<![CDATA[CHUD.com - A Movie Website and SO MUCH MORE. - Blogs]]> http://chud.com/articles en-us N/A nicknunziata@gmail.com Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:36:00 EST 20 <![CDATA[Integrity: The New Mandate (Apply Liberally)]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1596/Integrity-The-New-Mandate-Apply-Liberally.html
Recent revelations about baseball players and steroids have shed new light on the importance of integrity in baseball. Most notable of these players is Alex Rodriguez. I have been party to a number of conversations at Smokers Paradise that have ended with the conclusion that A-Rod is "a worthless piece of (excrement)." I quote many of the patrons that frequent my favorite hangout. I agree. Whether or not you personally believe that steroids are a big deal or not the simple fact is that they are against the rules. Using them is a violation of the trust that we as fans place on the players. The rules are there to keep the playing field level. When Rodriguez took them he knew they were against the rules of Major League Baseball. Rules that he had to know, not just read, before he was allowed to join the league. When he took the shot he did so with willful malicious intent and only to get that very fat paycheck.

In comparison United States President Obama was elected on a campaign that promised change. So far he has nominated a cabinet that is largely composed of Clinton administration appointees, and Mrs. Clinton. Several of these nominees have tax problems that would land many of us citizens in serious legal trouble, yet our President stands behind his choices saying that each one of these instances was "simple oversight" by the person in question. Is this a man defending his choices because he believes heart and soul that they are the right choices? Seeing as these were the same people at the helm for the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act that deregulated banks and caused the financial crisis we're in now, I find it hard to believe that these are the best possible choices to fix said financial crisis. Either he's not properly vetting them, or he's paying back a debt to the life-long politicians that helped get him elected and doesn't care about fixing anything. Both options represent a betrayal to his promise of change.

Another recent example is the Clinton impeachment. Clinton defenders will tell you that it was a witch-hunt that was being led by social conservatives over him having an affair with an intern. The truth is that sitting US President, Bill Clinton, was actually impeached in 1998 by the U.S. House of Representatives for perjury, obstruction of justice and abuse of power. The U.S. Senate then failed to convict because it wasn't in the Country's best interests. Former President Clinton lied because he didn't believe that a sitting President should have to answer to Congress or the American people. This was a flagrant violation of the public trust and oath of office, yet he was not convicted. There are many that believe he was simply the victim of a "vast right-wing conspiracy" and the President didn't have to answer to Congress or the American people.

Contrast former President Bush, who went before the American people and justified the war in Iraq by citing British intelligence reports that Saddam Hussein was continuing development of Weapons of Mass Destruction. After we had removed Hussein and special investigators concluded that there was evidence of the WMD program continuing up until days before the invasion of our troops, but the investigators never did find the WMDs themselves. Many Bush detractors believe that he lied to the American people because the investigators did not find the WMDs. Some critics say that the British intelligence was faulty, but Charles Deulfer's "DCI Special Advisor's Report on Iraq's WMD" clearly shows that Hussein never stopped his WMD programs after first Gulf War sanctions were placed on Iraq. While many will say that Bush lied, the truth is that the WMD development programs were active, but we failed to find the WMDs before they were moved to destinations unknown.

In the afore mentioned examples the baseball player and Republican President are being held to a higher standard than their Democratic counterparts. It would almost be amusing if not for the fact that millions of taxpayer dollars, our dollars, are being spent prosecuting baseball players for lying about using steroids and some members of Congress are trying to impeach former President Bush for lying to Congress and the American people, when the evidence doesn't support such a charge. Meanwhile well demonstrated self-serving elected officials lie repeatedly and get record approval ratings. The common thread seems to be that as long as you are a Democrat, you are incapable of losing your integrity. The means must justify the ends if you're a baseball player or a Republican, whereas the ends justify any means necessary if you're a Democrat.
]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1596/Integrity-The-New-Mandate-Apply-Liberally.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Life isn't fair, why should our government be?]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1389/Mental-Masturbation-Life-isn039t-fair-why-should-our-government-be.html here.
In Obama's Blueprint For Change the recurring income point is $50,000 not $250,000. Does that mean that anyone making more than $50,000 is going to be taxed more than they are now? Judging by his past actions and words, now coupled with the fact that this document dropped off of his website, I believe this to be the case.

Also in this document he discusses his plan to deal with the Oil crisis. He plans to "Enact a Windfall Profits Tax to Provide a $1,000 Emergency Energy Rebate to American Families: Obama and Biden will enact a windfall profits tax on excessive oil company profits to give American families an immediate $1,000 emergency energy rebate to help families pay rising bills. This relief would be a down payment on the Obama-Biden long-term plan to provide middle class families with at least $1,000 per year in permanent tax relief." Since oil and oil companies have been vilified of late this sounds on first blush to be a good idea, but it isn't. First of all, even after numerous investigations, oil companies have not been found guilty of breaking the law, so why punish them for being profitable? I always thought that success was rewarded, not punished. Most importantly however is that a lot of people buy into this idea because oil is evil and everything associated oil must therefor be evil as well so a lot of people buy into it. Stop and think for a second though. Do you think that oil companies are just going to roll over and take the windfall tax, or do you think that they are going to pass this new expense on to their customers, namely us? Since he's talking about taxing oil, not just gasoline this expense will affect every oil based product. from oil and gas to rubber, plastics, synthetics like polyester just to name a few. In one fell swoop he's talking about raising the prices of cars, tires, food (plastic containers), clothes, houses (shingles, tar paper, etc) office supplies and more. It probably won't go up much though, right? Let's look at the numbers real quick, shall we? $1,000 per family, according to his own document. Accoring to the US Department of Commerce there are Approximately 75 million families in the United States. So 75,000,000 times $1,000.00 equals $75,000,000,000.00 or $75 trillion in the first year. Sounds like the price hikes would be substantial to me, but then I find 75 trillion dollars to be an incredible amount of money!

There is much more to be worried about in this document, I encourage you to read it, if for no other purpose than to try to bash me here and show me how wrong I am. Maybe you too will learn something about the candidate. Something more than just the fact that he represents change from the current system. Hitler  was a great orator changed the system in post World War I Germany too, not for the better either. He decided to penalize the Jews and that it was only fair that Germany rule the world, a world populated by Aryans. I am not saying that Obama is calling to exterminate the Jews, but I do believe that he wishes to wage war on the rich in the name of being fair. It sounds good until you find out that he thinks you're one of the rich (my suspicion is that if you make more than $50,000 per year, you are rich to Obama). Unless you are the one making the rules, how often have you fealt that any game was fair to you? Do you really want our government of career politicians that largely don't even participate in the game deciding what is fair?
]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:00:00 EST http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1389/Mental-Masturbation-Life-isn039t-fair-why-should-our-government-be.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: The Economy- Time to Think 'Out of the Box']]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1366/Mental-Masturbation-The-Economy--Time-to-Think-039Out-of-the-Box039.html
Tax incentives to businesses that encourage their employees to work from home. Simple things like 100% write-offs on laptops for employees, broadband connectivity from home, transition to Voice Over IP phone systems that allow employees to have a work phone in their home that is on the company directory. This will also have an immediate impact on the demand for gasoline and therefor oil. Since we aren't driving as much, we will also be cutting down on greenhouse gas production as well.Another benefit is that some families will no longer have to put their children into daycare. The time lost to the individual in a commute to work, sometimes as mush at 4 hours per day, is priceless. Obviously not every business can do this, but it would still be a substantial impact on the economy, traffic and smog.

Suspension of taxes for a period of 30 days. All taxes. Even if you don't think that you pay taxes, you will benefit from this one. Take a look at your receipts the next time you buy anything. Take a look at your paycheck and see how much is taken out each time you get paid. Like to have that back for a month? Of course this might lead to a complete restructure of our taxation programs...damn!

Rescind the bail-out bill. For whatever reason, required by law, greed, stupidity, banks made loans that they knew were risky, at best. They loaned money to people with no-income, made interest only loans on million-dollar homes to people that only make 100 thousand per year, gave out Adjustable Rate Mortgages knowing that at the end of the 5 years there was no way that the buyer could afford the property. People that agreed to these terms were just as greedy, but it took the approval of the lender for them to get the money. The answer is not to reward abject greed by giving the banks money to continue their bad habits. Instead what I think needs to happen is that the government should require that the banks extend the original terms (IE interest only or low introductory rate) of the mortgage to the buyer for 3 additional years. I also believe that the government does need to guarantee deposits into all FDIC insured banks up to one million dollars each depositor instead of just one hundred thousand dollars.

I'm sure there are arguments against these ideas and I know that they fly in the face of ongoing political practice, but isn't the ongoing political policy responsible for our current predicament?
]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1366/Mental-Masturbation-The-Economy--Time-to-Think-039Out-of-the-Box039.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Check Your Ego At The Door]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1101/Mental-Masturbation-Check-Your-Ego-At-The-Door.html This being an irrefutable truth we have to accept that we are incapable of producing anything that nature did not intend. Freon, carbon monoxide, internal combustion engines, coal burning, nuclear power plants etc. We do not defy physical laws by creating any of these products. So let that sink in for a moment. Grab a Starbucks half-caff, skinny, venti something or other and wrap your little grey cells around that concept for a minute. What comes next may hurt more.
So, if it isn't coming from my SUV, where does this pesky global warming come from? In the late 1990s retreating ice in Canada revealed caribou dung, mummified animal remains and tools that had been covered for thousands of years. If you're interested in reading the paper it can be found here. So what does this mean? It means that thousands of years ago, while humans lived there, there was a completely different climate than the tundra we have known for all of our recorded history. Animals thrived, humans killed and ate them and then eventually the ice came on covered said animals and plants. Something tells me that it had nothing to do with oil, hair spray, air conditioning or refrigerators. In fact if you take the time to ask a geologist about their history of the Earth, you will find that there are global temperature shifts throughout the geologic record. Ice, then no ice, then ice again. The funny thing is that most of those took place without a single human being present, let alone driving SUVs, burning coal or plastering their hair down before the potlatch.
While I'm sure Al Gore has good intentions, or at least a good business plan for tearing up the speaking tour, I can not take his "study" seriously. It is nothing more than a half-baked stab at pseudo science and it only gets attention because many of you are too lazy to crack a book or even a few magazines to learn the truth for yourselves. The truth is that the Earth will do what the Earth has done for millennia, regardless of what car you drive, what treaty you sign or President you vote for.
So I ask you again, are we stewards or merely tenants? I personally believe that we are tenants. I also believe in keeping the house clean, so to speak. I believe in recycling and being as fuel efficient as is affordable. I also believe in controlling pollution. Make no mistake, I do believe that we can screw up our own existence by polluting our water, land and air, but to Mother Earth we haven't been here long enough warrant her attention. If we ever did catch her ire, she could shrug us off and there's nothing we could do to stop it.
]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1101/Mental-Masturbation-Check-Your-Ego-At-The-Door.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Environmentally Unfriendly]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1052/Mental-Masturbation-Environmentally-Unfriendly.html
How about the Fuel Cell? Well, so far there isn't one available. Well, I'll be fair, there is one. Honda introduced a limited availability FCX Clarity. The Clarity will be available in, of all places, Southern Califronia for the bargain basement price of $600 per month for 3 years. Woo-Hoo! Before you rush out and get on the waiting list read this exerpt from the honda website:

Hydrogen Safety
Sensors are located throughout the vehicle to provide a warning in the unlikely event of a hydrogen leak. Should such a leak occur, the ventilation system is activated and an automatic system closes the main cut-off valves on the hydrogen tank or supply lines as necessary. The high-voltage lines are electrically isolated. Sensors provide a warning in case of grounding. In the event of a collision, high-voltage contactors shut down the source power line. Repeated flood and fire testing have confirmed a very high level of safety and reliability.

I don't know about you but this doesn't inspire a feeling of confidence should I get hit by a Cadillac Escalade driving home from work. In addition to the safety concerns, I have yet to hear about what the impact of having several million of these new vehicles emitting "only water vapor into the air we breathe." How much water vapor per vehicle per hour are we talking about? For some reason I see a Blade Runner-esque future where it rains perpetually and you never see the sun.

Ethanol from corn must be the answer then, right? Wrong. I'll cite a USA Today article which can be found by going here. "Compared with gasoline, it produces 12% less "greenhouse" gasses linked to global warming, according to the study. But the researchers also said it has environmental drawbacks, including "markedly greater" releases of nitrogen, phosphorous and pesticides into waterways as runoff from corn fields. Ethanol, especially at higher concentrations in gasoline, also produce more smog-causing pollutants than gasoline per unit of energy burned, the researchers said." Ethanol is also far more corrosive than gasoline and requires different storage tanks than gasoline. If you add to that the fact that we can't produce enough ethanol to supply our needs anyway then what's the point of pursuing ethanol?

This is par for the "going green" course though. Have you changed all of your conventional light bulbs to compact flourescent? Have you had a need to throw one away yet? Did you take it to the appropriate recycling facility? Did you know that you needed to? They contain mercury. Go to this link to learn more about how and where to dispose of them before throwing them in the garbage.

I'm all for coming up with more efficient means of transportation and power, but lets make sure that we aren't trading one set of problems for another before we embrace any solution. Or is this really about how much it costs to tank up your car? If so then get your congressman to vote to open up our Anwar and other protected areas to oil drilling now.

]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/1052/Mental-Masturbation-Environmentally-Unfriendly.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Reality Bites, I'll Take Cheese Instead]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/352/Mental-Masturbation-Reality-Bites-I039ll-Take-Cheese-Instead.html
I know a lot of people that are hopelessly addicted to American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, and other reality shows. I think reality shows are a travesty. With the exception of a couple of Discovery Channel shows, reality shows appeal to the lowest common denominator. I guess that's why I don't like it. Or maybe it's because I'm not a voyeur. I'm barely interested in my own life, why would I be interested in watching someone else buffoon through their life in front of a camera?*

The Doctor always prevails, it wouldn't be the show it is if he didn't. The idiots picked for reality shows couldn't find their ass with both hands and a fanny-finder. Really people, this is entertainament? Really? As a good friend says "You're killing me Smalls." The networks have found a way to make TV shows with little to no investment and you eat it up. Survivor? Really? Has anyone ever died on that show? Should they? Yes!! Then it would be worthy of its title. Until then get off my television and stop contributing to the dumbing-down of America, we don't need any help going that direction.

-David Wagner is loving watching a mechanical angel kill someone with his halo on Doctor Who!

*Я очень заинтересован в моем жхырусржф!]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/352/Mental-Masturbation-Reality-Bites-I039ll-Take-Cheese-Instead.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Money Shot]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/340/Mental-Masturbation-Money-Shot.html
Anyway I've been thinking about the whole Microsoft-Yahoo debate. Is this strictly about advertising revenues? I mean, does Google really own the online advertising market? Microsoft purchased Double-click a little while ago. That has to be about advertising, doesn't it? Meanwhile the Masters is on my Comast High Definition driven Vizio LCD TV. Should I abandon the blog, pour myself some 3 Vodka and Canada Dry club soda, or maybe a Sam Adams Light and retire to the Lane recliner? Maybe I'll put on my Oakley sunglasses and sit on the deck and smoke a Cohiba Maduro Cuban cigar...

Have I mentioned that I love my Apple iPhone? I know a lot of people that complain because the iPhone is only available on the at&t wireless network, but I don't have any complaints about service. Having been on the T-Moble, verizon and Sprint networks in the past I can tell you none of them are without problems. I used to use RIM BlackBerry devices, but I really like the web experience and text messaging on the iPhone. I have found that I do far more text messaging then email, and it's not because I don't like email, but rather because text messaging is virtually instantaneous.

Hell, its almost time to fire up the stove and get the Calphalon pans and J.A. Henckels knives out, break out the Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Land O' Lakes Sweet Cream Buttter. I can't forget the Morton's Kosher Salt! After dinner and then a cigar, I am going to play a little Sony Playstation 3.

Sorry for rambling so long, I really do have a point to this blog. I guess the future of business in America is advertising, I only hope I can end up wearing patches and stickers in recognition of paid endorsements by all of my favorite companies!

-David Wagner is a shameless whore if it pays well.


]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/340/Mental-Masturbation-Money-Shot.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: Staring into...]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/333/Mental-Masturbation-Staring-into.html
So where am I going with this? What purpose does religion serve today? I understand that religion was important before we as a species understood what an eclipse was, for example. What caused floods, droughts, epidemics and those shiny, twinkling things in the night sky? Since no one could convincingly explain any of these events a deity had to be responsible. Since we didn't want to believe that anyone who could create "so much majesty" (flowers, trees, lakes and oceans and the platypus), he/she/it had to be benevolent. Thus came religion. Someone then had the great idea that the way to keep people from wantonly raping, pillaging and smoking cigarettes was to create a set of rules, or commandments to scare people into behaving in such a fashion as to keep them from burning in the pit of Hell.

Today we have police, courts of law and women that can run for office. I mean we have come a long way. Aside from some Art Bell listeners, most people know what causes floods, epidemics, eclipses and that those are stars in the night sky (as yet no one can come up with an explanation for the platypus, or Tori Spelling for that matter). Is there really a place for religion today?

Nah, ditch it. If it had embraced the expanse of knowledge as we have evolved, then maybe there's a place for it to give comfort to those that worry about what happens to them when they die. Instead it attempts to hold on to outmoded beliefs and ancient morality. I say thanks for the memories, but we've outgrown the need to be scared into behaving well.

-David Wagner plans on making Satan his bitch when he gets to Hell.


]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Sun, 13 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/333/Mental-Masturbation-Staring-into.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: I'd rather be...]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/326/Mental-Masturbation-I039d-rather-be.html Dive with the Sharks event at the Florida Aquarium in Tampa. I have numerous hours of dive experience and have seen a few sharks on dives, even gotten close to some small sharks, but I have never been within reach of 6 foot long Sand Tiger, Zebra and 4 foot long White Tips sharks. Until now. The Dive with the Sharks exhibit is available to certified divers and gives you a chance to spend 30 minutes getting as close as you are comfortable with to their sharks.

My dive buddy was a good friend and newly certified diver. We were delighted by how close the sharks got to us. She even had the Goliath Grouper rest on top of her head and bellow. This was a small Goliath Grouper weighing just 230 pounds!

The Sand Tigers were very inquisitive and got so close to me that I actually had to lean back to keep from being hit by a pectoral fin on his pass. The Zebra sharks seemed content staying about 6 feet away, but were so beautiful. One of the other factors that make this experience so amazing is the visibility. The water is crystal clear and allow you to see so much detail. In the wild it is so hard to get the combination of the presence of the sharks and good visibility.

All in all I have to say that this is an experience that any diver that is interested in sharks should schedule immediately! Let me know when you are going because I will go back any chance I can get!


]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Sat, 05 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/326/Mental-Masturbation-I039d-rather-be.html <![CDATA[Mental Masturbation: My Aching Ass]]> http://chud.com/articles/blogs/324/Mental-Masturbation-My-Aching-Ass.html
I'm certainly not incapable of going to the gym, hitting the weights and "feeling the burn." After 11 years of marriage, 5 years of parenthood I had achieved the perfect state of physical coma. In January I started working out and a diet of sorts. I have shed 20 pounds and was feeling better physically after each workout. I found that I had plateaued on the weight loss. Last Monday I received a call from Jeannie at my gym asking to schedule a time to sit down and go over my goals. I agreed and set up the appointment. I figured if nothing else I can figure out what I could be doing better.

After doing a BMI we determined that I need to lose 11 pounds. Calculated my desired heart rate during cardio and discussed my current versus correct eating habits. The fun began after all that.

I am the first to admit that I have become a fat, lazy son of a bitch, but I had no idea just how bad I was until I started training with Jeannie. Had I just been going to the gym on my own I would never have pushed myself to the level that Jeannie does. Right now I feel an exquisite pain that will surely be doubled or tripled by Monday evening.

She worked muscle groups that have been in a vegetative state for years. I kept looking to the next station to give me a sign that I wasn't in the awful shape I knew I was in. I was of course disappointed. I'm there watching men and women do reps with weights that I might be able to lift once. It was demoralizing with the exception of the fact that Jeannie kept me focused on the workout, not my surroundings and that allowed me to complete the workout. It seems simple; she keeps me talking, thinking about anything except how much I hurt and how pathetic the weights I'm lifting look in comparison to everyone else there.

I recommend the personal trainer if you really want to get fit, but aren't sure how to get there. Joining a gym is a good start and you can get in better shape, but the personal trainer makes you keep your commitment to going to the gym (since you're charged whether you go or not), designs a workout and tracks your progress for you, and keeps you focused on the goal. Jeannie rocks and I recommend her highly.

With that I need to go take my 800mg ibuprofen, ice my abs and eat a healthy lunch. I have already gone in and done my cardio for the day, so my next session in Monday, wish me luck!

-David Wagner is motivated by health, happiness and a small brunette that insults his flabbiness at every opportunity.
]]> no@spam.com (David Wagner) Sat, 05 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://chud.com/articles/blogs/324/Mental-Masturbation-My-Aching-Ass.html