I should have failed kindergarten

Apparently, I never learned how to tie my shoes. I've always used the 'bunny ears' method, and for the most part it's served me well. Sometimes, however, I end up with both loose ends on the _same_ side of the knot. These knots, although deformed, seem to hold just fine (no controlled, scientific study has been undertaken to verify knot quality - you'll just have to take my word for it). Still, I think you can imagine how frustrating it is to be so grossly incompetent...

Making it even worse, I have no idea how this happens. No matter how hard I look at my red-headed, bastard stepchildren of knots, I can't understand how the heck I managed to tie them that way. It's too bad scientists are wasting their time on string theory instead of fixing my shoestrings. Those insensitive clods.

I am so smart, s-m-r-t!

Today I saw a guy riding a motorcycle. That is inherently more risky than driving a car, but not really 'dumb'.

Mr. Motorcycle Rider was not wearing a helmet. That is pretty dumb, but he has the right to risk his own safety as he sees fit.

Mr. MR was carrying a helmet with him, attached to one of his saddlebags, but not wearing it. IMHO*, that crosses the line from 'dumb' to 'what in the [bleep] are you thinking?!' Baffling, it is.

Of course, this whole bit has reminded me of the Darwin Awards. That website is a great way to comfort yourself when you're worried that technology has removed the evolutionary pressures from modern society.
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*IMHO = In My Humble Opinion, for you non-nerds.

Something is backwards here...

I'm actually getting less politically conservative as I get older. I know what you're thinking: "Well, Ben, you were already as old and crotchety as is humanly possible, so you had to go the opposite way eventually."

My economic beliefs are still firmly rooted in [relatively] laissez faire capitalism. That said, nowadays I care a lot more about the well-being of 'society' relative to the well-being of those who succeed in life*.

I'm more socially liberal than either mainstream political party. Janet's tittay? Hot Coffee? Who cares? Neither deserves the attention (in time or money) of the government. They are matters for individual citizens to handle: each person in his own way.

I think that mainstream media is a sham, free trade should be a policy priority, and that the last decent lawyers on this planet are those affiliated with the EFF**.

None of these opinions are strange for a 23 year old. They are, however, pretty odd for a 23 year old who, when younger, had beliefs more in line with a 73 year old. This is a pretty random post, but hey, I have a pretty random mind. My apologies.
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*Before, I would congratulate the Waltons on their accomplishments and carry on with my life. Now, I congratulate them while also choosing to spend my money elsewhere; I don't want to support a company that is slowly [but surely] monopolizing retail sales and employment in Small Town America.
**Seriously, check them out. They're fighting to stop the violations of your rights that you don't hear about on the evening news (and never will, because the companies that own the newsmedia are often the ones at fault! -there's my tinfoil hat comment for the day).

Jesus @ work: kosher or no?

A very strange thing happened to me recently. As I was about to leave my then-current job, a coworker mentioned via email that it was too bad we didn't get to work together more and know each other better. Clearly, that's not the weird part. The weird part was the sentence that followed: "Did not get a chance to ask you if you knew Christ."

I'll admit, it made me a little uncomfortable. Maybe even more than just a little. Honestly, I don't even know what else to write. Help me out, would ya?

Who's the weird one here? Me, for being taken aback at the question, or him, for asking it?

Video Games != Teh Devil

I'm sick and tired of the stigma that older adults and the mainstream media have given to video games.

1) Video games are antisocial.
This is a load of hooey. I've played [at least] a couple hundred hours of Halo and Halo 2. Probably 75% of it has been with other people. Socially-speaking, it's no different than playing cards, shooting hoops, or any other "normal" thing that people do together; it's a way to compete with your friends and shoot the breeze at the same time. It's certainly a step or two above watching a movie, where you sit next to each other in silence* for two hours.

2) Video games + normal kid == Columbine.
This is the result of news companies wanting headlines and parents wanting somebody else to blame. Yes, future murderers are probably more likely than average to enjoy violent video games. That's correlation, not causation. I've also heard that most overweight kids wear large sizes of clothing. Hurry up and ban the XL size, it's making American kids into fatties!! People like Jack Thompson, the leader of a whole new breed of lawyer scum, should be disbarred and forced to live in a place like Somalia (or today's urban Iraq) for a while to learn what real violence is, and how video games are just that - games.
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*If you're not watching in silence, you're pissing me off. Shut up, please. Thanks. :)