Web Log May 15th through May 28th

Web Log May 15th through May 28th, 2005

Saturday, May 28, 2005

If anyone had been searching for an off-topic, impertinent and gratuitous remark...here's one (quoted in today's Chronicle): Whatever mistakes the Iraqis may have made in their struggle toward freedom, "They haven't made a compromise as bad as the one in 1789 that made my ancestors three-fifths of a man,'' said Rice, a black woman, in reference to the U.S. Constitution's original compromise on slavery.
That I should live so long as to hear a US Secretary of State indulge in such tawdry obfuscation! Now...I ain't no Stanford grad, but I DO have a functioning memory and I DO recall that our stated justification for the invasion and occupation of Iraq was that Saddam posed an 'imminent threat' to our country! Had the stated justification been to "encourage democracy in Afghanistan, Iraq and throughout the Middle East" (and not the elimination of Saddam's dangerous (but non-existent) weapons) ...who woulda bought it? The most troubling aspect of Rice's speech is that she knows she is muddying the water. And still, about 40% of the American people ARE buying it!

Friday, May 27, 2005

It has been observed that no one who can read has ever succeeded in sorting out an attic.

Speaking of reading: "I've pretty much accepted that my eyesight is not going to come back," said Jimmy Grant, who started using Viagra in 1998, when he was 57. "But I've also pretty much accepted that Viagra done it." But Pfizer says there's no evidence of more vision loss in men taking Viagra than similar men who don't.

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Do the authorities in Georgia have no sense of humor?

Everyone has his (or her) 'price'. A more encompassing view is that everyone has a 'threshold'. We each have a (call it) 'temptation threshold' beyond which our actions may not be aligned with our 'better sensibilities'. For many, that threshold is the lure of a certain standard of living. For others, it's the lure of a certain standard of loving. 'Morality' operates along a continuum. We each have a limit of temptation beyond which we will steal or cheat while assuming the chances of being found out ('discovery') are slim. [That is the insight in the homily that 'locks keep honest people honest'.]
In its first-order expression, the equation of behavior is: Likelihood of stealing/cheating=T/S; where T=temptation threshold and S=strength of 'better sensibilities' (or 'what you know is right'). Clearly, each variable is a function of other (here unlisted) variables. Apart from the aforementioned dependence of T on one's perception of the likelihood of discovery, T is influenced by need (or deprivation) and S is influenced by our role models (parental and peer). Even assuming that S is substantial, T can swamp the quotient. What wouldn't you do for food if you hadn't eaten in three days? And for love?

Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Maggie's play opens tonight!

Ain't it a jaw dropper to have Alfred E. prattle on about "there is no such thing as a spare embryo"? [He's posturing as the savior of (frozen) embryos which have already been designated for destruction by the would-be parents for whom they were created! So there is NOT a net saving of life...no matter HOW you add it up!] And like this clown is not personally responsible for the recent deaths of tens of thousands of already-born people in a war of choice which---now that (almost) everyone sees it for the colossal blunder that it is---is being prolonged only to save him from political humiliation?

Nice new mix of ICH.

"Accused at a news conference of being too harsh on the United States, Secretary General Irene Khan (of Amnesty International) replied that the facts spoke for themselves."

Tuesday, May 24, 2005 Bob Dylan is Sixty-Four

"A hair, perhaps, divides the false and true. Beware, O my son, of self-incense. It is the most dangerous on account of its agreeable intoxication. Learn, O my beloved, that the light of Allah's truth will often penetrate an empty head more easily than one too crammed with learning."

"We feel the speed is not even slow, but even backwards sometimes."

"If a group of concerned parents gets its way, high school physics students may soon be required to learn about alternative explanations of gravity. The parents say that a one-sided focus on Newton's so-called universal law of gravitation is unfair to students who don't believe in gravity."

Monday, May 23, 2005 Happy Birthday, Robin!

Maggie's play opens this week!

"The creationists like to state that evolution is nothing but a theory. The existence of God is also a theory. One theory has libraries full of supporting data, while the other lacks a single verifiable fact in support. Therein lies the debate, or lack of one."

Duane Robert Pierson Portland, Me., May 17, 2005

Sunday, May 22, 2005

An Open Letter to the President of the United States of America, George W. Bush

On May 21, 2005, you will give the commencement address at Calvin College. We, the undersigned, respect your office, and we join the college in welcoming you to our campus. Like you, we recognize the importance of religious commitment in American political life. We seek open and honest dialogue about the Christian faith and how it is best expressed in the political sphere. While recognizing God as sovereign over individuals and institutions alike, we understand that no single political position should be identified with God's will, and we are conscious that this applies to our own views as well as those of others. At the same time we see conflicts between our understanding of what Christians are called to do and many of the policies of your administration.
As Christians we are called to be peacemakers and to initiate war only as a last resort. We believe your administration has launched an unjust and unjustified war in Iraq.
As Christians we are called to lift up the hungry and impoverished. We believe your administration has taken actions that favor the wealthy of our society and burden the poor.
As Christians we are called to actions characterized by love, gentleness, and concern for the most vulnerable among us. We believe your administration has fostered intolerance and divisiveness and has often failed to listen to those with whom it disagrees.
As Christians we are called to be caretakers of God's good creation. We believe your environmental policies have harmed creation and have not promoted long-term stewardship of our natural environment.
Our passion for these matters arises out of the Christian faith that we share with you. We ask you, Mr. President, to re-examine your policies in light of our God-given duty to pursue justice with mercy, and we pray for wisdom for you and all world leaders.
Concerned faculty, staff, and emeriti of Calvin College {Where Alfred E. spoke yesterday.)

Saturday, May 21, 2005

Working on "It Could Happen".

"Recruiters have said potential recruits and their families are wary about volunteering during wartime." Duh!

Friday, May 20, 2005

"At first I saw a series of dark faces, like death masks, flying toward me and being crushed. Then I saw circles of light with the faces of Hillary, Chelsea, and others I cared about flying toward me, then away into a bright, sun-like source." Huh!?!
Just imagine if he had inhaled!

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Too long ago...I turned fifty. At the time I still had Kaiser Permanente as my (whaddya call it?) HMO. Well, they were all over me (like s**** on s***, as they speak around the welding rigs) to have my very first sigmoidoscopy. Ah dunno...maybe they'd just bought some new gear and were eager to test it out...but they seemed suspiciously solicitous (like a pedophile with a puppy) regarding the health of my large intestine. Anyway. They called. They wrote. They warned. They offered cautionary tales of people (just like me) who, for want of a 'simple medical procedure' (SMP, my ass!), might still be with us today. They put a pretty blue sticker on my chart. [The Kaiser prep sheet in those days (for that SMP) began with "please give yourself two enemas".]
To all of it, my response was the same: I'd rather die! And, just this morning, comes word that all is not what it was represented to be those (too many) years ago.
___________________________

I am now in the blastula stage of my latest project. [I mean, the vocal is rough (I call it a 'reference vocal', even, cause it's only there to guide the coming layers). There's hardly any solo. Only a bass drum for percussion. But I posted it anyway 'cuz I need to hear how it sounds on computer speakers as I build a mix.] I won't even list it on my "Current Project" space for a few more days. [But RJ (down there among the trees and the flowers and the bugs and the birds)? Could you tell me if any harmony rushes to your rouge at the phrase beginning "you know"? Thanks.] ;-)

Ah! Life in the oughties! Was there ever a more wonderful time to BE alive?

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

"It took Newsweek about two weeks to retract its report. It has been a year since the...problem behind the article came to light through the Abu Ghraib disaster. No senior officer or civilian official has been held accountable for policies that put every American soldier at greater risk. The men who wrote the memos on legalized torture and evading the Geneva Conventions have been promoted. [So] it is offensive to see the Bush administration...offer pious declarations about accountability, openness and concern for America's image abroad." From today's NYT editorial page.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

"People are dead, and that's unfortunate. People need to be very careful about what they say just as people need to be careful about what they do." Donald Rumsfeld...with a straight face.

"I told the world that Iraq, contrary to your claims, did not have weapons of mass destruction. I told the world, contrary to your claims, that Iraq had no connection to al Qaeda. I told the world, contrary to your claims, that Iraq had no connection to the atrocity on 9/11, 2001. Senator, in everything I said about Iraq, I turned out to be right and you turned out to be wrong, and 100,000 people have paid with their lives -- 1,600 of them American soldiers sent to their deaths on a pack of lies." British MP George Galloway, in testimony before the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

Monday, May 16, 2005 Happy Birthday, Maggie!

Dunno about how it is where you do your business but if, while waiting in line at Safeway, I impulse-buy one a those little (1^1/2 by 3 inch) $0.99 booklets about, say, my cat's horoscope and later (with buyer's remorse) toss it in the toilet and pull the chain: what I'll get is a stopped-up toilet! [I mean, with THIS toilet, even if I rip out the pages and use 'em one at a time (if you get my drift), I'll still be watching, plunger in hand, during the flush!] And so, it is with strain that I read (in Newsweek) that interrogators "had placed Qurans [funny spelling, no?] on toilets and, in at least one case, flushed a [whole] holy book down the toilet." They must have monster, power-flush, toilets down there at Guantanamo. Col. Gary Cheek with the U.S. Army in Kabul said Monday, "We want to ensure there is trust and confidence in the U.S. We want to engage Afghan religious leaders to make sure they understand our true values." [well...]
While Newsweek has not exactly retracted its story, that's what the White House (which has yet to pointedly challenge the assertions made therein) would have us believe. I bet they pay Scott McClellan tons a money for all his dissembling.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

You knew it had to be a sleeper in the news room yesterday afternoon when CBS.com lead with a story about a new Carl's Junior commercial!

Open mouth, insert foot award to Mexican President Vicente Fox for saying "There is no doubt that Mexicans, filled with dignity, willingness and ability to work, are doing jobs that not even blacks want to do there in the United States."

"Important Hallmark"..."Major Milestone"..."Unexpected Surprise"..."Vital Signs of Life"

Perhaps Jennifer has a future writing lurid tales. OMG!