I give it a C. Yes, I had the self-evaluating thoughts. Yes, I’m sitting here writing about it now. But no, I was not moved to tears. And I was NOT challenged to live a more meaningful life. I love the actors. Maybe it was the execution. I’m not a director, so I don’t know what punch it lacked.

Still, to be fair, I am thinking about my life now, and how I can do things differently. Life is too short to waste on making money for making money’s sake. All my jillions of websites will all go away some day. CultureFeast may live on, but even that’s assuming too much at this point.

I cherish every moment spent with my baby girl. That is, unless she’s REALLY fussy. Then I’m less grateful. But I kiss her so often she gets tired of it. I’m so thrilled to have a daughter. I love on my wife, but not enough. She needs more of my time, and I need to give more of my time. I need to not be so focused on temporal crap.

This is all going away. It’s all aging and decomposing. Nothing is getting younger. Nothing gets newer. Time passes. People endure Time’s toll. And people die.

The young never like to talk about death. When it’s not a possibility, you live carelessly and without purpose. When time is limited, you seek to make the most of every breath like savoring every last drop of melted ice cream from the cone. We may never taste sugar again.

Every experience, every moment is like that. We may never taste sugar again.

Okay. Maybe a B.

Her sound isn’t the typical jazz lounge sound: dusky, sultry, or raspy qualities. Each note is crystal clear, perhaps too uncluttered at times. I expect a certain level of longing, melancholy, and cigarette smoke from this kind of music. The instruments deliver the familiar feels of jazz club melodies, but I wonder if Marilyn is too straightforward a person for this style of music.

For example, Marilyn covers Cry Me a River. I love this song. I have a Harry Connick Jr. version, and I have to say, Marilyn doesn’t do it for me. She cuts off abruptly when she should let a note slide on until it fades away into nothing. “Choppy” is probably one of the best words I can use to describe my listening experience.

Go to her website and check out the songs for yourself: www.marilynscott.com. Tell me what you think. Am I wrong? I never really thought of myself as having a genre specific voice, but I think what gets me about this latest album is that the vocal styles don’t fit the music. They’re just different genres.

By the way, in addition to releasing a new album, Marilyn also recently release a new line of organic baby clothing. Check out the full line at www.startinggreen.com.

Real ID is on the way in a year or two. Wire tapping is already allowed on national security threat "suspects". American citizens are systematically losing one small freedom after another, and more power is being handed over to security, intelligence, and military organizations. Why?

Because there are threats. Because we can't guarantee the safety of our borders and citizens unless we are free to violate citizens' rights to locate the bad seeds. Because the preservation of existence has outranked the preservation of liberty.

I'm pretty sure that the writers of the Constitution had no idea what would befall our world in this day and age. War was war, simple and straightforward. If you had an unresolvable issue, you declared war. You waged war out in the open. Thousands were killed from this illogical method of combat, but it was simple, straightforward, and mostly honorable. 

Terrorism brings a new age of combat. An age of intelligence gathering, secrecy, spying, and government monitoring. From a purely military perspective, there is no end to this war. You never stop terrorism. You slay one generation of extremists and their children cry out for vengeance. You kill off their children and their neighbors cry out for justice. No one can bear the sight of a slaughter. It is unbearable to think of children destroyed for the sins of their parents.

Terrorism is a battle of ideals. Two sides see the world differently. One side feels oppressed by the other's worldview and/or destined to spread their worldview around the world. It is violent evangelism. "Turn our way or die." 

Fear of people willing to kill and die for what they believe in. Fear of not understanding why they hate us so much. Fear of who and where might be the next victim. Fear of living a normal life and one day exploding. Or breathing an invisible toxin. Or drinking contaminated water. Whatever it is. It is fear of what might happen. Not what is, or what was. But what could be. 

In the end, our government has failed to address what caused these people to hate Americans/westerners so much that they are willing to take their own lives to kill their enemies. Until we get to the bottom of their violent hatred, this "war against terror" will NEVER end. Mark my words. There is no end to a war of ideals except for these very limited options:

1. Wipe the opposing people off the face of the earth.

2. Discuss and find a way to resolve the past.

3. Compromise on issues of present day conflict.

I see none of these happening. And I obviously don't condone genocide. I think #2 is the only path. The compromise mentioned in #3 doesn't resolve anything, really. It just means that everyone loses a piece of what they hold dear. 

I would have infinite more respect for a George Bush or a Barack Obama, if there was a legitimate acknowledgment that the war on terror will never end until grievances are addressed and resolved. Perhaps they cannot be resolved, but retaliation upon retaliation never resolves a conflict. Someone must attempt to bridge the gap. Someone must at least be willing to hear out their opponent with an attitude of respect. Vilifying an entire group of people only feeds the sentiment of justified war. 

We should NOT settle for living the rest of our lives and our children's lives in fear.  

It’s not that I don’t have anything to say. Trust me, that won’t happen anytime soon. Rather, it’s more a combination of freakishly busy and paranoid that keeps me from weekly blogging.  Busy is not something I can change. But there are way around paranoid… namely, the super secret blog or two.

That’s right. Whenever possible, I blog to my heart’s content elsewhere. I found that I am all about the open confession / personal journal style of blogging, and that does not lend credibility to one’s professional life.

You heard it here last: Uncensored blogging can get you fired, mocked, abandoned, rejected, and more. My thoughts are too straight-from-the-hip. I call a spade a spade, and I don’t do so in a trendy i’m really artisticly random sort of way.

In review, I am one of those guys who points out society’s ills and demands someone acknowledge the damage that has been done. And if someone should admit the existence of said damage, I would go a step further and demand change. And then I would probably go gorge myself on some toxic Jack in the Box tacos while downing a Dr. Pepper or an iced venti vanilla latte.

It’s a confusing life we live, no doubt. And in the middle of it all, a guy like me wants, no NEEDS, to express himself daily in order to keep from exploding. And should I do so in plain view, someone somewhere will hold it against me because my opinions are black and white with little room for grey.

I should wear a sign that reads: CRAVES CONFRONTATION. And once someone has been a real jackass to me in public, I would go to a secret blog somewhere and really spell out all nine ways his jackassery took emotive expression.

So, other than that, I love blogging. Hell, I may write another CF blog tonight. I am Jack’s constant paradox.

Pentagon officials have stated that President Bush will not instigate an American attack on Iran, but will seriously consider supporting an Israeli intervention. The scenario is further complicated by the likelihood of an incumbent Democratic President bent on negotiation versus military tactics. 

Barack Obama is not likely to support a military strike against Iran, and therefore the Israelis have a very small window of opportunity to act with American approval.

The one thing that all sides agree on is that any strike by either Iran or Israel would trigger a catastrophic round of retaliation that would rock global oil markets, send the price of petrol soaring and wreck the progress of the US military effort in Iraq.

Bush is very concerned about the safety of Israel, as indeed are many Americans. Israel is one small country constantly threatened by several surrounding Arab nations. United States support has been a deciding factor thus far in the protection of the Israeli state.

Based on the soon-to-be changing political climes in the U.S., Israel will likely be working to formalize plans for an attack that President Bush will approve. With elections taking place in four short months, the window of opportunity is rapidly closing.

Will Israel take precautionary measures against a potential nuclear Iranian threat? As in the case of North Korea, it is unlikely that Iran step away from nuclear development until they have nuclear strike capability. Stay tuned.

The American Academy of Pediatrics' official policy says:

"Despite its common acceptance, spanking is a less effective strategy than timeout or removal of privileges for reducing undesired behavior in children. Although spanking may immediately reduce or stop an undesired behavior, its effectiveness decreases with subsequent use. The only way to maintain the initial effect of spanking is to systematically increase the intensity with which it is delivered, which can quickly escalate into abuse. Thus, at best, spanking is only effective when used in selective infrequent situations."

Though he acknowledges that many well-adjusted adults were spanked as children, Dr. Spock agrees with the AAP and offers several reasons why he discourages the use of spanking:

1. Spanking as a replacement for instruction leads to resentment and the desire to avoid being caught.

2. Spanking teaches a child that the bigger, stronger person has the power to get his/her way.

3. Children react better to praise and high expectations.  

Refuting Spock's Statements

Responding to Dr. Spock isn't the goal here, but let's briefly answer these statements so we can continue moving forward.

1. Spanking doesn't have to be a replacement for instruction. To refute spanking on those grounds is to address a non-issue. Perhaps some parents ignore teaching and instructing their children. That, however, does NOT make spanking responsible for this decision. Baby and bathwater, people. Stick to the issue. What about instructing your children AND spanking when necessary? 

2. Spanking can have this affect on a child if the child's heart is not tended. Cruel punishment of any kind will breed resentment, and a rebellious heart WILL look forward to the future when he/she has grown large enough to defend himself/herself. Again, this is an argument against the abuse of spanking, not the correct use. 

3. Children do in fact react well to praise and high expectations. The missing element in both Spock's and the AAP's positions is that of training. If you train your child as a baby to obey and focus on disciplining a child toward good behavior rather than only punishing bad behavior, you are much more likely to produce a well-balanced person.

Why Spanking is Still Necessary

If a child is trained as a baby onward, he/she will be tuned to obey the parent's instructions. If the process is followed from To Train Up a Child, you will be able to apply spanking as it was intended. We can't go into all the purposes here, but reading the book should excite you like it excited me. 

Spanking is still necessary because a child has a conscience. A child violates his/her conscience and feels guilty. This child needs to be absolved of guilt and forgiven. Punishment/Discipline needs to be administered in such a way as to wipe the slate clean.

Spanking is NOT to be used as an instrument of venting your anger.

Spanking is NOT to be used as a method of scaring your children into obedience.

Spanking is NOT to be used to turn your children into Pavlov's dog.

Properly applied, spanking relieves the child's conscience and resets the clock. Explain to your child what is right and how what they did was wrong. Tell her that you love her and that your love for her never changes. After instructing and reaffirming your child, a spanking is payment. It teaches the child about sowing and reaping. It teaches the child that decisions have consequences. And by loving your child before and after, you can guard your child's heart against fearing a loss of acceptance based on behavior. No one really wants a child who feels the need to perform for acceptance. 

Spanking is guarding your child's heart from permanent guilt and shame. Without proper punishment, a child knows she has gotten away with wrongdoing. It eats at her little heart. If unchecked over time, a child will learn to believe that she is a bad person and that there are no consequences. She wants in her heart to be a good person, but doesn't know how on her own to achieve this. Her heart is actually relieved by receiving a punishment that stings but allows her to start over, having paid for her mistake. 

Whether you read the Bible or not, there is a reason why it says, "He that spareth the rod hateth his son." Your choices as the parent make declarative statements over who your child will be. Don't spare your child the ability to reset his or her conscience. Don't rob your child of a clean conscience. Offer your child the opportunity to live free from guilt and shame. Only without a lifetime of suppressed guilt and shame will your precious child ever live to be a well-balanced, fully functioning adult. 

Those words are contradictory, yet coherent. Sometimes you have a dream in your heart, and a duty in your mind. You sacrifice the dream for the duty to be a good person. To take the fast track to respect and success. You excel at a vocation. You earn lots of money. Then you look around you, and the most inspiring moments are still the ones you see in dramatic films. 

You were full of passion. Maybe not entirely sure of how the dream would look unfolded, but you were sure it would be great. At least, you were sure it could be great. Maybe you feel like Ryan Reynolds in Definitely Maybe, crossing so many paths and opportunities and always missing the one that feels like home. Maybe your best of intentions still only qualify you to be a Life Novice. 

Money is nice. It is comforting on so many levels. Professional respect can keep your fire lit for years, only dimming on those rare occasions when you've had too much to drink or experience an unfortunate moment of clarity.

Ah, the moment of clarity. And WHEN it comes, for it always comes, clarity shows you that the money wasn't all that. The prestige wasn't as fulfilling either. They're still great accessories, but they're only the frosting, and not the cake. And you want the cake. You were born for the cake.

Why not skip the pursuit of wealth and go straight for the happiness? Why waste your time with the detour? Maybe you have plenty of reasons. Maybe you were driven by fear of poverty; the kind of poverty that could only come from pursuing one's dreams. Or perhaps you felt you couldn't pass up the money for your family's sake. After all, what could they need more than designer clothes and a posh lifestyle?

Maybe you were just afraid of failure, and not pursuing your dream is the only way you know how to keep the dream from uttering the gurgle of death. Whatever your reason, you pursued the money. You became the job. You were sucked into the lifestyle. You know the one. The one that constantly demands so much of your time and focus that you'll never have the time to pursue anything else. 

But success can be an odd bedfellow. Success at something other than your dream is really failure. It is always somehow less. And yet you learn to depend upon  success to afford the lifestyle that keeps you comfortable, though not happy.

Happiness is fleeting. Or so they say. Who ARE "they", anyway? And do they really know? Do you? Not until you've surrendered your pursuit of money and elite status and go after the dream. 

In the end, perhaps it was Fate. Perhaps you had to endure success to silence the question "Could I ever be that successful?" Perhaps you need to be able to say yes before you can say no. Once you've attained a certain status, you're no longer intimidated by that level of professionalism, influence, or success. You've been there. You've done that. It's familiar. Now you can move on. To what really matters.

Being "poor" isn't so bad when it's a choice. It's terrible when it's not. Be a slave to nothing. Do not fear poverty or living a life without recognition. Conquer your fears. Face them in the arena of Success if you must. But in the end, conquer it you must. Only then will you feel free to pursue the dream God set in your heart. Your calling. Your destiny. Your purpose. Your passion. 

Not everyone follows this path to reach the end. But isn't it comforting to know the path is there, and that you're not the first one to travel it? Conquer your fears. Do whatever you must. Because living the dream is why you dream in the first place. It is the end. The purpose. The quest. The discovery. And in doing what you love, you find that the fame and the money and the recognition aren't the greatest reward. It's the deep sense of satisfaction within that comes from creating or becoming that which you knew in your heart was possible. When the action is the reward, the results are all icing. And you were born for cake.  

In truth, he could just pay me money and I could go buy an iPhone. But that's not as exciting. When you're dealing with denominations that small, I have very little incentive. But barter for techno goods and you're on, buddy!

I've yet to decide whether I'll write enough article topics/titles for an 8GB or a 16GB iPhone. Probably depends on my level of continued inspiration.

I may very well get a barrage of emails from people asking me to do small jobs now. That's okay. I still want/need a few gadgets. Here's a brief list:

1. 180 GB+ slim external hard drive

2. a top of the line Apple Macbook Pro 

3. a Spot GPS Locator

4. a Texas Instruments Speak & Spell (for my daughter)

5. a 24-inch 3.06 Ghz iMac

6. the best camcorder that records to an internal hard drive (flash drive?) 

Okay, the list was shorter than I expected. I'm not much of a gadget guy in truth. I don't really want to do any more side work (keeping up with a six month old is enough!), but this is my wishlist. If you need blog consulting, linkbait consulting, etc., hit me up quick before I have everything I want.  

If we are to believe dnScoop's estimations, Facebook and MySpace are each worth $1.2 billion, with Google at only $1.7 billion. Seems a bit out of balance. Yes, you're all wonderful companies hell bent on world domination, but Facebook is NOT in the same league as Google, is it?

Oops! Sorry, Google. Yahoo is worth $2.1 billion and MSN.com is worth $1.9 billion. Those damned portals! No worries. If it's any concession, Ask.com is only worth a supposed $51 million. Take THAT, you supposed innovators of search! 

So what are the factors that go into this farfetched estimation? 
That's a great question. Let's take a quick look at the publicized factors.

1) Domain Age
The older the domain is, the stronger search value it is likely to have as well as resale value.

2) PageRank
Yes, despite how many SEO "experts" say pagerank is meaningless, it still plays a factor here.

3) Inbound Links
The number of (quality) inbound links directly affects your website's ability to rank well in search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN, and Live.

4) Alexa Traffic Report
Yes, only certain types of people use the Alexa toolbar and thus the numbers are guaranteed to be inaccurate. Still, it's one of the only ways to guess at a third party site's traffic.

5) Domain Name IP Report
Though we don't know exactly what dnScoop pulls from this, it is probably the fact that a large number of sites on the same IP indicates a lower quality score. 

6) Link Value Report
Ironically, Text Link Ads is the enemy of Google, yet somehow both search AND TLA values are combined to determine the values. Perhaps it's just a ploy to make affiliate revenue by referring a bunch of people to TLA. 

7) Site Category, Domain Keyword Popularity, and Number of Domain Name Occurrences on the Web
These were not mentioned in more detail, but are fairly self-explanatory. They're also looking at how often people mention the words in your domain name. This indicates either direct brand popularity or topic popularity. 

Now that we understand the criteria a little better, let's look at a few more popular websites worth mentioning:  

ESPN.com comes in at $658 million.
Craigslist.org is purported to be worth $614 million.
Amazon.com at $1.1 billion.
Ebay at $866 million.
Digg at $1.1 billion
Twitter at $43 million
SearchEngineLand at $2 million
NYTimes at $691 million
DoshDosh.com at $2 million

Heck, even Mark Cuban's own BlogMaverick is quoted at more than $2 million. Stinkin' billionaires.

Well, for now, we're keeping our twelve thousand dollar website and adding even more value. And don't even consider offering to buy. We won't sell 'til we're worth at least $14k

So, if you dare do the research, what's your site worth? We want to see too. Post your website name and dnScoop value in a comment below.  

**Disclaimer**
No, we're not going to actually sell CultureFeast.com for $14k. It's called "humor", people. 

Whether the appearance of a few sex offenders in ice cream trucks is a sign of deceitful strategy or simple gainful employment remains to be seen. But let's be honest. Shouldn't a sex offender be building houses or cleaning office buildings instead of befriending our kids on the street?

How are these sex offenders getting hired? That's the bigger question. Someone somewhere is seriously endangering the safety of our communities by not conducting thorough criminal background checks.

This isn't meant to scare you parents out there, though it is meant as a warning. Know your surroundings. Assume nothing. Get to know the people your children come into contact with. Be watchful, and your children should be more than safe. 

But you may not catch Kidd Kraddick in the Morning every time they give a Freddy update, and you're looking for something new. What's he doing now? Is he recording new music yet? Where do I go to help Freddy record his album? Where do I vote on the lyrics, album art, and chords?

Fret not, Freddyphiliacs. Get all the info you could possibly ever want (or at least that is available) on KiddLive.com. Want to see the latest Freddy videos? You can catch it all online on the new Freddy subdomain.

You can even sample the music Freddy's working on.  And if you want your voice to be heard, you can vote on the lyrics to Freddy's latest songs. 

So the next time you want to know what he is up to, check out Freddy's blog and all the other parts of his site mentioned above. With your help, Freddy will make some history right here in the heart of Texas!

As of today, Freddy has already had a couple major labels express interest in signing him, and someone has recommended he start his own cable tv show. But with Kidd's assistance, Freddy is going solo with you the people as his guide. His single "Defying Gravity" is getting air time all over Texas now and will soon be national. 

You can always check in with us here at CultureFeast.com as we will give you an outsider perspective of the Freddyphilia. Unless you are looking at our website analytics, you have no idea how popular this artist is.

Her previous album was more acoustic/rock than jazz/blues. Tracks from her debut album made it to the silver screen in Bridget Jones' Diary and Shallow Hal. Her first tour was a supporting act for Melissa Etheridge and Meredith Brooks. Ever since that initial success, Rosey's creative path has led her back home to a rich heritage of passionate jazz.

Luckiest Girl is a return to those roots. Six years after her debut, Luckiest Girl sounds like an honest expression of a woman returning to her passion. It's been a lifelong love affair with music. Both of Rosey's parents were singers, and both grandparents were musicians. Listening to her sophomore album, you can hear the heart of timeless jazz classics in every song. 

I'm listening to her album for the ninth time, and it's great music. Perfect for a jazz club where posh urbanites sip martinis in trench coats and top hats, it's also the idyllic mood setter for a lazy Saturday afternoon at Starbucks while you type your next blog post or read a chapter from your favorite novel.

My favorite tracks are "Love" and "Be Somebody Blues", although every song is worth a listen. In fact, I enjoy the album most as an album. The entire album is one fluid piece of jazz/blues. Just hit play and let it play through. Rosey's voice has a soft, airy, hometown girl sound that delivers every song with a clarity and a sense of both wistful hope and somber heartache. 

Give it a listen. You owe it to your laptop and latte to experience the complete creative experience. 

CultureFeast has done the research for you and found two excellent and easy-to-understand resources for you:

RSSDay.org is an excellent place to fill in your background and foundational knowledge on the subject. Would you rather just subscribe to some RSS feeds and figure out the what, where, and why on your own? Visit this Men with Pens post for simple step by step How To instructions on subscribing to feeds with Google Reader.

As always, you can ask us questions in the comment section below. We're sold on the value of getting to know our readers, and if we can help in the process, that's even better!

Musical performances include 2tone, Definitely Maybe, Oso Closo, Fishing for Comets, Southbound Texas 35, Jennifer J. Lee, The J.R. Byrd Band, and others. 

At least ten food vendors should be on hand as well. So if you're in the mood for some art-centric family fun, check out the festival at Cottonwood Park this Saturday and Sunday, May 3rd and 4th. 

So, Freddy and Kidd talk. Whether it was Freddy's idea or Kidd's, doesn't matter. Regardless, Freddy posed the idea to Kidd on the air Monday morning of recording his album here in DFW and letting the KKITM fans vote on each song, the album art, etc. In other words, Freddy wants to be the UGC (user generated content) of the music industry.

Not a bad idea for media attention and publicity. He's already been contacted by a major record label since the Gas Tour began. He has that open door waiting for an answer as well. So, the question Kidd Kraddick has posed to you, his listeners, is this: Do you want to participate in the making of Freddy's album?

It's a simple question. Do you care enough about Freddy's career to help him out and make him a star? Do you want to participate in the process? And finally, wil you feel a sense of loyalty and ownership if he stays and you contribute your voice every step of the way?

Questions worth asking. Freddy, if you're out there, and you're reading this, I'd like to get your thoughts. 

Texas Bar and Grill is located in Las Colinas (the nice part of Irving). From Hwy 114, exit O' Connor, turn north, and take your immediate next right onto Las Colinas Blvd.