Avogadro's Number

My brother died Saturday.

2010-11-08T17:35:00.000-08:00

I came home from a conference on Saturday. Shortly thereafter, I got a phone call from my mother, giving me the news that my younger brother died in his sleep Saturday. Not the kind of news one wants to hear. He was 46, and having some medical issues, but not anything that we expected to do this. I wrote the news on my facebook page. Support flowed from all over. It was very comforting. My

Seven Social Sins

2010-10-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

politics without principlewealth without workcommerce without moralitypleasure without conscienceeducation without characterscience without humanityworship without sacrifice --Mahatma Gandhi

If given the truth...

2010-05-07T20:18:00.000-07:00

I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts. --- Abraham LincolnThat's the real key, isn't it? "If given the truth... "

Tomatoes are dangerous to your eardrums

2010-04-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

Many long years ago, my family planted tomatoes along the south side of the house, next to the driveway. Fresh tomatoes are absolutely awesome.Fresh tomato bugs, not so much.Tomato bugs called to toads, who gathered to feast. And then gathered on the driveway, in the sun. The small problem with this was that my mother was, and still is, irrationally afraid of frogs and toads. Late afternoons were

Zero tolerance? Jury Nullification!

2010-03-19T19:08:00.000-07:00

Zero tolerance: applying a law to every possible instance, and applying the maximum amount of force allowed, without regard to circumstances.Jury nullification: negating the zero tolerance effect by considering circumstances and choosing not to enforce an outrageously applied law.Too many people I talk to think jury nullification means anarchy.

2010-02-14T07:33:00.000-08:00

Two centuries ago, our forebears would have known the precise history and source of almost every one of the limited number of things they ate and owned. They would have been familiar with the pig, the carpenter, the weaver, the loom and the dairymaid. The range of items available for purchase may have grown exponentially since then, but our understanding of their genesis has grown ever more

Amazon.com Fail

2010-02-05T10:35:00.000-08:00

Amazon Pulls Macmillan Books Over E-Book Price DisagreementThere is some marvelous commentary over at Making Light, a blog run by Teresa and Patrick Nielsen Hayden. John Scalzi weighs in with some pithy comments (full post): Amazon apparently forgot that when it moved against Macmillan, it also moved against Macmillan’s authors. Macmillan may be a faceless, soulless baby-consuming corporate

The world is a dangerous place

2010-01-15T07:45:00.001-08:00

The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing. ~Albert Einstein

2010-01-10T12:58:00.001-08:00

I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way (s)he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. — Maya Angelou

Masters of our fate

2010-01-05T05:56:00.000-08:00

the people are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution. --- Abraham Lincoln

It has been a year!

2010-01-02T18:38:00.000-08:00

I hadn't realized it was so long since I posted. From my Facebook posting:So we come to the end of another year, on the Grrrrrgorian calendar (Gregorian, for those without dogs). For some reason, my brain keeps thinking "Julian" calendar, mostly because I feel very julienned by this year. Some of the bits were cooked to perfection, some left too raw, and a few, blessed few, fried beyond

Take the first step...

2009-01-14T17:27:00.000-08:00

"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step." --Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thoughts from chocolate

2008-12-28T10:46:00.000-08:00

I was given a wonderful jar for Christmas. It said "I'd give up chocolate, but I'm no quitter." From the wrappers of the Dove chocolate inside are a few thoughts:Friendship is a gift in itselfJoy is contagiousA smile is the perfect gift, personal and encouragingSpending time is a greater gift than spending money (I said this to a friend earlier this year; I'm not sure he believes me)If old

YES WE CAN!!

2008-11-04T20:58:00.000-08:00

And now the real work begins!

Wisdom

2008-10-12T09:17:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law is eight-five years old, and getting a little... fuzzy in the memory department. From her caregiver, Mary, comes these life lessons:Here are a few things that Ms. E has learned in the past few weeks:The hand held telephone will not change the TV Channel, nor does it have a mute button.If you tease the cat with your sock and then put it on your foot, the cat will bite it.The TV

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

2008-09-25T15:58:00.000-07:00

Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of food, clothing, electricity, gas and oil, the Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off.WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.My thoughts:The government wouldn't turn off the light at the end of the tunnel because it's part of an earmarked project attached to a critical spending bill. It would then get moved to somebody else's budget, where

Pay attention to the details, please.

2008-09-20T19:13:00.001-07:00

An associate of mine decided to rant at me about the loss of songbirds in suburban areas. It is his opinion that it's all the fault of crows. Crows eating songbird eggs, according to him, are responsible. Until I pointed out that tearing out trees used by songbirds for nesting, so more houses can be built, might have something to do with it. Until I pointed out that the street department came

I'm baffled

2008-09-19T07:47:00.000-07:00

We elect a president who pronounces nuclear as "new-kyu-lar" and seems to take particular pride in not speaking well.We have one presidential nominee who answers different questions with the exact same answer. We have another presidential nominee who is articulate and well spoken. And he's branded an elitist.I just heard Treasury Secretary Paulson speak, listing all the things the average

I couldn't chose just one...

2008-09-17T16:54:00.000-07:00

Ninety-eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hard-working, honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then - we elected them. ...Lily TomlinIt could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly American criminal class except Congress. ...Mark TwainIf we ever pass out as a great nation we ought to put on our

CERN and the Large Hadron Collider

2008-09-09T13:19:00.000-07:00

A friend just emailed me a piece on OMG the Large Hadron Collider may destroy the earth by creating black holes. Please keep in mind, news media do not make money if no one views their material; controversial subjects generate viewers. Even if the controversy is more twenty years in the making. My friend wanted to know if I, her science geek friend, was concerned. My reply:Well, the Mayans'

Certainty?

2008-09-07T19:20:00.000-07:00

We tend to defend vigorously things that in our deepest hearts we are not quite certain about. If we are certain of something we know, it doesn't need defending. --Madeleine L'Engle

Not what you think you're doing

2008-08-31T16:24:00.000-07:00

One of the downsides to taking pictures from a moving carYou aren't getting what you think you're getting. This is what I was afterPardon me, who put the tree in just that spot?Much better. Thank you.Thanks for letting me know.I was not destined to get the shot of those cliffs. It's not modern art, but a guard rail at 70mph, after an encounter with a pothole caused the camera to jump.Guard Rail

Denver Fire Department Museum

2008-08-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

While first learning which bus stops on the 16th Street Mall let me off close to my destination, I found myself serendipitously on the wrong corner. There on the signpost above my head was an arrow pointing to "Denver Fire Department Museum." Not needing to be any particular place at any particular time, I headed off to find it.Front door (duh!)We're seriously spoiled by our computers and the

Long Road Home

2008-08-13T22:52:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger versionFIRST IN SERIES>>Headin' outta FlagstaffEarly in the morning, the San Francisco Peaks stand behind the trees and meadows around Flagstaff. The grass alongside the road was bright with sunflowers and indian paintbrush. The day is clear, the road not so much. It's not as bad as LA during rush hour, but I've got a lot of pictures with the butt end of a truck in

Mr. Spock, set the landscape on stun

2008-08-12T21:34:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger version<>Start of DayThe day started in Santa Fe, with one lone cloud hanging out over the mountains on the east. There was a great deal of construction down the center of I-25. Having gone thru far too much road construction everywhere, it took a while to realize it wasn't road improvement, they were building rail down the center.

Long and not so winding road

2008-08-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger version<>Leaving Denver, taking pics of the other side of the road. The clouds play with light and shadow on the mountains, sometimes making a grass covered mountain side shine like green velvet The green of the trees, the blues of the mountains, the light and shadow of the clouds, almost looks unreal One of the more interesting

Lightning, thunder and hail, oh my

2008-08-11T20:11:00.000-07:00

Friends in Denver had been warning me of hot weather, and a need for rain for some time before arriving. There are a number of us who "bring rain" when we travel. There was some talk we may have gotten carried away.My first day in Denver, it rained that glorious warm summer's rain I remember from summers spent in Winslow. It rained in fits and spurts over the next day or two. Then Friday

On the road again

2008-08-06T11:27:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger version<>Another day, another road. Heading out of Santa Fe, we encountered more Pueblification, seen at the beginning of yesterday's report. Even the nice houses looked tacky after all that "adobe." As we headed north thru the Rockies, we drove under blue, blue skies with cumulous and cumulonimbus clouds along the mountain tops.

What is it with twisty roads?

2008-08-05T10:49:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger version<>Many years ago, my mother described the freeway system in Salt Lake City as having been designed by a drunken snake. Downtown Santa Fe used the same snake and added a sadist. My needs were simple. I wanted to see the Loretto Chapel, the one with the miraculous spiral staircase. Maps were unfolded, instructions were requested of

Twisty Mountain Roads, They Look All The Same

2008-08-04T22:46:00.000-07:00

Click any image for larger version<>The plan today was to drive from Prescott thru Jerome, Sedona, Flagstaff, Winslow, and on to Holbrook and the Petrified National Forest. The trip started out that way, under gray skies. Jim drove as the road to Jerome was a bit mountainous and twisty. I don't do well with twisty and mountainous. Either one alone is enough to

It Rains in the Mojave?

2008-08-03T23:42:00.000-07:00

You know it's hot when...

2008-07-03T09:19:00.000-07:00

You push your glasses up only to have them slide down almost immediately.How do you know it's really hot? You push your glasses up, they steam up immediately, then slide back down your nose.I decided to remove my back lawn, mostly crabgrass, that I never use for anything. Crabgrass is not the surface of choice for lounging, playing on, or pretty much anything requiring contact with the ground. So

Footsteps of Fire

2008-06-28T06:39:00.001-07:00

Black cloud with legs of lightning,Striding imperiously across the landscape.Footprints left on the land burn brightlyIn memory of your passage.The 2008-09 California fire season is starting in northern California. Dry thunderstorms, strong with lightning but no rain, are walking their way across the Sierras. The area got much less rain in April/May, and is tinder waiting for sparks. CalFire (

Adult Supervision Needed

2008-06-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

I sent email to family and a few close friends, telling them I was adding this to my Christmas list. My uncle, older brother to my mother, (same uncle as previous post) sent back this in reply:"You will need to have adult supervision when you operate it. Where in this family are you going to find an adult to supervise?"I have a great family!

Business BS Bingo

2008-06-25T15:04:00.000-07:00

I received, read, laughed, and forwarded a list of "50 office-speak phrases you love to hate" from BBC News. Some of us also call them phrases for Business Bullshit Bingo. They're both hilarious and painful. In reply, I got this from my uncle:It is amazing the lengths people will go to in order to make everyone as confused as they are. One of the people who contributed to this noted that their

Don't wear shorts while using a weed wacker

2008-06-23T07:47:00.000-07:00

Especially if magnolia leaves are involved.Just don't.

Summer Solstice

2008-06-20T08:12:00.000-07:00

Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, is one of four solstice days marking the movements of the sun thru its seasonal cycle. It has a long tradition in pagan circles as Litha, and is considered the mid-point of summer, which begins with Beltane on May 1st and ends with Lughnasadh on August 1st. Some celebrate the triumph of Light over Dark, while others celebrate the coming harvest.In the

Anybody Can Do It - Yeah Right

2008-06-20T06:28:00.001-07:00

Pet peeve - Anybody who says "All you have to do is..."The instructions for assembling all the pieces in my new drip watering kit assume a level of expertise that is sadly lacking in this household. Figuring out in which order to put all the screw-on pieces is fairly simple, as the piece that connects to the drip tubing must go last. There's only one piece that connects to that, which leaves the

Bleedin' HOT

2008-06-19T05:42:00.000-07:00

Why is the pavement melting?It was 109 in Northridge, 111 in Chatsworth, yesterday, June 18. Downtown LA was 80-something, which is the one that's reported inter/nationally. The translation to metric is: bleedin' HOT. It's supposed to be that hot again today.I am offering up prayers and sacrifices so that my a/c continues to work. The system has gone past the point where my a/c maintenance guy

Spending the weekend in burned out buildings

2008-05-18T06:19:00.000-07:00

What is an acrophobe doing leading a team down an almost totally black stairwell, one with walls but no railings on either side, in a burned out building? I'm glad you asked. Since I had gone up an almost totally black stairwell leading a team, we all kinda wanted to go back the other way. I had no flashlight, altho some of my team members did. I've never done live D&D, but the many times I had

Sir Arthur C Clarke - a tribute

2008-03-19T10:59:00.000-07:00

If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run - and often in the short one - the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative. -- Arthur C ClarkeJust across the ticker on the tv, Arthur C Clarke, Sir Arther, died today. Physical age: 90. The age of his mind and heart: forever young.

Size matters

2008-02-15T15:13:00.000-08:00

Sharing a room with a server with half a terabyte effective storage, with 0.5T and 1T drives available for not much money, the subject of "Remember when ..." 10Meg was a lot of space? When 1Gig was thought to be more room than anybody could need for most purposes? When a terabyte was thought to be an outrageous amount of space? Which then prompted, what's next? What's the next prefix? The 19th

Start the year with a new server!

2008-01-18T13:03:00.000-08:00

We have a server for our computer system. Took more than a week to get all the parts in, the parts speaking to each other, installed at my house and then talking to the internet from my house instead of the computer guy's office. We got that completed yesterday. Jim's computer was put to rest. It survived long enough to transfer data to a new machine. The new machine's got clear sides so you can

An abridged list of 50 things to know by 50

2007-11-30T12:29:00.000-08:00

There's a list out there of 50 things you need to know by 50. It's emailed from person to person, supposedly on or close to their 50th birthday. The stuff may be copyright protected, but I have chosen to list a select few - with my own comments. (Of course my own comments. It's my blog.)No matter how many times you bring your mitt to the game, the manager will never gaze out into the stands, land

How do non-natives ever learn all the nuances of English???

2007-11-11T12:21:00.000-08:00

When I was in high school, we had a foreign exchange student from Norway. She did pretty well here, having taken five years of book English before attempting Southern California spanglish-speckled English. She got most idioms fairly well, but was forever stumped on uh-Huh (yes) and Uh-uh (no). She couldn't hear the difference between them. It came to mind when I got the following piece in email.

On a Slow Newsday

2007-09-09T19:28:00.000-07:00

kijiji (kee-jee-jee or ki-ji-ji?), a new site claiming to be craigslist only better, has a better format, has a better ordering system, is prettier than craistlist. And probably will start charging for stuff within the year, after we've all gotten hooked. Or running mondo advertising, ditto. After all, it's owned by eBay, and eBay is out there to make money, not provide a service for the fun of

Used According To Directions

2007-08-18T14:31:00.000-07:00

Tobacco: The only consumer item, when used according to directions, kills you.

Women are different - and so are their heart attacks

2007-08-11T12:06:00.000-07:00

Just something someone sent me, that I feel should be added to my collections of things no one but me reads. Women and heart attacks (Myocardial infarction) Did you know that women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that men have when experiencing heart attack... you know, the sudden stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest and dropping to the floor that we see in the

Labor Shortage

2007-07-23T16:25:00.000-07:00

Why are "they" saying there's a labor shortage when they won't hire me? Just because I'm over 50, have a tremendous skill set and would like more than just minimum wage for it, and have a great deal of business experience and won't put up with the "It's corporate policy" BS handed out by those who don't want to think or take responsibility for their actions. You'd think I'd be welcome. But I ask

President Bush thumbs his nose

2007-07-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

When we were small children, we would put our thumbs against our noses and make various gestures with fingers. It was obvious and unmistakable.President Bush appointed Judge Reggie Walton, because Judge Walton was a tough-on-crime, hard-as-nails, zero-tolerance, no-nonsense judge. President Bush appointed Judge Walton because Judge Walton espoused the philosphies of the right-wing Republican

BiPartisan Immigration Bill Dies - Thank Ghods

2007-06-23T12:00:00.000-07:00

Headline reads "Despite wide bipartisan support, comprehensive immigration reform has just been derailed in the Senate." To which I say Huzzah! Having followed that debate, having read part of the bill-thing they were working on, having a cousin who's an immigration lawyer who was on loan from the federal Immigration Dept to work for Senatory Kyl from AZ and whose opinion I value, I have a bit of

We send mixed signals

2007-06-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

Why is "smart" used as a negative word when the oft-stated ambition is to send your kids to college?"You think you're so smart" and "smarty pants" are spoken in a negative, often sarcastic tone. Why, I wonder? If being smart is so bad, why the rush for college? Or are college grads supposed to be as stupid when they come out as they went in? (and do I really want an answer to that last?)

Reading is Doomed!

2007-06-01T07:34:00.000-07:00

I read a poll that said people were reading less. It was done by a newspaper, and people were in fact reading newsprint less. They were reading online news websites and blogs far more. The conclusion is that reading was doomed. No, dudes, reading print is fading, but not doomed. There's still the place for bathtub reading because you do NOT want to drop your PDA or e-book reader into the tub. A

Gotta read this book

2007-05-03T19:09:00.000-07:00

THE BLACK SWAN, The Impact of the Highly Improbable. By Nassim Nicholas Taleb. The hubris of predictions — and our perpetual surprise when the not-predicted happens — are themes of Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s engaging new book, "The Black Swan." It concerns the occurrence of the improbable, the power of rare events... Any book that contains this quote is worth reading:...and the author’s lament

How IS this going to turn out

2007-05-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

One of three ways, with infinite variations in between:Worst) We get the *bleep* out. Iran, Syria and the Saudis duke it out for the territory. Iraq didn't exist until the Brits divvied up the Middle East after WW1. Iraq by all rights belongs to Iran, with tidbits to Turkey and Syria. If it goes to all all-out slugfest, Turkey may get sucked in. Good side of this: the fundamentalist Suni/Shia/

Rush Limbaugh nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

2007-04-18T18:56:00.000-07:00

An acquaintance I unfortunately had to overhear, was mightily impressed with the fact that Rush Limbaugh had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Price. I told this person that to be nominated for the Peace Prize, you can either get a petition signed by lots o'people, or you can pay a fee. The Nobel Prize committee is perfectly happy collecting $$$ from fools with enough money to support that ego

Global Warming and Changing Course

2007-04-15T19:05:00.000-07:00

In a letter from a friend, who said, "Am trying to be a better citizen and pay attention to the daily things I CAN do - but in reality, it's the guys in charge of the rudder who can change course." My reply: The guy in charge of the rudder will change course when he finds there's no one in his boat any more. Every person who "pays attention to the daily things" will convince one other person by

2007-02-18T18:52:00.000-08:00

If A equals success, then the formula is A = X + Y + Z. X is work. Y is play. Z is keep your mouth shut. -- Albert Einstein

Fear itself

2007-01-20T18:49:00.000-08:00

Of all the liers in the world, sometimes the worst are your own fears. -- Rudyard Kipling

An interesting list of things to remember

2007-01-18T12:51:00.000-08:00

Friends send me various humorous lists in email. Sometimes I find them worth sharing. 1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night. 2. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved and never will achieve its full potential, that word would be "meetings." 3. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental

Not Eureka!

2006-12-31T11:01:00.000-08:00

The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but "That's funny ..."-- Isaac Asimov

What I asked for, not what I wanted

2006-11-19T08:03:00.000-08:00

I have a website devoted to true type fonts, called Fontage. I've been updating my bookstore with some additional books on typefaces, typography, and type designers.In trying to find some good books on the history of typeface design, or on those who design typefaces, I used the search terms "type designer." I got such gems as "Death to Diabetes: The Six Stages of Type 2 Diabetes," "The 16

Three Laws of Thermodynamics and Those Who Think They Can Beat Them

2006-11-05T14:15:00.000-08:00

**Three Laws of Thermodynamics:1) You can't win2) You can't break even3) You can't get out of the game.Those who think they can beat them:1) Capitalism says you can win.2) Socialism says you can break even3) Mysticism says you can get out of the game.**See Quote by C.P. Snow

Dancing and Singing

2006-11-02T17:20:00.000-08:00

I was reading other blogs and came across one from a young lady who claimed she couldn't dance. As I started to write a comment on her blog, I thought I'd add it to mine, as well.I'm mumble-mumble years old, I've taken several years of dance lessons, and I'm perfectly happy dancing the waltz to rumba music. Drove my dance instructor nuts. I think my instructor once had me dancing the tango to

Your Federal Reserve Bank account has been accessed! Again!

2006-10-14T10:48:00.000-07:00

Phishing is an ever-growing problem. Even if you realize the website to which you are directed is not the one from your bank, you are still vulnerable to a number of things. Check out my previous post for the serious side of things.For some of us, it is one of growing amusement as well. I have a list of email addresses from various companies I forward phishing email to. ("Your Citi account has

That wonderful no-call list

2006-10-09T16:40:00.000-07:00

To answer the oft-asked "why don't you put your number on that list thing," that list-thing has more holes than swiss cheese. One is that it doesn't/can't apply to callers from outside the country, so I get lots of calls from guys who say their name is "John," said with a two-tone Indian lilt. I tried one time going thru with a call, to find the name of the company in the US that hired them, so I

Customer Service at its best

2006-09-22T10:59:00.000-07:00

I have friends who think I'm this great computer person. They also assume that great computer people do not have serious issues with computers. For those of you who think the same, I share my recent "issue" with you.My internet connection went down Tuesday. It happens. Normally, I call my ISP, I get transferred once or twice, until I get someone who knows what "ping the modem" means. He resets at

Can I ask you a question?

2006-09-18T10:40:00.000-07:00

A friend just sent me an email, listing nine things "I hate about everyone." One of the items was "People who ask 'Can I ask you a question?'.... " When asked that, my reply is, "You just did." I actually had someone, call him John, say, "Can I ask you another question?" To which I replied, "You just did."John then said, "Can I ask you an important question?"My reply, "You only get three

Branding is everything

2006-09-16T05:50:00.000-07:00

Getting your brand name out there is important. So large companies have been putting their names on anything that holds still. Or not. But you gotta wonder about overlapping branding, y'know?NASCAR has this great race, called the Bank of America 500. It's held at the Lowe's Motor Speedway.Well, I guess having a bank sponsor something related to home improvement projects does make some sense.

Smaller government

2006-09-15T14:32:00.000-07:00

White House Office of Management and Budget estimates government spending will grow to 20.6 percent of gross domestic product in 2006 from 18.5 percent when President George W. Bush took office in 2001.Isn't the Republican Party the party of smaller government?

Tools of conquest

2006-09-12T18:24:00.000-07:00

"The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts... attitudes... prejudices. To be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and the thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all its own for the children, and the children yet unborn. And the pity

Just in case you were wondering...

2006-09-07T04:41:00.000-07:00

The problem with allowing a big cheese like our President to flout the law of the land (all for the good of Americans, you understand) is that it sets a pattern of behavior.It seems Hewlett-Packard has seen fit to follow suit.Fox NewsandLA Timesso farDid it ever occur to you that those laws were there for a reason?Feel safe and secure yet?

Instead Of?

2006-09-05T05:15:00.000-07:00

According to a just read headline (NYTimes):"Going into a critical pre-election stretch, Congressional Republican leaders will concentrate on national security issues instead of immigration."Um... I thought a lot of the immigration hoopla was based on security concerns. You know, all those nasty terrorists coming in over our unsecured borders, that kind of thing.Er....

How Can We Make America SAFER?

2006-09-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

We can't.We can require identification to be shown at every state border we cross, but-we wouldn't be America any more.We could require people to check in with their local officials if they want to leave their neighborhood, letting the officials know where they're going and why, but-we wouldn't be America any more. We could embed RFID chips in all visitors to our citites or states so they could

Twisted Kitty

2006-08-20T10:42:00.000-07:00

This is an un-PhotoShopped picture of a friend's cat. She came home from shopping, saw the cat, grabbed the camera and snapped the shot before MuMu got up. I have her permission to share the picture.

Identity theft and warrantless wiretapping

2006-08-20T10:16:00.000-07:00

Many supporters of warrantless wiretapping, or other means of mass data gathering by the government, say "If you haven't done anything wrong, you have nothing to worry about."1) Ever hear of Identity Theft? ID thieves can steal more than your economic data. Data is gathered on you by a company called Choice Point, that claims: "ChoicePoint is the leading provider of identification and credential

When the CIA invests in software...

2006-08-20T10:10:00.000-07:00

When the CIA invests in a company that makes identification software, one begins to wonder why. Then again, maybe we don't need to wonder why. From an eweek article, found athttp://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2004323,00.aspThe following is just a segment of the entire article. It's a short read.Initiate Systems' IdentityHub software uses a variety of identification protocols to determine

Not bad for a Texas oil promoter

2006-08-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

Question posed by Jack Cafferty of CNN: What does a federal judge's ruling that the National Security Agency spying program is illegal mean for President Bush?It means a clean sweep for President-King George III: He ignores and violates the law as stated in the Constitution. He ignores and violates the law as stated by the Congress. And now he can ignore and violate the decision made by the

Universal constants

2006-08-17T17:34:00.000-07:00

Two constants in our world are 1) every culture has a flat bread and 2) every religiious/belief system group has prayer elements common to all. Please understand that I use the word "every" loosely. I'm sure somewhere there's a culture or group that does things differently. Ditto with the word "prayer." Just suspend your picknits for a bit, ok?Flatbread: tortillas, pita, pizza crustPrayer:

Most of us read the beginning...

2006-08-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

Most of us read the beginning of the Declaration of Independence, its ringing words of freedom. Well, people, it's time to read a little further down the page. ...the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.[sections cut - read the

All that evil needs to triumph is that good men do nothing

2006-07-13T16:51:00.000-07:00

'nuf said

Strategy

2006-07-12T18:44:00.000-07:00

Strategy:A long-range plan whose merit cannot be evaluated until sometimeafter those creating it have left the organization.

Trades

2006-06-18T05:00:00.000-07:00

George W. Bush is trying to give us the illusion of safety in trade for allowing him to violate international treaties, our own Constitution, and the laws and judgments of our own government. Some prices are just too high, no matter how much you may want the prize. The one thing you cannot trade for your heart's desire is your heart. ---Miles Vorkosigan, Memory

Your Federal Reserve Bank account has been accessed!

2006-06-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

Phishing is an ever-growing problem. Even if you realize the website to which you are directed is not the one from your bank, you are still vulnerable to a number of things.The most common vulnerability, of course, is entering your username and password. The phisher now has that, and can access your account(s) at will. You can, and often do, get cookies containing malicious code from these

Suffer Not This King!

2006-01-17T15:58:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, a holiday was celebrated in some circles, a day celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Yesterday, speeches were made by all and sundry, some good, some not. Every tv news report I listened to had coverage and commentary about the speech made by New Orleans Mayor Nagin, but only C-SPAN covered the speech by Vice President Gore. (full text)A friend quoted this poem by Kipling. It's amazing

Happy Yule!

2005-12-21T14:33:00.000-08:00

Whatever your belief system, y'canna change the laws of physics. This is the day where the sun has reached its southern most point. It's in the sky in the northern hemisphere the shortest number of hours; in the southern hemisphere, the longest number of hours; and in areas south of the antarctic circle, they have been having "midnight sun" for some time now. North of the arctic circle, people

Should ISPs be accountable for overall Internet security?

2005-12-21T09:48:00.000-08:00

How?Let's start with a basic understanding of what you're looking at. Right now, it's my blog. It has graphics, text, formatting, and all these pieces sit on the blogspot.com server. When you got here, your browser software asked the blogspot.com server for those pieces. Blogspot said sure, no problem, and started to send them.Due to the way the internet was originally designed (and unless you

Christmas?

2005-12-18T17:40:00.000-08:00

There once was a holiday called Yule-ishThe end of the year it did rule-ish.Romans tried taking it,Christian holiday making it,Our pocketbooks say they were foolish.

Cats n more cats

2005-12-16T16:27:00.000-08:00

Sleeping with cats in the winterIs comfy and warm, I s'pose.But try finding a way to turn overWhen 'tween cats and spouse you iz squoze.When cats and spouse get cozyAnd they take all the blankets away,It's warmer to move to the sofaWhere my covers are safe from the fray.

Blackberries

2005-12-02T13:22:00.000-08:00

Research In Motion did borrowA patent, much to its sorrow.Altho the courts ruledNTP owns this tool,Royalty payment's a no-show.In the hallowed halls of gov'mentBlackberry notes are frequently sent.Judge Spencer did ruleTo shut down this tool,Until royalties due NTP are sent.CNN article

Hurricane Katrina

2005-11-30T17:35:00.000-08:00

A storm with some claim to fame,One Hurricane Katrina by name.Politics most direSet DC on fire.And poor Katrina gets all of the blame.

Leftovers

2005-11-29T06:37:00.000-08:00

The feasting is done,The leftovers diminished.What's for sandwichesWhen the turkey's finished?

Copyright and times of change

2005-11-22T13:59:00.001-08:00

Sent by a friend, as an introduction to an article on the GoogleBook/ search/reprint issue (more on the controversy here:New frontiers - where do they allow us to go - do we want to go there? Will some aromatherapist figure out a way to infuse the site with the smell of wood pulp and ink? Tactile screens? Dog-ear the corners of screens ? What about those potato chip or Oreo crumbs in the

Halloween's delights

2005-11-04T17:32:00.000-08:00

Last year, Disney Hall held a screening of Phantom of the Opera, the 1927 silent film, accompanied by the Disney Hall organ, on Halloween. It was wonderful. It had been restored, with some Technicolor bits thrown in. Apparently some of the original had been filmed in Technicolor, and the Phantom's red cape shines brightly on the screen. The movie itself was riveting enough, I rarely watched the

Halloween - another harvest festival

2005-10-31T22:30:00.000-08:00

This is the third and last pagan harvest festival. The moon is waning, two days short of new. Not what one normally thinks of when "harvest festival" comes around. The "Harvest Moon" actually comes in September, this year September 17th. The full moon in October is called the "Blood Moon" or "Hunter's Moon". Halloween as practiced in the United States is an amalgam of practices. The name,

But that's not FAIR!

2005-10-20T18:00:00.000-07:00

When confronted with the cry "But that's not fair!" some reply "who said life has to be fair?" For those who need a comeback to that, try "Who said unfairness must be tolerated just because it exists?"As a human being, with the ability to think of "future" and the ability to learn from the past, the concept of "fairness" and my application of that concept is what differentiates me from the

Good things in life

2005-10-15T04:01:00.000-07:00

It's been said for years the good things are immoral, illegal or fattening. It has now been pointed out that you can add "causes cancer in rats" to that list. "Immoral" makes most people avoid you, and the people who do hang around must be watched continuously, which takes a lot of time and effort. "Illegal" carries its own penalty. I'm living with the results of "fattening." And I've come to the

Some things never change....

2005-10-10T22:13:00.000-07:00

Mostly because we don't pay any attention. Executive ability is deciding quickly and getting somebody else to do the work.~John G. PollardJOHN G. POLLARD (1871-1937)Served 1930-1934, DemocratGovernor Pollard was an attorney, legal scholar, and former Attorney General from Williamsburg. He guided Virginia through the early days of the Depression without a budget deficit or a tax increase. He also

Happy Mabon

2005-09-21T10:36:00.000-07:00

Another pagan harvest festival.I'm enjoying the fruits of the harvest -- the world's most pungent onions seem to grow in my garden. I can't get rhubarb to grow, but the chilis are doin' fine! And the grapes growing on my grape tree smell and taste wonderful. (Grape tree? Yes, the loon who planted things in my yard all those years ago planted a lemon tree and a grape vine very close together. So I

Don't forget the financing....

2005-09-12T07:03:00.001-07:00

A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.~Antoine de Saint-ExuperyEverybody else still sees a rock pile until someone gets the permits, files the environmental impact report, and actually gets the guys with the money to do more than say "What a great idea! It's too risky for us to finance."