Yes, indeed
yes, the digital revolution has tightly clenched us all, and if one is old
enough to have experienced the benefit of accumulating an old-fashioned
education, all the better. However, for
the younger folk who know only a computerized existence, a life of fantasy and
un-reality may not serve them well, should the day come when the digital world
is momentarily, temporarily or permanently obliterated by way of some
unmitigated disaster.
As perhaps one
of only a dozen or so bloggers around the globe who doesn't blog whilst
sitting around the house in my underwear, I must admit to some hypocrisy, for
here I am, taking full advantage of the digital world, spewing out my literary
poison with the kind and determined assistance of Pac-Man's offspring
(to me, everything digital is Pac-Man; it just seems so right). Yet, if I had to -- as I did for most of my
writing life -- turn out the printed word in real ink on a vintage manual
typewriter or the far more advanced IBM Selectric III typewriter, I
could make the change in an instant.
Sans the archaic typewriter era, however, I could take a pen and write
coherently with a pen in block letters -- or I could use the cursive
technique, currently the bane of alphabet lessons in elementary schools, where
cursive is assumed to have had its day and should no longer be taught. Just perfect, a recipe for disaster. Anyway -- so there, I have all these options
if computer technology disappears tomorrow.
Can school kids make the same claim?
Of course not. It's the digital
keyboard, pad or nothing. Eventually,
voice-operated functions will become the norm, but we're still talking digital,
and what the computer gives the computer can take away, particularly when the
computer itself is swept out of existence through a series of unfortunate
events.
The Internal
Revenue Service: I once had an opportunity to work for the IRS
in an entry level position, but declined.
That was long ago, when the IRS was reasonably honorable and not taken
over by political thugs determined to destroy presumed enemies. Better luck next election. . .
Eric Holder speaks! He was asked about clemency for Edward Snowden. I didn't really care about his response, enveloped as I was with an immediate fantasy scenario where he and Snowden would appear before "Judge Judy," who would find Holder guilty right away for Fast and Furious and sentence him to prison. Snowden, receiving much less lockup time, would spend it with Holder in the same cell. Dreams can make so much more sense than reality.
Antiquities of
Medicine: Ah yes, it seems like only yesterday. .
.when society proclaimed an equal doctor/patient relationship, when patients
and physicians discussed treatment options together and the blood & guts
playing field was fair. Well, forget
that. Now it's the
government/doctor/government/patient/computerized/one-size-fits-all-guidelines
medicine approach. Thanks Obama, thanks
Congress -- and a really big thank you to the pharmaceutical industry,
conspiratorial insurance companies and the lawyers hiding behind every
tree to sue drug company pants off. ALL
of you stand to gain something under Obamacare, though evidence
increasingly suggests that the fruits of this health care "reform"
are turning rotten faster than even its perpetrators believed possible (the
rest of us saw this coming, and it didn't even require brainpower). Single payer socialism, anyone?
But forget the
long-term stuff,
we have the Sochi Olympics to divert us from important stuff, and after that considerable ado about
nothing concludes, and we determine whether the athletes or terrorists will
take home the most awards for outstanding performances, the people can move on
to more pressing matters. . .of sports.
Entertainment vs. education vs. information. Entertainment will win, and as throngs of
fans insist upon the simplicities of team-driven mind candy, thugs of major
political parties continue determining the fate of the masses behind the closed
doors of "open" government.
California's
progressives love illegal immigrants, so will the state be as kind to China,
whose exported air pollution reportedly is responsible for at least 10 percent
of California's own pollution problems?
New York not
only features a new NY City mayor who may as well hang a communist banner
over his office entrance -- now the state's governor has basically declared
there's no room for folks of certain political opinions in NY. Of course, as all good politicians do, Gov.
Andrew Cuomo backtracked and stated his comments were
"distorted." The only person
who could have distorted his words is the governor because his words were
recorded, and no matter how often one listens to his words, it's kinda
difficult to find even a whiff of distorted anything. Meanwhile, overtaxed and excessively
regulated businesses and people continue to abandon NY State in haste, even as
the state government pays for expensive TV advertising around the country,
enticing (read as: begging) companies to set up shop in the state. Yeah, that'll work out great once the
communism and fascism close ranks in ol' corrupt New York.
My favorite
person of Hispanic heritage this week is actress Maria Conchita Alonso,
instantly attacked by San Francisco's Latino "community" for daring
to break from the crowd of hyenas to voice support for a conservative running
for governor. Ms. Alonso, already outspoken
about the dangers of illegal immigration, actually had the nerve to appear
prominently in a campaign ad for assemblyman Tim Donnelly, who seeks the
Republican nomination, as reported by CBS-TV affiliate KPIX.
“Politicians and
big government are killing our prosperity, pushing welfare costs through the
roof and driving our schools into the ground,” Donnelly states in the ad. Standing next to Donnelly, Alonso humorously
adds in Spanish, “We’re screwed.” As one
might expect, the actress currently holds little favor with San Francisco
Hispanics who dismiss or violate immigration laws. Gotta put her on a pedestal for that. Maybe commission a statue of her for public
display in the city.
My least
favorite person of Canadian heritage this week is Justin
Bieber. This guy is a mess. He fought the law and the law won, at
last. I don't care about the DUI charge,
I just want Bieber arrested, tried -- "egged" -- and jailed for his
abuse of music in general, and add an additional charge for his smiling mug
shot. Yeah, I guess rehab would be nice,
now that he's been all screwed up by hanging out with the "thug"
element and trying to become a number of things he can never be. Deportation?
Nah, not unless there's a willing country with an economy dependent upon
prison colonies. Could even the Phantom
of the Opera coach and correct Bieber's rampageous life of melodic crimes? Ladies and gentlemen, may we present for your
listening pleasure cats fighting in a garbage can? Fingernails scraping on a blackboard? The lilt and lively music of Justin Bieber? Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby. .
.arghh! Alcohol and drugs surely are not
the answer for Bieber -- but for those who audibly endure his creations against their will, maybe so.
