If you've managed to find your way to this site, you obviously can see that I'm no longer updating it. Just another one of the abandoned blogs that litter my writing past.

An old friend of mine once commented that he couldn't find his way back to a post he had stumbled upon because I had "so many damn blogs." Some people collect cars, trophy wives, and other accoutrements of American privilege. Lacking that capacity, I collect blogs.

My newest blog and one I hope has a run like this one is located at the Jim Baumer Experience. It's where I'm posting what I have to say from here on out. I hope you'll become a regular over there.

I've loved posting here and in fact, it's where I cut my blogging teeth. I still find my way back here from time to time to follow the bread crumbs of my writing back to an earlier time, checking on my views and things I was thinking about at the time, five, six, and even eight years ago.

An example of a former post that I've been going back to regularly is this one, a piece that I consider one of my best, at least on politics.

Cheers!

Endings...and a new beginning

For the past five years, and 832 posts, some fair, the occasional unhinged rant, and some that were good and even great, I've decided to call it quits, at least here at Words Matter.

I've been looking for a way to consolidate my online profile and my writing, and I've done that over at jimbaumer.com.

From here on out, if you want to read my blogging (which will continue, in a somewhat altered format), then the home page at that site is where to find me.

I've appreciated the many visitors over my time here, as well as the handful of regulars that have come and gone. I remain passionate about many things that prompted me to get rolling and embrace the blogging platform, and I'll continue to share them from to time via my blog at the new site.

Not a judgement, just an observation

There once was a blogger from away, who got paid to blog. She developed a large following, mostly because she wrote with enthusiasm and wit about many things that locals got jaded about, or no longer took the time to seek out. In fact, some of us thought she captured the unique qualities of the Pine Tree State better than many of us who have lived here forever.

People regularly visited her employer's site, people who ordinarily didn't give two sh*ts about most of the rest of the lame ass content at that site. As happens, the blogger got a new job and she was off to New Jersey, to discover new things about a brand new adopted state.

Much to the excitement of her readers (dare I say, fans?), the blogger began a new blog, which fanned the flames of anticipation for stories from the land of Tony Soprano, urban crime and the Meadowlands. At first, our former daily detour included us in those first early days, unpacking and setting up her new life in Jersey City—tales of journeys across the river, exploring the Big Apple, her new landlord and the first things of a new chapter, thus begun.

Our former online compatriot from away, no longer paid to blog as part of her job, grew tired, or found other things to do with the time she once spent blogging. If other former readers were like me, they continued to check her new blog, hoping to glean what new things she was learning in the new land to our south, told with her unique voice and self-deprecating way of seeing things. Unfortunately, despite posts insisting that she wouldn't forget us, the posts stopped. Oh, there was the recent one telling us that she was too busy, too tired, too whatever, to post even occasionally. C'est la vie, as they say.

It makes you appreciate those bloggers, who also spend their days in front of a computer for work, or even write for a living, who for whatever reason, find the time and the urgency to continue to share their thoughts. As a friend once told me, when I was growing weary of the blog—you've got to write for yourself first—if you can do that, more likely than not, you'll continue to crank out posts, frequently, or even semi-frequently. In my way of thinking that makes it more authentic and in line with "keeping it real."

Weekends were made for...blogging?

I’ve been absent from the blogosphere for a few days. It hasn’t been from lack of ideas for content, believe me.

On a daily basis this week, my brain’s been whirring with activity and proposed posts that just never found their way to computer screen. I haven’t done the “weekly recap” thing for awhile, but this seems like a good time to pull one out and end with a few tidbits of review.

Endless War

Not much to say here that hasn’t already been written about all over the internet, from right-wing, to left and all positions in-between. Actually, there really hasn’t been much variation, to be honest, at least from what I gather, sniffing around the mainstream.

With the war in Iraq not going particularly well and the president determined to go it his way, versus the way of the Iraqi Study Group and even members of his own party, the strategy seems to be for a “troop surge” of 20,000+, which somehow is supposed to turn this quagmire around? I don’t see how.

One interesting post that I read at Think Progress dealt with the term, “troop surge” and how it’s been picked up and run out ad nauseum by the MSM.

Speaking of the MSM, why has there been so little discussion about the economic fallout from the Bush administration's policy of perpetual war? With this new "bump and goose" trotted out, to the tune of $7 billion, btw, we are now looking at a total cost of the debacle in Iraq somewhere in the vicinity of $360,000,000,000 (lots of zeroes, eh folks?)! The real question here ought to be, how the hell are we going to finance it? Which leads me to my next point--

On the Backs of Gen Y, Baby!

Apparently, all that really matters to the 18-to 25-year-old crowd is being rich and famous. As reported in USA Today on Wednesday, Pew Research Center for the People and The Press conducted a recent poll in which 81 percent of this age group said that being rich was what it's about for them and another 51 percent said being famous was their focus. While that is an easy simplication to the Pew report, the snapshot that emerges when read shows that this group has some real work to do in coming to terms with the future that is being constructed for them. While Britney and Paris won't have to worry much, the average 20-something is in for a rude awakening, I'm afraid, if wealth and fame is what floats their boats. You can view the entire report here.

When you add the societal costs of perpetual war to the fact that most of these millenials will be graduating with greater amounts of debt from school loans (as grants and other funding keeps getting slashed to pay for the war on terrah'), tax shifting from the wealthy to the middle class and jobs leaving the country in droves (not to mention the fact that these graduates aren't even being prepared for work), it's pretty clear to me that focusing on money and fame isn't a winning strategy.

And last of all, why focus on doom and gloom of the real world when members of Celtic Nation have their favorite doormats to get them through the night--

The Luck of the Irish

As I alluded to in a recent post, I'm partial to loveable losers. For me, it 'ain't about winning so much, but how you play the game. While their play has been maddening on many occasions, this young group of Celtics has captured my fancy and when their one bonafide star player, Paul Pierce went down, fans got to see a future star emerge from the ashes.

Tony Allen, in his third NBA season, appeared ready to put behind him a previous injury and his penchant for getting into trouble. Beginning with the Celtics difficult road trip out west, it was obvious that with Pierce out of the picture, Allen was stepping up and taking the reins of leadership that young teams desperately need. Over an eight game stretch, Allen was averaging just under 20 a game, with six consecutive 20 point outings under his belt and on his way to a seventh on Wednesday night, at home against Toronto, when at 3:01 of the third quarter, the bottom fell out of Allen's and quite possibly, the Cetics' season. On his way to the basket, Allen was fouled and continued to the basket after the whistle to "throw one down." As he came down on his left knee, it folded like an accordion and anyone watching immediately thought, "oh no, not Tony!"

Allen tore both his ACL and MCL and is done for the year and who knows when he'll be back, if he is able to come back at all. With Allen's season ending in macabre fashion, he joins Pierce, Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West and Brian Scalabrine (who sustained his injury Wednesday night, also) on the sidelines--these in addition to Theo Ratliff, who played all of two games for the Celts before going down for the year with a back injury.

Apparently some "fans," like Jeff, over at CelticsBlog.com are celebrating the chance to be in the running for either Greg Oden, or Kevin Durant, next NBA draft day:

"About the best thing I can say for this season is this: We needed to bottom out at some point, it might as well be now. They don't exactly print that up on season ticket promotional flyers, but in the long run it might be for the best. Cleveland had to bottom out to win the LeBron sweepstakes. Even Denver and Toronto got turned around in that draft with Melo and Bosh. I think we are looking at another draft like that. Sure, we could miss out on the best talent and get Tim Duncan'ed again, but I'll take that gamble to get a once-in-a-lifetime talent like Oden or Durant."

I don't agree with his sentiment, but I sort of understand where he's coming from. As for me, I'm staying away from four leaf clovers for the immediate future.

Have a great weekend, everyone!