Sotomayor/Obama Rant

We shouldn't elect somebody based on their biography. Would you want your surgeon to be somebody who was hired based on their biography or their ability? Sotomayor is playing the Latina card. And Obama, who was also elected based on his biography, loves to use it.

*Portions of this rant come courtesy of Jack O'Brien.

My Defense of Wearing Nike Sneakers

Phil Knight is no longer the CEO and labor conditions possibly have improved in the past decade, but these aren't reasons why I have chosen to wear Nike sneakers. I have chosen to wear Nike sneakers because I know that I won't be a serf to the Nike brand. I know I won't be enslaved under all things Nike. It's just a comfortable sneaker and while I do feel slightly ashamed that I am "endorsing" a product that was the work of a third world economic sweatshop block, I don't think I should be spited. The sneaks were only $45.

Rant on WHDH Weather

Seriously. I've been following the forecast for Monday (May 4) since last Wednesday. Every single day's forecast up until yesterday's went along the lines of something like this: mostly sunny with a few clouds. Now, all of a sudden, that's changed to cloudy with periods of rain. First of all, stop predicting the weather... you are useless! If you can't get it right at least five days in advance, you might as well quit your job. You are getting people's hopes up and not following through. I love how on your blog you brush it off like it's nothing. Yeah, that's you Jeremy Weiner.

Exposé: Wakefield Item Has Terrible Website

So you switch to a pretty neat little tabloid style newspaper that has been lauded by Wakefield's finest. But you can't manage to create a decent website? Print journalism is becoming obsolete and rightly so: I throw away my newspaper when I am done reading it. It has no long-term or immediate value. I can reference it, but only for a short period of time. That's why I think the Wakefield Item needs to get its website up and running. People will visit it. It won't generate any extra revenue (unless the WI sells ads), but it's a direction that most local media companies are turning in.

Quote of the Day (1/2/08)

"You don't realize what you could be getting yourselves into, with Fall Out Boy, and what kind of impact it could have in a way that you don't really want. ... Culturally, if it gets as big as it is in America, it could change an entire generation of people growing up here. Emo, pop-punk, whatever you want to call it, is dangerous. We don't wanna dislike anyone, and we've still never met Fall Out Boy, but there's a creature inside me that wants to beat all those bands to death. They just all go into the happy emo funnel and everyone loves 'em without thinking. 'Oh, Fall Out Boy likes you? Fuck! I'm gonna go buy your CD!'" - Brandon Flowers of The Killers via NME

I'm not too keen on The Killers, but Flowers brings up a great point.

A Rant On "All The Pretty Horses"

Since I'm a major procrastinator, I didn't feel like starting my All the Pretty Horses essay early. Instead, I penned a rant on the novel. Here it is:

In one of the most poorly written novels of all time, Cormac McCarthy describes characters in great detail, but fails to depict their adventures in a tone rousing to readers. McCarthy overuses motifs to the point where the reader is besieged beyond belief. Corm Corm, we know you are adept and stylistic in incorporating blood, skulls, landscapes, and wait for it – horses. Born in Tennessee, the best you could do was presume what life in the south was like. Your stereotypical portrayal of the culture is derisory at best. You thought you were too good for college so you didn’t even finish. Your whole trying to one-up the world needs to end. We all know Albert Erskine is the brain child behind all of your work. It wouldn’t be the least bit surprising if Erskine, an old time Faulkner editor, penned All the Pretty Horses, but you wanted to take credit for it to boost your unbounded self-worth. Why don’t you give interviews, Corm? Because you don’t write your books, maybe? Loner. You don’t even know traditional punctuation rules. An English 101 class would have helped, Einstein, wouldn’t it have? Don’t give me your “well, I did it on purpose” crap. No, you didn’t. Punctuation rules aren’t included in a thesaurus, bud. Your extensive use of vocabulary is done to make the reader feel brainless. Couple that with your long sentences and you have succeeded in that regard. Don’t you feel special now Cormac? Don’t cha? Oh yeah and Spanish? An Irishman trying to speak Spanish. Wow. English-to-Spanish dictionary much? There’s minimal dialogue because you thought rambling was preferable in order to make you sound better. In sum, you need to retire. You already amassed a fortune writing books about the Old South. You are profiting off of reader stupidity. So called intellectuals who read your book should be ashamed if they can’t realize your wretched attempt at good writing.

Foreign Language/Writing

I will allege, right here, right now, that learning a foreign language is a powerful tool for global communication. I'm probably the thousandth person (but only the ninth kid) to put forth such a claim, but you know, I have my reasons. I'm not suggesting you should travel to France, to Spain, to Italy, to China, or wherever your learned foreign language is predominately spoken. I am, inversely, proposing that you involve your chosen language and its parameters more often in daily communication. What do I mean? Speak to your friends in a foreign language. This will initiate curiousity and it might work out for the best...especially if you mispronounce or incorrectly state something. Secondly, listen to foreign music. We've all memorized, at one point or another, an English language song. Be it rap, rock, jazz, or even the eccentricity we call outsider music, give it a try. You might like it. I never heard "french music" until sophomore year and I don't regret downloading (legal concern or otherwise) french music. A few bands like La Rue Ketanou and Les Cowboys Fringants really struck a chord with me (ha the pun!). By the way, I think that I am a pretty advanced writer; however, I am always interested in finding ways to improve via adding little quirks that increase reader interest. Puns, sayings, and anything that engages the reader is fun. That's all I have for now. Thanks.

A Rant On Public Schooling

School sucks. Don't think that I say that because I don't like it or anything. It really does suck. Where is the structure? They say we should take math, science, English, social studies, and a foreign language. We ought to be allowed to choose what books we want to read and what courses we want to take. We should be able to pick our major as a freshman and take courses relevant to that major so that when we arrive at college we aren't scatterfucked with information that is unfamiliar to us. Math is cool, but it depends on the subject matter. Take  geometry and algebra, for example. Most of the bologna learned in these classes does not come back in any way, shape or form save an SAT or similar standardized test. Once you get to pre-calculus, you are trained to believe that what you are doing has some kind of real world value. It doesn't. I can't really speak for calculus, because I am not taking Advanced Placement, but what we've done in honors is just algebra with a few caveats. Statistics is an excellent class that is the most reasonable "math" that I've scene. You systematically go about sorting information. That's fun, but you must have it in you. If you don't then you shouldn't be required to ever take the class. The same rule applies with lower level high school maths (especially if you anticipate being a humanities major). Science is something that should cease being a requirement as well. If you naturally are interested in biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy, or any of the countless science electives, then by all means take these classes! If you aren't curious about said subjects, you shouldn't have to take them. I have to admit that I hated biology, chemistry, and physics at first, but I grew to appreciate them. I had an epiphany of sorts though: when I'm majoring in accounting, science won't matter. I like English, but it is too screwed up as a class. We read books that most of us have no interest in and have to do assignments related to them. For instance, I like to read, but only about topics that amaze me (politics, business, sports statistics). If we could only choose what books we read and do reports on them everything would work so much better. Instead, we are left to discuss the assigned text. I don't care about what other people have to say concerning a literary work because what they say is subjective. I would participate more...if, perchance, my opinion actually mattered. I've been asked before why I don't participate all that often and that honestly is my reason. Grammar, though, is a particularly effective element that needs to be studied by every writer. Social studies is a very broad term for a lengthy list of courses. You have your histories, politics, sociology, justice + crim, and psychology classes under the "social studies" umbrella. In order to take one of these classes, one should have a particular appetite. I think everyone should take a politics class to become familiar with governing institutions that have the potential to dissolve rights. Other than that requirement, one should be able to pick and choose. I've always been a history and politics guy, so taking these classes was naturally appealing. Joe Schmo, a to-be physics major, shouldn't have to. Finally, we have foreign language. Does anyone logically need to learn a language besides English? Nope. If you want to though, you should have that right. What am I trying to say? I am trying to say that public schooling is terrible. A college like system should be instituted that allows for greater concentration on certain subjects. Abolish the MCAS. Abolish requirements. Abolish the income tax, too, while you are at it. Now, I must go back to being the slave to the master I've served for the past twelve years.

Barack Obama's Patriotism

I hate how patriotism is put on a pedestal. Is it really that important? Wow, you served in the military big whoop. You were brought up under the flag, big whoop. "That flag is an enduring symbol of our nation?" No bud, it's just a piece of cloth. Playing the patriot card to win the viewers at home, eh? I see what they (Democrats) are trying to accomplish and it's propaganda no less. They are appealing to a perceived positive emotion. This country will be divided no matter who is elected. Has poverty rates ever dropped to 0%? No. The Democratic Party proposes freedom to the working and lower classes because it sounds great. They want to use an inanimate object (the flag) to achieve that goal. Meanwhile, the United States government in coalesce with corporations and the elite has and will for sometime screw over the common man in order to pursuit its own interests. Lying can only get you so far. So yes, the Democratic National Convention unites millions of liberals to vote Obama in '08. The Republican National Convention will do the same in an effort to elect McCain in '08. The two parties aren't that far apart and people need to remember that while watching the candidates via media and especially while voting in November.

In a Better World...Pop Music Wouldn't Suck

One of my life's defining moments occurred when I was only four. I don't know how many fathers would play Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band for their four-year-old, but my dad sure thought it would be a good idea. Today, I thank him for playing that CD and shaping my musical taste for the rest of my life.

Otherwise, I might be listening to the same junk the other people my age love. Call my play list grandfatherly, but I hope I'm not the only one who'd choose The Who and James Taylor over Lil Wayne and the Jonas Brothers. After all, the media would much rather expose America's children, the most powerful demographic, to "artists" whose appeal is in the image, not whatever merit their music contains.

Just look at that joke of a magazine, Rolling Stone. Look at their big, glossy cover shot of the "Jo Bros" and long for the days when pop stars didn't need a backing band to hide their lack of talent. THIS is the gold standard of music journalism?

It's not that no good music is being made today. It just doesn't get as much exposure as the crap. You don't hear Radiohead on Kiss 108, you don't see No Age on the cover of Blender, and nobody outside Wakefield knows that Zephyr is keeping the classic rock sound alive.

To be fair, all those music outlets I've criticized are commercial ventures - the need to make money compromises credibility. But is a cover shot of the Jonas Brothers REALLY the only way to keep Rolling Stone alive? In a better world, Jo Bro fans would keep themselves busy with the latest issue of Tiger Beat while the grownups enjoy Rolling Stone's cover story on Zephyr.

The Internet Is Dead

Literally. Where is everyone? Nobody has posted on my favorite forum since 10:39 AM. You might say that I go on there a bit much and yeah, you'd be right. Matter of fact, the whole reason I go on there is to check out the variety of content which, as of right now, is minimal at best. In terms of weather, today is not special. It is raining pretty heavily, although it does look like it might clear up soon. As one of my friends told me "the internet is not the future." The kid, I think, is right.

A side note: I hate ranting like this because my grammatical structures come off as being a bit whiny. I could use all CAPs or talk in a language known as "dumbass", but that just isn't very cool.

A Rant, Courtesy of Me, Andrew P. Fallon

OK now, boys and girls! This rant's gonna be about Manny Ramirez's so-called "Manny being Manny" bologna that we fortunately won't have to deal with anymore. Ready?

Screw "Manny being Manny". I sure as hell won't miss that shit. The only people who bought into that were the people who like put their fucking dogs in Ramirez jerseys and shit. He was just a distraction away from baseball! Just a fucking sideshow to Boston Red Sox BASEBALL!

I hope Joe Torre can smack some sense into this clown.

Thank you. You may now return to your regularly scheduled News.

Tales From A College Student

I've decided that W&M (William and Mary) is perhaps the most God-forsaken school on the planet, being devoid of the multitudes of attractive and slutty women that i was promised would be waiting for me at college. instead, i find only vaguely-attractive women with inflated opinions of their looks (no doubt due to the absence of true attractive women) and who therefore tend to conclude that they still have the right to be picky about their men; another negative is that just about every girl here is far too intelligent, and somehow possess self-esteem levels that i did not know could be attained by females, the result of which being that you cannot trick them in any way. oh, and apparently 85% of W&M girls are virgins, and intend to stay that way until well after marriage and the attainment of a highly successful career; after said stipulations are met, they will fornicate for procreative purposes only, in an effort to overrun the world with more intelligent, independent and ambitious women like themselves. appalling.

i miss the attractive, promiscuous, easily-tricked girls from my high school days; alas, they are all at community college now. - VaSoxFan

Just tales from a college student.

Philosophical Musings

If we are all in fact products of our own environment than it is unfair for one to simply "give up" on someone else, because they are essentially playing with the cards they've been dealt. The best way to conquer the schism, if you will, is through serious patience and constant communication. Another key element is finding similar interests and working from there. I.E, most humans enjoy music, if you want to persuade someone to your views/opinions/beliefs, because you believe his or hers is negative and dangerous, well you could show them a band that fervently promotes your view. A perfect situation would be introducing the song, "Prison Song" by S.O.A.D. to your friend (who loves the Drug War and is extremely Conservative) and explaining the meaning and then continuing with a discussion. Don't yell, but rather speak to them with respect and acknowledge their views and where you feel they are flawed. Present your, what I call medium points first, good solid,reasonable points, then you nail them with your best evidence, and of course throw in the final average points. Stats are always helpful too. Don't rely too heavily on the hypothetical. Fortunately, your friend will at least see your side and make some changes in his views. Ideally he will completely agree with you, which is very possible, if strategically concentrated. Note: don't brainwash them! Always make sure, you are open to other ideas then your own.

Humanity

Please note that many of you (possibly all) will not like anything contained in the paragraph (separated by pictures - Ben) below.

What Noam Chomsky says is relevant:

"If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all."

Humans. Love them or hate them, they are all around us. In fact, humans make everything possible. But first there was a fellow named God who creatively designed everything -- giving us the resources to produce material objects. Humanity, I'd say, has abused what God has given us.
Abortion clinics are being disguised under the name "Planned Parenthood": a sugarcoated cover-up of Hitler-esque destruction.

Stem-cell research has gone too far as doctors and big time medical researchers want to make a name for themselves albeit in a malicious fashion. Homos are weening their way down city squares pledging for a type of equality that was never meant to be; homo-marriage. China is still Commie.

Marijuana possession is a criminal offense in America. Freedom is synonymous with killing. Metro Station is more popular than Animal Collective.

You see, humanity fails. Humans are naturally flawed and if the modern age isn't enough to prove that conjecture than I simply don't know what is. Should we lose faith in humanity though? We need to educate our neighbors and teach them the way, the truth, and the life (religiously and socially). We don't need a totalitarian based political system to accomplish this...no we don't..but what we do need is cooperation and vision. Hate -- which is far too prevalent to break down into systemic groupings -- isn't about not tolerating others. It is about working together to achieve a common goal. Once people get off of their cultural or economic high horses, humanity will be able to come together. Once money becomes as insignificant as a piece of wood, humanity will be able to come together.

Comment.

My Own Musing: MTV Music Videos

I walked downstairs to see what was for dinner (just a few minutes ago) when I happened to notice soft core pornography on the T.V! I am not talking about Jenna Jameson and Briana Banks making out, not that, but instead a music video. I didn't pay attention to who was doing the hollering (I think they call it rapping nowadays); I noticed two girls next to a flashing wall with their roundish boobs on display. They weren't standing there innocently either -- they were doing dance moves akin to what you see in strip clubs (I wouldn't know, but I do). Now, let me just get this clear: If I want my daily fixing of pornography (I think Chris calls it "hamburgers"), I can just type in some obnoxious phrase in my little Google search bar, be it "woman and dog" or "tub girl". Since when did MTV Hits become Girls Gone Wild? What ever happened to real music videos? Occasionally, I will see The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony video (one of my favorites of all time) come on, but a couple of hours later I see scantily clad black girls. I fucking hate censorship, but they need to get this shit off the tube. The end.

I hate swearing like this too, but I'm sorry.

Counterfactual History: What if....

What if there was no such thing as the Wakefield Etudiant?

If Chris Morrill and Ben Tan had not decided on a rainy April 2006 morning to create this blog, where would we be right now? Myself, I would probably have concentrated more on my failing website, nesportsnews.com. The Etudiant is where I spend about 30% of my time on the internet. That may not seem gargantuan, but it really is. I would also be less political if the Etudiant was never created. I do about 50-60% of my posts on politics, so it is not surprising that I am sort of knowledgeable in that subject area. If there was no Etudiant there would be no gay marriage article. That, of course, caused quite a bit of negative controversy. If there was no Wakefield Etudiant, Ben Tan would be bored out of his mind. The kid was a multiple post a day administrator from April 2006 to September 2007. Senior year kind of kicked in from there, but Ben still found the time to post fairly regularly. If there was no Etudiant, what would Ben have done? Would he have found any journalistic inspiration at all? Sure, he did Spin movie reviews, but was that even enough for the kid? Would he have turned his eclectic Animatron blog into a news website sooner or later? I doubt it. Ben Tan would not be where he is now without the Etudiant. What about Chris DeCarlo? He has done a few band spotlights, he has helped out with concert reviews, and he basically owns "Songs of the Week". He did a few journalistic endeavors (literally journals) in the early fall of 2007 and actually found inspiration to post a few of his writings on this website. Controversy of course was created again. He almost found an online girlfriend through one of his infamous entries, but that never came to be. His life probably wouldn't be any different if there was no Etudiant, but I'm sure he has found a little inspiration, at the least. What about all the other writers? Well, they just haven't posted enough. If there was not an Etudiant, there wouldn't be Ryan Suh's WTF! articles that have been a hit among our readers. To you the readers, you wouldn't have any place to read random articles that have no relevance to your life. You wouldn't get to read Ben's CD reviews or his "Picking the President." Sorry for the rambling, I should be doing what I am supposed to be doing: a real "What if"...

Funny Article In Today's Daily Item

Well, whoever wrote "If you've got it, flaunt it?" in today's (May 21) edition of the Daily Item probably wasn't going for funny when he/she composed the poorly written piece. Overall, the article itself isn't terrible (it has decent intentions/obvious observations), but then again it kind of is. I feel the need to break the beginning of the article down completely by paragraph:

It's prom gown season and it cannot be ignored. Not when teenage girls are wearing gowns cut so low you can practically see the top of their thongs.

I don't see what the author is going for by saying "thongs" instead of the less specific "underwear". I sense a stereotype here already, do you?

Maybe it's an old-fashioned point of view to cluck your tongue over such attire. Maybe it's even prudish. But why do these girls feel the need to wear such revealing prom gowns? And why are parents allowing it? Some teen girls are so voluptuous, their breasts spill over the top of their gowns. Other dresses are cut so high on the leg that...well it's hardly ponderable. If a teen boy exposed on a fully hairy chest on the night of his prom, would he not be deemed inappropriately dressed? Should it be any different for girls?

Girls that wear so called "revealing prom gowns" usually end up being the center of attention. Not many other teenagers nor parents actually care if their friend/daughter is dressed in scantily clad garments. The teen boy exposing a hairy chest comparison is just awful (and highly uncreative).

Comb through the pages of any newspaper in the next few weeks. The girls, some as young as 14, will be lined up for photo ops in their silk, satin, and lace prom dresses. Forget the dazzling colors and sequins, oversized bows and flouncy petticoats. They don't get noticed but cleavage sure does.

There are people in this world that aren't sexually perverse, author. These people don't go looking for cleavage like you inevitably do.

What's a teenage boy to do? Ignore the fact that testosterone is roaring through his veins? Take an oath to look but not touch? Confess his lustful desires to a priest?

All these generalizations! Again, some people can survive without any kind of temptation on their part.

The rest of the article discusses - none other than - teen birth rates! How the author makes a sexy prom gown and teen birth rate connection -- I just haven't quite figured out. The article does correctly indicate that teenage girls in modern times are having more urges to look "hotter" and older. Hollywood and television are two things that certainly aren't helping cleanse these seemingly licentious young'uns, no doubt.

In conclusion, I have no clue why the author says this:

If they flaunt what they've got in prom gowns, why not their pregnant bellies?

Do any of you, the readers, see a connection?

Amazing Spring Day/Dirt Day Rant

Temps in the 80s, clear skies, and a slight breeze...you can't really ask for a better day. Tomorrow sounds like a replica of today, only less mild. I instruct you to go outside and wander about the gentle prairies of Wakefield, Massachusetts.

Speaking of the environment, yesterday was Dirt Day. Who would have thought that environmentalist propaganda would dominate Screenvision, the shitty advertising program that displays ads before movies start. To celebrate Dirt Day, I decided to take a drive to the corner store instead of walk. I also felt the need to turn on every single appliance and light in my house "just because." Global warming, please.

Rant on Celebrities

*Warning: Very explicit language

This bitch celebrity left jail. Who gives a flying fuck about the experience in jail. We all know what jail is like. OMG, I havent been in his arms for awhile. Fuck you bitch, love's for people who are actually good looking. Not these ugly fucks like me. Love is an unrealistic dream for a lot of people. I am meant to be alone. I am meant to be military material. I am meant to hate celebs. Seriously woman, don't describe your experience at jail. It isn't like the life I experience everyday, or the rejection Glen gets every fucking day. I hate celebrities with a passion. Why do we care about the shit they talk about a lot? Why do we care about their personal life more then politics? It won't help us to care about a celeb's jail experience. Being an actor is a useless job when in a depression or a "recession." They are all fucking whores or bitches who can't even get a normal job. - Cammy from CA

Great job, Cammy.