Article 6
Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
(…) Article 22
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.
(…) Article 23
1. Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
2. Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
3. Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.”
I think there is a war going on, right? We have troops fighting in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Gas prices are at the highest we have seen in years – if ever. The credit and mortgage industries are in a tailspin and the economy is looking bleak. Oh, and don’t forget that there are natural disasters all over the world and even our own Gulf Coast and New Orleans still need a lot of help. So what does Senator Arlen Specter believe we should be spending time and money on? The NFL.
Yup, Arlen Specter, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee wants NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to explain why the league destroyed evidence related to spying by the New England Patriots. With everything else going on in this country and in the world, who the hell cares if one football team spies on another? Why should we be spending a dime of our taxes for a U.S. senator and / or senate committee to look at this? What a freaking waste.
Now I am not saying that people who do wrong should get away with it, but lets have some semblance of sense about this. Football is a game. A serious game for many, but a game. The NFL has a ruling body to oversee what goes on. That should be about it. The baseball steroid abuse investigations are hard enough for me to take, but at least we are talking about drugs and people’s health. Here we are talking about a glorified Peeping Tom recording the signals of another team to help give them an advantage on the field. Big whoop.
This really just goes to show you why we are paying so much in taxes, why nothing real is being done with that tax money, and why we really need a change in government. Can we return our politicians and get our money back? I want a refund.
I was cruising around the internet this evening and came across a very cool video. Take a look below and let me know what you think. Although still not perfect, I think it does a pretty good job of talking about Unitarian Universalism. My only problem is that it still tends to defines Unitarian Universalists by what we are not, instead of by what we are. Good stuff though – and thought provoking. While you are at it, check out UUPlanet.TV. It is an interesting site with lots of UU videos. If you are up to it, check out the very odd and over the top Alien Wisdom.
Just a quick note for anyone who is a Nine Inch Nails fan. NIN are giving away their new album, The Slip (Halo 27), totally free. According to their website, it is Trent Reznor and the group’s way of saying thank you to the fans for their continued support.
The album is available for download at http://theslip.nin.com in a variety of formats including high-quality MP3, FLAC or M4A lossless at CD quality and even higher-than-CD quality 24/96 WAVE. Submit your email address at the Nine Inch Nails site and you will receive an email that contains a link to the downloadable album. Your link will include all download options – all free. All downloads also include a PDF of the album artwork and credits.
I have only listened to The Slip once so far, but I enjoyed it a lot. It is not as hard as Nine Inch Nail’s early albums, but is more “song oriented” and accessible than than Ghosts I-IV which was also available for download though at a cost. The Slip runs about 45 minutes long and is a must for any NIN fan, even the most remote. Once again, Trent Reznor comes through.
OK, maybe not mindless, but at least very, very calm. Ever since I started taking the Lexapro that my doctor prescribed for me I have been a much different person. At least that is what my family is saying. Word is that I have been much calmer, slower to anger, and less reclusive. But, there is a downside to that. The thing that I have noticed is that while I may not be as anxious or quick to get upset over small things, I have also lost some of my drive.
A year or two ago, at the urging of my family, my doctor tried to put me on an anti-anxiety medication – I don’t remember if it was Lexapro or some other. I didn’t stay on it very long for the reason that I lost almost all my urges to do anything. And I am not just talking about sex here, I am talking about the desire to write, to read, to play, to do most anything. I felt like a jellyfish.
Now this time it doesn’t feel so bad. Yes, I have seen a dramatic decrease in my drive. But I have also seen an increase in my attention span and my consideration. I am just simply not a frantic, angry person. Of course having a different blood pressure medication is also helping. My goal right now though is to get some of my motivation back. I need to be able to lose the anxiety and stress without forgoing the drive and detirmination. So I am trying to write down more goals, use my friends and family as reminders of those goals, and basically just get my self back into it.
Tell you what though, I really am seeing things more clearly now. I am a bit ashamed that it took medication to remove some of the clouding from my eyes, but at least it was removed. And I am a much happier person for it!
The album is available for download at 
A year or two ago, at the urging of my family, my doctor tried to put me on an anti-anxiety medication – I don’t remember if it was 
