:: Ray's Periodic Rantings ::

:: Monday, June 25, 2007 ::

The mayor's choice of the moment

There has been some press in Chicago recently about Mayor Daley and the proclaimed "greenness" of his administration. The attention-getting fact is that the city's use of electricity has actually gone up, despite the mayor's stated intentions.

I have been waiting for someone to notice the obvious: while proclaiming his administration "green," Mayor Daley has massively increased the use electricity right before our eyes. A couple of years ago, the mayor installed bright (and in my opinion, ugly) new street lighting downtown in the touristy areas, such as Michigan Avenue, Wacker Drive, and State Street. And a few years before that, the mayor made a big deal of increasing the lighting in every alley in the city from 150 to 250 watts. 100 additional watts multiplied by thousands of alleys is a lot of watts, certainly more than anything saved by a few gardened roofs. Mayor Daley can give Chicago bright lights for safety and tourism or he can be green, but barring a major advance in technology, he can't do both.
:: Ray 11:35 AM [+] ::
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Goodbye to an old friend

Tonight Mary and I watched the final episode of Stargate SG-1. Having watched this show faithfully for 10 years, and being fully steeped in its lore, I will miss it. 10 years...I watched this show, snuggled on the couch, with two different wives!

I have little but disdain for the vast majority of television produced today, but SG-1 was the highest quality science fiction anyone could expect from TV -- well written, beautifully produced, and featuring cool actors playing likable characters. I liked it too much to be jaded about it.

SG-1's spin-off, Stargate Atlantis is perfectly capable and enjoyable, and I will keep watching it with relish, but I don't know if the blend of actors, characters and visuals that was SG-1 will ever be topped or replaced. I hope I am wrong.

I understand that two direct-to-DVD movies are on the way, the first of which will resolve the major storyline of the past two seasons. I anxiously await them.
:: Ray 11:47 PM [+] ::
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