We Will Never Forget

It was nine years ago today when the New York skyline, and the lives of millions of people in the United States– and around the world– changed forever.  A ruthless act of terrorism took the lives of nearly 3000 people on September 11, 2001, when two hijacked airplanes struck the World Trade Center towers on what would’ve been a normal Tuesday morning in Manhattan.

From the other side of the country, in Portland, Oregon, I was among countless people who stared in shock as the events of that day transpired on live TV.  I remember feeling bewildered, almost rejecting the reality of what was taking place.  This can’t be happening!

But it did happen.

And today, how many of us truly remember the significance of 9/11?  How many of us were truly impacted by the decision of a group of people hellbent on causing terror in the name of their higher power?  And how many of us have already forgotten the stories of those who were lost on that day?

A co-worker of mine, who used to live and work in Manhattan, lost over a dozen close, personal friends when the towers fell.  She recalls feeling helpless as she watched things unfold, knowing her friends, who all worked on the upper floors of the north tower, would perish but still keeping some hope that they would get out alive.  They didn’t.

She will never forget.

A cousin of mine had just moved to New York with her husband one month before 9/11 happened.  She remembered seeing the second place strike the towers minutes after getting off her commuter bus, and having to run to away safety with thousands of other confused and scared New Yorkers who were also just starting their day.  She remembered not being able to immediately call her family in Seattle, Washington, who were all worried sick when when they hadn’t heard from her in hours.  She remembered asking herself, “Why am I here?!”

She will never forget.

And although the families of loved ones whose lives were cut short on that fateful morning may have found ways to move on, they, too, will never forget.

I hope I never forget.

It Wasn’t A Hoax…

Richard Heene, the “Balloon Boy” dad insists the incident in October ’09 wasn’t a hoax, and that he pleaded guilty to “protect his family.”

What incident?  I know, I’ve tried to forget about it already but the effers keep resurfacing, thanks to “the news.”  And, oh, wait…there is now a Wiki page about it.

And, guess what, now there’s also this blog entry about it.

I’m not helping to forget this effing thing, am I?

(Wow, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning…)

R.I.P. Brittany Murphy 1977-2009

Brittany Murphy as Tai in Clueless

One of my guilty pleasures is cracking myself up with the movie, “Clueless” (1995), and my most favorite character in what I would consider a classic is Brittany Murphy’s “Tai,” who had as many hilariously quotable quips as Alicia Silverstone‘s “Cher.”

I always thought she was a brilliant actress who just never got the proverbial “big break,” often being either saddled with notable supporting roles or unimpressive romcoms (which I hardly watch).

I was saddened to learn that she had died recently, and at such a young age.  Rest in peace, “Ramen Girl.”

File This Under Awesome

Man delivers baby with help from the Internet.  Rad, huh?

Signed, Sealed, Scammed

It’s probably now old news that the United States Postal Service (USPS) may soon be reducing delivery days to five instead of the current six in order to address its financial deficits.  This may or may not be too big a deal, but, in addition to increasing the price of stamps, it may be what’s needed to turn things around for this American institution.

So, how, in spite of this, can the USPS explain their Postmaster General, John Potter, receiving a nearly $80,000 salary increase last year plus a $165,000 “performance” bonus?  The USPS lost of over $2B in revenues last year.  Shouldn’t that, in fact, constitute ‘poor performance’ on the part of the Postmaster General?  In any other industry, this would probably result in a ‘poor performance’ rating.  Why, then, is he being rewarded for it?

But, is the revenue loss a result of the sign of the times?  Did emails, texting, and other constituents prolific in this Electronic Age do the USPS in?  “Pen Pals,” for instance, email each other rather than sending notes via mail; Regards.com is but one of many outfits from which electronic greeting cards can be sent; and instant downloads of music and books are making it possible for us to enjoy traditional physical media (which would’ve otherwise been mailed/shipped out) in a more portable electronic format.

Are our technological advancements actually to blame for the downfall of the USPS?  Was this a self-fulfilled prophecy?

I Don’t Know About You, But…

…I don’t feel like taxpayers should support Nadya Suleman.

If you’ve been living under a rock for the past month or so, let me recap the story of the “miracle” Octuplet Mom. Suleman is the proud mother of newborn octuplet in addition to six other children she already had. All fourteen children are a result of IVF (in vetro fertilization) allegedly from one donor, “David Solomon,” whom Suleman had supposedly briefly dated in the past. The accuracy and truth of this and other details Suleman shared in a primetime interview with Ann Curry several weeks ago are under scrutiny based on statement from Suleman’s mother, no less, stating that she had lied about many things.

Prior to the octuplet’s birth, Suleman was already living with her mother and was subsisting on settlement payments from lawsuits she’d won against her previous employer and the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board. Supposedly, a majority of the settlement money went toward the IVF treatment that eventually lead to the octuplet’s birth. The successful birth of the octuplet became an overnight news sensation, thrusting the unknown Angelina Jolie-wannabe into the spotlight, so much so that she now has an agent and had a PR company.

Suleman was depressed and wanted a large family due to the “isolation she felt growing up”– a statement blatantly being denied by her own mother. But now that she has her large family, she can’t afford them, and is asking for donations via a website. Plus, her mother’s house is being threatened with foreclosure. What’s a mother of fourteen to do?

Rely on the generosity of the American people, that’s what.

But, should the burden of raising her fourteen children– a feat that she knew going into it was not something she could’ve possibly handled– suddenly become our responsibility or even worth our pity?

Call me insensitive but I’m pretty much on the “you reap what you sow” mentality here. She’s still probably going to get some sort of government subsidy because, well, that’s why America is so great. So, ultimatelty, I, as a taxpayer, am going to end up helping her whether I like it or not.

The thing is: I do want to help because of the children. But, I’m nervous that any help sent her way will only be used for more plastic surgery, more IVF treatments, or other ventures that harm more than help the kids.

What a sad, twisted tale…

MSNBCriously?

I’ve been keeping up on the news via msnbc.com and am just boggled by what’s been going on lately.  Moreover, readers are able to discuss certain news topics through NewsVine.com (via a direct link from many of the articles) where things often get nasty/nastier.

There was a recent story about a woman who was murdered in Puerto Rico that turned into a debate about travel to what some of the NewsVine users called “a third world country,” which elicited mixed reactions.  Some users even thought that the woman was a victim of some conspiracy theory involving her fiance.  Others spent most of the discussion either defending or defaming Puerto Ricans.  Having lived in Puerto Rico in the past, I had to jump in on a few occasions to share my own thoughts.  See if you can spot mine.

Another set of stories I was following involved our continuously weakening economy.  Joblessness is big news these days, with layoffs happening left and right.  No job– indeed, no company– is safe, it seems.  And the word “bailout” has quite possibly become the most used word in the English language in these trying times.  In fact, I entered the word on Google.com, and it yielded nearly 28 million results (which now includes this blog post).  Heck, I need a “Bailout” bailout.  What’s scary, though, is even the company I work for may not be safe.  It’s making me want to turn to alcohol.

And no one can possibly ignore the scandal involving Michael Phelps, whose latest mishap is being suspended by the USA Swimming, effectively preventing him from competing at a meet in March.  Plus, several of his major sponsors have dropped him, including Kellogg Co., on whose cereal boxes Phelps appears.  Some who are not complimentary of Phelps’ visage joke that this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  Others chide that Kellogg Co. may have more things aligned with pot-smoking than they’re ready to acknowledge.  But Phelps still has many supporters.  It’s just funny how newsworthy this all seems.

The news about which I’m already tired of hearing involve the “miraculous” emergency landing on the Hudson River of US Airways Flight 1549– from the heroic crew to the interaction between the co-pilot and the air traffic controller to Capt. Sullenberger’s fuckin’ library late fees being waived.  They’re “heroes”, I get it.  Must we really rehash every little thing and explore every little angle?  Just do a Movie of the Week about it already and allow us to move on.  I mean, what’s next?  Will we next hear about the flight attendants efficiently locking their beverage carts in place mere seconds before impact?  Or a transcript of the prayers each one of the passengers may or may not have said while they awaited their fate?  What about the birds who are being blamed for the accident?  Will Connie Chung come out of retirement to interview the head honcho of the avian assassins?  Hmm, have I gotten so cynical that I am bothered by the incessant media coverage of this one thing?  Plus, did I just use a fuckin’ Connie Chung reference?

I must be tired…

Forgive and Forget?

Sam Adams, the first openly gay mayor of Portland, Oregon– not the beer– was caught having had a sexual relationship with a minor in 2005, which he vehemently denied when it surfaced during his mayoral race, nearly ruining an opponent’s political career in the process.  He finally confessed having lied about the relationship several weeks ago, and has been embroiled in a scandal about which Portlanders are certainly not too happy being nationally (and perhaps, internationally) relevant.

Portland is divided on this issue since it broke a day after our new president was sworn in.  On the one hand, there are those who are willing to stand by the new mayor and his political ideals.  Sure he messed up; everybody does.  They believe that people shouldn’t forget the things for which they’d voted Adams in to uphold.  But there are also those who wonder what other things he may have lied (or will lie) about and how that would affect how the city is managed.  They worry that forgiveness is too big a gamble.

There is a billboard visible as one heads westbound on the Hawthorne Bridge coming from Grand Avenue.  It simply reads ‘FORGIVE’ and is quite clear for what it was intended.  Surely, Portland’s healthy liberal population want to do just that.  After all, a good majority of them may have been responsible for Adams’s election.  But not all of them may feel that way.

Adams has decided not to resign his post as mayor in spite of being publicly demanded to do so by such local major publications like The Oregonian and Just Out Magazine (a GLBT-geared publication), and instead wants to regain Portland’s trust.

Opposers of Adams’s argue that the city’s approach would have been different if this situation had been between a 42-year old heterosexual male and a 17-year-old female, where societal misgivings would’ve been more clearly defined.  Would the city still be divided in its reaction then?  Would supporters still be so easy to put up billboard signs that state between the lines that ‘ye who has no sin cast the first stone’?

Or is this all just part of the political make-up?  We’ve had to survive too many of them in the past.  What’s another?  It certainly won’t be the last.  Should we just move on?

It Doesn’t Always End Like This…

One lucky bastard

Derek Mamoyac, a climber, lost for five days on Mount Adams (in Washington State), was found alive on Friday afternoon by rescue dog crew.  A happy ending indeed.  It’s interesting to read how varied people’s thoughts are in terms of the circumstances surrounding this young man’s plight and eventual rescue.  There were as many raking him through the coals for being “a dummy” or “unprepared” as there were those who came to his defense.

Thankfully, it looks like this guy must’ve been a regular viewer of Man vs. Wild because it seemed that he knew how to stay alive, by subsisting on centipedes and other bugs when he ran out of food, and hydrating himself at nearby creeks.  Yet, I can’t help but wonder if this story would’ve had a different ending had we been in the middle of winter.  I shudder to think…

Bottoms Up You College Freshman You!

Presidents of three Oregon colleges have joined with over 100 others at such notable schools as Duke, Dartmouth, and Syracuse to push lawmakers to consider changing the drinking age from 21 to 18.

They say it would help to end binge-drinking and de-mystify it for young people. Others like Mothers Against Drunk Driving, as you would imagine, are strongly against the idea.  [Click here to read the rest of the article.]

Is this a good or bad idea?  This definitely is a polarizing proposition.  What do you think?