words of wisdom from james madison circa 1792.

my favorite part (it’s not really too long):

Anti-republican-The science of the stars can never instruct you in the mysteries of government. Wonderful as it may seem, the more you increase the attractive force of power, the more you enlarge the sphere of liberty; the more you make government independent and hostile towards the people, the better security you provide for their rights and interests. Hence the wisdom of the theory, which, after limiting the share of the people to a third of the government … establishes two grand hereditary orders … inveterately hostile to the rights and interests of the people, yet by a mysterious operation all combining to fortify the people in both.

Republican–Mysterious indeed! But mysteries belong to religion, not to government; to the ways of the Almighty, not to the works of man. And in religion itself there is nothing mysterious to its author; the mystery lies in the dimness of the human sight. So in the institutions of man let there be no mystery, unless for those inferior beings endowed with a ray perhaps of the twilight vouchsafed to the first order of terrestrial creation.

more to come from my historical research.

it gets really irritating when people (usually christian republican sheep) claim that bush is better for president because he will uphold the “christian beliefs that this country was founded on!” uh. do you realize that our country was founded to achieve freedoms? it wasn’t necessarily founded ON christian beliefs, but some founders were motivated by their christian beliefs. they didn’t found this country so christians could worship freely, but so all people could worship freely.

and more importantly, this country was founded in a way that would prevent anyone’s personal christian beliefs dictate anyone else’s beliefs.

personally, i fear we have strayed from that a bit. this is a not a religious discussion, but a discussion of the separation of church and state. while i may hold certain beliefs about religion, i’m not about to force those beliefs on anyone…even if i disagree with what they believe.

for instance (sticking my neck out here), i don’t believe that abortion is right, but that belief is partially based on my moral (and perhaps quasi-religious) beliefs. due to the somewhat objective nature of the topic (when does life begin, etc.), i don’t think the federal government should dictate how people handle that decision. perhaps the state government could have more of a say, which would better reflect the belief system that varies, generally, by region.

marriage is another institute that i believe should remain a state issue rather than a federal, much less a constitutional, matter.

i’m going to be doing a lot of reading on some of the founders thoughts on how the government should be setup (especially since the “ultra-christians” of today think that all of our forefathers were bible-believing christians lol).

(hope this doesn’t result in rioting!)

i’m not big on propaganda, but this is cool. and there’s always a bit of truth behind every piece of propaganda…bit getting the emphasis there. thanks,

whew… i know it’s a little late to be talking about last friday night, but we had such a blast at crush!

here’s proof! (left to right: brandi-roommate’s gf, josh-roommate, stacey-friend, rachel-me, charles-my man!)

and some more!! (lovely picture of me checking to make sure my boobs weren’t poppin’ out of my shirt) (left to right: brandi, josh, charles, stacey, rachel, allen-other roommate)

HARRRR!!

poland: you are not forgotten

this and installation of my boyfriend’s nakamichi 6-disc changer are all that stands between me and 20gb of digital music at my fingertips!

as for that last post…wb pms.

i’m feeling stretched very thin right now re: emotions. i hate the drama that is present. unfortunately (sometimes), when it rains it pours.

check out this clip of jon stewart on crossfire where he calls Tucker Carlson (the right-wing, bow-tie wearin’ dude) a dick!! jon stewart rocks! (thanks, )

this article on msnbc fills some of the “gaps” that the bush campaign claims exist in kerry’s record. from what i’ve read (in addition to this article), kerry seems to be more intelligent and perhaps a little more strategic. i wouldn’t mind having a guy like that as president. (if that doesn’t stir some discussion, i don’t know what will!)

and here’s an interesting article that puts bush throughan annual review, of sorts.

“team america: world police” is the funniest. fuckin’. movie. EVAR!!!!!

my friends and i laughed from beginning to end and well after we left the theater. the sex scene was hilarious (and nearly got the movie rated nc-17 from what i heard).

america…FUCK YEAH!

i really hate it when people take things out of context. the drudgereport tried to make this interview with christopher reeve sound like he didn’t think embyronic stem cells were useful to chronic injuries, which IS NOT what he said.

RD: What’s your position on embryonic stem cell research?
Reeve: I advocate it because I think scientists should be free to pursue every possible avenue. It appears though, at the moment, that embryonic stem cells are effective in treating acute injuries and are not able to do much about chronic injuries.

my favorite part of the interview though:

RD: How could you not?
Reeve: It’s a proven fact that you can control panic by applying rational processes. In all my days of flying and sailing and riding, every now and again I got myself into a jam. On Christmas Day in 1985 I was flying over the Green Mountains in Vermont. Thick clouds, snowing. And the warning light went on. I looked out and saw oil all over the wing. I knew I had to shut down that engine and fly to Boston on the other. You’re hoping it doesn’t develop a problem too. But the chance of a multi-engine failure is very, very remote. Literally, you use your brain to stop panic. I’ve had a lot of training in that area from my life before the injury.

he was living proof that you can do ANYthing you put your mind to.

here’s an interesting interview with Joel Miller, the author of bad trip (how the war against drugs is destroying america). the dude has some VERY interesting points.

something not mentioned in the interview, but is a good arguement for legalizing soft drugs is the tax money the government could get from it. i’m sure Joel Miller covers that in the book though.

there aren’t many things that i could reasonably request of anyone for my birthday, and i don’t normally bring it up, but i have the strangest hankerin’ (that’s 20 yrs in the south for ya’) for some incubus cds that i don’t have.

cds i want:
Fungus Amongus
When Incubus Attacks, Vol. 1
Enjoy Incubus
Live in Malaysia 2004
Live in Japan 2004
Live at Lollapalooza 2003

much of what i don’t have is more of the rare release type stuff, but that’s what’s cool about it.

and i’m not asking for anything, but felt the need to document what i didn’t have (if only for my own sake–that’s what birthday money is for!).

there was no option for a geek girl. and i have NEVER said anything re: susan sarandon. my answer for the woman i most admire was my grandmother–not susan sarandon.

incubus last night r0cked the house!! what an unbelievable show. despite the less-than-favorable-venue (i personally prefer a venue with general admission like this or this), incubus succeeded in making my money well spent.

if you ever get a chance to see them perform (i had multiple people offer me free tickets after i bought mine), DEFINITELY go see them!

(and for those of you interested–brandon was h0t stuff…and i don’t say that about too many dudes)

i have 6 gmail invitations, so if you want a gmail account (e-mail by google), then let me know.

my take on gmail: it’s the BEST webmail application i’ve ever used. i love how dynamic the navigation is. at the very least, take an invite to check out the features.

everyone needs at least one spam-mail account. i’m actually using this as an “on the road” account ’cause the interface is so….doable. i wish my regular webmail client was like this. it’s h0t.

fridays, i work 10a-7p to cover the “late” shift on help desk.

i usually end up cleaning out my mailbox and catching up with people i haven’t seen all week.