My Acting Debut, In Which I Play a Zombie

During the summer of 2003, I was persuaded to be a zombie in a movie being filmed here in Hubbard. A friend was doing the special effects and they needed extra bodies to look menacing and creepy.

He knew exactly who to call.

After a sweating out a full day in make up and prosthetic appliances, I managed to give the director about 7 seconds worth of usable footage. That's me stalking up to a farmhouse and snacking on somebody's leg.

Who says there's no culture in this part of Ohio?

The movie is called "Deadlife" and is available at www.schottenfilmworks.com. My buddy Glenn hopes to make people look like this for a living someday.

$82,000,000,000.00 Needed to Fight War on Terror

President Bush is requesting 82 billion dollars to continue the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. That number is so large that I have trouble evisioning how much money that is. Luckily, the good folks at http://www.crunchweb.net/87billion/ had a similar concern in 2003 when he asked for 87 billion dollars and they made some handy diagrams. Go take a look.

At some point we have to stop this madness. I thought Republicans were conservatives? How conservative is it to borrow billions of dollars to fund this war while tax cuts are given to the rich? The President's thought process is that tax cuts stimulate the economy but I have serious doubts that any tax cuts, no matter how deep, would ever raise enough money to pay for something of this magnitude.

To those who say their proud the president went into Iraq, I submit to you this question: Would a good leader have found a way to persuade the rest of the world that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction? Would a good leader have been able to convince them that Iraq was a threat to stability in the region and convinced them to help shoulder the burden of removing Saddam Hussein from power? I think the answer is yes and President Bush failed on both counts.

If we are going to go into debt like this I propose we should get more for our money. Let's spend 82 billion dollars:

• Building schools, hiring and educating teachers and looking out for the next generation instead of burying them in debt. Maybe then we could raise public schools to the level of good private schools. At least we would get something for our money.
• Put more cops on the street.
• Put safeguards in place to make sure all cargo containers are inspected.
• Revitalize the economic dead zones people live in by giving tax breaks to businesses that invest in those areas.

Do anything with that money but keep funding this war. Iraq is more of a threat now that it is sucking away every last dollar we have than it ever was as a military power. I know, we need to fight the war on terror but unemployment is rising, manufacturing and white collar jobs are going overseas and being replaced by $8.00/ hour jobs at Wal-Mart and drop out rates are high. It's great that Iraq had elections but if I were the president I would want to inspire those voters to something better than what I see when I look out the window.

Up Your's AT&T!

The Phone Bill

I just paid my AT&T phone bill and my jaw dropped at the amount. As I examined my bill I could not believe the taxes and fees charged by AT&T and the government. My total bill was $51.30, $12.78 of which went to pay taxes and fees. That means 25% of my bill has no discernible benefit to me. This is a list of what I found for my local and long distance service:

• Federal, State & Local Taxes-$4.00
• Universal Connectivity Charge- $1.40
• FCC Line Charge- $6.39
• Regulatory Assessment Fee- .99
• Total- $12.78

That's $12.78 per month or $153.36 per year. The taxes are unforgivable because they serve no purpose. They're just one more way for the government to get their hand in your pocket. Is there anything not taxed anymore?

A visit to the AT&T web site at www.att.com lists the Universal Connectivity charge as:

"the method by which AT&T recovers from AT&T Local and Long Distance customers the cost of contributing to the Federal Universal Services Fund, which helps provide affordable telecommunications services for low income customers and customers in rural areas. It also provides discounts on Internet access for eligible schools, libraries and rural health care providers. All Local and Long Distance companies are required to contribute to the Federal Universal Service Fund."

Great. I already pay property taxes to fund my schools. Now I have to pay for their internet access separately. How about the dumpsters behind the gym? Can we add a charge to my BFI bill to pay for them separately?

Regulatory Assessment Fee: "helps AT&T recover the costs associated with state-to-state and international connection charges, property taxes, and expenses associated with regulatory proceedings and compliance. This fee applies for each month in which you have any AT&T charges on your bill. This fee is not a tax or charge required by the government."

I already pay for service. Why is AT&T allowed to hit me up for property taxes and the cost of them complying with regulations? I don't see anyone stepping up to help me with my property taxes.

The FCC Line Charge is a HUGE rip off. Again, from the AT&T web site:

"known as End User Common Line Charge (EUCL) and Federal Access Charge (FAC), allows a customer's Local Service Provider to recover some of the costs associated with connecting them to the network."

Wow. I'm paying $6.93 per month to be connected to the network? Isn't the network the very thing that provides the service I pay for? The service that I am currently paying $18.75 for under the Call Plan Unlimited Plus? Or maybe it's for that wire running from the pole to my house. If it is, I think I'm done. 30 feet of cable can't cost that much. This charge is despicable because they make it sound like it's a tax levied by the FCC but in reality it's just another way for them to bill you for more money. Google FCC Line Charge and you will get pages of web sites with ticked off customers ranting about this.

The next time you get your phone bill examine it closely. Organized crime has nothing on these guys.

War of the Worlds

Steven Speilberg and Tom Cruise team up again on a film version of H.G. Well's classic, War of the Worlds. I have high hopes for this movie. Both were involved with the film version of Phillip K. Dick's Minority Report, and although it strayed heavily from the short story, it was a great movie. The trailer shown during the Superbowl looked great but provided little substance. I guess we'll have to wait for more teasers. The trailer is available here:

http://www.waroftheworlds.com/

If anyone is interested in another version of the story, go check out Alan Moore's excellent graphic novel, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 2. Literary heroes band together to save England from the Martians.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1401201180/qid=1107836004/sr=2-1/ref=pd_ka_b_2_1/103-4580526-5329460

The Incredible Molly Ivins

Everybody go and read Molly Ivins' latest column at: http://www.creators.com/opinion_show.cfm?columnsName=miv

She is brilliant, funny and has a refrshing streak of plain-speaking common sense.

Casino in the Mahoning Valley?

A Shawnee Indian tribe has begun making plans to open a casino in Lordstown, OH. The land for the casino was reportedly purchased yesterday, according to The Vindicator. The tribe likes the location because it is near several major interstates and has a close proximity to Pennsylvania. Several hurdles exist before plans can be completed but the biggest one appears to be Governor Bob Taft's disapproval of casino gambling in the state.

Youngstown currently suffers an unemployment rate of 11.8%. Reducing this figure needs to be the number one priority concerning any decision involving new economic development. The Mahoning Valley suffered polluted air and water during the height of the steel industry. I feel confident that we can weather the effects of some problem gamblers if it means a thousand or so people will have jobs paying more than minimum wage. Local governments can only raise taxes so much and cut services back so far before we suffer a catastrophe. Building the economy and relieving the tax burden must take precedence over the Governor's objections. The Mahoning Valley needs real leadership from Columbus and that means the Governor must put aside his beliefs for the greater good of the area.

A Letter to Rep. Tim Ryan Concerning Torture in Guantanamo

In late November 2004, a story was reported in which the Red Cross reported that it had complained to U.S officials in private about Iraqi prisoner abuse for more than a year at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This facility is used to hold prisoners accused of being enemy combatants in the war on terror. The Red Cross normally witholds it's findings from the public but rather reports them directly to the government holding the individuals. In this case, however, they decided to publicize their findings after the Wall Street Journal published excerpts from the report.

After reading the report I became alarmed. It's understandable that individuals are going to be held as the war progresses but I am bothered by even the hint of wrongdoing at this facility. If President Bush wants to foster democracy in the Middle East he may want to begin by showing the world that the United States does not do things like lock people away in remote prisons without due process of law or the protection of a lawyer. After reading the news reports of the findings I sent the following letter to my congressman and both Ohio senators.

You can find the story at these links:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4973604
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4192337

Sent to Representative Tim Ryan, Senator George Voinovich and Senator Mike Dewine on December 8, 2004:

Representative Ryan,

I recently read news reports of the Red Cross report that cites the conditions the detainees in Guantanamo Bay are being forced to endure to produce intelligence to be used in the war on terror. The report states "The construction of such a system, whose stated purpose is the production of intelligence, cannot be considered other than an intentional system of cruel, unusual and degrading treatment, and a form of torture."

I am deeply disturbed to discover that my government is subjecting human beings to "humiliating acts, solitary confinement, temperature extremes, [and the] use of forced positions" to gather intelligence three years after these detainees were captured. The Bush administration may refer to these acts as approved methods of interrogation but that doesn't mean they are moral or correct.

The United States Constitution specifically outlaws cruel and unusual punishment. The activities taking place in Guantanamo Bay certainly qualify as both if the Red Cross report is accurate. There is no reason to believe otherwise because the White House is declining to comment on it and the activities are taking place ninety miles from the Florida coast. Torture carried out by the American government undermines our position as the leading democracy in the world, places U.S servicemen and women at greater risk if they are captured, places U.S. civilians in foreign countries at risk just because of who they are, and compromises our ability to expose similar activities in other countries.

These activities should cease immediately and I implore you to take action in whatever capacity you possess. I am not naive and I understand that these men were part of the oppressive regime that aided the terrorists who attacked us on September 11, 2001. However, they must be brought into the light and face the American justice system if our principals are to mean anything.

In closing, I would like to state that we diminish ourselves if we condone the torture of anyone, enemy or otherwise. We should be prepared to give up only so many of our ideals in the pursuit of security. We can allow ourselves to become only so small and frightened before we lose sight of what we are trying to protect.

Thank you for allowing me to express my views.