Awesome old school video

Thanks to Jeffrey Overstreet for steering me toward this (I really want to see it on the big screen. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to soon.)

Click here if it doesn't play.

Quick update

I've been blogging daily at ChicagoDads.Today.com. Which is going fine. Usually about 300-400 words a day. Not too big, but not too shabby, either. I'm not sure how many people visit on a regular basis, though, and really have no way of knowing at this moment. It's not like with this site where I can check the SiteMeter or whatnot, or like the regular WordPress blogs where you can check your own traffic. So, we'll see how that goes...

But I was thinking about those automatically-generated ad links. That's their source of revenue and my source of revenue. But I don't find any comfort (financially or morally) that it would just pick a random word or combo, say 'muscular dystrophy' and the link would say "'Muscular dystrophy': Find the best rates here."

True story.

Obama speaks with Relevant Magazine about Abortion

I was listening to the Relevant podcast yesterday (this is the part of the article where you drop everything, open up your iTunes player, go to the Store and subscribe to the Relevant Podcast for much insight and hilarity) and heard a short interview with presidential candidate (and long-term Left Cheek reader... so I've heard) Barack Obama. I was so intrigued by it that I figured that I need to transcribe a section of it. But then I checked by the site today and found it there, in print (or pixel, as it were).

I've been waiting for awhile to hear some clarifications on Obama's stance on abortion. At this point, I won't go into too much detail on my own stance, except to say that I don't like abortion and would prefer that it would never be an option - but at the same time realize that for a lot of people, it may be the only viable option that they see and that it is not politically viable to overturn RvW at this moment.

In any case, Obama dispels the rumors. You heard it here first, kids!

Strang: Based on emails we received, another issue of deep importance to our readers is a candidate’s stance on abortion. We largely know your platform, but there seems to be some real confusion about your position on third-trimester and partial-birth abortions. Can you clarify your stance for us?

Obama: I absolutely can, so please don’t believe the emails. I have repeatedly said that I think it’s entirely appropriate for states to restrict or even prohibit late-term abortions as long as there is a strict, well-defined exception for the health of the mother. Now, I don’t think that “mental distress” qualifies as the health of the mother. I think it has to be a serious physical issue that arises in pregnancy, where there are real, significant problems to the mother carrying that child to term. Otherwise, as long as there is such a medical exception in place, I think we can prohibit late-term abortions.

The other email rumor that’s been floating around is that somehow I’m unwilling to see doctors offer life-saving care to children who were born as a result of an induced abortion. That’s just false. There was a bill that came up in Illinois that was called the “Born Alive” bill that purported to require life-saving treatment to such infants. And I did vote against that bill. The reason was that there was already a law in place in Illinois that said that you always have to supply life-saving treatment to any infant under any circumstances, and this bill actually was designed to overturn Roe v. Wade, so I didn’t think it was going to pass constitutional muster.

Ever since that time, emails have been sent out suggesting that, somehow, I would be in favor of letting an infant die in a hospital because of this particular vote. That’s not a fair characterization, and that’s not an honest characterization. It defies common sense to think that a hospital wouldn't provide life-saving treatment to an infant that was alive and had a chance of survival.

Strang: You’ve said you’re personally against abortion and would like to see a reduction in the number of abortions under your administration. So, as president, how would do you propose accomplishing that?

Obama: I think we know that abortions rise when unwanted pregnancies rise. So, if we are continuing what has been a promising trend in the reduction of teen pregnancies, through education and abstinence education giving good information to teenagers. That is important—emphasizing the sacredness of sexual behavior to our children. I think that’s something that we can encourage. I think encouraging adoptions in a significant way. I think the proper role of government. So there are ways that we can make a difference, and those are going to be things I focus on when I am president.

Links I'd Like You to Link to - Happy 4th!

I found a place that'll let me blog for pay. Of course it's crappy pay, but it's a start. So, please, check out ChicagoDads. And click some random links. And then tell all your friends about it. Especially father friends. Because I think it would be awesome to actually start a community of blogging fathers. And I think it would be cool to make at least a little bit of money doing it.

As far as the ads here, sorry. I may take them down soon, or just move them to another site. I haven't seen them yet, to be honest, but I know how annoyed I was on seeing them at other people's sites. I'll neither dissuade nor persuade you to click on anything here, except for my own links, and the links of our dear, faithful blog rolls.

Oh, and the last one is another new site of mine - Newness, Ampersand. It's a bit more experimental. I'm trying to make it more professional, but I'm not sure how to go about that now, so a lot of things may come and go in the next few weeks or months. It, like myself, is a site in transition. But I started it off with what I figure is a cool game to try out - Story-time. I start out a story, you give a middle, I end it. The catch is that each section can only be two sentences long. Yeah....