TravisHarder.ca

Blargh! I really should not wait until 11pm to make my blog posts, I run out of time to make a decent post… I apologize to the …. zero people reading my blog. Huh, no harm to fowl, I guess then. Until I actually post something substantive, let me say: if you haven’t watched the show “Dexter”, you really should. It’s simply amazing.

I know I promised a substantive article for today, but I kind of procrastinated too much to make it on time. I promise that I’ll have a decent post tomorrow, I even know what I’m going to write about. I just have to remember to post earlier, so I won’t be scrambling to finish a post in the last 5 minutes of the day. Whoops!

Day three of NaBloPoMo. Almost forgot about it. I would say that wouldn’t be good, but I don’t think anyone would have noticed. I noticed that I’m finally in the blogroll for January on NaBloPoMo.com, not that it really helps my traffic at all. That said, the pays where I post earlier (even if it is boring crap like this), I get a few more readers, so I guess that’s motivation to continue. I’ll try to think of something interesting to write about tomorrow, so I’m not just writing for the sake of writing.

Well, still not sure what to write about for this month. I have a feeling that this will be a long month. At this rate, don’t be surprised if halfway through this month I say “screw it” and hold off for a while when I actually have something to write about. Maybe tomorrow, I’ll write earlier, while on break at work or something. I’m beginning to question the whole point of NaBloPoMo, sure it forces me to write for the blog, but I still don’t have anything interesting enough to write about. Oh well, we’ll see.

As part of my 101 in 1001 list, I decided to try NaBloPoMo, where I have to post at least once a day, every day for a month. I was going to wait until February to do it, since I’d have fewer days to post, but I decided to just bite the bullet and do it this month. I figured that I’ll probably lose interest in the list after a month or so, so I may as well finish at least one of the items on my list before I forget about it. The only issue is, I have no idea what I’m going to write about for a month, since I’m really not that interesting.

While watching the latest episode of Diggnation yesterday, one of the hosts, Alex Albrecht, made an interesting point about Google becoming a monopoly by entering other industries. He said that because Google has so much money, they can go into another industry (in this example: turn-by-turn navigation) and do it for free without having to make money. This, he said, will push out the other competitors in the market (you can’t beat free), thus establishing Google as the sole company providing a service, which would lead to a degradation of quality of service. Part of his argument used the examples of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3. The two leaders in the industry, he said, didn’t need to many money from video gaming, since they had other products that provided their cash (Microsoft’s OS and Office suite, Sony’s computers, TVs, etc.), so they could sell their consoles at a loss. While he made some interesting points (far more interesting than anything I’ve ever said after a few beers), and I agree that monopolies must always be avoided, Google currently is not the enemy. (more…)

Last night, Meghan McCain, daughter of Senator John McCain (R-AZ), made a posted on her Twitter account a picture of her sitting around in a tank-top holding a book (“Andy Warhol” by Arthur C. Danto ). Being the daughter of a prominent Republican (as well as a self-described Republican herself), it’s no surprise that most of her followers are also Republicans. What is, however, surprising, is the backlash that the picture gathered. While she did appear to be going for sex appeal or something when she took this picture, it’s still tame compared to what we see every day on television, celebrity gossip sites, or your local newspaper. So, that begs the question: why the fuss?
Twitter user LDG1981 posted:

Is @McCainBlogette vying to be the prostitute in the next undercover ACORN video? What is she thinking? Hope her kids never see that.

Really? You’re comparing Meghan McCain sitting at home in a tank-top, showing some cleavage to prostitution (SFW)? Note that the woman the camera is focused on for most of the video is not the one pretending to be a hooker. Also, you really think her future children (keep in mind Meghan currently does not have any children) will be traumatized if they saw this picture? She’s showing off a book to her Twitter followers, not parading around on stage in a swim suit (maybe not the best example, considering Bristol). (more…)

Hi, everybody!

I thought I’d update this blog since my last post was in March. I removed the text-updates for now since I don’t really have any readers or any content that’s interesting. I also removed the Social View thing because it seems pointless. There is no way for me to know that it actually does any good, or Invisible Children actually makes any money because of it (and I couldn’t get the thing to fit). “Related Ways to Take Action” got axed since not enough of my posts are about charitable things and I don’t want to worry about it recommending any fraudulent charities.

I’ll hopefully be updating it more, though I’m not sure if my focus will be more towards politics or technology. If you have thoughts as to which I should focus on, please leave them in the comments section below.

Listen to me people! I come before you to share an aweful truth! Daylight Savings Time is a government consiracy intended to keep us all in line! Think I’m mad? Think about this: what clocks do you have to change? Your cell phone, computer, cable box and often car stereo all change. Few people still wear watches, so this leaves your plug in alarm clock (if you’re lucky) and microwave. What is to stop the government from changing the time whenever they want? If they wish, they could perpetually change the time, screwing up our sleep cycles to the point where we are all too tired to stand up to the evil oppressors! Think your pitiful alarm clock will save you? Don’t make me laugh! The government has the ability to briefly cut power to your house, thus rendering all clocks useless!

We must not stand for this! Boycott Daylight Savings Time! I urge you, don’t sacrifice your hour of sleep for the promise of its return in the fall! Don’t set your clocks ahead an hour! Don’t trust anything with wireless or internet cababilities for the time! Don’t risk the government destroying your clocks why cutting power! I urge everyone to go to their nearest store and buy battery operated wall clocks and alarm clocks with battery backup! Standup to the oppressive regime! United we stand, divided we fall!

Human trafficking is the euphemism used for slavery used during the 21st century. Earning a total annual income of roughly $9 billion a year, human trafficking is the most profitable criminal industry in the world. A friend of mine first told me about the issue of human trafficking about a year ago or so, but it wasn’t until a classmate in my International Relations class did a presentation for the rest of the class did I realize how big this problem is. Between 2 million and 4 million people are trafficked across international borders every single year, the majority of which are women and children who are forced into the sex trade where they may be forced to have sex up to 20 times a day. According to the CIA, one woman alone will result in profits of around $250,000/year. (more…)