10 Thoughts for October 25, 2014

1. Politics: Joni Ernst supports English as the official language of the US, to which I wonder what native Americans and first nations think about that idea.  You have to wonder about Republicans who claim that the GOP is an inclusive party, but then push policies that antagonize others.
2. Politics: SurveyUSA issued one more poll earlier this week in the Merkley - Wehby race, and it's just more bad news for Wehby, as each successive poll showed Merkley gaining a point on Wehby, now at a 21 point margin.  The same can be said for the governor's race between Richardson and Kitzhaber, as Kitzhaber now enjoys the same 13 point lead that he'd had four months ago.
3. Politics: Monica Wehby's campaign is terrible.  I could easily take down every false causation assertion she's made in her latest ad, but there is no point because she's lost all support from outside groups.  She's trying to save money by airing 15-second spots, as well, which is probably an indication that donations have slowed dramatically.
4. Politics: I am surprised that Mark Udall is having a tough race with Cory Gardner.  If Gardner wins, Net Neutrality will be dead and so will the privacy of Americans.  You see, Udall has been on the forefront in opposition of the NSA spying and CISPA, and also on the front lines of supporting Net Neutrality, whereas Gardner is exactly the opposite, having voted in support for CISPA and anti-Net Neutrality bills in the House.
5. Politics: Washington Week covered the point that Wall Street is up 22% while unemployment is down 25% since Obama first took office, and that ironically, the dissatisfaction with Congress' inability to compromise and move forward, will result with a majority Republican Congress that does not compromise.  Yah, nothing new here, but the media's all stuck on the false narratives, telling people why they should be upset about the direction of the country.
6. Technology: These past few months I have come to realize that my needs are not aligned with the newest technology out there.  When the Nexus 6, 9 and the iPad Air 2 came out, I didn't get all that worked up.  Yeah, they're gorgeous, but I didn't feel a single ounce of envy.  I really like my phone's 5" screen, I really enjoy the 7" tablet's pogo charging and screen size, and next up is a 12" tablet for me, because it's roughly the dimensions of a letter-size / A4 sheet of paper.  That matters to me because it's naturally easier to sketch on that size than on a 9" screen.  Also, it's ideal for showing renderings of projects.
7. Health: It's becoming clear that the difference in survival of Ebola, is almost certainly determined by wealth, which dictates access to quality treatment.  While Eric Duncan's case was botched by Dallas Presbyterian, all other infected Americans treated in the US have beaten Ebola.  In western Africa, they're overwhelmed and do not have the sort of equipment and ability to treat all of the sick patients, effectively.  You can therefore understand why their people distrust these Ebola treatment centers.
8. College Football: USC had a total mental meltdown, again, but this time it started from the first second play of the game. But yet again, they screwed up in the final minutes of the game.  How banal this narrative has become: USC can't finish games.
9. College Football: That UNC academic scandal was turned into a mockery of the process of investigation, when UNC's Chancellor, Carol Folt, came out to explain that the investigation showed that it was just a handful of bad apples.  You see, Carol Folt knocked down a whistleblower's allegations of academic impropriety just five months ago on this very issue of paper classes.  That makes her hypocritical and purely politically driven to keep her own ass out of the hot seat.
10. College Football: You often hear about trying to maintain offensive "balance".  I think most folks just get it wrong in application, though.  Balance is achieved by distributing talent across the offensive skill positions, such that every player is a threat.  That way, whatever the defense gives you, you exploit.  If you try to force balance, all you're doing is working right into the defense's game plan.