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James Stabile Monthly Blog |
September 2006 |
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Owner,
Webmaster: James Stabile |
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In this blog you will find monthly discussions concerning the issues of importance and interest to the site's creator, owner and webmaster, James Stabile. These issues include - Discussion of the Month; Entertainment; Health, Fitness & Lifestyle; Politics and the World; Religion & Spiritualism; Technology & Business; and Too Strange, Weird or Just Funny. Peruse the articles in this blog. Remember to read the Disclaimer above for the legal "stuff". Also, please email the webmaster concerning any programming errors that you may discover on this site. Thank you for reading my blog and for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you. |
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Topics of Discussion Discussion of The Month September 2006 - the beginning of the last third of the year. Time does go fast. It even goes faster when we realize that we do not have the final control over it. We are merely players in this revelation of the human condition. We play the game, but we do not regulate the rules. We do our best, but sometimes our best is not good enough. I think it is important to remember that the way in which we play the game is more important than the final outcome of the game. In fact the way we play the game will eventually predict the final outcome of the game. We are merely players, not the commander or originator of this game. Enjoy September and let's play the game. Entertainment Devil Wears Prada Superman Returns...Possibly the best superman movie that I have ever seen. It was fantastic. The special affects and graphics were literally out of this world. The visual artistic accomplishments were enough to keep me mesmerized for the entire length of the movie, 2 hours and 34 minutes - a heck of a long time for me. Superman, Brandon Routh, was an outstanding Superman. I think he is a very talented actor. He was on CNN's Larry King Live right before I saw the movie. His character seemed a little "down home", but that's Superman's character. Kevin Spacey was a magnificent Lex Luthor. Kate Bosworth and James Marsden did great jobs, too. Health, Fitness and Lifestyle Doctors debate whether kids should be told they are obese. I think children should be informed of health situations concerning themselves and others. Of course the extent of that knowledge should be commensurate with the child's age and reasoning ability. Children are part of our world. Technology and medical advancements have put the information concerning disease, health and fitness on the TV and the written media. Children do interact with the world. They are aware of things happening. I think we owe it to them to tell them the truth about health issues in a realistic and non-threatening manner. A prerequisite of any discussion must be a realistic determination of the reasoning level of the child and age appropriateness of the discussion. Kids must be aware of health and fitness, even at a juvenile level. Gone are the days, hopefully, where we promote unhealthy eating habits for any person, especially the young. We must not teach our children that food equates with reward. Food must be put in perspective and viewed as a means of nourishing our bodies. An overweight child must know that he or she is overweight or obese. He or she should view this situation as a health matter. We should in no way equate this condition to derogatory blame or quilt put upon the child. The child must realize that he or she is obese, the reasons he or she is obese and appropriate steps to correct this unhealthy behavior. Obesity in children or adults must be seen as an health issue. To overcome this health issue, the person, respecting age appropriateness, must accept the reality of the issue and be willing to educate themselves in rectifying the situation. Calm, realistic and non-threatening discussion should be the prescribed course of action in this situation. Talking on a cell phone while driving a vehicle does not mix. Current research suggest that people driving while talking on a cell phone is as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than driving while impaired by alcohol and/or drugs. Under controlled conditions, adult drivers operated vehicles free from any distractions (alcohol or cell phones), then under the influence of alcohol and finally under the influence of talking on a cell phone. Researchers found that drivers driving while talking on their cells were as dangerous and sometimes more dangerous than drivers impaired by alcohol. I sincerely believe that legislation should be enacted to make it unlawful for a driver to operate a motor vehicle while using a cell phone. This legislation should come form the state as well as the federal government, much like the legislation relating federal tax money for roads and highways and the individual state's enactment of strict anti-drinking and driving laws. I have always suspected that it was an obstacle for a driver to drive and talk on a cell, even "hands free" situations, but now there is concrete evidence to support that hypothesis. As a side note, the other day I found myself doing exactly the opposite of one of my convictions - driving and using a cell phone. Yes, I admit it. This webmaster was driving and talking on the cell phone. Shame on me. I needed to get a call made. I should have parked the car until I made the call, but I didn't. During the conversation I even commented to the person I was talking to that I was breaking my own rule on driving and cells. During this experience I was not totally concentrating on what should have been my primary responsibility - operating a motor vehicle. Everything turned out OK, but I observed first hand the difficulty and danger involved in driving and talking on a cell phone. I sincerely believe that it is a dangerous practice. I will never do it again. Politics and the World The Florida Primary is on September 5, 2005. The Primary Election will determine the Republican and Democratic nominees for governor, the United States senatorial nominee for the Republican Party (Democrat Senator Bill Nelson has no opposition in the Primary), and a host of other state and local races. Being a Democrat, I will vote in the Democratic Primary. Who will I vote? Don't know. The final debate for each party have been canceled or postponed due to Tropical Storm Ernesto. I'm aware of the candidates, issues and the position of the candidates, but I really don't know who I will vote. I'm leaning towards Jim Davis, but I'm not completely against the other Democratic candidate, Rod Smith. Check out the 2006 Florida Gubernatorial Candidates at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_gubernatorial_election,_2006. The 2006 midterm elections will be held in November. It should be an interesting campaign season and an even more interesting Election. Will the Democrats gain control of either or both houses of congress? It's doubtful, but possible. To tell you the truth, I haven't been following the political news as closely as I once followed it. I think that I have lost that special feeling, that political motivation. For some reason, I'm just not interested in the political shenanigans that have become a staple in the election process. The political news reporting is becoming predictable. More importantly the candidates are becoming predictable, no matter who the candidates or what the office. TV news coverage of major events in general is becoming a bore to me. I try to remain abreast of the "news" by reading my morning paper. At least the newspaper is not as dramatic and predictable as the media coverage. With the newspaper, I can pick and choose what I read, even though I usually read it for cover to cover. But if I get bored with a story, I can go on to the next. Also, there are many different types of journalist who write articles for the daily newspaper. Maybe I'm in a slump or a stupor, but politics, even when it comes to voicing my opinion about President Bush and the Republican Administration, is presently on the boring side to me. Religion and Spiritualism The following is from an email that was sent to me by one of my sisters, sister #1 to be exact. As you can probably guess the email was one of those "send to ten friends" kind of email, which I deplore, but that's another story. The message of the email is very appropriate for all people. From time to time, we, adults should step back and revisit our childhood concept of God. In the end, it is this child's view of God that will sustain each of us in our daily lives. Didn't Jesus say that in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven we must accept Him like a child does? I don't remember the exact wording. A child is free to see things as they are - simple, clear and righteous. Maybe we, too, need to see things in that manner. "Television Commercials A fifth grade teacher in a Christian school asked her class to look at TV commercials and see if they could use them in some way to communicate ideas about God. Here are some of the results: God
is like.. God
is like... God
is like... God
is like... God
is like.... In the midst of the trouble in the world today as well as any trouble in any of our personal lives, the simple answer is trust in God. However, we must accept and trust God as a small child accepts and trusts Him. Much of the trouble in the world today is a direct result of man's concept of religion and his response to it. Perhaps the warring nations of the world as well as the warring people in our own lives should ask for God's help much like a child asks for help. People throughout the world and people right here in America should step back and put their concept of religion in perspective, make it complementary with the other religions of the world and view our relationship with God through the eyes of a child. The world and the people of the world are very complex. Answers may not be simple, but I think the basic, fundamental answers are simple if we would just accept the value and dignity of all men and women and their beliefs. The problems that we encounter in the world, in our country, in our neighborhood or in our family usually stem from the basic threads of human nature. They usually manifest themselves in misconceptions, distrust and fear. Real success in solving these problems must come from an acceptance and utilization of the rules of a Supreme Being. These rules are simply - love God and love one another. Technology and Business Have you ever installed software on your computer and wished that you hadn't? I think I discussed this subject a few months ago, but it might be prudent to revisit the subject. The bottom line, uninstall and delete are not synonymous. They do not mean the same thing. After installing software on your computer, if you decide that you do not really want it installed on your computer, you must uninstall it. To uninstall it you could go to the Control Panel and then to Add or Remove Programs and then choose the software that you want to uninstall and uninstall it. Also, you could go to Start in the taskbar, at the bottom of the computer screen, click, go to Programs and then select your software from the menu. That folder may contain the uninstall program for the software. Some people chose to open Windows Explorer, (Start, Programs, Accessories) and look under the letter that designates your hard drive, usually C, go to Program Files, then open the software folder and look for the uninstall command. Sometimes, if you installed that software from a CD, you may insert the CD and an uninstall command may be found on the CD. In any of these cases, the Search option on you computer may assist you in finding the appropriate software folder. Now, what was the point of the above uninstall discussion? Oh yea, I remember. To uninstall software you must "uninstall" it in the correct manner. Deleting is not uninstalling. Delete just removes the file, it does not uninstall the program. Here's a thought... Let's say you have Microsoft Word (any version) installed on your computer. If you wanted to write a letter to some one, you may choose to do it with a word document. A word document is usually a data processing type of file. It's some kind of communication. Let's say you write a nasty letter to the company that sold you that ridiculously flawed software, using a word document. You write it and then save the document- in any method of your choosing. Later you decide that you do not need the word document any longer, for whatever reason. To "get rid of" the word document, you would simply delete it from your computer. That delete action does not uninstall the Microsoft Word program, it just deletes that one document or file. If you were totally upset with the whole Microsoft Work program, to "get rid of it", you would have to uninstall the program. If you were to delete the contents Microsoft Word program folder, you would delete files, but the program would still be installed on your computer. And in this form, it may cause more trouble for your computer. It may "mess up" your operating system. It may interfere with the operation of your computer. To keep your computer running smoothly you must know the difference between uninstall and delete and act accordingly. Too Strange, Weird or Just Funny South Florida spent days preparing for a direct hit from Hurricane Ernesto on August 30. The Hurricane Center in Coral Gables, Florida had issued hurricane watches and tropical storm watches and warnings up and down the east and west coasts of Florida. The residents of Florida were doing a great job preparing for the imminent hit by a possible Hurricane Ernesto or at least a strong Tropical Storm Ernesto. In the early evening of August 29 the Hurricane Center started downsizing it's predictions of the intensity of Ernesto. It turned out that Ernesto ended up to be a dud for Florida. All day August 30, the weather professionals and the media lamented over the poor intensity predictions of the storm. They asked the question, "Where did we go wrong". They seemed sad that Ernesto didn't become the storm that they had predicted and reported. I was just glad that it wasn't that falsely predicted storm. As was stated in an old, old TV butter commercial, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." Mother Nature has a mind of her own. No matter how scientifically and technologically we think we have become, we do not have all the answers. As it turns out, the Carolinas and Middle Atlantic States will probably suffer more devastating effects from Ernesto than did Florida. The bottom line, I'm just glad and thankful that the weather forecasters were wrong about the intensity of the storm. Yes, it would be good for the weather professionals to have the technology and the means to be able to successfully predict storm intensity as well as storm direction, but the truth is - at the current time they don't. Let's not lament over being wrong, wrong over something out of our control, but let's rejoice that the storm was a dud for Florida. This is not to say that we Floridians do not empathize with the Carolina's, the Middle Atlantic States and the Northeast over the impending bad weather that they are expecting from Ernesto (whatever the magnitude), we do emphasize, understand and share their grief over the storm, but nonetheless we are truly glad that it did not materialize over Florida. A close personal friend had prostate cancer surgery at the end of July. He thought that after a couple of weeks he would jump back in the saddle again and get back to work. Boy was he wrong. It's September and that friend is still off work recovering from that surgery. People think that they can control Mother Nature, similar to the hurricane story, but they can't. Bottom line, we don't get to call all the shots all the time. Mother Nature will have the last laugh. |
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