Justin's Journal

Slowing back down now.

I'm very, very satisfied with my new job right now. The factory acceptance test for the project I've spent the last two months slaving over concluded today with a very short punchlist of to do items. It looks like I'll be able to take an extra long holiday weekend this weekend.

Now on to some home improvement projects with a larger work project looming. Perhaps I'll find myself on the startup team for the next one. Anyway, I'll try to get back to writing here with more frequency.

Life is short ... Fly fast!

LeRoy "Roy" LoPresti passed away this past week. Every aircraft owner who ever wanted to make their plane fly a little faster will sorely miss this great innovator.

Ashcroft Asked to Target Online Song Swappers

Song swapping on the Internet is a gray area. I know that we keep being told that it is blatant piracy but look at the folks that are telling you this and ask if an open debate on the subject is in any way in their best interest. It's a gray area regardless of what the RIAA wants to insist. It is not illegal for you to make a copy of songs on a CD you buy on tape and share that tape with a friend. That's called fair use. That's also no different than making a digital copy of a song on your CD and sharing that MP3 with a friend. Making it available on a P2P network, though, is a gray area. It looks like some folks want to see the Justice Department put you in jail for it, though. Even though it's a gray area.

The MP3 Political Party

Maybe this is a political party that I can get behind. The manifesto is, to say the least, interesting and, to me, very compelling. From their manifesto:

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"ELECT US AND WE WILL DELETE ONE REGULATION PER DAY, ONE LAW PER WEEK, ONE SUBSIDY PER MONTH AND ONE TAX PER YEAR."

Here are some of our political ideas:
1. We will create a new ministry "Commissariat for Simplification" with the overriding task of finding a way to simplify and get rid of unnecessary or not essential laws and regulations as a matter of top urgency and priority.."

2. We will ban qualified lawyers from being elected to Parliament or local government.."

3. The House of Lords will be replaced by a second chamber compiled every 5 years using qualified methods. Candidates and existing members of this second chamber (or Senate) will have to pass rigorous and thorough exams and IQ tests to become or remain Senators.."

4. Companies will be strictly banned from political donations or any form of direct or indirect political lobbying. Instead, companies will receive a number of votes proportionate to the corporate income tax paid to the Government. This will allow companies to influence UK politics openly and directly.

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Too bad it's a UK party and not a US party.

lake effect: a weblog

I also got an email from Dan Hartung over at lake effect: a weblog. He's back up and running after a little trouble with his domain. Dan is one of the few political blogs that I read. I can't say that I always agree with him, I don't as often as I do, but he is knowledgable on the subjects and his position is almost always well thought out.

Burningbird: Well, that was a short good-bye

Shelley's back. I think she's discovered that 'blogging is never the problem. The problem is overindulging in anything and the reason for that always comes from within. I've faced those obsessions a few times myself and I expect I'll face them a few more times in the future. I've learned a little bit about myself every time I've faced them. It's our struggles with the little things that make us strong enough to handle the struggles with the larger things.