You know with all the doom and gloom that has been in the news lately with our economy on the brink of complete failure and the big 3 automakers on the verge of collapsing I have been forced to ask myself if things are really that bad?

The answer I’ve come up with, surprisingly is: No, not really.

I mean think about it; most reading this had the opportunity on Thursday to join in and have a nice meal (some of us nicer than others) with our friends and/or family members. Meanwhile based on a UN report released in 2003 and reported by BBC News, about 25,000 people die each day from starvation and that was before the current food crisis.

Friday, some of us, if not most of us had the opportunity to go out and spend extravagantly on gifts for ourselves or others. Meanwhile according to the World Bank 2.8 billion people in the world live on less than two dollars a day. I highly doubt those 2.8 billion people had the same opportunity.

Today, Friday and Thursday we had the opportunity to wake up and experience another day. Meanwhile on Thursday/Friday at least 119 folks in Mumbai, India were killed by the brutal hands of commandos.

What is sad is that is just the events of the last 3 days or so. Can you imagine the terrible things that happen on a daily basis?

Yet we (myself largely included) are complaining that things are REALLY bad right now. While doing the research for this post I had to force myself to stop and think about all the times I have complained about the current state of the United States and the world as a whole and honestly I feel like quite the imbecile.

We’re so greedy, self-centered, and self-righteous that we often forget to put things into the big picture perspective that I am consistently talking about on here. I’m really bad at it. I know there are days where even though I love my job I’d rather not be working and the reality is almost ten percent of the United States isn’t working and the large majority of those folks are trying desperately to be working.

The big picture is this: While things certainly are not easy for most of us, at least right now but, they certainly could be a lot worse. So maybe, before we play ourselves the worlds smallest violin we should stop and consider that fact.

I know I am.

For whatever reason most of you out there are not in favor of the government assisting in a bailout of the big 3 automakers.

I guess a country on the verge of absolute pandemonium and a severe depression isn’t enough for you. You’d much rather see that absolute pandemonium and severe depression.

I’ve heard many reasons why the government SHOULDN’T bail out the big 3 ranging from it’s their fault to it’s the ceo’s faults to even one person telling me they just don’t care anymore and they’re waiting for the day we wake up and the whole world as ended. (That’s a pretty dismal outlook :-))

For some reason most folks are stuck on this idea of “punishing” the auto making companies CEO’s. It’s almost as if they truly believe that the entire thing is their fault.
I know better though. I know that the CEO’s of the big 3 are FAR from being the ones who should have to shoulder the blame for the current disgusting mess they’re in.
Frankly, WE…yes, I said it…YOU AND I…are the ones to blame for this mess. Our absolute greed and desire to consistently have more and to keep up with the Jones’ is what has led to this mess NOT THE CEO’S OF THE BIG 3. In fact, the CEO’s of most companies that we’d like to see rot or be punished simply did what any smart business operator should do in a capitalistic society: They maximized their profitability by creating quality products for consumers.
Now because our beloved capitalism is failing us miserably (well, YOU’RE beloved capitalism…I’m not exactly a fan of capitalism) our greed and jealously is now causing us to want to “punish” those who have more than us. Funny how the tables have turned. We’ve gone from wanting to have just as much as them, to now wanting to punish them for having more.

Letting the CEO’s the auto making companies shoulder the blame for this mess is unnecessary and could prove to be a HUGE mistake. We have the opportunity to help and we must take advantage of that opportunity. We need to level out the playing field. Do adjustments need to be made to CEO salaries? Yes, they need to be leveled out, and start sharing some of the wealth that they have made, start doing what small business owners do and contribute some of their earnings to their business in an attempt to save it. They’re giving back plus bailing out the big 3, believe it or not, will help…as long as we give it the opportunity to do so.

I am a radio geek.

I have wanted to work in radio for about as long as I can remember. I don’t care what position, I’ve just wanted to be in radio. Think about it…everywhere you go there is radio. Well at least for me, I wake up, boom alarm clock is playing whats on the radio, I get ready for work I’ve got the radio on, I get in the car radio playing, I go to work, leave work get in the car radio is on, come home and unless I go straight to bed I usually have the radio on. I am a bit of a radio fanatic. Number one, I love music. Number two, I love the dynamic that is a good (or heck even sometimes a poor) radio station.

I’ve taken many steps to work towards achieving that “dream” even my current job is somehow backhandedly a way for me to hone my “skills.”
Sadly though, I am watching my hopes and ambitions go down with just about every other part of the world right now.

Radio needs one thing to survive: Advertiser dollars. Unfortunately, like everything else that requires dollars those are hard to come by right now. The majority of advertising dollars for most radio stations comes from car dealers and well, we know how car dealers are doing right now. Think about 10 months ago the amount of car dealers you heard advertising on the radio compared to now there is probably a significant difference.

With a loss of advertising dollars comes cutbacks, or station owners/managers/program directors coming up with creative and not-so-creative ways to cut costs. Our smooth jazz station here in Tampa recently went completely automated, there is only one live and local talent and frankly I fear that her days are numbered. Our alternative rock station essentially programs and provides the talent and who knows what else they share for our 80’s and 90’s hit station. Checking out the boards this morning I found out that one cluster of stations has now combined their entire promotions departments into one department which will inevitably end up in layoff’s. The state of radio right now is sad and it’s not because of the music, or the talent (or lack thereof). It’s not because of executives trying to raise their profits. It’s because station owners/managers/program directors are faced with challenges they haven’t faced in years.

Those of us who are die hard radio geeks, who know whats going on in every station in our market who have been looking for our “big break” for years are seeing our dreams float away with voice tracked DJ’s from Washington DC, L.A., and other large markets. We’re seeing quality local talent who has been on air for YEARS replaced by the likes of Ryan Seacrest and John Tesh who, are both GREAT talents. I just wish more of radio was local and not tracked from all over the country. Many of you don’t realize this but the vast majority of the talent you hear, especially those of you in smaller markets, is piped in from other markets. Technology is so amazing now that you’d probably never realize it.

Support local radio. Support what live, local talent still exists. Call in, tell them how much you love their station. Go to remotes and live broadcasts not just for a free shirt or bumper sticker but, because you support their station.

We have a crap load of radio stations in Tampa and I am dedicated to only a few. One station to me demonstrates everything that radio should be and I wish more stations would follow their lead. Their program director/morning show host is one of radio’s best. The rest of their crew, for the most part, has been with the station since it’s incarnation 10 or so years ago. I jam out as much as I can to their station and while I am certainly not the type of person you’d expect to be listening to their station I do so because I love the wild community they have created.

Show your support for your local station today.

I thoroughly enjoy when people use their talent to make a difference in the world. One thing that Senator Obama has managed, whether intentionally or not, to do during his campaign is inspire people. Folks are coming out of the word work using their talents, resources, funds and much more to get the Senator elected and I absolutely love it! This is how politics is suppose to work…THIS is what it’s all about. The American people rallying together to make a difference and (no pun intended) change the world.

Check this video out from West Phillidelphia rapper Nish Gaveer and enjoy. (I’ve disabled comments, simply because this video is for educational, informative and entertainment purposes and nothing more. If you absolutely insist on spewing some type of negativity or attempting to convince me of why I’m going to hell for supporting Barack Obama, feel free to e-mail me

(RSS Readers: Video attached, go to http://www.willyoungband.com/2008/10/barack-obama-change-the-worldbarack-obama-change-the-world/ to see it)

(Barack Obama) Change the World from Change the World on Vimeo.

So there are a significant number of folks out there who would say to you that race plays a very small roll in this years election. I would beg to differ.

My indifference on the subject comes from months of campaigning and listening to people. It comes from the media coverage, it comes from spending a significant amount of time in an area full of racial tension.

Here’s an e-mail that is circulating the internet and for the first time I’m forwarding it along, as it makes a lot of sense. I’m leaving comments on, feel free to comment, but do not expect anything in return. It is no secret that I have been a fairly avid supporter of Barack Obama for quite some time, so I have an obligation to share this.

What if things were switched around? Think about it. Would the country’s collective point of view be different? Could racism be the culprit? [this most certainly must be a rhetorical question!]

What if the Obamas had paraded five children across the stage, following the debate, including a three month-old infant and an unwed, pregnant teenage daughter?

What if John McCain was a former president of the Harvard Law Review?

What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his college graduating class?

What if McCain had only married once, and Obama was a divorcee?

What if Obama had met his second wife in a bar and had a long affair while he was still married?

What if Michelle Obama was the wife who not only became addicted to pain killers but also acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?

What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard?

What if Obama had been a member of the Keating Five? (The Keating Five were five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989, igniting a major political scandal as part of the larger Savings and Loan crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s.)

What if Obama couldn’t read from a teleprompter?

What if Obama was the one who had military experience that included discipline problems and a record of crashing seven planes?

What if Obama was the one who was known to publicly display a serious anger management problem?

What if Michelle Obama’s family had made their money from beer distribution?

You could easily add to this list. If these questions reflected a reality, if the tables were turned, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative characteristics in another when there is a color difference.

And, think of this - the candidates’ educational backgrounds:

Barack Obama:
Columbia University
B.A. Political Science with a Specialization in
International Relations.
Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Joseph Biden:
University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in
Political Science.
Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

John McCain:
United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899

Sarah Palin: Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester
North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study
University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism
Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester
University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Education isn’t everything, but this is about the two highest
offices in the land as well as our standing in the world.

Coming up in November along with obviously the presidential election and a whole slew of other offices up for bid my fellow Floridians have the joy of voting on a rather controversial constitutional amendment.

It’s called Amendment 2, and in my opinion it is DANGEROUS. I would suffice to say it is actually going to be far more detrimental to the families of Florida than the group sponsoring the amendment seem to think.

When I initially wrote this entry it was intended to be a balanced report of both sides of this amendment. Then I got to thinking about SEO, and how I need this entry to receive hits because, so far everyone I’ve talked to about this amendment seems to be focused on the fact that it is a gay marriage ban. As a result, as you can tell from the title, this entry will be far from balanced. If that pisses you off, leave.

FLORIDIANS NEED TO KNOW THAT AMENDMENT 2 IS NOT JUST A BAN ON GAY MARRIAGE!

It is actually a ban on any sort of relationship or partnership that is NOT a marriage between a man and a woman.

The exact wording that you will read on your ballet in November is:
“Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized.”

What does that mean?

Well quite simply it means that if you are involved in a homosexual relationship you will loose all the rights and benefits currently afforded/awarded to you.

It means that if you are in a heterosexual relationship that is NOT a legally recognized marriage, then you too will loose all the rights and benefits currently afforded/awarded to you.

It means that any benefits (medical, banking, etc) that the partners share between themselves or their children will no longer be recognized in the State of Florida.

It means that the religious ceremony known as marriage that was taken over by the government as a means of profit (because lets face it, why else would the government busy themselves with a religious ceremony) will now be the only recognized form of a relationship or partnership in the state of Florida. Furthermore, it will only be recognized if it is a marriage between a male and a female.

It means a great deal of trouble for the many families in our state that are families through partnership be it heterosexual or homosexual.

It means broken families and a crap load of hurt.

Now, let it be known that I am not in favor of any ban on any sort of relationship. Yes, for all my Christian readers out there…even homosexual marriages (or as the media likes to refer to them “gay marriages”). However, the point that Yes2Marriage, the group that has sponsored the amendment is trying to make is that gay marriage should be banned. Now they’ll tell you that “A yes vote on 2 will do one thing and one thing only – protect the definition of marriage between a man and a woman.” They’ll have you believe based on the wording on the ballet that you are doing nothing more than banning gay marriage. What they won’t tell you is that you are actually banning any form of relationship within the State of Florida that ISN’T a marriage between one man and one woman. I say if it’s a gay marriage ban they want, then write an anti-gay marriage amendment. Don’t write an amendment that ruins the lives of many already fully-functioning happy Floridians involved in relationships that aren’t a marriage. Another thing that Yes2Marriage isn’t telling you is that Florida already has multiple laws banning same-sex marriage.

Look, the groups sponsoring Amendment 2 have every right to pursue their ideals and philosophies. However, in this case those ideals, those “morals” are going to have drastic affects on an entire states population.

So do yourself a favor visit Yes2Marriage’s website. Educate yourself on the amendment. Then head over to Say No to 2’s website and educate yourself on the consequences the State of Florida faces if this amendment is passed in November.

Amendment 2 is dangerous and is threatening the healthy, fully-functioning relationships and lives of many Floridians.

Vote NO on 2!

I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaack! Sorry for the delay in posting a new episode. I’ve been getting some stuff straightened out, but (and I always say this) things are good now!
Episode 15 of the Will Young show on the Unobjective Intelligence podcast is now live.

This week:

• I’ll tell you why I think that the legal age of consent in the US should be lowered.
• Lowering the age of consent is a great segway into why I believe that we should start educating about sex and the body at a much younger age than we currently do.
• Finally, for all my Floridians out there I’ll talk about the (un)Constitutional Amendment 2 that we’ll be voting on in November.

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Links I mentioned during the show:
Florida Department of State: Division of Elections Initiative information
Yes to Marriage (The folks sponsoring the Amendment)
SayNo2
Vote No on 2
Yahoo! Search results for Amendment 2

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If there is something you’d like to hear on an upcoming episode of the Will Young show please shoot me an e-mail.

You can download the UI podcast by using iTunes with the link on the right, or for those who don’t use itunes, simply click the button that says ‘RSS Podcast’ and download the latest episode to your computer to play in whatever MP3 player it is you use. You can also listen to it using the player located directly above this paragraph.

Enjoy!

Episode 14 of the Will Young show on the Unobjective Intelligence podcast is now live.

This week:

• I’m explaining exactly what “innocent until proved guilty” means.
• I also dive into why politics in the USA are a joke and why I’ve had enough of it!
• And, I debunk the myth that says you’re not responsible for the problems in your community.

If there is something you’d like to hear on an upcoming episode of the Will Young show please shoot me an e-mail.

You can download the UI podcast by using iTunes with the link on the right, or for those who don’t use itunes, simply click the button that says ‘RSS Podcast’ and download the latest episode to your computer to play in whatever MP3 player it is you use. Sometimes it will show up in a player on this post. If it does, feel free to listen to it there.

If you know anything about the whereabouts of Caylee Anthony please call 1-800-423-8477 or visit Helpfindcaylee.com

I’ve received a couple e-mails and even 1 public comment asking me to follow up on a post I wrote a couple weeks ago about the Casey Anthony case.

I don’t have a whole lot to say as my position hasn’t changed too dramatically. I said this in the last entry and I believe it is getting worse: WE HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO RIGHT TO PASS JUDGMENT ON THIS GIRL! period…end of story.

Remember folks, she is innocent until proved guilty!
I’m having a hard time understanding why it is that Americans do not understand this concept? We allow the mass media to rot our minds and convince us that our laws are pointless. Casey Anthony has not been charged with any crime related to the alleged death of her daughter, a death, by the way that the general public and lets face it, the media has made up!

Listen folks, I want this baby found just as bad as anyone else. I would like Casey Anthony to start talking so that we can figure out if Caylee is indeed dead or alive somewhere. The reality though is that Casey Anthony, in my opinion, is a deeply disturb young lady who needs a great deal of counseling and our endless banter about her being a “baby killer” and a “murderer” is NOT AT ALL HELPING THE SITUATION!
Now we’ve learned that she has been arrested on check fraud charges and is back in jail on $3,000 bond. Unfortunately, due more than likely in large part to the public outcry the bondsmen that posted her ridiculously insane $500,000 bond for her Child neglect charge rescinded it and so even if she can come up with the $3,000 bond she’ll remain in jail if she can’t post the other. What a load of horse shit. I think that we all need to be ashamed of ourselves for the outrageous torment we have put this family through. Casey’s father George had a scuffle with some protesters who wouldn’t leave his family alone the other day, people are driving by the Anthony’s home screaming “baby killer”, “murderer” and are protesting while holding up signs that read: “Who is the bigger liar? Cindy Anthony or Killer Casey? May God have mercy on you. God knows the truth and so does detectives. Baby killer!”

I just want to vomit truthfully, the entire thing makes me sick. I know I’m that last person to talk about being judgmental, but LEAVE THIS FAMILY ALONE! Let the detectives do their job, and media outlets how about you report the facts as they come along. Stop camping outside their home! And citizens of Central Florida (or anywhere else they’re coming from) stop driving around down with “Rot in Jail Casey Anthony” painted on your windows!

GET A FREAKING LIFE FOLKS.

And most importantly, remember that Casey Anthony is innocent until the detectives in Orange County can find a way to prove otherwise.

**NOTE** I feel that the media and public’s handling of this case has gotten WAY out of hand. As a result I will no longer be replying to the e-mails or posting anything else related to the case until a final outcome is met. Whether that be Caylee being found and returned to her family, or her body being found and SOMEONE being charged with her murder.

All images courtesy of The Orlando Sentinel

I’ll be the first to admit that I am not very happy with Senator Obama’s choice for Vice President. In picking Joe Biden, Obama lost a great deal of credibility as far as I am concerned.

However, McCain and his choice of Sarah Palin (who by the way he had only met once before announcing her as his VP) as his running mate has me doing nothing more than laughing out loud. McCain hasn’t really been a candidate that I give too much credibility too, he has after all supported the current administration over 90% of the time in the ridiculous choices they have made.

I believe though that in Palin, McCain truly believes he has found his “golden ticket.”
With Palin he:

• Wins the dwindling support of the evangelical community (who in my opinion, for the most part, do not really vote on matters that matter anyway so they would have more than likely been voting for McCain to begin with…but I digress).
• He gets the attention of women, a demographic that his campaign hasn’t really been focusing on. (If he thinks he is going to win over Clinton supporters with her though he’s sadly mistaken, he’ll win the Clinton supporters who were supporting her strictly because she had a vagina, those numbers are not substantial by any means. He will not win Clinton’s democratic supporters as Palin is entirely too conservative for most democrats.)
• He gets a strong anti-choice, pro-life advocate. Palin is against abortion even in the case of rape or incest.
• He gets himself a buddy of big oil. (A sign that our reliance on oil in this country will probably never end if McCain/Palin are elected to office.) She reportedly even sued the Bush administration for listing Polar Bears as endangered species! (Hopefully that gets the attention of animal lovers everywhere)
• He gets someone who doesn’t buy into the idea that humans are the reason why our climate is changing as dramatically as it is. (In my opinion this secures him even more with the right-wingers who think that global warming is some type of elaborate public relations scam)

I’m not going to sit here and question her experience, because frankly the way democracy works she’s more than experienced. Democracy is all about the power of the people and Sarah Palin is an American citizen which makes her just as qualified to serve the office of Vice President as you or I. My only concern is her deep lack of foreign affairs experience.

Then again given Alaska’s proximity to Russia, maybe she has more foreign affairs experience than we think. You know what, maybe like all the idiots out there who spread the Obama is a muslim propoganda, I’ll start a viral e-mail campaign that is completely fabricated and comes from thin air just like it, except I’ll say that Sara Palin is in Russia’s pocket, and electing McCain/Palin is going to mean Russia will have easy access to destroy the US…and it’s all part of her evil plan…(insert evil laugh here). Ah…alas though I am not an idiot like everyone who spread that imbecilic, source-lacking rumor about Obama.

Here’s the thing. Obama’s acceptance speach pissed me off. It featured more mud-slinging than a damn Texas pig farm. I thought he was better than that, mainly because for 17 or so months he has been convincing me he is. The Biden pick, the mud-slinging it has slowly started a downward spiral as far as his credibility is concerned. As for McCain well, I’m not dumb. Palin as his veep choice was 100% political (then again Biden as Obama’s was too), what is sad is here is a young, semi-uncorrupted politician who was doing her thing in Alaska (far enough away from the continental US to not get involved in the stupidity) who has now been drug into what has become one of the most ridiculous presidential races in recent history. This election has turned into a circus act to see who can draw the most shock and aw. I can’t wait until the republican convention, which wouldn’t you know it, Hurricane Gustav may delay…what a perfect opportunity for McCain/Palin to convince the world that they care more than the current administration and will care more than a Obama administration.

What it has boiled down to for me is platforms. The Democrats have released their 94 page platform (I distinctly remember it being longer in the last election, maybe I’m wrong and it was something else) and the Republicans should list theirs shortly after their convention.

I am basing my final decision on them. It’s no longer about the people for me, because well, quite frankly it’s becoming hard to tell both candidates a part. I will tell you that I still fully endorse Barack Obama for the time being, because while he has lost some credibility with me, he hasn’t lost it all. John McCain started in the negative and has had a hard time working is way up.

Be smart folks, elections are not (despite popular opinion) popularity contests. We need someone who is going to be committed to fixing what the Bush administration has jacked up over the last 8 years. Someone who is smart, and whose leadership is not questionable. At this point in time in my opinion Barack Obama is STILL that man. Only time (and the platforms) will tell if that changes.