Politics Tagged Articles

The Declaration of Independence

From time to time, it is within all of our interests to review that which our nation is founded upon. I present to you, the full text of The Declaration of Independence. Before you review it, let's take a brief moment to review an excerpt from another very important document - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.

"I come in peace", it said, adding after a long moment of further grinding, "take me to your Lizard."

Ford Prefect, of course, had an explanation for this...

"It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see..."

"You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?"

"No", said Ford, ... "nothing so simple. Nothing anything like so straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."

"Odd", said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."

"I did", said Ford. "It is."

"So", said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't people get rid of the lizards?"

"It honestly doesn't occur to them", said Ford. "They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates to the government they want."

"You mean they actually vote for the lizards?"

"Oh yes", said Ford with a shrug, "of course."

"But", said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?"

"Because if they didn't vote for a lizard", said Ford, "the wrong lizard might get in."

Hillary vs. Obama

I've opted to not write about politics more often than not, although it is something that I keep up to date on just about as frequently as most things in my technical world. The republican primary election has been a non-event up to this point with all things pretty much decided, and for years I've deemed a Democratic president as inevitable in 2008. That being said, I think it's time to take a look at the primary election and offer my opinions.

California Voting Machines Decertified

I can't believe it. Somebody is actually paying attention. California Secretary of State Debra Bowen has decertified all Diebold voting machines, along with all Sequoia machines and most Hart InterCivic machines.

The Diebold and Sequoia systems are allowed to be used - one per polling place - to meet accessibility requirements.

California Supreme Court says No to Drug Seizures

In quite an interesting move, the California Supreme Court put an end to most drug seizures and many similar property forfeiture ordinances throughout the state.

While the decision is far reaching, it does not absolutely end the practice.

Attorney General vs. The U.S. Constitution

Alberto Gonzales, The Attorney General, did something Thursday that disturbed me beyond compare. I've never liked the choice of Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General - mostly because he has as smug and irritating a public personality as I've ever seen, but also because he was White House Counsel prior to his selection which simply does not sit right with me.

His appearance before the Judicial Committee on Thursday produced a quote that is simply unbelievable.

Disney, Copyright, and Historical Genius

Disney has been at the core of pretty much every change to copyright law since I've been alive. Looking at things on the surface, you might see their side of things - losing exclusive copyrights to characters like Mickey Mouse would potentially cost the company an untold amount of money. In the same light, the inevitable abandonment of Disney classics would leave our children without the joyful memories that each generation has shared since old Walt put pen to paper.

Or would it?

It's Time for a New President

The 2008 elections are coming around and we're starting to see glimpses of the candidates. It is worth taking the time to listen to them now and figure out how their ideas and values align with our own.

Web 2.0 Meet Political Campaigns

During the last presidential election, we saw the political world taking notice of the power of the internet. Like many bloggers out there, they didn't quite get it. Substance on the web sites of candidates largely lacked substance, there was a decided lack of realistic moderation in comments, and no candidate had a site up that would bring voters back for more on a regular basis. That's about to change.

State of the Union in it's Entirety

Since it was available to me, I thought I'd share. What follows is the entire unabridged State of the Union address from January 23, 2007.

Regardless of who the President is, their popularity, or personal politics, the State of the Union is important to pay attention to. I'm not going to comment on this any further, and I won't be accepting any comments on this entry.

Saddam Verdict Imminent

I swore off of political posts for some time, but this one had to be made. The trial of Saddam Hussein has come to a close, and a verdict is expected very soon. Does anybody else find it odd that the Hussein trial is coming to verdict just three days before the elections? What headline would be more welcome to bring terrorism to the front mind of voters?

The thing that really irks me is that I'm going to have to listen to a bunch of Saddam Hussein blabber while I'm trying to enjoy my Sunday afternoon football.

Note to School Teachers

Are politics really affecting how we prosecute child molesters? Apparently if you are good looking you get a slap on the wrist. If you can't win a beauty contest you'll end up in the clink.

A Little Bit of Politics

With the elections coming up, I thought it would be a good idea to post a little bit of political commentary. I have seen a few "things that make you go hmmm..." the last few days.