Low Fidelity

I have been unable to find the commercial in question on YouTube, likely reflecting the fact that I just need to forego this rant. Since I have not written anything in a long while, however, I will try to kill two birds with one stone by pushing through and getting this off my chest.

A couple of years ago Apple ran a commercial where the women leaves the apartment cluttered with the guy's records and by the time she gets back all of the music had been transferred (or re-purchased and downloaded) onto an iPod. I do not remember seeing this commercial more than once on TV, so I am hoping that means Apple only ran it briefly and not that I simply remained ignorant via Tivo.

While I do not belong to the generation who's females swoon over John Cusack, I cannot help but flip out about this commercial like his character in High Fidelity would have. (I contend that I am only like Rob Gordon and not actually him like some have accused me of. Although, I have held these feelings for over two years for this commercial which I only viewed once.) I can understand how annoying a 'hobby' can become if it takes up the majority of space in your apartment, but there is no reason to forego music you have already purchased. I am also not of the age range to consider it sacrilege to move on from vinyl nor am I in the group that considers one to be a demi-god if they have a huge vinyl collection, but d@mmit that guy owned all of those records! You can't just get rid of music just because your significant other is mildly-annoyed.

I belong to the generation raised on CDs, where I remember the days of having to save up my allowance and drive to the music store (ok so it was Best Buy; not trying to paint a completely idyllic picture here) to buy the newest releases. Compact discs do not hold the comparable nostalgia to vinyl, and I do not expect younger generations to wonder if there was a magic to CDs. The one similarity to vinyl, though, is that once you made your purchase you had something in your hand. It could easily become scratched by pets, children, or even the CD player itself, but you still physically had something.

Digital is the future, and yes, the first thing I do once purchasing a CD is upload it into mp3 format so I can listen to it on my iPod. Millions of words have been written about digital music trends both in positive and negative lights, and my previous sentence highlights that I could add to both sides of the argument. Despite my best efforts to refrain from the fray I knew that by starting typing I was only adding to that cacophony. So, I will get to my point via the argument of many long-time smokers: as long as I leave you alone just let me do what I want to do. I think I have convinced my wife to stop asking me why I buy CDs instead of downloads (even when I have discounts that make the CDs cheaper than iTunes*), and I have the collection arranged neatly enough in our house that it will never be in the way. While I am a 21st century digital boy and have all of my collection on my iPod I know I will never be able to let go of the music that I physically own. To take such action will always remain a disgrace in my heart, so while I do not ask others to understand I just ask that you leave me alone.

This post also inspired by two sources of white entertainment:

SWPL.com

Chuck Klosterman

*Hopefully this sentence abates the smart@sses that would say 'just download the music from iTunes and burn it to a CD'. (Plus, if you ask that you missed the whole point of this article.) After growing up with packaged CDs there is still something to say about holding the lyrics/photo packet in your hand while listening to a 'real' CD. While I am all for breaking up the RIAA as we know it they did condition us well.

New Chevelle...Finally

So why then
has all my life made no sound
and are your eyes closing even now
my life made no sound
i fear your eyes closing

Alternate title to this one: "Mid-Life Crises Anthem"

Placing My Money Back on the Table

After taking a long break from writing I am placing my money back on the table. I hope that it's irrelevant I'm jumping back in at this moment because I'm procrastinating on doing homework. I will contend that some of my best writing comes not under the gun, but rather when avoiding it completely.

I have recently enjoyed the luxury of having a month to myself and my thoughts. A significant amount of that time has led to the deep thoughts of life, none more so than contemplating the eternal debate of enjoying life versus maximizing the savings account. (Of course the savings account would be maximized even more if our house sold...) After spending the entire weekend lounging around the house knocking out homework between procrastination sessions I started feeling the urge to take a random trip. As much as Americans complain about life, the fact that a random trip is possible should remind us how lucky we are.

Of course it is much easier to complain about life, so I dug out Gregg Easterbrook's excellent book "The Progress Paradox." When skimming the first chapter, I noticed an intriguing statistic about Americans eating out. (Alright, I admit taking trips was my bait. Here is the switch:) "In 2000, $376 billion was spent in American restaurants: about 4 percent of the nation's GDP, and a figure considerably higher than the defense budget that year."

This statistic made me instantly think of a Sergeant's excellent closing comments in the documentary "The War Tapes." He made the [correct] observation that after finishing watching the documentary Americans would forget all about the situation unless they had a relative fighting over there. Instead, they would be much angrier over their pizza being delivered more than 30 minutes after the order was placed.

Well, even with the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, America's defense budget remains 3.5% of our GDP. Could it be argued that the fast food industry (to include sit-down restaurants) is just as important to the national GDP as the military? I know this is comparing apples and oranges, and even if I wasn't in the military I hope that I would still get pissed off at the people who are so self-absorbed that they can't spare five extra minutes for their food. Perhaps the question is just another instance of so much data with no one to interpret.

I'm keeping this one relatively light, but hopefully you found that point worth pondering. If you think I just wasted your time (or you're waiting for the pizza delivery guy), consider Easterbrook's subsequent point: "Americans spend 46% of their food money in restaurants, and the figure continues to rise." While this current recession has likely put a crimp into that stat, that is more than double the spending rate from the 1950s. The average American is having our food prepared for us at more than twice the rate of the previous generation, yet we still complain. (There, I completed the circle. It's good to be back!)



Current Thought: Friday ESPN broke the news about Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz juicing before MLB started cracking down. No Sports Guy post before the weekend. Is he hoping this will fade out or is he going to get holier-than-thou like he did with the Patriots videotape scandal.

Current Lyric: "Like a cause without rebels." Rise Against, Re-Education (Through Labor)

A Downside of Capitalism

Once again, American companies are making a profit from an enemy and doing it under the radar.  Sadly, this investment in Chinese monitoring systems pumps money into a system that disregards all personal liberties, and further invests American money into the pockets of one of our enemies.  660 Chinese cities have now installed cameras to monitor any sort of gathering and also to capture images of anyone using the internet in public sites.  Industry giants such as Google giving in to Chinese regulations in order to get a piece of the financial gain is setting a bad standard, along with smaller companies now jumping in and investing in a police state.

In the 90's, many firms justified outsourcing their production to China with the argument that democracy follows capitalism.  This has not happened in China, with the middle class becoming satisfied with all of the economic benefits to the point where there is virtually no complaint against the state (leading Time Magazine to dub it the "Me Generation).  Further "security" investments such as these electronic monitoring systems further strip away any anonymity, and provide the police even further control including the ability to spot anyone that might not have immediately reported into work.

This financial investment is somewhat history repeating itself, as tons and tons of American steel was sent to Japan, allowing the empire to rise and attack us.  The American businesses that had strong ties to Nazi Germany conducted their lives under the "Business as Usual" ideology, and most of us remember the image of Rumsfeld meeting with Saddam.  While many argue China has not yet made an aggressive move towards us, how can we repeatedly ignore history?

America is not surprisingly the number one country to import Chinese products, and Wal-Mart alone is fifth.  This fact should not come as a surprise when the government's defense to the investments in these security monitoring firms comes from a White House spokesman, stating "It's not appropriate to interfere in the private decisions of Americans to invest in legally incorporated firms."  Neither Republicans nor Democrats are going to stand up to big business on this one, and with politicians on both sides so close to private companies such as Haliburton the conspiracy debates can go forever.

So what is the solution to all of this?  Political leadership is not going to step in to stop private firms from investing in Chinese companies (especially ones making products that strip all civil liberties from the Chinese people), while a percentage of our national spending is due to loans from Asian countries.  In addition, major Asian companies such as Toyota and Honda are investing very heavily in America and creating thousands of jobs, while American factories are closing and our businesses investing (and outsourcing) in Asia.  This example may come way out of left field, but it helps me put some perspective on the big picture.  Also, we could be in the process of investing in a nation that we could someday be turning around and fighting.  I know the easy way is to say that none of that will ever happen, but I guess in a way the media is doing that by not talking about this and letting big business go about doing "Business as Usual."

Editor's Note: This sort of refusal to change a process that makes money is exactly why the American Big Three are collapsing.  More to come on that next, as our leading car companies refuse again to make any changes to their standards. (and believe it or not President Bush is trying harder than the Democrats!)

Cell Phone Contracts

Today my second Sony Ericsson cell phone stopped working on me, and of course I was in the magical realm where my warranty had expired and I was not eligible for an upgrade. So, for those of you like me who had never paid attention to cell phone contracts, here is how it works (at least for AT&T):

The minimum contract is for two years, and the phone comes with a manufacturer's warranty for one year. That does not include water or physical damage, so if you damage it own your own you are completely s.o.l. My wife actually dropped her's in water one month after we got our phones, and they let us buy a new one for about $120, as this was by far our best deal out of anything. Eighteen months after signing the contract you are eligible for an upgrade, where you get a phone at the new customer price, plus an $18 upgrade fee. That means for the six months between the warranty and upgrade you are again completely s.o.l.

This realm of purgatory was where I found myself today, as I could have either spent $250 on the cheapest phone out there (as that is their suggested retail price) or purchase a go phone until I was eligible for an upgrade. Right at the point of giving up, the woman helping me out on the phone actually moved my upgrade eligibility up to today, so I was able to get a phone at the new customer price. Needless to say this made my day and saved me a lot of cash.

A further note is regarding insurance. They do offer insurance for cell phones that is $5/month, which does cover water and physical damage. That said, there is still a $50 deductible if you have to buy a new one. While $50 is a lot better than the full $300+, we all have to make our own decisions.

Although I have read many complaints online, the three times my wife and I have had to deal with Cingular/AT&T to get our phones replaced they were pretty helpful. Their products are cheaply made and not very durable, but every time we have talked to someone on the phone with a normal American accent and they have given us a decent deal. I still contend this is sad that I am considering this a good deal; I know you get what you pay for, as our phones were originally free after mail in rebates, but I would definitely be willing to pay for something that I know would last. Unfortunately I have never found a cell phone that will last for two years, but for those of you that have enjoy not having to worry.

I guess the morale of the story is hope you are lucky if you are not willing to pay for insurance, and read the contract carefully as it does not look like policies will be changing any time soon (current reference being AT&T's mandatory contract for the iPhone). Don't know if that is taking a pessimistic view, but then again the battle over coltan has further destroyed the Republic of Congo as 80% of the world's supply lies there. So, not only are we getting crappy products for cheap, hundreds of thousands of lives are destroyed just so we can get those crappy products for cheap. [Specific reading can be found in A Game as Old as Empire or, of course, on Wikipedia.]

Tonight's weekly stalemate

I admit that I am already sitting here thinking about (and now actually) writing about an aspect of my life.  I know that is what most bloggers do, and arguably all writers in the end, but it still feels weird that someone would be interested in reading my thoughts on matters.  Even though it was a friend, I will count the comment to last night's blog as the first reaction ever to any writing I have done outside of school, so kudos Brian.

To tell the truth, I am sitting here on a Friday night as I have done most Friday nights for the past several months staring at a computer screen needing to type a paper for class and having absolutely no motivation.  The hardest part of writing for me is finding a starting topic, and since this is for a class I have obviously had the topic for a week.  Due to thinking about homework I could not justify focusing on a topic for tonight's entry, yet why did I eagerly push homework aside to rush to do this instead?

So, I googled procrastination and sure enough found more than enough material outlining every reason and presenting countless solutions.  One college site even had every month broken out into the exact ways that most students will procrastinate for that period.   Ironically, just reading about procrastination made me realize how much time I was wasting and how I could be off doing something that I actually want to be doing at the moment.  As one of my co-workers once said, he stopped playing The Sims many years ago when he realized he was watching his character watch tv instead of just watching tv himself.  

All of that being said, if you need some of your own procrastination here is a great destination.

Putting my chips on the table

As I begin to fill the screen I join the ranks of those that I have always made fun of. (and I just ended my first blog sentence with a preposition.) With countless arenas of entertainment for us out there on the web I have always been reluctant to throw my two cents in and add more to the saturation of seemingly mindless entertainment. However, after receiving a kick in the rear about the merits of how writing anything is better than writing nothing, here goes something. I have never kept a journal and never intend for this to be a chronicle of my life, but instead want to highlight one or two random things every day that I have found that the mass media seems to overlook.

So, with all of that said, today's little bit of Americana comes from the first chapter of the book Fiasco. Operation Desert Fox was a little-known part of our containment policy against Iraq, and the book discusses how many are now realizing how successful it was at the time. For anyone that might actually read this, (congratulations on being the first one to ever read a blog from me!) a DoD piece can be found here http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/desert_fox/, and of course there is always the Holy Grail http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Desert_Fox.

This concludes my brief inaugural posting. For the English freaks out there, I ended a sentence with a preposition, started one with a transition, and referenced Wikipedia. Besides that, however, the experience has definitely been cathartic and I will definitely return tomorrow. I will start working on a decent closing line, but until then- the Sports Guy was definitely right this week when again discussing how Boston fans are now just as bad as New York fans.