Steve's Blog

Quote

sdowell — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:03:42 +0000

“The Constitution was written not to regulate you in any way, the purpose of the Constitution is to restrain the government.” Ron Paul.

Blogs in two places

sdowell — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:50:33 +0000

I recently began using Facebook because they came out with a very nice application for the iPhone to use it. So that basically means that I’m blogging in two places. I’ve solved the problem a little bit by having my facebook page “subscribe” to my blog here on WordPress. That way when I blog something on WordPress, it automatically shows up on my Facebook page. However, I realized that I still have a bit of a problem. Last night I was talking to my parents and they asked for my blog URL. I wanted to give them my Facebook page, but you really can’t do that. In order to see my Facebook page, they have to have Facebook accounts themselves. I don’t think that’ll work for them. Oh well… The tribulations of living in the virtual online world. :^) I’ll just continue doing what I do, and my parents will only see the WordPress side of it.

It’s been a month since I’ve been home to Memphis. Tomorrow at 11:30 I’ll be headed home. I’m SO looking forward to that. I miss my wife, my kids, my dog, my house, my yard, my neighborhood. I do like my life here in Knoxville. I like my job. I have friends who I can do things with outside of work. And I like the Knoxville area. But because my family isn’t here with me, it just feels really disconnected. At any rate, I’m REALLY looking forward to getting home tomorrow.

I sang at a Karaoke bar the other night. I posted a pic on Facebook, but since my parents can’t see that, I’ll post a pic here as well…

Your iPhone as a laptop? Whoa…Sweet!

sdowell — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 20:09:48 +0000

Apparently this is “coming soon”. You drop your iPhone into a small laptop, and the laptop runs from your iPhone. VERY neat idea!

Colonel Adam Kokesh’s Speech at the Revolution March in D.C.

sdowell — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 16:50:30 +0000

I find the speech from this Iraq Veteran to be truly inspiring towards the cause of freedom and liberty in our country.

Magnetic Motor

sdowell — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 23:43:26 +0000

This is pretty interesting. The reason it’s so interesting to me is that I actually came up with this idea on my own a number of years ago and attempted to build one at my house. Unfortunately, I didn’t have nearly enough magnets, and my prototype wouldn’t spin. It got trapped between magnetic fields because of the limited number of magnets that I was working with. I like the idea this guy used of having several rotors with offset magnet positions. This prevents the dead spots that I experienced with my little experiment.

At any rate, it’s cool to see technology like this. I think it holds great potential. Imagine if every house and every car could have a power generator like this that doesn’t require fossil fuels to run. Amazing. I hope I see that become a reality in my lifetime.

Chuck Baldwin video

sdowell — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 13:25:45 +0000

The following Chuck Baldwin video is on YouTube. It outlines Baldwin’s main stances on the issues.

I disagree with Chuck’s stance on gay rights. Prejudice and biggotry is wrong when it’s directed towards blacks, and it’s still wrong when it’s directed towards gays. However, at this point in history I think our country has bigger fish to fry. And on those other larger issues, I think Baldwin is on target. If we could get some of these other issues handled, then maybe we could come back to the gay rights issue later on under a different administration.

Of course I’m not under any illusion that Baldwin has a credible chance of winning. This is a conscience vote. I watched the Republican/Democrat Presidential debate last night (so where were the 3rd party candidates??). It’s such a sham. The American people get Dumb and Dumber rammed down their throats as if there are no other choices. That they didn’t include the main 3rd party candidates is totally unconscionable. Both of these guys are apparently going along with this ridiculous Bail Out plan in some form. Both of them seem bent on continued foreign entanglements. Both of them disturb me.

So anyway, here is the Baldwin youtube video…

Here is a flyer with some more of Baldwin’s issue stances…
http://baldwin08.com/files/2008%20NATIONAL%20CAMPAIGN%20FLYER%20INDISE.pdf

Ron Paul endorses Chuck Baldwin for President

sdowell — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 22:10:11 +0000

Ron Paul made an announcement today stating his endorsement for Chuck Baldwin for President.
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/blog/?p=582

Chuck Baldwin’s website is http://www.baldwin08.com/

I have reservations about voting for Chuck Baldwin because I firmly believe in a separation of church and state. The fact that Baldwin wears his religion so prominently on his sleeve gives me pause. However, since Ron Paul endorses him, that’s who I’ll be voting for. Although I don’t agree with Baldwin’s stance on every single issue, I do agree with him on many. I think that a candidate like Baldwin is certainly a step in the right direction on many of the most crucial issues that our country faces. I certainly feel more comfortable voting Balwin than either Obama or McCain.

Because Ron Paul has given his endorsement to Baldwin, there will be a LOT of Ron Paul supporters who will vote for Baldwin. I hope that this results in a truly viable third party run against the Republican/Democrat duopoly. Unfortunately, the main stream media managed to black out and black-ball Ron Paul during his run in the primaries. They could end up doing the same to Baldwin (and undoubtedly will). But due to the current economy crisis, maybe people will be more willing to listen to the message of Liberty, Sound Money, and The Constituition. I hope so.

Alrighty then…. Baldwin ’08!

Smiling Rainbow

sdowell — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 01:45:30 +0000

I drove through the end of a rainbow earlier this year. Absolutely true. (Google it… it does happen).
So I have a particular fondness for rainbows now. This pic caught my eye… it’s an upside down rainbow. Cool!

Ron Paul urges to support 3rd Party…

sdowell — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 11:00:37 +0000

My thoughts about Ron Paul’s Statement

sdowell — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:07:44 +0000

I think it’s an excellent strategy. People should get behind it, find a 3rd party candidate that they generally agree with… and VOTE. Vote 3rd party. It doesn’t matter which one.

Here’s an example of how this strategy could work…
For simplicity’s sake, lets say that there are 100 voters. Let’s say there are 2 “Main Stream candidates” and 4 3rd party candidates. Let’s say that currently the votes are spread out like so:
A 35 votes
B 40 votes
C 8 votes
D 6 votes
E 6 votes
F 5 votes

Now let’s apply Ron Paul’s strategy, and get a large percentage of those 100 people to vote 3rd party… Any 3rd party. Let’s say that each of the 4 3rd party candidates triple their votes. Now we have…

C 24
D 18
E 18
F 15

Our 3rd party candidates now have 75 of the 100 votes, which only leaves 25 votes left for the two “main” candidates. Let’s say those break down to:
A 15
B 10

Now, all of a sudden 3 of our 4 3rd party candidates are in a position to win.

This is a viable strategy, and I think all Americans should be encouraged to break the current political duopoly by voting their conscience and voting *any* 3rd party.

In the real world, even if the strategy doesn’t pan out for a 3rd party win, it still has the potential to send a *massive* message that Americans are tired of the 2 party system, and wants a real choice in 2012.

So I encourage everyone who reads or stumbles across this blog…. Vote 3rd party this year. Vote for either Baldwin, Barr, Nader or McKinney. Those four are in agreement on the four main planks that Ron Paul has laid out… Foreign Policy, Privacy, National Debt, and The Federal Reserve system.

For reference, here’s what these candidates have agreed to….

The Republican/Democrat duopoly has, for far too long, ignored the most important issues facing our nation. However, alternate candidates Chuck Baldwin, Cynthia McKinney, and Ralph Nader agree with Ron Paul on four key principles central to the health of our nation. These principles should be key in the considerations of every voter this November and in every election.

We Agree

Foreign Policy: The Iraq War must end as quickly as possible with removal of all our soldiers from the region. We must initiate the return of our soldiers from around the world, including Korea, Japan, Europe and the entire Middle East. We must cease the war propaganda, threats of a blockade and plans for attacks on Iran, nor should we re-ignite the cold war with Russia over Georgia. We must be willing to talk to all countries and offer friendship and trade and travel to all who are willing. We must take off the table the threat of a nuclear first strike against all nations.

Privacy: We must protect the privacy and civil liberties of all persons under US jurisdiction. We must repeal or radically change the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, and the FISA legislation. We must reject the notion and practice of torture, eliminations of habeas corpus, secret tribunals, and secret prisons. We must deny immunity for corporations that spy willingly on the people for the benefit of the government. We must reject the unitary presidency, the illegal use of signing statements and excessive use of executive orders.

The National Debt: We believe that there should be no increase in the national debt. The burden of debt placed on the next generation is unjust and already threatening our economy and the value of our dollar. We must pay our bills as we go along and not unfairly place this burden on a future generation.

The Federal Reserve: We seek a thorough investigation, evaluation and audit of the Federal Reserve System and its cozy relationships with the banking, corporate, and other financial institutions. The arbitrary power to create money and credit out of thin air behind closed doors for the benefit of commercial interests must be ended. There should be no taxpayer bailouts of corporations and no corporate subsidies. Corporations should be aggressively prosecuted for their crimes and frauds.

“The lesser of two evils is still evil”