Warning – there be Politickin’ and Opinin’ Below…
February 26, 2008
Disclaimer – I don’t usually write publicly about this sort of thing… and I don’t intend on letting this turn into a politically oriented blog. But I wrote what follows and it’s my blog, so I’m publishing it. If you’d prefer to skip something that might offend your own sensibilities on the subject, feel free not to read on. I’m sure there’s something fascinating over on the front page of Digg right now that will provide more amusement and evoke less passionate responses for most people. But if you read on, be warned that this is my opinion… if you want to air your own, feel free to post it in your own blog and link back telling people how outrageous and off-base I am, but I reserve the right to edit/delete comments on this one.
I’ve been keeping quiet about this to a point… but when I find a piece of journalism that so vividly reflects my own viewpoint – I’m hard-pressed to keep being silent… even when I know it’s going to royally piss off a few people I like and respect.I have a few close friends who know this, but it will come as a surprise to pretty much anyone reading this to know that Obama scares the crap out of me. I know I should probably be drawn to his stated political positions as they’re sort of close to my own… but every time I see him on television, or someone starts raving on about him, my skin crawls and I can’t help but wanting to scream “shut up!!”Why, you ask?Because the only phrase I’ve had to describe his followers and his campaign is one that sends shivers down my spine.
Cult of Personality.
If you don’t know what it means – think Jim Jones… think David Koresh… think Mao Tse-Tung… think Mussolini… Hell, think Hitler. Or look it up on wikipedia or something.
Every time I see the media waxing lyric about the Senator from Illinois – I get the song by In Living Colour stuck in my head. Not so much because I think he’s fostering it – but because it just is.
Just a bit ago, on Nightline, they were airing the first television report I’ve seen that implies that maybe Mr. Obama isn’t as squeaky clean as his fanatical followers would like to believe. I turned to my husband and said “huh, they’re starting this a little early, aren’t they? I thought they would’ve waited until the general election.”
Because I expected that the media’s love affair with O was going to last a little bit longer at least. I figured it would wait until the Republicans were ready to start dismantling the image.
I was wrong.
Terry Moran managed an interesting report – not that I can quote it all to you, it’s not in my DVR buffer any more and it’s television – no transcript to copy & paste. I’m sure the video will be available on-line soon enough. But the Rezko affair was brought up again… as was the fact that Obama’s association with Rezko seems to have netted him a sweet deal on his home in Illinois – to the tune of $300k less than the asking price of the house. Sure, there were as many “he’s a great guy!” testaments as there were “um, not so much…” statements in the report. But it’s the first non-rah-rah piece I’ve seen in prime time news since the Dem race narrowed down to just O and Hill.
But it’s not really the television story that prompted me to write this – or, not in so direct a manner, that is. I had gone to the ABC/Nightline website to see if they had the Moran report up yet – but came across a story labeled “Obama’s Personality Cult.” How could I not click through on that? Of course the ILC tune was already going through my head as I read phrases like:
Sen. Barack Obama’s “true believers” respond as though they’ve spent their whole lives out in the cold, at rally after rally, a few people literally faint at the sight of him. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Los Angeles Times reporter Joel Stein. “People are crying, rending their garments. It’s a cult. But it’s a fun cult.”
A fun cult? Politics isn’t a cult to me. Government should never be a cult. You want to separate church and state? Then get your ‘faith’ and ‘hope’ and ’sermons from the mount’ out of your politics and start asking the tough questions. Quit telling me “he’ll get us out of Iraq!” ask “How does he plan on getting us out of Iraq?” Quit telling me “he’s for change!” ask “what kind of change? How will he implement it? How does a President make those things happen rather than the Legislature?” Quit telling me “he’s a great speaker!” and start listening to see if there’s substance in the pretty words and stirring speech. Ronald Reagan was a great speaker – did that mean you didn’t have to listen to what he was saying? No.
Drop the idol-worship. If the guy is going to be a good president? Great… but quit pushing him as a Messiah. He isn’t.
It Bears RePEAting…
February 23, 2008
Thanks to the determined efforts of Susan Reynolds and Connie Reece, the fund to help fight Breast Cancer that started as a small comment on Twitter has made the leap to permanent fixture.
Take a moment to head over to the Frozen Pea Fund site and look it over if you haven’t before. Nothing makes me smile more than knowing that this will keep going on and having a lasting legacy.
Here’s the video announcement that those two indomitable ladies I mentioned above made to announce this change in status for the fund!
My ooVoo Experience
February 22, 2008
The past couple weeks, I’ve been fortunate enough to spend some time playing around with ooVoo as part of the MyooVooDay project and playing with it with a few friends who have taken the plunge and downloaded the client as well.
I was lucky enough to get to spend some time chatting with some of my favorite people from Twitter as well as to meet some new friends during the MyooVooDay event. I did miss a couple of ooVoo sessions I was really hoping to catch (like one with Chris Brogan, who has his own ooVoo review here) due to unforeseen complications offline – but I’ve spent a few hours navigating the software and experiencing different configurations.
As I’ve only used it on the laptop, I’m speaking from the perspective of a PC user with XP loaded. My understanding is that there are some differing issues for Mac users – but I can’t address those.
So onto my review of it – with the caveat that it’s still in Beta, so I expect that many of these things will be addressed down the line.
Overview:
ooVoo is video calling application – what differentiates it between the more common players like Skype or Windows Live Messenger or their competitors is that you can have up to 6 people on the call. Additionally, you can open a chat window simultaneously, or use the client to place regular phone calls to any number in the world. If you are a PC user, you can also record however much of the session you’d like.
Positives:
- Allows simultaneous video calling for up to 6 people
- Allows users to either be called and added to the gathering or to call in to one of the participants and be added.
- Allows user to initiate separate text chat box while in call – this can provide for 1-on-1 side conversation, multiple users, or even take the place of audio if one of the participants is having an issue with it.
- Allows PC users to record portions or all of the session and save on hard-drive for later viewing or distribution.
- Informs all users when they are being recorded so they have the option to disconnect if they don’t wish to be recorded.
- Users can record ‘video voicemails’ for other users, to be viewed at a different time if they are offline or otherwise busy.
- Main control panel shows status of other users on your ‘friends list’ so that you can see who is available or not – also allows user to type in customized status or message to others.
Areas that need work:
- User search requires that other users have entered specifically searchable information… no requirement for valid names.
- Calling other users requires adding them to your contacts list – and being added in return.
- Apple users cannot record (at present).
- Initial startup doesn’t walk new users through camera set-up or verifying settings – assumes a certain level of comfort with IM/internet calling programs and webcam configuration. If default webcam application running, cannot take control of camera or use.
- Could use a timer/clock inside the program for users to track time
- Video windows automatically rearrange themselves inside display depending on minimizing/maximizing and when someone enters or leaves. No ability to rearrange order manually or customize
- Headphones with microphone are absolutely required – using built-in mic/speakers results in very bad echo/feedback with even just one user w/o headset. If multiple users w/o headsets, cacophony results to the point where no one can hear/understand.
Also, since there seem to be a number of similar applications, I thought it would make sense to review some of the differences that ooVoo offers at this time.
Differentiation between other similar applications/offerings
ooVoo vs. Yahoo! Live
- Both allow multiple video users to be seen at the same time – ooVoo up to 6, Yahoo Live up to 5 (one in main window, 4 in ‘minor’ windows below – options to change out minor video feeds with others listed in the chat room)
- Both allow simultaneous chat room activity – Yahoo Live allows anyone to join the chatroom, and to decide whether or not to stream video themselves
- Yahoo Live allows user to change individual volumes for each video feed – increasing those that are quieter, decreasing the noisy – or even muting any of them. ooVoo’s volume bar controls all of the boxes simultaneously – so a louder input can drown out a quieter one.
- ooVoo is private – only those invited into the call or accepted into the call can participate. Yahoo Live is open to anyone with a browser.
- ooVoo allows recording and saving of the session – Yahoo Live does not (at this time.)
- ooVoo allows searching for individual users – Yahoo Live does not (at this time) have searches other than ‘currently live’ or ‘by popularity.’
All in all, they both have video and chat rooms – but the target audiences seem very different.
ooVoo vs. Skype, IMs, IRC
- ooVoo presently has the ability to mimic aspects of all of the others – the main variant is numbers. ooVoo allows multiple concurrent users unlike Skype or IM programs. But allows fewer users than an IRC channel, and is not public.
- ooVoo is a ‘one-stop shop’ for these functions – no need to keep instances of all 3 of the others open in order to use the different aspects.
- ooVoo is still in Beta, so there are bugs, feed issues, and not a lot of documentation on how to resolve errors right now.
As I guess you can tell by now, I’m fairly sold on ooVoo as an application. I think if marketed correctly, it can and will become a mainstay in several different arenas.
Yes, there are still some rough spots… honestly? In this day and age, you can’t deliver a second-class experience to Mac users and expect them to be happy. Additionally, it’s important to be able to find people on ooVoo that you want to talk to. Without a reliable search function, you’re left with the feeling that you can’t find people you want to talk to anyways, so why bother? ooVoo without advanced searching is like a land-line without a phone book or 411… useless unless you know there’s someone else out there with it to call.
I have identified 2 ideal target markets and one general market for ooVoo that I hope they explore – but I think I’ll leave those for the next post, because I’m busy researching it myself and want a little more data before I push that out there. Besides, this is getting a tad long for an initial review.
What I’ll say is that I think if you’re a PC user with a webcam and a headphone set, it’s worth a try. Download it and let me know what you think.
If you want to leave me a video voicemail, or see if I’m available to ooVoo, I’m GeekMommy on there as well. Look forward to hearing what others think.
Tweak
February 10, 2008
Yeah, I’m playing with the site design.
Honestly, there’s nothing more annoying than not getting *one* element to do what you want it to. Argh.
Ah well. Such are the travails of the GeekMommy. I ought to go to bed now. Buttercup doesn’t sleep in.
You’re Not the Boss of Me. You’re Not the “Teller of Me What to Do”!!
February 5, 2008
Because the snow is a bit deep today, Buttercup’s preschool was a bit light on the staff, so I volunteered to come in and help if they needed it. Buttercup’s teacher Miss M. asked me if I’d come about 1/2 an hour before school let out because some of the subs were having to leave early… and I readily agreed.
When I did show up, things were pretty much under control, so I had the chance to kind of spend the last 30 minutes helping and observing in her classroom.
Oy vey.
Buttercup has a best friend – let’s call her Trixie (and I just put her in the Cast of Characters – because she’ll definitely come up again!) – who goes to preschool with her. When they were just babies, Trixie’s mom and I were both in the same “Mommy & Me” playgroup for a few months. Then she ended up popping up at the annual picnic for Buttercup’s first school (PDO & Preschool) and it turned out they went to the same place but different classes. Since year two, they’ve been in the same class – and when we moved Buttercup to school #2 (the present one) Trixie’s folks decided to move her there too. After having moved only a mile south of us over the Summer. This was fortuitous in our eyes, and we really like Trixie’s parents and her. Buttercup adores Trixie with all the power of her little heart. She’s got a little girl crush on her best friend and wishes they were sisters, or even twins if it were possible.
Unfortunately for Buttercup, Trixie is a more laid-back sort of child. She’s kind of a take-you or leave-you girl – and therefore, the most popular child in their class. Everyone wants to be Trixie’s friend, boys and girls alike. Trixie is fine with that, as long as it doesn’t require terrible amounts of emotional attachment on her part. She has a 1 year old brother and another sibling on the way late next Summer. She’s not suffering from only child syndrome as does my darling Buttercup. She’s everyone’s ‘best friend’ but I wouldn’t say that Trixie sees anyone as her ‘best friend’ – unless you count both Buttercup and another ex-classmate of theirs who used to vie with B for T’s attention.
Now, at least 4 out of 5 days, I give Trixie a ride home from preschool. They get out in the middle of her brother’s usual naptime, and with Mom pregnant and exhausted, it just works out well for me to grab her and drop her off before we head home. So I get to see a lot of interaction between the two of them.
But today I saw this horrid new little development in their interaction during that last 30 minutes of class. My daughter was trying to boss Trixie around… and when T wouldn’t do what she wanted, she was trying to tattle on her to the teacher.
Urk!!
Okay, I know it’s totally normal for a 5 year old to try and exercise her authority over others. She’s trying to test the boundaries and see what she does and doesn’t have control over. She does it at every opportunity at home. But with parents? There’s just an admonition and the reality that she doesn’t control the universe – or even our household. She might be a Princess, but that makes me Queen.
The thing is, when you do that to other kids your age, they just get passive-aggressive and start ostracizing you. They don’t say “excuse me, but I hate it when you try to order me about.” They just ignore you, or call you bossy, or start being mean in retaliation. I know this because if she gets this trait from anywhere – she gets it from me. Life as a would-be child tyrant was not a bowl of cherries when I was growing up.
So I had this little chat with her on the way home… about how asking someone to do something nicely tends to get better results than ordering them to do something. And how no one really likes being bossed around – especially not by their friends. And how GeekMommy knows this as she had the same problem as a little girl – just ask her Uncle J, who will confirm that GeekMommy tried very hard to order her older brother about as children and it never worked and only made him angry.
So far, despite many attempts to get this point across nicely, it seems to be falling on deaf ears. At first, she apologized to me. I said “no, I don’t want an apology, I’m just trying to save you a world of heartache sweetheart… I just want you to be happy and liked and have fun with your friends…” Then she told me that she liked being bossy, it was good. Argh.
I think I finally got through to her best when I said “Listen, Buttercup, there are only 3 beings in the world you are presently the boss of: you, the dog, and the kitten we just got you – although those last two won’t necessarily do what you want them to do either.” She asked me, “but what about the other cat Mommy?” and I told her no one is the boss of the other cat… that’s just how cats are.
Still, how do I head this one off at the pass?
I don’t want to quash her little spirit – but I already know the heartache that this path has in store for her. The tighter you cling to some illusion of control over other children, the more they wriggle away in annoyance. My own mom never did anything to help me change this behavior in myself – heck, I don’t think I even started to change that really until I met GeekDaddy – so I have no idea how one parents this issue.
Help? Thoughts, suggestions, and prayers welcome!
Why we won’t be “voting” tomorrow on Super Tuesday
February 4, 2008
This is a moderate household – both GeekDaddy and I are fiscally conservative and socially liberal – we agree on most issues. But in the end, he leans just a tad more to the left and I to the right. So I’m the registered Republican while he’s the registered Democrat of the household.
It works for us.
That said, tomorrow is Super Tuesday and it’s the first time that Colorado has been in on the process this early. Along with 24 other states, we are trying to decide which candidate will represent our party – or at least get our delegates votes when the official party Convention happens.
Here’s the thing – rather than “voting” – both Colorado’s Republicans and Democrats have opted to go the precinct caucus route. That means, in briefest of terms, that neighbors get together and cast their votes. For the Republicans, it’s a one-person, one ‘preference’ vote thing. Show up, sign in, wait for a bunch of hoop jumping, cast your vote, and leave. For the Democrats, it’s unfortunately a bit more involved and multiple votes can be taken as well as delegates being named.
This, of course, takes place a 7 p.m. in two very separate locations.
So – our options become to try and get a last minute babysitter (ain’t gonna happen) – who of course isn’t someone of voting age themselves – so that we can each participate, or to decide which one is “more important” so that one of us can go and the other can stay home with our child. Honestly? We don’t believe that either one of us has “more important” beliefs than the other.
This is ridiculous. But more than that, it’s probably not all that uncommon. Even in cases where the parents are both in the same party – limiting this decision-making process to a specific time & place causes people to have to face the decision of who gets to go participate in the decision and who gets left out of the process.
There’s a reason that polls are left open all day long on the day of normal voting – it’s so that we can find a way to get there and be heard. This archaic form of precinct caucuses is a relic from a time when men voted and women didn’t. And it’s high time that our politics started reflecting the modern world.
Instead – we’ll just have to hope that our “neighbors” find a way to resolve this issue in their own households… or that those without children do a good job of deciding for us.
Still, I’m generally disgusted with the stupidity of the party representatives on both sides who saw fit to make the participation of their “neighbors” so complicated as to make it unlikely for most.
Makes you wonder if they can’t get it right for the average citizen at this level, how are they expected to get it right at higher levels…
The “Right” Number of Kids
February 4, 2008
I have one daughter. One. She was planned. She was planned as an ‘only child.’
This shouldn’t be an issue… but surprisingly, it often is.
About the only parents who don’t experience the strange social phenomena of the “right” number of children are those who are happily married, financially well-off, and have one boy and one girl spaced somewhere between 1 1/2 and 3 years apart in age.
This is, apparently, the American concept of the ‘ideal’ family.
I have many friends who are Childfree. If you’re not familiar with the term, let me give you the reader’s digest version – they aren’t ‘childless’ because that implies that something is missing that is wanted. They have actively chosen not to have children because they don’t wish to be parents. Some of them can’t stand children – some of them have no issues with children, but just don’t want to parent for one of many reasons.
The response they usually get to letting someone know that they are Childfree is along the lines of “oh you’ll change your mind later” or “you’ll wish you had changed your mind when you’re older” or “you’re just saying that because you haven’t had a child yet” to somewhat more attacking and rude comments.
I have a friend with 5 children ranging in age between 9 and 21. All were wanted and planned. She has faced the slings and barbs of many a grocery-store wit saying things like “they know what causes that now” and “haven’t you ever heard of birth control?”
One of my mommy friends has 4 girls. On both pregnancies 3 and 4, she was consistently asked things like “oh, going for the boy you didn’t get before?” as if somehow, the number of children they wanted was solely dependent on having at least one of each gender.
Recently, a couple who are friends of ours, whose daughter is Buttercup’s age and son is around 15 months, let us know that they were expecting again in July. Somehow, I already knew she was pregnant before she was showing… so I won a bet with GeekDaddy that she was – and our hearty congratulations were met with wistful sighs of relief. Apparently, we were the first people they had told outside of family – because their families’ responses were all horror and shock. The phrase “but you already have one of each” actually came out of one parent’s mouth. They were actually afraid to tell anyone else because they wanted positive reactions, not criticism.
Where did this belief come from that there is a “right” number and gender type with regard to American children in a single family?
I’m not sure of it – but it’s one of those ‘unwritten’ rules that seem to pervade our society. Even when those holding the belief come from families that don’t reflect that at all.
The thing is? The “right” number of kids is different for each family – from none, to one, to two, to a dozen – there’s no such thing as a “right” number, unless you mean, “right for us.”
Okay, I’ll get off my soapbox now… it’s just one of those pet peeves that comes up all the time. We’ll never be the “2 kids, one boy, one girl” family – but I can’t imagine our family any other way than it is.
Can you?
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