Brain Enema of a Savage Mind

There’s been an outcry on LiveJournal as of late due to certain liberties being stripped.  In an overzealous reaction to a barely literate organization LiveJournal has suspended numerous accounts and communities for having keywords such as rape or incest.  No research or investigation was done.  Numerous of these groups were support communites for survivors of rape and other horrific abuses.  Even more absurd a literary group discussing Nabokov’s “Lolita” was banned.  I understand the legal pressures that they may feel.  Shutting down groups that preach abusive behavior is one thing, but to go after any group merely by doing a keyword search is draconian, ignorant, and abusive.  It’s sad that in this climate of declining liberties that places that once stood for the open sharing of ideas now contribute to the supression of a liberty that is enshrined at the very foundation of this country.  That right to express our beliefs, and the ability to feel safe in open discourse is something that makes this nation very unique.  Freedom of speech and the press are not given liberties even in many First World nations.  Many groups are battling with our national leaders to preserve these rights, now we face attacks by the private sector whose very business model was built upon these rights.

It might not seem like such a big deal now, but if given just an inch, next time they’ll take a foot.  Left unchecked it could lead to the censorship and banning of any group that could possibly offend any other member.  Where do you draw the line?  I’m sure I’ll continue to post to my LiveJournal account about the more mundane things, but it has lost its appeal as a place where I can express anything other than every day events such as letting people know about a get together.  I really hope that a public outcry by the massive LiveJournal user base will help them rethink their policies.  At the very least investigate claims, examine their merit before jumping the gun and banning people because of a potentially offensive keyword.  SixApart (the parent company of LiveJournal) could take this as a chance to stand up and buck the trend of ever increasing regulation of internet speech.  They could raise the banner of open dialog between peers and stand up to those who would oppress one of our most basic, and yet most unique of rights.

written by Alex \\ tags: politics, Politics & Law, stupid legal tricks

I’ve been silent lately.  Not only have I been stunned by the Sabres absolute dismantling by the Senators, but life has been hectic.  Between the Sabres lack of inspiration, and the Senators amazing defensive prowess I was absolutely taken back.  The Senators should be congradulated for doing what no one expected them to do, and making their first ever Stanley Cup appearance.  Of course the Ducks are making their second cup appearance so in a couple of weeks one team is going to win their first ever Stanley Cup.  I’m torn over this matchup, and honestly, I’m not going to make any prediction as I had expected a Sabres v. Wings cup since day one.  Obviously I’m just out of whack on this one.  I’m also conflicted who I’m pulling for so I’ve decided what I really want to see is a 7 game series where every game is decided by one goal.  If there’s any slight bias I’d have to say I’m pulling for Ducks - not because they beat the Sabres, but because I despise Danny Heatly (something that may be discussed at a later date, but  most people who know me know why).  Still, as long as it’s a good series I won’t be upset no matter who wins this years cup.

Hey, there’s only about 180 days until the start of the next season.

written by Alex \\ tags: buffalo sabres, Hockey, nhl

Last night we finally bottled the barley wine.  At least with this style letting it condition in the secondary isn’t a bad thing.  Tasted some out of the jar I took the hydrometer reading from.  Pretty yummy.  You can feel the heat from the alcohol though - I’m hoping that’s going to mellow after a nice long time conditioning in the bottles.  I’m sure I’ll try some after a month or so, but with a beer like this you want it to age for several months in the bottle first.

Tomorrow I head to Ellictoville, NY for the Rites of Spring Beer and Wine fest.  I’m going to be representing Ithaca Beer.  I’m especially excited because they’re having a Real Ale competition.  I’ve never actually had any cask conditioned beer before so I’m really anxious to try these.  I’m bringing a cask conditioned version of our Flower Power.  It should be damn good.  But I certainly want to try a little bit of everything.  It’ll also be good to meet some people from other breweries around the state and maybe make a few contacts.  It’s nice to make the New York brewing community a more friendly place.  Working together I think we can make the New York beer scene one of the best out there - at the very least we can give it our best shot.  Also, hell, I just like talking about beer.

written by Alex \\ tags: Beer, homebrew