And a happy New Year

I've never been one for New Year's resolutions. Not that I'm opposed to the concept, I think it's good for people to evaluate their vices and set goals for self improvement. It's the follow-through that always seems to be lacking. So this year, rather than making a bunch of promises to myself that I will likely end up breaking, I'm going for New Year's wishes instead. As everyone knows, making wishes that affect only yourself is unethical (except on birthday candles and shooting stars) and so these wishes are intended more as broad hopes for events and ideals that I would like to see come to fruition in the year 2010. My New Year's wishes are listed below, and if other people follow my example maybe, just maybe, we can change the world with no actual effort involved.

WISH 1:

Leave Obama Alone: Seriously. I don't want this to become a partisan column, but that guy inherited a whole heap of trouble from the previous tenant and the pundits won't give him a minute to just sit down and think things out. The economy is still screwed up, we're in the middle of two wars, and this health care issue is probably going to get worse before it gets any better. Obama is doing his best, and if you look at his approval rating, the country seems to think he's doing all-right, but all we hear from the peanut gallery is whining, finger pointing, and naysaying. In 2010, I think it would be nice if everyone just cooled out for a bit and let Obama do his job for a second. Sheesh.

WISH 2:

Awesome Technological Breakthrough: Stop and think about all the words we didn't know a decade ago; iPod, iPhone, Twitter, Google, blog, Facebook, Myspace, Bluetooth, wi-fi, etc. It's amazing how far we've come in just ten years, but we actually haven't seen any game changers in a while. Yeah, Gmail is pretty cool and iTunes is great but I want to see a true break through, like the telephone or the automobile. Maybe something that helps save the environment or a crazy new drug. Whatever it is, the guy that names it had better do a good job. I don't know how many more ugly words like "Google" and "Blogger" our lexicon can take.

WISH 3:

Gay Equality Now: America needs to stop dipping its toe in the pool and just commit already. The perceived homosexual threat to the traditions and institution of marriage is really just smoke, mirrors, and hate speech. In case no one noticed, the divorce rate is already over fifty percent and the straights only have themselves to blame for that. The reason government exists is to lead, which means forcing people to do things they don't want to do sometimes. We need to stop letting voters decide and just legalize gay marriage now. Gay culture is already deeply integrated in American culture, why not let them wear a wedding band?

WISH 4:

Universal Health Care: Ever heard that old saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it?" Well, America's health care system is broke, and if we don't fix it we're going to find ourselves in another saying, one about paddles and creeks you wouldn't want to swim in. Texas has one of the highest populations of uninsured residents in the United States. Fewer and fewer jobs are providing employees with benefits which makes it hard for recent graduates to get coverage. If you're reading this, odds are you're a student and Texan, part of the two groups who get the short end of the insurance stick. Getting sick sucks enough as it is, I don't want to worry about going broke at the same time.

WISH 5:

Better TV: In the nineties, it was all about sitcoms, but the last ten years have been consumed by reality TV. Now, I'm ready for something different. No more B-list celebrities, no "therapy" for jerks, no more night cam hot tub threesomes. I'm done. I just want some shows with real actors and simple things like plot lines, story arcs, and character development. Tivo and Hulu are destroying commercial revenue anyways so the real money is in DVD sales. Shows should be tight, addictive, and full of cliff hangers, like "Lost."

 WISH 6:

Last Season of Lost: Please, let it end awesomely. Happy New Year's everyone.