Speculations

Good evening. Tonight I bring to ya'll some speculations about life in general, some of which might actually be true. Enjoy - or don't - I guess it really doesn't matter to me as long as you keep coming back.

Speculations and their descriptions:
1) Why when describe movie categories do we say action / drama or romantic / comedy or comedy / drama? For that matter, why don't we abbreviate those things? Suggestions: actma, romanedy, and comma respectively.
2) Why do we abbreviate everything? Yes, I know the irony that this speculation contradicts the first, but the question begs to be asked. Speaking of abbreviating, has anyone else noticed that names longer than 1 syllable get hacked into a single one? Examples: Andrew = Andy, Charlene = Char, Jennifer = Jen.
3) Why has the language of blogs become that of a 10 year old? Examples of this one are everywhere. LOL, WTF, J/K, LMAO, IMHO.
4) Since when is it "cool" to abbreviate / modify words with numbers; was it really the idea of some computer cracker to make themselves sound "133t"?
5) Is the true nature of the internet to sell products or ideas? I would like to think the latter is a more accurate depiction, however it seems that one can purchase almost anything on the internet - including but not limited to almost any drug, guns, and marijuana seeds.
6) If computer programs can simulate intelligence, why does the computer always end up losing? Almost every war type computer game has an artificial intelligence of some sort now, however each are internally flawed to not learn from their mistakes. I can hear you now saying something like "if the computer learned, you would never be able to beat it". I understand that, but the point I am trying to make is that the computer doesn't learn at all. This is why playing against other human players has such an appeal. Admit it, if you could trash talk your computer - have it learn your strategy and force you to adapt new techniques, you would; simply because that is exactly why you play against another human. They will inevitably learn your tactic, and exploit it to take you down.
7) While I am on the topic of computer intelligence, why haven't we ventured into the realm of learning computers? The closest things I have seen (aside from the gaming industry) are spam filters - and these aren't really learning, they are just adapting to a variety of variables that are adjusted by a user. Shouldn't we be able to get a computer figure out if that the message with the cryptic subject that contains an advertisement for "V14GR4 with0ut a prescript10n" is spam?
8) Why do I have to pay to have my credit card "protected" from identity theft? Shouldn't this be a standard feature that comes with the privilege of the card? Furthermore, why do they charge you $3.99 per month for this feature? Last time I checked, most of the people that had their identity stolen were compensated in some way for the charges made on their behalf.
9) Why is it that if get more than a few thousand dollars in debt I have collectors called while the U.S government can continue to get further and further in debt without any negative effects? Yes, this one spurs from the inability of our current leader to reduce the national debt. I believe that there should be a policy in place that requires each administration to pay down the debt by making equal payments of (at least) 5% of the total as of today, per year. Of course there would be loopholes for natural disasters and such, but wouldn't it be nice if we weren't paying so much interest? When I buy something, it is extremely rare for me to simply "charge it" and not have the money available before the purchase is made. I believe that if we setup a pay-in-advance system then there would be no need to tax the American people so ruthlessly.
10) Why do we have any tax penalty for being married? If two people make money from separate sources of income, and they happen to wear a ring on their left ring finger, why is it that they are penalized? If our government really wants to push the "Christian values" on America, shouldn't there be a marriage bonus?
11) Why does the FBI peruse people who illegally trade files over peer-to-peer networks, worth - at the very most - a few thousand dollars while never quite nailing down Enron executives? I still haven't gotten over the Enron scandal. Thousands lost their entire retirement in one day, few were compensated but many more got nothing. Lets do a little math here, assuming that the average value of an illegal file passed over the internet is valued at ~$100 (and I am assuming this is high), and assuming that only 1000 people had their entire 401k plan invested in Enron the day it went under that still means - at bare minimum - 4000 illegal files would have to be distributed to compete with these numbers.
12) Why do we tell kids that they "can be anything they want" when they grow up, but never accept that they want to do a job that doesn't require a college education? When was the last time you heard a kid say that they wanted to be a janitor, or a McDonalds manager, or a garbage collector? My guess is never - and if you had heard them say that, you would convince them that those jobs are for people that are less important than them - and to think bigger, telling them to look forward to a more prestigious job as a fireman, the leader of the free world, or a CEO of a corporation. Finishing my question, everyone uses hundreds of people each day to get them through. Everyone from the person who grew the coffee they drank in the morning to the person that stuffed their mattress, whether they know it or not. If someone doesn't do these jobs, the infrastructure of our country would fall apart in a matter of days.
13) Why is it that as few as 20 years ago, a person could easily survive on one paycheck and now it can't cover basic needs? I live in an area that has rather high property values, and as such I pay $650 per month in rent alone. The total of my individual bills comes to ~$1200 per month. My current monthly income is ~$1700, and that is with my new high paying job. With my previous job I was pulling in ~$1350. If my wife didn't work as a substitute, we wouldn't have any saving any money.
14) How did we ever let basic health care evade so many lower and middle class citizens? I am one of the many Americans that haven't got the money to afford health insurance and I frequently worry that something might come up that won't be covered by our meager savings.
15) What is the price of Iraqi "freedom"? Currently 1559 U.S. lives have been confirmed lost in this endeavor, and while I support the individual troops that are doing their duty, I do not agree with the reason we are in Iraq. Does anyone remember why we went there in the first place? Yep, weapons of mass destruction (WMD's, another abbreviation), which we did not find. As Michael Moore said, we attacked (and invaded) a country that had never threatened the United States in any way. I know that those 1559 people (and counting) will never be coming back to their families and I wonder about our government.
16) Lastly, what has changed in our society that lets has so many teenagers have sex with many people without regard to their own safety, mental well-being, and better logic? It seems that lately I have been meeting a lot of people that are only interested in "hooking up" (not with me mind you, I'm taken). It makes me wonder if monogamy will survive in the next generation.

Ok, that was a really long Rant of the Minute - wouldn't you agree? I can't think of any other speculations to discuss, but I leave the floor open for further debate. Also, if you disagree with me I urge you to not hold my views against me personally. I would also like to apologize for going so far into my personal beliefs; I know that you don't talk religion or politics with people that you want to keep talking to because eventually you will hit a roadblock that may destroy the relationship.

Until next time,
~ Mr. Me ~