Why I Dislike Living in Seattle

How would you like to live in a place where it rains more days than it doesn't? Even on the days when it doesn’t rain it’s usually overcast. Do you like snow? You won’t see more than a day of it here.

If you like political power, Seattle has it. This city drags around the rest of the state by its nose. Did you know that Washington State went solidly for Kerry in '04 despite the fact that he lost in 37 of 39 counties? A liberal bastion in every sense, Seattle is the only city in the country that I know of that has a statue of Lenin displayed prominently in the center of the city.

Would you like to pay the highest gas taxes in the country? If so, move to Washington. High gas taxes goes with the theme here. All of the taxes are high here putting Washington in the top 5 most taxed states in the country. Minimum wage is also near the highest in the country. The combined effect is a cost of living significantly higher than the national average and an economy that still isn’t recovering.

The poor business climate and high labor costs are driving away our hopes of long term prosperity as Boeing leaves for Illinois and Microsoft shifts more and more jobs to programmers in India.

If that doesn't get to you, how about the anti-Christian sentiments of many Seattle area government officials? It’s gotten so extreme that government workers can be fired for saying "Merry Christmas."

The representation of an area often shows a picture of the culture. Seattle is primarily responsible for the votes needed to consistently elect Democrats. How would you like to be represented by Jim "Baghdad Jim" McDermott or Patty Murray, who is voted dumbest senator in the U.S. Senate almost every year?

Wouldn't you be frustrated if for the first time in decades a Republican was elected as governor, and then have a series of court rulings and recounts slowly tip the balance until the Democrat won? Do you know where the almost all of the Mystery Votes during the election came from? I’ll bet you guessed right: Seattle.

Does this sound like the kind of place you want to live?



NOTE: There are positive things about Seattle but this is a post about "Why I Dislike Living in Seattle."

Driving is Fun!

I just had a rather amusing experience on my way home from work. Mom wanted me to practise my driving, (for those of my readers who haven't been with me long, I still don't have my license due to a host of factors that will be explained at some future date) so I drove from Ranier Ave. up Renton Ave.

I was coming up the hill and I overcorrected a little as I changed lanes. My sister let out a gasp of utter horror apparently thinking that I was going to go careening into the other lane and end all of our lives in a fiery explosion. It was actually a minor misjudgement that merely prevented my shift from being as smooth as it should have been.

I'm still laughing at Emily though.

I Like My Boss.

It seems that most people I know hate their bosses and supervisors. I am not one of those people.

My boss gives me the most flexible schedule. I can literally call in and say, "Hey Rich, something came up. I won't make it in today." He'll okay it, and let me pick some time better to work.

He tries to make sure I have work even when if it means doing unimportant stuff that costs him money.

Best of all, today, I was doing some cleaning, and he came in and apologized that I got stuck with such a lousy job and told me that he was giving me a big raise.

What is there not to like? I'm sad that I will probably be moving on to a full time job sometime next year.

Surviving is a Good Thing!

I have always been of the opinion that dying, while certainly having advantages for Christians such as myself, is usually best delayed for as long as possible. I look both ways before crossing the street, don't do 80 in a 20 mph zone and avoid the crack house next door.

One of things I’ve learned is useful for surviving and protecting yourself from misfortune is preparation. It’s a good idea to have a fire extinguisher on hand so you can fight fires in your home. It’s helpful to have snow chains in the car to prevent freezing when you get stuck. It might even be a good to keep a first aid kit around to treat the inevitable injuries that you and those around you might suffer.

Others seem to desire guarantees that they and/or their families will be able to survive after a mishap. Life insurance, fire insurance, medical insurance, and get-sued-by-your-neighbor insurance, there’s thousands of different companies eager to take your money to give you a little security

Call me strange but I try to provide myself with a little bit of self-coverage. While most people are willing to fork our hundreds of dollars a month to make sure they will be financially compensated for any problems that arise, they do nothing to plan for scenario’s in which they would have to have their own resources on hand to stay alive.

I’m talking about, nuclear wars, economic collapse, natural disasters and terrorist attacks. Please don’t misunderstand; I don’t think that any of the above is particularly likely but how many people expect their houses to burn down? Probably very few, yet they buy fire insurance nonetheless.

In the same way, I think it is prudent to prepare for as best as you efficiently can for as many contingencies without significantly detracting from you quality of life. I keep a few days food and water, a blanket, knife, fire starting materials, first aid and the other basics ready in a box under my desk so that in the unlikely event that something does occur, I will be ready.

Does that make me a nut-wing, survivalist wacko?

Media Review: Biggest Brother

I finished Biggest Brother this morning. The book was a biography of Major Richard D. Winters the officer who led the men of E Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Airbourne during World War II. His exploits along with those of E Company have been made famous by the book Band of Brothers written by Stephen Ambrose and an HBO TV series of the same name.

I found the book to be wonderful. After briefly covering Winters' childhood, the book followed Winters through training and the War. Finally, at the end, the book narrated the changes brought on in Winters life by the massive publicity generated by Ambrose's book and the HBO series.

The book, written by Larry Alexander, was completed with Winters cooperation at every level. While not an autobiography, Winters assisted throughout the writing process and approved each chapter.

My Life is Rated:

My Life is Rated:



I don't smoke, drink or swear and I haven't so muched as kissed a girl. I hunt and shoot and there's a little innuendo in some of my music but for the most part I my life is as clean as a whistle.

It's Official!

It’s official! Today, I got a letter from Bellevue Community College confirming that I have graduated with honors and an Associate in Business Degree.

In honor of this achievement I will post my transcript. I was quite disappointed to find that I received a 3.85 GPA. My goal had been a 3.90 and I had calculated my GPA in Excel and came up with a 3.89. Needless to say, I am horribly crushed and will have to spend the next week eating junk food and playing video games if I hope to recover.


TERM COURSE ID -------- TITLE -------- GRADE CREDITS
FAL03 G BUS 120 ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR A 5.0
MATH 124 CALCULUS I B 5.0
PE 110 LIFE FITNESS TRAINING I A 2.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 12.0 Cr Earn 12.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 43.0 GPA 3.58

WIN04 ENGL 101 WRITTEN EXPRESSION B 5.0
PSYCH 100 INTRO TO PSYCHOLOGY A 5.0
SPCH 225 SMALL GROUP COMMUNICATN A 5.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 15.0 Cr Earn 15.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 55.0 GPA 3.67

SPR04 ECON 200 INTRO TO MACROECONOMICS A 5.0
POLSC 102 AMERICAN GOVT & POLITICS A 5.0
SPCH 200 INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICAT A 5.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 15.0 Cr Earn 15.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 60.0 GPA 4.00

FAL04 ACCTG 210 FUND OF ACCOUNTING I A- 5.0
CHEM 101 INTRO TO CHEMISTRY A 6.0
ECON 201 INTRO TO MICROECONOMICS A 5.0
PE 111 LIFE FITNESS TRAINING II A 2.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 18.0 Cr Earn 18.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 70.5 GPA 3.92

WIN05 ACCTG 220 FUND OF ACCOUNTING II A- 5.0
BA 200 BUS LAW-LEGAL FOUNDATION A 5.0
JAPAN 101 BEG 1ST-YEAR JAPANESE A- 5.0
PE 112 LIFE FITNESS TRAIN III A 2.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 17.0 Cr Earn 17.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 65.0 GPA 3.82

SPR05 ACCTG 230 BASIC ACCTG ANALYSIS A- 5.0
AMST 260 ECONOMIC DEVELOP OF US A 5.0
JAPAN 102 INTERM 1ST-YR JAPANESE A 5.0
METR 101 INTRODUCTION TO WEATHER A 5.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 20.0 Cr Earn 20.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 78.5 GPA 3.93

SUM05 BA 240 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS A 5.0
ENGL 270 PROFESSIONAL REPORT WRTG A 5.0

Qtrly: Gpa Cr 10.0 Cr Earn 10.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 40.0 GPA 4.00

Cum: Gpa Cr 107.0 Cr Earn 107.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 412.0 GPA 3.85
Clvl: Gpa Cr 107.0 Cr Earn 107.0 P/S Cr 0.0 Grpts 412.0 GPA 3.85

MEMBER OF PHI THETA KAPPA HONOR SOCIETY

A561 ASSOCIATE IN BUSINESS-DTA
A561 WITH HONORS

Disclaimer

Before I go too far with my Assistant Dictator, I just wanted to make it perfectly clear that this is intended to be funny and that no one should take it too seriously.

I will warn you that I have an extraordinarily bizarre sense of humor that has variously been described as, "sick", "hilarious" and "incomprehensible". Whatever affect it has on you I hope that you will continue to read and comment.

Equal Rights for Unborn People

It really cannot be argued anymore that a fetus is not a separate organism. From the moment that a sperm and ovum unite and become a single cell a new life is created. Moreover, this new life, the product of two human parents and possessing a complete set of human genes and DNA, is certainly human. This is a simple fact and is clearly supported by modern science. This is reflected even in the positions of those who support women’s “right” to end that life, which have steadily been shifting rhetorically from an insistence that such a cell did not constitute a life to a more relativistic argument regarding when life becomes “meaningful”.

When does a human life become meaningful? From the moment of conception a human being is a unique individual with limitless potential. There are only five conditions that differentiate an unborn person from those who are universally recognized as people: awareness, development, dependency, size and location. Each of these conditions are encountered after birth yet none of them provides sufficient reason to kill anyone.

An embryo’s level of awareness is lower than that of a fully conscious adult. However, when a person sleeps, they suspend their awareness and cognizant thought. Does this make it morally acceptable to murder a sleeping person? Absolutely not! In the same way it is ridiculous to assert that an embryo be denied protection based on the fact it has little knowledge and comprehension of his or her surroundings.

If the news tomorrow revealed a killer who slaughtered eight year olds the public would be horrified and condemn the actions of such a monster. Most eight year olds do not have fully matured bodies; their brains are still growing, their muscles are small and their reproductive organs are nonfunctional. Why then should it be acceptable to end the life of a person who is somewhat less developed?

There is no argument that embryos are absolutely dependent on their mother before birth. However, after birth this does not usually change much. Small children are dependent on caretakers for many years after birth. Even after people become adults they usually become dependent on others several times before they die. Whatever the cause, whether it arises from sickness, injury, childhood or old age it doesn’t give a right for people to take advantage of the dependence to end their life. This is equally true for unborn babies.

Size is obviously not a factor in determining how meaningful a life is. It wouldn’t be fair to say that Jane Fonda is a worse person than Ted Kennedy just because of size would it? To judge a baby based on its size is equally foolish.

The final factor and the one that seems to create the largest problem is location. For most people location doesn’t contribute or subtract from their personhood in anyone’s minds. But because of the unique inconveniencing nature of a baby’s placement some people believe that women have the right to kill the fetus to avoid this difficulty. This is akin to thinking that it is tolerable to kill drivers that get in your way or blow away the local tax collector who wants to take your money.



Looking back at the mess above I’ve decided my platform needs a lot of work. I'll have to revise this later. Maybe I should look for an Imperial Minister of Written Communication.

The Campaign

I have finally graduated and it is time that I begin an earnest search for a job in my chosen field. With all the governments, organizations and slimy bureaucracies out there, there must be an opening for an Assistant Dictator somewhere.

I have developed a multi prong strategy to accelerate my ascension to influence. My plan includes the construction of a detailed resume, advertising my views on the prevailing issues, compiling a list of possible job openings, and networking with politicians, egomaniacs and, best of all, compassionate autocrats.

My goal is to find a principled and moral dictator whom I can assist in spreading freedom, strength and benevolence while we conquer territory for niftiness. It is my belief that, as our world slides down the slippery slope to a socialistic Brave New World, it is critical that visionaries create havens for sane and independent people who desire to escape the herd of sheeple.

Additionally, I am looking to fill positions in my dictatorial aid team. I am currently accepting applicants. You can send your resume to the email address provided below.

Hopefully, in the near future my blog will be filled with fascinating essays that brilliantly advocate my positions on current subjects of morality and policy, progress reports on my research and detailed narratives of my rise to greatness

If you have any ideas regarding open positions, political tactics or just happen to be bored feel free to email me at rabenstrange@gmail.com.

w00t!

I finally beat Half Life 2!



While the game wasn't particularly difficult, despite being played on "Hard", it took nearly forever for me to find the time to play. Between work, school and various other chrono consumptive activies I have had no time to play games.

Note: I believe that the reason there is a hole in the picture is that the ESRB rating logo is copyrighted.

Media Review: Red Eye

On Thursday morning, at 0000 hours, I went to a pre-screening of the soon to be released, Wes Craven thriller, Red Eye. I acquired tickets from a classmate who works for a local radio station.

In the movie, a young women is kidnapped while on a late night trip aboard an airplane and forced to assist in an assasination plot. I can't say much more about the plot without spoiling things but I found the movie to be quite good with solid charachters and constant suspense.

I give it ***1/2 of *****.

My Space

I have recently signed up for an account at myspace.com.

Myspace.com is quite unlike the usual online social interaction locales I have been known to frequent (such as Blogger and Xanga). Instead of being driven by frequent articles myspace consists of a profile and an email, comment and bulletin system that allows users to keep in touch with their myspace “friends”.

I find the concept vaguely intriguing and have embarked on a quest to co-opt the myspace service for my own devious purposes. Hopefully, I’ll be able to redirect some of the myspace traffic to this blog and thereby increase my regular readership.

A Post I Found Amusing

Nothing to Do Yet Still Very Busy

I just got my grades from my final quarter at BCC, both classes were A's. This is kind of sad seeing as how my final GPA is 3.89, .01 points below my goal of 3.90.

As I mentioned in a previous post I went camping, leaving on Wednesday after my final final. Family Camp was a bit less fun that it had been in previous years. Several of my camp buddies didn't make it this year, most notably, Yeller Dog, the Wests and the Mottazai. Add to that the fact that we couldn't go shooting and you have one very disappointed unemployed assistant dictator. We did do paintball which was pretty slick. I bunkered a noob and shot him 4-8 times in the back of the head, a couple times in the neck and a few on the hands. It was very satisfying. We also played alot of Pinochle, both partners and cutthroat styles. Anyhow, it was pretty fun, not as good as past years but not too shabby.

Oh well, since getting back from Family Camp on Saturday, I've watched 16 episodes of Babylon 5, a whole bunch of Strong Bad E-mails and done a bunch of reading. In other words I've had a great time wasting time.

That pretty much explains why I haven't posted in a week.

So long and thanks for all the fish.

Italian Hacker

My previous post as some of you have discovered was written in Italian 1337. I fully intended to post an English translation, however Blogger decided that you guys were not worthy of reading my tale of Italian hackerdom in your native language and ashcanned the translated draft. I know you were all dying to know what it said (which by the way had nothing at all to do with my sisters nonexistent cat) but unfortunately I'm to lazy to translate it.

If you would like to translate it yourself first change all the 4's to a's, the 3's to e's, the | to i's, the 1 to l's, the 7's to t's and the 0's to o's and then paste into and translate with the Google Translator.

S0n0 |nd|37r0 p3r 41cun| g|orn|!

S4lut| 7u77|,
s0n0 |nd|3tr0 p3r 4lcun| g|0rn|. Purtr0pp0 p3r v0i, s0n0 s74a7o r|10v4t0 dal mio p3rs0n4 |t41|4n0 del h4xx0r. Ciò 10 r3nd3rà m0170 difficile affinchè capisca che c0s4 state l3G3nd0. L'cOh b3n3, la mia abilità d3l h4xx0r d| 31337 tri0nferà 3cc3d3nz4 7u77| i n00bs. Li sp#r0 ritr0vam3nt0 qu3sto p0ichè div3rt3ndo com3.

Pain is weakness leaving the body.

Absent

You guys will have to do without my insight and wisdom for awhile. I will not be posting this week due to approaching deadlines on a host of school projects. After that, I will be going camping so it may be nearly 2 weeks before you hear from me again. If you need a fix for your incurable addiction to my wit feel free to read through my archives.

I may be able to work a quick post in here or there but don't get your hopes up.