Playing with Quotes

One of the things that bothers me about politics...most often found at the "voter" level...is personal attacks and lies to get a point across.

I came across that today while browsing through a local Libertarian's Web site. She had a quote on her site that went as follows:

"We can't be so fixated on our desire to preserve the
rights of ordinary Americans ..." - Bill Clinton

I was a big fan of Bill Clinton. He's a well-spoken, intelligent man...and I miss that from our current President, who tends to stumble over his words on most occassions and likes to lay all issues out in black and white (this or that) terms. So, of course, I found the quote mildly disturbing.

I did a quick Google search of the quote to find the context. You see, there be ellipses there. :-) To my shock (not really), I found that literally hundreds of sites had replicated the quote, all with the same ellipses!

OK...all these sites are right-wing sites, what gives?

I actually had to look long and hard for anyone to complete the quote. Some sites extend the quote with more context, to make the original quote even harsher:

"We can't be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans to legitimately own handguns and rifles."

Whoa! Now he's not talking about *ALL* our rights, but the quote is more directed and therefore correct, right? After all, there's no ellipses, right?

Well, not quote. The ellipses are gone, but they should be there, cause he wasn't done with his sentence. Let's see the real quote, which took quite a while to dig up on Google. (It's less sensational and more sane, you see.)

"I think -- you know, we can't be so fixated on our
desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans to
legitimately own handguns and rifles -- it's something
I strongly support -- we can't be so fixated on that
that we are unable to think about the reality of life
that millions of Americans face on streets that are
unsafe, under conditions that no other nation -- no
other nations -- has permitted to exist."

Ah. So, he's against irresponsible use of them. So, perhaps, Joe Gunowner were to say, I don't know, shoot his ex-girlfriend -- that perhaps he shouldn't be legally allowed to own a gun anymore. Am I wrong here?

Maybe the quote is a little clunky. It was an offhand comment, not an official speech...but obviously, the lesson here is:

... TRUST ELLIPSES!

(The above was bolded by the editor, taken from the quote "Don't Trust Ellipses")

Remember by Major Michael Davis O'Donnell

REMEMBER

by Major Michael Davis O'Donnell, helicopter pilot, Vietnam

If you are able,
Save a place for them
Inside of you. And
save one backward glance
When you are leaving for the places they can no longer go.
Be not ashamed to say that you loved them,
Though you may not have always.

Take what they have left,
And what they have taught you
With their dying
And keep it your own.

And in a time
When men decide and feel safe
To call war insane,

Take one moment to embrace
Those gentle heroes
You left behind.

Written January 1st, 1970. Michael was killed in action on March 24th, 1970

Wanna Get Away?

Why's Rumsfeld's hand so low, and not on his heart? Think he's got something to hide? Me...I'm sure of it.

Mohammed v. Jesus

All you need to know about the right-wing Religious Right (see content and comments):

Mohammed v. Jesus

The hand That Feeds by NIN

The rock band Nine Inch Nails said on Friday it canceled plans to appear on next week's MTV Movie Awards after the network questioned the band's plans to perform in front of an image of President Bush.

"We were set to perform 'The Hand That Feeds' with an unmolested, straightforward image of George W. Bush as the backdrop. Apparently, the image of our president is as offensive to MTV as it is to me," Nine Inch Nails' leader
Trent Reznor said in a statement posted on the band's Web site.

You're keeping in step
In the line
Got your chin held high and you feel just fine
Because you do
What you're told
But inside your heart it is black and it's hollow and it's cold

Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you want to change it?



What if this whole crusade's
A charade
And behind it all there's a price to be paid
For the blood
On which we dine
Justified in the name of the holy and the divine

Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you want to change it?

So naive
I keep holding on to what I want to believe
I can see
But I keep holding on and on and on and on

Will you bite the hand that feeds you?
Will you stay down on your knees? (8 times)

Mowed, De-Weeded, and Seeded -- OH MY!

The morning lawn work is done. Oy! Had to do quite a bit, and most of it with an unrelenting sun. With these insipid tasks done, time to get ready for a BBQ.

Worked on Avatara as well this morning. I worked to get my first task complete, but this proggy is the paragon of difficulty if I do say so myself. I will carry on!

Prior Breaks Arm

Ouch! Mark Prior broke his arm today on a shot back up the box against my hometown Rockies. That's gonna sting the Cubbies.

On better news, the Mets won again, recovering some damage when they got swept by the Braves! A big two wins against the Marlins...hope they keep it up! Good job, guys!

Tomorrow is the BBQ at Rod's. Horeshoe time!!!! But first, we gotta work on our pathetic yard, which hasn't been mowed in 3 weeks, has some animal poop on it, and just had a bunch of baby Aspens removed.

And dang weeds!

Texas Hold 'Em story. (Yeah, I've been playing a lot.) I had pocket Kings, and the flow was 776. The board checked all the way through, so no one had the 7. The turn was a 7! Again, the board checks, but iceeme bets. I'm bettin' he doesn't have the 7, cause he checked earlier, and he was in best position. We all call. The river is a 6! So the board reads 77676. I've got a pair of Kings!

So this means that, with no one else having a 7, and it had to be because the betting was not happening, I've got the win with King's full! Right?

Wrong. Someone has Pocket Rockets. AA. Ya gotta be kidding. Only one hand beats me, and at, what is it, 331 to 1, someone had it.

OY!

Let's Get It Started!

My last few days have been a bit hazy. Coming back from vacation, facing some "what's my role?" issues at work while I wait for my new team to start up.

A dissapointing loss in the final game to the Yankees. (Why play? Just give them the game beforehand for gosh sakes!)

But, today has been invigorating. The Product Engineering Kickoff meeting happened today, and more will continue this afternoon! Finally, some *real* work!

Last night, I even started Avatara development. My first focus is on the t___-b____ (more for fun than privacy) engine, something I used in Counterpart. I need a full-Java version, with some more advanced nuances. :-) He's learn-n-n-n-ing...

I'm also going to flip back to a stricter South Beach Diet after the next shopping episode. I need to correct some bad habits that creeped back into my otherwise improved diet.

With a renewed focus at work, and on my leisure time, I feel a little more refreshed today!

...

This upcoming weekend, it's BBQ time. On Saturday, my ex-manager is hosting at his home. Then, on Monday, the in-laws are having a BBQ as well. And ya know, I'll never refuse food mixed with fire.

OK...back to the grind.

What Wall Do You Want To Go Through?

Yonkers man to serve 13 years in child porn case

OK, this is just plain creepy. I just heard the story from my friend Chris, but now I know it's true...

A (sorta) friend of mine in Junior High School, Ismael Genao, was convicted of child porn charges and sentenced to 13 years in jail a couple months ago!

He will spend his 30's in jail.

It's really creepy. This is the first person I knew who's gone to jail. Very strange for me. I knew Ish because he was the only one in school who knew more about computers than me, at the time. The subject of this post is the funniest line I ever heard him say...he was talking to some bullies. :-)

This, of course, means I reign supreme!!!!!!

Still, what's he thinkin? Ya know, I won't hold it against him what his crime is. He was just serving some pictures. He was always a weird guy, but he turned out to be a bit sick and a perv. Hopefully, he didn't commit any other related crimes.

What's he still doing in Yonkers anyway? :-)

Sorry, Ish, you never were able to figure out why my King's Quest II disks had a CRC error. Apparently, you're a 29-year old living in an 11-year old body.

Note to self: Delete all my kiddie porn.

Stars Wars: Episode III - 5 Blancos!

Star Wars Gangsta Rap - MUST WATCH!

The Yog and I just got back from watching the final Star Wars installment. It was great! Very enjoyable and it felt so good to see all the questions answered.

Make sure you're ready for the last 45 minutes. It's wicked and wild!

SPOILER: Queen Amidala has twins! Never saw it coming.

I'd recommend it highly...great movie. Probably the most thrilling of all six. Hayden's still a sucky actor though. He will soon be whisked to the dark side of Hollywood.

How can you resist Princess Leia's lone nude scene????

TOO SEXY!

Mideast water shortage could fuel political tensions: experts - Yahoo! News

The Legend of Koo

New York Daily News - John Harper: Mets' praises must be sung

Yesterday, the Mets avenged the earlier loss to the Yankees, with a near shutout win of 7-1. Pay-Rod (AKA Slappy) broke it up with an RBI single with 2 outs in the ninth. Grumble...

Still, a shattering of Randy Johnson was fun to see, as the Mets went ape on em. But, the highlight was a crazy play in the late innings that ESPN Gamecast had described thusly:

Randy Johnson pitches to D. Koo
D. Koo doubled to deep center
J. Reyes sacrifices to catcher, D. Koo scores

WHAT????????

Let's break it down. D. Koo is Dae-Sung Koo, a Korean reliever new to the Mets this year. He's 35. He hasn't swung a bat in 20 years. His first AB a few days ago in Cinci (which is very rare for a reliever, except during garbage time) was a 3-pitch "I ain't going near it" affair.

Now, he steps up against Randy Johnson, one of the most intimidating lefties in decades, lefty-lefty mind you, and takes one swing and knocks it TO THE WALL in Shea Stadium?

WHAAAAA???

As if that weren't enough, the next batter, Jose Reyes, tries to bunt him to third to help get one more insurance runs. (He was also looking for a hit as well.) He bunts, and Posada comes out along the first-base line to field the ball. He throws out Reyes. Unfortunately, no one covered home.

Reminded me of a class highlight about 15 years ago that I have on one of my blooper tapes. :-)

But, D. Koo is a pitcher...still, he takes off! And scores!!!! Amazing.

Based on the above article, theres even more to this unlikely series of events, though. Apparently, Mike Piazza told David Wright when Koo stepped up there that he'd donate a million bucks to charity if he got a hit.

When Bernie Williams had to go retrieve the ball at the base of the centerfield wall, boy I bet his face was red! :-) Hilarious.

Koo got so razzed in the dugout, it was the comedy highlight of the year so far. I don't know what act of God allowed Koo to hit that Randu Johnson-fastball that far, but that's GOTTA be the true God.

So, I'll need to consult with Koo on his religious beliefs. I'll let ya know. :-)

I Wish I Had a Metal Heart

OK, help me here, trying to get back into the blog routine. :-) Vacations have a way of harming your blog schedule, workout schedule, and whatever else you were doing at the time.

I also had a weird dream last night that my mom bought me a plane ticket to come visit NY again this weekend. I woke up from my recently-drove-two-days-straight slumber and asked myself how I could have possibly accepted them seeing how tired I've been the last few days! ;-) Thanks anyway, mom.

Last night I watched (sorta, it was on GameCast) my Mets lose game 1 to the hated Yankees. The pitching sucked (but somehow, Zambrano managed to only give up a few runs, which was a miracle considering he walked 6!), the defense was downright horrid (yes, Matsui again cost us 2), and the offense scuffled -- lacking the big hit and the long ball.

Today is game 2, Benson versus Randy. Should be good. I'm hoping it's on TV, but I doubt it. Probably only tomorrow's game will be on, but at least I'll see Pedro.

Today is a resting day. No plans this weekend. Next weekend we'll start things up again with a BBQ. :-) It's been so hot lately, too, my body has been adjusting to high-80's. Yeeeks.

OK, time to get this party started.

We're Home!

We're back from our 2-week road trip to New York! :-) Tons of driving and frolicking, and lots of activities to mention.

We took 2 days to go each way, which is good time! We stopped short of Chicago on the way there, and then stopped near Indianapolis on the way back.

The trip was great! We saw family, friends, the area where I used to live and how much it's changed, the area where Michele used to live in Kansas City, toured New York City, the Baseball Hall of Fame, went to a game at Shea Stadium, and stopped at Hershey Park along the way home!

In New York City, we went to the Central Park Zoo, Strawberry Fields in Central Park (Yoko Ono dedicated this area to John Lennon after he died), saw the Ed Sullivan Theater where David Letterman hosts his show, stopped in St. Patrick's Cathedral, shopped in FAO Schwarz, toured the Museum of Modern Art, and took an authentic NYC subway home. ;-)

While walking to meet Chris Calabro where he works, we also ran into TONY DANZA! ;-) OK, well, we let him be, but we let him walk right in front of us for a block. Our brush with fame.

Come to think of it, I forgot to let Chris know that we saw him. Hmm. I'll have to let him know next time I email.

But, no amount of words can explain the trip. Here are some nice pictures to enjoy.

Mother Hen

On Sunday, May 8th, the whole family gathered at my sister Susan's house for a family get together. There was baseball, basketball, lots of food and drink, and it was great to have the whole family under one roof. :-)

In the picture, from left to right, is my brother Mike, my sister and hostess Susan, my mom, my sister Pam, and me. :-)

The (Original) Blanco Family

Despite having 4 nephews, here's the original Blanco family. :-) From left to right, it's my sister Susan, my dad, my mom, my brother Mike, me, and then down below, my sister Pam.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

On Tuesday and Wednesday, May 10th and 11th, Michele and I went downtown by train to tour New York City. On Wednesday, we made a stop in St. Patrick's Cathedral. The place is beautiful, and even though neither of us is religious, Michele still lit a candle and said a little prayer for...can ya guess? :-)

Do You Want To Buy a Monkey?

We also stopped by the most famous toy store in all the world, FAO Schwarz! It's amazing in there...the employees don't just play customer support -- they perform! One guy was dressed as a toy soldier, another was a safari explorer. There was even a woman acting as a nurse trying to adopt out babies! :-)

We also saw the famous walking piano from Big, though I'm not sure it was the same one. Looked new. We bought a couple teddy bears to remember the store by. A fun experience. :-)

On the Road Again...

On Friday, May 13th, we enjoyed what I dubbed "Yonkers Day." Michele, Chris, Glenn, and I visited where I used to live and the stomping grounds that Glenn and I enjoyed as kids. (Chris also lives in Yonkers, but is further up the road from where we'd lived, close by each other.) We drove to my old house and then walked almost two miles to Nathan's, the eatery and arcade we went to so often in the past. Then, we went to Andrus Field to hit some softballs around...all before driving up to Cooperstown where we stayed the night before touring the Baseball Hall of Fame the next day.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip. :-)

In Cooperstown, NY

After touring the Hall of Fame, we all stopped for a bite to eat before the long road back. Here's Michele, me, Chris (far right), and Glenn together. (Also, my brother's right arm.)

At the Baseball Hall of Fame

On Saturday, May 14th, eight of us went up to Cooperstown, NY, to see the Baseball Hall of Fame. It was incredible, of the whole group only Chris has been there before (5 years ago), and all us hardcore fans were treated to something that was so close to where we lived, but we'd never seen!

Up for the trip was me, Michele, Chris, Glenn, my sister Pam, my brother Mike, my dad, and my brother-in-law Al.

Here we are in front of some statues, doing the poses. (OK, ya had to be there) In the picture, from left to right, is my brother-in-law Al (face obscured), my dad, my brother Mike, and me.

At Shea Stadium

On Sunday, May 15th, six of us went up to Shea Stadium to watch our Mets take on the St. Louis Cardinals! Here are the Met fans at Shea Stadium. :-) Growing up, I didn't even get to go to many games, even as a lifelong Met fan, because my dad and brother were (dry heave) Yankee fans. This is probably about my fourth Met game ever. Amazing.

In the picture, from left to right, is me, my mom, Michele, and Pam's squeeze Chrissie. Unfortunately, the Mets lost this game 4-2 to the Cards, but we still had a ball! Also with us were Pam and my friend Chris, but they weren't properly attired to be in this picture (yep, they's was Yankee fans!)

At Hershey Park, Pennsylvania

Chocolate Avenue?! It can only be in one place: Hershey Park, PA! Here I am leaving the Chocolate Tour and waving goodbye to my new friends.

We stopped by the park on the way home from NY on Monday, May 16th.

Back to the Nest

The trip is over...except for the last part...the drive home. :-/ We're 2 days away from our return to Colorado. Tomorrow morning we depart bright and early, and make our way home with a stop in Hershey Park, Pennsylvania. :-)

Mmmm...Hershey Land!

Great fun had by all this week! Had to say goodbye to everyone. Very sad. :-( TONS of pictures. Oh, man!

See you soon!

Broken Promise!

Well, I certainly didn't blog much much from New York, but here I am...in New York! :-)

We've been here 5+ days now. The trip here went well, we ran into some construction in PA, but otherwise all was smooth. We stopped just short of Chicago on our first day. The second day, we drove from 6 AM (adjusted for time zone) until we got here at about 10 PM! LONG DAY!

The first weekend, we relaxed with the family, including a great dinner at Susan's place, with fun and games ensuing. Monday was the day we met up with Glenn, which included a tour of the area of Yonkers that we lived. It's so updated!!! YIKES!

Tuesday was NYC Day #1. We went downtown by train and toured the Central Park Zoo. That was a whoot, with lots of great pictures, including one of an up close and personal polar bear. :-)

Wednesday was NYC Day #2. That was an all-day affair! We went to MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) and saw Picasso's and Van Gogh's, including some very famous works! (Pictures to come when we get home.) I even got to see one of my favorites, Jackson Pollack. Then, we saw the Ed Sullivan Theater (where Letterman does his show now), Michele lit a candle in St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Mets Superstore on 57th, Trump Tower, FAO Schwarz where we bought ourselves authentic teddy bears (some with hoodies), and rested in Strawberry Fields, Central Park! Oh, and...

WE SAW TONY DANZA! ;-)

We were walking south on Columbus Ave., at about 61st, when we were behind these three slow guys. I'd had enough, so I started to walk around them and Michele pinched and pulled on my shirt.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Don't you see who that is?" she came back.

"No," I assured her.

"It's that actor. Uhhh, Tony...uhhh..." she was gathering.

So I look, and he looks to the side and yeah, Tony Danza! Weird! I don't even like the guy, but it was cool that we ran into THE housekeeper of the 80's! ;-)

Then, at 5, we met Chris Calabro at his building (he works downtown) and, after much squeezing, we took the subway out of the city and to his car where we then went back to his place to see the family and then to Green Apples Eatery for dinner. Afterwards, we came back here and he got to see my parents and Pam and Chrissie and we all had fun together (apart). :-)

It's now Thursday, and today is MikeBoy day! We're going to my brother's house for the day, and will be back tonight to store up for Yonkers/Cooperstown day tomorrow, but I'll leave those details for another blog. The dryer is almost done and then we need to book it!

So far, having a blast, and we have a billion pictures (thank god for that 128 MB flash I picked up) to share, but of course only a few will reach this blog.

But...no pictures of Tony Danza.

Back in the New York Groove

T minus 8 hours til we're off to New York! Holy cow! Can't wait to get there! I'll blog this weekend and tell you (me) how the trip went!

We. Must. Get. There. In. Two. Days!

One More Day!

Ahhhh, one more day at work and then it's NY Road Trippin' time! Can't wait! I'll be sure to blog as much as I can while I'm there, as it will be fun to record my trip as it happens. :-)

Welp, I've gotten pretty far in my mysterious Java book. When I get back from my trip, I'll have a bit more to go, but hope to start on my game soon after!! Once I get into the coding, it will be a fun ride!

My UML studying is going well at work. I found a good tool for it, JUDE, and am actively getting experience with it as I do some modeling of older components in our architecture.

I've also decided that bringing the treadmilll into the house was one of the best ideas I -- ah, well, Yogi -- has ever had. :-) It's so much easier to just go downstairs, pop in a CD, and exercise, than it is to drive to Bally's and back. In the roundtrip it takes to get there, I can do at least 20 minutes of exercise. Much better! And less driving, as I do enough of it each day to get to work. :-)

Time to hop into bed, but I'll leave you with a picture of the book I've been reading and highly recommend! (Admittedly, there's lots of beeeeg werds in it that r harde to understind but iam luurning.)

Secret Message To My Gay Lobby Friends

CBS News | Alabama Bill Targets Gay Authors | April 28, 2005 19:30:27

Shhh...be very quiet. My gay blog readers...the plan is ready to go. We meet where the ducks quack and the eagle soars lightly above the loafers.

We shall tie up all the straight people and expose them to our sodomistic lifestyle. We will expose the men to 96 consecutive hours of Richard Simmons' aerobics videos and the women shall be forced to watch "that classic scene" in Mulholland Drive.

But...SHHHHHHHH...don't let anyone know.

Once phase 1 is complete...shhhhh...we will single out the authors and force them to make their book's characters gay. We will find the animators and make them add gay characters like Tinky Winky and Sponge Bob to their shows.

We'll also paint everyone's car neon pink and add rainbow antenna shwag.

The world will be ours in its gay glory! Push the agenda...

Dropping Like Flies!

It's a week of losses. :-)

First off, the New Jersey Nets were just swept out of the playoffs. Four in a row to Miami. They came very close in Game 3, but the other three games were big losses.

Reggie Jefferson played very well in his valiant return from 4 months of inactivity due to injury. I'm optimistic for next year with Kidd/Carter/Jefferson...a fun show. I'd like to see a big man and a 3-point specialist added to the team.

Also, the New York Mets have now lost 4 in a row. They need to get a win tonight, with Pedro tomorrow. They haven't fone much scoring lately. :-(

Then today, Game 2 of the Inonime Role Playing. Ramon and Kimmie were no-shows as they were sick, and then to top it off Michele was feeling queazy all day! She's been undertaking a 2-month vitamin regimin, and her stomach is in knots today. She felt a little better towards the end...but essentially three people were knocked out of the game. Eeps!

Also dropping like flies is the snow. It's snowing, like, every day! I really want to mow the lawn before we leave on Thursday! (I preferred to mow today so I can leave the clippings in the trash, but no chance) Scary.

So, tomorrow is work...these three days should be hella boring. Not much going on, and I have no active work right now. I've been back on the UML bandwagon, trying to nail it down as I'm sure it will benefit me to do so for my new team, Base. If I can't help out much now, at least I can be a better asset for when I get back from NY.

Tonight is the Family Guy debut! First new episode in three years! Can't wait!!!!! Be there, 8 PM MDT, on Fox!