1.31.2008

METRO STATION




Alright,


this band rules


period.


end of story.





Buy their cd on iTunes, go to a store, i don't care how you get it (just keep it legal), but just get it.


1.29.2008

Number One Fan Tour



It's their farewell tour


Feb 2 2008 7:00P
The Warehouse La Crosse, Wisconsin
Feb 7 2008 7:00P
Roast Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Feb 8 2008 7:00P
The blend Chicago, Illinois
Feb 9 2008 7:00P
The Loft Madison
Feb 10 2008 7:00P
Copper Rock Appleton, Wisconsin

BE THERE

What is "God's" Purpose?





For what reason does "God" exist?

Approximately 84% of people on the earth strictly adhere to one form of religion and have a belief in a God. The remaining 16% consists of atheists, agnostics, secular humanists, or those with no religious preference. 8% of these people believe in a God in one form or another.

But here's my question: Does a "God" have to exist? And if he/she/it does in fact exist, then why?

Many people believe in God because it gives them a purpose, a reason for existing, and something to look forward to after death. But what is God's purpose? Doesn't the deity need one too?

Perhaps we as people have created the "God" that we would like to believe in. Maybe we have fashioned him to conveniently meet our desire to have a purpose.

"God doesn't have to have a purpose, because he is god" - would not be a logical answer, but rather, circular reasoning. Just like, "The color green just is green, because that's the color that it is" does not make sense.

You might as well say, "Well I don't need an answer, green is green and that's good enough for me."

Furthermore, upon scientific analysis we learn that specific wavelenghts of light in the visible spectrum are what make green appear to be green. So we know why green is green, but do we LOGICALLY know why we need a "God"? Do we have any answers past:

- Well we had to come from somewhere
(Why do we have to come from somewhere, but "God" doesn't?)

- Well, he just has always existed
(Why is this an acceptable answer, but not the Big Bang Theory?)

- Because God can do anything
(How do you know this? How can you even prove he/she/it existed in the first place?)

- Well, you just have to believe, you have to have faith...

It sounds to me like we need to put our minds at rest, so we create illogical answers to difficult questions. If you can shake that feeling of uneasiness that maybe, just maybe there is not a "God," that there is no afterlife, and that there is no higher power... a lot more things in this world start to make sense.

We always hear people say after something tragic happens... "Why did God allow this?"

Maybe because "God" doesn't exist.

Holocausts, genocides, war, tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, cancer, AIDS, the list goes on and on. Maybe if we stop asking "God" (who never answers), and we start looking for solutions, methods of prevention, and scientific explanations, we would be doing ourselves a huge favor.

We can start fixing problems rather than wishing and praying the day away.

1.28.2008

Miller Brewing Co. Executive Murdered

Murder in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE -- A man killed after leaving a Walker's Point neighborhood bar early Saturday morning has been identified as 43-year-old Vic Milford, the Director of Compensation and Benefits at Miller Brewing Company.

Milford was a citizen of South Africa, but moved to Milwaukee in 2005 for the opportunity at the brewery.

Police said Milford was with a group of people near Second and Walker streets when he was approached by two men who demanded personal belongings. Milford was shot after handing over his wallet and died at the scene.

The district is known as the gay/lesbian district of Milwaukee.

Yet news groups fail to report this fact, perhaps under pressure from the Miller Brewing Company.

[Information taken from TMJ4 and my brain.]

Dave Acker

BUSH: State of the Union


TONIGHT 8pm Eastern (7pm Central for you slow folks out there...)


Flip on CNN or FOX or whatever the heck you watch for your news and watch President Bush give his final State of the Union speech.


Some of you, I'm sure, will be sipping champagne as some of his final words flutter out into the airwaves.


Still others, might be weeping softly.


Those of you who will be drinking and weeping at the same time might need to seek counseling.


I personally, will have my ass planted in a seat in a classroom from 6:30-9:10pm. BUT BUT BUT, it is a political science class, so who knows, maybe we will watch it.
Dave F'n Acker

1.26.2008

A Universal Solution

In 1965, Dmitri Borgmann noted that this expression:

11 + 2 - 1 = 12

… is valid also when interpreted as a set of characters:

11 "+ 2″ = 112; 112 "- 1″ = 12

… as a set of Roman numerals:

XI + II = XIII; XIII - I = XII

… and even as a set of letters:

ELEVEN + TWO = ELEVENTWO
ELEVENTWO - ONE = LEVETW (= TWELVE)







.....I thought that was pretty cool....

1.23.2008

Wildbirds in Rolling Stone Magazine

So a band that some of our readers might/should know has made it into Rolling Stone. They have been known as Number One Fan, The Robbins, and now the Wildbirds.

Kevin, my roomate, a Sony BMG representative, and an all-around amazing kid (minus his blogging skills) has booked them to play here in Milwaukee for their farewell tour as Number One Fan. - still not sure if they gave him a thank you yet...

Here's what was written: CLICK ME!




ALSO

Kevin is going to be booking for this guy named Samwell who recently called him:

1.22.2008

10 Commandments can lick it...

... Whatever "it" is...

By reading the Bible you will quickly realize that the 10 Commandments that you think you know are nowhere to be found.

You do see what Moses repeats to the people what "god" told him to say after climbing down Mount Si'nai; however, they are not written down in any form.


Later on, Moses goes back to the top of the Mountain where upon "god" (yah it's not capitalized...oooooh noooooo!) gives him two tables of stone with rules written on them (Exodus 31:18).

Moses gets down the mountain and sees the people worshiping idols. He immediately smashes the 10 Commandments onto the ground (32:19).

Never ever ever does the bible refer to the "commandments." Just spoken words of "god."

Additionally, it is only when Moses goes back for new tablets that the title "ten commandments" is given.

INTERESTINGLY, THESE "10" ARE DIFFERENT from the ten rules MOses recited for the people.

So... Moses made them up? God changed his mind? OR the Bible is a crock of you know what...

So here are the real 10 that were handed down by the great spaghetti monster, or "god" to ho-Moses (Exodus 34:12-28).

I- Thou shalt worship no other god.
II- Thou shalt make thee no molten gods
III- The feast of unleavened bread thou shalt keep.
IV- Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest.
V- Thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feasting of ingathering at the year's end.
VI- Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord God.
VII- Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven.
VIII- Neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning.
IX- The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the Lord thy God.
X- Thou shalt not seethe a kid [young goat] in his mother's milk.

Religion is ridiculous
that's my Commandment

The Space Between

So, we've reached over the 1,000 hits mark for the blog... which means that either some kids are actually reading our nonsense, OR we have a really dedicated stalker.

Either way, PRETTY FRICKEN SWEET.

p.s. for the stalker: Kevin is the best person to rape, he just lies there and compliments you...

weird.

School started today for me, not sure what that really means, but it's my last semester of my senior year.

Crazy.

1.16.2008

Dear LORD, do NOT vote for Huckabee

Mike Huckabee has recently announced to a crowd of listeners that he wants to "Amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards."

To me this sounds like he would be destroying the First Amendment and incorporating HIS views on morality into the law for everyone!

The First Amendment Reads:



"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."


Huckabee is serious about this.


Now, YES I know that it is not easy to amend the constitution. BUT BUT BUT, it is not worth taking the risk.

Do we really all want to live by the rules set down by Southern Baptists and Southern Baptists only?

The Supreme Court of the United States of America has clearly, through numerous cases, established and affirmed the separation of church and state.

So, would such an amendement pass? Perhaps, but unless we have all radical justices on the Supreme Court who are right-wing religious conservatives, I doubt that a new precedent could be set.

I would rather not have to deal with or debate the situation for any reason. We have enough radical religious folk who try to tell other people how to live their lives, let's not elect another polarizing president PLEASE.

That's all I've got for now... REMEMBER TO VOTE ON VARIOUS POLLS ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF OUR WEBSITE.

:)
DAVID ALLEN ACKER

1.14.2008

California: Welfare Drug-Screening Law Proposed by Disabled Teen (source foxnews.com/corey hine's eyes)

RIVERSIDE - A Mira Loma high school sophomore born with a disabling condition brought on by his mother's drug abuse will see his proposal to screen welfare applicants for narcotics introduced this year before the state Assembly, a lawmaker announced Friday.


R.J. Feild, a student at Jurupa Valley High School, competed with more than 200 students from campuses across Riverside County in Assemblyman John J. Benoit's "There Ought To Be a Law" contest. The youths composed 500-word essays stating what new laws they believe should be put on the books.

The teen's essay was well-written, the most compelling and met feasibility criteria, according to Benoit, a Republican who represents the 64th District that encompasses part of the Coachella Valley and western Riverside County.
He said he and his staff "had the difficult dilemma of choosing only one entry among so many good ideas."

"R.J.'s captivating story provided a clear reason why we need his law," he said. "I look forward to introducing 'RJ's Law' in this legislative session."
The boy has spastic triplegic cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair to get around, according to Benoit spokeswoman Cheryll Bisco.
In his essay, he explained how he was born at 2 pounds, 2 ounces with traces of heroin, marijuana, methamphetamine, alcohol and cocaine in his body - substances that caused his lifelong affliction, she said.

The teen's mother consumed the illegal drugs throughout her pregnancy, while she was living on public assistance, according to Bisco.
He proposed "RJ's Law" as a means to ''break the destructive cycle of supporting drug addicts with public assistance monies,'' she said.

"RJ's Law would apply the same standard for drug screening (to welfare recipients) that employees undergo in order to obtain employment," Bisco said.
As winner of the contest, Feild will receive an airline ticket to Sacramento, where, in the next six weeks, he will be afforded the chance to formally introduce his bill on the Assembly floor, Bisco said, adding that the teen will also be given an honorary plaque and a tour of the state Capitol.
According to Bisco, this is the first time in his five-year legislative career that Benoit has sponsored the contest, which he was inspired to do after seeing the results of other legislators.
"He just thought it was a great way to get high school students involved in the legislative process," Bisco said.

She said high school students were given from early September to the end of November to send their completed essays to Benoit's office.
Though many of the proposals were well-written, Bisco said, they were passed over because they fell short of meeting the feasibility criteria.

"Some were kind of outrageous, at least to us," she said. "One recommended a fee on plastic shopping bags. We had others who wanted a law making it mandatory for seniors 75 years and over to retake a driver's license test every year. Most of those proposals came out of the desert, where a lot of older people live."

- FOXNews.com

1.12.2008

What's up Today?

Sir Edmund Hillary

The first man to make it to the top of Mount Everest - a climb that I make every 3rd Sunday of the month - died just yesterday.

USA Today commemorated the event by putting him on page 11C... The main focus of the front page of USA Today: American Idol "tries to get its groove back"... how's that for a slap in the face?

Hilarious...

Telecommunications providers have shut down some of the FBI's covert surveillance lines because the FBI hasn't been paying its phone bills.

How did they decide who would make that call?
Draw straws?
Russian Roulette, last one alive calls?
I'd just dial and hand the phone off to the new guy.


I just saw this music video pop up on the Television, very interesting, very different. 
AND
It was followed by Motion City Soundtrack "This is for Real."




Finally: FOOTBALL!!!




Listen to John Madden today, I'm sure there will be a lot of this going on.

Vote on the right at the top for who you think will win the Super Bowl.

DFA outtie 5,000

1.10.2008

USA Today

Yup, I'm reading today's newspaper and commenting on it.  Be excited...

excited yet?  good.


So there were record voting turnouts in the New Hampshire Primary: good or bad?

Well, good to see that so many people care more to get involved this year.
Bad, because there's a good chance half of the people who voted are, in fact, morons.

Better:  At least more cognitively disabled persons of the country will have bumper stickers saying, "Don't blame me I voted for Hillary"

Oklahoma has imposed a strict immigration law called "1804."  The result?

Good: we get to see what will happen with such rules in place on a smaller scale than just throwing it in at the national federalmonster level.

Bad:  Apparently it isn't working out so well for businesses that involve manual labor.  At one nursery/landscaping business over 40 illegal immigrants left for other states to avoid penalization.  As a result, these businesses are kinda screwed for finding workers and the state's economy will take a hit.  

Better: I can find a job landscaping in Oklahoma this coming summer if all else fails.

Juno: The Movie = Amazing

So I got to meet up with Paul Ronjonavich IV in Pittsburgh and the result was the viewing of an amazing movie.  Juno is offensive, witty, hilarious, nonsensical, and overall sexy.

Good: This was literally the best movie I've seen in a long fricken time.  It's worth the money.

Bad:  2 old ladies were sitting directly behind me and I did not hear them laugh once.

Better:  Turns out they had died from heart attacks derived from the shocking nature of the movie.  So, I wasn't wrong, the movie is funny after all.

Iran: boats threaten U.S. naval ships

So, several Iranian boats apparently circled 2 U.S. ships in the Middle East and sent 2 threatening messages:  

"I am coming to you"  and "You will explode after 2 minutes." 

Good: Nothing exploded

Bad:  What the hell is going on?  Seriously, if these were really stupid Iranian tactics, what are they trying to do...Start another war?  

Better:  My solution- put a huge bio-dome over the Middle East and let them fight it out themselves.  I am growing tired of wars, especially ones derived from discord based on religious fundamentalism and ignorant viewpoints on the world.  Everyone needs to get high and chill out.






Other things you might care to read up on:

News:
- 70-car pileup in central Florida, the pictures are horrifying.
- There's a new MySpace for celebrity profiles

Politics:
- Hillary got emotional during an interview when talking about the grueling nature of campaigning.  So she's human after all, but will people take a woman crying as weakness rather than anything positive?

Religion:
- The U.S. has renewed raids on al-Qaeda, the crazy religious group that ruins a lot things by blowing themselves and other things up.

Music:
- Check out www.myspace.com/metrostation, listen to Kelsey
- Check out www.myspace.com/mgmt, listen to Time to Pretend
- Check out www.myspace.com/anberlin, listen to The Haunting

That's all for now,

David Allen F'n Acker (DAFA)


1.08.2008

"People go to church for the same reasons they go to the tavern: to stupefy themselves, to forget their misery, to imagine themselves, for a few minutes anyway, free and happy."

~ Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin... Russian Political Theorist who opposed Karl Marx


1.05.2008

Find time and Watch

I have been reading up on various viewpoints regarding religion and atheism for a fairly long time now.  I recently finished the book "god is not GREAT" (atheist) and I am currently reading the books "The Year of Living Biblically" (neutral and interesting) and "The Case for Faith" (religious).

I had been reading a book by the same author as the latter title called "The Case for Christ" but, a quarter of the way in, I realized I would have to first a) believe in a god, and, b) believe in Christianity in order to buy into a book of such a persuasion.

The point of this blog post is to make you, the reader, THINK.

Try, as hard as you can to watch the video(s) below, which yes, features an atheist; and try, try your hardest to think LOGICALLY sans preconceived notions.

watch the video(s) and leave COMMENTS vvvvv

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mmskXXetcg&feature=related


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe7yf9GJUfU&NR=1