Two Sides

There are two sides to this story, this tale of disintegrated childhood and ramshackle youth.

On the one hand, a yearning for order, efficiency, a sentimental ache for the trappings of stability.

On the other, a desire for freedom, to leave, petulance, greener pastures.

Depressing News Day

So, in the news lately:

1) Supreme Court affirms corporate donations as "free speech", maintaining the potential for corruption within our political system.

2) Health care reform, already so badly mangled as to be negligible in effect, is now in real danger of not being passed at all.

3) New York's unemployment rate now exceeds the nation's, which is already and a long-time high.

Being an amateur student of history, it's remarkable to live through these times, to look back at similarly divisive debates, and hope that eventually, we'll get ourshit straight. We have to, in order to manage whatever comes next.

Hacked Web Ads?

In the span of a couple of days, I saw these two pictures in internet advertising.

The first one was on Facebook. It struck me as odd because it advertises "Moms Return to School" with the picture of a very shaggy man(or, I suppose, bearded lady).

Then, I saw this on a Google search a couple of days later. Same guy, right?

So, are these just bad, cheap, recycled advertisements, or did some intrepid hacking group manage to spike the images pulled in these ads?

2010

And off we go. If when I was younger, a new year brought a sense of wonderment, now, for the first time, I have a sense of awe at a new decade.

When we rolled to a new millennium, I was still in my twenties and didn't fully grasp the flow of time. Now, I have a fully demarcated, named decade to refer to to. Not only that, but ten years in the same city, in the same career, and awe at how much and how little things can change in a decade.

Being an amateur student of history, I can also references shows about specific decades: the fifties, sixties, seventies, etc, as if an entire decade could be summarized in a clip reel of fashion, music, and special events.

What did the aughts bring us? Two recessions, two nebulous wars and two regional wars; a decade of terrorism and financial failure. The rise of 'emerging markets', especially the so-called BRIC countries. A black president, love him or fear him.

What might the coming decade bring? The work of economists and other prognosticators. Who knows? Ups, downs, turnarounds. Perhaps a mission to Mars, or to the asteroid belt. Oceanic farming and dee-sea explorations. Green technology, a green economy.