Traffic

This post deals with traffic in and around cities. Currently I reside near a city and it is not a good place to be. Those that live in or near cities know how traffic can be. Crowded streets and aggressive driving are the norm. Many people I know that grew up in cities don't mind the traffic. To them aggressive driving is the only kind of driving. The problem is that this type of driving causes many people to break the law and cause wrecks. I say wrecks and not accidents because individuals that drive in this manner know that it is not safe and could cause problems.
    I am not a fan of drivers that pull out in front of you when your doing 60 mph and decide you can slow down in time for them. It ticks me off to no end because the cops here in Texas don't care. They'll either not show up and let the drivers have at it or blame to driver that rear ended the idiot that pulled out. Another irritation is the drivers that are on the cell phone or text while driving. Not only do they vary their speed while driving from 45 mph to 70 mph, they also break constantly and swerve into the lane thats occupied by others.
    I enjoy open roads with few drivers because I don't have to worry about those other idiots. If I see a few drivers I can wave and hope to get a wave back. Its just much more relaxing to drive without the need to constantly watch the driver that has the cell phone out or the wobbles. A relaxing drive with fewer drivers is also a good way to start the day when heading to work. The mind is relaxed and, in my case, I feel happy and ready to start the day. Alas, the country is shrinking. More and more people are being born which is good but causes the planet to suffer due to the increased strain of providing necessities and space for living. Most cities I've been to cannot handle the number of drivers on the road and to me public transportation is riddled with too many compounded problems. Thats another topic in itself however. On the brighter side of public transportation, the more people that take it the more room on the road for me.

CyberEmergency?

It seems big brother is trying to take another little slice of pie. The article "Renewed Push to Give Obama an Internet "Kill Switch"" from CBS news says that the bill was originally put forth the middle of 2010 but has had some changes made. As if the government wasn't big enough, it now wants to install a "switch" to control the flow of information on the internet and they included a provision that would prevent judicial review for its use. A representative of the people needs to be able to review all actions of government. I am NOT anti-government but I am against unchecked government. I understand a need for military servers and certain financial servers to have a means of disconnecting from the net if cyber threats are bad enough. Computer hacking is an issue right now. Many financial institutions are being hacked and personal information stolen. All people should be alarmed. Its well documented that China likes to steal from America. Speaking of China, they have features in place to control access flow in their country. Are we seeing something similar being implemented here? We really need to improve computer security here not transfer more control to the hungry.

State of Union Address - My Take

Watching the state of union of address felt like I was watching a movie. After every sentence people would clap and about a third to half of the 80 applause sessions including standing up. I'm not big on such activities for everything that is spoken. The State of the Union Address was supposed to inspire America and encourage us to feel positive about the future of this country. Not make me wonder how much it cost to hire the guy with the sign that said clap or standing ovation. There were many yes men in the crowd who cooed after every word but many faces could be seen that appeared to just stay with the crowd so as not to be singled out. They stood, clapped, and sat down without losing the frown or stone face they held before standing.
It was interesting that Texas has passed measures to let go of many teachers and is talking about shutting down schools, yet the speech included a sentence requesting more individuals become teachers to improve the quality of the youth in this country. Teachers are needed but it will take more than someone lecturing, parenting is needed as well. I've noticed parents don't raise youngins like they used to be raised. Punishment is now such things as, "Don't do that, I love you!" I know first hand cause I've seen this one used, didn't work.
Also in the speech was comments about keeping more educated immigrants in the country. Hmmm, if we wouldn't give them free education then we could save money there. Why keep immigrants in the country when citizens can't get jobs here. I know, I know. People argue that they do the jobs Americans don't want or their people too. Yea yea. If the jobs are there then someone will take them. Its not gonna be like we will have head hunters at the border yelling, "toilet cleaner position open." Immigration reform is needed but its a dead horse that rots with time and there is no way to make it work again. There are just too many involved and no one willing to take the necessary steps to fix the issue.
I agree with things that were said but I don't have the warm and fuzzy inside about our future. Talk says that jobs are recovering and the economy has rebounded some. However, what many don't say is that the number of jobs created compared to the number jobs lost is very small. Many people are working multiple jobs or still in danger of losing what they have because of reduced wages. Politicians talk talk talk cause its what they do. We have high hopes for new ones that "we elect" but it seems its business as usual with new faces. Most of the time from what I've seen, politicians do whats best for their pocket which may include reelection. I back the president because he is the icon of the nation. We all have to support him because if he fails we fail. I want him to succeed as president but on the terms of the people not his terms.
Hearing government talk of reorganizing the government causes my forehead to sweat and nervous switch to develop. I'll definitely have to keep my ears to the grindstone on this one to keep myself from being caught off guard. Will the changes include tax reform with reduction in national debt? Extreme high debt means tax increases. We all know its coming. We hate it but its the truth. Gov will never stop spending on things that are not needed. We need government to work for the people not against us to increase their power. No one person can do it all, not even the president.

What was your take on it?

Lack of Info

So far this blog doesn't have much in the way of useful information. Hopefully that will change in upcoming posts. For now, it will suffice that I've been sick with a cold this weekend and have not been able to get information together for a descent post. May continue on with low quality post for a short bit till I get the hang of blogging and get my ducks in a row.
Being sick this weekend also put me behind on school work that is due each day this week. Not good. Tried to catch up today then my computer felt the need to crash. Whoop-de-doo.

College

The necessity of college in today's society has been greatly exaggerated in my opinion. I have had jobs that require college degrees but had none. The training was the same and I did well at the job. I can see where certain fields have a need to go to school first such as medical or engineering. Both of those require knowledge that would take too long to learn on the job and be dangerous to boot since most jobs in those categories deal with human lives, directly or indirectly.
I learned today that the land I want to farm is going to be worked by another farmer. The land needs lime according to him and he would like to start immediately. He was given the go ahead so now I wonder what other changes and amendments will be needed to get the land self sustainable and void of all the chemical pesticides and fertilizers that are used on it by sharecroppers. Looking forward to the days when I can work the land the way I see fit and not rely on others to take care of it whilst I'm away. Must finish college and sell the house I have, soon.

Initial Post

New Year brings new ideas and possibilities. I've decided to give blogging a shot. Many different things will be posted here including survival info, life, and farm related posts. 

Like many in America today, I'm outta work and trying to make it. Coupons are helpful but I have not found they are wonderful. This year, yet again, I plan to try and grow a little garden in the Texas sun to see if this year will prove better than previous ones. The ground here consists mostly of clay and scrap that the home builder tried to hide by burying it in the dirt while building. When I get that project going I'll post pics and such to let you follow me in my blunders.