Physics Nobel Laureate - Steven Weinberg discusses the Origin of the Universe

This is a video clip of Steven Weinberg discussing the Origin of the Universe. The lecture is part of the Middleton Lecture sponsored by the LBJ Library. Lady Bird Johnson, the former first lady, was in attendance. Some people say that my videos are boring so I included a special surprise at the end. Enjoy!!!

I'd like to introduce you to Esmee Denters

I discovered this 18 year old girl from Holland on YouTube and I think that she is incredibly talented. In the last year she has posted videos of herself singing songs while sitting in her bedroom. She became so popular on YouTube that record producers have approached her and now she is working on some recordings. This song demonstrates why she is so popular. Check it out!

A weekend of music

Cara's parents came to visit along with our new friends, Joanne and Yates. We made the most of their time in Austin by taking in as many shows as possible. The result was a Texas-sized portion of music, dancing and great food.

Zilker Kite Festival - Austin, Texas

The day was so nice that Cara and I had to get out and do something. Fortunately, the Zilker Kite Festival was taking place. Here's a little video of our day at the park with the dogs.

Currently Reading

I'm currently reading Eyewitness to Power by David Gergen. For 30 years, David Gergen has been an active participant in American national life. He served as director of communications for President Reagan and held positions in the administrations of Presidents Nixon and Ford. In 1993, he put his country before politics when he agreed to first serve as counselor to President Clinton on both foreign policy and domestic affairs, then as special international adviser to the president and to Secretary of State Warren Christopher.

David Gergen is a professor of public service and the director of the Center for Public Leadership at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is also editor-at-large at U.S. News & World Report. Mr. Gergen also regularly serves as an analyst on various news shows, and he is a frequent lecturer at venues around the world.

David Gergen recently gave a lecture to a group of students attending a leadership conference on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. After the lecture, I had the privilege of meeting Mr. Gergen and getting him to autograph my copy of his book. Now, I'm reading it. Like his lecture, it has already proven to be somewhat dry, but the content reveals Mr. Gergen's intimate relationship with history as it unfolded. I am enjoying it mainly for its historical perspective and the wisdom that Mr. Gergen conveys, whether it be a quote from Nixon or his own take on historical events.

Below are some video clips of the highlights of the lecture:

Daniel Johnston at the Parish Room

I dragged Cara, Chad and Mireya to see Daniel Johnston this weekend. I'm intrigued by Daniel Johnston because he has such an unusual life story. He is an Austin music legend with cult status and when I heard that he was playing in Austin, I had to see him. I'm still intrigued.

As with other talented but troubled artists such as Syd Barrett, Brian Wilson, and Roky Erickson, Daniel Johnston fights a daily battle with the chronic mental illness that has plagued him nearly his entire life. However, despite recurrent bouts of delusional behavior wherein he has physically endangered himself and others, Johnston has carved out a respectable, influential career as a singer/songwriter of extraordinary talent which has grown since his first crudely recorded cassette was released in 1980. He became the singer/songwriter of choice of the alternative/underground rock scene, and at various times has had his work championed by members of Sonic Youth, Yo La Tengo, Butthole Surfers, Half Japanese, Nirvana (Kurt Cobain was often photographed wearing a Daniel Johnston T-shirt), and numerous others. ~Biography courtesy of www.rejectedunknown.com
Warning: I made this video a little creepy to reflect Daniel's dark side.

Cara's getting her band ready for UIL

This is the Artie Henry Middle School Concert Band I Pre-UIL performance. I think they've done an excellent job preparing for UIL. Send Cara luck!

Check out my close encounter with Barack Obama

At the end of the video, you'll see that he walked right up to me. I didn't get to shake his hand because I was making this video of the moment.

Help my buddy Matt raise money for Big Brothers and Big Sisters

I recently received the following email from my buddy, Matt. I would like to help him meet his goal and beyond, so if you have a couple of bucks or more to donate to The Big Brothers and Big Sisters Foundation, please help. Click on the picture to go to his donation page.
Cheers!

I have volunteered for my company's 2007 Bowl for Kids team and I sure could use your help. I'm part of a 5 person team and we're each hoping to raise at least $125 by THIS SATURDAY NIGHT February 24. We bowl on a night when other architectural, engineering, and design firms bowl. Ultimately, we compete against STG, GS&C, Bury, and many others.

TBG Partners bowled last year and had a great time raising money for the local Big Brothers Big Sisters chapter. Although we weren't the top fundraisers, it was still good to know that we could help out a great cause. This year we've set our goal to be the largest supporter of Big Brothers Big Sisters in our division.

I'd appreciate any financial gift you'd be willing to provide me with. No amount is too small, everything helps! Please visit my personal donation page and help me reach or exceed my goal.

Thanks for helping!

Guess Who's Coming to Austin?

I'm sure that I'll be producing a video for this event so I'll post it as soon as it is done.

Currently Reading - State of Denial

So, I finished reading "From Baghdad with Love" in a very short time. It was a really nice story about a soldier's endeavors to bring a stray dog from Iraq to the US. It was definitely an uplifting story so I won't ruin it by revealing the details. I enjoyed it for the story about the dog, Lava, and because it gives some insight into the inner workings of the military in Iraq. It's a quick read so you should read it yourself.

I'm already halfway through "State of Denial" and I must say that it is one of the most engrossing books that I have ever read. Composed by Bob Woodward, the Washington Post journalist famous for his stories about the Nixon Watergate scandal in the 70's, this book is very well written with incredible details about the Bush Administration's build up and execution of the War in Iraq. I have a difficult time putting the book down once I start to read it. I am amazed at the level of access to conversations and relationships between the pentagon and the white house that he has. I am stunned by the frankness with which Woodward reveals the failings of the administration, in both decision-making and communication. If you read a single book about the war in Iraq, you must read this one. I'll write more about this book in the future.

I'm also really excited that Woodward and Bernstein, the other Watergate journalist, will both be coming to the University of Texas at Austin on March 23, 2007. Like Norman Mailer's visit, I hope to see their lecture and get an autograph.

Recently completed:
From Baghdad with Love
by Lt. Col. Jay Kopelman with Melinda Roth
1984
by Eric Blair (George Orwell)
The Naked and the Dead
by Norman Mailer
My War: Killing Time in Iraq
by Colby Buzzell
No God but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam
by Reza Azlan
Night Draws Near: Iraq's People in the Shadow of America's War
by Anthony Shadid
The Places in Between
by Rory Stewart

Click the picture

Because baby pictures always make you feel better...

This is a picture of Lainey Roth, daughter of Adam and Suzy Roth. Isn't she gorgeous?!

I just had to post a couple of these...

To see more smackdown on Carolina, click here.

2005-2006 Artie Henry Middle School Cadet Band

I made this video last summer for Cara's band. It was her first year at Henry Middle School and I thought it would be a good keepsake. I'm posting it now, because I don't think that I've posted it on my blog, yet. I just recently moved it from Google Videos to YouTube.

Peace Rally in Austin, Texas January 27, 2007

As some of you may know, I have been a proponent of the war in Iraq since the beginning. However, like many who chose to lend their support to the President, I feel that I have been deceived. First, it was the failure to adequately negotiate with the United Nations to form a true coalition of the willing. Then, it was the failure to assemble an adequate military force to execute the war. Third, it was the failure to establish a post-war plan. Fourth, it was a failure to find any significant stockpiles of WMDs. Next, it was a failure to properly oversee the methods of interrogation, ie. Abu Ghraib. Sixth, it was a failure to educate members of the government and military superiors of the complexities of Iraqi internal strife (this was actually one of the first failures but it became apparent when neither of the heads of the committee overseeing intelligence could answer the question of whether al Qeada was Sunni or Shi'a). Seventh, and most sickening, at some point we decided to scrap the Geneva convention resolutions. Shall I continue? The Bush administration has violated so many of the things that once gave us a moral authority that I can no longer keep track.

Believe it or not, I am still optimistic that the troop surge may help with the violence in Baghdad, but I'm losing my resolve. I have been steadfast in my defense of the war, but I'm becoming anxious and confused. I am coming to grips with the idea that American soldiers will never convert the Iraqis to a peaceful existence. But, I am not comfortable with simply removing those troops from Iraq and leaving the country to the fanatical vultures who will swoop in and fill the void. I do not know what to do or who to believe. In my heart, I know that the American soldiers are representing us well in Iraq, but my mind tells me that the people of Iraq are so warped by religious fanaticism and hatred for the west that America cannot help them reach freedom. They do not want it badly enough. If you asked me what we should do, I would say we should stay, but I cannot say what our role should be. Bush has screwed up such a great opportunity that we may be forced to withdraw. What then?

So, that being said, I recently attended a peace rally in Austin. I had the idea that I would ask a few people questions about the war and perhaps their comments would help me find my own version of peace with this issue. I recorded this video at the rally and made this little mini-doc.
Enjoy!

Currently Reading

So, I'm currently reading From Baghdad with Love by Lt. Col. Jay Kopelman with Melinda Roth. I received this book as a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law and I'm really enjoying it. It is a story about a stray puppy named Lava that lives with members of the First Battalion, Third Marines during their tour in Iraq. It is easy to read compared to the last two books that I have read so I look forward to a few days of pleasant reading.

The last book that I completed was 1984 by George Orwell. I chose to read this book because it came up in a recent discussion and I wanted to revisit the subject addressed in the anti-Utopian novel. No doubt, I could write pages of commentary on the parallels between the world described by Orwell and modern times, but it would be a heavy subject to post here. I would like to recommend to everyone that you read this novel and think critically about where our society is headed.

I will include one of my own ideas, though. The grossest and most disturbing point made in the book is the dehumanization of mankind by the government. This is not my biggest fear. I do not fear the government because democracy protects us, to some extent, from government-backed oppression. My biggest fear is mentioned in the Afterword of 1984 which was composed by Erich Fromm. My biggest fear is corporate dehumanization. What I mean by corporate dehumanization is the power that corporations have over our freedom to think and the chance that this will lead to a loss of humanity for the sake of corporate domination. Fromm describes it using the example of a person who works for a big company that claims that its product is better than all its competitors' products. This person does not concern himself with determining whether it is a true fact that the product is the best, rather he concerns himself with convincing us, the customers, that his company's product is the best. This type of thinking is called "mobile truth." And, I can see its ugly head appearing today in the large corporate media upon which we depend for our daily news. No one disputes that Fox, CNN and NBC are competing against each other for viewers/readers. And, no one disputes that these news organizations target the content of their news dispatches to specific demographics while maintaining that they are "fair and balanced" or "the most trusted source for news." It is clear that O'Reilly, Hannity and Colmes, Olberman, etc. are exercising "mobile truth-telling" and all the while the consumers, you and I, are at a loss for the true truth. My fear is that truth will be lost in the battle for the "trust" of the consumer. The battle for trust will lead us to instilling "faith" in our news sources. And, faith will lead us to war...war in America, to determine who possesses the truth. There is hope, however. The embodiment of hope, to me, comes in the form of modern information sharing technologies, specifically, internet web sites like YouTube and the entire blogosphere of which you are partaking by reading my blog. As long as individuals have the ability to share information, we will all have access to the truth.
Cheers!

Recently completed:
1984
by Eric Blair (George Orwell)
The Naked and the Dead
by Norman Mailer
My War: Killing Time in Iraq
by Colby Buzzell
No God but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam
by Reza Azlan
Night Draws Near: Iraq's People in the Shadow of America's War
by Anthony Shadid
The Places in Between
by Rory Stewart

A great idea...

Ice Storm

Well, it wasn't too long ago that I said that Austin rarely gets any really cold weather. I guess I'll have to eat those words. We got enough snow and ice to shut down the city for a couple of days. It doesn't take much. Here's some video of our little ice storm.

Pernell - Fanny Pack!

This video was made by our wedding videographer, Pernell Disney. When we met him at the wedding, we knew that he was a nice guy, but we had no idea that he was so funny and creative. If you don't know it, the song is a remake of Justin Timberlake's song Sexy Back. Enjoy!!!