Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Housing needed!
So I got word from my landlady that she's selling my cozy little townhome! Please let me know ASAP if you have any housing leads near the orange line in Arlington, VA. To add to my stress, I have a final exam this week and next and then I leave for China the last two weeks of May. How am I supposed to move in June!?!
My fave article on Obama's first 100 days
Here's the article by the ever entertaining (if somewhat turncoat) Christopher Buckley. And here's my fave thematic interpretation of Obama's first 100 days:
What Else Is On? In this analysis, Mr Obama is overexposing himself by appearing on television 23 out of every 24 hours. “The American people like him, but they want to see a fresh face on TV every now and then.” Mr Obama’s ubiquity is even suggested as the main reason for the frenzied rapture over chanteuse Susan Boyle. According to this thesis, “it’s the first time since January 20 that someone other than Mr Obama has been on television”.hat tip: David
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Litigiousness
So I understand why some of the New Yorkers were upset by the low-flying Air Force One yesterday, but enough to file a class action lawsuit?!
Garcia-Rose, who works with nearly two dozen post-traumatic stress disorder patients ages 15 to 47, said she was inundated with phone calls from patients Monday morning.
"They're traumatized. They're asking 'How could this happen?' They're nervous. Their anxiety levels are high," she said.
Garcia-Rose is considering filing a class-action suit against the government for sanctioning the plane's unannounced flight. "I believe the government has done something really wrong," she said.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Getting stoked about my China trip
If you find good China articles over the next few weeks, send them my way. I just realized I have to read like 500 pages before I go plus the two tourguide books I want to skim through and earmark for things to do in my freetime. Thankfully, a few of the major items are taken care of for me - like the Great Wall!
And shout-out to my girl, May Chen, I love that I'm going to get to see her when I'm in Hong Kong. I'm a little nervous about what partying with her entails, but I'll come prepared!
And shout-out to my girl, May Chen, I love that I'm going to get to see her when I'm in Hong Kong. I'm a little nervous about what partying with her entails, but I'll come prepared!
Monday, April 20, 2009
I loathe the USPS
Like any job, there are tedious tasks I have to endure, but at a small nonprofit everyone gets more than their usual fair share. For instance, I am the main point of contact for the United States Postal Service as well as for Charitable Solicitation Registration (which is a whole another can o'worms). The silver lining to my interactions with these bureaucracies is that it reminds me of why I hate regulation - or rather why I love limited government.
In my ideal world, the federal government would stick to what it was ordained to do in the Constitution, but this is the real world. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 7 of the U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to "establish post offices and post roads." This, however, does not imply that the federal government does or should have a monopoly on mail which is why I hope the FedExs of the world figure out how to make inroads in delivering standard mail soon. In my reading of the postal clause, I see a well-intentioned government trying to promote commerce and society and convenience by creating post offices not undue burdens on businesses or stressful delays in correspondence and package delivery! Why are there copious amounts of paperwork and unreliable delivery times?
It is because of the U.S. Civil Service and the bloated fat, cud-chewing cows that makeup the U.S.P.S. specifically. Whew that felt good. See yesterday, the post office sent business reply envelopes addressed to my nonprofit to a LIBERAL MAGAZINE. They could have just as easily shredded the donations than forwarded them! Thankfully, they have more integrity than that - plus they had a monetary incentive to correct the problem (the post office charged their business reply account instead of ours). Regardless, I am peeved, but whenever I talk to someone at the post office it's like talking in a foreign language. They don't care about serving you or making you happy because their job isn't on the line. They have ridonkulous job security that is immune to the effects of the market.
So yeah, that silver lining? It's how fired up I am to "stick it to the man" and raise money for our partners who fight such bureaucratic/regulatory nonsense!
In my ideal world, the federal government would stick to what it was ordained to do in the Constitution, but this is the real world. Article 1, Section 8, Clause 7 of the U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to "establish post offices and post roads." This, however, does not imply that the federal government does or should have a monopoly on mail which is why I hope the FedExs of the world figure out how to make inroads in delivering standard mail soon. In my reading of the postal clause, I see a well-intentioned government trying to promote commerce and society and convenience by creating post offices not undue burdens on businesses or stressful delays in correspondence and package delivery! Why are there copious amounts of paperwork and unreliable delivery times?
It is because of the U.S. Civil Service and the bloated fat, cud-chewing cows that makeup the U.S.P.S. specifically. Whew that felt good. See yesterday, the post office sent business reply envelopes addressed to my nonprofit to a LIBERAL MAGAZINE. They could have just as easily shredded the donations than forwarded them! Thankfully, they have more integrity than that - plus they had a monetary incentive to correct the problem (the post office charged their business reply account instead of ours). Regardless, I am peeved, but whenever I talk to someone at the post office it's like talking in a foreign language. They don't care about serving you or making you happy because their job isn't on the line. They have ridonkulous job security that is immune to the effects of the market.
So yeah, that silver lining? It's how fired up I am to "stick it to the man" and raise money for our partners who fight such bureaucratic/regulatory nonsense!
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