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I have updated my resume based upon suggestions received for those knowledgeable in the job search industry. You can view the resume here.

On this day 233 years ago, the United States of America legally separated from Great Britain to become a free and independent State. Read the Declaration of Independence to remember why!

I have posted my professional resume at the following link.

• Professional Resume of Michael A. Burns ...

I successfully completed upgrading my installation of andLinux following the instructions given here with the following exceptions:

• To get to "Software Sources", bring up the Synaptic Package Manager and select Repositories from the Settings menu.
• To run "Update Manager", I had to install it and then execute it from the command line.
  
  > sudo apt-get install update-manager
  > update-manager
  
• I had to make the same change to the rc.local file as I did when I upgraded to Hardy. The modification I needed to make is listed on this page.

The update took approximately 90 minutes complete. And, all is well.

Technorati : Hardy, Intrepid, andLinux, upgrade

For those of us in North Orange County, specifically Yorba Linda and north-east Anaheim, our commute is going to be tough for the next several months. The south-bound lanes of Imperial Highway between Orangethorpe and La Palma will be closed for up to 4 months starting Friday.

Read more about the closure in the OC Register article here.

We learned in the previous article that we have a Republican form of Government, a government ruled by law. The basis of our Government is held in the words found in the Declaration of Independence.

"... they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ..."

And, this forms the basis of my political beliefs! From these words, I have developed the "Three P's of Government" which define the proper role of government.

Three P's of Government
Protect Life - The government must protect the citizens it represents.
Preserve Liberty - The government must preserve the freedoms of it's citizens.
Permit the Pursuit of Happiness - The government must allow it's citizens to pursue happiness.

I apply each of these to a government action to determine whether the action is appropriate or not. If the action is in opposition to any of them, then the action is inappropriate. In most cases, an action will apply to at least two of these.

For example, let's take the issue of banning fireworks, something that is very common in Southern California.

Protect Life - Banning fireworks does protect life and property. This very reason is why the bans were proposed.

Preserve Liberty - Banning fireworks takes away a freedom. Law-abiding citizens are no longer free to use fireworks if they so choose.

Permit the Pursuit of Happiness - Banning fireworks does not really apply here. One could stretch it and say that the ban prevents them from "being happy", but that is not what is meant by "pursuit of happiness".

So, "banning fireworks" is not appropriate because it takes away a freedom from it's citizens even though it may protect lives and property.

Now, this seems pretty simplistic and limits the role of government. And, that is exactly the point. The role of government in our daily lives must be limited and, applying the "Three P's of Government" consistently, we can achieve that.

Merry Christmas to all!
May your day remind you of the joy we have in the Lord!

Yes, it’s cliché, but it’s the truth. Jesus is the reason for the season!

So, as we begin this Christmas season, listen to the song below and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Because, it’s called Christmas With A Capital “C”.

Christmas With A Capital “C” — Go Fish Guys