May 2007 Archives

The media, particularly television, is strangling democracy by not allowing the average person to get more involved in the political conversation, former Vice President Al Gore told "Good Morning America" anchor Diane Sawyer.

As TV news becomes more and more obsessed with shallow topics such as Paris Hilton, politicians talk in sound bites recommended by media manipulators, Gore said, which causes democracy to lose its muscle as the public becomes virtually hypnotized by four-and-a-half hours of passive TV viewing every day.

Source:  ABC News: Gore: Media Strangles Democracy

Today a spokesperson for DubYuh responded to former President Jimmy Carter's remarks about the current POTUS, referring to the former President (Carter), a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, as "irrelevant."

Nothing more need be said as that about sums it all up nicely doesn't it.

I have always had great respect for former President Jimmy Carter.  His values are what I consider to be at the heart of America's faith-based belief system and general concept of honesty and decency.  When he speaks and writes, I listen.  Today he said President George W. Bush's administration is "the worst in history" referring to the White House's policy of pre-emptive war and other matters.  He also blasted Bush's environmental policies and what he characterized as the administration's "quite disturbing" funding for faith-based initiatives.

"I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," Carter told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in a story that appeared in today's editions. "The overt reversal of America's basic values as expressed by previous administrations, including those of George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon and others, has been the most disturbing to me."

"We now have endorsed the concept of pre-emptive war where we go to war with another nation militarily, even though our own security is not directly threatened, if we want to change the regime there or if we fear that some time in the future our security might be endangered," President Carter said. "But that's been a radical departure from all previous administration policies."

Source:  Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The complete Roma 2007 Album will be coming soon.

Welcome to the North Africa Picture Album featuring 167 pictures from my recent trip to the Mediterranean. Simply click on the picture below to visit.

I have had a very busy weekend. But, you get tired of hearing that. I get tired of experiencing that. However, I'm beginning to dig out from under the heap that overtook me as a result of my recent travels.

The Tunis Web Album is building as I "speak." Once the build is finished, I have to tidy it up a bit to bring it up to timtyson.us standards. I will probably not have it up tonight, but one never knows for sure. (How much sleep does a human actually need anyway?!) Relax. It will be worth the wait!

I am pleased to learn that the company I use to host my site has a sense of social and environmental conscience! They have calculated their total carbon footprint (no small thing running 1,300+ servers) which amounts to about 2,725 tons of CO² per year. They then did several things to offset that carbon footprint. I encourage you to read about it by clicking on their little icon to the left.

Being concerned about our environment is important to me. I respect their efforts!

I like my little Prius.  It gets about 50 miles per gallon.  And, because it is a hybrid (gas and electric car), I named it Watts.

A friend called last night after seeing this bumper sticker on another Prius.

"Eat my voltage!"

I stumbled across this a few weeks back and saved it to post.  Then things got really busy.  So here it is now.  And hopefully this weekend I will have the time to post more on my trip to Italy and Tunisia!

I will post more about the Tunis experience when I can gain access to a more reliable internet connection. Regrettably, the pictures take longer to upload than my connection can seem to remain connected. After multiple attempts, I just was able to upload a small number of pictures from my first day (evening) in Tunis.

So, hang on. As soon as I can, I will. The experience has been remarkable! I spent the day today touring ancient Roman ruins with an actual archeologist who just made the rich history that is this place come to life. Much more to post!

Today was pretty much a travel day. I took a taxi to the airport as it was just a few Euros more than taking the taxi to the Termini and then the train to the airport: up the stairs, down the stairs, up the...

Roma was having some gentle thunderstorms as I was packing. On the taxi ride a motorcyclist lost control of the bike and wrecked directly next to us at a traffic light. As the taxi driver got out to assist the downed cyclist, another motorcycle almost took the door off of the taxi (a gorgeous new Mercedes Benz). The driving in Roma remains unlike anything I've ever seen anywhere!

Otherwise, the travel day seemed fairly uneventful. But you know you aren't in Kansas any more when:

• the houses are made of concrete and bricks because wood is scarce (no trees around)
• you see a camel seated on the side of the 6 lane road resting (these beasts are huge!)

The hotel, directly on the Mediterranean, is very nice. Here are a few pictures from a short walk just before dinner and retiring for the evening. Outside, hundreds of snails are crawling everywhere. Sadly, trying not to step on them is just impossible! The beach in the pictures is the Mediterranean Sea. And finally, my room opens out on a little courtyard with the fountains. The sound of the water is so completely peaceful. I will certainly sleep well tonight!

I did a lot walking again yesterday: to the Vatican to see St. Peter's Basilica, the Spanish Steps and the Borghese Gardens behind there (much like New York's Central Park). Yesterday, May 1st, was holiday so again masses of peopled clogged the city. Here are a few pictures: