Monday, April 30, 2012

Facebook, Twitter, and CISPA/SOPA

Alright, this bill is inevitable, which means all porn streaming and downloads will cease to exist.... and Caillou, Caillou will be gone as well.

Now that you are aware what people do on the internet outside of farmville and winning free Ipads, I will dive deeper. Now, CISPA and SOPA are bills that have been declined once by the united states jurisdiction. Their main objective is to eliminate the middle man and have tabs on everyone's IP by tracking and deciphering millions of codes. Although a terrible idea, I would argue it has many logistical and rational points behind it. Sure, free porn and uhhh legal copies of movies free to anyone online is good. I would argue that stupidity and downright disgusting things said online should be easily traceable and punishable by law. What forces someone to make a twitter to beak people online to give themselves some kind of satisfaction in their own sad life is beyond me.

Whether it is hate crimes, or people bragging that they have defaced some monument or building in their area. The anonymity of twitter and facebook is hidden quite well. From the time their finger hits the key I believe someone should be able to trace it. I'm sure more illegal things happen online than the average person realizes. Hold on Chris Hansen's at my door, but I don't want to take a seat. Why does everyone take a seat when he says it. His smooth forehead and lack of emotion probably seduces those people to sit.

Jon Lovitz, that guy from those movies who disappeared after the Benchwarmers (with good reason) has recently used twitter to fight hate crime and public displays of racism. He did this by publicly posting a picture of 3 17 year old girls who shit on his steps and painted swastikas. However, I am unaware how they did this since girls don't shit. (Right?) Public internet forums and social networking are stirring with the amount of racist and prejudicial remarks that are transferred through their system.

It is making everyone dumber, and is probably responsible for a lot of depression felt by the youth of the nation. We are, we are the youth of the nation. What bothers me most about the joys and monstrous pitfalls of the internet is that Youth suicide rates have gone up almost double since social networking hit it's stride. Which is much more than a coinkidink. Spend a day on twitter and you will see some nasty stuff said. People looking for their 15 minutes of fame, which they earn eventually, just to destroy some 15 year old for some satisfaction. Because they can't get no... Satisfaction (2nd music lyric) in life anywhere else.

Recently a teen from Scotland who went on twitter to hurl racist remarks at a soccer player whom wasn't even coherent and just suffered a heart attack. For a good 3 hours this person let out the tirades of using the words "coon" to get whatever incoherent message she wanted to get across. She showed Muamba her power. She was later found by someone she was chatting with days prior. Outed publicly.

The Bruins faithful had spouted out their own feelings to losing to the Capitals off of a goal by Joel Ward. (Gohabsgo) Also spewing the same words, disgracing an entire fanbase and other sport's fanbases as well. 

Now cyber-bullying is easy to do, without consequence. I've been a victim several times too, but at the end of the day I realized it isn't me who is going to feel like shit when my head hits the pillow. It is the person chirping someone else because their life has no direction or support from others.

Suicide rates will continue to rise unless someone somewhere can get a handle on the cyber bullying that is masked by being able to hide behind pseudonyms like Captaindouche69 or Kushkilla420.

Alas, thanks internet for your po.... I mean youtube.

Regards,
Terd Ferguson

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Seinfeld, The Simpsons, and television today

In the world of television only few shows have shone. From jumping the shark in Happy Days, to the long running strings of Fox shows like the Tick. As well as the brutal runs of Brad Garrett and Patricia Heaton shows after Everybody Loves Raymond went down. Rest in Peace Peter Boyle.

Seinfeld, arguably the greatest comedic television show in history. Through its rocky start, to the contest episode. Nothing is quite like it, and no other show will be. The chemistry of the relatively unknown Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Michael Richards, and Jason Alexander with Jerry is something that hasn't been seen since. I would argue the reason for Seinfeld's 9 year power run (once the Cosby show stopped) is found in Larry David. As he balanced the show about nothing, the comedy and plot. When David stepped down from his creative duties in season 8 the show kind of began losing its mojo

Through season 9, it became apparent to Jerry that the show was going to lose rating and risk the shark jumping. So, he went out on top, regardless of how much money NBC was willing to throw at him. Which made the show that much greater, and who knows what would've came of doing one more season.

Now lets look to the Simpsons. 1989 the Simpsons burst onto the scene after experiencing success in the sketch comedy circuit. Witty, dumb, yellow-skinned, flat out comedy. Enjoyed to right around the season 8 mark. With remarkably similar responses as Seinfeld and positive reviews. Then the writing took a turn and something happened after season 8, and the show has never been the same.  Now over 20 seasons in and roughly 2 million invested in voice actors it is just waiting to be put down.

Watch the first 8 seasons and see how hilarious it is, and watch a new episode and it will be 21 minutes of laugh-free television. Assuming there isn't 9 minutes of hilarious commercials.

It appears that the Simpsons is in a world on its own, and always will be as well. Family Guy goes for Pop Culture references up the wazoo, and borrows from many of the early episodes of Simpsons. In which Seth Macfarlane has poked fun at himself over. Now the simpsons is battling through the brown stains of television around it. With the exception of cable television (HBO, AMC) only a few other gems are well-written and well presented (30 rock, community).

Now, TV producers take actors from other successful shows and tries to force them into sitcoms and awkward television appearances. The rest of it is reality television of seemingly ordinary people, games shows with heavy taxation and washed up athletes and television stars on some stupid "have a look into my dumpster reality show. "

Toddlers and Tiaras, Kim and Kourtney look at each others fat asses, Celebrity Rehab, My Strange Addiction, Say Yes to Dress, Teen Mom, Jersey Shore (ETC) I CAPITALIZE THAT BECAUSE IT IS A GIGANTIC LIST OF SHOWS that are absolute trash. It is also going to get worse over the years with the integration of 3D television. Then you can really see the people on Heavy demolish burgers like I demolish......

I weep for humanity, and the industry that pumps these out because someone is so intrigued by the stupidity of it all to watch it.  For instance why you would dress your 4 year old daughter up as a prostitute to win a trophy.


Regards,
Devon

Friday, April 20, 2012

4/20, Legalization of Marijuana, and why I weep for society

Today is 4/20, as I did with St. Patrick's Day I figured I shall write a wonderfully timed blog. Get things out of the way, I weep for humanity and the struggle against drugs, or the disease itself. Today is also the day in which Bob Marley becomes completely relevant again, and not for writing uplifting music and changing a genre of music forever and turning out others.The people who are smoking today because it is an arbitrary day on the calender are downright sheepish. As harsh as that is it comes with reason, it fuels peoples needs to fit in with a societal demand that is inflected upon them. (really hope I used inflected right).

It becomes so much bigger than what it is, and with social media what it is. It is bringing more people into the light/dark.

All the power to you if you want to do it, safe, soundly and at a manageable pace. I am not one to judge you for it. You are probably too high right now to keep reading this. Now you are picturing me with a tophat. As well you should, because I would looking bad ass.

In California, you'd be amazed at how many people are sick by the amount of people who have legal licenses to smoke marijuana for medical reasons. Including Jim Belushi, and his only problem is the unfunny black mark he left on Comedies and an already dreadful Sitcom world. No other state has quite the output of these licenses. They have practically legalized it by loopholing the fuck out of Arnie. (FREEZE) Which is both a travesty and intelligent in many ways, it allows the government/medical community to not only traffic it intelligently, but run a substantial market off of it because it is pure, clean, and doesn't have unknown additives.

Which is also why Canada should legalize it. I don't give a shit about marijuana, nor do I have a reason to use it at any level, nor do I care what your reasons are to use it. As it stands, it has many logistical and rational reasons to use it. From glaucoma, extreme bouts of anxiety, and chronic pain. But, I doubt many people who use it recreation-ally know the health benefits, which are not deniable. Similar to smoking tobacco being healthy; however, it is only healthy for the individual if you know it is pure and not mixed with assorted health-risking microbes and foreign bodies.

Although it is basically legal in Canada, to the point in which people openly smoke a doobie doob right in the heart of downtown as if to say "come at me, bro". If actually legalized, the government could have control over the vast market and tax the shit out of it. Then, hopefully put it back into the medical community or for an ironic twist, education.

I would also want to argue my main point, and probably my annoyance is getting the better of me in my (honest) life. I don't want to walk around a neighborhood or past someone and pretend I don't smell the weed. You could even tell the authority and they would call you a pussy. It is about time they just pass it so we don't have to listen to this anymore. It has become so redundant they might as well beat you over the head with a bong. The media even seems at times it is putting on it's "Y U NO" face with the whole issue.





I also realize the Irony that I wrote this on 4/20. I am a sheep as well.

Regards,
Devon