Random Thoughts on Various Subjects

1. TRAYVON MARTIN

The facts of the case are simple. A black teenager was walking through a neighborhood unarmed. He was talking on his cellphone with his girlfriend when he notices someone following him. Scared, he runs. The guy following him is a stupid fool who sees a guy running away. He goes after him. An altercation ensues, and the stupid fucker shoots the teenager. Then, he claims self-defense. Unfuckingbelievable.

The Trayvon Martin case is a big deal not so much because of the particulars of that case so much as the fact that it represents a larger issue which is racial profiling and the double standard when it comes to law enforcement. Basically, if you are black in America, you get stamped with a criminal label. Law enforcement officials can do as they please with you. This is shit I have been screaming about for years to deaf ears. Now, the guy responsible for the fuck over and murder is a neighborhood watch captain. He is a civilian, so he has to go down. But what if he had a badge? Nothing would be said. This is standard operating procedure here in America. The fact that Sanford police let Zimmerman walk is merely police looking after their own except in this rare instance that Zimmerman was not one of them.

I don't know if new details will emerge from this case, but the facts as presented are very damning. My personal belief was that Zimmerman assaulted Trayvon Martin and lost the scrap. So, he pulled his weapon and shot the kid. The worst part is that it will reflect badly on people with concealed weapons permits and give fuel to the gun control shitheads to ride herd on the issue. This issue is like a water buffalo dead in the field and all the respective parties will get to feast on their portion of the carcass. I suppose I have eaten my piece of it as well.

Zimmerman needs to face charges. As someone who carries a weapon, I am always cognizant of the fact that I need to pull that weapon only in dire circumstances and only to protect life. Zimmerman failed that test. A 17-year-old kid with a cellphone and a bag of candy in his pocket is not going to kill you. And walking down a street is not a crime. Zimmerman is going to jail. He fucked his life away when he shot Trayvon.

2. STEM

I do not dispute that having a degree in science, technology, engineering, and math makes you more employable and will earn you a higher salary. The problem with STEM majors is that you still have to pay through the nose to get the education and whatever pay you get will be chopped down by student loan payments. Additionally, you aren't getting a job with a biology, math, or chemistry degree. Instead, it will be some highly specialized degree in a narrow field that will disappear or radically change in a few short years. Right now, petroleum engineering is the hot major. In ten years, those engineers will probably be out of work. If you doubt this, consider the architects and structural engineers who found themselves out of work when the housing bubble collapsed.

My personal opinion is that the idea of a major is ill founded. I reject specialization because it earns higher rewards but at the cost of higher risk. I think people would prefer stable employment at reduced income as opposed to lucrative employment that was volatile. STEM grads making big bucks are in the volatile end of the market. In my 20 years of adult living, I've seen comp sci majors and chemical and electrical engineers go from high pay to unemployment and back again. The only exception has been medical field majors. This is why the bulk of my high school counselor advice is to become a nurse, pharmacist, or doctor. Those seem like safe bets going forward.

The only antidote I have seen for volatility is diversification. You have to spread your bets. This is why a guy with a portfolio of job skills will enjoy greater stability and even higher overall income than someone with a highly specialized but rapidly dated degree in a highly technical field. If you are going to college, consider being a double or triple major. If that sounds nuts, it shouldn't. Be Renaissance on this shit.

3. ROMNEY

As far as I'm concerned, the GOP race and the eventual nominee is actually the eventual nominee. Mitt Romney has it, and he always had it. The guy wants the job, and he will do anything to get it. But will he be better than Obama? Probably not. The economy may improve under Romney, and he will get the credit. But I don't see much difference between him and Obama. I think Obama will get his ass whipped in November. I don't see how anyone can spin or sell the last four disastrous years especially when the only thing you can say is they gave you the keys to a lemon when you took office. Romney will ride hard on his management capabilities, and I think he will win. Obama has been a joke, and people are tired of his stupid ass. Romney might not be better, but he is a different face. When people are pissed, they go with different every time. This country is pissed.

4. RON PAUL

Ron Paul has done huge things for the liberty movement, but he is ignored. I think if he was in his fifites instead of his seventies he would run third party as a spoiler. But he seems like a man ready to pass the torch to his son. It won't matter because I have learned one thing from this election season. Liberty doesn't stand a chance. Or as my best friend points out to me repeatedly, "People never willingly choose to go against their self-interest." Because the status quo serves self interested parties, it isn't going away no matter how right Ron Paul may be. It is sad but reality.

5. SANTORUM

Please let this guy exit stage left. It is over, Rick. You are an embarrassment. Go away. GO THE FUCK AWAY.

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