So, what do I, a

So, what do I, a random computer nerd, think about Bush's plan for Mars? I'm a bit dismayed at the low level of funding it's being given, the budget is off by an order of magnitude, but it's better than nothing, and hopefully the next President will fund it at a much higher level. It's going to be expensive, and it's going to cost human lives, we'd better accept that now before we start. The debate over whether or not we should be doing this reminds me of this bit from The West Wing:

Sam: There are a lot of hungry people in the world, Mal, and none of them are hungry 'cause we went to the moon. None of them are colder, and certainly none of them are dumber 'cause we went to the moon.

Mallory: And we went to the moon. Do we really have to go to Mars?

Sam: Yes.

Mallory: Why?

Sam: Cause it's next. 'Cause we came out of the cave. And we looked over the hill, and we saw fire. And we crossed the ocean, and we pioneered the West, and we took to the sky. The history of man is hung on a timeline of exploration, and this is what's next.

You know there are too

You know there are too many campaign commercials on TV here in Iowa when I start complaining. As someone with an interest in polictical science, and 18 hours of coursework to back it up, I'd consider my tolerance to be higher than the average Iowan, but last night was relentless. I'd say that at least 50% of the ads were political last night, all Dean, Kerry, Gephardt, and Edwards. At least it will all be over soon...

Martin Sheen and Rob

Martin Sheen and Rob Reiner stopped by campus today to hold a rally for Howard Dean. I took my trusty digicam along, and managed to capture these video clips (with sound) for the viewing enjoyment of everyone on broadband. If you're on dial-up, don't even bother to try:

Martin Sheen

Rob Reiner

I also shook Sheen's hand, got him to sign my West Wing Season 1 box set, and he told me to watch tonight's episode, because it's really a good one.

Reiner signed my DVD of The Princess Bride, he wrote "As You Wish - Rob Reiner" which made me smile.

Their speeches were very much the typical stump speech, rallying the troops to vote for Dean. Nothing newsworthy, really, but fun nonetheless.

This story made me chuckle,

This story made me chuckle, especially how this squatter got married during the course of his life on the golf course, and that his wife lived on the course with him. Now, you might think the golf course is being heartless, but I love this quote:

Bethel turned down a job in course maintenance because he wanted to be self-employed, McKeon said.

Ahh, yes, he's obviously sane...

Golfers who had become accustomed to seeing Bethel on the course were surprised by his banishment.

"It seems a shame that someone who is an institution on the course can't be grandfathered in," golfer Jim Adamson said.

"He's a nice guy," agreed golfer Mario Deif. "You have to admire someone who has debunked modern life and lives off the land."

Now, I don't know about you, but when I hear the phrase "living off the land", I don't picture a bum and his wife scrounging for golf balls in Miami...

We suffered a personal "Economic

We suffered a personal "Economic Downturn" today, when my wife lost her job at Hellman Associates. They called her in, when she was headed out the door for lunch, to tell her that her "position was being eliminated". They handed her a box, and gave her ten minutes to clean out her desk. At least they gave her two weeks of severance pay, and her health insurance continues until the end of the month. So, after going out for lunch with her (our last meal outside the house for the forseeable future), I stopped by the University HR office to add her to my insurance, starting Feb 1. That's another $177/month out of our pockets for health insurance, at a time when I don't really want less pay in my paycheck. :( The good news is, she didn't want to work there anymore anyhow, she just hadn't found another job to leave it for yet. The company has been "restructuring", and they have far fewer staff than they did at this time last year. They've "eliminated" several other positions, and most of the other young employees had already fled the building, looking for more secure employment.

I realize that I'm used to working in the relatively cushy confines of a University, but they've really treated their employees badly. There were no annual reviews, and no annual raises. The company also stopped contributing to employees 401(k) plans, and didn't bother to notify the employees, we only found out about it when the statements came and the amounts were reduced. In the last month, the deductible on their HMO health insurance doubled, from $250 to $500 per year, and the employee-paid premiums went up by a significant chunk as well. Contrasted with my non-HMO health insurance, of which I don't pay a cent of the premiums, it's not a very attractive place to work, and I'm glad my wife doesn't have to work there anymore. I just wish this had been a bit more planned...

But, if you're interested in working for them, they do have a web page up where they're soliciting resumes.

So, yeah, I'm badmouthing them, but they just canned my wife, so you can't really expect me to be gracious about it, and hey, I didn't work for them. :)