Spudlets

February 28, 2003

It was a big day at Spudlets yesterday, with over twice the traffic as usual. I think someone semi-notorious linked me, but I have checked the usual suspects and have not found any clues. Could someone please help a poor tater with dirt in his eyes and mention who linked me so I can properly thank them?

Posted by MarcV, 1:38 PM link

Light posting today. I had my 13 yr. old nephew in the office today. He was here on a school assignment for one of those "Career Days", to see how people work at jobs that the students may show interest. I hope I've dissuaded him from the desire to be a computer go-fer. He said he enjoys programming more than hardware, but has not done much programming (I think he likes to play games more than design them).

I am worried that at his age, either he's programming like crazy or he'll be left behind. It's definitely an art, and someone who does it well and enjoys it can pretty much write their own ticket. For now he seems to be going through the typical lazy teenager phase, but hopefully it will not last long.

Posted by MarcV, 1:35 PM link

February 27, 2003

Old journalism and english majors don't die, they just fade away to this site. Some funny descriptions on the contributors to popmatters.com can be found, you just have to wade through a bunch of them.

Posted by MarcV, 12:03 PM link

I clicked on this link, under the most recently updated blogs listing in blogger, because of the connection to North Carolina. This one has potential, although it is still fairly new. Check it out - some cursing, but not alot. I can identify in wanting to fit into a small town but being "rebuffed" by the landed gentry. I understand why it happens, just don't happen to like it.
[UPDATE: The author of the blog, Valerie, has her own place to hang out, where she has more posts than on the above site.)

Posted by MarcV, 11:28 AM link

Muslim Democracy

David Frum has a good summation on Pres. Bush's speech last night to the American Enterprise Institute. Pres. Bush is already mapping out his post-war strategy (we haven't even invaded yet!), and what he would like to see happen in Iraq:

“There was a time when many said that the cultures of Japan and Germany were incapable of sustaining democratic values. Well, they were wrong. Some say the same of Iraq today. They are mistaken. The nation of Iraq -- with its proud heritage, abundant resources and skilled and educated people -- is fully capable of moving toward democracy and living in freedom.”

The President replied to those who would say that the forms of government adopted in Arab world are none of America’s business by arguing, to the contrary, that the Arab world’s authoritarianism bred the terrorism of 9/11:

“The world has a clear interest in the spread of democratic values, because stable and free nations do not breed the ideologies of murder. They encourage the peaceful pursuit of a better life.”

My first reaction is that we will always have terrorists, mentally unbalanced people who would harm as many others as possible for whatever insane reason pops into their heads. What we can promote are countries governed by democratic principles, where terrorist cells are not tolerated, but instead sought out and destroyed by individual countries (and not just big-stick USA). It will be a long and difficult road to get there, but the present course of winking at dictators and giving them payoffs (hello Egypt and Syria) to keep them placated is not working. Yes, we will always have terrorists, even in the US, but we can make it more difficult for them to operate.

My other thought/concern is the imposition of a democracy based on Judeo-Christian values to Arab countries. Can a democratic-type government thrive in a Muslim environment? That seems to be the million dollar question now. While Turkey may be considered a good example, I think the jury is still out on the Turks. Although a democratic form of government can be made to appear secular on the surface, our system has a vast underpinning of Judeo-Christian values. I don't know enough about the Islamic faith to predict that it would also supply a sufficiently moral foundation for a democratic governing system.

Similar to the Bible, different people interpret the Koran to suit their individual desires. The key to the spread of democracy in the Middle East will be the disconnection of religious authority from government. Our Constitutional fathers understood this and did not overly impose their faith in establishing laws. They did find the balance between morals, common sense and freedom to establish the Constitution and federal government.

Besides the over-reliance of religious authority figures in the Middle East, the elevation of clan/family in Arabic society will make the implementation of democracy very difficult. A key component in democracy is the rights of individuals. Arab societies historically only recognize individual rights taken by power grabs and not granted by the community, i.e. Sauds in KSA, Qaddafi in Libya. Convincing a group, whether it is a township or nation, to peacefully yield control to an individual will be a foreign concept to them. There will be significant hand-holding needed to get them over this hump.

Despite all this nattering negativity, Pres. Bush is right in saying that we have to try. Once people get a taste of freedom, and then given a helping hand to administer that freedom, hopefully they won't go back to their old ways.

Posted by MarcV, 11:22 AM link

SPOT On

If you haven't heard about it, Bill Gates and Microsoft are pushing SPOT heavily: Smart Personal Objects Technology. It's a watch that is like a PDA, but takes information downloads off of an FM signal. You can customize it to receive news, weather, instant messaging, and time/calendar, with more applications to come. They are targeting Fall '03 as the intro date. Supposedly most of the major metropolitan areas are already covered for the FM signal broadcast.

I'm curious to see how this takes off, if people find this useful or if it is more like a toy. I'll probably wait until the second generation comes out before putting any money down. As far as price, I did see $100 estimated. Can the Dick Tracy model be far behind?

Posted by MarcV, 8:36 AM link

QUICK FOXNEWS HITS: Looks like they have chosen the design for replacing the World Trade Center. Guess they were trying for modern, though the design does not do much for me. I'm sure Lileks will be weighing in on it today or tomorrow.
- Mr. Fred Rogers passed away. He had a long full life and touched many others with his kindness and enjoyment of life. I never did watch his show in my "yoot", what with Ray Rayner showing Bugs Bunny in the morning, but he did set a high standard for children's shows to follow. I hope Jesus greeted him by singing "Won't You Be My Neighbor" to him (I can only imagine)!

Posted by MarcV, 8:04 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

Tony Blair told Parliament Tuesday that Britain won't rush the U.N. resolution to use force in Iraq. He said Saddam Hussein has one further final chance. Until now, only Robert Downey, Jr. was given more chances to give up his chemical weapons.

The National Governors Conference demanded White House help Monday for budget shortages. It's time for desperate measures. To get money out of Washington for education, health care and border security, Michigan just changed its name to Turkey.

Posted by MarcV, 8:03 AM link

February 26, 2003

Fr*** Funnies

Here's a site (link from NRO) devoted to specialized humor that draws upon different sources. Here's a funny from Denis Leary:

I think we should take Iraq and Iran and combine them into one country and call it Irate. All the pissed off people live in one place and get it over with.

That might help in the monitoring department as well.

Posted by MarcV, 2:12 PM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

California Governor Gray Davis was hit with a recall campaign Monday due to huge deficits. The state is a mess. The director of the Department of Motor Vehicles tried to resign Monday but found he had been standing in the wrong line.

The New York Post detailed Hillary Clinton's political action committee cash outlays. It turns out she spends two-thirds of the money on herself. It's part of her commitment to better government to make sure that every day is a good hair day.

Posted by MarcV, 2:11 PM link

February 25, 2003

Miller Time
Over at Weekly Standard, Larry Miller wrote an article deconstructing the excuses against an invasion into Iraq. It looks like something that he has been saving up for awhile and has finally let out. There's more good, calm arguments for justifying the action we need to take. He acknowledges that there is a chance that thousands of innocent lives could be lost, but the price of doing nothing is too high. I liked his response to the "Bush is a cowboy" putdown:

Of course, Jacques Chirac uses it to mean a reckless, lawless idiot. I think a cowboy is: hardworking; unafraid; clear-eyed; innately understanding of a high, unmuddled morality; possessed of good values; ready for action; ready for a fight; ready to protect the weak; ready to stand alone. In this sense, I would agree completely. George W. Bush is a cowboy. I wish we all were.

Posted by MarcV, 8:34 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

President Bush said Saturday time is running out for Saddam Hussein. He said he's tired of timid leaders who are unwilling to do what needs to be done. Comments like that could put a real chill on Father's Day in Kennebunkport this year.

Howard Dean ignited the Democrats at the party's winter meeting Friday. He's articulate, he's passionate and he's anti-war. If Bush reminds everybody of Nixon, it's only right that the Democrats nominate someone who reminds everybody of McGovern.

Posted by MarcV, 7:47 AM link

Noticed the listing of songs on Spudlets appeared out of alignment. Sorry if you had to suffer through it. I tried several different formatting tricks, and they would be seen in the preview window at blogger but they would not show up on Spudlets. I'll keep digging.

Posted by MarcV, 7:47 AM link

February 24, 2003

Make It Stop!
Just saw this story about how people have been mentally tortured by songs that repeat in their head.

Songs that topped the list as being most likely to stick around in someone's head included the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out?" and the Chili's restaurant jingle about Baby Back Ribs.
But the number one song rated most likely to cause this phenomenon, referred to as an "earworm" in Germany, is "other"--indicating that many different songs can become stuck in our heads.

Who let the songs out - who who who who who. Since this will probably be sweeping the blogosphere like a happy dog's tail through the air, here is the official list from the home Taterbed in Lizard Lick, NC.
Top Ten Songs to Torture People With:

1. Ebony and Ivory - artist of your choice


2. Ben - Michael Jackson


3. We Are the Champions - Queen


4. Whip It - Devo


5. Miami Vice Theme Song - Jan Hammer


6. Walk This Way - Aerosmith/Run DMC


7. Kiss - Prince


8. New York, New York - Francis Albert Sinatra


9. I Want to Teach the World to Sing - that 60's Coca-Cola ad


10. I Love You - Barney

Whew, after looking over this list, I think you can tell who's the baby-boomer blogger! I don't listen to "popular" music anymore, so I couldn't tell you the difference between Avril and Norah songs.

Dr. James Kellaris of the University of Cincinnati presented results from his current study on Saturday at the Society for Consumer Psychology Winter Conference in New Orleans.

Kellaris's previous research into the phenomenon of earworms revealed that "sticky" songs are those that are relatively simple, repetitive, and contain an element that surprises the listener. This incongruous element can be an interrupted pattern, or something that violates expectations of what comes next.

Episodes of earworms also tend to strike people with neurotic tendencies more often. These people are not seriously neurotic, Kellaris said, but may simply be more prone to worrying and anxiety, and may have neurotic habits like biting pencils or tapping fingernails.

He also reported that women tend to get more upset by this, and that people shouldn't worry about "earworms", but just ride it out and maybe play some other music to help "unstick" the song. Bashing your head against the wall will probably not unstick a song, and could result in bruising.

Posted by MarcV, 4:15 PM link

It's Not Nice ...
To fool (with) Mother Nature! Snow in southern Mississippi - +10" in Oklahoma - flooding - El Nino? How much more evidence do we need? I hereby indict Mother Nature as a Terrorist and call upon Homeland Security to take the appropriate steps to reign in this destroyer of the peace. Oh, it's an act of God and she is just following His orders? Never mind.

After scanning the morning news, the destruction we had here Saturday barely makes the "radar". We had a line of strong thunderstorms come through, and at a couple of locations the conditions were just right for wind shear damage. Some roofs were torn off, lightpoles/signs/trees blown over and windows were blown out. We were out shopping and turned out to be about a half-mile from the destruction (our house was a few miles away), and praise God nobody here was seriously injured. The only injury that I have heard about happened to someone who was cutting a tree down and was hit/pinned by the tree (high winds the day after made repair work tricky). He was released from the hospital that same day.

Because of the way things were blown down, it was obvious that the destruction was caused by wind shear (microbursts), rather than a tornado. I still had someone in Sunday school insist that it was a tornado. When the wind speed hits 80 mph, property can get destroyed similar to a tornado, but things did not get flung outwardly, just in the direction of the wind/storm.

Posted by MarcV, 12:24 PM link

Weekend Wrap-Up, with Movies
While I don't have the talent to convey weekend happenings as interesting as a certain marsupial blogger, I do want to mention a few things, as well as give a few comments on movies. First off, and always of prime importance, I praise God for His abundant blessings. We were spared from the wind damage, and on Friday I got a bonus check which was twice as much as I thought I was getting, as well as about ten times more than I have ever received from other jobs. I know He would provide for us regardless of the bonus, but it sure helps.

Is it just me, or does anyone else notice that you go out to eat much more when you feel like you have alot of "extra" money? It's one way to fritter it away, so you can get back to the eating at home routine. We did splurge this weekend, with Lady Tater getting a few things off of the 'Net, while I picked a few things off of the Amazon wish list (a VDHanson book is on the way!).

It will also come in handy in April, when Uncle Sam is expecting a check from me, because my wife is making money on the side babysitting during the day. Filling out a Schedule SE form is a real eye-opener: +15% off of the top, gone forever. While Pres. Bush may be able to reduce federal tax rates, I don't know how successful he will be in touching FICA/Mediscare.

Flush with cash, Lady Tater insisted on dinner out Friday night. At the Rock-Ola Cafe, I typically get a particular item, since I rarely go there and the main dishes seem overpriced. When I tried to order it, though, my mouth opened but nothing came out at first, until some quick thinking prevailed: French Roast Beef Dip with French Freedom Fries. Dinner was much more enjoyable knowing that I was not supporting that particular EU stinker.

Movie #1 - The local library started to loan DVD's about a month ago, so Lady Spud picked up one for the grown-ups, Hearts in Atlantis. It starts out slow, then picks up once the characters and plot are initially established. I found this review over at Amazon helped to sum it up:

There is nothing new in Hearts in Atlantis. We've all seen the coming of age story done before. This is not a movie to be discussed in depth or over analyzed. It's a film to slip into like an old comfy sweater on a rainy afternoon. It's just a film to be enjoyed.

The schmaltz content is low, and there really is not a happy ending. The cursing content is next to zero, and there was only a small (but gripping) amount of violence at the end. I did find myself absorbed into it, and like most movies I enjoy, you forget about the rest of the world for about an hour and enjoy the story.

Movie #2 - It was big, not very fat, and oh so Greek. Yes, we rented My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and it is a very good romantic comedy, kind of like Moonstruck without the cheating and a litle less yelling. This one is set in Chicago (funny how some great movies are set there) and chronicles the ascension of a frump into a blushing bride. It's interesting to see what some makeup, new hairdo and nice clothes can do. See it with your spouse and relive some of the "fun" moments you had for your courtship/wedding.

Lady Spud and I were opposite: she came from the "quiet" family while I had more of the boisterous "ethnic" family. They really did welcome her too, but not quite what the guy in the movie had to go through. As time has flung the family apart, as well as deaths of the older generation, there is much less of the "ethnic" on my side and more of the "quiet" (into the melting pot you go!).

My fears were realized, though, when they started to lay out the buffet line for the "meeting the parents of the groom" party, as I needed a bowl to catch my drooling. I really miss good Greek meals (my pant size doesn't!), and I was dieing for a fix the next day. Greensboro has only one Greek restaurant, and they were closed Sunday. Arrrgh! If you are in Chicago, just ask someone where Greektown is (close to downtown just off the Eisenhower expwy., can't remember the particular street), and go to the Greek Isles. I might do that myself in about a month.

Anyhow, the movie has some parts you'll find yourself chuckling and maybe even laughing out loud. This was a fairly low budget film with good actors, but not "stars", and I hope Hollywood can make more of these types of movies. Don't think I would buy it, but it's worth a $3 rental. For my Christian blogger friends - you'll love the Baptism scene, extry funny! I will warn you that pre-marital sex is implied, so if that is offensive to you then you would not like this film.

Maybe instead of a "4-star", you could categorize films differently: buy it, $3 rental, $1 rental, fuhgeddaboutit. The Hearts in Atlantis would probably fall somewhere between the $3 and $1 rental. There are some films you just rent, but end up renting so much that you might as well buy it (Planes Trains and Automobiles falls into that category for me).

Posted by MarcV, 12:21 PM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

ABC News reports Hillary Clinton may give the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner keynote speech in Iowa this fall. The locals hate to see the presidential campaign end. When the candidates return home, Iowans have to go back to fertilizing the crops themselves.

Senator Robert Byrd played a Confederate officer in Gods and Generals. It was shrewd casting by the producers. They knew no other way to obtain Park Service permits for battlefield filming and an affirmative action waiver for an all-white army.

Posted by MarcV, 12:20 PM link

February 21, 2003

Wow
Just when you thought it wasn't possible, Victor Davis Hanson has surpassed himself again with today's post at NRO. If you have read him before and liked what he had to say, go read it. If you didn't like what he said before but are not sure about this "war-thingy", go read it. National Review provides a great public service by publishing his work on the Internet, and we can be thankful that his articles are available for the masses.

It will start out a little slow, as he provides a brief history lesson on ancient Greek battles/wars. He then goes on to compare World War II with the current War on Terrorism, and our need to remove islamo-fundamentalism by the roots (just as fascism was uprooted in WWII).

Fascist states and radical Islamists, in fact, exhibit affinities that go well beyond sporadic and murky ties between such governments and fundamentalist terrorist groups. For one, in a post-Soviet Union world, they all seek weapons of mass destruction to be used as intercontinental blackmail as a way of weakening Western resolve and curtailing an American presence abroad.

For another, their common ideological enemy is liberal democracy — specifically its global promotion of freedom, individualism, capitalism, gender equity, religious diversity, and secularism that undermines both Islamic fundamentalism in the cultural sense, and politically makes it more difficult for tyrants to rule over complacent and ignorant populations.

I'm tempted to quote more, but it would be far better to read it on your own, to get the whole gist of it. If you have some "peace protester" friends who would be willing to read something you gave them, print and distribute it, and maybe they will come around to the fact that this problem has to be met head-on.

Posted by MarcV, 10:09 AM link

For those of you who like to hear it from the horse's mouth, you can find the .wav file here for Willy the Janitor's famous French epithet. Plenty of other good Simpson sounds available, if you like that kind of thing.

Posted by MarcV, 9:25 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

Turkey demanded $30 billion from the U.S. Wednesday in exchange for temporary use of Turkey as a staging base for an invasion of Iraq. The administration wouldn't bite. Republicans have learned from painful experience that timeshares have no resale value.

Bobby Knight was given a day in his honor Saturday in Lubbock, Texas, for his great work reviving basketball at Texas Tech University. It's rumored that he's a pitchman for a local furniture store. If you buy a sofa, he'll throw in the chair.

Posted by MarcV, 9:23 AM link

If you're like me and wonder what the bejeebers the Turks are up to, this editorial at OpinionJournal may help a little.

The U.S. is also offering $20 billion in loans, but our advice would be that the U.S. forget the cash and simply offer the Turks membership in Nafta. Justice and Development leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan raised the idea late last year, and the free-trade pact would do more to promote Turkish growth (and links to the West) than all the gold in Fort Knox.

Is NAFTA now the big prize, and how much do we hurt our economy by giving other countries free-trade reign in ours? I'm tempted to just give over the gold in Fort Knox ($52 billion - 147 million troy oz. x $353/oz). We should think of this as a friend helping a friend, but this has all the earmarks of extortion.

Posted by MarcV, 9:22 AM link

February 20, 2003

Tony Woodlief, at Sand in the Gears, has just posted a semi-goodbye. He says he may do a few personal posts now and then, but his writing efforts will be primarily directed at honing the craft, eventually for profit. I'll miss his "...unedited rants about political and social issues...", but I understand the demands of the blog monster and how some people feel the need to get away.

As one exits, another returns...
Josh Sargent posted yesterday. Glad to see him back. The blog monster is sometimes hard to resist, although in Josh's case he pretty much sticks to a few quick posts (not that there is anything wrong with that). I'm not sure if he has pulled his comments, or if they just were not working when I visited there.

Posted by MarcV, 1:41 PM link

War Time
PBS replayed the Frontline special (Mon. and Tues. nights), originally shown in '96, on Desert Storm. I lived through it back in '91, but was not politically active/interested at the time, so some of the things they presented were quite eye-opening. The main problem I had was with Gen Schwarzkopf. Back then he came out looking like a hero, but I was not impressed with the way he handled the whole thing.

I know hindsight can be 20-20 here, but he badly handled the aftermath. Part of the blame goes to Powell and Pres. GH Bush, who left Schwarzkopf to fend for himself for the settlement terms. They all missed the boat on dealing with the Arab mindset, and tried to apply our enlightened Western view of forgiveness, in addition to a vague hope that Saddam's generals would rise up against him. Allowing Saddam to project military power to the North and South regions that were rebelling insured that he would maintain his iron grip on Iraq.

Schwarzkopf and crew were worried about being bogged down in Baghdad, but it looks like we have to do things over again 12 years later. It was emphasized over and over that the administration and military feared another Vietnam. By allowing fear to rule decision making, we stopped short of taking care of a tyrant when we had the chance, and in effect gave him a victory. The Arabs do not respect diplomacy or sanctions. They only respect power. I hope this time we can do the right thing and relieve Saddam and his crew of any further influence on the future of Iraq.

For the last few days I have actually had some second thoughts about invading Iraq, due to the influence of my faith, the peace protesters, and that PBS/Frontline special. The constant whining in the editorial section of the newspaper has not been helpful either. I come back, though, to the simple fact that doing nothing (and more inspections/sanctions is pretty much doing nothing) gives Saddam a vote of confidence and allows him more time to find ways at harming the USA. Two columnists in the paper yesterday helped.

Cal Thomas had a few things to say about the protesters and countries opposing war with Iraq, and then plainly stated at the end:

The time for debate is over. The time for Iraq's liberation is upon us. The time for more resolutions by the pathetic United Nations is long past. The time for war is now.

Kathleen Parker also had some words for the protesters. She writes something that I have been thinking about in my own mind, that it is time for the grown-ups to take care of things. She mentions what England's PM Blair stated recently:

"If I took that advice, and did not insist on disarmament, yes, there would be no war," said Blair. "But there would still be Saddam. … This isn't a regime with Weapons of Mass Destruction that is otherwise benign. This is a regime that contravenes every single principle or value anyone of our politics believes in. "… I do not seek unpopularity as a badge of honor. But sometimes it is the price of leadership. And the cost of conviction."

Reading those words against the backdrop of protesters reminds parents like me of the teenager who stomps and yells "I hate you!" when things don't go his way. The parent thinks to himself, fine. Hate me if that's the price I must pay for doing what's best for you regardless of the cost to my own happiness at the moment.

Let's roll.

Posted by MarcV, 1:38 PM link

Ya know, with Blogger boogered up yesterday, how was it that some folks got their posts up and others did not. Mr. Possumblogger thought it was a conspiracy, but I have a sneaky hunch that the Blogger Pro customers got preferential treatment. Wonder if we will be seeing more "downtime" for the freeloaders? Google wouldn't do something like that - nah, I'm sure they are a bunch of swell fellas (and gals) who want to keep the Internet free for you and me.

Posted by MarcV, 9:11 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

French President Jacques Chirac attacked European nations who back U.S. policy in Iraq. He has painted his country into a corner. The difference between France and Michael Jackson is there's still a remote chance that Michael Jackson can save face.

Joe Millionaire proposed to a schoolteacher in the season finale Monday. She was stunned to hear that he deceived her about everything. She held in her hand a report from Hans Blix certifying that Evan Marriott had just inherited $50 million.

I didn't watch the show, but heard that after he "confessed" he was Joe Poor-Guy, that she was glad that he had not inherited the $50M. What was she doing on the show if she was not interested in millionaires? Maybe she thought that the money did not "fit" him somehow.

Posted by MarcV, 8:59 AM link

More Hydrogen Pipe Dreams
Tech Central has another article on the hydrogen folly. After again reviewing the net energy loss of just generating hydrogen, as well as the extreme difficulty in fuel transportation/storage, he gives some details on an engine developed for H2:

For example, BMW currently has a working V-12 that is hydrogen powered. This engine in gasoline form produces about 400 hp. With hydrogen, horsepower drops to just 160 hp and performance is at the level of a Toyota Corolla running on three of its four cylinders. BMW claims a 0-60 time of 10 seconds whereas the gasoline version will accomplish this performance parameter in about six seconds or less. Although this process will continue to produce CO2, other tail pipe emissions - the ones that cause dirty air or smog - would be eliminated.

Can't you just envision the people lining up for a car with a V-12 engine with the performance of a Chevette? He also briefly describes the problems with fuel cells, where the use of exotic materials and processing techniques will make them very expensive. He seems to think that it will take decades to work through the fuel cell problems.

So why is the President spending billions on fuel cells and hydrogen fuel? Does he really believe it is the answer to our energy problems? Probably not. President Bush may be circumventing the spending of untold billions by demonstrating at this time the impracticality of fuel cells and hydrogen fuel while politically placating the environmental alarmists.

It would be nice if the federal government kept this work in the private sector and did not have to spend any money, but perhaps this is a politically expedient way of sidetracking the tree-huggers.

Posted by MarcV, 8:59 AM link

February 19, 2003

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

The European Union voted Monday to give Iraq one last chance to disarm. It's getting close to war. No one wants to say how much time Saddam Hussein has, but whenever he walks into a state banquet the band plays the theme from Final Jeopardy.

France was pounded in the U.S. media for opposing U.S. policy in Iraq. Americans have little knowledge of the help France gave the 13 colonies in the Revolutionary War. Most people think Lafayette Park was named for the founder of South Korea.

Posted by MarcV, 4:44 PM link

FrenchUh, Just Fries
It had to happen, Joe Sixpack makes his voice heard:

Neal Rowland, who owns Cubbie's restaurant in Beaufort, N.C., said he decided to put stickers that say "Freedom" over the word "French" on all his menus after he watched France back away from support for war in Iraq.

"Since the French are backing down, French fries and French everything needs to be banned," he told Foxnews.com in a telephone interview. "Fry sales have really gone up. People who eat them now say, 'Freedom never tasted so good.'"

How does that song go again?

Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose,
Nothing don’t mean nothing honey if it ain’t free, now now.

To help out Mr. Sixpack, the following terms should now be used:

French Toast

Griddle Toast

French Onion Soup

COBOT Onion Soup (Crust Of Bread On Top)

French Kissing

Slobber-Tongue Kissing

French Green Beans

Sliver-Sliced Green Beans

French Mineral Water

Evian Naive

From the FoxNews article: "According to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, France is the leading exporter of water to the United States and sold 65 million gallons last year." Are those wily French worried? Certain-non!

"Well, if they prefer to eat American food, it is entirely their problem," Guillaume Parmentier, the head of the French Centre on the United States, told the Canadian news service CBC.ca. "But seriously. This never works. Boycotts work when there are grave human rights violations or something like that."

Oh yeah, what would you call the torture and killing attributed to Saddam's regime, a minor irritant? Although some of us would like to perform a little "strafe bombing" of some key French sites (just to give them a hint), we as a country can give them a forceful message by not purchasing any products made in France. [American trade with France tops $30 billion a year.] So it's up to you, Joe and Jane Sixpack, to send a message to those "appeasers" that we are not going to stand for their actions.

**Update: Stupid blogger is not accepting my calls (been trying to post since 8:30 am) so here's a funny from David Frum's request (at NRO) for ideas on retaliation against the French:

Commander Steven Vanderplas of the U.S. Coast Guard proposes massive retaliation: “Air drop McDonald's gift certificates and EuroDisney discount coupons . . . Radio Free France broadcasts of Rush Limbaugh . . . Dump Sunny Delight and Velveeta on the market . . . Threaten an Eminem world tour.”
John Carter advocated a more vigorous approach:“I say we send over 2 divisions of Cub Scouts, armed with water pistols and rubber band guns to occupy Paris. Chirac will be banished to EuroDisney.”

Posted by MarcV, 4:44 PM link

February 18, 2003

For anyone who hasn't seen it, Bill Whittle got around to posting (on 2/15) something near and dear to his heart: flying. He gives his insight (and eulogy) to what happened to the courageous Columbia astronauts. You'll need at least 20 minutes to read through it.

Posted by MarcV, 4:22 PM link

Also at NRO is a good article detailing some of the present al-Qaeda operations and their link to Saddam. This cat-and-mouse game will be going on for some time, but the more terrorist cells that can be rooted out and destroyed, the better chance we have of avoiding a WMD used on innocent civilians.

Posted by MarcV, 11:10 AM link

Micheal Novak has posted another article in the same month at NRO! After comparing Kosovo and Iraq, he gives good arguments about the justification of an Iraqi liberation, detailing how the American effort will try to minimize civilian casualties, while Hussein takes steps to maximize them.

The whole point of this intervention is to side with the Iraqi people against this most cruel torturer and tyrant, Saddam Hussein. Wouldn't it make sense to design a war that causes minimal injury, even inconvenience, to civilians? Don't we want most civilians, and even the army, even elements of the Republican Guard, to turn against the monster who tyrannizes them?

Getting the Iraqis to turn on Saddam would be a coup, and would be great if it happened just after the invasion started. We should help the Iraqi people get to the point of rejecting Saddam's reign of terror. Since the appeasement policy has not worked, force is needed.

It was the solemn of obligation of the U.N. and of the United States to oblige him to disarm by force, if he did not do so willingly, even before the dramatic events of September 11, 2001. One of the reasons for going to war under traditional just-war theory is to restore the rule of international law. For peace is not a feeling. It is the work of political action, mediated by law, to secure the minimum conditions of international justice and order. War is sometimes morally obligatory to restore the tranquility of international order.

It hurts me to see people acting mean and hateful in their attempt at stopping the Iraqi liberation force, trying to cut down Pres. Bush and thinking that he enjoys sending the military into harm's way. It greatly troubles him, it is a grave responsibility, and it is something that former Pres. Clinton would not face, so Pres. Bush has to clean things up. He still remembers the effects of 9/11/01, and wakes up every morning hoping that he does not have to deal with the aftermath of another terrorist attack. I pray that our leaders are going after the proper targets in the war against terrorism, helping to secure a peaceful and prosperous future.

Posted by MarcV, 11:09 AM link

Great Googly Taters
Spudlets came in #27 (but we're trying harder) on this Yahoo search:
sermon on christian taters. Well, here goes: Christian taters can be thin-skinned, different varieties and shapes. Sometimes our brushes with the world can cause bruises that will spread through the whole potato. We do have access to the Master Gardener who heals bruises, leads us to the good soil and gives us a continuous flow of living water. At harvest time, He will take us out of the dirt when the time is right and welcome us to the perfect root cellar, there to join other taters in worshiping our Savior. And yes, on some Sunday afternoons Christian taters have been known to convert to couch potatoes!

Google gave Spudlets a #5 ranking for "warren buffet hilary clinton" search. Talk about your power couple - WHEW! I think they could rule the world if they pooled their resources. At least they could give Saddam and Chirac good competition.

Blogger has the announcement up about Google buying out Blogspot/Blogger. Supposedly there will not be any change in service, just more downtime as they scramble to get more servers to handle the anticipated increase in Blogger usage. I have a hunch they will continue to offer the free service, but cut back more on archiving. You'll probably see more variety in purchased service packages as Google looks to squeeze some profit out of Blogger. At worst I can always buy my own domain name and pay for hosting services, which I've been thinking of doing anyhow. But who has the money for that kind of thing?

Posted by MarcV, 8:27 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

President Bush's approval rating took a plunge on Monday. The citizenry is in line for duct tape, the stock market is tanking, and France is getting standing ovations at the United Nations. No one wants to say Hillary is looming, but she just called a press conference to announce that she's completely free of prostate cancer.

Ohio U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich said Monday he will run for president. There are way too many Democrats. This year at the Iowa debates, the candidates will be seated in the audience and the interested voters will take the five chairs onstage.

Posted by MarcV, 8:18 AM link

February 17, 2003

Appeasers
Jonah Goldberg at NRO has an article about the French up at the LA Times site (registration required). After again reminding everyone that the "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" was originally from the Simpsons, he dissects the French problem:

The unifying myth of the "new Europe" is that over the last 50 years it has achieved peace and prosperity through endless blather in Zurich hotel conference rooms.

Or as the New York Times' Ethan Bronner wrote recently, "Through common economic interests, education and relentless talk, the Europeans have forged a new world for themselves."

They talk, people listen, and then the people go about doing whatever they were originally going to do anyhow. Without the big stick, diplomacy ends up being a lot of hot air contributing to the (unproven) greehouse effect. How many pre-schoolers do you know are talked out of misbehaving, without the fear of spanking? Mr. G. then gets to something meatier:

It's a classic free-ride problem. The Europeans have benefited from the global stability provided by the United States. But the Europeans -- or at least the French and Germans -- now take that stability for granted and berate the United States for doing what it sees as necessary to ensure continued peace and prosperity. Unfortunately, the idea that violence never solves anything is a fraud. Violence ended the Holocaust; in the U.S., it freed the slaves. And, in 1998, American-led violence ended slaughter in the Balkans while European paper shufflers stood by paralyzed.

Besides the things they say, the other problem with the French is what they do. In this case it is their attempt at somehow blunting American imperialism/influence. As the US goes after Saddam, the French continue to block any attempts at that.

In addition to their desire to curb U.S. influence in the region, the French are far more hungry for Iraqi oil money than the United States. If we were hellbent on Iraqi oil, we would lift the sanctions tomorrow in exchange for fat oil contracts -- something Hussein has suggested in the past. Or we could have just taken Iraq's oil a decade ago when we briefly occupied the region. America has no interest in fighting a war for oil. But France desperately wants "peace for oil."

... The French aren't being cowards: They're more like cheese-eating appeasement monkeys, willing to negotiate with evil for short-term advantage.

I think that last part is what has some of the blogosphere (the good part!) as well as other Americans in an uproar. The French footsie-playing with Saddam and their diplomatic "blockage" at the UN and NATO are outrageous, and should have consequences in the next few years. The JunkYard Blog also has a good rant on our French friends and the UN.

Posted by MarcV, 4:06 PM link

Oil for Blood
An interesting article at Tech Central Station on the ravages of oil money on civilization, as well as some good posts at the Knowledge Problem on oil economics have got the spuds spinning in the tater bed. From the TCS article:

The kings of Portugal, like those of Spain, had discovered a seemingly endless source of free money, and they immediately set to work funding the worst forms of obscurantism and superstitious intolerance. The free money was lavished on monasteries and auto-de-fes, with the aim of bringing the Inquisition to a state of totalitarian perfection that was beyond the wildest dreams of the most ambitious Torquemada.

For that is the genie's curse — those who live by free money are permitted to seal themselves off from the normal pressure of the real world, permitting a collective retreat into a kind of Michael Jackson fantasy land in which the ordinary order of things can be turned upside down or pulled inside in.

The source of free money today comes in an oil barrel. If the free money is not administered properly, the genie in the bottle turns out to be a demon.

An excellent post by Lynne Kiesling (econ. prof. at Northwestern U.) gives many good arguments and references on how oil fits into the war equation. Russia, France and China have their hands deep into Iraq's oil, and a war in Iraq would have significant financial implications. Germany does not have much oil interest, but they probably have a good bit of trade with Iraq. I also would not be surprised to find out that Saddam has mortgaged a good portion of Iraq's future oil profits with these countries.

She links to this post from Megan McArdle on the possibilities concerning post-war Iraq, and what to do with the oil wealth.

With the exception of Norway, the countries whose economies are dominated by oil find their politics dominated by corruption, thuggery, and dictatorship. He argues, and I agree, that we need to think carefully about how the postwar Iraqi oil economy will work.

It's a tough question. Privatization sounds alluring, but the history of privatization in Eastern European and South American countries with no civic infrastructure for capitalism is not encouraging: the only people who can afford to get in on privatization are the folks who were cosy with the old regime, and once they get their hands on the assets, they loot them and ship the booty out of the country as fast as possible.

She does not see any easy answers for setting up a stable political infrastructure in Iraq, but we need to try. Most countries that have oil wealth, besides Norway (having a rich tradition of democracy), are run by greed, and whoever gets into power does whatever is necessary to stay in power and keep the oil money rolling in. Setting up and maintaining a "welfare" state, handing out the oil wealth to all of the citizens, is not a viable solution. She concludes:

Unfortunately, I don't have an answer either, except that hopefully we can stay there long enough to help the Iraqis build the kind of government that provides the infrastructure for the Iraqis to improve their lives, and aligns the incentives so that it is productive to do so. And the key to doing so is going to be making oil wealth the frosting on the economic cake, not the entire pie.

I'M GOING TO TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND SAY IT: THE WAR IS ABOUT OIL! There, I feel a little better now. Try it yourself, you may find it helps.

The impending war is not about Uncle Sam taking over some oil fields to tap into. It's not about making sure cheap gas keeps flowing from the corner gas station so we can drive our gas-guzzlin' SUV's a half-mile to the Super Wal-Mart. It's not about protecting the FOB's ("Friends" of Bush: Sauds and the oil companies according to the libs) so they can continue their fat profits. It's not about keeping the status quo and hoping that the stock market and economy will recover.

It is about shutting the money spigot off, removing a homicidal tyrant from power, and eliminating the availability of 11% of the world's oil reserves to sponsor terrorism and threaten world peace. It is oil for blood when the leader of a country rules by fear, killing and torturing anyone who threatens him(including his family), as well as putting down unproved rebellions by killing innocent people with chemical bombs.

Removing the Saddam cancer will cost lives, both Iraqi and American, but continuing down this path of hide-and-seek, giving him a chance to amass more wealth and weapons will result in a much greater loss of life in the future. Can't prove it, just using history and my gut reaction as a guide. Once the cancer is removed, the leadership hole will need to be filled very carefully. More on that tomorrow (I hope).

Posted by MarcV, 4:00 PM link

Quick Hits
- Here in central NC we got about an inch of sleet. The roads are passable, but you know how some Southeners see ice and panic. In the front office where I work, most of the he-men males made it through by 9 am, but no ladies have made it so far. Makes you wonder ...

- My prayers go out to the folks north of me who are battling 2+ feet of snow. This has been an exceptional winter season, and we still have about another month to go.

- Did a quick check on some sites, and it seems a little quiet. Thought I would see more about the blizzard and the "peace" marchers, but (like Spudlets) posting can be light during the weekend.

- My lovely wife wanted to go out to eat for Valentine's Day. She knows my feelings about trying that for V-Day (as well as Mother's Day, the two worst restaurant days of the year). After trying two places and seeing people waiting outside the doors (before 5:30 pm), we went to Pizza Hut. I was reminded again on why we usually don't go there. The pizza can be OK, but this particular place in town is poorly managed, and something usually gets messed up.

- 7 days without church can make one weak! We got there Sunday morning but saw yellow tape around the steps leading up to the entrance. Enough ice was on the steps to make walking treacherous, so they cancelled the whole thing.

- My prayers also go out to the families suffering losses from the club stampede in Chicago last night. 21 people dead due to a panic. How much of that was prompted by the "code orange" hysteria going on? That must have been a difficult situation: try to exit and risk stampede, or stay to the sides and face whatever was causing the panic (in this case pepper spray) until the majority of people are out of the way. Watch for heads to roll, lawsuits filed, and building/fire inspectors cracking down on occupancy limits and emergency exits for clubs and other public meeting places.

Posted by MarcV, 10:01 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

President Bush called for AIDS relief to Africa Tuesday. He's already raised tariffs, extended unemployment benefits and signed a job creation bill. If he acts any more like a Democrat, he's going to start stealing roles away from Alec Baldwin.

Pope John Paul II greeted Iraq's Tariq Aziz at the Vatican on Friday. They called for peace. Iraq is a secular country, but religion is considered very important there ever since Saddam Hussein accepted Hans Blix as his personal savior.[That's small "s"]

Posted by MarcV, 9:44 AM link

February 14, 2003

Bill Gates is interviewed over at PCMag. He gives some of his insight to new stuff to be coming out of Microsoft. I had heard some rumblings about a new file system: "The new Windows file system is much, much, more than a file system. It's not just a database, and it's not just a file system. It's a new thing." I'm very curious to see how they have "improved" the file system, one of the clunkiest things about Window's OS.

Posted by MarcV, 4:02 PM link

Only a Little Over
The federal omnibus spending bill was expected to be signed by Pres. Bush today, but I don't think he will sign every page. He predicted $385B, and it is predicted to go at $397.4, but what's $12.4B amongst friends? Even the near $400B is a shot in the dark, depending on how the economy and war effort go.

The bill’s scope was underlined by its sheer size: It was more than 13 inches high, weighed 32 pounds and exceeded 3,000 pages, inviting opponents to use it as something of a stage prop during debate. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said it was “the mother of all appropriations bills.” One portion of the bill alone had 885 such projects for community development grants.[Can you say puh-puh-puh-pork?] The measure would provide $53.1 billion for the Education Department, $3.1 billion more than Bush requested.

That last one is the most disappointing for me. I don't know how we can get the federal government out of our public schools, but the sooner the better. We just seem to be creating another class of welfare. Communities need to take care of their own, but with this much money in the pot, school systems will be angling for their piece of the pie.

Posted by MarcV, 2:56 PM link

I had a Valentine's post ready to go, then I read Possumblogger's reprint from last year, so anything I put up would be weak compared to his. After reading David Frum's take (at NRO) on V-Day, I'm not sure what to say (he points out that this day can be particularly tough on those who are not loved, i.e. widowers, shut-ins, other lonely people).
I do continue to praise God for the love that He has blessed me with, including the best wife and son. Difficult to understand how I ever could deserve to have them in my life. I got a special treat this morning, when both were up before 7 am, and not crabby/grumpy! I usually don't get to share a bowl of cereal with the youngster during the week, so thank you Lord for that special treat.
Before I short out my keyboard, I am reminded of the scene from "Forrest Gump", when Jenny first shows Forrest their son and asks him what he thinks. Forrest immediately replies, "He is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." While Valentine's Day is meant for romantic love, the other 364 are all love days when you have the privilege of loving a child.

Posted by MarcV, 2:05 PM link

Quick Jabs
Victor Davis Hanson posts them, and I link them. Today he has a some quick jabs at the UN, EU, Nobel prizes and preemption, among other things. He adroitly puts a mirror up to the UN's face:

The U.N. beats up on the United States because it accepts that — unlike China or Syria — we are predictable, honorable, and committed to acting morally. Thus it finds psychic reassurance and a sense of puffed-up self-importance — on the cheap — by remonstrating with an America that wishes to stop a criminal regime from spreading havoc, rather than worrying about the demise of million of Tibetans, Syria's brutal creation of the puppet state of Lebanon, or Africans who complain that France has, without consultation, determined their fate. It is always better for a debating society to lecture those who listen than those who do not.

Posted by MarcV, 1:45 PM link

Oh Those Gauls!
The French attitude towards America was examined in an article at USA Today. They love to laugh at the "cowboy" president in one of their TV shows:

... Sylvester Stallone puppet struts on screen nightly, threatening to shoot 'em up against the Iraqis. French viewers clutching their sides in laughter understand who the show is lampooning: George W. Bush.

They'll be clutching more than their sides if a terrorist bomb happens to be detonated in France, not that they have anything to worry about from their good "ami" Saddam. On 9/21/01, "...73% of the French public believed their country should participate in any military action by U.S. forces in response to the attacks." Today, "... 77% of French adults oppose a war in Iraq, even if the U.N. Security Council gives its endorsement. And 81% said they didn't believe U.S. arguments that Saddam Hussein has been developing weapons of mass destruction in defiance of U.N. resolutions."

Iraq is only the latest irritant to the French. They are also upset about the environment (stupid Kyoto Accord), death penalty, International Criminal Court, and the "pervasive" infiltration of American culture (so quit buying the movies then!). Here's some of the notable quotables from those lovely Gauls:

"He comes off to the French as narrow-minded and a cowboy,"
"Bush's language is simplistic, his ideas are unsophisticated."
"To French people, it seems like Bush is just imposing the law of the richest and most powerful ..."
"I don't like Chirac," said Patrick Marzin, who was eating lunch at a Paris cafe, "but he's behaving in this way because France has beautiful and honorable ideals. The U.S. acts only for money."

Who's narrow-minded and simplistic? Finally, the end of the article begins to show one of the true reasons for French poutiness:

Ironically, Chirac is perhaps the most pro-American president in French history. Almost every biography mentions Chirac's youthful summer adventures in the USA, where he had an American girlfriend and worked in a soda fountain. The French president was the first foreign leader to visit New York after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

In contrast, "Bush barely ever visited France," says Bille, head of the advertising association. "His administration doesn't know about Europe. The ambassador to Paris doesn't even speak French," he says, referring to Howard Leach, who Bush appointed in 2001.

How do you "barely ever visit" somewhere? It sounds like an overbearing parent complaining that their child does not stop to visit enough. Can you imagine what Ambassador Leach has to put up with during official dinners with his French hosts? They probably mumble some putdown in French to each other in front of him.

News flash for the French: you are not a world power, and your socialist economy will be the death of you yet. Get over it, accept the fact that you are just another small fish in a big pond, and watch your world influence crumble like dog food nuggets in a bowl of water.

Posted by MarcV, 10:16 AM link

February 13, 2003

The Junkyard Blog has some good funnies on a possible Iraqi TV guide listing. It would have been nice to see Tuesday's listings, but I only have basic-basic cable: 8:00 - Wheel of Terror, 8:30 - The Price is Right if Osama Says it's Right, 9:00 - Children are Forbidden from Saying the Darndest Things.

Posted by MarcV, 4:12 PM link

Deficit Delusions
Have you heard the liberal's whining about Pres. Bush submitting a budget with a record deficit? This article, using data from the Office of Management and Budget, dispels this myth quite handily. Using figures taking into account inflation, the 2004 budget ranks #12. Using a percentage caluculation of deficit/GDP, the 2004 budget ranks #21. Seeing the +$300B number can be frightening to the timid, but we are at war.

Nations at war borrow money. This has always been the case. Not only is it necessary, but it is probably smart. It was smart when FDR and Truman borrowed money to win WWII; it was smart when Ronald Reagan did so to win the Cold War; and it is smart when George W. Bush does it to today to wage and win the war against terrorism.

Well, I guess if you're opposed to the war, then the deficits are bad. Try your luck in about 21 months and support a Presidential candidate who will not spend money for the War on Terrorism, if you like.

Posted by MarcV, 4:11 PM link

War Blabber
I really wonder about these Osama threats that have recently surfaced. If he is alive (and I still doubt it), he's probably chuckling as he watches the infidels scurry about like ants in a rainstorm. He has achieved part of his goal by striking fear into the enemy's camp. If he is as crafty as I think he (or al Qaeda leadership) is, the next terrorist strike will be a surprise, and it will unfortunately bring as much misery as possible. If he does, it will probably be his last, since the full fury of the US military is next door and ready to be put to bear on the terrorists. They will root him and al Qaeda out once Iraq is mopped up.

I have heard the arguments for restraint, finding peaceful solutions, and the concern that America will be seen as the big bully killing innocents. Peaceful solutions involve negotiation, and Hussein only negotiates when he has no other option, and that is usually just to buy time. Innocent lives will be lost during the Iraqi liberation. Removal of the Saddam-cancer will be painful but necessary. While some debate on whether Saddam is a threat to our national security or not, President Bush has confirmed it (former Pres. Clinton declared it but did very little about it), Congress approved it, and the military will shortly be enforcing it.

The US took a black eye in September, 2001, and showed remarkable restraint for revenge, thanks to Pres. Bush's steady vision for this country. Another attack on this country will stir up a hornet's nest of anger. Taking the steps to stop terrorism at the source is the best policy, before this situation literally blows up. There needs to be consequences for those countries that allow terrorists to operate freely.

Posted by MarcV, 9:11 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

France blocked NATO from giving defensive aid to Turkey Monday and vowed to veto any Iraq war resolution. Their willingness to stand and fight is legendary. The French Army possesses the only tanks in the world equipped with back-up lights.

Bill Clinton applauded President Bush's $15 billion program to stem the tide of AIDS in Africa. The world is officially upside down. The number-one golfer is black, the number-one rap star is white, and Bill Clinton is promoting safer sex.

Posted by MarcV, 9:10 AM link

February 12, 2003

Carr QB
Just caught this article, excerpts from a speech given by David Carr (Houston Texans QB), and he has some good inspirational words for most anybody. Here is a reassurance he gave towards the end:

It hasn’t been an easy road. I didn’t always play and a lot of things went wrong, but God never said it would be easy. He just said I wouldn’t have to do it alone. And I haven’t. He’s been with me every step of the way, and my family has been there too.

If you're suffering from NFL withdrawals, and Arena football ain't doin' it, this article may help.

Posted by MarcV, 2:54 PM link

Be Prepared
WaPo (by way of KJLo at NRO) has an article on the steps people are taking to prepare for a possible chemical attack in DC and surrounding areas.

At the Home Depot in Fairfax City, a display near the entrance was marked by a big orange sign with black letters: Safe Room Supplies. The store was doing a steady, brisk business in its makeshift homeland security supply department, which consisted of wood pallets piled waist-high with boxes of bottled water, duct tape, rolls of plastic and, a few feet away, a rack of batteries.

Wasn't that clever! Glad to hear that battery sales are brisk, since we have an Eveready plant here in town. Reading stories like this make me want to go home and hug my youngster a little tighter. It is surely a test of who (or what) we are putting our trust in. We have been blessed that there has not been a terrorist attack in the US since 9/11/01, but I can understand the concern that one could be coming in the next few weeks, particularly once the Iraqi liberation has started.

Posted by MarcV, 2:53 PM link

Textile Tid-bits
Since the Tater bed is smack-dab in the land of textiles, a few stories on textiles caught one of my eyes. Burlington Industries, once the largest textile company in the world, has found a buyer and would continue to operate from its corporate headquarters in Greensboro. Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffet and friends) is paying $579M for the whole enchilada. Burlington Ind. has been in Chapter 11, but the buyout could give the company a fresh, debt-free start. [Did you know Berkshire Hathaway also owns Pampered Chef?]

This area has been hit extremely hard by the loss in textile jobs, with thousands being let go when Burlington began closing plants about two years ago. I don't know all that much of the story, but I have heard rumblings about poor management driving the company into the ground. The official word around here is that NAFTA and foreign competition significantly hurt them. With as much capital as they had before this mess, you would think that they could have stayed competitive.

Burlington has still been operating some plants, trying to keep their core management together. This deal could help them see some light at the end of the tunnel.

"Only the very strong will survive in the textile industry -- strong in management, strong in worker skills and strong in financial strength," Buffett said Tuesday in a prepared statement.

"Burlington brings the first two resources to a successful reorganization; Berkshire brings the latter," said Buffet, chairman of the Omaha, Neb.-based holding company. "Burlington will go forth as a company with no debt, talented and dedicated management, and a work force second to none. It will be a company designed for success."

As part of the deal, all shares of Burlington's common stock would be canceled with no payment to shareholders. I guess the stock was worthless anyhow with the company in bankruptcy, but that still seems to hurt the mom-n-pop investor, who saw Burlington stock reach over $80/share, only now to be left with paper. This region has been dragging for over a year, and the chance to see a couple thousand people back working at good jobs will be quite a blessing.

+++
Half a world away, researchers in New Zealand have developed a brainy bra made from a wool-based textile "with a special coating that makes it contract when the strain on it passes a pre-set level." They decided to start with a bra because the vast majority of women are said to suffer upper-body discomfort during exercise. They are also investigating the interweaving of conductive polymers with wool for solar cell clothing and a glove with extra gripping power that would help people with hand injuries.

I can see other applications for conductive fabric, such as a "wetness" sensor (for that night-time potty training!) or a t-shirt that would display pre-programmed messages and graphics. For the contracting fabric ... hmmm, don't think guys would like it for a jock-strap (aiiieeee, turn it off [as voice starts squeaking] turn it off!), but maybe a knee or elbow brace.

Posted by MarcV, 9:11 AM link

February 11, 2003

Glad to hear Mark Byron is getting over the flu bug. Nothing like having to talk in front of a groupof students, wondering if something is dripping out or your nose, or interrupting your train of thought with hacking coughs. It would be interesting to see how his teaching "style" is affected by a dose of Nyquil.

Anyhow, he posted this snippet, and I almost missed it:

A handful of lightly-armed, disinterested troops from Upper Slobovia won't help, nor will three times the inspectors on Saddam's Snipe Hunt.

Aaahhhh, the Fatherland, home of my people [Slobovian and not so proud of it!], to go back to a time of sloth and "get-to-it-later" living. What great vacations we had in Lower Slobovia - wake up late, sit around, no plans, bags of salty snacks strewn about the room (with the deluxe cable TV package of course)!

I would like to see what a handful of heavily-armed, mad-as-he#* troops from Upper Slobovia would do to Iraqi's Republican Guard (like a hot knife through oleo-margarine?).

Posted by MarcV, 1:09 PM link

ScrappleFace has "leaked" the story of a secret plan by the French to give the Iraqi's cows in exchange for magic beans. Could we be seeing "Jacques et ze Beanstalk" coming soon to a theater near you?

Posted by MarcV, 1:09 PM link

HDTV
Blogs have been touted lately as good alternative sources of information. Discussion forums, whether on a blog or a magazine/news site, can also be useful for getting both sides of a particular issue. PCMag had an article by John Dvorak on HDTV last week, and the discussion is ongoing. For anyone thinking about sinking a few thousand dollars into a system, this discussion may be worth your time before putting the cash on the barrelhead. I just got a chance to check it out (183 comments so far Monday), and one person left some interesting information on the DLP system that is worth repeating (since I still get Google hits for DLP - Samsung):

DLP longevity:

As a professional designer of commercial AV systems for over 15 years, I'm involved in specifying displays for Network Operations Centers (NOCs), Command and Control and all types of pubic displays. In my experience, by far the most reliable video displays use commercial DLP-based video wall cubes. These all typically use single chip DLP designs with a color wheel and fans. These things are extremely reliable, engineered to run 24/7 and have lamps rated at 8000 hours. Assuming 24/7 operation, about once a year you change the lamps, replace the fan filter and maybe do a little dust vacuuming. That's it. So, I would presume that any consumer version, having less demanding use, to have similar reliability. Don't be put off by the color wheel in the DLP engine.

I have DLP installations from 1996 that NEVER turn off (except for annual maintenance like above), are constantly used to display static images and are still going strong!

DLP image quality:

In my opinion DLP display engines are the best overall choice for the majority of home HD systems, whether as part of a projector or used in a RP cabinet. DLP offers the best combination of price, performance, ease of use and reliability of any display system offered today. Modern LCD display engines like those used in the Sony Grand Wega II are pretty darn good too, so don't say I knock LCD. I think most folks would be thrilled with either.

Note that I say that these are not the ultimate display, just the best choice for the majority of consumers. If you want ultimate, you'll probably want a CRT projector w/ 12" tubes, a dedicated rear projection room in your home and an service budget for quarterly technician visits to keep your display calibrated...................

For those folks on a budget, a couple of people recommended a standard 36" 4:3 CRT screen with HD capability (and live with the black bar at the top and bottom of the screen). Even though there are so many comments to read through, if you want to find out about a particular topic, sometimes the discussion forums can yield some gold nuggets out of the chaff. The author in a later comment gave a link for antenna information. HD OTA (over the air) can give you a quality picture without a cable/satellite charge, but you need to find out if you can get decent reception at your house. Other links were given throughout the comments, so go and check it out if you're interested.

Posted by MarcV, 8:58 AM link

February 10, 2003

Josh Sargent says sayonara bye-bye to the blogging world (posted yesterday) - sorry to see him go. Curiousity almost makes me wonder if there is something more than just getting "past that phase" in his life. I'll just leave it at that and wish him all the best, that God has a special place for him somewhere, and I hope that His answer will come soon to Josh.

And he just paid the bucks to register his domain name as well as his website design ...

Posted by MarcV, 3:15 PM link

Just War Doctrine
Micheal Novak has only been posting about once a month for NRO, and he usually delivers top notch articles. Today they have the text of a message he delivered (while at the Vatican) on just-war doctrine and Iraq on the evening of February 10, 2003. It's somewhat lengthy, but he lays out some of the moral background for a "just" war with Iraq.

He started out with the justification for invading Afghanistan because of the terrorist attacks on 9/11/01, explaining how conditions have changed since then. He goes on to Hussein's background, previous actions and potential dangers, followed by historical precedents of Catholic doctrine and war.

The aim of a just war is the blocking of great evil, the restoration of peace, and the defense of minimum conditions of justice and world order. For both St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, thinking about war falls under the principles of charity and justice. In their view, just war does not "begin with a presumption against violence," but rather with a presumption that addresses first the duties of public authorities to charity and justice and, second, that takes seriously a sinful world in which injustice and violence against the innocent will continue for all time. These have certainly continued in the 21st century as in the 20th.

He calls for a recognition of international order, the importance of having it to promote world peace, and the main suspect opposing it:

Meanwhile, for 12 long years Saddam has flagrantly violated the conditions laid down by the United Nations for the continuation of his presidency. In the world become far more dangerous after September 11, 2001, either the world community now upholds international order, or it backs down from its own solemn agreements. In the latter case, individual sovereign nations will refuse to be complicit in the policy of appeasement. To do otherwise would join Saddam's conspiracy against international order, and to accrue responsibility for anything he might do.

There is plenty more meat in the article than the few scraps that I have thrown out. For those who feel a heaviness in their heart about the possibility of lives lost to the impending liberation of Iraq, this article may not help remove the heaviness but it can help you to focus more on the justification for ending Hussein's reign.

Posted by MarcV, 12:20 PM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards held a campaign event at the historic Aiken House in South Carolina Saturday despite NAACP protests. He opposes the Confederate flag, infuriating whites, and he holds fund-raisers in Confederate museums, angering blacks. The question is, what can he do to lose the Hispanic vote?

Al-Qaeda was revealed Friday to be plotting chemical attacks on U.S. cities, prompting the Orange Alert. The chemicals could cause brain impairment, lethargy, coughing and choking. In other words, the attack would go virtually undetected in Los Angeles.

Posted by MarcV, 9:56 AM link

Looks like the gas companies are keeping busy by having to change the prices on their signs every other day. Wonder if gas prices will get high enough so that the price will be displayed "$ per liter"? I have not seen any analysis on it yet, but the combination of high gas and heating oil prices must be warming up the inflation pot. With the combination of war uncertainty, Venezuela strike and cold winter, gas prices may get up to $2/gal ($0.5 per liter?). I think we will have some more rough times for another few months, but with spring upon us, gas prices back down to $1.25/gal, and some unknown innovation/fad sparking the market, recovery will start to blossom.

Posted by MarcV, 9:55 AM link

Logic of War
The Axis of Weasels showed themselves again, this time opposing a direct call for help from one of the NATO members, Turkey. Rather than help defend Turkey, when the invoked NATO Article IV, "...parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence of security of any of the parties is threatened", they "...blocked proposals to start planning for the deployment of AWACS surveillance planes, Patriot missiles and anti-chemical and anti-biological warfare teams to Turkey." [Reuter's article]

Why not help a NATO brother? Here's what AP reported:

Early Monday, France, Germany and Belgium blocked the automatic start of NATO procedures for the military planning to protect Turkey. The countries argued it would force the crisis into a "logic of war" when diplomatic alternatives still stood a chance of success. France formally blocked the move an hour before NATO procedures would have automatically started the military planning at 4 a.m. EST"

Diplomacy with whom, trusty Saddam? The only diplomatic maneuver that could work at this juncture would be the mass exodus of Hussein and his cronies to an undisclosed location. The US military is prepared to make that location a very hot one, and Saddam's time is just about up.

The fact that they would block planning Turkey's defense is very aggravating. Yes, Turkey would be a staging area for the US, and the only thing that Saddam could lob over would be a Scud missile. Asking NATO for help on that, and then being rejected by the Axis of Weasels, puts NATO on further shaky ground. Supposedly Russia is in "almost" complete agreement with them. Turkey is putting up a good face, though:

Turkey's Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis also tried to subdue boiling tempers. "There was no veto on defending Turkey," Yakis told reporters in Ankara. "There is disagreement over the timing" but not on the principle of defending Turkey, he said. "These problems can be overcome."

The US will remember who is for us, and who is against us. It's difficult to say how the Axis of Weasels will be "rewarded" for their actions, but I hope the consequences will drive home the point that they have made some poor decisions.

Posted by MarcV, 9:47 AM link

February 07, 2003

More Blabber on Blogs
TechCentral has not one, but two, two articles on blogging. The first by Ms. Soupcoff, relates her angst on whether she should start a blog or not, concerned that her explanations of daily annoyances may not be interesting. Here's her bio: "Marni Soupcoff is an attorney and Toronto-based journalist." Here's her beef against blogs:

On the other hand, there is a reason we don't generally pay attention to the inner workings of the minds of everyone we meet on the street. Most of them just aren't that interesting. Do we really want to read about the bad dates and dirty socks and macaroni and cheese dinners of every guy with a computer? Was there really a shortage of semiliterate rants before blogs became a big deal? And if there was, did it really need to be rectified? Will blogs continue to become more and more incestuous until one day they're all just linking to each other in a never-ending chain of self-obsessed navel gazing?

Get a grip, woman! She does give us a hint of relief: "...I will try to withstand the temptation to fulfill my delusional blogging dream. Too bad some of today's more recent snooze-inducing bloggers didn't resist the urge, too." If a blog is boring, don't go back and pipe down. Sheesh, she got paid for that rant, so go figure. Canadians, eh!

The second article is by Pejman Yousefzadeh (can't remember what blog he writes), who makes the claim that the blogosphere is becoming a media influence. He brings up the recent "Axis of Weasels" post by Scrappleface (blogrolled to the right!), along with the Trent Lott and Michael Bellesiles putdowns.

Certainly blogs were not alone in covering these stories, and the stories would never have achieved the kind of attention that they ultimately received were it not for the eventual involvement of Big Media. But the point is that in many recent cases, Big Media has been late to the story, whereas the involvement, coverage, and editorializing of the Blogosphere was immediate and overwhelming, helping set trends in the coverage of many news stories.

He also states that a benefit of blogs (and the Internet in general) is another source of information. Rather than relying on a local anchorman's grasp of economics or law on a breaking story, you can go to a blog written by an expert in that particular field. Although Spudlets may appear to be the source for Tater news, the sad fact is that I am not an expert on anything, just another smartypants with a keyboard and an Internet connection.

Oh, I visited over at Dean Esmay's site today, and he had a pretty good post on blogging and lox.

Posted by MarcV, 4:05 PM link

Hanson on Iraq
Victor Davis Hanson posts them and I link them. Today's post is on the possible results of an Iraqi show of "strength" against American invasion forces. He looks back at their historical record against opposing forces who were not weak or disorganized, and found very little success. Here's an interesting anecdote:

That the whole Arab world translates fewer books each year from English than does Greece really does affect how well its armies use their purchased advanced weapons. Military parasitism works well enough with small rifles, terrorist bombs, and rockets; but with large assets such as planes, tanks, and ships their proper deployment, maintenance, and optimum tactical use all require a preexisting infrastructure that is not so easily bought or copied.
... Privately, those in the "Arab Street" are mostly angry at us, the infidel, for preempting what they themselves would like to have done.

You never can seem to satisfy them, although if we waited for the Arab world to police themselves, there might not be much of a world left to police. Mr. Hanson delivers another excellent smack-down to the anti-war crowd, explaining the benefits of Iraqi liberation and the good likelihood of low American losses.

Posted by MarcV, 3:05 PM link

Blog Buddy in KSA
The gentleman who writes passnhuck was kind enough to write back and answer a question that I had concerning being open with his Christian faith. He did not bring a Bible with him on this trip, but would have been able to get it past security, since they only checked his luggage by x-ray. He is able to listen to praise music on CD's. Concerning his safety while traveling/working in KSA: "It wasn't a feeling of being unsafe, but of being...just wrong."

Not that it would be comparable to his situation, I felt something like that when visiting Canada a couple of years ago, and was very glad to cross back into the USA. Living in Saudi Arabia would be significantly more of a "stranger in a strange land" feeling, yet he has liked it so far. I pray that God will watch over him, keep him safe, and strengthen him to be an effective disciple in the desert-land.

He was away from his blog for about a week, but has posted Thursday, so go visit him and be blessed.

Posted by MarcV, 10:00 AM link

Big Energy
Pres. Bush is still hot on the hydrogen trail. Like seeing a unicorn grazing on the side of a mountain, he wants us to chase him and grab the magic horn. I'm starting to wonder who has been buzzing in his ear that we have any chance of catching this unicorn. Unless some revolutionary technology comes out (or is given to us by aliens), hydrogen is a negative energy game.

It takes more energy input to produce and store the hydrogen than you get burning the hydrogen. Storage of any appreciable quantities are a safety nightmare. Speaking of nightmares, another thing that can make you nervous is Hilary supporting this:

Later in the afternoon, Democratic Sens. Hilary Clinton of New York and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota introduced a $6.5 billion bill that would speed up the process of researching further hydrogen fuel cell use in cars, homes, appliances and other items. About $2.3 billion in the 10-year-plan would go toward research and development on fuel cell technology and $700 million would go toward tax incentives for people to buy these vehicles.

Feel the hackles in your neck start going up? The article also mentioned the President bringing up the "F" word. This one is 6 letters: FUSION. I thought WJ Clinton let this program wither and die, but apparently it is showing new life. I can remember about ten years ago when this was the media darling, and then info started to leak out about the radiation hazards of the containment vessels caused by a fusion reaction, as well as the lack of progress to (again) get out of the negative energy game.

The president said the United States will work with other countries such as Canada, Great Britain, Japan, Russia and China to build a fusion test facility to create the "largest and most advanced fusion experiment in the world" in order to figure out how best to heat homes and businesses from fusion power plants.

Bush called on Congress to schedule fast hearings for his Clear Skies Initiative, which plans to cut power plant emissions of the three worst air pollutants — nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and mercury — by 70 percent. The White House claims the initiative will improve air quality using a proven, market-based approach.

I get the feeling he is throwing out a bunch of programs at once to deflect criticisms on our oil dependence. Like a fighter jet that throws out flak to fool a missile, he may buy a little more time, but oil will still be king for a couple of more decades. Maybe by then a better energy policy will be in place to meet the growing demands of an energy-hungry world. If I had to bet, I would probably still go with fusion power, but there are still some big hurdles to get over.

Posted by MarcV, 9:59 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

Colin Powell presented evidence Wednesday Saddam Hussein lied to the American people. He will survive anyway. U.N. inspectors could have found a cigar, a blue dress and DNA results and the Republicans still wouldn't be able to get rid of him.

Germany became president of the U.N. Security Council on Monday. Iraq and Iran are chairing the U.N. Disarmament Conference while Libya is chairing the U.N. Human Rights Commission. Colin Powell can't handle this crowd, this is a job for James Bond.

Posted by MarcV, 9:58 AM link

Creepin' Crud
My son was nice enough to share one of his cold bugs with me, but I was not hit too bad and did not have to miss a day of work, just a night of fever/headaches/hacking/body-aches [NOTE: Alka-Seltzer Plus helped me with my symptoms]. I have noticed quite a few people coming down with something similar, and the local news had stories on the increased absences in schools lately. FoxNews has a story today where it seems the midwest has been hit the hardest, with some counties closing their schools for a few days.

The article explained why the school kids are being hit the hardest:

The nation's heartland is being hit by a strain of type-B influenza that until recently had been reported only in Southeast Asia, said Alicia Postema, an epidemiologist at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Kids that are 12 or younger have probably not seen a virus similar to the influenza-B virus that's circulating this year," Postema said. "That's one of the reasons I think kids are getting hit particularly hard."

Here I thought we were being hit with Saddam's revenge, but it's just something from SE Asia. Guess I'll have a few more days of trying to keep my lungs in.

Posted by MarcV, 9:58 AM link

February 06, 2003

I'm trying to work up a post on the effects of Powell's speeches, but it seems to be following a sad script. While some other countries seem to be joining in support of liberating Iraq, we get the usual suspects wanting more inspections. France wants the UN to triple the number of inspectors. Are they surreptitiously trying to add to the "human shield" in Iraq? The calls for diplomacy and more inspections are frustrating, because they rely on a false hope that Hussein will negotiate in good faith and be trusted.

How many times do we have to play footsie with him? I pray that this desire for invading Iraq is not some type of bloodlust for war and revenge, but rather for justice and security. Hussein has been a prime supporter for training and using terrorists, and other countries need tobe shown that supporting terrorism has consequences. It is also frustrating to play footsie with the UN, but they seem to be the only game in town for gaining global "acceptance". I had thought that Feb. 8 would be hammer-down time, but now it looks like the date will be pushed, due to all the footsie-playing, to maybe Feb. 22. The 15th would not be a good day due to the full moon illuminating the invasion/liberation force.

Posted by MarcV, 10:03 AM link

Take Two
Today's double shot of funnies from the comedian Argus Hamilton:

Tony Blair flew to Paris Monday to try to persuade the French to back a war resolution against Saddam Hussein. He was on a fool's errand. The only way the French are going into Iraq is if the U.N. inspectors turn up a four-star restaurant.

[only one today - not many funny ones lately]

Posted by MarcV, 9:48 AM link

February 05, 2003

Bell Curve
In a related area to my post below about diploma degradation, Jason Steffens linked to a two week old post by Joshua Claybourn on grading to the curve, where he asked if this could be Communist in nature. I missed Mr. Claybourn's post in January, but some of the commenters seemed to be OK with curves, and Josuha stated in a comment that students compete for grades.

I believe we need to get back to basics, and set goals for information absorbed, learned and mastered to be a guide for grades, and not some type of bloodthirsty competition. If everyone surpasses the minimum requirements, then everyone would get at least a C, where other more gifted students can show their improved competence in a subject to receive a higher grade. The obvious problem to this system centers on the teacher/professor, where they would have to perform much more work to establish goals and devise tests to determine if those goals are met. Curves could be thought of as a lazy profs way out: test too easy, curve up - test too hard, curve down.

The main problem with curving grades in a class is the relatively small sample size. A class size of 20 or 30 typically will not be large enough to give a random sample of a population. Now your freshmen "weed-out" classes of 200-30 will tend to highlight those students who maybe should consider other options besides the particular school they are enrolled in.

There is something that still feels funny about this. If the admissions process is truly accepting students that seem capable of completing the work necessary to obtain a degree, then even the "weed-outs" should not occur. True, admissions systems are not perfect, and some "bright" kids fall flat on their faces the first time they are on their own. Let's set performace goals that when achieved, you can look back and feel that it was a job well done, and recognize those who significantly exceed those goals.

I suppose students should get used to curves, because many businesses use them as well for employee evaluations (this is the underlying reason for getting my dander up in the first place!). In a previous job (llfetime?), my manager was told to fit his group of 7 into a neat bell curve to determine bonuses. Any guesses who got the highest grade (hint: guess the manager)?

When someone is hired into a job, presumably the hiring company has found someone above average (unless it is a real tight job market) for the position. Yet, when evaluations roll around, these above average people are forced into below average ratings. I understand that companies do this to force supervisors on giving critical reviews, rather than waving the hand and saying everyone is excellent. No, I'm not speaking out of spite, since my reviews have been good, although my current job is basically caretaker/go-fer.

Just consider this my fevered-induced rant on grading to a curve. As far as bonuses/raises, a company should be fair and give the same for everyone, except those who are on some type of "probation". Extra bonuses can be given to those people who have made significant contributions to projects that saved a company money, and they should be given extra consideration for promotions.

Posted by MarcV, 2:31 PM link

Blog Buddy in KSA
The gentleman who writes passnhuck was kind enough to write back and answer a question that I had concerning being open with his Christian faith. He did not bring a Bible with him on this trip, but would have been able to get it past security, since they only checked his luggage by x-ray. He is able to listen to praise music on CD's. Concerning safety: "It wasn't a feeling of being unsafe, but of being...just wrong."

Not that it would be comparable to his situation, I felt something like that when visiting Canada a couple of years ago, and was very glad to cross back into the USA. Living in Saudi Arabia would be significantly more of a "stranger in a strange land" feeling, yet he has liked it so far. I pray that God will watch over him, keep him safe, and strengthen him to be an effective disciple in the desert-land.

He was away from his blog for about a week, but has posted today, so go visit him and be blessed.

Posted by MarcV, 11:07 AM link

Job Hunters
Here's a depressing article on the job search that the folks in Silicon Valley are going through. About 20 applicants per opening does not make for good odds. About two years ago companies were pursuing the progammers and engineers with stock options and bonuses, now it's just a steady paycheck. I really am blessed to have a job during these difficult times. I have noticed the lack of "tech" jobs listed in the Sunday paper.

Posted by MarcV, 11:06 AM link

February 04, 2003

AAaarrrrgh. My son just got Mario Brothers for the original NES game system (you know, the one with the big bulky cartridges). We played it last night, and now that stupid Mario tune keeps spooling through my head. This be madness! Maybe the PsyOps for the Iraqi liberation can use it by blaring this "tune" out on portable loudspeakers, eventually causing the Iraqi military to surrender and beg for mercy.

I don't follow "pop" music, but I wonder if some band has taken the melodies from popular video games and built songs around them. You would think someone would have tried this by now.

Posted by MarcV, 2:26 PM link

Round Up the Links
PCWorld has a listing of 50 "useful" websites, with a couple that I had not heard of before. If you don't want to click through the nine pages of the article, I've listed a few interesting ones below:

This site contains hundreds of links to sports pages and columnists around the country.

Here is a useful mortgage calculator that can help you decide if paying off the mortgage early makes sense, as well as some other helpful guidelines about mortgages and whether you can afford that mansion at 1313 Mockingbird Lane (watch the hits for the Munsters come now!).

This site is updated every 4 minutes, giving most airport's info on scheduled departure/arrival times.

When you're on the road, rather than twiddling the dial to find that be-bop jazz station you're craving, this site lists radio stations by area or theme for the US and Canada. A search for Contemporary Christian yielded 389 radio stations. It also showed which stations broadcast their audio on the Internet.

Posted by MarcV, 2:17 PM link

Ruminations on what my eyes take in

E-mail Marc Velazquez - msv0828 at yahoo.com msv0828 at yahoo.com

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