You see, I finally settled on the simple title of Chet Reads &amp Writes*, because it is concise and informative. It tells the visitor my name, and what can be found here. Then there is that finicky asterisk following it all. Have you ever noticed it before? Have you ever bothered seeking what it was connected to? If not, take your time, I’ll wait.

Found it? It’s obscure on purpose. I thought it would be a sure fire way to get me to do more than just write about what I’ve read lately. A way out of locking myself into a niche. I’ve been ignoring it.

If I’ve learned anything from my current job it is definitely that there are tons of sincere niche bloggers out there. There are also many, many niche blogs that are soley in existence for SEO purposes. Trust me. They exist as link/content farms, to just a place to garner passive income. There are literally millions of people and websites out there who spend all of their time writing content they feel will serve you. Content that they believe you want. Content that the Google notices. This is why the niche is so important. The more obscure the niche, the less work it takes to be high on the SERPs. This is not what I want my blog to be.

I would like my site to be a place where people purposefull come to read the things I wrote. Here’s some news for you, solely writing about obscure and/or books that I love, all the time isn’t all that I am. There are many things about myself that I have been holding back. Not purposefully, but because I have been limiting myself. I sit down to write and think, “Okay, this is what they’re expecting to see from me, not that.” So you end up with another review to read, about some book you may have already heard me talking about.

It’s time to grow.

From now on I want to share more of my original writing, more books that I am reading, just things I’m doing in general. Hell, maybe a picture or two?

Hold me accountable, if you know me, or if you don’t. If for some wayward reason you make your way here, and read this entirely, please by all means, encourage me to move forward.

Thanks for reading, come back again, and again. You’re all welcome here. Except assholes, I don’t appreciate assholes.

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I am currently residing in Lincoln, Nebraska as my fiancé begins earning her PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Nebraska. Despite my change of location, Texas is in my heart. I love the cities of my home state and the people. I do my best to keep up with the political tides in Texas. Paying keen attention to who is, or is not elected to represent our great state in congress. Personally I feel that it is important for citizens to pay attention to whom they have elected to office, and when a particular action taken by an official deserves questioning, it is not only the right but the duty of said citizens to contact that official. With that said I would like to start with a bit about myself.
I was born and raised in the Great State of Texas. I grew up in a small South-East Texas town, where I learned to love the land and its people. I went through grade school, and graduated as valedictorian of my class in 2006. After which I attended Sam Houston State University where I graduated Magna Cum Laude with my Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication with an emphasis on Public Relations in August 2009. I am a first generation college graduate, and I feel proud everyday when I think about everything I’ve accomplished at the mere age of 21. Throughout my life I’ve had many people, events and readings influence my personality and beliefs. However unfortunate it is for you as an elected Republican official, I am far more liberal than most people in Texas, outside of Travis County, would care for me to be. Many of my political beliefs are based on what I believe is better for all of the people in our country, and not just particular classes or their cohorts.
However this letter is not to question your political beliefs, or your total ability to judge what may or may not be appropriate for the people of the United States. Your judgment doesn’t appear to be too terrible as you’ve now been elected to two terms. No this letter is about something a bit more severe than your political beliefs. Here I intend to call out your moral fortitude, to see if you are willing to explain your reasoning behind a recent vote you casted. A nay vote which has thus far surpassed my ability to comprehend how you could, as a logical and educated human being, vote in support of such ridiculously heinous loophole. I feel that it is safe to assume that you, or whichever staff member may be reading this, know what I am asking about. That’s right, SA 2588 on HR 3326, or Senator Franken’s amendment to the 2010 Defense Appropriations bill.
In lieu of your recent decision to vote against Senator Franken’s amendment, I am forced to ponder where exactly your moral compass lies. As stated above, I am only 21. I have several years less experience on this planet than you, but even I know that rape is wrong. I also know that covering up rape is wrong. I realize that the employees willingly signed their contracts, and whether or not they read through the arbitration cause is up to them. However I do know that there is a point when an organization needs to take responsibility, and agree that there is a point when private arbitration is not enough to successfully bring about reasonable justice, much less any kind of compensation.
So with that laid out, why did you vote nay? I’ve witness the Jon Stewart report on this amendment, and I have to agree with a lot of what he has to say, though you seem like more of a Fox News fan. I’ve even seen the responses from Senator Sessions, but his claims that the amendment is not the place of congress, or is a political move (As a side note, would you mind demonstrating a piece of legislature that is NOT a political move?) are not substantial enough for my inquisitive nature. I’d really like to hear directly from you, what your motivations to vote nay were, and be honest. Also, please avoid replying via form letter with your signature stamped across the bottom. This nod at your receiving of my letter, will not be appreciated as much as an actual response will be.

Thank you for your time,

Chet Gassett
Patiently Pondering your Motives.

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The ties run deep between Sam Houston & Texas Department State University of Criminal Justice

I know this isn’t what the headline actually says, but headlines should not be that difficult to interpret. News copy is meant to be written for all lay people to understand.

Today there is an opinion piece by Mad Brad Basker, this isn’t out of the ordinary, his pieces are printed almost every week. When I first started reading his pieces were pretty well written, and stuck to the humorous side. Lately however, his pieces have become a bit more editorial. I normally make my comments on the paper’s Web site, but today they may be taken especially rough so I decided to put them up where I was in control of the content.

Basker’s article today is meant to show his support for Texas secession from the Union. He begins by telling fanciful stories about brave Texans fighting in the Texas Revolutionary War of the 1830s.

Then, in 1845, some scoundrels decided that it would be better if we were annexed by the United States…

These scoundrels that Basker writes on, saved Texas by becoming part of the United States. In the 10 years of sovereignty Texas was only successful at deepening their debts to the US and other countries. People think the economic trouble we’re facing today is awful; they should try living in a country where the money is literally worth less than the paper it was printed on.

I would stay behind my massive hand-built log cabin, with a hairy chest, a
heart full of fire, George Strait on my jukebox, hoisting an axe with my glistening biceps. The coffee I drank would be strong and black like the buffalo that roamed the plains and my countenance would be hidden behind the fiercest man-beard The South had ever seen. I would smoke a pipe while running with
a pack of wolves, eat beef jerky for breakfast and strangle snakes to make my boots.

This next section is why I decided to post my remarks on my own page instead of theirs. Mr. Basker is an African American student at Sam Houston State University, and as much as I don’t like his articles mostly, he’s a pretty well spoken individual with a good head on his shoulders. I’m actually really excited that this did not come up in his article, it really shows that we are moving on as a society from an atrocious past, but sadly the past does exist. If Brad Basker had been in Texas 145 years ago, chances are he would not have many of the aforementioned freedoms, since he is not a W.A.S.P.

I believe I wrote that in much more considerate way that what could have originally been achieved in the heat of the moment.

Basker then blames the annexation of Texas on his rather cultured life style. If you want to drink black coffee, drink it. If you want a full beard, grow it. If you’re unhappy with your pretty man feet, wear boots and work outdoors for a few days.

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Cuomo’s Letter to AIG

UPDATE @ 5:30 3/16:

Cuomo meant business and held up his promise to subpoena AIG if the information was not received by 4:00 p.m. today.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has subpoenaed American International Group Inc to get information about $165 million in bonuses the insurer is paying. Cuomo said in an interview with CNBC that his office wants to understand why AIG felt compelled to pay the bonuses to employees of its derivatives unit, the main source of the insurer’s troubles. Cuomo wants to see the contracts and is demanding a list of the bonus recipients. He noted that if the government hadn’t saved AIG, the bonus contracts would have been void. Contracts can also be re-negotiated, he added.

Courtesy of MarketWatch.com

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On the brightside, and this is more for me than you, I will have a brand new 500 GB HDD in my laptop when I return to Huntsville. I haven’t decided whether I’m going to start the OS installation tonight or not.

Until then, Happy Holidays!

<There was going to be a nice holiday graphic here, but I’m uninspired.>

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This is a graph of the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Friday October 10, 2008. There were a lot of very nice peaks, but there were also very, very many more valleys. I love the valleys within the valleys. I’m just a meek PR major, what do I know about economics and/or the stock market. Ladies and Gentlemen I know that when the markets are down, you do not sell. I don’t know who started this wonderful trend of panicking when someone yells, “the sky is falling!” It has the same resounding effect as, and I’m stealing this directly from Dr. Chris White, yelling “FIRE!” in a crowded theatre. Everyone jumps up drops their belongings and runs away crying.

This sheep-like mentality is killing me. I don’t usually watch the markets, but after the whopping 700+ point drop last week, I haven’t been able to stop watching. There are a lot of people that have lost a lot of money in the recent market flops, but I am having trouble sympathizing with some individuals that are selling out, because they think it’s the smarter thing to do. This is what happens when you allow people who don’t know even the basics of supply and demand to invest in the markets. People sell when the prices start falling because they seem to not understand that Warren Buffet is going to come in behind them and buy their newly dropped stock, and the prices will rise again. If no one wants it, then the prices are low. Thusly is everyone sells their shares, the prices drop. It’s a very simple concept. Honestly if I wasn’t living the life of an undergrad, I’d be investing. There are quite a few nice deals out there currently among the floundering prices, Ford Motors is down to $2.00 a share of Christ’s sake.

Maybe I’m too young and naïve to understand what’s going wrong. I feel reassured by the people I’ve discussed this with that I’m not an idiot, but the sellers are. I hope life works out for everyone.

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Let’s all huddle together and hope my computer makes it out alive and well!

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