What a week(end)

I guess I was wrong when I said I'd be posting more lately...then again, it has been kind of time consuming here. Yesterday I went down with a couple friends to see Barack Obama speak in Bangor, which was fun, crowded, and inspiring. More on that later. Friday was busy as well; some of my friends are in a performance of "The One That Gets Slapped." It's a fine work, although a bit lengthy, and I saw it Saturday as well. Also Friday was a concert/dance, a rather loud bit of fun featuring a mash-up DJ called Girltalk. The quality was debatable, but it was enjoyable. More enjoyable was last night's event, a casino night featuring blackjack, craps and poker, and free alcohol for those over 21. It's actually entertaining watching and playing poker with obviously intoxicated people...until you realize that somehow, despite the alcohol, they're still winning.

Alas, the weekend is ending all too soon, and I will be plunged back into the darkness of work and classes. Tomorrow promises to be dreary, with classes starting at nine and not relenting until four, at which point I take myself to the chapel for a chorale rehearsal. We have a concert at the end of the week, which should be magnificent.

To speak for a moment on Obama: he is inspiring, that much is sure. However, he enjoys rhetoric quite a bit, and although I'm all for hearing about hope and change, I also want to know what exactly his plan is. So we're going to introduce federal grants of $4000 a year for college students, and all they have to do is community service? Great! Where do I sign up, and oh, how are you planning on doing that? Funding that? Oh, that's right, you're ending the War in Iraq, saving us untold sums of money. Again, how do you plan on doing that? Do we hand over a volatile region to an underprepared and corrupt government and let them last as long as they can (not long at all is my bet)? Sounds great. When is the next terrorist attack scheduled?

Don't get me wrong, I oppose the war and always have. Sadly, there's no voting record to prove it...but really? Do you think that your plan is realistic, Mr. Obama? Is hoping going to make all the Iraqis forget that they hate each other and us and live happily ever after? Seems alarmingly like this little scheme.

I have homework to do...that's all for me for now. No picture with this post...I don't have the energy. One more thing, though: working in the bookstore is finally paying off; I discovered the uncorrected proofs, and I'm working my way through the pile. All I have to do to read them is write a recommendation? Sounds like a plan. Beam me up, Scotty, we're going home.

Google is trying to control the world!

Forget the search engine.

Forget the advertising customized to what you've been looking at.

Forget the email.

Forget the chat service.

Forget the fact that "to Google" is now an accepted verb.

Forget Google Desktop, Google Earth, Picasa, Google Analytics, etcetera.

Forget the search for clean energy.

Now, remember the first two, but combine them. Make it so that every time you Google (there's that verb) something, you get an ensemble of advertisements that are not only matched with what you're looking at, but that also come directly from Google. When you click on one of those advertisements, Google is making money. Billions upon billions of dollars go into online advertisement every year, and the amount is increasing daily. Google is now poised to control more than 40 percent of that amount, with the now approved purchase of the advertising giant DoubleClick. Basically, Google now makes money not only from the ads designed to fit your search history, but also from the ads that are simply integrated into the pages your search turns up. The EU has already taken issue with the 4-1 approval of the merger by the FTC, saying consumers' privacy is threatened.

Again, I love Google. And I'm going to keep using it. But someday soon, they will buy a small nation, arm it, and take over the world. I'm just saying...you heard it here first.