Important News About My Birthday

OK, so my birthday is coming this Tuesday.

In previous years, I wouldn't mention it this early, but the advent of Facebook means that I'll soon be inundated with birthday greetings on my wall. Lest I speak over the head of you non-Facebookers who are reading this, a "wall greeting" is a simple instant message you leave on another person's account for all the world to see. These wall messages always increase exponentially around one's birthday, as Facebook lets you know when your friends' birthdays are coming.

The challenge I embrace when leaving a birthday greeting on someone's wall is to flee from the ordinary. If I see it's someone's birthday, I want to let them know that I've actually thought about them and didn't mindlessly drop a simple "Happy Birthday" on their wall. Seriously, what does this prove? I guess it shows that 1) I check my Facebook account too often and 2) I like you enough to click three times and type 13 letters.

I've been thinking about this for awhile now and I don't want your plain old birthday greeting on my birthday. Don't get me wrong: I appreciate that you're thinking about me but I'll be disappointed if you settle for being a lemming.* My birthday wish this year is that you stretch yourself and perhaps improve your Facebook skills in the process.

So the important news about my birthday? For my birthday, you need to give me a haiku.

You know what a haiku is, right? Basically, it's a small poem that does not have to keep meter. The traditional Japanese haiku 5-7-5 layout is syllable-based and has a few other rules. I don't need all those other rules to be followed. Just adapt to the English arrangement which is defined as:

Use of three (or fewer) lines of 17 or fewer syllables

Here are some generic examples I found on the interwebs:

Steady spring rain -- A tree takes shape At dawn

There is a small mouse, He lives in a windy mill, He is so happy.

You see, it's not hard. And you don't need to do it perfectly. Just give it a chance and show us your creativity. Write a little birthday haiku [it doesn't even need to be about me] and post it on my Facebook wall. And you non-Facebookers can participate by leaving a comment here on my blog. At the end of my birthday, I will pick my favorite haiku and give that person my sincere respect and the honor of my Facebook status for the following day.

This might sound like a conceited request, and it might very well be. But if you're really going to take the time to write me a birthday wish, make it original.

That's all I want. Get to work.

________________

*In case you never knew this, the myth that lemmings follow the pack aimlessly off cliffs was concocted by the Walt Disney Company. The documentary crew flung those critters off a cliff to make it look better for TV. Makes what happened to Bambi's mom seem less diabolicle, huh?

Happy Merry Christmas!

[at least that's how Kaelyn would phrase it]

Christ is born, and we're rather happy about it. Even attended a Christmas Eve service last night. I can't remember that last time we merely attended one and didn't have a responsibility to fulfill. Kelly's dad did a great job reading the Christmas story to the kids.

We've spent some wonderful days in Lexington and are headed north to my family in Cincinnati this afternoon.

Good thing I brought the Explorer so we can haul back all of Kaelyn's toys.

Deck Them Halls and All That Stuff

This has been an enjoyable Christmas season as Kaelyn has started to recognize the significance of Christmas. Tonight we reread the Christmas story with her and she's starting to get it. The live nativity scene by Krohn Conservatory in Eden Park has been a good reinforcement.*

Another great part of the season has been the Christmas shows. Of course, Kaelyn loves the Grinch so we've seen that numerous times throughout the month. But she's developed a certain passion for Charlie Brown's Christmas. We DVR'd it early in the season and have been playing it every few days. Until the little girl came along, I never noticed the frequency with which Charles Schultz had the kids use the word "stupid," but Kaelyn has yet to employ it in her vocabulary. She has, however, taken to quoting the lines, "Rats" and "Oh no, I've killed it."**

The best part of the whole is the dance scene during play practice. Kaelyn loves to impersonate all the different dancers. She prefers the side-to-side head bob that the twin girls do. My fave is the boy in the green doing the zombie. I'm sure there's some kind of personality test that tells you all about yourself according to which dance you prefer.

It's funny that with all of the newer animated Christmas specials that our 21st century girl prefers the one made over forty years ago.

___________

*Last night, on the way home from church, we noticed that they had placed a menorah on the other side of Krohn Conservatory. I'm very cool with that, as this is still America and I think everyone should be allowed a place at the table, but I was not impressed with the display. I've seen some beautiful menorahs in my life and this one would not fall into that category. Additionally, I believe Hanukkah started Sunday night and not a candle was lit.

**At first, I had no idea where Kaelyn heard "I killed it." In my demented mind, I honestly thought she might have been watching South Park behind our back, claiming to have killed Kenny. As you know, it is actually what Charlie Brown says when he hangs the ornament on his sickly tree.

Cheese With My Wine

Why take pictures? Because you never know when one will touch a nerve.

An employee with Cincinnati Parks was online a few months ago searching for some wintry pictures of Eden Parks. She found this photo I posted to my Flickr account that I took on a snowy morning two years ago and thought it was ideal. I received an email from her asking if the park board could use the pic for promotions. I told her, as I tell everyone when they ask about where we live, our family absolutely loves the park so she could use it for free as long as I had no objections to what it was being used for.

Sidenote 1: I'm not quite sure what I was imagining when a made this stipulation. It's not like there's an Eden Park p0rn festival out there.

The employee let me know that every year the park board releases some holiday wines from a little winery in Hyde Park. They wanted to use my picture for a label on one of the bottles.

Sidenote 2: I know some teetotallers are reading this now, screaming in slow motion, "PLEASE TELL US YOU SAID 'NOOOOOO!'" but you will be severely disappointed. If you're in this camp, you might want to stop reading this post and forget that you ever started reading it in the first place.*

Of course, I said yes. In my opinion, it looks pretty cool [there's a glimpse of the label up top]. We received a bottle for free and they are currently available to purchase from the Cincinnati Parks Board. Honestly, I'm not quite sure how you would go about getting a bottle, but I'd say it's safe to call the park headquarters and someone could help you out with it.

So now I've had my photos published in a book and printed on a wine bottle. Maybe it's finally time to get around to that camera upgrade.

_____________

*Honestly, I know my decision to be associated with alcohol will disappoint some of you who believe that it's the devil's tool and my position as a minister should require that I totally steer clear of the hooch. I don't care to take up the issue of alcohol abstinence here in the blog. If it really bothers you, you should probably drop me a line.

The Church Up The Street

I recently read a quote which opined, "If you're going to start a church, start it in the shadow of a megachurch because you know that God is already working there."

This wasn't our philosophy when we started Echo but even though we are a world away here in Walnut Hills, we are definitely in the shadow of a megachurch. Crossroads Community Church meets only four miles from our current meeting space. It is impossible to miss their influence here in our part of town. They are they cool church and they are the controversial church. Drop the "Crossroads" name around here and you'll either hear "I love them," or "I hate them."

Our congregation is nothing at all like theirs and our services are entirely different. Our approaches to ministry are on different ends of the spectrum. Yet they are my brothers and sisters in Christ. I have many friends who either attend there or are on staff there. We even checked in with them when we talked about starting our church.

I love Crossroads. They are doing ministry that no one else in our city was doing and they're constantly trying to make themselves better. They take great risks but their motivation is pure.

They made the local news earlier this week in a profile of their senior pastor. I've met Brian Tome a couple of times. He wouldn't know me from Adam. Brian is a larger-than-life character and, as a result, draws a lot of attention. But he would freely admit (this I'm sure of) that Crossroads is much, much more than him. Being the guy out front, all eyes are fixed on him. And as a result he takes a lot of hits. But he loves Jesus, his church, and is using the gifts that God has given him.

I planned to write a post about Crossroads earlier in the week because of these articles, but then came the tragic news that a young lady participating in their Christmas program died in an accident during last night's performance. Our family attended last year's show and it was absolutely amazing. Again, we know people involved in this event and our heart breaks with them today. Our heart also goes out to the woman's family and the church members who will be deeply affected by her passing

And my heart goes out to their church as a whole. As I noted, they are a lightening rod in this community and I fear that people will use this tragedy as an excuse to criticize the church and their ministry. I would hope that such people will be mature, keep their thoughts to themselves, and use the words from their mouths in prayers for the community of believers at Crossroads. As time heals wounds they will need to go on and continue to do what God has enabled them to do.

Until then they mourn, and we mourn with them.

Our family has experienced loss.

IHS/MPG

I wish I had more time to comment on this, but maybe some of you can do a better job. This is a goody:

This past Sunday a Detroit church devoted their corporate worship gathering to praying for Trinity— not the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, mind you. Rather, they lifted up the automotive big three, Ford, GM, and Chrysler, filling their stage with SUV's from local car dealerships.

Personally, this makes me feel icky.

Thoughts?

Simmer Down Now

Allow me to be the voice of reason: let's all get a hold of ourselves and our fears about the economy.

Look, I fully acknowledge that our country's economic situation is worsening, but the sky is not falling. Friends, this is not the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. We are just too young to understand the broader context of America's economy. Part of my masters thesis has been/will be studying the economic climate in 19th century America. There was usually a depression in our country every 10 to 15 years. We are in better structured today to deal with a faltering economic situation than we ever have in our country's history.

The fundamental change in our present economy is that there is no fast money to be made right now. For an instant-gratification culture, this is being interpreted as the end of the world. There are tons of numbers flying around right now designed to strike fear in the heart of Americans, but don't believe the hype.

The irony of this time of recession is that it's still not being understood in the context of America's newly-imagined cost of living. How many people do you know that are cutting back— I mean really cutting back? The early Christmas shopping season was better than the expected gloom and doom. People are still traveling, watching satellite television, and indulging their consumer-driven ideals. So even though American claim they are struggling, I suggest that it's being measured to higher standards than mere survivability.

I'm calling it like I see it: this is just even more spin by people looking to secure that our President-elect looks good in his first 100 days. For some reason, there are people insinuating that it's critical for our country that Bush pack up his junk, back up the U-Haul and get out of Dodge tonight. Democratic leadership is pressuring Obama to step up and lead now even though he lacks the Constitutional authority to do so. Succumbing to this pressure, he made an announcement Saturday morning outlining his big ideas to right the economy. This is somewhat unfortunate as, I believe, Obama has now prematurely released some ideas that are not fully thought out.

For example, the big news from Saturday is that the President-elect will propose a public works project on the scale of Eisenhower's establishment of the interstate system. This, he suggests, will create new jobs and spur economic growth. I am a fiscal conservative at heart and do not buy into this theory of economic stimulation. Sure, you create temporary jobs, but you also cripple the ability of the private sector to emerge and create their own. Let's not forget that the New Deal was not the solvent of the Great Depression; rather, it was "the ultimate stimulus package" of World War 2. But, hey,Obama will be in charge and he's going a different direction. I'm OK with that.

But my gripe with Obama's declaration is his overlooking of history in the process. Sure, you can observe that Eisenhower's works program was a boom to our country, but you cannot neglect to admit that it came with a price— the decimation of urban America. The building of the freeways was the beginning of suburban sprawl which left our cities in ruins. So while overall our nation benefited, we are still dealing with the negatives of that decision. I'm not saying that we shouldn't have built those interstates; I've been rekindling my fondness for our highways recently. But when it is done with just the dollar [or job] in mind, the negatives our ignored.

Hence, my ministry is now dealing with the residual effects of America's boom.

I'm just suggesting that our President-elect slow down and take the time to fully consider the ramifications of these suggested actions. No one's expecting him to turn this thing around in a matter of weeks, so he has the time.

It's not as bad as you think.

E-F-P-T-O-Z-L-P-E-D

I don't see so good.

I'm the only person in my family that is near-sighted. The only thing to which I can attribute this is those nights I used to stay up late at night as a child, using a dim reading lamp as my light source for books and Sports Illustrated.* Right about 5th grade, I couldn't read the blackboard from the back of the class. By the beginning of 7th grade, I got my first pair of glasses that I would wear only when needed. By 10th grade, I was wearing them all the time. I even had prescription sunglasses. Without glasses, I was practically blind.

But before I went off to college, I got my first pair of contacts. It was a difficult transition, as most contact wearers can relate; those first years, I would have occasional days when I just couldn't get those contacts in at all. And God forbid if I ripped one of those things, because were meant to last a year and they cost a fortune. But sometime since we've been married, I found the perfect brand of contacts; they were monthly replaceables. And the dirty little secret was that even though they were only supposed to last four weeks, I could sometimes go six. That meant I could get an extra six months out of a year's supply. I . . . am too cheap. Plus, I'd order them from 1-800 Contacts and save even more cash on the deal.

So fast forward to a couple of months ago when I had to get an eye appointment so I could get new contacts. I went to the optometrist at Sams in Oakley, and it was a great experience. The eye doctor noted that my contacts, the ones I've cherished for so long, are starting to be fazed out. I could hang on, or I could upgrade to biweeklies.

Not wanting to resist change for the better, I decided to move on.

These new contacts are OK, but I still am not used to changing them out so frequently. I finally figured out that I need to write the date on the contacts box when I throw away the old ones, otherwise I have no idea when to change them. Also, while they "breathe" better [whatever that means] they tend to be more flimsy. So unless they're setting perfectly in the contact solution at night, they're kinda contorted in the morning. I remedy this problem by straightening them out and letting them sit a few hours in the morning to take their natural shape. This means I spend more time wearing my glasses again.

Now . . . back to my glasses.

I used to love wearing glasses. Reasons why:

1) Sheer laziness. All I have to do is put them on and I can see. Brilliant. But there's another reason, though. One that displays my vanity:

2) A good looking pair of specs can make a person look good. I speak the truth. How many times have you thought or said, "Dang, ________ looks smarter today!"** Why? Because they're wearing a good pair of specs. Why in the world glasses have that effect on people, I have no idea, but I think it's contingent on wearing them occasionally; wear them all the time and the effect dissipates. As for me, I need all the help I can get to fake intelligence, so I'll walk that road.

Because of this, I like to make sure I have a decent pair to wear. I last purchased glasses about three years ago— a pretty sharp pair. But there's a slight problem: they sit heavily on the ridge on my nose and are painful to wear. I've messed with the little-nose-piece-thingies to no avail. Since they're not too comfortable, I've tended to rely on the contact wearing, which has worked remarkably well for the past few years.***

Until recently. With these new contacts.

Since I've gotten these new contacts that act up, I'm now wearing those painful glasses more. And I'm not going to get a new pair because I don't want to pay more money for glasses that I'll only wear every once in awhile. So instead, I'll suffer through this contact adjustment and nose-ridge pain all so I can see.

So what's the point of all of this?

In a couple years, when I finally decide to have that laser eye surgery, I'll have verifiable justification right here.

___________

*Not the swimsuit issue. Get your mind out of the gutter.

**Did this work for Sarah Palin? I'm thinking no.

***The irony about all this is that since I rarely wear glasses anymore, people are more surprised to learn that I wear contacts. I just find it peculiar when someone says "I didn't know you wear glasses" when they really mean to say, "I didn't know your vision sucks."

Something To Be Proud Of

I haven't written much [if anything] concerning the University of Cincinnati's football team. Until recently, many people in our fine city had no idea a team even existed in Clifton, but on Saturday [or perhaps tomorrow if West Virginia lays an egg] the Bearcats have a chance to win the Big East championship and play in a BCS bowl game.

I've always loved football and, in my formative years, I chose to follow the Ohio State Buckeyes. Sure, when it came to college basketball I always returned to the hometown team . . . um, UC not Xavier*, but football always meant the Bucks. The reason I didn't cheer for UC football is because they played at a lower level; let's be honest: neither the Metro Conference nor Conference USA presented the best brand of football. And I'll admit even this: during the amazing 2002 Buckeye run to the national championship, I was rooting against the Bearcats as my OSU loyalties proved too strong. But I've been tracking the program for years and have watched practically every game they've played this season. This team is pretty good. And it's now an incredibly fun style of football to watch.

But UC's jump to the Big East [thank you, Bob Huggins, wherever you are] was a total game changer for the football program. There was now a BCS tie-in, which even presented the opportunity to compete for a national championship. Two years ago, when Bearcats AD Mike Thomas stated that UC would win Big East championships in every sport, I was sure football would be the last to arrive. And now, it's totally within grasp.

Amazing.

I wasn't sure if they could find someone to take over the helm of the program like Mark Dantonio, but Brian Kelly is on the verge of owning this town.** Sure, the rumors persist that he'll go to some larger program and I wouldn't blame him.*** But if he's patient, he has the opportunity to build a college football power in this town. I'm very serious: this new playing style will attract recruits, the campus facilities [sans the bandbox stadium] are spectacular, and this isn't a little podunk city. Regardless of what happens, things are looking good.

In short, it is a very good time to be a Bearcats fan. And as I continue to sport my practice-worn Gino Guidugli jersey, I embrace this new winning tradition in our fine city, eagerly anticipating a Big East Championship on Saturday.

____________

*Even though they are crosstown rivals, I've always liked Xavier. I know their are some loyalists who can't fathom that relationship, but it works for me. Even though my future alumni status makes me take a greater interest in the Muskies, my ultimate allegience is still to UC.

**It should be noted that the way the mayor and city council treated Coach Kelly on Wednesday was flat-out bush league. These people need to realize that if you're going to honor someone, don't impose on their time. But Coach used to be involved in politics, so I'm sure he expects it from them.

***While I highly doubt that Coach Kelly will spend decades in Clifton, I just can't envision him going to Tennessee. The SEC is a bad fit for his system, and I'm not convinced he's survive in one of those southern football towns.

I Am Thankful

. . . for a Creator who crafted a universe that is truly breathtaking.

. . . for a faith that has guided me throughout my lifetime.

. . . for a family who cultivated that faith and made me who I am today.

. . . for a wife with whom everyday together is a new adventure.

. . . for a daughter who gives me more joy than I can describe.

. . . for my wonderful extended family, who have only known "adult-Steve", which is probably a good thing.

. . . for a church family who continues to embrace the Scriptures and the mission it describes.

. . . for friends who stick with me even when I'm the weaker half of the friendship.

. . . for my country which, no matter how bad things get, is still the greatest place to live on earth.

. . . for my city which is a diamond in the rough.

. . . even when I don't let people know it.

Where's My Diploma?

Actually, all my diplomas are sitting on a bookshelf downstairs. They're pretty useful for collecting dust.

Not to force sentimentality, but this past Sunday marked the completion of four years of Beit Carr. In my view, that would mean that I've achieved enough credits to walk the stage and graduate. My G.P.A. might not be impressive, but employers rarely research that kind of thing.

I do like to blog and am thankful that I chose to start when I did. I've been able to document some of the biggest changes in my life, something I'm sure I'll cherish in the years to come. Heck, to continue doing anything for four years is remarkable in itself, so I'm taking some pride in keeping this thing going so long.

As of late, it seems as if I have a severe case of blogging senoritis— I've been blowing off class and haven't been posting nearly as frequently as I once did. I attribute that a schedule where I'm already doing a lot of research and writing, hence, putting the blogging on the back-burner. But don't give up on me. I fully plan on continuing on to blog graduate school, perhaps even pursuing blog doctoral work.

Hmmm. Not sure if I'm fully embracing this metaphor anymore. Still, if anyone feels the need to send me a graduation present, I wouldn't resist it.

Napster, Titleists, and Faith

Let me ramble for a bit.

This past Tuesday night I started teaching a new class for the alma mater. This time, however, I'm up at their extension campus on the southside of Indianapolis. It's an additional three hours in the car for the next four weeks [and I've signed on to do this again up there in the Spring] but it seems to be a really great group of students and well worth my while.

I'm teaching Ethics— I know, I know: how do you teach if you don't have any, eh? As a discussion starter for the first session, we discussed illegally downloading music. I'll admit that in those early days of Napster, I downloaded songs on my work computer until I began to realize that it was essentially song theft.* Later, as I confronted others about their music piracy, I would hear the most creative attempts of justification; chief among is that was that file sharing was a victimless crime, harming no one except for the billion dollar recording industry that could well afford the loss. I expected to hear a few more excuses during the class discussion. But there were none: all my students held that stealing music over the internet was wrong.

Still I wonder if their not necessarily a reflection of their pre-established ideals or instead a visceral reaction to the way I presented it. I inadvertently used terms such as "theft," "stealing," "illegal," and "piracy"— all words that they already perceive negatively. As I discussed with them later, whomever is able to frame their argument in terms of their own choosing usually ends up being the victor. When I teach this course again, I think I'm going to have the same discussion while deliberately avoiding those terms to see if it affects their viewpoints. It's much easier to take a moral stand when you already have a clear delineation of right and wrong in front of you.

Anyway, I was still chewing on all of this the next day when I read the story of J.P. Hayes. His story is fascinating as Hayes is a pro-golfer who lost his PGA tour card and was forced to re-qualify via tournament. On one hole, he inadvertently played a prototype Titleist ball that was accidentally left in his bag and played it for two shots. When he realized this, he told an official that he played a wrong ball which automatically cost him two stokes. But the next night, realizing that the prototype might have been illegal, he again reported himself. It, indeed, was not an approved ball and Hayes was thus disqualified from the tournament and losing his place on the tour.

Golf is interesting like that. Whereas every other sport has officials that police the rules, golf insists that the player police himself. So when you attempt to violate the rules, you do so at the risk of your own integrity as judge. And if you try to justify your misdeeds through well crafted arguments, you are already well aware that you are, in essence, cheating.

I love that Hayes matter-of-factly responded that any other golfer would've done the same thing. After being lauded for reporting himself after a similar rule break, the legendary Bobby Jones remarked, "You may as well praise a man for not robbing a bank." Basically, the ethics of golf are unshakable because a judge is always watching. 

I believe that this technological era allows more opportunities than ever to commit unseen transgressions. As a result, our personal ethics will become more and more crucial in the year to come. But if we really hold to the concept of an omniscient God, then absolutely nothing is different, except our own delusions about personal integrity. We'll need to take on the attitude of people like J.P. Hayes, staking a claim on integrity, even if it's to our detriment, until it becomes commonplace.

In summation: someone is always watching, so don't do it.

____________

*Three additional thoughts about this that didn't fit the above thought flow:

1) I am gambling that the RIAA doesn't have enough information to nail down my indiscretions during my Napster days, but with the constant ineptness of my employer's IT system, I think I'm safe.

2) My ignorance surrounding the legality of file sharing in those early days can be attributed to the fact that I seriously assumed record artists wouldn't care if I downloaded their tunes. I never burned CDs of any of those songs I downloaded. If I really liked those songs, I went ahead and bought their album.

3) When I was younger, we would "file share" with each others' cassettes. In fact, I believe this practice is the reason why they began selling stereos with dual cassette racks [what other purpose could dual cassettes serve?]. Where was the RIAA 1980's big hair bands were losing cash?

My Morning Reads [Part Two]

The blogs, they are a-changing. I finish my morning reading by checking out the blog feeds that have accumulated overnight. Once the simple online journals of geeks around the globes, blogs are now much more professional endeavors. As a result, they can be a valuable tool for those desiring to stay sharp and up-to-date on the latest happenings. Using Google Reader, I currently subscribe to over 150 blogs.

Each morning, I'll have between 60 and 100 articles to check out. Now I don't read every one of them. I usually scan the title and the opening sentences and instantly decide whether or not I'll read a post. And I'm constantly evaluating whether or not a blog is still worth checking out.

So to what kinds of blogs am I subscribed? Here's a taste:

Ministry: I haven't bought a ministry book in years. It's sorta pointless when many of the country's best practitioners post their thoughts for free online. I'll admit that I've been cutting back on some of these blogs as some of these guys use their journals for blatant self promotion. Still, there are some good ones out there. Examples: Ed Stetzer, Bob Hyatt, Ben Arment.

Bible/Theology: The same reason I subscribe to ministry blogs. Examples: Codex, Bible Places, Between Two Worlds.

Cincinnati: This is the city in which I do ministry, I feel it's my responsibility to know everything that happens here. There are some great local blogs that help me do such that. Examples: Queen City Survey, Cincinnati Beacon, Cincinnati Revisited, and my new favorite, Catholic Telegraph Photography Project.

Business Leadership: It's helpful to see what's going on in the broader society, as some of those values can be helpful in the church. Examples: Seth Godin, TED Talks, Malcom Gladwell.

Graphic Design: I do the graphic design for Echo. Since I have no formal training, it's imperative that I stay up the date on what's hot in design. Examples: Smashing Magazine, Vectortuts, Photoshop Candy.

Contrarian: Yes, I subscribe to a few blogs of folks with whom I disagree. If I'm so convinced that my worldview is correct, then I should not be threatened to read the thoughts of people on the other end of the spectrum. Examples: Debunking Christianity, Friendly Atheist, Ten Reasons.

Sports: I can't hide the fact that I'm a huge sports fan, so I'll use Google Reader to keep up on what's going on with my teams. Examples: Reds, Bearcats, Muskies.

Friends: Since many of my friends have their own blogs, it's a convenient way to keep up with their lives. Examples: Life as a Secret Agent, Eagle and Child, Room 113.

Miscellaneous: There are some that just won't fit snuggly into a category. For instance:

• YPulse discusses the latest in teen culture.
• Moleskinerie is a blog devoted to fans of Moleskine notebooks.
• Strange Maps is, um, what it claims to be.
• Where is Bob? just makes me laugh.

Like I said, this is just a sampling. Many more where this came from. So enlighten me: what blogs aren't I reading that I should?

P.S. I updated the "Links" page last week.

My Morning Reads [Part One]

I'll admit that I read fewer and fewer books. It's not that I'm not reading; currently, I read the books for my Xavier classes and for the CCU courses that I'm teaching. But I've started to much more from the internet. Over the past couple of years I've established a daily reading regimen that I've designed to get me the information I think I need to do my job. It's a little overdue, but I thought I'd devote a couple of posts to letting people know my daily informational intake.

First and foremost, do yourself a favor and download the Firefox web browser. It has the pluggins that make web browsing a pleasure and, if you're a fellow Mac user, there are plenty of shortcuts that make navigating your browser a snap [here's a quick example: hit "Apple+k" and your cursor immediately goes to the Google searchbar]. I have a toolbar bookmark labeled "morning" that opens up my list daily reading items in separate tabs. Here's what I check out, and the categories I assign to them:

COTTON CANDY

1. Facebook. I like to start my morning with a warm up before diving head-first into things. I try to check Facebook out about two times daily. That way I can leave a smart-alec update and see who is[n't] dating whom.

2. Lance McAlister's Blog. Lance is a sports radio talkshow host here in Cincinnati. He does a good job of linking to different articles pertinent to Cincy Sports.

LOCAL READS

3. The Cincinnati Enquirer. I feel it's important to know what's going on in our city, so I have to hit up the local paper. The Enquirer's parent couple recently changed the websites for all of their papers. The new layout is excruciatingly horrible. As a result, I'll only scan the frontpage to see if there are articles of interest.

4. Cincy Nation. This is basically a local news aggregate with a liberal stance. They have a good amount of non-Enquirer local articles linked here, ones that I might not find otherwise.

NATIONAL NEWS

5. The New York Times. Since they started putting all their content online, I've enjoyed reading the paper. I can stomach the rather one-sided reporting as almost every article is usually well-written.

6. The Wall Street Journal. The WSJ has some content available online, but requires you to pay for the really good stuff. Hence, I scan the front page for the freebies.

7. The Washington Post. This one is so I can figure out what's happening on the national political landscape.

A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING

8. Digg. Yes, it has its own culture that I refuse to get involved in [I've probably only dugg about a dozen articles on the site], but it has an eclectic mix of articles from all over the web.

9. Google Reader. This is the next step of my reading regimine, as I scan through my RSS subscriptions. I've written about RSS feeds before— it's an easy way to quickly read through numerous blogs— but in part two, I'll let you know the types of blogs to which I subscribe.

I Hate Elder

Growing up a non-Catholic on the westside of town was quite the experience. One positive would be that I stood out from my classmates on Ash Wednesday. One negative is that I never found any presents in my shoes on St Nick's day.

Another byproduct of my westside Protestantism was that I only partook of the public education experience. Even though there were three established all-boys Catholic schools on our side of Cincinnati, I feel like my education rivaled anything I could've received at those institutions [with chicks in class to boot]. The Oak Hills Local School District provided me with an excellent-all-around education. Sure, there were sub-par teachers, but not that many of them. And I had every opportunity to succeed right at my fingertips. I'm proud of my years at Oak Hills High School. And even though I only had a brief stint in its athletics department, I was quite the athletic supporter. I still spend Friday nights watching the local sports programs to see how my Highlanders performed against the schools across the city.

So the news this past weekend that Oak Hills was ending its football rivalry with Elder High School was like a kick to the groin. The westside [Catholic] private high school is a football powerhouse, that's to be sure.* And the series hasn't been competitive in decades; the last time that Oak Hills defeated the Panthers was 1986. But even though it has become a one-sided rivalry, it was still contentious. If there was every anyone I wanted us to beat, it was Elder. The game (before it was moved earlier in the season) was the last one of the season for both teams . . . um, usually before Elder went to the playoffs. I spent some miserable games at Oak Hills and Elders' Pit watching them let us stay competitive for a quarter or two before finally finishing us off. It definitely sucked and there was no end to the domination in sight.

But now, I feel I've been robbed.

With this decision, one I suspect is not as mutual as they let on, my alma mater stole from me. What was taken from me was hope— the hope that I would one fall Saturday morning wake-up and see a scoreboard where the Highlanders bested Elder. I'm not sure when it would've happened but, eventually, it would've HAD TO HAVE happened. Even though Oak Hills is the biggest high school in the state of Ohio, it is continually fleeced of its best talent by Elder, LaSalle and St. X. But at some point, some team will have put it all together and provide the opportunity of a victory over the Panthers. But now, unless it's in the play-offs, it will never happen.

While this may seem like a trivial issue, I see some larger statements here. It's almost as if the public school is surrendering, admitting that it can't compete with its private counterpart. And it also appears that the district is sending a "if you can't beat 'em— quit" mentality to its student body. This, my friends, as a sad, sad decision.

I much prefer losing to Elder than not playing them at all. And after all we've been through, my Oak Hills pride has been tarnished by this move.

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*When we lived in Mason in 2002, someone asked me if I was excited that Elder won the state football championship. I believe I responded by spitting on the carpet.

Election Night Lessons

Barack Obama is the President-Elect.

I wish I could simply refer to my prediction from more than two years ago when I said Obama would win tonight. Unfortunately, I changed my mind in February, thinking that John McCain would pull this thing out. The flaws behind my thinking: 1) I couldn't believe that the Democratic Party would heal as well as it did following a bitter primary season. Their unified front set the tone for victory. 2) I still hold that if it hadn't been for the economic downturn in the past month or so, we'd be waiting for days for them to sort out the vote. Still not sure McCain could've won [the Obama ground-game/money coffers were just too powerful] but it would've been incredibly close.

So before I retire for the night, just a few words for those on either side of the aisle.

For those Republican supporters: Don't fret. While the internet and certain television networks [well, all of them] are saying that this is the end of the G.O.P., realize that this is part of the ebb and flow of the American electorate. The Democrats seem to forget that they most recently experienced this feeling in the late 1990's. But it is again the Democrats' time and now the Republican Party will be in a position to freely to criticize big government, its most comfortable posture.

For those Democratic supporters: Good luck. Hope is a most beautiful thing because it's directed towards something that very well could be. The problem is that unrealized hope is a venomous creature. With full control of two branches of government, nothing should be impossible for the Dems to accomplish. Unless the next few years are fruitful, matching the high levels of hope that now exist, things will revert back to the G.O.P. in eight years.

Notice that I said "eight years." My next political prediction is that Obama is easily a two-term President. The economy can go nowhere but up [eventually] and we should be out of Iraq by the next election. That will give him plenty of fodder in order to beat Mitt Romney in 2012. And then we'll get the great 2016 face-off: Hillary Clinton verses Sarah Palin. By then, Hillary would be 70 and Sarah would be 53, so that'll be interesting, eh?

But as I sit here tonight, putting aside my ideological misgivings and fear of the cult of personality, I will admit to being incredibly proud of my country for what happened today. In no other country in the world could a minority candidate be elected to their nation's highest office. The United States still bears the scars of legalized slavery and is just one generation removed from the institution of the Civil Rights act. We have not fully atoned for those sins, but perhaps we are getting there, finally becoming color blind. So if our country is more comfortable with race, this is a good thing. And if something like this inspires an impoverished black neighborhood like ours onto greater heights, then this is a good thing.

This republic shall endure.

How Much This Means To Some

I was in a dialogue with someone in the comments section of my last post about local issues in tomorrow's election. This person was most interested in Ohio's Issue 5 that would regulate the APR the PayDay loan industry is allowed to charge. I was getting a tad annoyed because he presented a list of "facts" that are statistics offered up by the PayDay industry, taking them at their word.

I decided to check the IP address [note: if you want to anonymously leave a rude comment for me, you should hide your IP] and this guy I've been conversing with is actually an employee of Fleishman Hillard, a PR firm located in New York City, that was hired by the PayDay lobby to help them pass the issue.

So it's not like this guy just stumbled on my blog. He lives in NYC [shout out to the Dale and Audrey] and gets paid to spam blogs and leave comments like this. What's sad is that even as PR goes, these arguments aren't substantive or compelling.

You know there's a lot at stake with an issue if someone is actually getting paid to read my blog.

I've Got Issues

Just thought I'd help out my fellow Ohioans and Cincinnatians wade through the local issues they'll encounter on Tuesday's ballot.

Ohio Issue One: Attempt to reform various election issues. No big deal here.

Ohio Issue Two: Continuation of Clean Ohio program that will not increase taxes. How you see this depends on how cheap you are and whether or not you slow down when a squirrel crosses the road.

Ohio Issue Three: Gives landowners the rights to the reasonable use of natural water on their own property. I prefer that landowners can use their own land how they want.

Ohio Issue Five: The Payday Loan issue. I've written about this topic before and it rears its head again. Unfortunately, our Secretary of State allowed the Payday Loan Industry some favorable language on the ballot [not referencing the current 300+% that predatory lenders can reap from these unfortunate souls] which could affect the outcome. A "yes" vote reigns in these lenders and their [IMHO] immoral actions.

Ohio Issue Six: Casino Measure. Just know that, regardless of how you feel about gambling, this deal would screw over the state of Ohio, benefiting one business group and giving them unparalleled power. Sure, Indiana's Argosy Casino is pouring millions to stop this issue, but anyone can see that it's a bad deal for our state.

Cincinnati Issue Seven: Outlawing Red Light Cameras. I'm a little torn here. While I'm against this form of government fundraising, I'm wondering if there needs to be a charter amendment to stop it. City Council already yielded to the heat and voted down these cameras earlier in the year. Instead of constantly burdening the city charter, I prefer to keep the pressure on the politicians. Not sure that his will matter because it's certain to pass.

Cincinnati Issue Eight: Adopting the proportional representation method for electing city council.  This is a method of election that is only present in one municipality in the US [Cambridge, Mass]. While it is advocated as a way of helping minorities get into office, I cannot see the benefit here. This system previously existed in the city and helped elect blacks when Cincinnati had a white majority. But the city has changed since those days. There's a lot I could say in recommending the rejection of this amendment, but the most compelling example I can offer is this: Last year it took 20,000 votes to get elected to Council. Under this method, you would only need 7,001 votes to win a seat. In our city, such a system could be easily manipulated to shut out minorities even more. Bad idea.

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TAKE NOTE: Even though everyone is obsessed with the presidential race, make sure to take some time on Monday to look at the "smaller" offices you'll be voting for.

The Wasted Vote Myth

Remember the [somewhat horrible] Richard Pryor movie Brewster's Millions? A little plot refresher for those of you not fortunate enough to live through the 1980's:

Monty Brewster [Pryor's character] is given the opportunity to inherit his dead uncle's $300million estate. First, however, he must spend $30million in 30 days without retaining any assets. In the end, he decides the best way to waste the money is through politics [is there a lesson here?] by running a mayoral campaign, encouraging the masses vote "none of the above." Ironically, that's how some people I've talked recently wish they could vote for this presidential election.

A somewhat popular evangelical Christian author claims that since he cannot support either of the major party candidate he will simply keep his vote to himself. He states that he has moral objections of both candidates and, therefore, he'll not participate in this year's election. In defense of his inaction, he quotes Dazed and Confused director Richard Linklater saying, "Withdrawing in disgust is not the same thing as apathy." That could possibly be a true statement, especially when it comes to voting on propositions or head-to-head contests. But I'm not sure this has to apply to the Presidential election because, even if you don't realize it South Park kids, there are more than two choices in this contest.

There is a myth that is prevalent among many Americans which states that a vote for a third-party candidate is a wasted vote. The idea stems from the fact that you don't just voting for someone, but that you are also voting against someone. So, for example, if I'm divided between the candidates, only sure of the fact that I hate McCain, then I should vote for Obama, regardless of whether or not I agree with his policies. This might make perfect sense for some of you, but I'd argue that it makes no more sense than not voting at all. Why reward a candidate with your vote when they haven't earned it? In my mind, that is surrendering your vote which is much worse than "wasting" one any day.

What if you're a Republican living in California or a Democrat living in Texas? Those states are not up for grabs and are already decided; you can cast your vote with your party and it won't make a difference at all. So is your vote wasted then? Hardly, because you're still voicing your opinion on whom you support. How then is a dissenting vote to a third-party any different? In that same vein, I hear people who object to third-party voting because their candidates have no chance of winning. So does your vote only count if you back the winning party? If so, our nation is full of wasted votes, and I have a personal history of them.

Despite what you've heard, a vote for a third party can definitely make a difference, perhaps even more than you realize. Even though none of these third party candidates will win the White House this year, a good turnout on election day can help them to do so in the future. The FEC bi-laws state that, "a third-party Presidential candidate may qualify for some public funds after the general election if he or she receives at least five percent of the popular vote." So if a third-party candidate can manage to capture 5% of the national vote, they are then entitled to some of the federal election funds that are so valuable for viability. This last person to do so was Ross Perot, who's Reform Party gained almost 19% of the popular vote in 1992. If there is ever going to be a significant alternative to the Republicans or Democrats in this country, then it will begin with the presidential election.

So for your viewing pleasure, here is the list of major third party candidates running for the Presidency this year. There are even more than this, but I wanted to at least give you the names that will appear on practically every state ballot:

BOSTON TEA PARTY / PERSONAL CHOICE PARTY: Charles Jay

CONSTITUTION PARTY: Charles "Chuck" Baldwin

GREEN PARTY: Cynthia McKinney

INDEPENDENT / AMERICA'S INDEPENDENT PARTY / AMERICAN INDEPENDENT PARTY: Alan Keyes

INDEPENDENT / INDEPENDENT-ECOLOGY PARTY / PEACE & FREEDOM PARTY / NATURAL LAW PARTY: Ralph Nader

LIBERTARIAN PARTY: Bob Barr

PARTY OF SOCIALISM AND LIBERATION: Gloria LaRiva

PROHIBITION PARTY: Gene Amondson

REFORM PARTY: Ted Weill

Look, I'm not necessarily encouraging you to vote for any of these people; in fact, there's some here that are far worse options than the two major candidates. But if you're still uncomfortable with your choices this year (and even if you're not) you should investigate what all these candidates stand for as well. Voting outside the two parties is not a waste; it's just as viable a vote as one for McCain or Obama.

In the end, it would make you the most informed at the polls and you could more confidently defend your decision to back your chosen candidate.

One Week To Go

Can you feel it? We're almost at the finish line of this epic electoral journey. With this in mind, I'd like to offer up my last round of pre-Presidential election thoughts. Consume at will.

1. While the fat lady is warming up, her voice is iffy. Friends [how McCain is that?], this election is a lot closer than people think. Those expecting an Obama landslide will be surprised; I do not trust the huge gap these polls are projecting. As I looking to someone to summarize my argument, the case was made by . . . *gulp* . . . Ann Coulter. In short, her research concluded, "since 1976 . . . the polls were never wrong in a friendly way to Republicans. When the polls were wrong, which was often, they overestimated support for the Democrat, usually by about 6 to 10 points." I'm not saying this means a McCain victory, but rumors of a landslide should not be believed. That said . . .

2. I think I'm now hoping for an Obama victory. Even though I'm still partisan, I'm afraid of the reaction should McCain "come from behind" to win. Now that the media has basically guarenteed an Obama victory, should he lose, there could be substantive rioting in urban areas. There will be feelings of disenfranchisement that will be perceived as another case of "the rich white man putting down blacks." This analysis may seem uncouth, but I really believe these feelings exist and would come to the forefront should McCain win now. The vibe in our neighborhood is that an Obama victory is validation for African Americans. I just hope that I am wrong about these polls. Otherwise we could be in store for even more turbulent times.

3. Voting irregularities will be massive. In both the 2000 and 2004 elections, ones that certain groups believe were stolen, there has been mass suspicion of people messing with votes. My take on this is: so what, it's happened for years and will likely continue. Before people wax on about the evils of a particular party, note that this happens on both sides of the issue and no party is totally blameless. In the end, I believe that the two equal each other out and that the electoral process works as it was intended. In the end, the winner will be selected according to the constitutional guidelines. Whether or not the electoral college should be abolished, that's a different story.

4. The money made the difference. Say what you will about the mandate for change, it was Obama's decision to reject public financing that put him in the position to win. He's been able to outspend McCain three-to-one in many battleground states, and has enough left over to buy almost every major channel tomorrow night. I imagine if this was a Republican outspending a Democrat by the same percentage, the media would be ceaselessly criticizing. Since it's an upstart Democrat, I really do believe he's getting a pass. That said, Obama's campaign has revolutionized the way the funds are raised and political science professors will be studying this (and other campaigns emulating this) for years to come.

5. McCain's campaign cost him the election. People need to look at this campaign realistically. Despite the financial disparity, an embarrassing same-party administration, and the "sexiness" of the young newcomer, McCain very well could have won this thing easily. But McCain's handlers let him down at every turn. I'm of the opinion that the decision to add Sarah Palin to the ticket was actually a good decision; don't forget that McCain didn't even have his own party's support until he named her. No, the turning point of the campaign was the decision to "suspend it" because of the economic crisis. If McCain merely voiced opposition to the first bailout plan that failed, he would have retained his maverick status and, most likely, wins the White House. Additionally, the "I'm not George Bush" refrain McCain tried to introduce should've been a drum beat as soon as he won the nomination. In the end, McCain's campaign failed him. It goes to show you that, no matter how much he is hated, Karl Rove was a brilliant strategist.

6. It was disheartening to see how Sarah Palin was attacked. The jabs at Hillary Clinton were child's play compared to what was lobbed at Palin. The media was merciless towards her. While she was ill-prepared for the onslaught, I'm not sure any amount of preparation could have saved her. And I'm not saying that Palin was the most qualified person for the job, but if you know anything about American political history, you realize that qualification mean nothing. She opened herself up with some of her gaffs, but I would suggest that Joe Biden's gaffs were just as glaring. No, liberal feminists have showed that they are freely willing to swallow their values and sacrifice one of their own in order to get what they want. It'll be interesting to see what becomes of her political future.

7. In the end, our country will be just fine. Even though people are calling for gloom and doom, our nation will continue to exist. We are unique among the other countries in the world as we continue to assimilate the world's cultures into one. There have been even more devisive campaigns and there will be in the future. But on November 5th, people will wake up, throw away their campaign signs, and go back to normal living . . . for at least a couple of years before this whole process begins again.

When all is said and done, I'm still expecting an Obama presidency. It should be fascinating to say the least. Will hope transition into reality?

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In the next day or so, I'll be outlining the local issues and my thoughts on them.