the world of tomorrow

I was looking around the internet yesterday and saw all this advanced technology that facinates me to no end. They have robots out that can keep your carpet clean, called a roomba. They even made a version to scrub your tile floors. I want to see more. I did some more research and saw Honda is making a rather advanced robot that can walk, shake hands, avoid obsticles and recognize voices. I want to see the day when my meanial tasks are done by robots. Washed dishes, laundry cleaned and folded, yard mowed and so forth. I know that the technology will be in my lifetime, computers are almost doubling in power and capacity every year, power supplies get smaller. It isn't unreasonable to think we could have personal assistant robots in the near future. The question is, how advanced do we really want them? How far do yu want to trust the technology? How much would yu be willing to let them do for you?

I could see legislation passed to limit the power of robots and their function. You don't want a robot driving down the highway at 80 mph do you? Who would use their personal robots for nefarious reasons? Rig one with a bomb and send it off to sew chaos. Maybe they would be confined to a residence. If they were so advanced, perhaps it would make certain jobs at risk. Why hire some rotten kid to run the register at McDonald's when you can have a robot that will never get the order wrong and never miscount the change. It also never needs a break and won't quit or call in sick. I guess all those displaced in the workforce could get jobs programming and repairing robots. But what if we build a robot to do that? How ironic is the job to service the servant?

I guess I've grown older and saw the negative side of things. People will always find a corrupt way to do things. I guess one man's idea for a utopia free from menial chores, is another man's opportunity to harm others with the very same tool. I guess it just the same as a hammer. The very tool used to build a home can be the same tool to kill another. The potential is determined by the wielder.

fall break....gone!

I had a week off from classes and workouts and still managed to get nothing done. My truck is running, albeit somewhat buggy. I'm confident it will be an excellent vehicle. I had to replace the started on my car and really tore up my thumb in the process. But that's ok, blood is an excellent degreaser and the main tool in any garage is blasphemey.

Anyway, I'm starting up my normal grind again, and getting ready to finish out this semester and begin another in January. I'll be talking to a counsellor soon to see what I can do to finish up. I want to knock all of the hard stuff out while I'm fresh and coast on electives at the end.

V

Last night I watched V for Vendetta. I believe it is one of the best movies I've ever seen. The movie is set in a near-future England. War, disease, and national panic allowed England to become a totalitarian state with secret police, state-ran everything propaganda and distrust at every turn. To make matters worse, it seems as though nearly every facet of the government is corrupt.

Along comes V, a solitary figure that dresses in a Guy Fawkes costume who begins a terrorist-like agenda to wake the population of England and allow them to fight for their freedom.

Along the way, we have a detective, perhaps the last honest one in the whole country, trying to piece together the whos and whys of V. There is a pseudo-love interest played by Natalie Portman. Unlike her dismal Star Wars portrayal, she really shines here.

I don't believe this movie is for everyone. It is far too intelligent and deals with a touchy matter. V is both a villain and a victim. He is a murderous terrorist with vengeful plot. He takes down the people who made him what he became. In a post-9/11 world, bombings and plots to subvert the government are a little uncomfortable subject material.

I find myself thinking of Benjamin Franklin. "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase some temporary safety deserve neither"(paraphrased).

Either way, it is defiantly worth watching.

just plain filthy

My friend and co-woker at the gas station has been out of town for the past few days and it is nasty in here. You can tell when he's not here. I'm suprized, shocked actually, that the other employees(who are either relatives or near-family) would disrespect the owner to the point that they have. I barely know him and don't really like working here, but he's more than generous to me and I'd be ashamed to do what the "good" employees are doing. Which is next to nothing.

changes

I think I'm going through a change. I cannot define it nor can I tell where it will take me, but I am becoming a different person either way....I can feel it. Maybe all the things I am doing to improve my life are making me learn something about myself. I've spent 32 years feeling out of place in my own life and I'm just beginning to see where I belong. I don't know. I think school has jump-started my brain though. I was kind of shriveling up from not challenging myself.

I know that I don't think I've ever been happy once in my life. I don't define my life in terms of happiness, because I know for a fact life should not be 24/7 happiness, but a little bit would be nice. At least a bit that didn't come with a heap of misery behind it. Maybe I'm afraid to be happy. The closest I've come to happy in months is having my truck home. I can drive it, carry stuff around, and enjoy it in general. It's not even in great shape and has a long way to go before anyone other than me would want it, but I've wanted a little pickup for the longest time and now I have one. I even feel half-ashamed that I did get a bit of a smile when I was driving it this afternoon. People shouldn't get joy from material possessions.

Working out has changed me too. I have a long way to go, but I'm pretty much in the best shape I've seem in 12 years. I will eventually get to the flat belly and what not, but in the meantime......

There is something missing though, and has been for awhile. I won't go into detail. Although this is my Soapbox of the Soul, there are something I will not openly disclose. That is something I hope will workout too.