Today is an important day in the blogging world. The Daily Routine has officially existed for one week in the blogosphere. And in that time it has amassed 11 followers and tallied over (okay, exactly) 100 views (okay it was 99 but that's close enough right?). It has even been featured on the cover of Time Magazine and the New York Times says that TDR is "mediocre at best." I have even received a nomination for the first Pulitzer Prize in blogging. It's been a good week. And as much as I want to thank you (yes, you reader) for your support, I have to thank myself more for coming up with such a brilliant idea of how to spend my time. Today was an important day in world news, from low-flying Air Force Ones terrorizing New York City, to Arlen Specter becoming a Democrat, from coupon clippers to a 30 pound, cell-phone-swallowing cod. But one story that went relatively unnoticed is one that hits close to home for me. Which brings us to today's topic: CENSORSHIP
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 yesterday that federal regulators can clamp down on so-called "fleeting expletives" on television. In other words, whenever a character in a show or even an athlete or performer experiences a moment of frustration, pain, emotion or disappointment, they are legally forbidden from using any kind of expletive on national networks. To quote Bono, "really, f---ing brilliant." I join Justice John Paul Stevens in his dissent, in which he presented this statement: "As any golfer who has watched his partner shank a short approach knows, it would be absurd to accept the suggestion that the resultant four-letter word uttered on the golf course describes sex or excrement and is therefore indecent." Bravo, sir. I can attest from my round of golf last weekend with Justice Stevens, that his slew of curse words were by no means meant to be indecent (although the things he was saying about Scalia may have been).
But while this decision presents controversy to the nation, it does not come close to the injustice suffered by your very own yours truly. After updating this blog yesterday, I hit "post" only to find that my network access was unavailable. Moments later, I received a notification from the USC Information Technology Services informing me that because of abnormal activity, my IP address had been blocked from the USC network. When I called, they informed me that my computer had been scanning the network in a way consistent with that of a computer with a virus. They asked me what I had been doing at the time in which this activity had occured. I assured them that I was most assuredly NOT using a program called Limewire to download potentially copyrighted music. They reluctantly complied to my demands of having my internet back. But I think we all know what is really going on here. Apple computers don't get viruses. This was censorship at its worst. As you may have noticed, yesterday's Daily Complaint was USC Wireless, due to their incredibly slow and unreliable connections. Clearly, USC took offense to this and went through extraordinary lengths to preserve their cover up of how bad their wireless network actually is. These lengths included censoring this blog and directly violating my First Amendment rights. I have only one response to you, USC: F--- You.
You're Welcome,
-ROF
Daily Food: In N Out Double-Double
Daily Activity: Celebrating TDR's Success
Daily Song: Matisyahu - Message In a Bottle
Daily Attire: Sweaters
Daily News Everyone Should Care About: Sri Lanka Denies Swedish Foreign Minister a Visa
Daily News No One Should Care About: Coupon Queen Saves 97% on Groceries
Daily Life Goal: Save 98% on Groceries with Coupons
Daily Complaint: ITS shutting off my wireless
Daily Drink: Champagne, to celebrate my success
Daily Studies: Espanol, para mi oral entrevista.
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