California Bans Offensive Vagrant Signage During the Consumer Holidaze.

"Enough is enough," says Woke California Resident Susie Karmichael when interviewed by BSJK (A totally legit and not completely made up organization). "It's one thing to avoid paying taxes and take up public space, while reminding us of the struggles and neglect of our society..but to not have the common decency to change the signage to "Happy Holidays," there's no excuse for that!" Said Davey Livid. California, the leaders of high tax and low public benefits created an official division dedicated to policing the signage of vagrants. We interviewed Chief Monsonto about the process involved in determining which signs are appropriate for the market and which ones aren't. He had this to say: "Well it's pretty easy we use a mixture of regulations provided by the FCC, as well as Disney's guidelines on what is acceptable and where everyone should stand on certain issues. Anything that is deemed non-family friendly, nor assumes the gender, identity, and/or religious beliefs of an individual is banned." Please feel free to report to your local police department if a sign is inappropriate and unsafe for the market. We are told that all police stations are equipped with the necessary skills to regulate these signs and make sure they're taken off the streets.

Healthcare Affordable to All

It's a common misconception that only the "wealthy" can afford to eat healthy and there is much profiteering involved in encouraging this belief:

1. Healthy foods seem to be priced higher in the short-term (if not directly in cost, certainly in preparation time, going to store, etc. and time = money), but no one is attaching the medical bills and related cost to the long-term effects of the garbage people consume. I have a feeling if we honestly priced the junk that cost cheaper in the short-term, people would understand they can't afford the hidden fees.

2. Not everything organic is labeled "organic," so when it comes to choosing one vegetable over another, feel free to save the change by not being fooled with branding and labels. Besides any raw vegetable will be better than a bag of processed garbage, regardless if one is called "organic" or not.

3. The brand or label that matters most, if at all, is local and they don't have to put a sticker on the product or hike up their prices. Simply go to a local farmer's market, grow your own, or make friends with someone who does. The price of these products is competitive with the stores and the only extra cost is time.

4. People profit from selling nutritional plans and doing the heavy lifting of building a diet. But like anything else, there are tons of free resources available all over the internet and in books. A simple google search can tell a person the recommended amount of nutrients and calories required per day and there are tons of apps to track these things - not to mention almost every product these days is properly labeled.

5. People profit from selling gym memberships and equipment, when there are tons of free resources online for exercise, as well as out in the real world. Walk, stretch, run, do pushups and situps. Watch youutube videos for exercises, yoga, etc. Everyone carries a smartphone with internet these days, even some of the homeless people..so don't give me any crap about who is limited to all this free information.

I could go on and on, but I don't want to bore anyone further. Eventually I'll post my own diet, which is well priced (in terms of short-term cost, as well as time, with a focus on long-term cost).

I'm pretty cheap and lazy when it comes to food, so I'm driven to make dieting and eating healthy as cheap and lazy as possible. But somethings do require a little of time and it's important to make that time. We can't afford not to.

Privacy versus Convenience

I spent time researching webcam covers for my devices. Go ahead and say it, "reads Edward Snowden once." Anyways, the problem is that my smartphone and laptop both use facial recognition and well..these things completely block the sensors (which are outside of and on either-side of the camera). So I could get one of these things, but then I have to permanently give up my facial recognition - even when it's convenient. Which made me realize how easy it was to sacrifice my own privacy for convenience. The smartphones we carry have the batteries secured and built in. We almost never turn off our devices and even if we do turn them off, they're never truly off. The apps are always running and always sending information. And even if we cover the camera, our mics are always hot. So at all times we are broadcasting our location, recording our voices as well as our faces and every app/program/third-party is happily storing and collecting this data for consumption. To consume. To continually make happy consumers. At the same time, we willingly are giving away more than anyone needs to know through social media. We freely share our thoughts and ideas. Hell, I'm typing this here and broadcasting it in a public domain for all to see. So who cares, why should we care, what can we even do? Can't even pretend to half-ass care by covering my webcam with one of these fucking covers, because I don't want to give up my facial recognition. I like that my devices auto-dim, I love that the screen magically unlocks. I like being connected online and having a place to share thoughts. Hook, line, and sinker.

The more time I spend in front of a screen, the more time I realize I need to get away from it all.