Still clinging to their guns and god....

Everyday I see stories about the outrage people have that bank executives are being paid at all and that they still have corporate outings in a time of financial crisis in their sector. There is the large argument on who is to blame and what responsibility each of us carry for this mess. But, that is not my issue today.

I want to focus on the strange inequity in the country and how the average American deems something to be just and fair. That inequity rears its head in the form of NASCAR. If I am correct, GM took $13.4 billion of tax payer money just recently to stay afloat. Chrysler took $4 billion in bridge loans also. At the same time they are going to be spending an estimated $25 million a year to have race cars go around in a circle. Aside from the outlay of taxpayer money to fund these events, this does nothing to help the environment and reduce gas consumption. I do not see how GM and Chrysler having corporate tents and sponsorship at these events is a good use of our tax dollars.

It seems as if this is something that the average American should be outraged about. But, you don't hear any outcry about it. Instead the average American is all up in arms that the oncoming CEOs of failed banks may get a salary as they try to lead these institutions back into solvency. I understand the anger over somebody who drove the banks into the ground getting a bonus, but, most of them are gone. Most of the people that the American public want to punish are the people who have come in to try to fix things.

On top of that, NASCAR itself is getting direct bailout money in addition to the money from the bailed out auto industry. They are getting $128 million to revamp some of their racetracks around the country as part of the stimulus plan.

Guess this is how a democracy works....

Happy Rant

Last week I was inspired by an old college classmate to go hike the ridge above my valley. It turned out to be a stunning place and now I just keep wanting to go back.

I went on Saturday morning again with a friend, her dog and my dog. We had a great time and the weather was great. She summed up the experience best... She said that outings like that remind her of why she lives where she lives. I completely agree.

It is really amazing how nice of an area I live in. Sometimes you just get so into the grind of things that you forget to take the time to enjoy what you have. This inspired me to write a little about where I live and why I like it here.

I love the silence and seclusion of my valley. I love the trails and the wilderness that is around me on all sides. The creek that flows out of this valley into the Shenandoah River is as gorgeous as anything I have seen in the Rockies. My neighbors all around me are friendly and nice folk. We also have a great mix of people in the valley and they all add to the fascinating fabric. The wildlife is abundant and we are surrounded by untouched National Forest. The weather is always interesting and can make some mornings just breathtaking. On clear nights I can stand out in the yard and see a shooting star gauranteed in 5-10 minutes no matter what. You can also see the milky way very clearly and most of the major constellations. The pond is great and is so nice to swim in during the heat of the summer. During the winter when the weather is right, nothing is better than pond hockey. All in all, it is truly a wonderful place.

That isn't to say it doesn't have its struggles. We have frozen sump lines sometimes in the dead of winter. Gnats invade the valley in the summer and are annoying. To get ANYTHING not available at the general store it is 20 minutes minimum. We have zero cell service within 15 miles of the house.

But, all of these seem pretty minor when you are sitting up on that cliff hundreds of feet above the narrow passage below.

Well, that is my happy "rant" for the day.

I'll let the president of the EU speak for me

http://www.clemency4eddie.net/documents/EULetter.pdf

It is nice to see that they care enough to send a letter to the governor. But, I am afraid it won't matter much. Folks round here just love frying a black man. Sad.....

Man do I hate the death penalty. It makes me sad to be a member of this state and country.

Maybe a compromise?

I have a good job and the work I do is interesting.... but....

I feel like I am in a rut. I am tired of dealing with the same IT issues over and over again. I feel like I could do more with my life than fix Linux systems. I know it is a pretty glamorous job and one that many Windows Admins would dream of doing. But, it isn't really as glamorous as it looks on TV.

To remedy this, I think the only route is through grad school. I was seriously pursuing the EMBA program when I was at AOL. But, now I am going to have to throttle back that ambition a bit. I still would like an MBA more than any other degree out there, but, I fear that they are now just a dime a dozen. So, I went off searching for something outside of the MBA tract, but, still interesting to me.

I think I may have found it in the George Mason School of Management. They offer an MS in Technology Management. This would give me the MBA exposure I wanted while giving me a degree in something other than an MBA. It is also in a field I have a good bit of experience in to boot! I have signed up for the March 7th information session. This should be a good opprotunnity to find out what the program is really like and to meet some of the current students and faculty.

Last week I purchased a GMAT review book. I am going to work on a time to take the GMAT in March. I think that regardless of whether the MSTM program is a fit for me or not, I need to get the GMAT out of the way so I can work on applying for whatever program I finally decide on.

The MSTM has a possible start date of Jan. 2010. I think this may be a bit aggressive, but, we will see what I can get done between now and then.

The other bonus to this is that my wife is a Mason grad... So, I am sure she would approve of my school choice. ;)

Ok. Off to bed. I need to get up early so I can be at class on time tomorrow. I am going over inodes and hard and soft links tomorrow. So, it may be a long class.