Unfortunately, Kellie Pickler was just voted off "American Idol." Kellie was my favorite contestant (possibly tied with Taylor Hicks), and it is completely unjust that she went home this week. Kellie's performance of "Unchained Melody" yesterday was not my favorite of hers, but it was the second best performance of the night, after Taylor's. In my opinion, it is almost always better to sing a good song badly than to sing a bad song well, unless the singing on the good song is really, really bad. Kellie's singing was not really bad, just fair, and she picked by far the best song of any of the contestants. Taylor picked a decent, but not great, song and sang it well. Paris picked a song with good lyrics, but an extremely boring melody, and Elliott picked a very boring song and sang it boringly. Katharine picked a boring song and sang it boringly also; I have never really liked her, and I especially disliked her dress yesterday. Finally, Chris sang well but picked a terrible song that I really, reallly hate.
It's depressing that my two favorite candidates have been voted off, but from now on, until further notice, I will be rooting for Taylor.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
An anti-marriage rant
Today is a sad day in history: on this date in 2000, Governor Howard Dean of Vermont signed a bill legalizing civil unions for gay couples. Vermont gets the disgraceful distinction of being the first state in the U.S.A. to institute legal recognition of gay couples. I oppose gay marriage and civil unions (which are the same thing as marriage) because it is far more honorable to live one's life independently and celibately than to devote one's life to someone else and lose one's innocence. Marriage is an immoral institution that should be abolished. The fewer marriages allowed, the closer marriage is to being abolished!
On a somewhat similar topic, Robert Travaglini, the president of the Massachusetts State Senate, has proposed that, instead of cutting the income tax to 5% for everyone in the state, only people who care for children or elderly relatives should get a tax break! This is a terrible, unjust idea. Having a baby is immoral, and, no offense to the people who are taking care of elderly relatives, it makes no sense to reward the most immoral people in the state with tax breaks while punishing maidens and bachelors who might actually be living morally.
On a somewhat similar topic, Robert Travaglini, the president of the Massachusetts State Senate, has proposed that, instead of cutting the income tax to 5% for everyone in the state, only people who care for children or elderly relatives should get a tax break! This is a terrible, unjust idea. Having a baby is immoral, and, no offense to the people who are taking care of elderly relatives, it makes no sense to reward the most immoral people in the state with tax breaks while punishing maidens and bachelors who might actually be living morally.
Sunday, April 23, 2006
New Orleans election
After yesterday's mayoral election in New Orleans, the two top vote-getters were Ray Nagin, who is the incumbent mayor, and Mitch Landrieu, the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana. There will be a runoff election between these two candidates on May 20. I support Landrieu for the position of mayor of New Orleans. Although both candidates are Democrats, I don't know much about Landrieu, while I dislike Nagin because of his comments that New Orleans should remain a "chocolate city." I hate reverse racism -- this is America, not Africa!
As an aside, happy birthday (or not so happy, depending on your opinion of these individuals) to Timothy McVeigh, Michael Moore, James Buchanan, and William Shakespeare, all four of whom were born on this date.
As an aside, happy birthday (or not so happy, depending on your opinion of these individuals) to Timothy McVeigh, Michael Moore, James Buchanan, and William Shakespeare, all four of whom were born on this date.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Ace and Adolf
As most of America knows, Ace Young was voted off "American Idol" last night. Although I wasn't extremely disappointed, I think that Elliott, Paris, and Katharine should have gone home before Ace. At this point, Taylor might be my favorite, with Kellie a close second. In my opinion, Wednesday's show was pretty dull, partly because Bucky wasn't there and partly because I didn't like the genre of songs. Taylor's performance was the only one that I actually liked.
On a completely different topic, today is a momentous day in history, as it is Adolf Hitler's birthday. Although extremely unpopular, Hitler is undoubtedly one of the most important people who ever lived. He is either number one or number two on my list of the most important people of all time, with Jesus possibly beating him. A remarkable (although not necessarily good) fact that I calculated is that Hitler killed over one percent of Earth's population at the time! It is astounding that one individual could be responsible for as much death and destruction as Hitler was, and quite amazing that in an age when most people wanted to outlaw war and work for world peace, Hitler was able to create a Reich larger than any other empire in history besides that of Genghis Khan.
Also today in history was the Columbine High School massacre, in which students Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris killed twelve fellow students, a teacher, and themselves. Klebold and Harris, who were fascinated by Hitler, were originally planning to carry out their attack yesterday on the anniversary of the Oklahoma bombing and the battles of Lexington and Concord, but they changed their minds and decided to stage the massacre on Hitler's birthday instead.
Following are some fascinating links related to Hitler and Columbine:
http://www.columbine.free2host.net -- a thorough Columbine site
http://www.therebeldomain.com -- this site presents unusual opinions about Columbine, which most people do not agree with!
http://thirdreichpages.com -- an informative, interesting site about Hitler, his henchmen, and his empire
http://hitler.org -- the web site of a museum about Hitler
http://www.adolfhitler.ws -- the most thorough Hitler site I've seen
http://historyplace.com -- scroll down to the bottom for excellent Hitler and World War II information
On a completely different topic, today is a momentous day in history, as it is Adolf Hitler's birthday. Although extremely unpopular, Hitler is undoubtedly one of the most important people who ever lived. He is either number one or number two on my list of the most important people of all time, with Jesus possibly beating him. A remarkable (although not necessarily good) fact that I calculated is that Hitler killed over one percent of Earth's population at the time! It is astounding that one individual could be responsible for as much death and destruction as Hitler was, and quite amazing that in an age when most people wanted to outlaw war and work for world peace, Hitler was able to create a Reich larger than any other empire in history besides that of Genghis Khan.
Also today in history was the Columbine High School massacre, in which students Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris killed twelve fellow students, a teacher, and themselves. Klebold and Harris, who were fascinated by Hitler, were originally planning to carry out their attack yesterday on the anniversary of the Oklahoma bombing and the battles of Lexington and Concord, but they changed their minds and decided to stage the massacre on Hitler's birthday instead.
Following are some fascinating links related to Hitler and Columbine:
http://www.columbine.free2host.net -- a thorough Columbine site
http://www.therebeldomain.com -- this site presents unusual opinions about Columbine, which most people do not agree with!
http://thirdreichpages.com -- an informative, interesting site about Hitler, his henchmen, and his empire
http://hitler.org -- the web site of a museum about Hitler
http://www.adolfhitler.ws -- the most thorough Hitler site I've seen
http://historyplace.com -- scroll down to the bottom for excellent Hitler and World War II information
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Busy day in history
I have nothing to rant about today, just an update on the historical significance of April 19th. Today and tomorrow are extremely eventful days in history, especially when it comes to infamous events. On this date in 1995, Timothy McVeigh exploded a truck bomb near the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on Oklahoma City, killing 168 people and injuring hundreds of others. In 1993 on the same date, federal agents killed 74 Branch Davidians in a standoff at Waco, Texas. It is likely that McVeigh , who was infuriated at the federal government's actions in the Waco standoff, chose April 19th because it was the anniversary of Waco. He may also have liked this date because it's the day before the birthday of Adolf Hitler, whom McVeigh admired to some extent.
Arguably the most important historical events that occurred toady were the battles of Lexington and Concord, which marked the beginning of the Revolutionary War. At dawn on April 19, 1776, having heard from Paul Revere and William Dawes that the British were planning to seize their weapons and ammunition, 70 minutemen gathered on Lexington Green exchanged fire with the redcoats. Eight colonists were killed, and the British decided to head to Concord to seize the weapons depot there. Along the way, colonists fired on the redcoats at the North Bridge in Concord, forcing them to retreat to Boston. Now that I think of it, Lexington and Concord probably contributed to McVeigh's decision to choose April 19th, since he wanted to start a revolution against the U.S. government, which he considered oppressive, just like the rebellious colonists viewed King George III.
For more information on the Revolutionary War, go to one of these sites:
The History Place -- one of the best web sites of all time.
http://www.americanrevolution.com -- a great site all about our war for independence
Or for more about McVeigh and the Oklahoma Bombing, go to Court TV or CNN.
Arguably the most important historical events that occurred toady were the battles of Lexington and Concord, which marked the beginning of the Revolutionary War. At dawn on April 19, 1776, having heard from Paul Revere and William Dawes that the British were planning to seize their weapons and ammunition, 70 minutemen gathered on Lexington Green exchanged fire with the redcoats. Eight colonists were killed, and the British decided to head to Concord to seize the weapons depot there. Along the way, colonists fired on the redcoats at the North Bridge in Concord, forcing them to retreat to Boston. Now that I think of it, Lexington and Concord probably contributed to McVeigh's decision to choose April 19th, since he wanted to start a revolution against the U.S. government, which he considered oppressive, just like the rebellious colonists viewed King George III.
For more information on the Revolutionary War, go to one of these sites:
The History Place -- one of the best web sites of all time.
http://www.americanrevolution.com -- a great site all about our war for independence
Or for more about McVeigh and the Oklahoma Bombing, go to Court TV or CNN.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Farewell Bucky and Abe
This post is somewhat late, but I would like to mourn the departure of Bucky Covington, my favorite
contestant on "American Idol." Bucky defnitely didn't deserve to go; his performance, in my opinion, was one of the best. I like Bucky because of his country singing and because he has kept his own unique style each week. Now that Bucky is gone, my favorite contestants are Kellie, Taylor, and Chris.
On an entirely different topic, today is the 140th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's death. President Lincoln died early on the morning of April 15, 1865 after being shot in the head by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theater. Hopefully today all Americans will think for a moment about the glorious 16th president.
contestant on "American Idol." Bucky defnitely didn't deserve to go; his performance, in my opinion, was one of the best. I like Bucky because of his country singing and because he has kept his own unique style each week. Now that Bucky is gone, my favorite contestants are Kellie, Taylor, and Chris.On an entirely different topic, today is the 140th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's death. President Lincoln died early on the morning of April 15, 1865 after being shot in the head by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theater. Hopefully today all Americans will think for a moment about the glorious 16th president.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Neil is arraigned again
Fear not, I had no intention to neglect what I consider to be today's most important news story: that of Neil Entwistle, who was arraigned today in Middlesex Superior Court at 9:00 A.M. Of course, this is his second arraignment, moving his case from district court to superior court. Entwistle wore a dark gray suit and a pink tie and had longer, neatly combed hair. Although it is typical for defendants to enter their own pleas in superior court, Neil had his lawyer, Elliot Weinstein, enter a not guilty plea for him. Neil seems to be a shy, quiet individual, as he has not yet spoken in public. His calm demeanor, punctuated by occasional smirks and sneers, reminds me of Scott Peterson.
My theory on the Entwistle case is that Neil hated being married, hated his wife and baby, and panicked because of his desperate financial situation and the social pressure to seem like a successful family man. These factors, in addition to his homesickness for England, caused him to plan and carry out the murders. I think that Neil was so depressed that he intended to commit suicide, a theory that explains that somewhat sloppy cover-up of the killings. I will post again if my theory changes.
Watch for the next court hearing on May 23. Also, if all goes according to plan, the trial will begin in April of 2007.
Links:
http://news.bostonherald.com/entwistleMurders/ -- the Herald's archive of Entwistle stories
http://www.townonline.com/blogs/yourTownTonight/ -- Joe Dwinell's Entwistle blog
My theory on the Entwistle case is that Neil hated being married, hated his wife and baby, and panicked because of his desperate financial situation and the social pressure to seem like a successful family man. These factors, in addition to his homesickness for England, caused him to plan and carry out the murders. I think that Neil was so depressed that he intended to commit suicide, a theory that explains that somewhat sloppy cover-up of the killings. I will post again if my theory changes.
Watch for the next court hearing on May 23. Also, if all goes according to plan, the trial will begin in April of 2007.
Links:
http://news.bostonherald.com/entwistleMurders/ -- the Herald's archive of Entwistle stories
http://www.townonline.com/blogs/yourTownTonight/ -- Joe Dwinell's Entwistle blog
Lies at Duke
The episode of "Larry King Live" that is airing at this moment has prompted me to write this brief editorial. Mark Geragos, who is, in my opinion, probably the best lawyer in the world, is on the show to discuss the allegations of rape against members of the Duke lacrosse team. I fully agree with Mark's point, namely that the accusations are false. No DNA evidence linked any members of the team to the woman in question, who happens to be a stripper. I don't want to jump to any conclusions, but I think this woman's occupation probably says a great deal about her moral caliber. I will post again on this topic if I change my opinion; I have another important topic that I have not yet reported on.
Edit: I just heard on the show that the accuser is a mother of two. Considering the woman's likely young age and the fact that no husband has been mentioned, this revelation says even more about her moral caliber.
Edit: I just heard on the show that the accuser is a mother of two. Considering the woman's likely young age and the fact that no husband has been mentioned, this revelation says even more about her moral caliber.
Big news day
What a big day it's been in the news! I have neglected to update my blog for over a week, and today's events especially merit an update.
First of all, the Red Sox won their home opener 5 to 3 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Although I miss Arroyo, Damon, Bellhorn, Millar, Mueller, and the rest, I must admit the team seems great, especially Papelbon and Schilling! With today's win the Sox have improved their record to 6 out of 7.
In (sort of) more serious news, shoe bomber Richard Reid will be testifying in the penalty phase of Zacharias Moussaoui's trial. I don't know if he'll be testifying for or against Moussaoui, but I'm guessing against. Wouldn't it be funny if he testified in Moussaoui's favor about how good a friend and fellow terrorist Moussaoui was?
Another monumental event of today was Iran's announcement that it has produced uranium of high enough quality to make nuclear weapons. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed that he will only use the uranium for peaceful means, but I don't think I believe him!
Finally, I realize that I failed to comment on last week's "American Idol" results. I was not extremely disappointed with Mandisa's ouster. I didn't consider her one of the best or one of the worst, but my respect for her increased when I learned that, being a woman of strong religious convictions, she would be unwilling to perform at any event that benefited gay rights. I just finished watching tonight's "Idol," and I think I liked Kellie's performance the best. However, Bucky, Ace, and Taylor were close behind.
First of all, the Red Sox won their home opener 5 to 3 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Although I miss Arroyo, Damon, Bellhorn, Millar, Mueller, and the rest, I must admit the team seems great, especially Papelbon and Schilling! With today's win the Sox have improved their record to 6 out of 7.
In (sort of) more serious news, shoe bomber Richard Reid will be testifying in the penalty phase of Zacharias Moussaoui's trial. I don't know if he'll be testifying for or against Moussaoui, but I'm guessing against. Wouldn't it be funny if he testified in Moussaoui's favor about how good a friend and fellow terrorist Moussaoui was?
Another monumental event of today was Iran's announcement that it has produced uranium of high enough quality to make nuclear weapons. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed that he will only use the uranium for peaceful means, but I don't think I believe him!
Finally, I realize that I failed to comment on last week's "American Idol" results. I was not extremely disappointed with Mandisa's ouster. I didn't consider her one of the best or one of the worst, but my respect for her increased when I learned that, being a woman of strong religious convictions, she would be unwilling to perform at any event that benefited gay rights. I just finished watching tonight's "Idol," and I think I liked Kellie's performance the best. However, Bucky, Ace, and Taylor were close behind.
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