So executives from Citibank went to congress and made a public apology for fucking everyone. Seems like a nice sentiment, albeit pointless, not unlike when a murderer expresses remorse. "I'm glad you've finally realized it was wrong of you to stab my husband to death, but 'sorry' won't make love to me or take a dog for a walk."
If that's how you approach the recent apologies from Citibank or Toyota, you're being naïve. You're underestimating these fuckers. These people knew that they were selling people goods and services that were harming everyone, yet they kept their mouths shut in favor of massive wealth.
Do you really think they're saying "I'm sorry" now because they can't sleep at night? Bullshit. They have everything they could possibly want. Well, not quite. See, here's the thing about people that fucking greedy: they will always want more.
They're forcing up apologies so they can remain in their jobs and continue to acquire more and more. That's the only motive. Don't buy into their bullshit.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
An e-mail I sent to Parker Griffith
Dear Mr. Griffith,
I received your pamphlet with survey questions and would love to give you my answers via e-mail, as the USPS is an outdated form of communication in today's society. However, I should begin by mentioning that none of your questions can be answered by merely checking a "yes" or a "no". As a fellow human being, I'm sure you can understand the complexity of these issues and my need to delve deeper.
"1. Do you support adding nearly a trillion dollars to the national debt to provide health insurance to the uninsured in order to establish government-run health care for everybody?"
To start with, there are a few statements in this question that seem, to me, to result in a loaded question.
First and foremost, the "nearly a trillion dollars" is neither specific nor entirely truthful. The current plans put forth in both the House and the Senate vary in total cost, and both bills are almost entirely paid for by cutting waste and making programs run more efficiently. Yes, there is a temporary increase in spending while the programs get started, but this figure is not remotely "nearly a trillion dollars"
Secondly, nowhere in either bill does the federal government suddenly "run health care for everybody." The bill that includes a public option is simply that: an option.
In short, my answer is that I support the bill passed by the House, and hope to see a final bill that most-resembles that one.
"2. What is your biggest concern about the health care package?
More debt____
More government intrusion_______
Taxpayer funding of abortion_____
Other__________"
Again, this is a loaded question, but I feel I've covered this enough above. My biggest concern is that you and your colleagues will allow partisan politics to get in the way of passing this bill. I work in a pharmacy, so I run into problems with insurance on a daily basis. There is nothing more heart-wrenching than watching a person pass up taking needed medication because he/she either does not have insurance, or his/her insurance decides they will not cover that particular drug. It would take someone truly out-of-touch with humanity to encounter this regularly and not want things to change.
"3. Do you support personal and business tax cuts to spur economic growth?"
I do, but only if these said tax cuts come with strings. The tax cuts MUST be used to create jobs. I believe that the majority of companies want to do right by their employees, but a majority does not equal 100%. Tax cuts should be given to companies who create jobs in this country, as a reward for being part of the solution.
"4. Do you support the deployment of a missile defense system to protect all the citizens of the United States of America?"
I know what you're really asking here is do we want federal contracts to go to our scientists here in northern Alabama. We certainly do have some of the best scientific and engineering minds here at NASA, on the Arsenal, and at various private engineering companies in the area. However, given the tough economy we are in, money needs to be spent wisely.
Once we have developed a system that we know will work, its deployment will have my full support. We've yet to reach that point. Right now the focus must be on research.
Furthermore, spending money on space travel is currently a wasted expense.
Don't get me wrong, the brilliant minds we have here should remain hard at work solving the problems our society faces, but they need to be focused on more pressing issues. There is not a single problem that Madison County cannot solve. I hope that you and your colleagues can point them in the right directions.
I hope my answers help you to make decisions to represent our district on the national level. I will say that as someone who voted for you in 2008, I have been highly disappointed that the promises you've made have not been delivered on. In many cases it seems your opinions have completely changed over the past two years. I sincerely hope that this is the result of honestly changed opinions and not a political strategy.
I eagerly await your reply. The best solutions come from open discussion of the issues at hand.
Sincerely,
Jeff Nurenberg
I received your pamphlet with survey questions and would love to give you my answers via e-mail, as the USPS is an outdated form of communication in today's society. However, I should begin by mentioning that none of your questions can be answered by merely checking a "yes" or a "no". As a fellow human being, I'm sure you can understand the complexity of these issues and my need to delve deeper.
"1. Do you support adding nearly a trillion dollars to the national debt to provide health insurance to the uninsured in order to establish government-run health care for everybody?"
To start with, there are a few statements in this question that seem, to me, to result in a loaded question.
First and foremost, the "nearly a trillion dollars" is neither specific nor entirely truthful. The current plans put forth in both the House and the Senate vary in total cost, and both bills are almost entirely paid for by cutting waste and making programs run more efficiently. Yes, there is a temporary increase in spending while the programs get started, but this figure is not remotely "nearly a trillion dollars"
Secondly, nowhere in either bill does the federal government suddenly "run health care for everybody." The bill that includes a public option is simply that: an option.
In short, my answer is that I support the bill passed by the House, and hope to see a final bill that most-resembles that one.
"2. What is your biggest concern about the health care package?
More debt____
More government intrusion_______
Taxpayer funding of abortion_____
Other__________"
Again, this is a loaded question, but I feel I've covered this enough above. My biggest concern is that you and your colleagues will allow partisan politics to get in the way of passing this bill. I work in a pharmacy, so I run into problems with insurance on a daily basis. There is nothing more heart-wrenching than watching a person pass up taking needed medication because he/she either does not have insurance, or his/her insurance decides they will not cover that particular drug. It would take someone truly out-of-touch with humanity to encounter this regularly and not want things to change.
"3. Do you support personal and business tax cuts to spur economic growth?"
I do, but only if these said tax cuts come with strings. The tax cuts MUST be used to create jobs. I believe that the majority of companies want to do right by their employees, but a majority does not equal 100%. Tax cuts should be given to companies who create jobs in this country, as a reward for being part of the solution.
"4. Do you support the deployment of a missile defense system to protect all the citizens of the United States of America?"
I know what you're really asking here is do we want federal contracts to go to our scientists here in northern Alabama. We certainly do have some of the best scientific and engineering minds here at NASA, on the Arsenal, and at various private engineering companies in the area. However, given the tough economy we are in, money needs to be spent wisely.
Once we have developed a system that we know will work, its deployment will have my full support. We've yet to reach that point. Right now the focus must be on research.
Furthermore, spending money on space travel is currently a wasted expense.
Don't get me wrong, the brilliant minds we have here should remain hard at work solving the problems our society faces, but they need to be focused on more pressing issues. There is not a single problem that Madison County cannot solve. I hope that you and your colleagues can point them in the right directions.
I hope my answers help you to make decisions to represent our district on the national level. I will say that as someone who voted for you in 2008, I have been highly disappointed that the promises you've made have not been delivered on. In many cases it seems your opinions have completely changed over the past two years. I sincerely hope that this is the result of honestly changed opinions and not a political strategy.
I eagerly await your reply. The best solutions come from open discussion of the issues at hand.
Sincerely,
Jeff Nurenberg
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Best Albums Of 2009
I know, I know. It's been months since I've done anything here. Let's pretend I was busy doing other things and it wasn't because we bought a Playstation 3. Deal? Deal.
Anyway, here's my list of the 10 best albums from the past year. You can now replace whatever shit you've been listening to previously, listen to strictly this list, and tell your ears they're welcome.
Anyway, here's my list of the 10 best albums from the past year. You can now replace whatever shit you've been listening to previously, listen to strictly this list, and tell your ears they're welcome.
________________________
10
Shook Ones - The Unquotable A.M.H.
This melodic hardcore band known previously as more or less a Kid Dynamite tribute band finally branched their sound out with this release, and the result was fantastic. Blistering fast, angry punk, with a pop sensibility not usually found in hardcore.
________________________
9
Chuck Ragan - Gold Country
For his sophomore full length, Mr. Ragan took his brand of roots country/folk with a punk rock energy to new lengths. He branched his sound to encompass much more country and bluegrass this time around. While each song displays one of a wide array of sounds, each is truly catchy and helps makes this album his most accessible and cohesive.
________________________
8
Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown
What can I possibly say about this you don't already know? It's not their best, but it's still Green Day and unlike a few other bands (ahem, Weezer), that still counts for something. Musically it's better than American Idiot. Lyrically, about the same, maybe slightly worse. Again, it's not Warning or anything they did from the 90s, but it's Green Day. Count it.
________________________
7
Propagandhi - Supporting Caste
Propagandhi release their first album in years and it ends up being the perfect combination of everything this band is good at: insane hardcore, brilliantly witty and intelligent lyrics, and Chris Hannah's fantastic vocals. They also upped the melody on this, which is a nice touch.
________________________
6
Strike Anywhere - Iron Front
This is Strike Anywhere's best album, by far. It's a perfect mix of fast punk, catchy melodies, and anthemic sing-a-longs.
________________________
5
Frank Turner - Poetry of the Deed
I was a little late getting into Frank Turner, so this album blew me away. It's folk/country with a punk energy and fantastic melodies. You'll want to sing along with every song here.
________________________
4
Fake Problems - It's Great To Be Alive
Fake Problems started as a folk-punk band, and a damn good one at that. With It's Great To Be Alive, they've added some indie and even some disco. At times this sounds like Modest Mouse meets Against Me!, meets...something dance-y. It's weird as fuck, but it works. It works really well. Truly an album with something for everyone.
________________________
3
Bomb The Music Industry! - Scrambles
Bomb The Music Industry! is a music "collective" featuring one man, Jeff Rosenstock, and a rotating group of his friends and fellow musicians who contribute when needed. It's punk, it's ska, it's electronica, it's acoustic, but above all else, it's insanely good. Hands down the best lyricist in music right now, Rosenstock's writing is equal parts witty, cynical, critical, and hilarious. The music is at times downright strange, but it's always infectious and catchy. Besides the fact that any of these songs are deserving of your hard-earned cash, Rosenstock gives all his music away for free download via Quote Unquote Records, asking for donations where you see fit. But buy the CD from Asian Man Records. He deserves it.
________________________
2
Nothington - Roads, Bridges and Ruins
Nothington's debut, All In, was one of my favorite albums of 2007. It was a great mix of punk and southern rock. With this album, they've toned down the southern rock, but the songwriting, melodies, and vocals are some of the best I've heard in a long time. The first time I listened to this album, I ended up listening to it over and over non-stop for 3 days. All I can hope for in the future with this band is more implementation of dueling vocals in songs, as everyone in this band has a great voice.
________________________
1
The Swellers - Ups and Downsizing
It's truly been amazing watching what this band has accomplished in their first 7 years of existence. From tiny shows while we were all still in high school, to signing a major recording contract and touring with one of the biggest bands in the world, I'm so proud of them. With this album, they've proven what all the fuss is about. Not since Green Day's Dookie in 1994 has an album been this refreshing. This is the call to arms for the new generation of pop-punk. I'm saying it now, The Swellers are the future of rock and roll. They're the hardest-working and nicest people in music, and they also happen to have the best songs.
All the album covers were captured from the nice people at Punknews.Org, the only place you should get your music news.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Upgrade NOW for the latest features!
Incase it wasn't already clear, let me say right now that the FDA is useless. This beurocratic organization has been in the pocket of the food industry for years, doing only the bare-minimum (if that) when public outcry becomes too loud. The latest example (and possibly one of the most dangerous and least known) is their handling of trans fat.
I'm not a scientist, so I'll refrain from getting overly technical in my explanation. Trans fats were developed in the early 1900s using a process called hydrogenation. Long story short they came up with things like margarine and Crisco, forever changing the food industry. In the early 1990s, scientists started discovering that maybe (just maybe) trans fats might be pretty bad for us. More and more research started coming in showing this to be true, but even though people started to learn about this, there was no way to tell whether a food contained trans fat. Nutrition labels would simply tell you the amount of total fat, and the amount of that total which was saturated. Then, in 2006, the FDA finally required food labels to distinguish all types of fats found in a product. The public hailed it as a victory for healthy eating. What the FDA tried their best to keep secret (from us, not from the food companies) is that if the amount of trans fat in a serving of food was less than 0.5g it can be reported as zero, even if it's 0.49g. As such, many companies have lessened the amount of trans fat they use so that it's just under 0.5g. Some companies have even simply changed their serving size without actually changing their products. Many of the foods you see which claim to be "trans fat free" are - in fact - not.
I'm not a scientist, so I'll refrain from getting overly technical in my explanation. Trans fats were developed in the early 1900s using a process called hydrogenation. Long story short they came up with things like margarine and Crisco, forever changing the food industry. In the early 1990s, scientists started discovering that maybe (just maybe) trans fats might be pretty bad for us. More and more research started coming in showing this to be true, but even though people started to learn about this, there was no way to tell whether a food contained trans fat. Nutrition labels would simply tell you the amount of total fat, and the amount of that total which was saturated. Then, in 2006, the FDA finally required food labels to distinguish all types of fats found in a product. The public hailed it as a victory for healthy eating. What the FDA tried their best to keep secret (from us, not from the food companies) is that if the amount of trans fat in a serving of food was less than 0.5g it can be reported as zero, even if it's 0.49g. As such, many companies have lessened the amount of trans fat they use so that it's just under 0.5g. Some companies have even simply changed their serving size without actually changing their products. Many of the foods you see which claim to be "trans fat free" are - in fact - not.
Does this really matter though? How bad can they be? What's so bad about consuming trace amounts?
Recent studies have shown that 1 gram of trans fat can be 15 times more likely to lead to Coronary Heart Disease than 1 gram of saturated fat (incase you're in the dark, saturated fat is commonly known as the "bad fat" and the one that will kill you if you eat too much of it). The American Heart Association recommends you consume less than two grams of trans fat per day, and even that figure seems high to many people. Think about it: if you're eating foods with 0.5g per serving, it only takes 4 servings in a day to reach your limit. If you're eating a food that reduced its serving size without the food being changed, you're probably still eating the old serving size.
Trans fat is a poison, and a potent one at that. Luckily, there is a way to avoid them - look at the ingredients list on any foods you eat. If the ingredients contain "partially hydrogenated oils" or "shortening", that means it does still contain "trace amounts" (if you follow the FDA's definitions) of trans fat.
In the few days since I came across this information, we've scoured through everything in our kitchen, removing any offenders. We only came across one in our kitchen, but it came as a surprise to us: Coffeemate Brand coffee creamers. This popular brand of creamer also goes out of its way to advertise being trans fat-free on the front of its label. As such, we've switched to International Delight.
You should go through your kitchens as well. Also, if you still use margarine or butter, I strongly suggest you switch to one of the brands like Smart Balance. It might be a little more expensive than the regular stuff, but it's worth it.
There's little chance the FDA will change this policy anytime soon, so the best thing we can all do is spread the word and do our best to take responsibility for our health. I don't know about you, but even a trace amount of a poison is more than I want.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
No Activation Fee!
Today I observed something that happens daily in the pharmacy, and never seems to be acknowledged. Two people, both with insurance, bought the same amount of the same drug. One person's co-pay was $9 for it. The other person's co-pay was $256.13. Only one of them left the pharmacy with their prescription, though they both needed it. They both had their (drastically different) policies through the same insurance provider: Blue Cross, Blue Shield (BCBS does 95% of insurance business in AL. My insurance is with them as well, and my policy more closely resembles the second person. I wouldn't go a day without it, even though it's just slightly more useful than treating disease with injections of infant feces).
I understand how and why insurance companies make decisions about who qualifies for a treatment and how much they should pay. BCBS is a business trying to make a profit. All of this makes sense. That said, it's completely and totally wrong.
It does not matter how much money someone makes or how successful/powerful they are. When it comes to our health, any industry that decides (directly or indirectly) that one person's life is more important than another's is wrong and should not exist.
The ability to treat a person's health is a right that should exist to any human being. Today, at least one person left our pharmacy without a prescription they needed to keep their health where it should be, and this person has health insurance they pay dearly for each month. Something has to change.
- Jeff
I understand how and why insurance companies make decisions about who qualifies for a treatment and how much they should pay. BCBS is a business trying to make a profit. All of this makes sense. That said, it's completely and totally wrong.
It does not matter how much money someone makes or how successful/powerful they are. When it comes to our health, any industry that decides (directly or indirectly) that one person's life is more important than another's is wrong and should not exist.
The ability to treat a person's health is a right that should exist to any human being. Today, at least one person left our pharmacy without a prescription they needed to keep their health where it should be, and this person has health insurance they pay dearly for each month. Something has to change.
- Jeff
Friday, October 2, 2009
Yours free, with 3 easy payments of $19.99
Coming Soon:
Clown & Cheese
Ferret & Football
Dining & Deer Hunter
Audio & Airplanes
Got an idea for another great magazine along these lines? Leave it in the comments.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
A Brief Interruption
Well that was a nice week+ vacation. What did everyone do with their time off?
Since laziness prompted me to skip an entire week, I'll take this as an opportunity to give some answers to questions I've received about this little blog.
1. The Titles
The titles to my entries are typically some sort of slogan or phrase I find on a product or in an ad. These are usually picked by what I find to be the most annoying. (Also of note: I'm very forgetful, so when I do come across a good one to use, I save a draft of an empty entry with the title for use later. I see it as recognizing and adapting to my flaws. Yes, even I have flaws. Sometimes)
2. "Loyal Blogolists"
Loyal Blogolists are anyone who reads this regularly. Now that my parents have joined the group, I think that brings the total to 2? (Hi Mom and Dad!)
3. Topic Choices
A few people have asked me how I come up with topics to write about here, and why it varies so widely between politics, my own life, and various others. For the most part, it's just whatever I happen to be thinking about at the time. My goal with this is to keep it entertaining and enjoyable, regardless of topic. Hopefully if you're reading this, I'm pulling that off. If not, you have bigger problems I don't feel comfortable trying to tackle.
There are a few more I'll answer at a different time. Right now I must be off.
If you have any questions, want to talk, or want to dish out some destructive criticism, hit me up at Twitter (@stylson), Facebook (facebook.com/stylson), or by email at jeff@stylsonrecords.com. (If you send me a friend request, put a note on it, or I'll probably ignore you). Cheers!
- Jeff
Since laziness prompted me to skip an entire week, I'll take this as an opportunity to give some answers to questions I've received about this little blog.
1. The Titles
The titles to my entries are typically some sort of slogan or phrase I find on a product or in an ad. These are usually picked by what I find to be the most annoying. (Also of note: I'm very forgetful, so when I do come across a good one to use, I save a draft of an empty entry with the title for use later. I see it as recognizing and adapting to my flaws. Yes, even I have flaws. Sometimes)
2. "Loyal Blogolists"
Loyal Blogolists are anyone who reads this regularly. Now that my parents have joined the group, I think that brings the total to 2? (Hi Mom and Dad!)
3. Topic Choices
A few people have asked me how I come up with topics to write about here, and why it varies so widely between politics, my own life, and various others. For the most part, it's just whatever I happen to be thinking about at the time. My goal with this is to keep it entertaining and enjoyable, regardless of topic. Hopefully if you're reading this, I'm pulling that off. If not, you have bigger problems I don't feel comfortable trying to tackle.
There are a few more I'll answer at a different time. Right now I must be off.
If you have any questions, want to talk, or want to dish out some destructive criticism, hit me up at Twitter (@stylson), Facebook (facebook.com/stylson), or by email at jeff@stylsonrecords.com. (If you send me a friend request, put a note on it, or I'll probably ignore you). Cheers!
- Jeff
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