China, China, China

China is on steroids when it comes to building. The world’s biggest and grandest projects are happening there. A 6.5 million square feet mall that dwarfs The Mall of America (4.2 Million square feet) and West Edmonton Mall in Canada (5.3 million). The 101 World Financial Center a mile long dam to divert water 700 miles, the worlds highest railroad at over 13,000 feet above sea level. A near shortage of concrete because so much is being built…being an American this is just so…well un American, since China was always that third world country on the other side of the planet. At the turn of the last century it was America doing the building.

Doesn’t it just seem like America has lost its innovative touch? Of course this is really the age old story. Country or organization has a dream, works hard to achieve it, and then tries desperately to hold on to what it has achieved. The problem is status quo kills. An entity not moving forward is lost. America wants desperately to hold onto the ideal (and frankly the past) that it alone is number one and no one else is going to take its resources away. That is misguided if not fatal thinking. We seem all too content to shop ourselves to debt, suck up the world’s last cheap oil in our SUVs, and turn the world into our enemies.

Why is it that the obvious is absolutely so hard for the majority to see???

I was searching for music on Amazon and saw a comment on Shapeshifters-Lolo’s Theme single:

“If it weren't for Sirius satellite radio I wouldn't know about this song at all. I love house, trance, hardcore...... etc. These are all genres of music not normally heard on American radio, and I am far removed from the club scene these days, as a busy mother of two. I love this song! This is what house should sound like: the retro-disco feel, the fantastic bassline; this song plus the remix of George Michael's "Flawless" are fantastic tunes that make you feel good and linger in your head all day. Yet does it feel like an intrusion? Heck no, it's a party! Enjoy!”

I just had to comment on that because I think that is the coolest! A mother who is into club music! First, who ever has that woman as their mother better feel damn lucky! I also think its great to hear that A. someone is listening to Sirius Radio and B. that satellite radio continues to expose people to wider and better music. Short live Clear Channel, Long Live Liberating technology.

Civil Rights

Watching London hunt for suspects of the bomb attack(s) is amazing. The most shocking piece of the whole story is they have over 1.5 million surveillance cameras! These have made short work of the investigation, yielding solid evidence to procure arrests and bring the culprits to justice.

In the US talk of surveillance cameras make civil liberties groups shudder. For somewhat good reason, all technology can serve humanity greatly when used for good, sadly most technology can also be a plague to humanity when used incorrectly. What kind of protections will be put into place with regards to the Terabytes of data that will be created when millions of live recordings are created across every city in America? Just think of what the Soviet Union could have done with 1.5 million High Definition Closed Circuit surveillance cameras… Yes it’s frightening to consider the possibilities. But, with our new realities maybe having camera’s watch us from every building corner is inevitable. Civil liberties should never been taken for granted though. They should not casually be thrown to the winds of change with the hope that somehow they will remain in tact.

With that being said, I think about the “random searches” being conducted in NYC subways using an “advanced algorithm" so as not to racially profile anyone. This is where I am torn. Racial profiling is somewhat of a swipe at civil liberties. Yet, we have a very clear profile of what the "suspect" looks like. They are male, young (20-30), and Arab. (I am speaking of those recruited for missions not the leadership) This is a very simple fact. It’s ridiculous to search a mother and her baby just because she was the x person through the turnstile. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I have never heard of a suicide mission being completed by a mother and her baby. People around the world are suspicious of America’s foreign policy because there has been a precedent established (this was years ago in fact) that we like to perform regime change with reckless abandon. Likewise, a profile has been established that young Arab men with loaded backpacks like to blow people up. Shouldn’t we be suspicious and search them? The fact is a few ALWAYS spoil it for the rest. For liberal Americans we can thank the neo conservatives for turning the world against us. For Arab Americans they can thank their fellow militant brothers in Saudi Arabia for turning the world against them and causing endless suspicion.

On a side note it’s pathetically hypocritical to listen to Europeans complain they have to have their finger print scanned for entry to the US. Their every move is recorded Live on Reality CC TV when visiting London! Yet you never hear them complain about that!