Graduation

Wow, did I ever blow it by forgetting to post some pics from graduation last weekend. It was fun, and a great achievement. We'll celebrate that achievement when you are all here.





















Excited, nervous and a bit sick.

more pics....

Yes, that is her (in blue) receiving her School of Education pin.














After receiving her diploma (taken from the jumbotron screen)



















Victory!

Nature was very kind to us...

The AP is reporting:

New data from NASA's Themis mission, a quintet of satellites launched this winter, found the energy comes from a stream of charged particles from the sun flowing like a current through twisted bundles of magnetic fields connecting Earth's upper atmosphere to the sun.

The energy is then abruptly released in the form of a shimmering display of lights visible in the upper latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere...

To scientists' surprise, the geomagnetic storm powering the auroras raced 400 miles in a minute across the sky. Angelopoulos estimated the storm's power was equal to the energy released by a magnitude 5.5 earthquake.

"Nature was very kind to us," Angelopoulos said.

I wonder what he meant by that...

Thanks to Lucianne

Truth in advertising...

View other fun, old advertisements here...

Hello and thank you for calling The State Mental Hospital...

Please listen carefully because the menu options have changed. Select from the following options:

If you are obsessive-compulsive, press 1 repeatedly.

If you are co-dependent, please ask someone to press 2 for you.

If you have multiple personalities, press 3, 4, 5 and 6.

If you are paranoid, we know who you are and what you want, stay on the line so we can trace your call.

If you are delusional, press 7 and your call will be forwarded to the Mother Ship.

If you are schizophrenic, listen carefully and a little voice will tell you which number to press.

If you are manic-depressive, it doesn't matter which number you press, nothing will make you happy anyway.

If you are dyslexic, press 9696969696969696.

If you are bipolar, please leave a message after the beep or before the beep or after the beep. Please wait for the beep.

If you have short-term memory loss, press 9. If you have short-term memory loss, press 9. If you have short-term memory loss, press 9.

If you have low self-esteem, please hang up our operators are too busy to talk with you.

If you are menopausal, put the gun down, hang up, turn on the fan, lie down and cry. You won't be crazy forever.

If you are blonde, don't press any buttons, you'll just mess it up.

This Incredible Creation

I am continually amazed by the one-sidedness of the reporting done by the media about global warming, climate change and other current environmental issues. I guess I shouldn't be amazed, but deep down I hold out hopes that in the end they really want the to get to the Truth, not just to further the trumped-up crisis by aiding and abetting the envrion-fascists.
My most strenuous disagreement with the media's reporting is their unwillingness to admit that there are untold variables in each environmental issue, and that scientists are only beginning to uncover a portion of the complex interconnectedness of creation. They operate from a position of unconscionable arrogance when they claim that they know the cause of whatever global warming crisis might exist. Of course, when a Creator is denied, why should there be any humility?
Anyway, here is another one of those recently discovered variables which effect the global climate - not caused by, nor able to be manipulated by, mankind.

A team of NASA and university scientists has detected an ongoing reversal in Arctic Ocean circulation triggered by atmospheric circulation changes that vary on decade-long time scales. The results suggest not all the large changes seen in Arctic climate in recent years are a result of long-term trends associated with global warming.

...Reporting in Geophysical Research Letters, the authors attribute the reversal to a weakened Arctic Oscillation, a major atmospheric circulation pattern in the northern hemisphere. The weakening reduced the salinity of the upper ocean near the North Pole, decreasing its weight and changing its circulation.

...Morison said data gathered by Grace and the bottom pressure gauges since publication of the paper earlier this year highlight how short-lived the ocean circulation changes can be. The newer data indicate the bottom pressure has increased back toward its 2002 level. "The winter of 2006-2007 was another high Arctic Oscillation year and summer sea ice extent reached a new minimum," he said. "It is too early to say, but it looks as though the Arctic Ocean is ready to start swinging back to the counterclockwise circulation pattern of the 1990s again."

I wonder when this little tidbit will be widely reported in the media.



Thanks to Ace for the news. No thanks to Al Gore, who seems to have overlooked it.

Silent but deadly...

Martin Luther, great man of faith and protestant father, apparently had a unique and effective method of resisting the devil.

'Although I know this [i.e., that I am to rejoice in the Lord and expect good of him], I am of a different mind ten times in the course of a day. But I resist the devil, and often it is with a fart that I chase him away. When he tempts me with silly sins I say, “Devil, yesterday I broke wind too. Have you written it down on your list?” When I say to him, “You have been put to shame,” he believes it, for he does not want to be despised.'

Thanks to Maggie's Farm for the tip

The fruits of rampant political correctness

This is a little disturbing.

and by "a little" I mean "a LOT".

How on EARTH does this sort of thing happen? Ok, yeah, we have lots of illegal immigrants. its a problem.

Good idea #1: how about we NOT give them jobs at the FBI and CIA?? hmm?

Good idea #2: If the "undocumented migrant" happens to be from Lebanon, and you simply HAVE to give her a job with the CIA, how about recognizing a HUGE conflict of interest and assign her to... oh, ANYTHING EXCEPT HIZBALLAH!!!.

morons.

Whiners vs. Succeeders

The creator of 24, a Hollywood conservative, has some great advice for conservatives, advice which also happens to highlight one major difference between conservatives and liberals:

Our job is not to whine, that's their job. Our job is to succeed despite the adversity.

He also goes on to say that Jack Bauer's no-holds-barred approach to fighting terrorism simply represents common sense, something we have dismissed in our fight against terrorism, because we're mired in constitutional and law enforcement issues instead of approaching it like the war that it is. This explains, in part, the show's popularity.

Our Pumpkin 2007

I almost forgot to show you.

Word for the day

paean /ˈpiən/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[pee-uhn]
- noun

1.	any song of praise, joy, or triumph.

2.	a hymn of invocation or thanksgiving to Apollo or some other ancient Greek deity.

as in, Sarkosy's paean to America. This is one Frenchman who is a friend of the United States of America! Nor more freedom fries - we're goin' back to French!



Thanks to Ace for the idea.

Michigan people not so crazy after all...

The 2008 Bullitt Mustang...

Vote for Juan!

One of our family friends from South Bend is running for major (you may have seen him at our wedding). He's a great Christian man and it would be awesome if he won.

Here's the latest article about the race.

Crazy Michigan people

A man in Buchanan was sentenced to time in jail after assalting someone with pickles.

Turns out they speak English in London

Another exciting Drudge story...

"Maybe he was joking, but gregarious Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder confessed today he didn’t know until Tuesday that people spoke English in London."

What?!

Drudge is breathlessly reporting: Alarming Rise in Naked Hotel Sleepwalkers... From Sky News:

Workers at a chain of budget hotels are being given advice on how to deal with naked sleepwalkers. It follows an increase in the number of guests found wandering around in the night with no clothes on. A study by Travelodge found there had been more than 400 cases in the past year, almost all involving men.

The research, conducted in 310 Travelodge hotels, found sleepwalkers wandered all over the building.

Is it just me or is sleeping in the nude in a cheap hotel about the grossest travel habit imaginable?! Moral of the story: stay away from Travelodges!

Inspirational act of the day

Ms Pee-losi should take some notes from Laura Bush.

When a culture advocates an idea that is completely opposite to the idea of your own culture, you are left with a decision: you cannot support each culture. multiculturalism has limits; some ideas are polar opposites and cannot survive together.

When pelosi made her tantrum trip of treasonous diplomacy to Syria, she dolled herself up in Mohammed's finest... in order to be sensitive to the culture of repression and subjugation of women. Apparently she inst the champion of civil rights she claims to be.

Rosa Parks didn't follow the cultural rules of the day, and now she is a hero of the civil rights movement.

But I digress. The reason for my tirade is this picture I found taken from Laura Bush's latest trip to UAE.


My first thoughtwas: "wow she looks kinda like an ignorant american tourist, thats kinda embarrasing. Like a blonde girl in Mexico wearing a giant sombrero or something." But then I realized that she is the First Lady of the US, she clearly has cultural advisors and wardrobe managers to take care of her. And this is NOT Mexico.

She said no, I dont want to condone and support this aspect of your culture, it is offensive to me and I will not participate in it. And she said it all without actually SAYING a word.

you see, actions speak a lot louder than words. I am hearing a lot of WORDS coming from "THE MOST ETHICAL CONGRESS EVER" (stop laughing!! I am serious, that is what pelosi called it!!) but not a lot of action to back it up.

Go Colts!

Big game last night. Seems like all the AFC South teams have a bead on the Colts every year. But Peyton destroys ALL!!!

In other news, I am feeling a little tickling of platonic man-crush for Bob Sanders. Freaking 5'7" tiny bullet doom from the secondary. So fast.

That is all.

Iranian "news"

I'm writing a paper which requires me to read a government issued Iranian news source for two weeks, and I have found some pretty crazy stuff for your enjoyment. Keep in mind that all of these statements are not quotes from people, but are journalistic additions subtlety worked into the masterpieces that are these Iranian news stories.

"The independent stance of Iran and China vis a vis the hegemony of certain powers serves international peace and stability."

"George Bush, who is aiming to be the world leader, believes he can do something new by creating a chaotic atmosphere in the Middle East."

From Ahmadinejad: "Though the enemy (US & Columbia U) had made preparations for not allowing Iran's voice to be heard, they could not succeed."

"The president's visit (to the UN) also showed the dignity of Iran to the international community and made the enemy's plots boomerang."

Headline: "Britons Smarter than Americans"

"The president noted that negotiations with the US are only possible if the US reconsiders its unacceptable behavior...given our culture and scientific background, the world has nothing to offer and this was quite evident from what happened at Columbia University...with the help of Almighty God, the whole thing turned against them."

my personal favorite:
"The zionist regime knows very well how Iran will hit back, if it dares to attack. Israel is in range of all Iranian missiles. We can also attack Israel by our jet fighters. We will not let Israel do a damn thing as easily as it does its propaganda."

"The mechanisms of Americans reveal their weaknesses...Iran is helping restore security to Iraq while the US is helping the counter-revolutionary forces inside Iraq."

and one for you, matt...
"The US is not qualified to host the international meetings of the United Nations...related to the US refusal to issue visas to foreign dignitaries entitled to attend a UN meeting because of its domestic policy and other limitations imposed by the American administration."

Pumpkin Carving Ideas

Let's have some photos of potential Halloween pumpkins. I need a shot of creativity this year...


















Image credit: Classical Values

Thank you, Algore. You're super awesome

"But have no fear, because I am here to save you. And someday, when the world is rid of Manbearpig, everyone will say, 'Thank you, Algore. You're super awesome.' The End."


"Everyone is super-stoked on me, even if they don't know it."


"Excelsior!"

When the interests of prudence and the demands of shame happen to coincide...

"We came so close to World War Three that day"

The American Spectator ran an article last week exploring the recent Israeli air strike on Syria. The silence shrouding this event is no small wonder considering the climate of self-aggrandizement, accusations, and leaks from players in the region.

While having no clue what actually happened, or why, I am nonetheless impressed, once again, with the highly skilled Israeli military and intelligence, and with the discipline in the Bush camp to resist strutting about in righteous indignation singing, "We told you so!". With all the negative both Bush and Israel have faced, the way they have apparently handled this speaks volumes to their maturity. Unless those with higher security clearances and more inside contacts than I have insights they wish to share with us...(and you're right, I have no security clearance or inside contacts).

UPDATE:
It appears that Syria is now at least admitting that the air strike did take place, and that the target was a nuclear facility. The way that information about this military attack is being choked off is unprecedented (at least as far as I know. I mean, really, if it were effectively choked off, how would I know?). But given the damage that, let's say, Iran, could do to Israel's standing by leaking details regarding this event, it continues to amaze me that information has been so effectively restrained. The mind simply reels at what might be the reason why mum's the word...

Bush's Legacy?

I can't decide whether this USA Today article, titled, Bush's Legacy: Faithful Conservatism, is snide and condescending, neutral, or supportive. Clearly, a lot of folks don't like the colleges that educate young people who are evangelical Christians as well as conservative in their politics. The press has recently uncovered a nefarious and troublesome plot - a true conspiracy - that some colleges (even law schools, heaven forbid) seem to have an agenda that includes graduating politically conservative, evangelical students with goals that include influencing government. Imagine! The message is clear: if you're a conservative evangelical Christian, you need to shut up and get in the corner while the grown ups - Methodists, Presbyterians and Catholics - handle the hard stuff.

I certainly don't want to be overly suspicious, but it seems to me an effective way to discredit someone or some group right now is to show them as aligned with President Bush, or worse yet, as potential Bush torchbearers (ie, "Legacy"). Bush Derangement Syndrome will only be cured by a government-wide purging of Bush hires - a Bush enema, if you will - just as soon after Jan 20, 2009 as humanly possible, so it's not too soon to begin identifying those to be flushed.

It's a short article, so read it. McLean Bible Church even gets a mention,

Among themselves, evangelicals at the White House would joke about "outing" each other. You only knew about another evangelical, one Patrick Henry intern at the White House told me, if you ran into him on a Sunday morning at McLean Bible Church in Northern Virginia, a fancy megachurch attended by prominent conservative lawmakers. I once heard a Patrick Henry senior who had just finished a White House internship explain testily to a sophomore that no, he should not write on his application that the Bible was the book that had influenced him the most.

A Proper Dog...

Misterrrr Mayor!

So I got to go hear Mayor Giuliani speak today, front row. No big deal :].
He was actually really good though--well spoken and humble. He did the whole baseball bit and moved right into keeping the country safe and turning around the economy, with some hillary bashing along the way. He really broke down basic republican economic theory, explaining how cutting taxes actually leads to higher revenue and pointing out that for the leading dems, this stuff is all theoretical because none have even had to balance a budget, in comparison to his successful fiscal policies in NYC. He did an extended critique of Hillary's latest "baby-bond" idea, using it as a case study in the difference between the way he and she think. Interesting stuff!
I also found out that one of my roomates, featured in the above picture, is the niece of the mayor of Houston, who apparently won with like 90% of the votes and is thinking of running for governor, then president. I smell a potential internship/job?

Da Lions

So, are the folks in Michigan all a'buzz about the lions this year? I mean, they beat the Bears, but will they actually be good this year? I still can't bring myself to believe....

British insight on OIF

Very detailed, well researched article that covers most of the major contributers to the current Iraq. Interesting read, albeit a little long.

Much of this information I have learned through independent research and through the ins and outs of my job... (sorry, lowly serfs... no details for you) But there is still a lot of really great info in this article and it is all presented in a logical, well-thought out fashion.

really, quite a breath of fresh air from the normal "ZOMG!! %&$# BUSHITLER!!"

"vast celebrations of solipsism..."

An interesting and well-written article on social networking; well worth the 30 minute reading time. There is a lot of food-for-thought here, with an eye toward what kind of a culture are we creating via Facebook, Myspace, etc.

Because friendship depends on mutual revelations that are concealed from the rest of the world, it can only flourish within the boundaries of privacy; the idea of public friendship is an oxymoron.

There is something Orwellian about the management-speak on social networking sites: “Change My Top Friends,” “View All of My Friends” and, for those times when our inner Stalins sense the need for a virtual purge, “Edit Friends.” With a few mouse clicks one can elevate or downgrade (or entirely eliminate) a relationship.

“There is a sense of, ‘if I’m not online or constantly texting or posting, then I’m missing something,’” he said of his students. “This is where I find the generational impact the greatest—not the use of the technology, but the overuse of the technology.”

Some pictures from our Canada trip......eh

Who do you trust?

In research published in the journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, a team of scientists from Britain, the US and Germany (including a Nobel Prize recipient for work on ozone) are reporting

Measurements of emissions from the burning of biofuels derived from rapeseed and maize have been found to produce more greenhouse gas emissions than they save.

Yea, like rapeseed and maize produce

up to 70 per cent and 50 per cent more greenhouse gases respectively than fossil fuels.

How many of you knew that burning corn-based ethanol actually produces 50 percent more greenhouse gases than fossil fuels?

Perhaps we've jumped the gun a bit in our Al Gore-led march against global warming? Perhaps all those corn-state Senators who turned on the dollar-spigot for their maize-producing states while proposing to further penalize fossil fuels with higher tariffs and taxes were a bit hasty in their initiatives?

The findings illustrated the importance, the researchers said, of ensuring that measures designed to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions are assessed thoroughly before being hailed as a solution.

Or, could it be that concern for emissions and clean air are in fact secondary to their primary concern for power, wealth and control? Could it be that there are those in our society who would capitalize on fear to build their own power-base?

Just who do you trust to tell the truth? Can you trust what you read in any newspaper? Or what you hear on the radio or see on the TV? Can you trust what you hear from our government? How do we function as a society if we have to always begin from a position of skepticism? Do we even punish those who are purposefully deceptive anymore?

Avast, me hearties!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!
We pillage, we plunder, we rifle and loot
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!
We extort, we pilfer, we filch and sack
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
Maraud and embezzle and even hijack
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!
We kindle and char, inflame and ignite
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
We burn up the city, we're really a fright
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
We're rascals, scoundrels, villains, and knaves
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!
We're beggars and blighters and ne'er-do-well cads
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!
Aye! But we are loved by our mommies and dads
Drink up, me hearties, yo ho!

Today is Talk Like a Pirate Day!! ARRRRRRR!!!

Brothers, care for your sisters...

In Tales from Shakespeare, the Puffin Classic from 1807, the preface reads, in part:

It has been wished to make these Tales easy reading for very young children. To the utmost of their ability the writers have constantly kept this in mind; but the subjects of most of them made this a very difficult task. It was no easy matter to give the histories of men and women in terms familiar to the apprehension of a very young mind. For young ladies, too, it has been the intention chiefly to write; because boys being generally permitted the use of their fathers' libraries at a much earlier age than girls are, they frequently have the best scenes of Shakespeare by heart, before their sisters are permitted to look into this manly book; and, therefore, instead of recommending these Tales to the perusal of young gentlemen who can read them so much better in the originals, their kind assistance is rather requested in explaining to their sisters such parts as are hardest for them to understand: and when they have helped them to get over the difficulties, then perhaps they will read to them (carefully selecting what is proper for a young sister's ear) some passage which has pleased them in on of these stories, in the very words of the scene from which it is taken; and it is hoped they will find that the beautiful extracts, the select passages, they may choose to give their sisters in this way will be much better relished and understood from their having some notion of the general story from one of these imperfect abridgments;...

One pines for those good ol' days...

I for one welcome our Robot Overlords

This little guy is amazing! watch the difference between his first attempt (with the tether) and the second. He has had some algorithm upgrades.

"Poverty" in America

I found this fantastic article today. I encourage you to read it all.
But in case you are lazy and disregard my recommendations: a few excerpts...

The overwhelming majority of [Govt defined 37 million "poor people"] have cable television, have air conditioning, have microwaves, have two color TVs...45 percent of own their own homes, which are typically three-bedroom homes with 1{1/2} baths in very good recondition... and actually have more living space than the average person living in European countries.

Uhhh... thats a bigger house than I have. I must be WAY poor!! and I only have ONE tv! WOE IS ME!! GIVE ME MONEY!!

The reason the Census Bureau is telling us that we have 37 million poor people is that it judges families to be poor if they have incomes roughly less than $20,000 a year. But it doesn’t count ... food stamps, public housing, Medicaid. All of the $600 billion that we spend assisting poor people (per year) is not counted as income when they go to determine whether a family is poor. [emphasis mine]

Dang! That is a lot of money! 600 Billion. with a B.
1 million dollars x 600,000. each year.
Why havnt we been able to solve the problem? Could it be that the solution is more complex than throwing money at it? hmmm...

The problem is that aid is given in such a way that it encourages dependence rather than helping people to become self-sufficient... Poverty was declining rapidly before the War on Poverty was created in the mid-1960s, and since that time the poverty rate has basically stagnated... All of these programs discourage work and marriage, so that they in fact are pushing people deeper into poverty at the same time that they are giving them aid.

Right. Dont get me wrong, I do sympathize with the genuine poor and down-trodden in America, especially kids. I do NOT sympathize with laziness and irresponsibility.

Our welfare system, like most things liberal, is from the heart and has good intentions... but suffers from a wholesale lack of common sense and "real world" thought. We have a system that financially encourages a single mother of 6 to stay single lest she receive a smaller handout from the rest of us. Not only that, but we encourage her to have a couple more kids to get some extra income.

We are creating an entire sub-society of people who are choosing to be locked into a perpetual cycle of handouts, selfishness and laziness.

Like I said before, there ARE a lot of people who legitimately need help for one reason or another. But we are unable to give them the attention they require because their voice is lost in the deafening roar of the hoards of people who just want a free buck.

Back like the Backstreet Boys

I got a new computer at work, and lost the link to the blog, so I've been absent. But i'm back. And i'm ready to post all the fun news leaks about the UN and other happenings. :D

Madeleine L'Engle (1918- 2007)

Madeleine L'Engle died September 6 at the age of 88. We are the richer for her life and writings. A tribute of sorts found here, at an eerily familiar blog...


Thanks to The Anchoress for the news and link.

Ever wonder what they actually do at Aberdeen Proving Grounds? Well, Josh, your secret is out!







Thanks to AoS for the link.

In 1863, Robert E. Lee said:

It appears we have appointed our worst generals to command forces, and our most gifted and brilliant to edit newspapers. In fact, I discovered by reading newspapers that these editor/geniuses plainly saw all my strategic defects from the start, yet failed to inform me until it was too late. Accordingly, I am readily willing to yield my command to these obviously superior intellects, and I will, in turn, do my best for the Cause by writing editorials - after the fact.

I guess General Patraeus isn't the first, then.



Thanks to Lucianne for the quote.

Rather fight than switch!!

File this under, "Huh?" It is being reported that yesterday presidential candidate Fred Thompson credited the recent improvements we've seen in the western Anbar province of Iraq to al Qaeda's corporate no smoking policy. According to Fred, I guess when given a choice between the 72 virgins or their smokes, these Iraqi's would rather fight than switch!!*

I'm dubious. I can only hope that:

• a) this story is a joke, maybe from the Onion
• b) this is a parsed story, the full details of which will surface later, or
  
• c) the Israeli Intelligence has been experimenting on Iraqi nationals for years, and Senator Fred absentmindedly leaked their secret weapon for subduing the region (Marlboros)
  

Weird, eh?!



*For those too young to remember the advertising campaign, and therefore unable to appreciate the stunning play on words employed - this old TV commercial, this, and this. Yes sir, that taste worth fighting for!! I only wish I had the ability to photoshop an Iraqi face into the ad. Remember you saw it here first.

The 9/11 "Puts"

In the world of financial investments, you can purchase what is called a "put option" against a myriad things, from specific corporate stocks, to various indexes, to virtually anything upon which a value can be placed. A "put" is basically a bet that the value of said security will decline by a certain amount and by a certain date. It is a gamble, but with a known and limited downside. If the value doesn't decline, you loose whatever it cost you to purchase the "put", but no more. However, if it does decline, well, the money you gambled on the "put" is multiplied many times over and you can really score big. (Of course, your big score comes at the expense of those you sold you the "put", who figured you were crazy and wanted to bet against you.)

So, it turns out, someone or some group purchased a ton of "puts" against American and United airlines, as well as several of the largest financial firms, before 9/11/2001. It doesn't take much of a conspiracy theorist to think that someone knew that some event would occur to make those companies loose value, and that that someone decided to take advantage of their inside knowledge. Homeland Security says there were "huge surges" in the purchases of put options on these stocks, and whoever bought those puts made massive amounts of money.

DHS goes on to say:

Fast forward to the present day, and we have the same type of trading that took place in the days that preceded the 9/11 attacks – but on a larger scale. Nearly $1 billion of “put options” have been purchased, basically betting that Standard and Poor's 500 index will fall significantly by the third Friday in September. A large number of these options have also been purchased calling for 50% decline by September 21, 2007. For example, a 5% drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average would be the current equivalent of about 670 points. A decline of 11% would equal about 1,470 points in today’s market. Obviously, larger drops, such as a 50% decline, would cause an unprecedented market collapse. Money would be made for the purchaser(s) of the put options – but the same purchaser(s) stand to lose over $1 BILLION in the investment if the market remains relatively static through September 21, 2007. (Emphasis all theirs)

Now, markets are pretty topsy-turvey right now (topsy-turvey is a pretty specific financial term that I learned in grad school), and so it doesn't suprise me that some bets are being made against the indexes. Still, there are some things that make me go, "Hmm..."



Thanks to PW for the link...

Fred Thompon's Announces his Candidacy for President

I like this guy's style. and more importantly, his ideas and world view.

Microsoft to Customer: "We feel your pain!"

Thanks to Stubborn Facts

I remember the good old days

Did you hear they banned kids from playing tag at a Colorado school?? They were talking about it on the radio this morning and apparently a lot of schools here have already banned it. Kids are getting soft (emotionally...and physically as well).

Wow

I first read about these guys 8 months or so ago in the Wall Street Journal. I downloaded their album, and it is really good, beginning to end. But to watch them ply their trade live on the Letterman stage, is something altogether different. Wow.

Mind your own business...!

It appears that helpful folk from the "international community" are becoming more outspoken in their judgment of our ways here in the good ol' U.S. of A. As if our foreign policy doesn't offer enough juicy run-off to quench the critics' thirst, they're now lapping up on our gastronomical foibles (the comment section provides a wonderful insight into the advanced intelligence of our foreign critics), and even sipping at our system of justice and punishment for heinous crimes. They misjudged, apparently, the complete and utter apathy with which Texans view international criticism; the direct appeal from the further-evolved European culture warranted a 3 - sentence official response; clearly the Texas Governor doesn't want anyone in Brussels confused by fancy rhetoric or evasive verbosity, as is the penchant with higher life forms. Investors only need apply: The rest of you underfed intellectuals can chew on the fact that we pwned your weak selves 230 years ago, and we pwn you today! Get along, lil' doggy! Brilliant!!

Save Me From Myself: Save Others From Me...

“How did I get here?...Why is my life such a nightmare?...

Save Me From Myself: How I Found God, Quit Korn, Kicked Drugs, and Lived to Tell My Story, released on July 7 (7/7/07), is a reflection of the ex-band member’s amazing conversion story.

Hopefully he feels the weight of responsibility for the poor role model he was during those days, too.

The old maxim that money and fame don't buy happiness remains true, though many think it's just a korny saying, and are therefore destined find out the hard way, I guess.

F-22 Raptor bliss

Watch the whole thing!

Fight Global Warming: Drive, don't walk...

Food production is now so energy-intensive that more carbon is emitted providing a person with enough calories to walk to the shops than a car would emit over the same distance. The climate could benefit if people avoided exercise, ate less and became couch potatoes.

All I can say is, "Wow".

China tells living Buddhas to obtain permission before they reincarnate

Now that's what I call government regulation...

proud to be an anglican

An article I found after seeing the story on CNN this morning... Canon White came to Wheaton last fall and talked to my IR class, and I got to talk with him one on one a little after class. He's a little crazy--he talks like a drunk British sailor. :] Such an amazing man--he worked for years for peace between Palestine and Israel, negotiating on first name basis with Yasser Arafat and Ariel Sharon. Since the invasion he has now been the only vicor of an Anglican church in Baghdad, which he told us all about. He has a great talent for using his religious position to work for peace--he's grounded, but a visionary at the same time. And now, after working so hard and risking so much, he gets pushed back to Britain...

RSS has changed my life

OK. seriously.

REVOLUTIONIZED the way that I waste time on the internet.

I was confused about it for a while and never bothered to check it out, but WOW! it is a wonderful idea. I just started using the Google Reader and it is fantastic. basically like Gmail for the rest of the internet. clean, concise and useful.

I cannot urge you enough to check it out. You can see at a glance what is new on your favorite websites. just like checking your email. No more clicking through your entire bookmarks list to read all the new stuff. Its all just right there on one page.

beautiful

Matt, You are next!

Consider this fair warning...



I have a hard time believing that this is actually put forth as a major concern... but people are crazy I guess.

Darn those sheep burps! why wont someone think of the polar bears??

Favorite Line:
A single cow can produce between 100 and 200 litres of methane every day.

200 Liters??!! wow.

Lithium-Ion battery tips

Some good tips for extending Li-Ion battery life...

Spicy Gadget Rolls has some basic tips on extending the life of Lithium-Ion (Li-ion) batteries, commonly found these days in cellphones, laptops, mobile media players, etc...

The wisdom of Algore

"We are in a transition time in history when the only way we can get to where we need to be is by starting from where we are..."

I'm not making that up!

Don't drink the Kool-Aid!

From Wikipedia:

It is also now closely associated with the 1978 cult mass-suicide/murder in Jonestown, Guyana. Jim Jones, the leader of the Peoples Temple, convinced his followers to move to Jonestown. Late in the year, he then ordered his flock to commit suicide by drinking grape-flavored Flavor Aid laced with potassium cyanide. In what is now commonly called the "Jonestown Massacre," a large majority of the 913 people later found dead drank the brew. (The discrepancy between the idiom and the actual occurrence is likely due to Flavor Aid's relative obscurity versus the easily recognizable Kool-Aid.) The precise expression can be attested in usage at least as early as 1987. One lasting legacy of the Jonestown tragedy is the saying, "Don't drink the Kool-Aid." This has come to mean, "Don’t trust any group you find to be a little on the kooky side," or "Whatever they tell you, don't believe it too strongly." The phrase can also be used in the opposite sense to indicate that one has blindly embraced a particular philosophy or perspective (a "Kool-Aid drinker", or, as a cynical response to a fanatical claim, "sounds like someone's been drinking the Kool-Aid!").

Siblings...

Global warming on the ropes

Two more significant protests from the science community over the hype being given to human wrought global warming. A Canadian Climatologist who has actually researched and studied the subject of global warming says that the sun is the prime mover:

The Canadian expert concludes, “CO2 variations show little correlation with our planet’s climate on long, medium and even short time scales.” Instead, Earth’s sea surface temperatures show a massive 95 percent lagged correlation with the sunspot index.

Patterson says climate change is the most complex field we’ve ever studied. He notes that a 2003 German poll of 530 scientists from 27 countries found two-thirds of the respondents doubted that “the current state of scientific knowledge is developed well enough to allow for a reasonable assessment of the effects of greenhouse gases.”

Also, American Thinker is reporting that Science Magazine, the "flagship journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science" is "waffling like mad on the global warming fad, warning its readers that it may not be so settled a question." (I have to take them at their word since the magazine is behind a subscription firewall).

In the article it is revealed that computer models that form the basis for the IPCC document on global warming failed to realistically account for the cooling effect of aerosols - otherwise known as haze, water-vapor and airborne particles - and therefore the "simulations look more certain than they should."

Of course, that IPCC document is what is always referred to when the global warming chicken littles want to prove the infallibility of their religion. Skeptics have been poking holes in its veracity all along, but these two straws seem to add a lot of weight to the camel's back. Metaphorically speaking, that is...

For you, Jannell

ABM.mp3

All alone

I bet no one will read this sad and lonely entry to the blog since you all are together. I survived my first day alone. I watched more TV than I have in one day in a very long time, cleaned the house, and even played Xbox (watch out, Josh, I'm getting better).

Seriouly, though, I hope you have some good family time! I wish I could be there!

Small Arms Range

So today I got to go out to one of the ranges here at APG and shoot some guns for a couple of hours. HOOO BOY!! so much fun. Nothing like a 30 round clip at full auto...

I smell like gunpowder a little bit. :)

We had all kinds of guns there to play with. M-16, M-4, AK-47, AK-74, and several XM8 variants. Those XM8's were my favorites... saweeeet guns. H&K knows how to make a good gun.

I did not realise...

This is like the epitome of why no one should care what these people have to say about ANYTHING.

US actress Cameron Diaz has apologised for wearing a bag with a political slogan that evoked painful memories in Peru. [She] visited the Incan city of Machu Picchu in Peru's Andes wearing an olive green bag emblazoned with a red star and the words "Serve the People", perhaps Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong's most famous political slogan, printed in Chinese. The bags are marketed as fashion accessories in some cities around the world, but in Peru the slogan evokes memories of the Maoist Shining Path insurgency that fought the government in the 1980s and early 1990s in a bloody conflict that left nearly 70,000 people dead.

Right, so, oops? I thought it went well with my red shoes?

"I sincerely apologise to anyone I may have inadvertently offended," Diaz said in a statement. "The bag was a purchase I made as a tourist in China and I did not realise the potentially hurtful nature of the slogan printed on it."

Sigh. You are in CHINA. You buy a bag with a huge communist star on it. But then again, since when has communism hurt anyone, Cameron?

MIT Open Source

So, I downloaded an MIT course called "moral problems and the good life." I am not sure how much I'm going to get out of the lectures or readings, but I found some of the paper topics of particular interest. I think I'm going to assign them to myself, and do some research and then write a paper for my own personal edification. Here's the first one. Feel free to discuss and let me know your thoughts. I have never really thought about this before:


Is equality itself something of value? Are there specifically egalitarian reasons for objecting to inequalities? Or is the problem with inequalities that they result in unhappiness, or inefficiency, or some other disvalue?

Grace vs. Jell-o

An unapologetic ID-er, Michael Behe has written a book called, The Edge of Evolution: The search for the limits of Darwinism. Dr. Behe is a professor of Biological Sciences at Lehigh University, and his current research, ostensibly out of which came the book, involves delineation of design and natural selection in protein structures. Unfortunately, his work as a senior fellow with the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science & Culture apparently disqualifies his opinions and findings in the eyes of academia and the media.

In the book, Behe challenges the randomness of mutations that is fundamental to Darwinism with his extensive molecular research. On his Amazon profile he says:

Darwin’s theory is an amalgam of several concepts: 1) random mutation, 2) natural selection, and 3) common descent. Common descent and natural selection are very well-supported. Random mutation isn’t. Random mutation is severely constrained. So the process which produced the elegant structures of life could not have been random.

Later, in response to the question, "What evidence speaks most clearly to the role of intelligent design in biology?" he responds:

The elegance of the foundation of life — the cell. Charles Darwin and his contemporaries supposed the cell was a “simple globule of protoplasm,” a microscopic piece of Jell-O. They were wrong. Modern science reveals the cell is a sophisticated, automated, nano-scale factory.

Now, I clearly do not appreciate the pressure students face from academia with respect to the acceptance of evolution as explained by Darwinism, nor can I effectively refute the current-held beliefs or opinions with scientific or biological evidence. And, there are many Christians who have decided that the randomness of evolution and faith in a loving God who cares enough for his creation to send his Son to die, are not mutually exclusive. I just don't count myself amongst them; and Behe and others like him are why.

First of all, I don't think you can be intellectually honest and also insist that random mutation is a proven fact. That there are many scientists who disagree leaves me to assume that the debate is still on-going.

Secondly, it seems like we are continually increasing our knowledge of what actually occurs on the molecular level, and what we learn often serves to make Darwin's randomness more and more impossible.

Finally, I can't bring myself to dismiss the wonder, glory, and elegance of creation and all its intricate designs, and opt instead for random molecular processes. It just doesn't point to the God revealed in Scripture.

As old-fashioned and conservative as it makes me sound (and even feel), I whole-heartedly embrace creationism as the act of a creative, mysterious and complex deity. This, of course, makes Jesus Christ all the more incredible, since Hebrews names him as the creator; and the creator then died in the place of his creation (not some random mutation). That, my children, is consistent with the creative, mysterious and complex God revealed in the Scriptures. And that is GRACE. He gets the glory.

Responses?

Mere Christianity

I just got back from Monday church, a little perplexed. The main McLean Bible Church pastor was speaking on like the founding principles of the church, and was saying some things that had a couple of us sitting uneasy. He was confronting the "emergent church", claiming that he believes that McLean Bible Church is part of a "growing minority" of churches that are sticking to historical doctrine and "true" Christianity.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that "in the end time, there will be false prophets" that will distort Christianity to justify their twisted beliefs. But there seems to be something so wrong about his vehement attacks on this "emergent church." I still can't quite wrap my mind about what I found so troubling about it.

Listen for yourself (audio on the bottom right, might take a day or so for them to load it up): http://www.frontlinearlington.com/

So on the metro ride home, I took out C.S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity," which I am currently reading. And this ending to one of the chapters seemed to make sense.
"I feel a strong desire to tell you, and I expect you feel a strong desire to tell me, which one of these two errors is the worse. That is the devil getting at us. He always sends errors into the world into pairs -- pairs of opposites. And he always encourages us to spend a lot of time thinking which is the worse. You see why, of course? He relies on your extra dislike of the one error to draw you gradually into the opposite one. But do not let us be fooled. We have to keep our eyes on the goal and go straight through between both errors."

-A house divided cannot stand....

"Don't make me throwup!" - Bryson

"Reid Bryson, known as the father of scientific climatology, considers global warming a bunch of hooey."

In true Bryson fashion, using words like "hooey" and phrases like "don't make me throw up," he takes the power hungry, money grubbing, global warming fascists to task for being stupid; even if they are his former students, or students of his former students.

Yea, Bryson!

Global Warming responsible for Darfur

What a way to start off a Monday:

Climate change behind Darfur killing: UN's Ban
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that the slaughter in Darfur was triggered by global climate change and that more such conflicts may be on the horizon, in an article published Saturday.
"The Darfur conflict began as an ecological crisis, arising at least in part from climate change," Ban said in a Washington Post opinion column.

Look right past the fact that it is PEOPLE killing PEOPLE, and the fact that allegedly this global warming is happening everywhere, but I've not felt a sudden urge to rise up and commit genocide. The complete absurdity of this argument astounds me. The UN, who won't send in peacekeeping forces, would rather claim that its a 'larger' problem, one that should be met and dealt with by carbon caps and hybrid cars. That anyone could rise up in front of a global audience, citing the authority of the largest international governing body in the world, and to claim this without laughing at the audacity of it is beyond me.

in response to complaints about my lack of participation in this blog community

Even though I'm not sure how I feel about Mr. Thompson yet...this was funny.



The House’s emergency war-funding bill contains several conditions on how the war should be run. They’ll never become law but they “send signals” they say. They’re big on sending signals in Washington. But what I was really surprised to find in the bill was what looked like $25 billion in pure pork. Since a lot of the people who voted for the bill campaigned against pork, I was puzzled.

I’m puzzled there’s $283 million for dairy farmers in an emergency war-funding bill. But there’s also $74 million for peanut farmers so, I figured our soldiers are eating a lot of peanut-butter sandwiches; they need more milk to wash them down with.

Hey, I’m trying to keep an open mind, here, okay?

But I also wondered why the bill gives $25 million to spinach producers. Our troops should certainly eat their vegetables, but unless it turns out that there’s a scientific basis for that Popeye spinach thing, I don’t get it.

I’m also trying to figure out what $400 million for rural schools has to do with the war — unless that money produces students smart enough to explain why this bill includes over $300,000 for the widows of two ex-House members, and $80 million for low-income rent subsidies.

There’s a lot in the bill I don’t understand, but this sort of makes sense. There’s $50 million for repairs to the plant that supplies electrical power to the Capitol — where Congress works. To fund and win the war, Congress does need electricity at least to do its job.

Ah, I get it. This bill isn’t just about funding the war for democracy and freedom in Iraq. It’s a political statement. And it’s about buying enough votes with pork in order to make that statement. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing, if Congress did have its power cut off every once in a while.

--Fred Thompson

Smitten with Kittens!!!

Caesar washes while Maia snacks...

New favorite game of "lets each play with one end of a string".

Ummmmm...yeah.

I have no excuse. I can try, but really I got nothing. Sorry dad.

They were best friends and they play together all the time. They keep each other company all day while we are gone and all night while we sleep. They really are cute together!

It was really quite hard to get pics of them because they never sit still. Always pouncing on each other or tearing around the room... SO much fun.

And they sleep all snuggled together... Best Friends!

No Hitter!

Medical condition = lots of money

Is anyone else tired of hearing about Paris Hilton???

Photosynth demo

File this under: "good idea"

wow. this really could be very cool.

Sands of Passion - An Al Qaeda Soap Opera

Oh.

My.

Goodness.


This stuff was literally making me fall out of my chair laughing in parts. There are 5 episodes so far and they all have at least one HILARIOUS line. Definitely worth your time.

I would give them a PG-13 rating...

The Goracle on Neptune?

It appears as though Neptune has been warming over the past quarter century. I blame wal-mart. And I blame the melting of the Martian polar ice caps on....George Bush. Yeah...that sounds about right!

http://www.investors.com/editorial/editorialcontent.asp?secid=1501&status=article&id=265504461371071

Not for the Faint of Heart (or stomach)

Ok, for real. Don't say I didn't warn you...











I think I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.
That is one of the nastiest things I have ever seen.

Been slow for a while...

Thought I would jump-start things with a little Dilburt.









I used to laugh at Dilburt...
Now that I have a job I cry.



BOOOOOO Monday.