Love has its secret bells,
Heard by no one else.
Deafening sounds
That shake the ground.
But only in the minds
Of those love finds.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
Academic Help Desk
Kids with algebra problems can now get help from India. That's right, high-quality Indian math tutoring is available on the net, at discount rates.
Maybe there's something to it. Our entire system of numerals comes from India, and it was quite an improvement over the Roman numeral system - which didn't even have a zero.
Whoever invented zero deserves our thanks.
Otherwise when
You went to write "ten",
It would just be a one and a blank.
Maybe there's something to it. Our entire system of numerals comes from India, and it was quite an improvement over the Roman numeral system - which didn't even have a zero.
Whoever invented zero deserves our thanks.
Otherwise when
You went to write "ten",
It would just be a one and a blank.
The Green Threat
Plants spread pollen through-out the land,
Causing wheezing and sneezing.
If they weren't natural... they'd be banned!
Still, I admit, their appearance is pleasing.
Causing wheezing and sneezing.
If they weren't natural... they'd be banned!
Still, I admit, their appearance is pleasing.
Friday, October 21, 2005
Accounting for Vaccine Shortages
Today the Wall St. Journal ran an opinion piece by John Berlau, entitled "Death By Accounting?" His thesis is that our vaccine shortages are partly caused by a 1999 SEC accounting rule.
The new accounting rule applied to all sorts of businesses, but hit vaccine makers hard.
Here's how it works. Uncle Sam gives you money to make vaccines. You spend a lot of the money during the manufacturing process. On your books, you have to show the money you spent. But you are forbidden to show the money you already took in - until you actually deliver the vaccines. So your books look like you are losing money. And most companies hate looking unprofitable.
Berlau writes: "While one part of government is urging manufacturers to have a reserve on hand for a flu outbreak, another is telling them that they won't show any gain on their books for doing so."
Earlier in the year the Washington Post ran a story about the problem: "Although opinions differ, it appears that the Pediatric Vaccine Stockpile has become an innocent bystander wounded in the government's crackdown on deceptive accounting practices."
It looks to me
Like the books
Were cooked
By the SEC.
The new accounting rule applied to all sorts of businesses, but hit vaccine makers hard.
Here's how it works. Uncle Sam gives you money to make vaccines. You spend a lot of the money during the manufacturing process. On your books, you have to show the money you spent. But you are forbidden to show the money you already took in - until you actually deliver the vaccines. So your books look like you are losing money. And most companies hate looking unprofitable.
Berlau writes: "While one part of government is urging manufacturers to have a reserve on hand for a flu outbreak, another is telling them that they won't show any gain on their books for doing so."
Earlier in the year the Washington Post ran a story about the problem: "Although opinions differ, it appears that the Pediatric Vaccine Stockpile has become an innocent bystander wounded in the government's crackdown on deceptive accounting practices."
It looks to me
Like the books
Were cooked
By the SEC.
Thursday, October 20, 2005
He Asked For It
Monday a local woman counter-attacked an armed assailant, Kendro Earl.
"She smashed her attacker over the head with a bottle... leaped on Earl's back, bit him and jammed a finger into the gun's trigger guard to stop him from firing. The struggle spilled into the kitchen, where she grabbed a knife and stabbed Earl several times. Earl escaped, but an off-duty Cook County sheriff's deputy heard the woman's screams and caught up with him."
When he gets out of the hospital
He'll go to jail.
To keep him from getting out at all
They set high bail.
"She smashed her attacker over the head with a bottle... leaped on Earl's back, bit him and jammed a finger into the gun's trigger guard to stop him from firing. The struggle spilled into the kitchen, where she grabbed a knife and stabbed Earl several times. Earl escaped, but an off-duty Cook County sheriff's deputy heard the woman's screams and caught up with him."
When he gets out of the hospital
He'll go to jail.
To keep him from getting out at all
They set high bail.
To Sleep, Perchance
Don Watkins, in a post about rational decision-making, writes about the proper way to evaluate the question: should one stay up late reading Atlas Shrugged?
Here are 2 ways to decide:
A. Compare the value of reading now to the disvalue of being tired tomorrow.
B. Compare the value of reading now to the value of getting more sleep.
He thinks choice B is correct. I'm still trying to figure out if there is a real difference here.
As for me,
Whether A or B,
It's time for bed.
'Nuff said.
Here are 2 ways to decide:
A. Compare the value of reading now to the disvalue of being tired tomorrow.
B. Compare the value of reading now to the value of getting more sleep.
He thinks choice B is correct. I'm still trying to figure out if there is a real difference here.
As for me,
Whether A or B,
It's time for bed.
'Nuff said.
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Flu Query Update
The other day I wondered why we kept seeing delays and shortages in the flu vaccine business. Today there was an interesting opinion piece that touched on this in Investor's Business Daily. Titled "Why The U.S. Isn't Prepared For Bird Flu," it was written by Sally Pipes, who is the president of the Pacific Research Institute.
She asks: "So why don't U.S. drug companies, which dominate the global medicine market, make vaccines?"
Her answers, in brief:
1) Excessive FDA screening
2) Vaccines are expensive to produce
3) Out-of-control lawsuits about vaccines scare manufacturers away
4) Government price controls limit profitability. ("The government now buys 57% of all childhood vaccines, forcing steep discounts on manufacturers.")
Now I understand.
They got in the way of supply and demand.
She asks: "So why don't U.S. drug companies, which dominate the global medicine market, make vaccines?"
Her answers, in brief:
1) Excessive FDA screening
2) Vaccines are expensive to produce
3) Out-of-control lawsuits about vaccines scare manufacturers away
4) Government price controls limit profitability. ("The government now buys 57% of all childhood vaccines, forcing steep discounts on manufacturers.")
Now I understand.
They got in the way of supply and demand.
Monday, October 17, 2005
Finishing The Portrait
I finished reading Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. I'm not recommending it, but if you want to read it, make sure to get an edition that has good notes so you can decipher some of the allusions, the Irish dialect, and the Latin which litters the text. I had some advantages reading this book. I know a medium amount about Ireland, Catholicism, and what the Irish do with English. Still, I found myself checking the notes quite a bit.
The novel combines a stream of consciousness technique with a lot of naturalistic detail. I found it hard to keep my bearings in the stream of consciousness, and hard to plow through the naturalistic detail. There isn't a plot, exactly, but there is a through-line to the story: the writer's liberation from the psychological confines of his family, religion, and schooling. At least, that's how I read it.
Joyce does write beautifully at times:
"His heart danced upon her movements like a cork upon the tide."
"A veiled sunlight lit up faintly the grey sheet of water where the river was embayed. In the distance along the course of the slow-flowing Liffey slender masts flecked the sky and, more distant still, the dim fabric of the city lay prone in haze."
Despite his gift of gab
I found the story drab.
The novel combines a stream of consciousness technique with a lot of naturalistic detail. I found it hard to keep my bearings in the stream of consciousness, and hard to plow through the naturalistic detail. There isn't a plot, exactly, but there is a through-line to the story: the writer's liberation from the psychological confines of his family, religion, and schooling. At least, that's how I read it.
Joyce does write beautifully at times:
"His heart danced upon her movements like a cork upon the tide."
"A veiled sunlight lit up faintly the grey sheet of water where the river was embayed. In the distance along the course of the slow-flowing Liffey slender masts flecked the sky and, more distant still, the dim fabric of the city lay prone in haze."
Despite his gift of gab
I found the story drab.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Wherefore Art Thou
I have a dog named Romeo.
At the pound, they were calling him Calvin. That was too religious for me, so I decided to call him Pal.
But my wife wanted to call him Romeo. You see, our other dog is named Juliette.
My wife won.
Romeo and Juliette -
The corniest dog names yet!
At the pound, they were calling him Calvin. That was too religious for me, so I decided to call him Pal.
But my wife wanted to call him Romeo. You see, our other dog is named Juliette.
My wife won.
Romeo and Juliette -
The corniest dog names yet!
Jubilation
I hear the explosions of fireworks, the honking of horns, and young men yelling in my neighborhood.
The White Sox have won the American League pennant, and the South Side is celebrating.
I remember the last time. 1959. I was 7. The mayor authorized the sounding of the city's air raid sirens - scaring a lot of people who weren't baseball fans. So far, I don't hear sirens.
I was in 2nd grade. Our teacher, Sister Mary Bartholomew, brought a TV set to the classroom so that we could watch some of the World Series games during class.
Now I suppose we'll have to play the Cardinals, our neighbors down I-55.
Beating the Cards
Could be hard.
EDIT: Nope. Doesn't look like the Cards at all. I was so busy paying attention to the White Sox that I had stopped paying attention to the National League. I actually mis-read a headline and thought the Cards were ahead. Anyway, in truth, it looks far more likely that the Houston Astros will be our opponents in the World Series.
Replacement rhyme:
I hope that team from Texas
Doesn't vex us.
The White Sox have won the American League pennant, and the South Side is celebrating.
I remember the last time. 1959. I was 7. The mayor authorized the sounding of the city's air raid sirens - scaring a lot of people who weren't baseball fans. So far, I don't hear sirens.
I was in 2nd grade. Our teacher, Sister Mary Bartholomew, brought a TV set to the classroom so that we could watch some of the World Series games during class.
Now I suppose we'll have to play the Cardinals, our neighbors down I-55.
Beating the Cards
Could be hard.
EDIT: Nope. Doesn't look like the Cards at all. I was so busy paying attention to the White Sox that I had stopped paying attention to the National League. I actually mis-read a headline and thought the Cards were ahead. Anyway, in truth, it looks far more likely that the Houston Astros will be our opponents in the World Series.
Replacement rhyme:
I hope that team from Texas
Doesn't vex us.
Iwo Jima Scandal
Joe Rosenthal was the photographer who snapped the famous shot of Marines raising the flag at Iwo Jima, one of the bloodier island battles of World War II. He has been accused of staging the shot - mostly because it came out so good. His primary accuser recanted, but the rumor keeps swirling. You can read about it in some of its complicated detail here.
On the other hand, here is an amusing parody of how the story might come out today:
"Many believe that, as the huge number of casualties mounted in the ill-fated and pointless invasion of this tiny island, the Roosevelt administration, desperate for a bit of pro-war propaganda, arranged to have the photo taken for dissemination to the world's news services."
Casualties are always "mounting"
When the press does the accounting.
On the other hand, here is an amusing parody of how the story might come out today:
"Many believe that, as the huge number of casualties mounted in the ill-fated and pointless invasion of this tiny island, the Roosevelt administration, desperate for a bit of pro-war propaganda, arranged to have the photo taken for dissemination to the world's news services."
Casualties are always "mounting"
When the press does the accounting.
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Flu Vaccines
I know that developing a vaccine for a new virus can be difficult. A lot of effort has gone into an HIV vaccine, but so far they don't seem to have nailed it down.
I know that flu viruses mutate frequently, requiring newly-generated vaccines each year. And I know it's a guessing game each year for the vaccine designers, as they try to figure out which versions of the virus they need to prevent.
Nonetheless, I keep wondering if government involvement has something to do with these periodic delays and shortages in producing annual supplies of flu vaccine. The government sure is involved, as a major purchaser as well as a regulator.
Our leaders may shout: Go go go!
But regulation makes things slow.
I know that flu viruses mutate frequently, requiring newly-generated vaccines each year. And I know it's a guessing game each year for the vaccine designers, as they try to figure out which versions of the virus they need to prevent.
Nonetheless, I keep wondering if government involvement has something to do with these periodic delays and shortages in producing annual supplies of flu vaccine. The government sure is involved, as a major purchaser as well as a regulator.
Our leaders may shout: Go go go!
But regulation makes things slow.
Flee Fly Flu
What can I do
About the bird flu?
Do you know how you get it? Here's the straight scoop:
You breathe in their pulverized poop.
Unfortunately it hampers
Their wings to wear Pampers.
About the bird flu?
Do you know how you get it? Here's the straight scoop:
You breathe in their pulverized poop.
Unfortunately it hampers
Their wings to wear Pampers.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Smiling for the Camera
They took pictures of me at the marathon. Whenever I spotted a photographer, I took off my hat and smiled. The photos are in reverse chronological order, so the pics at the top of the page are from the end of the race.
Marsha saw me at Mile 26 and said I was hard to recognize because I looked so dazed and miserable. But I did my best to hide it from the camera.
People like to order pics
From mile 26.
No one looks like they're having fun.
They just look happy they're done.
Marsha saw me at Mile 26 and said I was hard to recognize because I looked so dazed and miserable. But I did my best to hide it from the camera.
People like to order pics
From mile 26.
No one looks like they're having fun.
They just look happy they're done.
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Bizarre Sox vs Angels Call
Three strikes and you're... not quite out... if the catcher fails to catch the ball.
Did the catcher catch the ball?
Then the umpire botched the call.
Did the catcher catch the ball?
Then the umpire botched the call.
No Saint
Oops. I don't have to be finished with James Joyce's Portrait until Wednesday the 19th. The date got changed, but I failed to mark the change on my calendar.
The book has brought back memories of a Catholic boyhood. It goes into excruciating detail of the hellfire and damnation side of old fashioned Catholic spiritual meditation.
I'm up to the point where our hero is admitting to himself that he is not cut out to be a man of the cloth, that his piety is fragile, and that his quest for celibacy is doomed to failure.
I agree with Joyce on this at least:
It's good that he didn't become a priest.
The book has brought back memories of a Catholic boyhood. It goes into excruciating detail of the hellfire and damnation side of old fashioned Catholic spiritual meditation.
I'm up to the point where our hero is admitting to himself that he is not cut out to be a man of the cloth, that his piety is fragile, and that his quest for celibacy is doomed to failure.
I agree with Joyce on this at least:
It's good that he didn't become a priest.
Monday, October 10, 2005
Columbus Day
I liked Ed Hudgins' Columbus Day piece. Columbus' arrival in this hemisphere has become a contentious topic, with lots of arguing over the sometimes-ugly details of how the European settlement of the Americas played out.
Hudgins takes the interesting tack of trying to boil it down to essentials by focusing on daily life in pre-Columbian America, and what it was like to live that way. He then asks:
"But what of young Indian children who wondered why family members sickened and died and if there were ways unknown to the shamans to relieve their pain or cure them; if there were ways to build shelters that would resist bitter winters, stifling summers and the storms that raged in both seasons; whether there were ways to guarantee food would always be abundant and starvation no longer a drought away; why plants grow and what those lights in the sky really were; and whether they could ever actually fly like birds and observe mountains from the height of eagles? Where were the opportunities for these natives?"
Sometimes I just feel sad that it took so long to get where we are, that so many children for so many millennia stared at the stars in wonder with no way to find the truth.
Ah, my little ones,
The lights in the sky are suns.
Hudgins takes the interesting tack of trying to boil it down to essentials by focusing on daily life in pre-Columbian America, and what it was like to live that way. He then asks:
"But what of young Indian children who wondered why family members sickened and died and if there were ways unknown to the shamans to relieve their pain or cure them; if there were ways to build shelters that would resist bitter winters, stifling summers and the storms that raged in both seasons; whether there were ways to guarantee food would always be abundant and starvation no longer a drought away; why plants grow and what those lights in the sky really were; and whether they could ever actually fly like birds and observe mountains from the height of eagles? Where were the opportunities for these natives?"
Sometimes I just feel sad that it took so long to get where we are, that so many children for so many millennia stared at the stars in wonder with no way to find the truth.
Ah, my little ones,
The lights in the sky are suns.
Tennyson vs. Byron
I'm reading a certain semi-autographical novel. [EDIT: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce.] At one point the protagonist and some schoolmates dispute who is the best poet.
Two schoolmates say that it's Tennyson.
This seems to be the prevailing critical opinion.
Our hero insists on Byron.
It's an interesting pair to consider. Both can be considered romantic in their way. But Byron casts himself as the rebel against the conventional, where Tennyson casts himself more as a defender of nobility and goodness.
Byron did passionate scenes,
Endangering innocent youth.
Tennyson kept his poems clean
And focused on higher truth.
Two schoolmates say that it's Tennyson.
This seems to be the prevailing critical opinion.
Our hero insists on Byron.
It's an interesting pair to consider. Both can be considered romantic in their way. But Byron casts himself as the rebel against the conventional, where Tennyson casts himself more as a defender of nobility and goodness.
Byron did passionate scenes,
Endangering innocent youth.
Tennyson kept his poems clean
And focused on higher truth.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
Running Chicago
My biggest pet peeves about the Chicago Marathon:
3) All the runners who are alternating running with walking on some schedule - often in groups. It's a crowded race, and when people suddenly slow down in front of you, then you have to slow down too - and then try to get around them.
2) If your wife is there to cheer you on, it's hard to find her in the crowd. Say she is waiting right at the 26 mile marker. It's possible for you to stop for 30 valuable seconds and look at the crowd and not see her.
1) They serve pieces of banana at some aid stations near the end of the race. These banana pieces have peels on them. Many of these peels end up on the road in front of us. I can vouch for the fact that they are slippery.
Best reasons to do the Chicago Marathon:
3) Free Gatorade - all you can drink.
2) Crowds of people cheering for 26.2 miles.
1) Lots of live music.
In partial summation:
Go with the flow,
Not fast then slow.
Make sure your spouse
Wears a bright blouse.
Don't let those peels
Get under your heels.
Catch some great beats
And keep moving your feet.
3) All the runners who are alternating running with walking on some schedule - often in groups. It's a crowded race, and when people suddenly slow down in front of you, then you have to slow down too - and then try to get around them.
2) If your wife is there to cheer you on, it's hard to find her in the crowd. Say she is waiting right at the 26 mile marker. It's possible for you to stop for 30 valuable seconds and look at the crowd and not see her.
1) They serve pieces of banana at some aid stations near the end of the race. These banana pieces have peels on them. Many of these peels end up on the road in front of us. I can vouch for the fact that they are slippery.
Best reasons to do the Chicago Marathon:
3) Free Gatorade - all you can drink.
2) Crowds of people cheering for 26.2 miles.
1) Lots of live music.
In partial summation:
Go with the flow,
Not fast then slow.
Make sure your spouse
Wears a bright blouse.
Don't let those peels
Get under your heels.
Catch some great beats
And keep moving your feet.
At Borders
Today I bought a copy of Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. The cashier looked at the book and said "Oh." Somehow she made the "oh" sound like "yuck!" It turned out she was an English Major too, and James Joyce had made her miserable. I explained I was reading it for a book club. She said she was going to avoid my book club, and told me where to find the Cliff's notes.
Usually Joyce
Is not my first choice.
Usually Joyce
Is not my first choice.
Friday, October 07, 2005
Silver Lining
The AP has a charming story about a couple who met while evacuating from New Orleans. Howard and Julie got to know each other while riding on a Katrina evacuation bus.
He has promised to build her a canopy bed. She says she has always wanted one.
Having a hurricane hit your house
Is one hell of a way to find a spouse.
He has promised to build her a canopy bed. She says she has always wanted one.
Having a hurricane hit your house
Is one hell of a way to find a spouse.
Thursday, October 06, 2005
Maradydd's Comment
![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
maradydd is a gifted poet and also a computer scientist. I've always had a special place in my heart for her 24 Hour Hotline sestina. A sestina has a regular meter, but rather than rhyming in the usual way, all the line-ending words of one stanza show up as line-ending words in the next stanza. It's a hard, but somehow hypnotic form.The other day she left me a rhyming comment on an older post. I figure no one saw it, but I loved it. So here is her comment:
*****
As a formalist I find there's little sweeter
Than poems which follow strict rhyme and meter.
The easiest way to bring me to tears
Is inflicting cracked rhythm upon my ears.
But poetry written in your fashion
Strikes me as very much Ogden Nashian,
And although writing like it is something I myself find very draining
I'm not complaining.
*****
Part of what I like about it is the way she first says this isn't her way of writing, and then effortlessly knocks off a perfectly phrased example. Also, rhyming "Ogden Nashian" with "fashion" is just so... Ogden Nashian.
Fun with DVDs
Last night I spent a couple of hours setting up the wiring for Marsha's birthday present - a DVD recorder. I swear, she requested it. It's not just a toy I bought for myself.
It's always an adventure when you've got a bunch of devices to connect, and the lighting is bad, and the wires mostly have to feed through holes in the back of the cabinet.
Last night I made sure the box played DVDs okay. Tonight I went all the way and recorded my first DVD. In this case, I went from TiVo to DVD. I'd say the DVD is just a little bit lower res than the TiVo. But it's still very good.
I bought this model. Only $124, and free shipping if you're willing to wait a few days.
Wiring
Was tiring.
But recording
Was rewarding.
It's always an adventure when you've got a bunch of devices to connect, and the lighting is bad, and the wires mostly have to feed through holes in the back of the cabinet.
Last night I made sure the box played DVDs okay. Tonight I went all the way and recorded my first DVD. In this case, I went from TiVo to DVD. I'd say the DVD is just a little bit lower res than the TiVo. But it's still very good.
I bought this model. Only $124, and free shipping if you're willing to wait a few days.
Wiring
Was tiring.
But recording
Was rewarding.
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
White Sox vs. Red Sox, Game 2
Until the fifth inning
The Red Sox were winning.
Still, it must be said
The Red Sox aren't yet dead.
The Red Sox need to win their next 3 games. But 2 of those are in Fenway, which ought to help.
The Red Sox were winning.
Still, it must be said
The Red Sox aren't yet dead.
The Red Sox need to win their next 3 games. But 2 of those are in Fenway, which ought to help.
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Sox Sock Sox
I watched the end of the White Sox v. Red Sox game today. 14 to 2, White Sox.
If it had been little kids playing, the adults might have stopped the game to keep the losers' self-esteem from being damaged.
But pros have to take the shame
Along with all the glory.
What's more, tomorrow's game
Could be a different story.
If it had been little kids playing, the adults might have stopped the game to keep the losers' self-esteem from being damaged.
But pros have to take the shame
Along with all the glory.
What's more, tomorrow's game
Could be a different story.
Monday, October 03, 2005
Stealth Nominee, Part II
Does Miers rhymes with piers?
Or does Miers rhymes with pliers?
Despite her growing fame
I don't know how to say her name!
I should watch the News tonight.
I'm sure they'll get it right.
Or does Miers rhymes with pliers?
Despite her growing fame
I don't know how to say her name!
I should watch the News tonight.
I'm sure they'll get it right.
Sunday, October 02, 2005
Racquetball Blues
Yesterday my wife's regular racquetball partner was indisposed. So my wife asked me to play. We played 3 games. The good news is that I was ahead a couple of times.
The bad news is that she beat me. All 3 games.
Here's what's really annoying. I hit the ball harder than she does. And I move around the court faster than she does. But somehow she is better at putting the ball where she wants it!
That's the way the ball bounced -
I got soundly trounced!
And what's more,
I'm still sore.
The bad news is that she beat me. All 3 games.
Here's what's really annoying. I hit the ball harder than she does. And I move around the court faster than she does. But somehow she is better at putting the ball where she wants it!
That's the way the ball bounced -
I got soundly trounced!
And what's more,
I'm still sore.
Hindu Dance?
We have some good friends from India who have always been puzzled over Ayn Rand's reference to "Hindu Dance" in the Romantic Manifesto. According to them, there is nothing in India that is called Hindu Dance - there are just a lot of different dance styles. However, if you google the phrase, you do find some articles on the topic, some by Indians.
I suspect it's like saying "American Dance."
A number of varieties
Sprang up in our society.
From tap to jazz to hip-hop
New dances just don't stop.
Tonight we went to see an original work in the dance tradition known as Bharata Natyam, performed by the Kalapriya Dance company. There were 3 acts, thematically linked. The first one involved the story of the Gita, a central legend of Hindu myth. The other 2 acts involved modern Indian politics, including one about Gandhi. We just watched the mythological one. It had its charms, but I wasn't crazy about it. Part of my problem was that part of the time the dancers weren't moving their bodies all that much. It turns out that this style has stretches that are mostly hand gestures and facial expressions. I must admit that I prefer the dancing in Bollywood movies.
All the dancers were women.
Those playing males
Didn't wear veils.
I suspect it's like saying "American Dance."
A number of varieties
Sprang up in our society.
From tap to jazz to hip-hop
New dances just don't stop.
Tonight we went to see an original work in the dance tradition known as Bharata Natyam, performed by the Kalapriya Dance company. There were 3 acts, thematically linked. The first one involved the story of the Gita, a central legend of Hindu myth. The other 2 acts involved modern Indian politics, including one about Gandhi. We just watched the mythological one. It had its charms, but I wasn't crazy about it. Part of my problem was that part of the time the dancers weren't moving their bodies all that much. It turns out that this style has stretches that are mostly hand gestures and facial expressions. I must admit that I prefer the dancing in Bollywood movies.
All the dancers were women.
Those playing males
Didn't wear veils.
Saturday, October 01, 2005
UN-internet
Excuse me if I sound like an anti-U.N. snob,
But they don't do a very good job.
So when they ask to control the Net
I vote "nyet."
But they don't do a very good job.
So when they ask to control the Net
I vote "nyet."
Friday, September 30, 2005
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Giant Squid
They finally filmed a giant squid!
How did a thing like that stay hid?
Bashful of publicity,
It skulked beneath the deep blue sea.
How did a thing like that stay hid?
Bashful of publicity,
It skulked beneath the deep blue sea.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Serenity Sneak
I saw the Serenity movie tonight. I thought it was a good continuation of the Firefly story. So if you like Firefly, I heartily recommend the film. A couple of major mysteries were resolved in ways that satisfied me. If you really don't care for Firefly, skip the movie. Essentially, it's more of the same, but translated to the big screen.
The stunt they're attempting to pull off is a lot like what was done with Star Trek. Take a cancelled series with a cult following and make a successful movie out of it. There were some noticeable changes. For starters, they had a bigger budget, so they didn't spend so much time doing the "visit to the low-tech planet" where they can get by with old Western sets. The movie had a higher tech look, even though it still had that "space opera meets horse opera" feeling to it. The story line veered deeper into science fiction territory as well, but the captain still gave off a "Confederate Soldier in the Old West" vibe.
River, the teen girl whose brain has been manipulated and programmed by the government, finally starts coming into her own. She reminded me of a very disturbed version of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Her fight scenes were riveting. The True Believing Assassin was quite the scary villain, spouting off authoritatively with his authoritarian "peace at any price" spiel - and meaning it.
It did not feel like a stretched out one hour episode to me, which was a problem on some of the Star Trek movies. The film had story and action galore, and even some character development. I thought they did a good job of filling in some back story for the sake of new viewers, while still holding the interest of old viewers. Of course, since I'm an "old viewer," I am not the very best judge of that.
I think Monica White did a good job of describing why the show appeals to Rand fans so often:
"For me, what the show gets so right — what sets it apart from every other show I’ve seen — is the fact that the morality is so damn close to what I agree with. The characters don’t faff about — they know which action will give them the most benefit personally and pursue it without qualms. There is no apology for what would usually be considered crude opportunism."
(For a dissenting view about the show from a very well-read Rand-fan, seeshannon_f_r's post from today.)
I hope the film makes lots of revenue
So that someday I can see
Serenity II
And Serenity III.
The stunt they're attempting to pull off is a lot like what was done with Star Trek. Take a cancelled series with a cult following and make a successful movie out of it. There were some noticeable changes. For starters, they had a bigger budget, so they didn't spend so much time doing the "visit to the low-tech planet" where they can get by with old Western sets. The movie had a higher tech look, even though it still had that "space opera meets horse opera" feeling to it. The story line veered deeper into science fiction territory as well, but the captain still gave off a "Confederate Soldier in the Old West" vibe.
River, the teen girl whose brain has been manipulated and programmed by the government, finally starts coming into her own. She reminded me of a very disturbed version of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Her fight scenes were riveting. The True Believing Assassin was quite the scary villain, spouting off authoritatively with his authoritarian "peace at any price" spiel - and meaning it.
It did not feel like a stretched out one hour episode to me, which was a problem on some of the Star Trek movies. The film had story and action galore, and even some character development. I thought they did a good job of filling in some back story for the sake of new viewers, while still holding the interest of old viewers. Of course, since I'm an "old viewer," I am not the very best judge of that.
I think Monica White did a good job of describing why the show appeals to Rand fans so often:
"For me, what the show gets so right — what sets it apart from every other show I’ve seen — is the fact that the morality is so damn close to what I agree with. The characters don’t faff about — they know which action will give them the most benefit personally and pursue it without qualms. There is no apology for what would usually be considered crude opportunism."
(For a dissenting view about the show from a very well-read Rand-fan, see
shannon_f_r's post from today.)I hope the film makes lots of revenue
So that someday I can see
Serenity II
And Serenity III.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Opposable
Whenever I am feeling glum,
I contemplate my opposable thumb.
It opens and closes on my command.
What a great thing to have on hand!
I contemplate my opposable thumb.
It opens and closes on my command.
What a great thing to have on hand!
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Green Birds
Marsha & I took the dogs for a walk today. As we went by the 91st Street train station, I heard an unusual bird call. Looking up, I spotted the bird - sitting alone atop the station's spire.
It looked like a small green parrot. We pointed the bird out to another couple who was walking by. They advised us there was a whole flock of these green birds in the park next to the station. This advice proved correct. We knew what they were - they were the famous Hyde Park Parakeets, descendants of pets who somehow got free. We had never seen them in our neighborhood before. Perhaps they're moving in!
Marsha says there were fifteen.
I say twenty.
Perhaps the truth is in between.
Anyway, there were plenty.
It looked like a small green parrot. We pointed the bird out to another couple who was walking by. They advised us there was a whole flock of these green birds in the park next to the station. This advice proved correct. We knew what they were - they were the famous Hyde Park Parakeets, descendants of pets who somehow got free. We had never seen them in our neighborhood before. Perhaps they're moving in!
Marsha says there were fifteen.
I say twenty.
Perhaps the truth is in between.
Anyway, there were plenty.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Serenity Now! Well, Soon!
Serenity is coming to a screen near you - in just one week. Here's an official synopsis:
"Joss Whedon, the Oscar® - and Emmy - nominated writer/director responsible for the worldwide television phenomena of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE, ANGEL and FIREFLY, now applies his trademark compassion and wit to a small band of galactic outcasts 500 years in the future in his feature film directorial debut, Serenity. The film centers around Captain Malcolm Reynolds, a hardened veteran (on the losing side) of a galactic civil war, who now ekes out a living pulling off small crimes and transport-for-hire aboard his ship, Serenity. He leads a small, eclectic crew who are the closest thing he has left to family –squabbling, insubordinate and undyingly loyal."
I haven't seen the film yet, but I loved Firefly, the TV series on which the film is based. The resourceful and defiant spirit of Malcolm Reynolds is a continued joy to behold.
Firefly
Refuses to die.
By the way, I have been bribed with a possible free screening to plug the film, which I would have done anyway, but I thought I should tell.
Otherwise I might go to unethical blogger hell.
"Joss Whedon, the Oscar® - and Emmy - nominated writer/director responsible for the worldwide television phenomena of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE, ANGEL and FIREFLY, now applies his trademark compassion and wit to a small band of galactic outcasts 500 years in the future in his feature film directorial debut, Serenity. The film centers around Captain Malcolm Reynolds, a hardened veteran (on the losing side) of a galactic civil war, who now ekes out a living pulling off small crimes and transport-for-hire aboard his ship, Serenity. He leads a small, eclectic crew who are the closest thing he has left to family –squabbling, insubordinate and undyingly loyal."
I haven't seen the film yet, but I loved Firefly, the TV series on which the film is based. The resourceful and defiant spirit of Malcolm Reynolds is a continued joy to behold.
Firefly
Refuses to die.
By the way, I have been bribed with a possible free screening to plug the film, which I would have done anyway, but I thought I should tell.
Otherwise I might go to unethical blogger hell.
Dog News
I guess I should blog
About my new dog.
I looked all around
At the City Pound
And quickly grabbed
A young black Lab.
He's just lovely. Pretty well behaved for a stray. Apparently housebroken. Looked at our cats but didn't bark at them. Is getting along peachily with our other dog.
Because he's a stray, the Animal Control folks didn't really know anything about him. They had him listed as a Lab Mix, but to me he looks like he conforms to the breed standard. I don't really care, but I suspect he's purebred.
What's funny is that my other dog, Juliette, looks less like a Lab, but has purebred Lab papers! I saw her mother, and her mother looked just like a Lab, but Juliette has a longish coat which has a reddish cast in places.
Juliette's looks are explained much better
By assuming her mama knew an Irish Setter.
About my new dog.
I looked all around
At the City Pound
And quickly grabbed
A young black Lab.
He's just lovely. Pretty well behaved for a stray. Apparently housebroken. Looked at our cats but didn't bark at them. Is getting along peachily with our other dog.
Because he's a stray, the Animal Control folks didn't really know anything about him. They had him listed as a Lab Mix, but to me he looks like he conforms to the breed standard. I don't really care, but I suspect he's purebred.
What's funny is that my other dog, Juliette, looks less like a Lab, but has purebred Lab papers! I saw her mother, and her mother looked just like a Lab, but Juliette has a longish coat which has a reddish cast in places.
Juliette's looks are explained much better
By assuming her mama knew an Irish Setter.
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Guess Who
Robert Bidinotto asks which country has the most violent assaults per capita?
Do you think it's the U.S.?
That is not a winning guess.
Do you think it's the U.S.?
That is not a winning guess.
Live Coverage
JetBlue provides satellite TV for its passengers. Yesterday, one of their planes - flight 292 - faced a hazardous landing, because the front wheels had locked in an incorrect position. It was picked up on TV news, so the passengers were able to watch news stories about their own plight.
This freaked a lot of them out. You know how cable news hypes disasters waiting to happen.
In the end the plane landed safely, with a spectacular shower of sparks coming off the front wheels. Apparently Airbus Jets have a history of front wheels locking up at a 90 degree angle, but somehow no one's been hurt.
This is your pilot, here at JetBlue.
Welcome aboard flight 292.
We've got a spot of trouble - so tune in Channel 85
And watch your fate unfolding - LIVE!
This freaked a lot of them out. You know how cable news hypes disasters waiting to happen.
In the end the plane landed safely, with a spectacular shower of sparks coming off the front wheels. Apparently Airbus Jets have a history of front wheels locking up at a 90 degree angle, but somehow no one's been hurt.
This is your pilot, here at JetBlue.
Welcome aboard flight 292.
We've got a spot of trouble - so tune in Channel 85
And watch your fate unfolding - LIVE!
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Lazy Terrorists
There's this terrorist guy, see. He got caught. Here is one of his big complaints:
That other terrorists are too lazy: "we were wasting our time sleeping and engaging in idle chit chat."
Perhaps this partially explains why there has been no spectacular follow-up to 9/11 in the U.S.
Rockabye terrorists,
In your dark holes
Just keep on chatting
Forget all your goals.
That other terrorists are too lazy: "we were wasting our time sleeping and engaging in idle chit chat."
Perhaps this partially explains why there has been no spectacular follow-up to 9/11 in the U.S.
Rockabye terrorists,
In your dark holes
Just keep on chatting
Forget all your goals.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Sacrifice
Sometimes Ayn Rand is criticized for her very negative take on "sacrifice." She took it to mean giving up a greater value for the sake of a lesser.
Some argue the word doesn't always mean that. And you do hear people use "sacrifice" sometimes to refer to things like being thrifty with their money in the present so that they can reap larger rewards later.
So I was struck at this little exchange in a novel I just finished reading:
"Mama." Searching for words, Kate turned her cup around and around. "I know how you and Dad sacrificed-"
"Wait." Dark eyes kindling, Natasha tapped her fingers hard on the table. "Maybe, after all these years my English is failing. I don't understand the word sacrifice when it comes to my children. You have never been a sacrifice."
(From Considering Kate by Nora Roberts.)
It's very rare that sacrifice
Means something warm and nice.
Some argue the word doesn't always mean that. And you do hear people use "sacrifice" sometimes to refer to things like being thrifty with their money in the present so that they can reap larger rewards later.
So I was struck at this little exchange in a novel I just finished reading:
"Mama." Searching for words, Kate turned her cup around and around. "I know how you and Dad sacrificed-"
"Wait." Dark eyes kindling, Natasha tapped her fingers hard on the table. "Maybe, after all these years my English is failing. I don't understand the word sacrifice when it comes to my children. You have never been a sacrifice."
(From Considering Kate by Nora Roberts.)
It's very rare that sacrifice
Means something warm and nice.
Off Track
The commuter line I usually ride had a fatal accident Saturday. Two passengers were killed. The train was going 69 in a 10 mph zone. The engineer was a relatively recent hire.
Was it the brakes or the man that failed?
Anyway, the train derailed.
Was it the brakes or the man that failed?
Anyway, the train derailed.
Monday, September 19, 2005
Lord of War
I saw the new Nicolas Cage movie about an amoral arms dealer.
As I watched Lord Of War
I got bored more and more.
EDIT (spoiler alert): I suppose my main complaints were:
1) I felt the story didn't surprise me much, contrary to my expectation that it would be a thriller.
2) Cage's character starts off amoral, but goes on to betray the things he actually does love and the few principles he has. He is doing a lot of voiceover narration, too, so his view of life permeates the movie that much more.
3) While I agree with the film's moral - that it's wrong to put weapons into the hands of bad people, I don't think the weapons dealers bear the main blame for all these horrid little wars around the world.
The movie did have some positive qualities, despite the strength of my negative reaction. Cage does a good job with his character - he came alive as this sympathetic/despicable man. As an educational film about how the underground arms trade works, a lot of it looked plausible in outline, although "dramatized" in normal Hollywood fashion, and turning a little conspiratorial at the end.
As I watched Lord Of War
I got bored more and more.
EDIT (spoiler alert): I suppose my main complaints were:
1) I felt the story didn't surprise me much, contrary to my expectation that it would be a thriller.
2) Cage's character starts off amoral, but goes on to betray the things he actually does love and the few principles he has. He is doing a lot of voiceover narration, too, so his view of life permeates the movie that much more.
3) While I agree with the film's moral - that it's wrong to put weapons into the hands of bad people, I don't think the weapons dealers bear the main blame for all these horrid little wars around the world.
The movie did have some positive qualities, despite the strength of my negative reaction. Cage does a good job with his character - he came alive as this sympathetic/despicable man. As an educational film about how the underground arms trade works, a lot of it looked plausible in outline, although "dramatized" in normal Hollywood fashion, and turning a little conspiratorial at the end.
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Marsha Talks
Marsha gave a talk on education - and her college project - at LAON tonight, a meeting organized by none other than the theinimitable_l. Her talk was well-received, I thought.
She wants to start a college
That isn't a factory
For stuffing knowledge
Into brains refractory.
EDIT: fixed bad links above.
theinimitable_l. Her talk was well-received, I thought.She wants to start a college
That isn't a factory
For stuffing knowledge
Into brains refractory.
EDIT: fixed bad links above.
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Thursday, September 15, 2005
The World Of Yesterday
This month our book club did The World of Yesterday by Stefan Zweig. Zweig was an important Viennese writer and poet of the early twentieth century. Like so many Viennese luminaries of that time, he came from an assimilated Jewish background, and was devastated by the rise of Naziism.
The book is a memoir of his life, with a political and cultural focus, but with nothing mentioned of his occasionally scandalous love life. The story ends with him in his 60's, living in exile in Brazil during World War II. Sad to say, he began to think Hitler was likely to win the war, and in despair he took his own life.
I kept wishing, as I read, that he and his fellows had spoken out sooner about anti-semitic fascism. They seemed to think it was too barbaric to dignify with refutations. After all, everybody who was anybody knew it was all nonsense, and surely it would fizzle out before too long.
Of course they were wrong,
And their error was great.
Before too long
It was too late.
The book is a memoir of his life, with a political and cultural focus, but with nothing mentioned of his occasionally scandalous love life. The story ends with him in his 60's, living in exile in Brazil during World War II. Sad to say, he began to think Hitler was likely to win the war, and in despair he took his own life.
I kept wishing, as I read, that he and his fellows had spoken out sooner about anti-semitic fascism. They seemed to think it was too barbaric to dignify with refutations. After all, everybody who was anybody knew it was all nonsense, and surely it would fizzle out before too long.
Of course they were wrong,
And their error was great.
Before too long
It was too late.
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Technical Question
Why, oh why
Do PC power supplies die?
Oh well,
The good news is that Dell
Is sending a new one.
I guess I could rhyme that with "fun"
But that would be a lie.
Do PC power supplies die?
Oh well,
The good news is that Dell
Is sending a new one.
I guess I could rhyme that with "fun"
But that would be a lie.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Bed Frames
It's being reported that the 11 children, some of whom were sleeping in cages at night, are polite and well behaved.
The adoptive parents say they were following a psychiatrist's recommendations. I wonder if this could turn out to be true. There are some wacky psychiatrists in the world.
I'm just worried this will start a new fad.
In twenty years all the kids who are bad
Or impolite
Will sleep in cages at night.
The adoptive parents say they were following a psychiatrist's recommendations. I wonder if this could turn out to be true. There are some wacky psychiatrists in the world.
I'm just worried this will start a new fad.
In twenty years all the kids who are bad
Or impolite
Will sleep in cages at night.
No Fear
Chris Rock
Loves to shock.
I'm not talking about the sitcom that's new this fall
That stars a child actor playing Chris when he was small.
I have a hunch that won't be shocking at all.
No, I mean
His every-tenth-word-is-obscene
Stand-up routine.
Loves to shock.
I'm not talking about the sitcom that's new this fall
That stars a child actor playing Chris when he was small.
I have a hunch that won't be shocking at all.
No, I mean
His every-tenth-word-is-obscene
Stand-up routine.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
Child's Play
We went to the beach Saturday. Some kids near us were playing in the sand at the edge of the water. They were playing New Orleans. They would build a levee of sand and watch it get eroded by incoming waves. I didn't watch them in detail, I just listened.
Marsha talked to their mother, who expressed fear that her kids would offend someone. Apparently the kids had seen the TV reporting, and had been upset about what they saw. Marsha thought it was just the kids' way of coming to terms with the disaster.
I guess if you can build a model of what went wrong, and watch it replay the disaster, the causality becomes clear. Then it's no longer an inexplicable evil, but rather an understandable failure - hopefully one that can be avoided in the future.
A model in the sand
Reconstructing
Death and destruction
Helps them understand.
Marsha talked to their mother, who expressed fear that her kids would offend someone. Apparently the kids had seen the TV reporting, and had been upset about what they saw. Marsha thought it was just the kids' way of coming to terms with the disaster.
I guess if you can build a model of what went wrong, and watch it replay the disaster, the causality becomes clear. Then it's no longer an inexplicable evil, but rather an understandable failure - hopefully one that can be avoided in the future.
A model in the sand
Reconstructing
Death and destruction
Helps them understand.
Honk if it's your Anniversary!
We stayed in Saugatuck, Michigan last night for our 29th wedding anniversary. At 1 in the morning we woke up to the sound of a car horn continuously sounding. Not honk-honk-honk. More like hooooooonk - one long sound without end.
That's right, it was our Buick Rendezvous.
I grabbed a pair of pants and a shirt and went running outside - barefoot, shirt completely unbuttoned. I got in the SUV and started it up. Still the horn played on. I tried different buttons and controls. No relief. So I started driving - at least that way the neighbors could go back to sleep. I drove several miles to the interstate.
Once out on the interstate, I had the idea to pull over and kill the ignition. No effect. Then I turned the ignition back on again. Finally. Relief. Blessed silence. But now I was on the interstate, with nine miles to go to the next stop where I could turn around. So I still had 20 minutes of driving to do!
By the way, now the horn doesn't work at all, even if you lean on it. Go figure.
A horn's job is to sound a warning,
And NOT to go off on its own at one in the morning!
That's right, it was our Buick Rendezvous.
I grabbed a pair of pants and a shirt and went running outside - barefoot, shirt completely unbuttoned. I got in the SUV and started it up. Still the horn played on. I tried different buttons and controls. No relief. So I started driving - at least that way the neighbors could go back to sleep. I drove several miles to the interstate.
Once out on the interstate, I had the idea to pull over and kill the ignition. No effect. Then I turned the ignition back on again. Finally. Relief. Blessed silence. But now I was on the interstate, with nine miles to go to the next stop where I could turn around. So I still had 20 minutes of driving to do!
By the way, now the horn doesn't work at all, even if you lean on it. Go figure.
A horn's job is to sound a warning,
And NOT to go off on its own at one in the morning!
Friday, September 09, 2005
Do Not Enter
The people of New Orleans were being told to evacuate by the bridge into Gretna City.
And the Gretna City police were apparently blocking the bridge because they didn't want "these people" to enter their bedroom suburb.
Whether or not this had something to do with race,
It's a simple disgrace.
And the Gretna City police were apparently blocking the bridge because they didn't want "these people" to enter their bedroom suburb.
Whether or not this had something to do with race,
It's a simple disgrace.
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Permanent Record
One day in the early '90s I walked into the University of Chicago Hospital. I had an appointment with a doctor I had never seen. As a new patient I had to register. The clerk asked for my name and date of birth, and she typed them into her computer.
Then she asked: "Were you born here?"
As a matter of fact, I was.
She told me I had a very low patient i.d. number. That was her clue. They had assigned i.d. numbers in chronological sequence.
I hadn't been there since. But they had me on their computer! This was unusual dedication to keeping good records, and impressed me deeply.
I was surprised they recalled
Me at all.
Then she asked: "Were you born here?"
As a matter of fact, I was.
She told me I had a very low patient i.d. number. That was her clue. They had assigned i.d. numbers in chronological sequence.
I hadn't been there since. But they had me on their computer! This was unusual dedication to keeping good records, and impressed me deeply.
I was surprised they recalled
Me at all.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Crossing the Red Cross
Here's a disturbing story - if it checks out. Remember how the folks in the Superdome lacked food and water? Remember how the Mayor complained that no one was sending help? Well according to this story, the Red Cross had food and water for them - but was blocked from delivering it by officials of the State of Louisiana.
Why? Allegedly because food and water would attract more people to the Superdome!
For the rest of the night, my brain
Will officially refrain
From thinking anymore about this stuff.
I've had more than enough.
EDIT:Video here.
Why? Allegedly because food and water would attract more people to the Superdome!
For the rest of the night, my brain
Will officially refrain
From thinking anymore about this stuff.
I've had more than enough.
EDIT:Video here.
Forgiveness
There's an old meaning of forgiveness, still in use, that has to do with debts rather than wrongs. When you forgive a debt you tell the debtor they don't have to pay.
Then there's the meaning that has to do with wrongs - deciding not to hold a person's wrongs against them. Does it always conflict with the practice of justice? Of if time has passed and the person is no longer doing wrong, is it justice in the present to forgive the person? Does it depend on what wrong the person did? Are some things simply unforgivable?
There's an argument that forgiveness is good for the forgiver, because the forgiver is happier once he lets go of his anger.
Sometimes it's hard to budge
A long-held grudge.
EDIT: This topic came up because my daughter was reading the biblical story of Joseph, whose brothers sold him into slavery. In seminar, she asked why Joseph had eventually forgiven his brothers, which is a good question.
Then there's the meaning that has to do with wrongs - deciding not to hold a person's wrongs against them. Does it always conflict with the practice of justice? Of if time has passed and the person is no longer doing wrong, is it justice in the present to forgive the person? Does it depend on what wrong the person did? Are some things simply unforgivable?
There's an argument that forgiveness is good for the forgiver, because the forgiver is happier once he lets go of his anger.
Sometimes it's hard to budge
A long-held grudge.
EDIT: This topic came up because my daughter was reading the biblical story of Joseph, whose brothers sold him into slavery. In seminar, she asked why Joseph had eventually forgiven his brothers, which is a good question.
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Looking On The Bright Side
I guess I shouldn't pout
That Chicago has a drought.
It's better than being swirled around
In a hurricane and drowned.
In fact, a Chicago summer without showers
Is only a pain if you're growing grass or flowers.
Otherwise, having sunny day after sunny day
Makes it kind of like L.A.
That Chicago has a drought.
It's better than being swirled around
In a hurricane and drowned.
In fact, a Chicago summer without showers
Is only a pain if you're growing grass or flowers.
Otherwise, having sunny day after sunny day
Makes it kind of like L.A.
Monday, September 05, 2005
Profane Rants
Here are 2 swear-word loaded rants related to Katrina.
Foamy The Squirrel complains about the news media in an audio file. Thank youkraorh for the link.
Eject!Eject!Eject! has a very long rant about different kinds of people involved in the disaster. Thank you Instapundit for the link.
I don't 100% agree with either, but I enjoyed them both.
Even if you don't usually curse,
Some events call forth a burst.
Foamy The Squirrel complains about the news media in an audio file. Thank you
kraorh for the link.Eject!Eject!Eject! has a very long rant about different kinds of people involved in the disaster. Thank you Instapundit for the link.
I don't 100% agree with either, but I enjoyed them both.
Even if you don't usually curse,
Some events call forth a burst.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Uh Oh
It has become frightfully clear
That it's a big mistake to shoot at the Army Corps of Engineers.
A bunch of guys did, and reportedly five
Are no longer alive.
That it's a big mistake to shoot at the Army Corps of Engineers.
A bunch of guys did, and reportedly five
Are no longer alive.
Endurance Sports FAQ
Q: Is it true you went running today through a spot where vicious dogs attacked people yesterday?
A: Yes. But the cops killed the dogs. It must be safe now.
Q: How far did you run today?
A: 21 miles. But I hadn't done any exercise all week.
Q: What? You don't run every day?
A: No.
People think that just because you run a marathon or two per year that you must be a compulsive daily jogger.
But I'm not. I'm just a compulsive daily blogger.
A: Yes. But the cops killed the dogs. It must be safe now.
Q: How far did you run today?
A: 21 miles. But I hadn't done any exercise all week.
Q: What? You don't run every day?
A: No.
People think that just because you run a marathon or two per year that you must be a compulsive daily jogger.
But I'm not. I'm just a compulsive daily blogger.
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Friday, September 02, 2005
Atlas At Last?
Idly I wondered whether anyone had written about the disturbing similarity between the current state of New Orleans and the collapse of American civil society as portrayed toward the end of Atlas Shrugged.
So I went a-googling, and sure enough I found this. Appropriately enough, the story is dated September 2, which is the day on which Atlas Shrugged begins. The author states that the guy who has the rights to Atlas is still unsure whether to film it as 2 movies, or as a TV mini-series.
I say do it on HBO
As a three year show.
So I went a-googling, and sure enough I found this. Appropriately enough, the story is dated September 2, which is the day on which Atlas Shrugged begins. The author states that the guy who has the rights to Atlas is still unsure whether to film it as 2 movies, or as a TV mini-series.
I say do it on HBO
As a three year show.
Psyche
I just finished reading Psyche, by Phyllis Brett Young, a Canadian best seller from 1959. It's about a young woman who is kidnapped as a toddler, and who remembers almost nothing of her life before the kidnapping. It's part suspense story, part coming-of-age novel, and part fairy tale. The setting is closely described, but for some reason not explicitly named. However, major clues lead to Ottawa, Ontario, which is the site of Canada's National Gallery. The lead character, in often dire circumstances, always carries herself with a sense of nobility, and I found the book very enjoyable and touching. (A big thank you goes to Cynthia Gillis for recommending the book.)
Through agony and doubt,
Nobility will out.
EDIT: Cynthia says it's Toronto, with a brief trip to Ottawa, and a major trip to the mines north of Toronto. She's originally from our Neighbour to the North, so I believe her.
Through agony and doubt,
Nobility will out.
EDIT: Cynthia says it's Toronto, with a brief trip to Ottawa, and a major trip to the mines north of Toronto. She's originally from our Neighbour to the North, so I believe her.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Broken Windows
There's an idea called The Broken Windows Theory. It's not about Microsoft.
"First expressed by political scientist James Q. Wilson and criminologist George Kelling in an article for The Atlantic Monthly in 1982, the theory holds that if someone breaks a window in a building and it is not quickly repaired, others will be emboldened to break more windows. Eventually, the broken windows create a sense of disorder that attracts criminals, who thrive in conditions of public apathy and neglect."
I think there's some truth to the theory, and I'm guessing that's part of what went wrong in New Orleans. Police let the looting go on, and the looters became emboldened.
Glenn Reynolds writes:
"When I was on Grand Cayman last month, several people told me that looting became a problem after Hurricane Ivan, but quickly stopped when the police shot several looters. That's because looters usually value life over property too. As I've said before, I don't think that people helping themselves to emergency supplies are to be blamed, but that's not what we're talking about here. Those who don't get this are either sadly uninformed or deliberately obtuse."
The descent into chaos that we are witnessing will be argued about for a long time.
The fingerpointing has just begun
And may never be done,
But I suspect it's best not to wait:
Stop looters before it's too late.
"First expressed by political scientist James Q. Wilson and criminologist George Kelling in an article for The Atlantic Monthly in 1982, the theory holds that if someone breaks a window in a building and it is not quickly repaired, others will be emboldened to break more windows. Eventually, the broken windows create a sense of disorder that attracts criminals, who thrive in conditions of public apathy and neglect."
I think there's some truth to the theory, and I'm guessing that's part of what went wrong in New Orleans. Police let the looting go on, and the looters became emboldened.
Glenn Reynolds writes:
"When I was on Grand Cayman last month, several people told me that looting became a problem after Hurricane Ivan, but quickly stopped when the police shot several looters. That's because looters usually value life over property too. As I've said before, I don't think that people helping themselves to emergency supplies are to be blamed, but that's not what we're talking about here. Those who don't get this are either sadly uninformed or deliberately obtuse."
The descent into chaos that we are witnessing will be argued about for a long time.
The fingerpointing has just begun
And may never be done,
But I suspect it's best not to wait:
Stop looters before it's too late.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Freshman at Tulane
A friend of mine drove her son down to Tulane University in New Orleans to start his freshman year.
She was still there with her car when evacuation time arrived. So she drove him back home again to Oak Park, Illinois.
His life's thrown off a bit,
But I count him fortunate
Next to those who really got hit.
She was still there with her car when evacuation time arrived. So she drove him back home again to Oak Park, Illinois.
His life's thrown off a bit,
But I count him fortunate
Next to those who really got hit.
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Trials? We don't need no stinking trials!
In Illinois we have a law that allows a person to be locked up indefinitely because they are a dangerous sex offender. This law applies even when the person has NOT been convicted of any crime. The guy in the news story has been locked up for 6 years.
Six years is quite a while
To be jailed without a trial.
If this guy were a terrorist, it would be a big deal, I suppose.
But he's just some pervert rapist, so I guess that anything goes.
Six years is quite a while
To be jailed without a trial.
If this guy were a terrorist, it would be a big deal, I suppose.
But he's just some pervert rapist, so I guess that anything goes.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Horseman, Pass By
madbard says the news media seem disappointed that the New Orleans / Katrina disaster did not play out like the Noah's Ark story.Another scare story turns to crap.
N'Orleans is still on the map.
EDIT: It's turned out badly, just not as badly as a direct hit would have been.
interdictor is a guy that is in a high building running a diesel generator. Gutsy. (Thanks to aldoushuxley for the link.)
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Sponges On The Road
I did the Accenture Chicago Triathlon today, along with about 7500 other people. We bicycled Lake Shore Drive, which is a bit bumpy in places. Those bumps can jar things off a bike. Today, a lot of those things were yellow sponges.
You see, a certain company makes a water bottle you mount on the front of your bike so you can drink through a straw while you ride. This bottle does not have a normal top. It has a yellow sponge you are supposed to stick in the top. It works fine. Until you hit a good bump. Then the yellow sponge goes flying.
Yes, this happened to me two weeks ago. It didn't happen today because I used some bigger sponges that Marsha bought me. They stayed put.
Note to cyclists: AVOID ALL BUMPS
Or your sponge might get dumped.
You see, a certain company makes a water bottle you mount on the front of your bike so you can drink through a straw while you ride. This bottle does not have a normal top. It has a yellow sponge you are supposed to stick in the top. It works fine. Until you hit a good bump. Then the yellow sponge goes flying.
Yes, this happened to me two weeks ago. It didn't happen today because I used some bigger sponges that Marsha bought me. They stayed put.
Note to cyclists: AVOID ALL BUMPS
Or your sponge might get dumped.
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Featherless Bi-ped
Plato playfully toyed with the idea of defining Man as a featherless bi-ped.
I thought of this last night while watching some show about Human Origins on the the History Channel. Humans are distinct from apes in many ways, of course. You've seen the list. Walking upright on two feet (bi-pedalism). Opposable thumb. Tool making. Speaking. Reasoning. Concept forming. Bigger brained. Long lived. Etc.
Paleontologists now think that the first of these traits to appear - the first step, as it were, away from apeness, was walking on two feet. It had the immediate advantage of letting us see farther. It had the subsequent advantage of freeing up our hands to use tools. Bigger brains allowed us to make better tools.
At least, that's the story as they see it now.
In days of yore,
The ape that walked
Came way before
The ape that talked.
On a different note, the TV show said that "Lucy", the famous bipedal fossil hominid, was named after the Beatles song, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.
To the tune of Lucy In The Sky:
Picture yourself in the past in a world
Where gigantic predators thrive and abound.
Suddenly someone is there in the grass land
The girl with two feet on the ground.
I thought of this last night while watching some show about Human Origins on the the History Channel. Humans are distinct from apes in many ways, of course. You've seen the list. Walking upright on two feet (bi-pedalism). Opposable thumb. Tool making. Speaking. Reasoning. Concept forming. Bigger brained. Long lived. Etc.
Paleontologists now think that the first of these traits to appear - the first step, as it were, away from apeness, was walking on two feet. It had the immediate advantage of letting us see farther. It had the subsequent advantage of freeing up our hands to use tools. Bigger brains allowed us to make better tools.
At least, that's the story as they see it now.
In days of yore,
The ape that walked
Came way before
The ape that talked.
On a different note, the TV show said that "Lucy", the famous bipedal fossil hominid, was named after the Beatles song, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.
To the tune of Lucy In The Sky:
Picture yourself in the past in a world
Where gigantic predators thrive and abound.
Suddenly someone is there in the grass land
The girl with two feet on the ground.
Friday, August 26, 2005
Outside The Box
They're showing people in the London Zoo,
Scantily clad and frolicking on rocks.
I'll grant that it's a funny thing to do.
But the zoo's spokesman says that we're a pox
Upon the planet. I don't know about you,
But I resent being called a plague. He mocks
Our success - mocks the way we grew
In knowledge and power and overcame all blocks.
We've overrun the world. That much is true.
We humans are hard to keep inside a box.
That's why it's funny to see us put on view,
Like wild beasts confined by moats and locks.
Only one species eyes the moon and stars
With plans to visit. That's us. Next stop, Mars.
Scantily clad and frolicking on rocks.
I'll grant that it's a funny thing to do.
But the zoo's spokesman says that we're a pox
Upon the planet. I don't know about you,
But I resent being called a plague. He mocks
Our success - mocks the way we grew
In knowledge and power and overcame all blocks.
We've overrun the world. That much is true.
We humans are hard to keep inside a box.
That's why it's funny to see us put on view,
Like wild beasts confined by moats and locks.
Only one species eyes the moon and stars
With plans to visit. That's us. Next stop, Mars.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Have Roddenberry, Will Travel
My wife and I have been watching episodes of Have Gun Will Travel, the classic Western TV drama. The hero is Palladin, a professional gunfighter who rents his talents for pay while following his own code of ethics. The first 2 seasons are available on DVD. Some of the episodes are written by Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek. In fact, he served as head writer on the show.
We watched one of the episodes he wrote tonight. In classic Roddenberry fashion, the show began in the middle of the story, had a fair amount of action, and took the moral high ground.
Still, there's no confusing the hero of this show with Roddenberry's later heroes.
Of course
He has a horse,
And arrives
Without warp drive.
We watched one of the episodes he wrote tonight. In classic Roddenberry fashion, the show began in the middle of the story, had a fair amount of action, and took the moral high ground.
Still, there's no confusing the hero of this show with Roddenberry's later heroes.
Of course
He has a horse,
And arrives
Without warp drive.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Constitution
The Iraqi Constitution -
Who can find a good solution?
I think the person who could help the most
Would be James Madison's ghost.
Who can find a good solution?
I think the person who could help the most
Would be James Madison's ghost.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Empty Nesters Again
My daughter has flown back to school, off to study Roman Civilization for a year. After her first year at St. John's, I finally had someone in the house (besides me) who had read all 3 of the Oedipus plays. We had some fun conversations.
A lot of things went bad for Oedipus, but at least he never had to appear on the Jerry Springer show.
You know a guy's had a bad surprise
When he cries and rips out his eyes.
A lot of things went bad for Oedipus, but at least he never had to appear on the Jerry Springer show.
You know a guy's had a bad surprise
When he cries and rips out his eyes.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Polytheism
It has often been observed that ancient Greek religion might present you with two truly conflicting moral imperatives. In other words, it might be that there is no correct moral choice. You can see how a religion with many gods would help foster such situations. Aphrodite says do A. Hera says do non-A. What's a pious pagan to do?
I think that's part of the appeal of monotheism: One God, one divine will, one correct choice! It may not be easy to find the correct way out of an apparent moral quandary, but a single supreme lawgiver is seen as creating non-contradictory laws, even if he moves in mysterious ways.
What are the odds
That separate gods
Will all agree
On a single decree?
Anyway, I was thinking today that this is tangentially related to the secular question: does your life have a singular purpose or value, or does it just have a set of sometimes contradictory purposes and values? Ayn Rand says your overriding value is your life and your overriding purpose is your happiness. Some complain that you just don't need overriding values or purposes, that you can get by with a variety of goals. But this leads you to the question of how you choose when your various goals have a conflict, which reminds me somehow of the poor pagan Greek with a set of conflicting choices and no way to resolve them.
I think that's part of the appeal of monotheism: One God, one divine will, one correct choice! It may not be easy to find the correct way out of an apparent moral quandary, but a single supreme lawgiver is seen as creating non-contradictory laws, even if he moves in mysterious ways.
What are the odds
That separate gods
Will all agree
On a single decree?
Anyway, I was thinking today that this is tangentially related to the secular question: does your life have a singular purpose or value, or does it just have a set of sometimes contradictory purposes and values? Ayn Rand says your overriding value is your life and your overriding purpose is your happiness. Some complain that you just don't need overriding values or purposes, that you can get by with a variety of goals. But this leads you to the question of how you choose when your various goals have a conflict, which reminds me somehow of the poor pagan Greek with a set of conflicting choices and no way to resolve them.
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Can't Stop Running
Running, for some reason, increases your body's endorphin levels. Endorphins are "opiate proteins with pain relieving properties." You saw that word "opiate", didn't you? So the brain responds to running just like it responds to opium!
Stop the running craze!
People have way too much fun finishing 5K's.
And you wouldn't believe the "hard stuff" going on
At your typical marathon.
Stop the running craze!
People have way too much fun finishing 5K's.
And you wouldn't believe the "hard stuff" going on
At your typical marathon.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
You Might As Well Face It, You're Addicted To...
Here's an article proposing that Oreos may be addictive, in some literal sense.
Which leads me to wonder: what then is the literal sense?
If Oreos are "addictive"
I fear the concept's fictive.
Which leads me to wonder: what then is the literal sense?
If Oreos are "addictive"
I fear the concept's fictive.
Thunderbirds
Marsha and I went to the Chicago Air and Water Show with purpurachicago, who graciously played hostess and chauffeur.
At the end, the Air Force Thunderbird team of F16Cs started zooming around doing precision drills. They were awesome - they can go faster than 1300 mph. I want one! But they weren't able to do their whole routine because a small piece of one aircraft fell off into the lake. Someone on the radio thought it was a thing on the wing that allows you to attach air-to-air missiles to the plane.
That didn't sound like a very important part. The 6 planes were all still flying fine, as judged by the naked eye from the ground. So why couldn't they just finish the show? Don't they know - the show must go on?
Then again, would you want to do precision drills - flying way too close to other supersonic planes - when you've been shaking parts off your wing? Perhaps not.
You've got a good excuse
When parts start shaking loose.
purpurachicago, who graciously played hostess and chauffeur.At the end, the Air Force Thunderbird team of F16Cs started zooming around doing precision drills. They were awesome - they can go faster than 1300 mph. I want one! But they weren't able to do their whole routine because a small piece of one aircraft fell off into the lake. Someone on the radio thought it was a thing on the wing that allows you to attach air-to-air missiles to the plane.
That didn't sound like a very important part. The 6 planes were all still flying fine, as judged by the naked eye from the ground. So why couldn't they just finish the show? Don't they know - the show must go on?
Then again, would you want to do precision drills - flying way too close to other supersonic planes - when you've been shaking parts off your wing? Perhaps not.
You've got a good excuse
When parts start shaking loose.
Friday, August 19, 2005
Tigers
Here is my graduation speech for high school seniors. Do not pose for a picture with a tiger unless there is some impenetrable or unleapable barrier between you and the tiger. Tigers periodically maul their life-long trainers.
They can kill with just one swipe
But cannot change their stripes.
They can kill with just one swipe
But cannot change their stripes.
Translating Poetry
I came across this interesting essay about translating Chinese and Japanese poetry. The cultures are interrelated, and Japanese writing includes much use of Chinese characters. But their spoken languages are unrelated, and their traditional poetic forms do not make use of the same sound effect systems.
Classical Japanese poetry does not rhyme, but classical Chinese poetry does rhyme - consistently. If you only read Chinese poetry in English translation, you could go a long time without finding out that originally it rhymed. I know I did.
My view is that all poetry translation involves trade-offs, and that one is the choice between writing something that sounds like the original, versus something that sounds good in the new language.
Of course, translating the imagery, and the allusions, and the connotations - all that stuff is hard, too.
As for me, I think it's debatable
Whether poetry's really translatable.
Classical Japanese poetry does not rhyme, but classical Chinese poetry does rhyme - consistently. If you only read Chinese poetry in English translation, you could go a long time without finding out that originally it rhymed. I know I did.
My view is that all poetry translation involves trade-offs, and that one is the choice between writing something that sounds like the original, versus something that sounds good in the new language.
Of course, translating the imagery, and the allusions, and the connotations - all that stuff is hard, too.
As for me, I think it's debatable
Whether poetry's really translatable.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Joe Dejan
My friend, Joe Dejan, died last night. He had been ailing a long time. His wife and son were there with him. Marsha and I had visited a little while before to say goodbye. Marsha thinks he heard us. I would like to think so, too.
But I prefer to think of his long and amazing life. Originally a French citizen, he had lived in both North Africa and France before settling in the United States. He was highly accomplished in track and field, gymnastics, and judo.
Apparently he was quite the swimmer as a boy, spending hours swimming in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Africa. Once he was out so long that his distraught parents had search parties looking for him. He didn't realize at first that they were looking for him, so he joined one of the search parties!
He knew Camus and Sartre, he wrote as a critic, painted canvases that sold well, and even designed a typeface that is still in popular use today.
He was charming
And disarming.
And though it was expected,
I'm dejected
That he's gone.
But I prefer to think of his long and amazing life. Originally a French citizen, he had lived in both North Africa and France before settling in the United States. He was highly accomplished in track and field, gymnastics, and judo.
Apparently he was quite the swimmer as a boy, spending hours swimming in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Africa. Once he was out so long that his distraught parents had search parties looking for him. He didn't realize at first that they were looking for him, so he joined one of the search parties!
He knew Camus and Sartre, he wrote as a critic, painted canvases that sold well, and even designed a typeface that is still in popular use today.
He was charming
And disarming.
And though it was expected,
I'm dejected
That he's gone.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Spam I Am
Want to lose weight?
Catch the new low rates!
Turn your career up a degree!
Increased Sperm Count/Motility!
Yes, those are from my current buffer of 50 spam messages.
Catch the new low rates!
Turn your career up a degree!
Increased Sperm Count/Motility!
Yes, those are from my current buffer of 50 spam messages.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Free Advice
I just got Free Advice in the mail the other day. One of the authors is someone I know from the TOC Summer Seminar. If you look at the cover, she's the one in the middle, Caroline Johnson.
I had actually looked at this book in the store before. It looked funny, insightful, but aimed at people in the dating marketplace. Then I realized a friend had written it, and I had to have it.
It alternates serious with humorous advice.
"Don't be afraid of the person who calls you ugly, because coming around the next corner will be someone who is convinced that you should be the next Speaker of the House. You cannot predict, much less control, what other people will think of you. Your opinon is the one that really matters."
"The right sheets are very important. Kiddie-cartoon sheets should be left in the crib. No woman wants to make love to a man on top of Tweety-Bird."
Alas, poor Tweety,
Have your heard?
Your wonderful sheets
Are for the birds.
I had actually looked at this book in the store before. It looked funny, insightful, but aimed at people in the dating marketplace. Then I realized a friend had written it, and I had to have it.
It alternates serious with humorous advice.
"Don't be afraid of the person who calls you ugly, because coming around the next corner will be someone who is convinced that you should be the next Speaker of the House. You cannot predict, much less control, what other people will think of you. Your opinon is the one that really matters."
"The right sheets are very important. Kiddie-cartoon sheets should be left in the crib. No woman wants to make love to a man on top of Tweety-Bird."
Alas, poor Tweety,
Have your heard?
Your wonderful sheets
Are for the birds.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Rapture
The other night, in our Artistic Nudity discussion, I heard someone ask whether Romance novels are pornographic. I somehow never got to answer, even though I was apparently one of only 2 people at our NIF meeting who had actually read Romance novels.
Some have long drawn out sex scenes. Some have no sex scenes at all, although the protagonists will almost certainly kiss and hug rapturously. The structure of the genre is: man and woman fall in love with each other and overcome obstacles to find lasting commitment with each other. The love involved is always charged with desire, and the novels are always meant to be erotic in that sense. But, unlike "pornography", there is no loveless sex in Romance novels. The protagonists may well experience their initial attraction as pure unbridled lust, but eventually it dawns on them that they have fallen hopelessly in love.
Chemistry may lead the way,
But true love carries the day.
Some have long drawn out sex scenes. Some have no sex scenes at all, although the protagonists will almost certainly kiss and hug rapturously. The structure of the genre is: man and woman fall in love with each other and overcome obstacles to find lasting commitment with each other. The love involved is always charged with desire, and the novels are always meant to be erotic in that sense. But, unlike "pornography", there is no loveless sex in Romance novels. The protagonists may well experience their initial attraction as pure unbridled lust, but eventually it dawns on them that they have fallen hopelessly in love.
Chemistry may lead the way,
But true love carries the day.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
All Wet
Yesterday I drove up to Lake Zurich, IL, to pick up my triathlon packet for today's race. The packet includes such goodies as a swim cap and a computer chip to strap to my ankle.
A lady working for the race told us that the lake was very warm - 81F - and that consequently it was very unlikely that we would be allowed to wear wetsuits. (Wetsuits make you warmer, and they become dangerous when you swim in very warm water because you can overheat.)
She didn't just say "very unlikely." She said it was "99.99 percent certain" that wetsuits would be banned. That means there would only be a one in ten thousand chance that wetsuits would be permitted.
So I didn't bring my wetsuit with me this morning. And, in an apparent application of Murphy's Law, wetsuits were indeed allowed. And all the other guys my age seemed to have wetsuits.
The result was that I had a poorer swim placement that usual. You see, wetsuits make you faster, too! Oh, well. I still had a fun race.
Unless the ban is absolute
Make sure to bring your suit.
A lady working for the race told us that the lake was very warm - 81F - and that consequently it was very unlikely that we would be allowed to wear wetsuits. (Wetsuits make you warmer, and they become dangerous when you swim in very warm water because you can overheat.)
She didn't just say "very unlikely." She said it was "99.99 percent certain" that wetsuits would be banned. That means there would only be a one in ten thousand chance that wetsuits would be permitted.
So I didn't bring my wetsuit with me this morning. And, in an apparent application of Murphy's Law, wetsuits were indeed allowed. And all the other guys my age seemed to have wetsuits.
The result was that I had a poorer swim placement that usual. You see, wetsuits make you faster, too! Oh, well. I still had a fun race.
Unless the ban is absolute
Make sure to bring your suit.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Speaking of Nudity
Tonight at NIF we will be honored with a guest speaker, none other than ljmorris. He's going to talk about philosophical aspects of artistic nudity, if I recall correctly. Originally his wife was also going to speak on the topic, but she is unable to attend, sad to say. It promises to be a lively and popular topic.
I just hope the caucus
Doesn't get raucous.
ljmorris. He's going to talk about philosophical aspects of artistic nudity, if I recall correctly. Originally his wife was also going to speak on the topic, but she is unable to attend, sad to say. It promises to be a lively and popular topic.I just hope the caucus
Doesn't get raucous.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Unbearable
Scientists have tracked a polar bear going for a nice long swim - 46 miles in one day though icy waters.
Whew.
That's one swim I don't want to do.
Just thinking about it my body is turning blue.
Whew.
That's one swim I don't want to do.
Just thinking about it my body is turning blue.
The Unnamed
I came across this in James Valliant's book: "...in 1996, [the Blumenthals] severed all association with an organization which had invited Branden to speak."
The organization he is referring to is undoubtedly The Objectivist Center. He just doesn't refer to it by name. Nor does he give a source for his assertion. Curious.
Probably a footnote mentioning its name
Would lend it too much fame.
The organization he is referring to is undoubtedly The Objectivist Center. He just doesn't refer to it by name. Nor does he give a source for his assertion. Curious.
Probably a footnote mentioning its name
Would lend it too much fame.
53
On this day in '52
The world looked extremely new.
I wasn't used to breathing air
And hadn't brought a thing to wear.
But - lucky for me - my Mom was there!
The world looked extremely new.
I wasn't used to breathing air
And hadn't brought a thing to wear.
But - lucky for me - my Mom was there!
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Two Wives Too Many
An Englishman wakes up from triple bypass surgery. His wife comes to see him. So does his other wife. And his other wife. All at the same time.
Apparently he had never bothered to introduce his wives to one another.
His wives became upset
At this breech of etiquette.
Apparently he had never bothered to introduce his wives to one another.
His wives became upset
At this breech of etiquette.
Tie Fabrication
If you look at the cover of James Valliant's book, you will see the bottom of Nathaniel Branden's necktie.
But if you look at the original photo - which is included in the book itself - you will NOT see the bottom of his tie. Instead you will see the backs of other people's heads, blocking our view of Branden's tummy.
On the cover, those heads have been erased, and replaced by extrapolated neckwear.
Why, oh why,
Did they paint in a tie?
But if you look at the original photo - which is included in the book itself - you will NOT see the bottom of his tie. Instead you will see the backs of other people's heads, blocking our view of Branden's tummy.
On the cover, those heads have been erased, and replaced by extrapolated neckwear.
Why, oh why,
Did they paint in a tie?
Just Wondering
If this is the Homeland,
Are all those other countries our soldiers go to the Roamland?
Are all those other countries our soldiers go to the Roamland?
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Juror Furor
A couple of the jurors from the Michael Jackson trial are now recanting, saying they really thought he was guilty but they were bullied by other jurors into finding him not guilty.
Sure, now they tell us!
"Unanimous" jury verdicts do not always represent full agreement among members of the jury. Rather, unanimous verdicts often represent compromises among jurors who are eager to go home. It it weren't for this tendency, there would be a lot more hung juries.
It's worth noting that these particular recanting jurors are talking book deals.
"They bullied me, they pressured me, I had to go along,
But now I've got a book deal so I'll sing a different song!"
Sure, now they tell us!
"Unanimous" jury verdicts do not always represent full agreement among members of the jury. Rather, unanimous verdicts often represent compromises among jurors who are eager to go home. It it weren't for this tendency, there would be a lot more hung juries.
It's worth noting that these particular recanting jurors are talking book deals.
"They bullied me, they pressured me, I had to go along,
But now I've got a book deal so I'll sing a different song!"
Monday, August 08, 2005
Emotional Vibrations
Over on the SoloHQ site, Roger Bissell quoted Rand's statement (in her article, "The Comprachicos") that an infant's chief means of survival was the awareness of emotional vibrations. Roger interpreted her usage to be something along the lines of ESP, as if she thought the emotional vibrations were picked up by senses other than our standard input channels.
I never thought she had anything extrasensory in mind. I always figured she would have said that the baby was picking up sensory cues and integrating them to form an emotional impression at a subconceptual level. Or something like that. After all, if a dog can do it, why not a baby?
What mysterious factor
Allows us to watch an actor
And "get" that he's feeling down
When he frowns?
I never thought she had anything extrasensory in mind. I always figured she would have said that the baby was picking up sensory cues and integrating them to form an emotional impression at a subconceptual level. Or something like that. After all, if a dog can do it, why not a baby?
What mysterious factor
Allows us to watch an actor
And "get" that he's feeling down
When he frowns?
Rainy Night in Georgia
It was rainy last night in Georgia, but now I'm in North Carolina where it's dry.
Marsha and I were hosted in Georgia by the Fellowship of Reason folks, and had a great time. I rode a jetski for the first time in my life, and I now see how it could rapidly become addictive. The lake house at which we stayed had no phones and no broadband. So rhyme-of-the-day missed a day. I wasn't even able to pick up a wireless signal!
I was wireless-less,
I guess.
This morning, at their big monthly meeting, Marsha spoke to them about her new college project, and I talked about my novel, Unholy Quest, and did a book signing. It was great fun with great people. Mark Berger, Montessorian extraordinaire, then drove us up a couple of states to North Carolina.
Here, lucky me, they have wireless
So I can continue my tireless
But nonetheless terse
Daily verse.
Friday, August 05, 2005
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Free Money
Nigerians keep sending me offers
To share ill-gotten wealth - to fill my coffers
With somebody's else's inheritance.
These Not-So-Good Samaritans
Intrude upon my existence
With repetitive insistence
That cash in large amounts
Will be wired to my accounts -
But first they need from me
A little fee.
Whatever shall I do?
It's almost too good to be true!
To share ill-gotten wealth - to fill my coffers
With somebody's else's inheritance.
These Not-So-Good Samaritans
Intrude upon my existence
With repetitive insistence
That cash in large amounts
Will be wired to my accounts -
But first they need from me
A little fee.
Whatever shall I do?
It's almost too good to be true!
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Old Lesson
When I was in 3rd or 4th grade I had a terrible crush on a classmate. Call her Laura. Laura was a very sweet girl, but she was not academically quick. In fact, she was one of the slowest students in the class.
So every time the teacher gave her a hard time - which was freqently enough - it tore my heart.
The teacher would stand her up in the front of the room and ask her the same question over and over again to see if Laura would somehow come up with the right answer. It could be a lesson the teacher just taught, but Laura would stand there like a deer in the headlights, mortified by her own failure to understand, and meekly submit to ridicule. Often enough, the class would be laughing.
And I had to sit there and watch, knowing the correct answer, unable to give it, knowing the teacher was doing Laura no good, feeling sure that I could do a better job of teaching Laura than the teacher was doing.
So that's one very personal reason I like Montessori schools. Because it just wouldn't happen there.
Tormenting the slow
Is no way to go.
So every time the teacher gave her a hard time - which was freqently enough - it tore my heart.
The teacher would stand her up in the front of the room and ask her the same question over and over again to see if Laura would somehow come up with the right answer. It could be a lesson the teacher just taught, but Laura would stand there like a deer in the headlights, mortified by her own failure to understand, and meekly submit to ridicule. Often enough, the class would be laughing.
And I had to sit there and watch, knowing the correct answer, unable to give it, knowing the teacher was doing Laura no good, feeling sure that I could do a better job of teaching Laura than the teacher was doing.
So that's one very personal reason I like Montessori schools. Because it just wouldn't happen there.
Tormenting the slow
Is no way to go.
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Invisible Man Finished
I hadn't read Richard Ellison's Invisible Man before. It's set between the 2 world wars, partly in the South, mostly in Harlem. It's a wild story populated with its share of wild characters. The structure is somewhat episodic, but held together by the lead character, our first person narrator. Ellison creates many dramatic scenes, builds mystery, has comic moments, and then reveals the truth. The process is disillusioning, but finally enlightening for our talented but often hapless and tormented hero, a young black man trying to make his way in the world. The style is largely realistic, but strays into the extravagantly imaginative at times.
The novel's important symbolic truth, to me, is the tendency of whites and blacks alike to treat black people as "representatives of their race" and then assign them all corresponding responsibilities, whether to obey, rebel, succeed, etc. So the individual becomes invisible, masked by his assigned role.
The part of the book I liked best was the long section on the Communist Party, known in this book as "the brotherhood". Our hero joins and becomes a prominent speaker for the party, but ends up very disillusioned indeed as he realizes that the party is just using him, and just using blacks in general, for its own nefarious goals.
It was published in 1952 and was, for a time, a very influential book; I would recommend it for its historical perspective on black and white relations.
Hidden behind assigned roles,
It's hard to find individual souls.
The novel's important symbolic truth, to me, is the tendency of whites and blacks alike to treat black people as "representatives of their race" and then assign them all corresponding responsibilities, whether to obey, rebel, succeed, etc. So the individual becomes invisible, masked by his assigned role.
The part of the book I liked best was the long section on the Communist Party, known in this book as "the brotherhood". Our hero joins and becomes a prominent speaker for the party, but ends up very disillusioned indeed as he realizes that the party is just using him, and just using blacks in general, for its own nefarious goals.
It was published in 1952 and was, for a time, a very influential book; I would recommend it for its historical perspective on black and white relations.
Hidden behind assigned roles,
It's hard to find individual souls.
Monday, August 01, 2005
Golden Escape from Alcatraz
There's an annual swimming event in San Francisco. The participants swim 1.2 miles from the island of Alcatraz to the shore. It's "only" 1.2 miles, but the water is cold and choppy.
There were 500 swimmers. One of them was Jake. Jake came in 72nd place.
He swam the whole way in a fur coat.
That's because he's a golden retriever.
I have to say Jake's time
For the 1.2
Is notably faster than mine.
I bet he can outrun me too.
What's a poor human to do?
But here's a fact I like:
I can beat him on the bike.
There were 500 swimmers. One of them was Jake. Jake came in 72nd place.
He swam the whole way in a fur coat.
That's because he's a golden retriever.
I have to say Jake's time
For the 1.2
Is notably faster than mine.
I bet he can outrun me too.
What's a poor human to do?
But here's a fact I like:
I can beat him on the bike.
Shocking Ruling
A Chicago police sergeant Tasered a guy who was high on meth. The guy died.
The Cook County medical examiner ruled that what killed the man was the Taser jolt. The Taser company doesn't like this ruling because they sell Tasers as non-lethal weapons. So it's the wrong kind of publicity.
Their theory is that he wouldn't have died if he weren't high on meth, which already had his heart beating funny.
The medical examiner's theory is that he was already high on meth, and his heart was still beating - until he got Tasered.
Shall we assign complicity
To the jolt of electricity?
Or was it really death
By meth?
The Cook County medical examiner ruled that what killed the man was the Taser jolt. The Taser company doesn't like this ruling because they sell Tasers as non-lethal weapons. So it's the wrong kind of publicity.
Their theory is that he wouldn't have died if he weren't high on meth, which already had his heart beating funny.
The medical examiner's theory is that he was already high on meth, and his heart was still beating - until he got Tasered.
Shall we assign complicity
To the jolt of electricity?
Or was it really death
By meth?
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)