Slow mo Punches

AQ_PUNCHES from John Wiseman on Vimeo.

McCain's cancelation doesn't "smell right" to Letterman

All 50 States of the Union, Voter Registration Information

This is information that needs to be shared and easily accessible for all. Forward it on to anyone that needs it or is in a position to help others with it.Register to Vote!

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Drill, Baby, Drill...?

Ninja cat

In Office, Palin Hired Friends and Hit Critics

An examination of Gov. Sarah Palin’s record finds that her visceral style and penchant for attacking critics contrasts with her carefully crafted public image.

THIS is the kind of information I've been waiting to see who Palin really is and how she governs. The high drama elements of the teenage pregnancy, recent new born, "are her critics being sexist?", "is the media out to destroy her?" all have been in the spotlight ever since McCain announced her as his running mate; but this is the real meat and potatoes. The biggest problem with Palin was the vacuum of information that existed during, and more pronouncedly, after her addition to the ticket. The McCain campaign had a great "story" with Palin. It's easy to fall in love with, and they were very deliberate on how this story would shape out. Controlling the message and access to Palin allowed the McCain campaign get their VP candidate Palin out there, before folks had the chance to get to know Gov. Palin, and Mayor Palin.

This is a critical election, I feel that more rests on this election than most realize. The country at large is veering towards the edge of a very large cliff, with financial sector meltdowns on one side and global economic and energy concerns on the other. The next president will face a monumental daunting task when they enter the office. Rebuilding the economy, and restoring the American dream. Resuming our rightful place as steward of liberty and freedom, instead of showing others how to subdue and subvert it. Taking up the charge to address global climate change, because regardless of if you still deny the cause, it's the right thing to do and the time to do it is now. The Supreme Court, questions about the legality of actions taken during the Bush administration, and many more all hing on the outcome of this election.

We don't have the luxury of making decisions because a candidate is someone you would like to hang out with, or you feel "is just like us". A lot of hard choices lay ahead of this country, and in electing a leader we need to ask who will lead us forward, and who will drag us down. This article to me paints a much more believable picture of why McCain's campaign would select Palin, as an agent of change only skin deep, and a new lease on the past 8 years.

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The Large Hadron Collider: Countdown

On September 10, 2008, the world's biggest science experiment is set to come online. Here's how it will search for the Higgs boson, dark matter and supersymmetry...Tomorrow will be a pretty darn cool day in my book. I'm an avid fan of scientific progress, and while I don't pretend to be too knowledgeable about string theory and particle physics, I do know this will expand our knowledge of the universe.

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Jon Stewart Annihilates Sarah Palin's Media Surrogates

Jon Stewart at his absolute best running circles around cable news douchebags.

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Mt. Mitchell (..or how we spent our Labor Day weekend)

We started our trek out to the mountains for some fresh air and the chance to drop off the grid. We sure did pick an interesting time to do so, the announcement of John McCain's VP gave Mel and I plenty to speculate about for the entire weekend.

I should also say that iPhone + streaming Internet audio = one killer road trip combo. We were able to listen in to one of our favorite shows as it was playing in Seattle for nearly the entire trip. Kiera was just happy to be along for the ride. The camping trip had been Melanie's idea after I had been recanting fondly over my youth in Montana, and all the trouble my friends and I got into on our camping trips.

This was also a chance to test our new tent, which we had given to each other as our birthday gift this year. We had quite a bit of hassle getting our hands on the actual tent (had to go through three different vendors before it actually showed up on our doorstep, thanks MooseJaw!) But we couldn't have been happier with it, plus Mel landed a killer deal on it as well.


After staking out camp, I went out exploring while Melanie caught a quick nap. My short exploratory hike turned into a three mile mini-adventure. Lucky for me I had Keira with me. Part of the the adventure was I stumbled across the main trail we were planning on hiking up the next day. One of the reasons we picked Mt. Mitchell was due to the fact it is the highest peak east of the Mississippi. Since airfare was preventing our annual trip back west, we felt climbing up to a similar elevation would have to suffice. After I got back from my little walk about, we struck up the fire and cooked dinner and of course, smores!

The plan was to get an early start to the day, but it was a bit trickier to roll out of bed when things are so damn comfy. Eventually the demands of the day got us up and geared up for the challenge. By 10 AM, we headed for the trail head, ready for what awaited us. The hike was beautify, grueling, sweaty, and a ton of fun. It took about four hours and twenty minutes for us to climb 5.5 miles and close to 4000 vertical feet. The terrain was mixed from standard wooded paths, to tighter trails, and eventually rocky climbs near the summit.

Once we reached the top, it was time to take in the views and break for lunch. There was an observation tower being built at the top, but it was closed while construction was still on going. The climb down was easier, but not by much. Our decent took about 3.5 hours. All three of us, Melanie, Keira, and I, were exhausted by the time we reached camp again. The entire trip had taken just over eight hours, but despite muscle fatigue and a very very tired dog, its something I know we both would jump at to do again. Next time may be just a little less ambitious.