The Bystander Blog

Stuff from Around the Net January 28, 2011

Hello all.  Alas, it’s been an incredibly busy week.  But thankfully, the light at the end of the tunnel is in sight, and a new editorial is on the way soon!  But I’m tired of having this complete blackout here on The Bystander Blog.  So until I can get another editorial up, here’s some random stuff I’ve found from around the internet that’s worth a look.

Ross Douthat’s take on the State of the Union.  Douthat is one of two conservative editorial writers at the New York Times.  I wasn’t able to see the State of the Union this year.  But I liked this blog post because it brings up a trend that’s becoming increasingly evident in our politics: We, as Americans, are unwilling to accept hard realities.

The end of advertising cookies? You may not know it, but advertisers and others are using subtle technologies to track your behavior on the internet.  Whether or not it’s harmful or dangerous is up for debate.  But Google, Microsoft, and Mozilla are rolling out new technologies to help prevent unwanted tracking.  This article sums up what’s going to happen, and it’s definitely worth a look.

Protecting your Facebook account. Apparently there’s going to be a new option on Facebook to allow you to sign in with an https connection, instead of http.  In non-geek speak, it meas that your username/password will be much harder for hackers to grab when you sign in.  I just checked, and I don’t think I have access to this option yet.  But if it comes out, I think it’ll be a great addition to Facebook.

Jimmy Buffett experiences gravity.  Just trying to find that dang salt shaker.

A Brief Hiatus… January 24, 2011

Sorry for not updating in a while.  Things have been fairly hectic since I got back in the States, between the holidays, work, school starting up again, and law school applications.  For those of you dying to hear my political blathering, rest assured that The Bystander Blog is far from dead.  I’m hoping to be up and running with a weekly or bi-weekly editorial in another week or two.

Until then, and after, you can also follow me on the blog for my Mass Communication Capstone, where I’m also blogging as part of that class.

Back in America…here’s the photos from the last few days January 4, 2011

Well, my time in Oxford is over.  First, I have to apologize for waiting so long to make this post.  I got so tied up with doing the fun stuff around here that it slipped away from me.  I’m back home, back at work, and things have pretty much gone back to normal.  I did also get stuck in Chicago for about a day and a half, when Minneapolis was hit with the Metrodome-killing blizzard.  Here’s a tip for the next time you travel: make sure your airline will book you a motel room in such circumstances.  I ended up paying for a couple nights in a Holiday Inn Express.

I think there happened to be a Justin Bieber concert in Chicago that night too.  How convenient. (more…)

The Ashmolean Museum…nearing the end of the journey December 7, 2010

Hello all.  This is going to be my last post in Oxford.  It’s the final week of our term here.  I’m pretty much done with everything; just one more paper to turn in and a final seminar meeting in a couple days.

This trip has been great, beyond what I could have expected or imagined, and I probably won’t even be able to appreciate it completely until I get back into the States.  (more…)

Christmas in Oxford November 29, 2010

The title of the post today is a little misleading.  We’ve really been in Christmas season, as far as retail stores are concerned at least, since after Guy Fawkes day (Nov. 5th).  There’s no such thing as Thanksgiving over here, so there’s also no buffer holiday between Halloween season and Christmas. (more…)

Oxford Student Protest November 24, 2010

As I was walking to the Law Library today, I passed by the Radcliffe Camera and, lo and behold, there was a student protest.  So I grabbed my camera and took some pictures. (more…)

A Trip up Magdalen Tower, and Stuff Around Oxford November 21, 2010

Hello again, and let me start by apologizing for the 2-week hiatus.  It’s getting close to the end of the term here, and I’m getting really busy with research.  It’s hard for me to believe that I’ll be on American soil in less than a month–there’s so much to do between now and then.  I’ll be glad to be home, but I’ll definitely feel like I’ve left a piece of myself here in Oxford. (more…)

Renovations! November 14, 2010

Well, if you’ve been checking out The Bystander Blog religiously, then you might have noticed a few changes going on around here.  In the spirit of the Bystander Blog, I’m attempting to pull more of my media-based interests together in order to show some more of my interests (or maybe to spout some more opinions…). (more…)