Worth Mentioning... Issue #11

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on June 06, 2008 at 10:30 AM, updated June 06, 2008 at 10:41 AM



Welcome back. It's been a historically newsworthy week, and there's some neat stuff to talk about. Summer is upon us, and the nicer it gets, the more I wish I had an alternatively-fueled Winnebago to travel the coast or take a jaunt across the country. Alas, I must toil aware here, so allow me to entertain and regale you with the stories you need to know.

Meet... This Guy

Love him or hate him, Barack Obama has clinched the Democratic presidential nomination, finally, after a long and arduous battle against worthy opponent Hillary Clinton. He now begins the equally challenging process of proving himself the better main against Republican presidential nominee John McCain.

With this win comes a laundry list of reasons for why this is a historically important event. The most obvious reason is also the most important: Whichever potential Democratic nominee won, a glass ceiling was going to be broken for one group or another.

This was such an increasingly important race because, for the first time, a woman and an African American had the serious possibility of becoming the first president of their kind. With this win, Obama represents not just himself in a presidential race, but the progression of a country from a history of slavery to the point where it has become possible for a man of African American heritage to run the country.

There have been concerns, preyed on whether intentionally or not by the media and his opponents, that Barack Obama could put himself at a higher risk of assassination attempts. But any important figure who represents a group of people that do not act as a whole of the society around them knows this risk. The Secret Service is not a new invention. And the pope does not ride around in a bullet-proof car for no reason.

There will always be those who oppose progress, change. But even as Obama's campaign lays claims to hope, his nomination represents all these things whether he represents your party or not, because he shows just how far a country has come in terms of acceptance.

"I've got promises to keep..."

Back at the end of December 2007, some teenage vandals broke into famed poet Robert Frost's summer cabin and trashed it. It was a shameful act that is more an incident where one is forced to hang one's head in disappointment for these kids who have no respect for such an iconic, meaningful historical site, than of anger or rage.

They destroyed furniture, windows, pictures and knick knacks around the cabin. They burned wicker furniture and tables to provide heat in the cabin, since it was equipped with none. Authorities found empty beer cans, two empty fire extinguishers, vomit and drugs.

I was sadder that these kids couldn't appreciate the phenomenal chance they had to appreciate such a meaningful landmark than I was about the actual loss of the cabin. Their actions displayed their ignorance of the greatness they had the chance to behold.

Well, justice has been served in, I think, the best possible outcome for the situation. A judge has sentenced each of the children arrested in connection to the crime.

They were sentenced to take classes on interpretation of Frost's poetry.

And the winner is...

OK, so, there were a lot of finalists for story number three this week. We had this poor girl, 18-year-old Leanna Elizalde, who fought cancer her senior year of high school, and because of the one class she is short due to medical reasons, won't be allowed to walk in graduation ceremonies with her friends.

There was the U.N. summit to discuss world hunger, where, ironically, maddeningly, they feasted on the finest of Italian foods.

There was even the death of the creator of the Pringles can. He chose to be buried not in a coffin, but, wait for it... a Pringles can. I couldn't make this stuff up.

As moving, anger-inducing or silly those stories are, the following story takes the cake, and gets this week's top spot for story number three.

Now, I know technology makes things easier for most of the population in the world. And I know that some people are more reluctant to adopt new technology. And, vice-versa, I'm sure there are plenty of young kids today who don't know what a vinyl record is.

But this is just ridiculous. When people grow so used to a new technology that they can't function as a human being of average intelligence without said technological advancement, it says something about our society that I think is more negative than positive.

Take for instance this woman, who needed to call her local police when her car battery died. She did not need a tow. Or a jump.

She needed to unlock her doors. Because the locks wouldn't electronically unlock since the battery was dead. And she couldn't use the key.

Because she was already inside the car.

The woman had grown so accustomed to hitting the electronic unlock button, she didn't know that to unlock a car door from inside, she had to slide the little locking mechanism forward.

That's right. This woman did not know how to unlock her car door, from inside the car, with her bare hands.

I can only sometimes wonder how we, as a people, have made it this far.


With all the new laws and rules to combat terrorism, is it OK to take photos in Union Station. Union Station PR says yes. Union Station security says no. While Union Station PR is saying yes. (link goes to video)

Need to check out something on the periodic table? Here you go, in interactive form!

Here are some geek-geared decorations for your domicile.

Squishy Turtle!
Check out some of the world's weirdest looking creatures.

Inflatable cars! Why is this the first time anyone has worked on creating these? I want to drive around in a giant bumper car!

Also, this car gets 100 miles to an ounce. Running on water.

How much do you need to have so you can retire these days? How little could you survive on?

There was an argument introduced recently as to who should be allowed to read what. It has been proposed that books should have a "reading age rating" much how like movies are rated. I find this to be a dangerous idea. Restrictions are becoming too commonplace in a country that is supposed to be free, and parents seem to place a great deal more emphasis on laws to govern our nation's children than on actual parenting.

This website provides links to free audio books or online classes for pretty much whatever you may be looking for to better yourself. It is definitely worth a click to visit this site and check out some of the tools available to you.

Here is a free collection of some select HP Lovecraft stories.


Spotted on 'Coast to Coast' this Great Blue Heron was caught acting very strangely.
Adolf Hitler, aside from being an insane mass-murderer, was an avid painter. Jake and Dinos Chapman, two artists, got their hands on some of Hitler's paintings and added colorful rainbows to the pictures.
Artist Danwitz adds creepy creations to random buildings that make people look twice.
What if you woke up to see this in your back yard?
Paul Gravett created some beautiful comics of stories that came out of the earthquake in China.


Well, that wraps up another week. I hope everyone had a good time. Until next week...

Take care of each other,

DJ McAneny