loveisgreaterthan[dot]com

mine is omnipotent yellow…

<facepalm>

[h/t - digg]

guys wearing girls jeans

that stupid male haircut where hair covers half the face

acting as if the world owes them something.

“emo” music

these are just a few things i loathe about generation y… the generation i missed by one year (and am so happy to be able to say that). some people would still say that i’m a part of the y generation, and if so… well then consider this my legal divorce.

the cultural impact of generation y, may not be seen for a few years yet, but i can’t imagine it being anything good when it comes to things such as music, movies, art, television. there is an incredible article on this at pointlessbanter.net, here is just a short snippet:

Most of the criticisms of Gen Y are that they are distracted (always multitasking but never doing a good job), feel a sense of entitlement, they are the most marketed to generation ever (not only do they accept it, they relish in it), and there is a gaping void when it comes to cultural contributions…. Gen Y’s music can be defined as wholly unoriginal and the band Fall Out Boy personifies it. They aren’t original enough to come up with their own video concepts; they have to adapt stuff that was created by the generation before them. Their pop music is prepackaged Disney stars that are created by a massive marketing machine. There is no real movement here, mostly co-opting the culture of the previous two generations.

i’ve posted about this before… but it’s become so important, that i feel a rehash is absolutely necessary. it’s a pet-peeve of mine, so of course i am a bit biased.

YOU FORFEIT YOUR RIGHTS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT GAS PRICES IF YOU DO ANY OF THE FOLLOWING

• drive a hummer to “look cool”
• drive an suv for a family less than two
• drive fifteen miles over the speed limit
• drive with a lead foot
• insist on passing people, only to have to stop at a red light five hundred feet ahead of you
• don’t take the initiative to leave a little early and drive a little slower

these, are just a few. far be it for me to come here and call people morons without giving some sort of advice on how to change, so here are some tips on how to conserve quite a bit of gas, taken from the philadelphia inquirer:

Take your foot off the gas and coast to that red light. When the light turns green, go easy on the gas pedal. On the highway, set the cruise control to the speed limit - maybe even a little lower, if you dare.

these few tips are absolute murder on other drivers who are morons. to be honest, it’s actually kind of fun to count how many people give me the finger on the way to work. i don’t drive like your grandma, i drive slower than her. on city streets, i drive no faster than the speed limit, i take forever to get up to speed, and i take my foot of the pedal if i can see a red light ahead. coasting is key. you have to understand that you use the most gas accelerating, so therefore if you can reduce the amount of acceleration you must use in your vehicle you can significantly reduce your fuel usage. this requires timing, slowing down earlier is so important. and you can laugh your way all the way to the red light as people insist on passing you, only to have to stop.

now, the expressway is a totally different story. here in ohio the speed limit on our expressways is sixty-five miles per hour. i set my cruise control at sixty. i have somewhat of an advantage, driving a prius that has a real-time mpg monitor. this allows me to monitor the “sweet spots” for mileage, and i have found sixty to be the best expressway speed for my car. for a prius that gets better mileage in the city than on the expressway, this is very important. i don’t care if it bugs people behind me… pass me all you want. i’m laughing all the way to the pump, and bank.

you must all understand something, the faster you go, the more rpm’s your engine is making. the more rpm’s, the more gas it’s using. i’ve read a number of places that estimate for every ten miles an hour you go over sixty, you’re losing an average of four miles per gallon. do the math, that adds up.

here’s some resources if you’re interested on how to get the most out of your car. no matter what you currently drive, you can take steps to help reduce your fuel usage NOW. whether you drive a prius, sedan, suv or hummer… you can start saving money today.

http://www.hypermiling.com/
http://www.ecodrive.org/
http://www.cleanmpg.com/
cnn money article

ignorance, is another one of my pet-peeves. i downright loathe ignorant people. the problem is multiplied when it’s ignorant christians.

this is quite possibly the most ridiculous thing i have ever seen. found on the collide blog, which found it through vh1’s “best week ever” blog, this is a press release sent out from a baptist church in topeka, kansas. read it at your own peril…

i’m a facebook addict.

there, i said it. *deep breath* i feel much better to have that weight off my shoulders.

the interesting thing about facebook, is that even though it is truly a very watered down sense of community, it allows you to know certain things about people that you may have otherwise not taken the time to know. you know, just the stupid things like what they thought about the movie “transformers,” their third favorite song of all time… stupid things like that.

the other day, i noticed a few of my friends joining a facebook group called “boycott the golden compass movie!!!!” i didn’t think much of it at the time, other than the usual “that’s silly” casual thought, but then i saw on the news yesterday all the uproar about the movie in christian circles. this prompted me (and the discussion from my politics posts) to start a new series on the blog. the first of which, will coincide with what started this whole thought process.

5.) i can’t stand when christians formally “boycott” just about anything. especially those things outside the walls of our church.

here’s my reasoning; first and foremost, does it do an ounce of good? even a gram? is anyone really going to not go see that movie who wasn’t already not going to see it because you are joining a facebook group, or any other sort of formal group? however, on the flip side, will it make non-believers think christians are being judgmental, and even a little hypocritical (more on this in a moment) to be boycotting the film? will it hurt or hinder the cause of christ to be formally boycotting anything?

as far as boycotting goes… it’s one thing to make a personal choice that you do not want to support something. it’s entirely different when you start proclaiming to the world the evils of a movie that doesn’t agree with what you believe. let me say this, would jesus be boycotting the golden compass? i certainly don’t think he would be. i like to think that he would be out there in the theater with some friends or strangers, and answering some questions afterwards. isn’t that a much better use of our time and efforts?

the reason i bring up hypocrisy, is why is there such a problem with an anti-god movie? we have plenty of spiritually influenced movies and media out there. why stop at this movie? should i boycott will & grace because there’s gay people in it? we as christians want to be free to express our opinions to the free world, why wouldn’t we allow the same freedoms to those outside of our faith? i think it’s absolutely ridiculous to expect anything less.

and so what if the movies are “specifically targeted towards children.” kids are going to learn all kinds of things in life that will make them question whether or not god exists. i question my faith on a regular basis. i don’t believe it’s our job to “shelter” anyone.

listen, the bigger picture here is that i wonder why we as christians (myself included), spend so much time and energy all bunged up about things that really aren’t that important in the end, when we can’t even get something as simple as “love your neighbor” right.

i say we start with that.

I purchased the Sprint Mogul phone yesterday. That should come as no surprise, as I have been talking about it here for a few days. It’s a great little phone. I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of what it’s capable of, and I’m already impressed. Having SlingPlayer installed on it and hooked up to my SlingBox at home is a big plus too though.

Today, Ryanne and I went out with my parents to the MacQueen’s Orchard Apple Butter Festival. Afterwards, we went to a garage sale, then lunch at CiCi’s Pizza, then a new outdoor shopping center; The Shops at Fort Meigs in Maumee. After all that… we headed to Church. I rocked out the camera on the Mogul most of the day, and while the picture quality is nothing to write home about, it’s not horrible either. Here are some observations from my day:

What is the world coming to… first designer clothing, then designer handbags, designer sunglasses (more on this in a moment), designer watches, designer jewelry… now we have designer babies? I know it’s hard to tell from the photo, but that is a “Baby GAP” store. How completely absurd.

Ryanne absolutely owning some festival food. They cut a whole potato into one huge spiral, deep fry the sucker, then cover it with melted cheese product. It just HAS to be good for you… right?

Alright next, is a phenomenon happening that must be stopped at all costs. While at the Shops at Fort Meigs, I noticed a lot of women wearing the most absurd fashion oddity I’ve ever seen… When is the backlash going to happen against those ridiculously large sunglasses that women insist on wearing? I’m seriously curious when the women of the world that wear them for very little (if any) reason other than they are what’s “in-style” right now will all wake up and realize “wow… I look like a freakin’ idiot in these.” Seriously… ladies… they make you look like a big ugly bug. There is nothing, not a darn thing at all, attractive about them. They aren’t even neutral, they really make you look stupid.

Finally, Jason Smithers snapped a shot this evening at Church, Kyle and Phil trying to look pimp. Did they succeed? You be the judge…

With what I’m about to write, I feel that I need to remind everyone to look at the “Author & Disclaimer” area in the right menu-bar of this site. Pay special attention that my views here are completely mine, and by no means represent my employer(s), family, or friends… even though sometimes I wish it did.

A political post from me is long, long overdue. It’s been a long time since I’ve entered into the fray of politics here on my blog. First, let me update you all on where I’m currently standing:

• I am still a registered democrat.
• I still consider myself a liberal progressive democrat.
• I still believe in global warming.
• I still believe humans are playing a part in global warming.
• I still recycle, own a prius, use cfl bulbs, and like Al Gore.
• I still think Ann Coulter is a vile, ridiculous woman.
• I still don’t like Focus on the Family, or James Dobson.
• If the 2008 election was today, I’d still be voting for John Edwards.
• I still secretly hope Al Gore will enter the race.
• I wouldn’t be sad if it was Obama vs. random republican though.
• I still don’t think any republican has a chance in 2008.

Ok, on to what I really wanted to type about…

I didn’t watch the Emmy’s. So I can’t speak firsthand about anything, other than of course what I’ve seen on YouTube. It seems like two distinct things happened during the Emmy’s, and the internets are absolutely blowing up about at least one of these things.

Everywhere I’ve turned on the internet over the course of the last few days (and keep in mind, I’m a democrat, so I seldom frequent Fox Noise Faux News, or any other right wing news sites) and all I’m seeing is people absolutely livid over Sally Field’s emotional acceptance speech where she spoke out against Dubya and the Iraq war. (By the way, the author of the article linked, Michelle Malkin, is right up there with Ann Coulter on my list of right wing nutjobs.)

The other event at the Emmy’s, I’ve definitely heard about, but only in person, speaking with other people around my work. This event happened when Kathy Griffin made rather rude remarks during her acceptance speech, and even told God to “suck the big one” or something to that affect.

My question, is where the frick are our priorities? No joke, I’ve seen no less than three blogs in my Google Reader written by Christians that are rather livid about Sally Field, but not a single mention of Kathy Griffin. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not in the least offended by what Kathy Griffin said… she is obviously not a Christian, therefore it is not my place to judge her. That being said, maybe that’s why nobody else is really talking about it… but I really doubt it.

No, instead I think that people would rather attack someone for an opinion that is different than ours. Especially when it’s coming from someone we immediately believe has a unqualified opinion because they are in the entertainment business. It’s as if just because they are in some way associated with the entertainment industry, their opinion no longer counts. That really bugs me about republicans… most of the ones I know believe that musicians and actors should keep their mouth shut about politics… as if politicians are the only ones allowed to have opinions. It’s so easy to forget that this country (for better or for worse) was built on the idea of being able to have open and honest debates. It is not only our right to question our leaders, as Americans it’s our duty. That, is what our country is founded on.

Which is why, for the life of me I cannot understand people who blindly get behind a leader “so nervous in an obvious way” (Linkin Park - Hands Held High) for very little reason other than he claims to be a “God-fearing Christian.” Listen, it’s one thing to stick to your ideals about abortion, gay marriage, homeland security, blah blah blah… it’s quite another thing to have your head stuck in the sand. I especially hate it when people start voicing their opinions and preface it with “I don’t read/watch/listen to the news, but…” How can you make an informed opinion when all you know is through hearsay? I’m not an idiot, I’m well aware of the fact that different stations have different political slants (Fox is very obviously a right-wing news channel, CNN is quite liberal, MSNBC is usually one of the more middle-of-the-road), but I would say that only a fool spouts off opinions without at all being informed.

And yes, sometimes even I am awfully foolish.

I cannot wait until 2008. No matter which Democrat becomes President (even though I’m not a huge fan of HIllary), a change is just what this country needs. I cannot even listen to Dubya speak anymore without my blood boiling.

“when the rich wage war, it’s the poor who die.”