US Mid-Term Elections 2006

Today is voting day for the US mid-term elections. It's been damn near impossible to miss: one can hardly see the forest --or anything else-- for the honkin' huge campaign signs everywhere. Entire rain forests have vanished feeding the electoral machine: billboards, roadside signs, mailings, flyers, handouts, brochures, "fact" sheets and so on. I don't get telephone calls from human beings anymore, just robo-dialers extolling the virtues of one candidate or maligning the character of another.

As a tax-paying resident but not a citizen of the US, I don't get a vote. I'm OK with that... voting is a special privilege not to be dispensed cheaply or trivially. Not having a vote however doesn't mean that I'm without opinions. Indeed, I maintain a surplus with extra warehouses of freeze-dried opinions ready to be rehydrated should an inconvenient opinion drought occur.

( In fact, here are some now! )

US Mid-Term Elections 2006

Today is voting day for the US mid-term elections. It's been damn near impossible to miss: one can hardly see the forest --or anything else-- for the honkin' huge campaign signs everywhere. Entire rain forests have vanished feeding the electoral machine: billboards, roadside signs, mailings, flyers, handouts, brochures, "fact" sheets and so on. I don't get telephone calls from human beings anymore, just robo-dialers extolling the virtues of one candidate or maligning the character of another.

As a tax-paying resident but not a citizen of the US, I don't get a vote. I'm OK with that... voting is a special privilege not to be dispensed cheaply or trivially. Not having a vote however doesn't mean that I'm without opinions. Indeed, I maintain a surplus with extra warehouses of freeze-dried opinions ready to be rehydrated should an inconvenient opinion drought occur.

( In fact, here are some now! )

Too Damn Early!

I can understand some store starting to roll out their xmas holiday sale items. I can cope with some decorations going up here and there. The following, however, in the center of the mall in Frederick, MD, at lunchtime today is entirely too much since it's only just the beginning of November:

Francis Scott Key Mall, Frederick, MD 2006-11-07

The photo was taken with my feeble cell phone camera so the scale is hard to grasp. Suffice it to say the display is larger than our house. In another week or so, Santa will be parked in front with a queue of visiting children mugging for the cameras.

When I become supreme dictator of the universe, all such displays will be banned until December 1.

Too Damn Early!

I can understand some store starting to roll out their xmas holiday sale items. I can cope with some decorations going up here and there. The following, however, in the center of the mall in Frederick, MD, at lunchtime today is entirely too much since it's only just the beginning of November:

Francis Scott Key Mall, Frederick, MD 2006-11-07

The photo was taken with my feeble cell phone camera so the scale is hard to grasp. Suffice it to say the display is larger than our house. In another week or so, Santa will be parked in front with a queue of visiting children mugging for the cameras.

When I become supreme dictator of the universe, all such displays will be banned until December 1.

I'm Getting Old

About 15 years ago, I spent something like $5k CDN to purchase a 32 MB VME memory board --about 18 inches on each side-- for a Sun 4/280.

Today at Staples, there was a bin at the checkout counter of 64 MB flash memory USB fobs for $7.60 each. At first glance, I mistook them for candy.

Gad.

I'm Getting Old

About 15 years ago, I spent something like $5k CDN to purchase a 32 MB VME memory board --about 18 inches on each side-- for a Sun 4/280.

Today at Staples, there was a bin at the checkout counter of 64 MB flash memory USB fobs for $7.60 each. At first glance, I mistook them for candy.

Gad.