I have been getting more mail than I would like from The Democratic Party, so I decided to halt all my political emails. It is overwhelming! But here I am waiting for a 4-digit code in my email. It is over an hour now. How long do I keep the damn browser open?

Will I forever receive emails I do not want? I stopped all the other political party emails, except from the Libertarian Party, without a problem.

I know how to use email and I keep checking my inbox, spam folder and outbox for an email with the precious 4-digit code. But no luck. Do I have to go through all 9999 possible combinations?

I started this process Mon 7/7/2008 2:01 PM (CST) and still no email for my precious 4-digit code.

I feel like an ass.

—————- UPDATE —————-

I was sick of waiting, so I bookmarked the page, I finally got that email with the code, almost 24 hours from the original request.

It took over 24 hours to remove my email from their list and now it will take another 12 hours (doubt that) to take affect. The Democratic Party has the poorest programmers! I have been using listservs since the late 80’s. To remove yourself was a simple SIGNOFF command and the removal was instant!

How Long Do I Have To Wait?

Answer: Longer than it took you to sign up.

In an online survey of more than 600 students heading to elementary school through 12th grade this fall, Huntington Bank found that 56 percent of students underestimated the cost of buying classroom and extracurricular activity supplies.

The Huntington Backpack Index Survey is an online opinion poll sent to more than 600 elementary, middle and high school students located in the primary Huntington Bank service region of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Respondents were asked to provide their opinions or preferences on a number of questions related to back-to-school materials and their respective costs. Respondents could opt to skip any questions that did not apply to them, or if they did not have an opinion or preference for that specific question.

So does this make any parent uneasy?  That not only elementary or middle school student have access to online surveys but during school hours?  Did I miss something?  This actually makes me uneasy.

This also brings up an issue of “duh!” . . . do you really think a 7 year old knows the value of money!  Heck, if you give a 5 year old  a $10 bill they think it is just like having $100.

A 61-year-old librarian was kicked out of McCain’s “public” townhall, issued a ticket for “trespassing” and threatened with arrest if she returned…all because she had a “McCain=Bush” sign.

Has anyone ever said something to you in a funny or entertaining way that you laughed without a second thought, but then later on you say “hey” she/he were telling me something. WALL-e is the movie that just does that to all those Wall-Mart customers, Kmart shoppers, fast food eaters and Blackberry dependent individuals.

If you don’t change your ways you will be fat, lazy, never have human contact again and miss out all the wonderful things in life.

It was not subtle in in the anti-box opinion . . . you can see it from the very beginning with the mess that “Buy ‘n Large” (Walmart) leaves behind for WALL-e machines to clean. We see the direct consequences for the world if we constantly over consume at “Buy ‘n Large” and the political infiltration of Shelby Forthright, CEO of “Buy ‘n Large” becomes President of the United States.

The whole world is dependent on “Buy ‘n Large” and the only solution is to send all inhabitants into space aboard robot run space cruise-ships, the largest of which is the Axiom (Axiom is self-evidence, its truth is taken for granted). The excursion was supposed to be a five (5) year holiday and return to Earth all neat and tidy. The three hour five year tour turned into 15 generations . . . seven hundred years.

So what happens to individuals when you are a perpetual vacation?

• The hovercraft, modern wheelchairs for the elderly, are now the sole means of movement. Why walk when you can hover?
  • Everything is done from your personal hovercraft . . . everything.
• Each hovercraft is complete with internet, camera, cup holder and joystick.
  • The movement of the hovercraft is controlled with sensors and on-board GPS. If there is an excursion,change the GPS destination, no steering or manipulation of speed is available.
  • With the joystick individuals can control the robot to play golf, tennis and other robots that replaced human activity.
• No human contact. Everyone communicates via video chat.
  • There are children, but procreation is not done through natural means. Only one person per hovercraft.
  • Even playing sports is viewing the game via computer screen vs looking 20 feet ahead.
• Peter Pan syndrome
  • Every individual is in a perpetual state of immaturity. The only exception is the captain, who has pride in his work and loves responsibility. The Captain gets upset when he misses a simple task as the morning announcement. Note: Morning announcements are 1230 hours (12:30 pm).
• The glutton lazy population is not a drastic change, it is a subtle seven years of robotic servitude to the human race. We see this in the images of past Captains. Each Captain is slowly growing fatter and dependent to his hovercraft.
• The only thing that doesn’t change is the robots. They are consistently looking out for the humans, even the Hal-like computer AUTO, has been in every Captain portrait, is only following directives. It is until the awaken human spirit of individuality and curiosity that the Captain takes control over and is given knowledge that only the robots have been given clearance.
  • The robots are there to help, feed and be at every human whim. It is eerie to see a fat human fall out of their hovercraft unable to get up, like a turtle on its back, waiting for specific robots to return the human to the hovercraft.

Kyle Smith, a columnist for the New York Post, considers WALL-e a darker cynical Disney film that insulted the views (customers). Maura Judkis of U.S. News & World Report wondered if the depiction of “frighteningly obese humans” would resonate with children, making them more likely to “play outside rather than in front of the computer, to avoid a similar fate”.

Andrew Stanton, WALL-e writer, denied any film commentary on obesity, saying the purpose was instead to portray human over-dependency.

Do we have a dependency on technology, large boxed stores, fast food and our automobiles? How many of us drive a mile for an errand rather that walk those 15 minutes? How many are chatting on computers instead of going out and joining a social group? How many are playing computer games instead of exposing their skin to natural light? How many people use cell phones vs talking to the person directly? How many people are addicted to their Blackberry, cell phone or iPhone?

I am not saying WALL-e is non-fiction, but is it a possibility.

• Do we have a dependency on technology, large boxed stores, fast food and our automobiles?
• How many of us drive a mile for an errand rather that walk those 15 minutes?
  • How many people walk within a few mile range or take public transportation?
• How many are chatting on computers instead of going out and joining a social group?
• How many are playing computer games instead of exposing their skin to natural light?
• How many people use cell phones vs talking to the person directly? How many people are addicted to their Blackberry, cell phone or iPhone?
• How many obese individuals are driving around in electric wheelchairs?
• How many people are going to fast food or eating out instead of making their own meals?
  • Many people do not know how to cook without a microwave.

If general population lazy trends keep going the way they are . . . Forget SUVs, I might get run over by a Walmart personal hovercraft.

I was expecting something in the lines of Spiderman 3, all gimmick and no substance. The comic book formula was brought to the silver screen without looking like a comic book.

1. Loner
   • Hancock is a loner. Like all the best comic books solitude is the price for being a hero.
2. Origin Story
   • We find out a little about who John Hancock, except his real name. Departs from the original formula by not revealing origins until the last quarter of the movie.
3. Nemesis
   • Unlike most superhero movies there is not conventional nemesis. The convention is filled by a disgruntle but ineffectual criminals that are behind bars because of Hancock.
4. Weakness
   • Hancock does have a “kryptonite”, which isn’t revealed by the nemesis.
5. Gay Subtext
   • Hancock did a little too much protesting when a costume was presented.
   • When Hancock was shown comic books as a template for his life it was all scoffed off as “gay”.
   • Hancock tucked in a drunk male friend when the wife was capable of doing it herself and with a drunk slur Hancock was warned not to take advantage or take nothing more than his shoes off.

What I did like about Hancock:

• Special affects.
  • Nothing bothers me more when special affects details are not tended properly. Every detail was done well, even the air stream from flying to bullets ricocheting.
• Concept
  • A good story. I am a huge fan of the “Eternals” and this played on my comic book knowledge. I just wonder if others, who are not comic book readers, enjoyed it on the same level.
• Moral of the Story
  • Got to love those movies that make selfish behavior a bad thing. Too many times films, especially those made via Hollywood, glamorize money and power. *Cough* *Cough* Jumper *Cough* This movie is without penthouses, glamor shots and over priced sports cars.

What I did not like about Hancock:

• Calling me stupid
  • The movie over explained everything. I am intelligent enough to understand when something is explained to me once. I listen. Over and Over again Hancock explained and reexplained in greater detail with very very very boring dialog why two characters can’t be near each other.
  • After the first explanation I was already wondering what effect it would have on the characters. But then the second explanation came without a flashback, just more information that was not helpful or entertaining. It actually was the lowest point in the movie.
• Where are my mutton-chops?
  • Even cheap television series take the opportunity to show the past when characters are talking about the past. Why not show the characters in a montage including 300 BC, Middle Ages, Dark Ages, 1600s, 1800s and even 80 years ago. I would have loved to see Hancock with mutton-chops and knickers.
  • The movie was cheap no allowing even a visual snippet into the past. Instead . . . boring dialog.
  • Never tell when you can show.

The violence was tamed, for the most part, and limited. The violence was very cartoon-y with bullets pinging, head in asses and men thrown out the window without seeing consequences.

I just wish the movie theater spelled our ticket stub right . . . they printed “Handcock”.