As I perused the "Current Events" section of the forums, I noticed a proliferation of Imus articles. It made me think. When I started blogging, if it was current events, I nailed it. I didn't let a lot of headlines pass me by. But the truth is, I've been more than a little perturbed by the nature of the news lately. I am finding the Onion FAR more insightful and thought provoking than the New York Times. While that has pretty much always been the case, NOW I'm finding them more accurate as we...

Over the last year and a half, I started to think I would never make this milestone. This is my 2000th article on JoeUser, a testament to staying power, stubbornness, and not a little loquaciousness and inflated sense of self importance. I could not merely allow 2000 to pass without notice, and over the past week, with this article looming, I have invested a good deal of time and effort in deciding what, precisely, I should offer for my tooth article. 2000 is, after all, rarified air, an...

I'm going to start my oldest two girls on blogging here in the next week. Now, they already know and understand that I will be looking over their shoulder. If they publish it, I will be checking it. I'm not too worried about them, although I may have them create custom audiences to start out. Realizing in advance that JU has no way to authenticate ages or to heavily police the blogs, would it be possible to create a separate forum where kids like mine could post their articles and make it ...

When people come and go on JoeUser, one of the things that constantly amazes me is the perception that, because someone is highly ranked on the site, they are a "target". The shameful thing about this is that it's a perfect metaphor for life. Too often people will look at someone who's successful and feel it is their duty to bring that individual down in order to bring themselves up. Not only is it flawed thinking, it rarely ever works as planned. See, success is not a "zero sum game". Tha...

JU's resident psychoanalyst decided to make his big entry by launching a load of personal attacks against JU regulars. In writing about me, he made the following summary: GideonMacleish - writes for the sake of writing - loves to hear his own voice - the louder the better. Arrogant. In that summary, he proves he knows absolutely nothing about me. The part about being arrogant is true; I've admitted as much so many times over that this individual's "revelation" is nothing more than d...

Ever hear a song and just wish you wrote it? A song so perfect, so real, so magical that you wish you could your muse would have snagged it and sent it your way? Below is a list of some of the songs I really wish I'd wrote, but just wasn't cool enough (or alive enough) to have done so. Highway Patrolman, by Bruce Springsteen The Freshman, by the Verve Pipe Mr Tambourine Man, by Bob Dylan City of New Orleans, by Steve Goodman Pancho and Lefty, by Townes van Zandt Mr. Tanner, by ...

Working in my little cubicle, with these days where my schedule consists largely of working, school, eating and sleeping, I eat out far more often than I should. It's usually a pick between "do I want to go out and GET dinner, or can I have it delivered?" Delivery consists of three choices: pizza, pizza and pizza. Three restaurants, basically. Now, technically, there's also a sandwich shop, but unless I can get my coworker to go in with me, that's usually out as they have a minimum order fo...

The last time I saw this view, it was framed in the dying flames and smouldering embers of the worst widlfires ever to cross the Texas Panhandle. It was in the cusp season in the waning days of winter that we like to call spring until a cold front blows through to remind us that it's not. It was, in fact, just about a year ago. Well, to be fair, I've been across this view many times since, but never really SAW it as I did that night almost a year ago and last night. It's the view of a city...

Between work and school, I have more online time than I have ever had. And because of the time I spend online, I have discovered a few things. The one that disturbs me the most is one that has potential for serious tragedy in our small community. See, I cruise MySpace every once in awhile. Though I loathe the site in general, too many of my friends are on it for me to ignore it completely. What concerns me, though, is that I routinely come across 13 or 14 year olds whose profiles list them...

In my 2 1/2 years at JU, I have discovered what TV producers, shock jocks, musicians, and tabloid publishers already know: taht normalcy is boring and only through being sensationalist do you get read. See, one of the main life goals for me has always been to be a writer. And, while being a paid writer is admittedly a nice idea, I decided years ago that I would simply settle for being a writer, for having my ideas read and my thoughts heard. But see, here's the kicker. Sans pay, my reward...

Once again, I have been accused of flaming. And, frankly, I don't see it. I've been involved with various online forums for over ten years. I've seen rebuttals, and I've seen flames. I've seen what constitutes a polite response, and what does not. And while my responses have occasionally snippy, I have always been careful to self moderate. So the accusations of flaming are something I take personally BECAUSE I've tried hard not to cross that line. If we cannot offer an opposing comment on ...

You've seen it many times before: people who act like incredible asshats, and, when confronted with their behaviour, demand they were "only joking" and act as if the target of their venom owes THEM an apology for not laughing along with them. I've never had much use for such people, and take their defense for what it is: the attempts of angry, venomous people to rationalize their actions by passing incredible nastiness off as some misunderstood joke. Now, to be sure, there are some people ...

I made a comment on one of my articles (LONG DISCALIMER FOR THE INCREDIBLY DENSE TROLL WHO SEEMS TO BE OBSESSED WITH ME TO A FRIGHENING DEGREE: I did NOT claim to invent the phrase, ever, in any context. I did not claim that I was anywhere near or involved with inventing the phrase, ever, in any context. If you were intelligent enough to read any blogs beyond JU, you would notice that the phrase "mommy blog" is a very commonly used phrase that has basically fallen into the public domain to descr...

Allow me to be the first to comment on the new forum layout. I was kind of taken by surprise because I couldn't access the forum for a few minutes, then suddenly an entirely different layout was before me. It was a shock to the system, as any sudden change can be. While it will probably take me a little while to adjust, I like it, frankly. The layout is more consistent with many message boards, and will allow me to search some of the forums more quickly. Plus, by putting the name of the mo...

****SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT***** In the "writing" section of the forums, I have two recent "poems". Both were written as lyrics, the first being more contemporary and consistent in its rhythm, the second being a folk song basically. I would invite you to read them and give me an indication of whether you think they're marketable, or garbage. I can handle either assessment, so let me have it. I don't write poetry much because, while I am usually content with the end product, I don't see it as hav...