TSA: Why the terroists have won.

As many of you have heard, the TSA has started to roll out new procedures for security screenings at airports. These procedures include X-Ray scanning and pat downs. How I feel about this issue is posted in the video.

I am mad as hell. What has happened to our country!!! When we have to pat down grandma's breasts to let her fly, then we have gone to far. When we have to go through x-ray machines that have been not tested at the same standards as medical x-ray machines, we have gone to far. When the TSA has deiced that we have "Given up our Constitutional rights at the door," we have gone to far. Here is another video about some of the issues with the new procedures.

The definition of a terrorist by our government is as follows: "[An] act of terrorism, means any activity that (A) involves a violent act or an act dangerous to human life that is a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or any State, or that would be a criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United States or of any State; and (B) appears to be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by assassination or kidnapping." The government has cited that terrorists are trying to attack us. That is why we have these new procedures. By our government's own definition, terrorists are influencing the TSA policy at our airports! That is terrorism! Our government is so upside and backwards on terrorism, we have decided as a nation, that we must sacrifice our liberties for the illusion of security. Enough is enough people. Terrorism is a real threat. It is an issue that we must take seriously; however, we must not sacrifice that freedom the terrorist want to destroy. These increased security procedures help the cause of terrorist more than our own safety.

Finally, Ron Paul is the only politician man enough to stand up for the people’s rights. He has sponsored a bill recently that would take away the new procedures. Below are a few videos of Ron Paul taking about the issue of the TSA.

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The New Dallas

About three hours north of Dallas, is a little place called Oklahoma City.  Now while most of us would never dream of visiting the desolate place for fun, many SMU students call it home. This thanksgiving break, not being able to go back to NY for thanksgiving, I was invited to see this city, was I blown away.

In New Yorker during 1976, the cover was of New Yorker's perception of the rest of the country. It displays 9th and 10th avenue, the Hudson river, then a brown blob that represents the rest of the United States, the pacific ocean, and finally, the Asian continent in the far distance. While I would argue that New Yorkers aren't that stupid, they do have the blind belief that New York is the greatest place in the world. They believe that no place on earth is close to New York. While I do not have this belief, I do compare all cities to New York as my golden rule of a city.

Since moving to Dallas, I love it here. It is the perfect of big city life, in a more suburban setting. I might not always enjoy how spread out Dallas is, it is better than living on top of other people all the time. Many people might know this; however Dallas was not always a big city. During the 60's and 70's, it was about the same size as OK City just three hours north.

From talking to many people, they consider OK City to be the ugly cousin of Dallas. Talking to one person, they called it "the only settled area of Oklahoma." These misconceptions scared me before my visit. After visiting, I was blown away. OK City will be the next Dallas in a few decades.

While visiting, I was most impressed with the downtown areas and the neighborhood of Nicolas Hills. Downtown is a wonderful place. With large skyscrapers, great walking areas, and the Ford Center. It is hard to believe that someone could become bored downtown. Nicolas Hills is a great neighborhood just outside of the boundries of the city. The best way to describe the area is a mix between Rye NY and Highland Park TX with Midwestern charm.The people that I meet in the city were sophisticated and  to earth. To say the least, they are some of the nicest people I have meet.

I have two words for Dallas. Watch out. With the growth of OK City the past few years, I could see it becoming a bigger place than Dallas. If anything, I could see Dallas' growth stalling, while OK still keeps growing. OK City is a great place and I hope to visit again soon.

Apple Event 10/20: Live Blog

Hey their folks, I know that many of you are getting ready for Apple's Back to Mac event. We are going to have live blog going on during the event so keep an eye over here. All the events start at 10:00 am Pacific/ 1:00 pm Eastern. So tune in and get great insight here at The Moore Hall Post.

Pre-Game:

Many blogs and internet sources have been citing those good old apple rumors to see what will be new for apple. Many have speculated that Apple will be releasing a new OS X and a new MacBook Air. Two products that do need an update. Keep an eye on the blog and we will keep you posted and ansewer any comments that are questions.

 Jorge

Pre-game blogging:

11:40:

Not for awhile have we seen a live stream from apple. They are offering a live stream of the event on the link below. Now, I don't want you all not to see this live blog; however, I'll be watching it on my Safari while blogging on Firefox, while checking ESPN on chrome. Sorry IE, not love for you. You can only watch the live stream on a safari browser or on your iPod, iPhone, or iPad.

Apple Live Stream

Live Blog Starts at 1:00 pm Eastern

1:00 pm:

Steve Jobs is handing over the meeting over to other execitives?

1:06

Mac: #1 in customer satisfaction. Many different ratings.

1:07

318 Apple Stores now.

1:08

Back to Steve now. Oh Steve, come now. He just asked everyone to silence their phones... Remind anyone of the wi-fi issue?

1:09

New iLife, same apps in the suite.

1:10

New Full Screen mode, Facebook Enhancements, New Slideshows, Leap in iPhoto books, Letterpress cards. Demo now.

1:13

 iPhoto Themes:

Places: Very cool theme

1:15

Very cool uploads from flikr and facebook. iPhoto will add your facebook photos to iPhoto. Great way to save you old photos.

Slideshow Theme:

Holiday Mobile: ummmm? Not that cool.

1:17

iPhoto in application email feature. It looks pretty useful.

1:18

Sharing Panel: Uploads your social networking information, posts, comments, ect.

1:20

New Book features are very cool. The new book shelves are like the iBook app.

1:25

iMovie '11: New Audio Editing, One Step Effects, People Finder, News and Sports Themes, and Movie Trailer!!!!

1:30

The new editing tools look very easy and fun to use.

1:35

Trailer features: Outline, Storyboard, Original Scores, People finder (Awesome!!!).

1:36

The trailer they just showed was one word: Awesome!!

1:37

The trailer feature is so cool. I was just sold on the new iMovie!

1:40

Garage Band 11

1:42

Grove Master: Human Rhythm Spell Checking for Rhythm.

1:43

Flex Time: Pull out the vibes.

1:45

Folks, I have to go; however, I will have a recap tonight. Have fun with the life stream!

Update: 11/1/10

I have not been able to give an update on the event. I will try within the next few days.

Update:

Hey guys! Well like everyone expected, the special surprise was the Macbook Air. To be quick and to the point, it is smaller, lighter, more power, longer battery life, and much lower price. Am I a fan? No. The Macbook Air is priced at $999. For that price, you can by a Macbook for the same price. A Macbook has better specs, about the same size and weight, and more options. If you buying the Macbook Air, you’re only buying it to be cool. End of the story. If you own a Macbook Air, Get over yourself.

Bad Books is a good read!

Hey folks. I have come back with a great album that you should pick up. Now. I mean now. Not next week, or next month. I mean go into your couch, scrounge some loss change and buy this album. Now you are asking: "Jorge, what are you talking about? You haven't even told me anything about the album, not even the bands name!" Well, Let me help. The band is called Bad Books and this is their debut album. Being released today, it has hit the alternative airways.

Bad Books is made up of Manchester Orchestra and Kevin Devine. Manchester Orchestra came out with their hit Shake it Out a few years back. Manchester mixes in their little more edgy alternative style with Devine's more folk side to create an edgy while homey mix of sounds. The album reminds me a lot of bands like Steve Sclar or a folk version of Wild Night. It is a nice change for Manchester Orchestra to move from their jamming riffs to more folk sound. It shows how talented they are to go from the edgy side to the folk side of alt-rock.

Now for my rating. While these guys are a edgy folk rock, they are inches away from a amazing album. I love this album; however, their just that extra something that is missing. The extra something is the meaning of their songs. Yes, they are beautiful, they are nice, they are really really nice folk songs; however, folk needs meaning. Nice melodies doesn't cover up the fact that the word Gaza and Fuck are randomly placed in some of their songs.

For Bad Books debut album, I have to give it 3.5 stars out of 4.

Recommendation: For 2.99, the album is a steal. Go and download it now. You will be angry when it’s selling for much more later.

Here are some of the songs on the album.

Please Move:

You wouldn't have to ask:

Holding Down the Laughter:

90's Flash Back: Gin Blossom

Who liked the 90's. I liked the 90's. I think a lot of the best pop rock that has ever hit my ears was made in the 90's. One of those bands that still make think of better days is Gin Blossom. While, Gin Blossom hasn't played on my iTunes in awhile, I still miss the great guitar playing and harmonic filled songs that make you smile.

Recently, I came across the fact that Gin Bolossom is releasing a new album called No Chocolate Cake. Seeing their name, I had to review it. Now, first off, No Chocolate has the same great guitar riffs and lyrics that you remember from classics like Hey Jealousy and Follow You Down. It will bring you back in time to a happier and less stressful world.

Second, their new songs like Wave Bye Bye and Don't Change for Me are classics of Gin Blossoms and I wouldn't be surprised if they are on a Greatest Hits album some day. These songs with their upbeat pop sound and nice vibes has to cheer anyone up. With this choice of style, it also has become the down fall of this album. All the songs sound the same. Almost every Gin Blossom song sounds the same. The best way to describe their sound is that they are the 90's version of Nickleback. All the songs sound the same and do not push the edges of music.

To sum this album up, I can't not give this album more than a C+, if you love Gin Blossom or want a blast from the past, got out and buy this album. If you were expecting anything new or different from Gin Blossom like I was, you'll be disappointed.

The Southwest Affect

One of the trending stories on my radar recently was the Southwest Airlines merger with Airtran Airways. Now with Southwest Airlines being based in Dallas, a lot of folks have been asking me how this will be affecting their travel on Southwest. Will it raise prices, how will service be affected, will my bags still fly free? We won't truly know how things shake out till both airlines are operating as one airline; however, Southwest has told the public that most things will stay the same.

Question 1: Will Southwest start flying out of DFW now because Airtran already does?

No, under the Wright Amendment, Southwest would have to give up gates at Love Field to start flying out of DFW. Also Airtran’s presence at DFW is little to none compared to American Airlines and Delta. It would not make sense for Southwest to give up gates at Love, receive less gates at DFW, and pay more in airport fees.

Question 2: Will my bags fly free?

Yes, Southwest wants to extend the same policy to Airtran. While Airtran currently charges for bags, once they are a single carrier, Southwest will start their bags fly free policy on Airtran flights.

Question 3: Will Southwest fly to more destinations from Love Field?

Yes and no, this is a gray area question. If you don't mind connecting through Houston, Austin, or one of Southwest's cities focus cities bordering Texas, then yes. Southwest route overlap with Airtran is little to none. If you want more direct flights out of Love Field, you're out of luck until 2014 due to the Wright Amendment.

If you have more questions about the merger, comment and I will answer as soon as possible!

Also for quick facts, Southwest has made a nice pdf for your view pleasure:

http://www.lowfaresfarther.com/docs/SpreadingLowFares_FactSheet_2010.pdf

Final Thoughts:

Even though I still have some questions on how they will handle another hub in Atlanta and what they are going to do with all the Boeing 717s, I think this will be good for all parties involved. Southwest will keep most of the Airtan employees; customers will receive lower fares and more destinations, and finally, Southwest will have access to more revenue streams. All good things.

Northern Bias?

First off, I would like to apologize for being away for so long. I have been working on a few different projects and haven't had a chance to write on the blog very much. One of the events that have taken my time recently has been the TCU v. SMU weekend. The boulevard was great, the game was great, and just about everything about the weekend was amazing. I believe that most other Mustangs would agree with me in saying that the only thing that could have been better was the result of the game. There was a glaring fact though. Even though we all had fun, we didn't realize the consequences of our actions.

The trash. The trash all over campus was conspicuous. I have never been as disappointed in my life in a group of people. I'm not sure if it is cultural shock from being from the North, or just that we all didn't care. The amount of trash on the boulevard and in front of Dallas Hall was unacceptable. It is unbecoming of a group of young adults to treat our campus in that way.

Growing up in the wilderness of the Adirondacks, I was always taught to leave the wilderness better than you found it. That included picking up stray cans while hiking, leaving extra firewood at a lean-too, or cleaning your campsite so it was better than you found it. Those values taught me that you must be a steward to the land. If you want your children to enjoy the same thing you do, then you must preserve what you hold dear.

Now do not get me wrong, I'm not one of those card carrying Sierra Club members, but I do believe in treating the environment in a responsible manner. So I ask that in the future, if you see a can on the ground, be a good human being and pick it up. It's that simple.

Update:

The Daily Campus this morning has a halfway decent opinion piece on the trash issue. I would have been a little more critical of SMU; but they don't want to destroy their already lacking readership.