Microsoft is Greedy

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/12/29/microsoft.metered.computing/index.html

I swear to god, I'll buy a Mac if Microsoft puts this into action.

In Defense of Affirmative Action

Affirmative Action has received a lot of negative attention, being described as reverse racism at times. This is because the perception that because it uses race as a factor in hiring decisions or acceptance to colleges and universities. If man is supposed to be equal, then how can we allow race to be used as a factor in such things?

Although I do believe all men are created equal, we cannot lie to ourselves and say that our current educational system is even close to equal. Because of this, groups in our society are underrepresented in colleges and universities. Minority scholarships and affirmative action programs in colleges were instituted so that members of these underrepresented groups will find higher education more attractive. It is not a goal to make race a factor, but make it so that race will one day not be a factor. When all races are represented in higher educational institutions, then we can gradually phase out affirmative action policies, and I proudly look forward to the day that affirmative action is no longer needed. But in the present, it is still needed.

Ignorance

We've all heard the trite saying, ignorance is bliss, and it would seem that this is true. People prefer not to know certain things, out of a desire to keep the status quo. This is disappointing but it happens. Although I have a problem with this, my biggest problem is with those who actively shun other opinions, simply to avoid being wrong, or having their mind changed, or when people faced with an argument, simply ignore that the argument was ever presented and go on living their lives as if that logic entered their minds.

I believe it comes completely out fear. For some strange reason, we fear our minds being changed. This is why conversions, or even "de-conversions", are so scary for us. We are comfortable in our current state, why leave it?

But at some point we are going to have to leave that state. Our ideas are going to be challenged; our opinions tested. To continue in ignorance, to decide that our comfortable state is more important than living with reason and knowledge, is to accept that lies are a better form of living than anything close to the truth.

David Paterson

So, after searching very, very hard on the internet and not finding anything, I decided to hack David Paterson's email. If you are not aware, David Paterson is the New York governor and is also legally blind. SNL recently made an "offensive" skit involving him, making fun of his blindness. Now I present you David Paterson's email response to NBC and SNL.

Dear NBC and writers for Saturday Night Live,

I am very offended by your recent skit involving me. I have not seen it personally, but I have heard the details of it and I am not amused. By casting me as a bumbling oaf, you have given America simply another stereotype about the blind. Yes, it's true, I have bumped into my share of things, but I'm sure you have too. I was informed that your skit involved me holding a graph upside-down but that would never happen. I always have somebody else hold my graphs for me, make my powerpoint presentations, or anything else visual so that I do not find myself in a similar gaff. If you wanted to have an honest representation of myself, you should have had that shrill harpy of a Weekend Update co-anchor help me with my presentation. Also, whenever I am on TV, or at least when I'm told I'm on TV, I do not move. This helps me avoid moving into the way of the camera. So the physical comedy that you made at my expense would have been moot.

Now, I am not opposed to comedy. Just not ocmedy about myself. I would not be adverse to skits involving myself, just please don't make fun of my disability. I have some pretty interesting skit ideas that could use my blindness in funny, but not offensive ways. One skit could involve me meeting Eliot Spitzer's hooker and not realizing that she isn't his wife, because I'm blind! Funny, huh? Or, I could walk into the governor's office and start talking to Spitzer while he is attempting to become intimate with his hooker but I don't realize it because I'm blind!

See, public figures can be used for comedy without being mocked, humiliated, or ridiculed. I would like to continue hearing about your hilarious sketches from friends, but not if it continues to offend myself or other disabled people.

Thank you,
David Patterson

Dictated to Ashley Alexandra Dupré or Kristen

And It's Official!

TV on the Radio's Dear Science

Best Album of the Year!!!

at least according to the AV Club (first among many)

http://www.avclub.com/content/feature/the_best_music_of_2008/4

Movies are only interesting when you're watching and discussing them, not when you have to write large papers over them. I've had just about enough of this, and I've barely done any work. I still have a couple hours to get this mess done though. And a couple days after that...haha.

But anyways, I'd much much much rather be watching Last Life in the Universe, 2046, and Oldboy than writing this stupid paper. Every time I heard "The Christmas Song" I think of 2046 and then I think of the Slate article that named it one of the best "Alternative Christmas" movies. It is quite enjoyable. Oh twell, I always have Christmas break.

I might snow here in Waco tonight. If it does, I'll be quite the happy little camper. I will also be freezing my bum off outside, but it's all good.

But it's now time to get back to my essay. Au revior!

1st Dead Day

Not happy at all. Didn't get to sleep until 5. Woke up at 9:45. Still have studying and writing to do.

But in other news, I would like to answer Hey Rapture's question of what I want to do before I turn 20. I would like to write something thoughtful, meaningful, intelligent, and provocative before I turn 20. Not a story, or a screenplay, or anything monumental. Even just an philosophical or political essay would be fine. I have ideas mulling around in my head, so one day...before I'm 20.

OJ Simpson

So, OJ Simpson was sentenced to "at least 15 years" today. An interesting ending to a chapter in American pop culture that started in a White Bronco 14 years ago. Admittedly though, I almost wanted to see him go free and just prove that no law can hold OJ Simpson. But unfortunately, Johnny Cochran was not here to defend Mr. Simpson.

But my question is, "How will the prison population react to having him in their midst." I ask this because there's a lot of people who believe that Mr. Simpson was guilty and unjustly got off for murder 13 years ago. Are those people in prison? Do they care that the justice system has finally caught up with Mr. Simpson?

Mr. Simpson is eligible for parole in 9 years. Will he make it to his parole hearing?

Beats: and the Filthy Biters Who Jack Them

I would like to discuss beat theft today.

Please excuse all the videos. I didn't know any other way to demonstrate my point...

There is an interesting paradox within Hip Hop that goes undiscussed. This paradox is a difference between sampling and stealing. At the heart of Hip Hop, you find that many songs in the genre are made from parts of other songs. This is very prevalent. But this I would not consider theft. It is not theft because it does not claim to have created the song it is sampling, instead just using it in the creation of another work of music. This is similar to citing a source in a paper. But, also within Hip Hop is the idea of "beat theft." This would in fact be considered theft. Why? Because the producer is trying to pass off another person's work as their own. I will cite DJ Khaled's song "Holla at Me" as a wholesale theft of Afrika Bambaata's song "Looking for the Perfect Beat." Why is this theft? Because although the song is fairly well known to die-hard Hip Hop fans, the average fan, whom DJ Khaled is targeting, does not know this song ever existed, and Khaled is attempting to pass off the spectacular beat as his own.

Now, beat theft does not intrinsicly occur when the same sample is used. I present MF Doom's "Anti-Matter" and Nas' "You Can't Stop Us Now" as evidence.




Although these two songs share the same sample, even the sound of the sample is different. Nas' is clearer, as if a band came in a redid the song. MF Doom's has that slight crackle to tell you it was taken straight from the record.

I know present the reason I bring this to your attention today.





These two songs take from the same source: Na Boca Do Sol by Arthur Verocai



Note that the two parts of both samples are not close to each other. One sample occurs at the very beginning and the other at the end of the verse/chorus(?). This adds to the idea that 9th Wonder (the "producer" of the second song) stole the beat from MF Doom, first beat. Also, the only thing that actually seperates the two beats from each other is bars. MF Doom's beat allows each part to go on for 4 bars, while the 9th Wonder beat goes for 2 each.

Point is, quit jacking beats!

Yay!

It's Tuesday again, my busiest day of the week, and I'm not doing any homework. Nothing new though, right? Currently listening to Boys Night Out's Trainwreck. It's pretty nice. It's a concept album and the such and I would recommend it to anyone. I'm planning on obtaining a couple new CDs soon. Ludacris' new album, Kanye West's new album, and something else I can't remember. But anyways...

On my agenda for the near future is developing an argument for the need of a secular political outlook. That has been my new mental obsession lately. I was thinking about Christianity and Capitalism, and it led to the idea of applying secularism to politics if one decides to cherry-pick the Bible for political positions. I might write a whole thing on it; it greatly interests me.

Anyways, I have about 40 minutes before I meet up with my new organization Coalition for Diversity. I'm wondering what it's going to be like... The President of Baylor Dems wanted me to join, and prefaced it with "I know you wanted to have a leadership position..." so I'm not sure what to expect.

Another thing is the Clinton Global Initiative Conference at UT Austin in February! I'm going to be applying to get into that. Not actually sure what it entails, but from what I've seen it looks like it is going to be a conference for fellow left-wingers to discuss policy and ideology for three days. What's better?

I leave with the recommendation that everyone read The Rebel by Albert Camus.

Also, The Christian vs. Atheist war on youtube scares me. Both sides are crazy.