Monthly Archives: April 2010
Oyez, Oyez, Oyez
Dating back hundreds of years, town criers were responsible for broadcasting news to citizens who could neither read nor write. In modern times, town criers are a novelty. Criers in court, however, are still used everywhere from city courts to the Supreme Court.
This spring, I was a competitor in the West Virginia We the People Oratorical Competition with some of my classmates. Before handing out the awards, my teacher asked me to “cry in the judge.” For anyone who knows how much I like to speak, it isn’t a surprise that I enjoyed it. I have posted the words below:
All rise.
OYEZ, OYEZ, OYEZ.
Silence is now commanded in the courtroom under penalty of fine and imprisonment, while the Honorable Irene C. Berger, Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, is presiding.
All those with motions to make, pleas to enter, or actions to prosecute, come forward and you shall be heard.
God save the United States of America and this honorable court.
Please be seated and come to order.
(And my team won, by the way.)
Touchless Direction
For my birthday a couple of years ago, I received a Nextar GPS. Surprising to me, it has been one gadget that I am very happy that I own. The only downside to any GPS is the fact it doesn’t have a sense for knowing when roads disappear.
With that in mind, I considered purchasing a newer GPS model, but decided to go online to try to update the maps for my Nextar M3. I expected to dish out between $50 and $70 for the updated maps. When I visited the Nextar site, I found a happy surprise. Although they do not offer map updates to my Nextar model, they do offer the Nextar Product Exchange program. Long story short, I send them my Nextar M3 and a $90 check and they send me the new Q4-MD, Nextar’s newest feature-packed GPS model retailed at $299.99.
Nextar is not the first (or even second) company I think of for a GPS, but I urge anyone who already has an elderly Nextar to consider this new program.
March for Babies
Every day, thousands of babies are born too soon, too small and often very sick. I’m walking in March for Babies because I want to do something about this. And I need your help.
The mission of March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality. Your gift will support March of Dimes research and programs that help moms have full-term pregnancies and babies begin healthy lives. And it will be used to bring comfort and information to families with a baby in newborn intensive care.
Please support my walk. Making a secure donation is easy: just visit www.marchforbabies.org/christianmartine. Thank you for helping me give all babies a healthy start!
USPS Five-Day Delivery
If you haven’t heard, the United States Postal Service is in a money crunch with a projected $238 billion shortfall over the next ten years. The Postmaster General has proposed a controversial plan to save money: deliver mail only five days a week to home addresses while continuing six-day delivery to Post Offices and P.O. Boxes.
The Postal Service lists the major changes on its Web site. The main difference is that mail will not be picked up from collection boxes or processed at retail counters until the following Monday. This plan will not become in effect until at least October 2010, but Congress has the opportunity to prevent the proposal through new legislation.
What do you think?
Turning over a new LEAF in energy independence
In 1996, General Motors released the EV1, an electric vehicle with a range of up to 150 miles per charge. Many consumers jumped on the opportunity to lease the EV1 and loved the vehicle with a passion. Cities began creating an electric vehicle infrastructure with signs pointing drivers to many “Electric Vehicle Charging Stations.” Not only did the cars outperform many of the vehicles already on the road, but it met the needs of nearly all Americans. Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, the EV1 program ended many years ago.
What is surprising is how far this car would have gone in helping America to break its dependence on foreign oil. The reason that the EV1 is not see on the road has been speculated for years. The documentary, Who Killed the Electric Car? (sold on Amazon, among other sites) shows the many possible suspects. It could be the GM executives who had ties to oil companies or California politicians who made it more of a burden than a benefit to drivers of the electric vehicle or even a popular petroleum company who bought the rights to the EV1′s fuel cell. Nonetheless, the EV1 faded out just as quickly as it faded into the marketplace.
There is hope for the electric car, however. Nissan has developed the “Nissan Leaf,” a zero-emission vehicle powered solely by battery. The Nissan Leaf has 100 miles per charge city. Of course, there have been critics that say the Nissan Leaf does not have enough range. In reality, most Americans never drive over 30 miles per day, let alone 100.
Although the price is still too expensive to save money over the life of the vehicle on fuel, many have high hopes that the Nissan Leaf will be a pioneer in the new age of electronic vehicles. Once the Nissan Leaf comes down in price, it can be safely assumed that this is the first of many steps to cut back the dependence on foreign oil, but however ironic, the one American car company who had already created a worthy electric car, ended its program despite outcries from the public.
As America becomes more energy-independent, I hope that manufacturers of all types of goods continue to create products that help consumers not only curb carbon emissions but also save money.
