title has now been rendered obsolete. No longer is the word “The” appropriate, as there is now ANOTHER SINKHOLE EXACTLY LIKE IT in the same country! I realize sinkholes happen all the time all over the world, and I’ve seen a lot of them, but none of them have ever looked like the two in Guatemala. My kenophobia has swiftly been renewed. Look at how similar the most recent sinkhole is to the one from back in 2008:
Seriously, NBC?!
Posted by The Gimcracker in Seriously?!, Television, Theory & Philosophy on 20. Nov, 2009 | 2 Comments
I know what you’re thinking: two Seriously?! posts about television networks, back to back? The economy is in bad shape, man, and it affects everyone. Or I watched a little too much TV this week. So, did you happen to catch any of the programming on NBC last night, namely The Office and 30 Rock? If you did, you may now loose the wire around your neck – it’s not worth killing yourself. If you didn’t, I just want you to know that this blog post is not exaggerated – these things actually occurred on this planet in this dimension in this country in my living room.
Apparently it is “Green Week” or something (didn’t know that) and NBC is the most liberally-biased network there is (did know that), which is a very annoying combination. Before I tell you what happened, let me refresh you with our classic TGM political disclaimers. I am neither conservative nor liberal on all matters, and I do not fall into either of the groups in the two one-party system. If NBC was ultra-conservative instead of liberal, and it was like “Gun Week” or something, then I would be equally annoyed. Glad we cleared that up. So, what hoopla went on last night, besides a pot-head scoring 3 TDs against Carolina?
Almost Perfect Liberal vs. Conservative Infographic
Posted by The Gimcracker in Theory & Philosophy on 21. Oct, 2009 | 3 Comments
I don’t really write political posts because I believe talking politics on a blog is like talking about your bills while you’re on a tropical vacation. It’s so pointless and boring that the only thing that could possibly motivate you to do it is hate, pride, or some hidden agenda. That being said, let’s talk about politics on my blog. You can’t stop me because if you’re reading this it means I’ve already posted this article and it is now bouncing around the ‘tubes forever.
What is the difference between Left wing vs. Right wing politics? It seems like everyone’s an expert when it comes to this, and most people I have met are either Liberal or Conservative – despising the other party. Liberals hate Limbaugh, Beck, and Fox News. Conservatives hate Gore, Jackson, and CNN. That’s the way it is. Well I consider myself a little different, and I’m not saying this to toot my own horn or to cop out of the debate, but I can actually see both sides! That’s why I love this infographic. Check it out – it’s a beautiful, almost perfect side-by-side comparison of the Left versus the Right when it comes to government.
Tallest Building In The World – Exterior Completed
Posted by The Gimcracker in News, Technology on 08. Oct, 2009 | No Comments
The tallest structure ever built is complete. The Burj Dubai has been under construction since 2004, located in Dubai, UAE (that’s in the Middle East if you don’t know). It is one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen, in one of the most beautiful cities (structurally) I’ve ever seen. It is 2,684 feet tall with 160 floors, and it’s GIGANTIC. The record for tallest skyskraper in the world has been broken several times recently, but the Burj Dubai not only broke the record, it broke the record for how much a record was broken by. To give you an idea of how tall this building is, let me show you some images and compare it with other supertall buildings.
Seriously, People Are Dying?!
Posted by The Gimcracker in Music, Reference Burst Theory, Seriously?! on 09. Jul, 2009 | No Comments
Isn’t it crazy how many people have died recently? I’m talking about famous people, who are worth at least 10 regular people. The recent events remind me of not one but two separate topics I have previously written about in this blog. The first is obviously Reference Burst Theory where celebrities die in threes, because within two days Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Micheal Jackson died (some would say there was a second wave with Billy Mays, Karl Maldon, and Steve McNair). But the second topic is what I would call your attention to now, and that’s the idea of people becoming proverbial saints upon death, which I touched on in my award-winning blog post entitled “Alive One Minute, Saint The Next” written in November 2007. Seriously, Everyone On Earth?! This Micheal Jackson stuff is getting ridiculous. That’s the end of this article so there’s no reason to click the title, sorry.
