This just in… I don’t give a crap.
This article is a little old now, but still worth discussing.
Muvico Makes Adults Only Theater
Can you believe that? For those who didn’t feel like reading it, or were suffering too much from a rapidly melting brain which tends to happen when exposed to such high levels of astounding idiocy, basically the Muvico movie theater company is planning to set aside one screen in their facilities for just people 21 and over.
Continue reading “Muvico’s Modern Segregation”
Apparently a bunch of Russians are all pissed off at Estonia because they moved an important statue or something. The statue was some kind of pro-Soviet symbol in Tallinn, Estonia, that all the Russians living there liked it because it was like a sign of victory for them. Estonians didn’t really care for that, since to them, anything pro-Soviet was supporting the days when they were still part of the whole USSR.
But they didn’t destroy the statue. They merely moved it to another spot.
Doesn’t matter. Russians are still all furious at them and protesting and boycotting and cutting off trade and whatnot. Looks like it could be a nasty European Union issue.
Those Russians, though. Seriously. I mean, I could see if the Estonians destroyed the memorial or something like that. No, the memorial is FINE. It’s merely in a different spot. What the hell is Russia’s problem? Goddamn, doesn’t matter where you are in the world, you’ll still find people getting pissy over stupid shit, and in great numbers.
…
Okay, yes, I’ve been reading The Economist and greatly enjoying it. So sue me.
My good NYRA friend Keith Mandell showed me this earlier.
Austrians Split at Voting at Age 16 Plan
VIENNA, Austria — Austria’s new coalition government says 16-year-olds _ who can already vote in some local races _ should also be allowed to cast ballots in national elections.
But the country is split on lowering the voting age from 18. Some think 16-year-olds are not sufficiently interested or mature enough to have a say in national affairs but others welcome the change.
“Adolescents aren’t any less interested in politics than other groups,” said Reinhard Zuba of the Austrian Institute for Youth Research, citing recent studies on the topic.
One such study, carried out with the Vienna-based SORA Institute after local elections in Vienna in October 2005, showed 59 percent of 16- to 18-year-olds cast a ballot.
That turnout was about the same as other age groups, said SORA co-director Christoph Hofinger, adding that lowering the voting age to 16 _ or even 14 _ could help counterbalance the views of an increasingly aging population, a common phenomenon across Europe.
In Europe, and around the world, the voting age is commonly 18 _ with some exceptions. In Iran, 15-year-olds can vote and in Cuba, Nicaragua and the Isle of Man, off the coast of Britain, 16-year-olds can cast ballots. On the other end of the spectrum, the age in Italy for voting for the Senate is 25.
The proposal to lower the age comes from Austria’s “grand coalition” of Social Democrats and the conservative People’s Party following elections on Oct. 1. But it was not a major campaign issue.
“I’d vote if I could because I get a bit worked up about what politicians do without asking us,” said 15-year-old Katharina Wurian.
Maria Finz-Lucchi, a history teacher in Vienna, said she too supports the proposal.
“It would teach young people to take responsibility,” she said.
But Willi Geser, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Innsbruck, is skeptical.
“If one decreases the voting age, then one has to do more to promote political education in the schools,” he said.
Oh, awesome! More and more people are seeing the light. A lower voting age is a GOOD thing!
And I just can’t stop thinking of The Sound of Music right now. 😆
NYRA’s Jeff Odgis posted this on the forums today. It’s short, so I’ll repost it here.
Four-Year-Old Scares Off Armed Robbers
On Friday night a man forced his way into the home of Jennifer Long’s apartment in north Durham while a second man held a gun on her boyfriend outside. The robber forced Jennifer, another woman, and several children to lie on the floor.
Stevie, a four-year-old boy, slipped out of the room and changed into his Power Ranger costume. He re-entered the room waving a plastic sword and screaming, “Get away from my family!” The thief then fled with only some items from Jennifer’s purse.
Heather Evans, Stevie’s aunt quoted a counselor as saying that Stevie’s distinction between fantasy and reality needed to be improved. According the aunt Stevie believed he morphed into a Power Ranger. His little sister has experienced nightmares.
Stevie kicks ass. I mean, when we were little, wasn’t that our dream? That we could do more than just pretend to be heroes. This kid actually was one!
And, of course, the “well-meaning” adults can’t just be happy with this. No. There it was right there in that last paragraph.
“Oh, noes! Stevie can’t distinguish fantasy from reality!”
You idiot, he just saved your asses!
Continue reading “Be a Victim Like a Good Little Boy”
Dude! The Gazette published my letter! It’s not in the print edition, but it’s on their site. 😀
I don’t do drugs. Let me just mention that right off the bat. I don’t need to do drugs. I’m quite loopy on my own under the influence of, well, nothing. However, I’m not about to condemn people who do. Well, the harmless ones like marijuana anyway. People who shoot up heroin and snort cocaine or whatever are just plain stupid.
Continue reading “Gross, Dude!”
Hamas won?! Are you fucking serious?
Look at this shit! (Washington Post. Free registration required.)
There I was at work yesterday, and in the lab they’ve got NPR on all day, which sucks because I was basically hearing the same three news stories over and over and over. What did I hear? Exit polls say Fatah will win over Hamas. Good. Hamas is a bunch of suicide bomb happy morons.
Continue reading “Oh, You’ve Got to Be Kidding!”
Here. Read this. It’s an LA Times article.
(And when/if that link goes bad, I’ve mirrored it here.)
Should I bother saying that Mike Males kicks all kinds of ass, or is that a given?
I’d so love to get a hold of one of his or other pro-youth books out there. I could use the youth rights ammo! I could use the caulk to patch holes in my arguments.
But, well, getting back to the matter at hand, let’s have a look at the aforementioned article.
Continue reading “Males Owns”