It’s been a while since I’ve posted an old pic, so here’s one with my niece Jessica from the mid-90s. I scanned this photo this morning to include in my weekly letter to her at Air Force basic training. I’m very proud of her for serving her country and can’t wait to see her at the graduation ceremony in Texas next month. I distinctly remember her father’s graduation from Marine Corps boot camp in Parris Island, S.C.  I barely recognized him because he seemed much taller than I remembered and carried himself with much more confidence and pride. I’m sure Jess will benefit in a similar fashion.  

Update: After reviewing the costs involved, I've decided not to go to Texas. It’s a prudent decision, but I’m really bummed about it. Hopefully my job situation will be settled soon and then I can make plans to visit her wherever she ends up being stationed.

 While watching Sportcenter this morning (I can’t stay up for West Coast NBA hoops) I saw a commercial for Angels & Demons, a new movie based on Dan Brown’s book of the same name. The movie is a sequel to The Da Vinci Code, though in print Angels & Demons was written and takes place before that story. I’m very much looking forward to the movie, and fortunately I don’t recall many of the details of the book so I should be able to sit back and enjoy the action and scenery. And that scenery alone should make this film superior to the first movie (despite the absence of Audrey Tautou). You see, A&D takes place almost entirely in Rome, which is my favorite place on Earth (so far). So even if the movie stinks I’ll still be able to enjoy the grandeur of that city on the big screen. The problem I’m going to have is my desire to go back there after seeing the movie (which opens May 15th). It’s going to be especially tempting considering how cheap it is to fly to Europe at the moment. Of course, I probably won’t be the only one inspired to go there after seeing the film, so supply and demand will likely make it a bit more expensive then and I’ll have to be content with re-reading my illustrated copy of the book.

I enjoy being an uncle very much, and I’m very proud of all my nieces and my only (but not for long) nephew. The oldest, Jessica, is making all of us proud from afar these days, as she’s in the middle of Air Force basic training. There is quite an age gap down to the next oldest, Janele (at right in photo), who just hit double figures this week with her 10th birthday. She likes to play games on my iPhone, and this past weekend Sara (left) was very interested to see what she was doing and climbed on me to see. Earlier, Sara’s little brother Ryan warmed up to me as soon as I had walked in the door. Today, Jazzy and I are off to see my honorary niece Sylvia, who is getting a new sister at almost the exact same time my new nephew will be born. I look forward to watching them all grow up to do great things.

Update: Here are a couple of pics from Sylvia’s visit to Moosup

Here is a photo I took from the Tax Day Tea Party in Providence. It was my first ever protest. Wait, actually it was my second. My first was earlier in the day up in Boston. Jf and I made the trip to both events to show our displeasure with the amount of spending being done by our governments. In fact, I think they were spending way too much money even before they started spending additional trillions of dollars to bail out, well, pretty much everyone who doesn't deserve to be bailed out. And don’t get me started on the pork they added to those bills.

Anyway, it was surprising to us that the Providence rally was much better than the Boston one. We went up to Boston in the morning (there were two in Boston - one in the morning and one in the afternoon) and found it to be fairly well attended, but poorly organized. The speakers didn’t have any amplification beyond a bullhorn, so we couldn’t really tell what they were saying. The Providence event was much better. It was easy to hear the speakers, and over 2,000 people were in attendance. To be honest, I didn’t think there were that many fiscally conservative people in the whole state of Rhode Island. But the speakers were all over the place content wise. One tried to use the writings of Ayn Rand, but it just didn't work. The problem is that it is too easy to get lost in everything that that our monolithic government does wrong.

So I've been thinking about how to describe the problem, as I see it, as simply as possible.

1. Governments do nothing well. Think about it. The DMV, the IRS, the INS, the public schools system, the USPS. The only part of the government that is highly efficient is the military, and that's because politicians don't run it. The only problems our military ever has is when the politicians get involved and either tie their hands or send them someplace we don't belong.

2. Politicians aren’t qualified to fix anything. Most of them are lawyers, which I'm sure is helpful in the actual writing of legislation. Except that they don’t know what they’re doing before they start writing. They’re not economists, and they’re not MBAs. And many of them have never had a real job and have never run anything successfully. So why exactly should we listen to them when they talk about fixing the economy? Letting them play with even more of our money and giving them more power will only make them more corrupt. Take it to the bank (it will give you a reason to go there).

3. Good intentions does not equal good results. Social programs usually sound good. Hey, who wouldn't prefer it if there was no poverty or homelessness or crack babies? But the truth is that government social programs haven’t worked. Giving people money hasn't eradicated poverty, and in fact has made things worse. It’s time to try something new and that might work, rather than spend more on failed ideas that just let politicians feel good about themselves.

4. States rights matter. The federal government is using bailout money to bolster state budgets. But the reality is that they are taking control of the states by doing so (do what we say or we won’t give you any). This is bad. The states are not meant to all be the same. The states should be competing with each other, which gives all of us to right to vote with our feet and move to a state that we like. If they’re all the same, the only way to escape an oppressive state government is to leave the country altogether.

As you probably know, I enjoy reading. In the last few years, however, my usual 50/50 balance between fiction and non-fiction has made a swing in the latter direction. I always seem to be occupied with a book I “should” be reading, whether it’s research or work-related or studying. So I’ve somewhat lost the habit of reading just for fun. But lately I’ve discovered a way to bring balance back to my bookworming without sacrificing my necessary reading... audio books. I’d never listened to one in my life before the fall of last year, though I’d noticed them on the shelves in books stores for outrageous prices. Then before my trip to Europe last year I had the idea of downloading one from iTunes to listen to on the long plane ride. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand was my first purchase, and I discovered that the price for a digital download is quite reasonable. It turns out that I didn’t listen to it at all during the trip, but some time after I returned I gave it a try and liked it. Having the actual printed book, I rotated back and forth between reading and listening and found it easy to find my place when switching. It’s a lot slower when listening, naturally, since reading inside one’s head simply takes less time. But the advantage is that it’s easy to multitask. Listening while driving makes the time fly on those trips over 20 minutes (any trip over 20 minutes is considered very long by Rhode Island standards). And I also listen when cleaning up and doing dishes and other chores that don’t really require any thought. Just like when I have my nose in a book, I laugh at a clever sentence, and “re-read” a page I find particularly noteworthy. It’s a different experience for sure, but I am nearly as immersed as when face to face with ink and page. Since that first book, I’ve been catching up on other classics. I’m currently going through the entire Jane Austen collection, each of which I’ve found fascinating. The appeal for me is likely quite different than for the usual (and by that I mean female) Austen fan. The protagonist of every story is unique, but each shares the qualities I find most attractive in a woman... intelligent, perceptive, witty, and kind. And while they’re all described as pretty, it’s usually in that understated girl-next-door kind of way that I prefer. They are all just so deserving of happiness that the inevitable joyful ending (that Austen tries her best to make you think won’t happen) can’t help but bring forth a smile.

When it comes to Law & Order, I’m a re-run watcher. I watch older episodes often on TNT, and only rarely watch the new episodes on NBC. But this week I did tune in for a new one, and as often happens with that show I saw a familiar face - David Rasche as a washed-up television anchorman. That name probably doesn’t ring a bell for all of you. For those who don’t know, he starred as SLEDGE HAMMER in a show of the same name in the 1980s. It was a very funny show that lasted only two seasons. Actually, the show’s creator thought it would get cancelled after just one so the season finale ends with Sledge accidentally detonating a nuclear bomb in the middle of the city. If you’ve never seen the show before but laughed at the above clip, the entire first season can be found here for a song.