August 2009

There were 48 posts published in August 2009 (this is page 5 of 5).

S.C. judge rules legal drinking age is 18

coronasA South Carolina judge has ruled that the state’s drinking age limit of 21 or over is unconstitutional. Looks like I found the enterprising kid I was looking for in January (his name is Jesse Gottlieb, in case you were wondering. This might be him on Facebook).

As a parent I am concerned about kids drinking. That said, an 18-year-old is no longer a kid: she’s an adult. She can vote, marry, be sent to war, and tried as an adult in court, among other things. In every case except alcohol consumption, in the eyes of the law she is an adult and responsible for her own decisions. A restriction on alcohol consumption is inconsistent with being considered an adult. Period.

When Ronald Reagan and Elizabeth Dole supported the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 which withheld federal highway funds from any state which didn’t raise their drinking age, I thought it was unnecessary meddling in the affairs of states. True, I was nearing the 18 drinking age at the time, but I still feel that way. Now, if anyone wants to get an amendment to the U.S. Constitution passed that declares the age of majority as 21 and not 18, be my guest.

That said, magistrates in South Carolina don’t have to be attorneys, so let’s see if the South Carolina Court of Appeals upholds this ruling.

Downtown amphitheatre

I was glad to see the city move forward with plans for the downtown amphitheatre. I actually brought this up with the mayor last week, inquiring where we were in the process and expressing my dismay that Live Nation was involved (y’all know how I feel about them). I’m glad to see that the city’s moving forward without Live Nation’s support, financially or otherwise.

I still believe an amphitheatre would be a great addition to the downtown mix. Moore Square is just not designed to be a concert venue, nor should it be. Having a dedicated facility would be a great improvement. The idea is that the amphitheatre would be a placeholder until the convention center gets expanded. Perhaps when that happens the amphitheatre can move up to the Devereaux Meadow location: the former site of a city ballpark that now houses the city’s sanitation trucks. The success of the Seaboard Music concerts proves that folks in the area would support outdoor music. And when the show’s over, it’s just a short walk or bus ride over to Glenwood South. Wouldn’t that be great!

San Diego Zoo

San Diego Zoo
The 6ths (YouTube)

Met you on a traffic island
We were there all day
In the middle of the world’s highway
Summer left its light green lipstick on our war faces
Took us to all the pretty places

Highway 405 will take you from the Boom Boom Room
to Interstate 5 which goes right to the San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
How could I have ever left you?
How could I have ever left you?

Left you in a sidewalk cafe
I’m the restless kind
and I must have been out of my mind
cause I haven’t slept since Wednesday
I’ve been getting thin
I just want to see your silly grin

Highway 405 will take you from the Boom Boom Room
to Interstate 5 which goes right to the San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
How could I have ever left you?
How could I have ever left you?

Some East CAC feedback

Since blogs are all about self-promotion, I thought I’d share a few comments I’ve gotten from my neighbors here in the East CAC over the last month:

  • “Your diligence is appreciated.”
  • “You are so on the ball, I continue to be amazed. Where do you get the time from and all the information that you pass on practically daily?!”
  • “You’re doing a great job.”
  • “Incidentally, I think you’re doing a great job. I’m quite impressed with your organizational skills, and I feel the level of communication with the membership is greatly improved. I only hope you don’t lose the energy and zeal you have brought to the job thus far.”
  • “… thanks for your efforts.”
  • “Thanks for all of your efforts with the East CAC. As a relatively new resident … I appreciate keeping abreast of neighborhood events and concerns.”
  • “Thank you again for following up, I can rest easy now.”
  • “Keep up the great work managing these issues for the neighborhood.”

This is the stuff that makes it all worthwhile.

Cooler than normal summer

Wxmap-20090802

I noticed that Seattle had its hottest day ever on Wednesday, recording 103 degrees. Seems the heat that normally bakes the other end of the continental U.S. is being kept at bay by a upper-level trough. Fairbanks, Alaska, had more 90-plus readings in June and July (one) than New York City (zero). Whoa.

I’m reminded that exactly two years ago, we were in the San Juan Islands, happily enjoying low-70-degree days while Raleigh baked in 100+ temperatures. Now the shoe is on the other foot!

Netflix “Watch Instantly”

200px-Netflix_Logo.svg

I’ve heard good reports of Netflix’s “Watch Instantly” streaming movies but hadn’t experienced it until yesterday. I came home from work to find Kelly and the kids crowded around her laptop, watching Disney’s Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Color me impressed! It looked like they were watching a DVD, the picture quality was so good. And this was over our home wireless network. There were no skips or any visible glitches.

We’d had the ability to stream these movies courtesy of our Netflix subscription for quite some time now but hadn’t gotten to installing the Microsoft Silverlight software onto Kelly’s Mac until now.

Next up, a dedicated Roku player so we can stream movies to our big TV!

Corazon Aquino

I was saddened to read of the passing of former Philippine president Corazon Aquino, who died yesterday from colon cancer at the age of 76.

Aquino brought an end to the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos and brought democracy to her country for the first time in almost 30 years. While a former housewife with no political experience kicking Marcos out of power was improbable, it was easy compared to actually running the country. Marcos had looted it for all it was worth, and much work had to be done. Aquino was frequently not up to this task, sad to say, but it didn’t matter: democracy had at long last taken root in the Philippines.

As a sailor I visited the Philippines during her time as president and was proud to see the Filipino people finally having a voice in running their country. She will be missed.