Just for fun...

Free online versions of old games like Pac Man, Asteroids, Space Invaders, etc. Faithfully reproduced.

Neave Games

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One free second, courtesy of the moon...

Today will be 24 hours and one second long! What will you do with the extra time?

Slowing Planet Afforts Us an Extra Second

Those crazy Germans!

The criminal genius at work...

Car thieves nabbed.

Quotables...what is stupidity?

"Everybody says, 'I think for myself - nobody tells me what to think'. And then when you interview 50 people who all say the same thing and they all say that nobody tells them what to think, you realize that they're all just stupid."

- Unknown

Fun sites!

This site is a riot. Check it out!

http://www.dumpalink.com/

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Kids say the darndest things!

C: "I have to see Santa again. I forgot to tell him something."

Daddy: "Oh yeah? What did you forget?"

C: "I forgot to tell him, 'Thank you for Merry Christmas'".

- C 12/24/2005

Moms say the darndest things! :-)

"I am the counselor who jumps out of the window."

- M 12/2/2005

In the news: Media Bias Is Real, Finds UCLA Political Scientist

Total shockage!!! Not.

http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6664

And the master said...

"My warmest times I have known your arms,
My coldest and darkest have been here too.
My greatest hope is tomorrow morning but I....

My brightest day was the day I met you,
My greatest trial was to earn your love.
They say those who don't fear loss love nothing
So I...

I live for it."

- My Alter (Ego)

Kids say the darndest things!

"The pond is all frozen! So the ducks can't swim anymore - they can only ice skate."

- C 12/17/2005

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Kids say the darndest things!

"No Daddy, I'm playing doctor and you're playing the sick person."

"You have an ear refraction."

- Dr. C 12/10/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"I have another advice...we don't trash good food."

-C 12/5/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"I have advice...we don't eat flowers."

- C 12/5/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"Mommy, are neighbors nocturnal?"

- C 12/5/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"You play poker and I play poke him!"

- C 12/2/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"...and my other nickname is Mrs. Sippi Moon!"

- C 12/02/05

Kids say the darndest things!

"It snowed on my nose."

- C 11/30/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"Oh. You're distracting me."

- C 11/26/2005

Concert report - King's X - 11/12/2005

King's X played the Al Rosa Villa in Columbus Ohio on 11/12. The show ROCKED as expected. C couldn't come because Al Rosa is a little tough for a four-year-old, although dUg still told the story of meeting her (which I later used to console her because she couldn't come). dUg, she thought this smile was for her. So do I actually.

The guys played basically the same set as Pomeroy but they did play Dogman instead of Cigarettes. M cried when they played Mr. Wilson because that's the song dUg dedicated to C in Pomeroy. Hey, whaddaya gonna do?

King's X - You Rock!

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Thots

Every day you dig. Every day. Your way.

It doesn't matter - right or wrong. It doesn't matter why. You just dig.

Your hole is your own. "It's mine." You say. "I'm free!" You yell. "You cannot tell me how big, or how deep or what implement I should use to construct it! Is it not my own hole of my own design, built of my own sweat and my own tears?"

Well, yes. It is.

Enjoy.

- Xan Shui
Philosophic Philanthropist, Honest Man

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Kids say the darndest things!

"dUg Pinnick says, 'Don't be mean...be beautiful.' "

- C 11/15/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"Ok. You be the king and I'll be the princess. So you are 'Your Highness' and I am 'My Highness'! "

- C 11/13/2005

Concert Report - King's X - 11/11/2005

We took our four-year-old girl (the indubitable "C"), who is just nuts about King's X, to a concert last night! Don't worry - she had excellent earplugs!

King's X played a sold-out show at the Court Street Grill in Pomeroy, Ohio last night! This is an awesome little spot that the guys played last year. I called early in the day and asked the owner if a four year old would be welcome and he said, "absolutely". So, I bought three of the last six tickets and we got in the car for the two and a half hour drive from Columbus!

As we waited in line, dUg Pinnick showed up in front of the place and stopped to say hi when he saw her. He asked her name and I think dUg was just a little shocked to find that Chloe knew exactly who he was!

The show was terrific! The best band in the world was truly generous, playing an awesome set of mostly new material with a few old gems thrown in for those of us over 30. Chloe watched the show from the far end of the bar and dUg kept winking & smiling at her, which made her giggle like, well, a four-year-old! After the show the band hung out with the fans for a long time and Chloe, who has been asking to meet dUg, Ty and Jerry by name for a year now, finally got her wish! And a prized pair of autographed Jerry Gaskill drum sticks is tap-tap-tapping out the beat to "Alone" all over our home.

THANKS King's X !

You Truly Rock.

Kids say the darndest things!

"I'm not the queen, but I'm not nothing. I'm just a girl named Chloe."

- C 11/7/2005

Now this is funny...reprise

OOPS!

Looks like the Indian astrologer was wrong.

Surprised?

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Now this is funny...

In India, an astrologer famous for his correct predictions of the future, predicted his own death - today. My Way News

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Things not to do...

"Never puree an onion and inject it into your vein with a hypodermic needle."

- Xan Shui
Philosophic Philanthropist, Honest Man

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And the master said...

"I got to know your name.
I must know who you are."

- King's X - Goldilox

Things not to do...

"Don't play poker with a sense of urgency."

Xan Shui
Philosophical Philanthropist, Honest Man.

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Things you shouldn't do...

Never buy a used pair of underwear.

Xan Shui
Philosophical Philanthropist, Honest Man.

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Kids say the darndest things!

"This", says C holding up an orange rubber ball. "Is my best friend's sun."

- C 10/12/2005

In the news: Madonna doesn't get Kabbalah...DUH?!?!

Jewis mystics to Madonna: Lay off our sage!

What did you expect people? She obviously didn't understand Catholicism...what makes anyone think she can understand another religion?

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Those crazy Germans!

Germans invent coaster that detects when you're out of beer.

Kids say the darndest things!

C: "What does it mean if I die?"

Mommy: "Well, it's when you stop breathing and your heart stops and your blood stops and you go up to Heaven and you have to wait for Mommy and Daddy to come join you there."

C: "...or until they make me again."

10/4/2005

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In the news: Right to die.

The Supreme Court hears arguments in a Right to Die case, in which an individual state's right to determine whether people have a right to assisted suicide hangs in the balance.

Again we are faced with a question of law that really turns on your own personal epistemology. If you believed that God created you, if you really believed you had a purpose, if you really believed it was a sin to murder yourself and that a suicide victim's soul would suffer far more than whatever suffering caused their desire to die... If you really believed all this, then HOW COULD YOU support suicide in any form?

On the other hand, if you believe that we are all a wonderful chemical accident - that life is here for a short time to be lived and loved and lost forever - totally free, undeserved but also un-judged - that you go nowhere when you die except back to the elements from which you came...if you believe that consciousness is a chemical reaction in a noodle soup called The Brain...then HOW COULD YOU DENY a person's right to end their life however they choose whenever they choose?

My observation: Our views of the world are rooted in our fundamental belief about the truth of our origins. Our divisions are natural products of those beliefs.

My opinion: Our society cannot stand on one side or the other, but must promote the freedom of each to choose his or her own destiny, so far as it does not impact the life and rights of another. However, it does not follow that any government (state or federal) has the right to enact any law to actually help someone follow their respective choice or to allow another citizen to do so.

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Those crazy Germans!

6 million litres of beer.
6.1 million visitors.
17 days.
248 assaults.
1,304 criminal acts.
22 incidents of sexual coercion.
3 rapes.
95 cows slaughtered.
4,000 items left behind in beer tents.

Munich's Oktoberfest 2005

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YES!!!!! If you like army babes...

An entire blog dedicated to pics of military women...now THAT is cool.

Fishbowl's Favorites

"I'm in a fishbowl. I'm a fishbowl man."
- King's X

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In the news: Santa wins lawsuit!!!

The Danish air force ordered to pay $5000 to Santa after one of its fighter jets inadvertently frightened a reindeer to death.

- My Way News

In the news...and on the more frightening side.

Officers searching for contraband at Bogota airport in Columbia found the bodies of three human foetuses hidden inside Christian icons. Speculation is that they were intended for Satanic rituals. The shipment was destined for Miami.

(CAUTION - vague but still distrubing images - that is, if you think killing a foetus is a bad thing...)

- Foetuses found at Bogota airport

Kids say the darndest things!

"Batman saves the day because he has a cape. That's why Superman does that too."

"Spiderman doesn't have a cape. Does Spiderman save the day? Or does he kill everybody?"

- C 9/29/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"I wish I could ice skate but I sometimes fall down on my shorts."

- C 9/29/2005

She's got a million of 'em today, folks!

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Kids say the darndest things!

"Water drops are made out of wet rain."

- C 9/29/2005

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Kids say the darndest things!

"dUg Pinnick has little twisties in his hair and I have big ones. That's because I have big hair."

- C 9/29/2005

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And the master said...

No one should be made to feel rejected
and to feel the pain.
No one should be made to feel unwanted
and to feel the hate.
Sticks and stones breaking bones,
Names and words they hurt you,
Affecting everything.

No one should be made to feel alone.

No one should be made to feel their heart break
and to feel unloved.
No one should be made to feel they're ugly
and to feel ashamed.
Sticks and stones breaking bones,
Names and words they hurt you,
Affecting everything.

No one should be made to feel alone.
No one.

- King's X - Ogre Tones - Alone

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Kids say the darndest things!

Today there was a cute little email quiz going around the office that purported to determine whether you were "worthy to be called a 'professional' in the world of information technology". Successful participants are able to think simply and clearly. The test noted that most grade school children fare better than most adult professionals on this test. Sooooo, I thought I'd experiment on C, aged 4!

Here are her answers:

Q) How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
Expected Answer: "Open the door. Put in the giraffe. Close the door."

C’s Answer: "First you have to hold his legs and then you have to put his body on his face and then you have to put his body in the refrigerator. Then you leave out the giraffe out because he doesn't belong there."

Q) How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
Expected Answer: "Open the door. Take out the giraffe. Put in the elephant. Close the door."

C’s Answer: "First you have to hold his neck and then you have to hold his trunk and pinch his nose and then you don't have to put his body in the refrigerator - just his nose. And then he doesn't belong in there."

Q) The Lion King is holding a big meeting. All the animals of the kingdom but one show up. Which one didn’t?
Expected Answer: "The elephant. He’s in the refrigerator."

C’s Answer: "Simba."

Q) You have to cross a crocodile-infested river. How do you do it?
Expected Answer: "You just swim across. All the crocodiles are at the meeting."

C’s Answer: "You have to swim faster and faster to get faster than the crocodiles because they're going to bite Simba’s tail."

Ahhh, methinks she gonna work for....IBM! :-)

<:oD

Kids say the darndest things!

"Gammaw, I'm going to keep you prisoner. Not forever...just five more minutes."

- C 9/26/05

Blogcritics.org: King's - OGRE TONES

A "critic" takes a shot at King's X new album. The discussion over his review got interesting in a couple of places. Specifically check out comments #23 and #24 by "Jim". That guy's funny!

Blogcritics.org: King's X - OGRE TONES

The most amazing rock band in the world.

Quick time required: King's X - Alone

Official web site.

Coming 9/27/2005 - Ogre Tones

Those crazy Germans!

Flasher shocked to discover his victim doesn't scream.

Sounds like a page right out of The Onion, but it's real life!

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Ladies and gentlemen...

These people are obviously completely nuts...North Korea says more freaky things - My Way News

Now THIS is interesting...

Study shows that psychopaths could be the best financial traders. Know anyone who qualifies?

Wonder if they'd be as good at poker? ;-)

The resemblance grows stronger every day...

These two are starting to look more and more alike with age...

Kids say the darndest things!

"Do you put milk in your coffee, Dad? I'm gonna put orange juice in my coffee when I grow up. And then I'm gonna stir it all up until it makes chocolate ice cream!"

- C 9/19/2005

Great capitalists of our time...

"Celebrity anti-war protester [Cindy Sheehan], fresh off inking a lucrative deal with Speaker's Bureau, has demanded at the HUFFINGTON POST and MICHAEL MOORE'S website that the United States military must immediately leave 'occupied' New Orleans. " - Drudge Report 9/12/05

It seems that many more are taking up Michael Moore's ingenious four-step money making scheme:

1) Say ridiculous and hateful things very loudly.
2) Get press for it.
3) Sell your speaking and writing for big bucks.
4) Keep it all and laugh at everyone for being so stupid.

I'll look forward to learning how much of her speaking fees Cindy decides to donate to the poor she cares so much about.

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday dear M!
Happy birthday to you!

:-)

ilu

The hole in your life...

When people ask you about your heritage, you talk about places you've never been, languages you barely speak and customs you know only through a certain quaint shadow of old ways known by people quite comfortable without them. And yet you never seem curious about the other half of who you are.

You are as beautiful or more.

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And the master said:

"'We establish no religion in this country, nor will we ever. We command no worship. We mandate no belief. But we poison our society when we remove its theological underpinnings. We court corruption when we leave it bereft of belief.

All are free to believe or not believe; all are free to practice a faith or not. But those who believe must be free to speak of and act on their belief, to apply moral teaching to public questions.

I submit to you that the tolerant society is open to and encouraging of all religions. And this does not weaken us; it strengthens us, it makes us strong. You know, if we look back through history to all those great civilizations, those great nations that rose up to even world dominance and then deteriorated, declined, and fell, we find they all had one thing in common. One of the significant forerunners of their fall was their turning away from their God or gods.

Without God, there is no virtue, because there's no prompting of the conscience. Without God, we're mired in the material, that flat world that tells us only what the senses perceive. Without God, there is a coarsening of the society. And without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure. If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under. If I could just make a personal statement of my own -- in these 3 1/2 years I have understood and known better than ever before the words of Lincoln, when he said that he would be the greatest fool on this footstool called Earth if he ever thought that for one moment he could perform the duties of that office without help from One who is stronger than all.

There are no such things as limits to growth, because there are no limits on the human capacity for intelligence, imagination and wonder.

-- Ronald Reagan
(from an address to the University of South Carolina, Columbia, September 20, 1983)"

Kids say the darndest things!

"Are you a good bad guy?"

- C 9/16/2005

And the master said...

"Don't forget that you're beautiful...just the way you are.
Change for you and not for me - I like who you are.
That's why I'm reminding you...oh...reminding you...

Don't forget you're beautiful
Don't forget you're beautiful
Don't forget you're beautiful.

You'll never seem you like I do...how bright your light can shine.
All of my mirrors they lied to me...same as the ones in my life.
That's why I'm reminding you...oh...reminding you...

Don't forget you're beautiful
Don't forget you're beautiful
Don't forget you're beautiful.

- dUg Pinnick
Emotional Animal - 2005

Kids say the darndest things!

A paper that C brought home from her day at day care, entitled "What I am Thankful for":

"Riding my bike, suckers, my cube and the letter 'Q'."

- C 9/13/2005

The unknown paradise...

Dubai is a place very few people know anything about. But it's beauty is nearly unparallelled.

Dubai plans city of "wonders of the world" replicas - My Way News
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Go Bucks!!!!

It was a remarkable game last night between the Buckeyes and the Longhorns. Saddened as I am by the Bucks' loss, the game epitomized college football. The spirit, passion and drive of both teams was inspirational. The best part of college football is the college football players themselves. Great game! GO BUCKS!!!

SI.com - NCAA Football - Young, No. 2 'Horns take down No. 4 Ohio State - Sunday September 11, 2005 1:25AM

Those crazy Germans!

Woman lays waste to family home attempting to kill a spider. Well, at least the spiders are gone.

...

Kids say the darndest things!

C: "Dad?"

Dad: "Yes, C."

C: "I have some food in my mouth so I can't talk to you right now, ok?"

Dad: "Ok, C."

- 9/4/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"I ate the tummy ache!"

- C 09/04/2005

Go Bucks!!!!

SI.com - Writers - Stewart Mandel: First impressions from opening weekend - Sunday September 4, 2005 4:51PM: " I know it's just one game, but Ohio State's defense looks like it could be back at its 2002 level. Miami of Ohio returned eight starters from a typically powerful MAC offense, yet the Buckeyes, noticeably more aggressive under new coordinator Jim Heacock, absolutely suffocated the RedHawks, holding them to 76 yards in the first half, sacking QB Josh Betts five times and pitching a shutout for nearly 58 minutes."

"How much fun can I have before I go to hell?"

My Way News: "Johnny White's Sports Bar, which has no doors and, according to locals, never closes, has become a gathering place for some of those who remained downtown when Katrina devastated the city Monday.

'It's very eerie and disturbing,' said Joseph Bellomy, 23, a Cleveland native who moved here in February and has been working as a bartender. His T-shirt's slogan: 'How much fun can I have before I go to hell? - French Quarter.'"

Science predicts the future.

Hat tip to Matt Drudge:

Louisiana's Wetlands @ National Geographic Magazine - October 2004

"The city that care forgot...but nature will not."

The difference.

FT.com / World - Chimp and human DNA is 96% identical

The difference between me and a chimpanzee is only 10 times greater than the difference between me and Bill Clinton.

The difference between the rat and the mouse is 10 times greater than the difference between me and the chimpanzee.

Draw your own conclusions.

Kids say the darndest things!

"Yelling is not understanding."

- C 8/20/2005

A truly worthy blog entry!

This is a truly wonderful blog entry at stoprepublicans.blogspot.com. You got to read it!

Those crazy Germans!

Berlin (Reuters) - Fisheman dies chasing fish that stole his pole

"I know it sounds like an incredible story but it really happened," an Eisenhuettenstadt police spokeswoman said. "It was apparently just an ordinary fish." - from the article

Kids say the darndest things!

"I'm not sleepy, I'm just a little tired."

- C 8/12/2005 after swimming until 10pm

Quote of the day for sure!

"We are not brewers, we are monks. We brew beer to be able to afford being monks," the father abbot said on the abbey's Web site.

My Way News

In the news: What's wrong with lying?

Yep, don't let the truth get in the way!

http://www.factcheck.org/article340.html

Kids say the darndest things!

"When I grow up I will get to talk like an astronaut!"

- C 8/9/2005

And the masters said:

"I wanna love someone special, 'til death do us part.
To have one, and need no other.

Sometimes I cry stumbling through my youth,
'cause I love so much, yet so little."

- King's X - Faith Hope Love - The Fine Art of Friendship

And the masters said:

"Forever is a mountain we've yet to climb,
Tears are a part of what is yet to leave behind.
Stength in numbers all you need is two,
Everyone's a winner while still so many lose.

We are finding who we are.
We can see forever.

The volume of emotion erupting in our souls,
A quiet revelation quickly takes a-hold.
Patience is a virtue but she won't always wait,
Decention is the tension we always learn to hate."

- King's X - Faith Hope Love

In the news: Submarine crew rescued!

Rejoice! A multi-national rescue force succeeds in rescuing the crew of a Russian submarine! My Way News

Famous last words: Archduke Franz Ferdinand

"It is nothing. It is nothing."

- Last words of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

And the masters said:

"If your back is pinned against the wall and the stress is killing you.
and the cross you carry on your back makes it hard for you to move.
in yourself believe - it's alright.
in yourself believe - you're alright

if you ran away to loose your soul and you're scared to death you're wrong
if you're past the point of turning back and your innocence is gone.
in yourself believe - it's alright
in yourself believe - you're alright

if it's something that you can't forget that somebody did to you
if you're past the point of feeling down then there's nothing left to prove.
in yourself believe - it's alright
in yourself believe - you're alright

in yourself believe
it's alright
in yourself believe
you're alright

believe in yourself
it's alright it's alright

believe in yourself
it's alright it's alright

you see, when i grew up, i grew up in the church
and they told me to believe in God - they said to believe in Jesus
and then others told me to believe in Krishna
somebody else said to believe in Bhudda
then they said the Indian religion
then they said to believe in The President of the United States
then they said to believe in The United States of America
they said believe in everybody but myself

but i wanna tell you people
if you don't believe in yourself you ain't got shit to believe in.
believe in yourself.

now the media will tell you there's something wrong with you
they'll say you're too tall, you're too short, you're too fat or too skinny
your eyes are the wrong color, your hair is the wrong color,
they say blondes have more fun.
they say your tits are too small
and your dick is too small
and they want you to fix yourself.

people, there's nothing wrong with you!
there's nothing wrong with you!
there's nothing wrong with anybody in here!

and i wanna tell you about this thing called "fear"
the United States of America is dying because of fear.
we're afraid of everybody
we're afraid of terrorism, we're afraid of Mexicans coming up
we're afraid of Haitians coming into this land
we're afraid of everything
we are built upon fear
we have guns - more guns than anybody else
we kill each other - we hate each other - we fight each other
this is America.

wake up!

we're alright you're alright!"

- King's X
(accents by dUg Pinnick)
Check 'em out!

Kids say the darndest things!

Daddy: What are you doing?

"I'm holding still...like a tomato."

- C 3/5/2005

Famous last words: W. C. Fields

"God damn the whole friggin' world and everyone in it but you, Carlotta."

- Last words of W. C. Fields

And the master said:

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."

- Sir Winston Churchill

Kids say the darndest things!

"You and mommy had a baby of me!"

- C 7/31/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

"Heaven is a different kind of place where you go underwater."

- C 7/29/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

C: "What are you doing?"

Daddy: "I'm trimming my nose hairs."

C: "Do you have hairs in your nose?"

Daddy: "Yes, when boys grow up they have hairs in their nose."

C: "Yeah. And when girls grow up they have boys."

7/16/2005

And the master said:

"There you are just dancing as you very often do - sinking ever deeper in your wet, delicious sorrow. Nothing left at all of all the promises made yesterday, and no care of what you do."

- Fresh Buzz Uppercut

And the master said:

"It's just nice to know that, whatever culture you come from, if you're a geek, you're a geek."

- M 7/13/2004

Now this is an amazing picture.

Waves from hurricane Dennis crash in Guantanimo Bay, Cuba.



Here's the original story, which has a few more pics too.

And the master said.

"Highly intelligent and well-informed people disagree on every political issue. Therefore, intelligence and knowledge are useless for making decisions, because if any of that stuff helped, then all the smart people would have the same opinions."

- Dogbert

In the news: Suspects Emerge in London Bombings

Terrorists are targeting universities: "'Extremists are known to target schools and colleges where young people may be very inquisitive but less challenging and more susceptible to extremist reason/arguments,' the report says, according to the Sunday newspaper."

Interesting. This is exactly what that radical left does, and for the same reason.

Some people will believe anything...

Sleepwalker found asleep on the arm of a crane - 130 feet in the air.

Kids say the darndest things!

(Touching her peanut butter sandwich)

"I'm feeling up the bread."

- C 7/4/2005

Again I have to ask...WHEN WILL WE LEARN???

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Remains Found in Search for Idaho Boy

People like this can NOT be set free!!! Parole is not enough. Short prison terms are not enough. Long prison terms are not enough. A sex-offender registry is not enough. There is a class of people - a race you might say - that preys upon unwilling children for sexual gratification. They can be detected. Their patterns are well understood. We know who they are...because we let them go!

We could actually enact laws to protect our children here and we sit back and do nothing.

People convicted of sex crimes in which children are physically victimized should spend life in prison, or buy their release after 25 years in the general population of a maximum security prison by authorizing the removal of their genitals. <--(that's a period)

Kids say the darndest things!

"Porcupines pork each other."

- C 7/4/2005

"Cat's bum mouth?" Those Brits...

British government anti-cigarette ads target young men & women's sex lives.

Kids say the darndest things.

"Zero is a lot of gone."

- C 7/1/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

C: "What are those flowers for?"

Mommy: "The flowers are for all of us!"

C: "For ALL of me?"

6/22/2005

There are times when nature is more civilized than man.

A 12-year-old girl who was abducted and beaten by men trying to force her into a marriage was found being guarded by three lions who apparently had chased off her captors, a policeman said Tuesday.

She was beaten repeatedly before she was found June 9 by police and relatives on the outskirts of Bita Genet, Wondimu said. She had been guarded by the lions for about half a day, he said.

"They stood guard until we found her and then they just left her like a gift and went back into the forest," Wondimu said.

"If the lions had not come to her rescue, then it could have been much worse. Often these young girls are raped and severely beaten to force them to accept the marriage," he said.

- from the article.

The Onion 2056 - Ok, this is about as funny as I've seen them.

CAUTION - SOUND - Turn down speakers if in a sound-hostile environment or if you should be working!

The Onion 2056

In the news: A woman's brain shuts down during orgasm!

Scientists discovered that the part of a woman's brain dealing with fear and anxiety are shut down during female orgasm.

Who knew?

Funnier still: They got no valid conclusions about male orgasm because it doesn't last long enough!

AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

And the master said:

Pope Blasts Europe for Excluding God:

"[In the new book,] he criticizes parents who think their rights to freedom trump the rights of the unborn child, saying 'they become blind to the right to life of another, of the youngest and weakest who don't have a voice.'

'Accepting that the rights of the weakest can be violated, means that you accept also that the right of force prevails over the force of rights,' he writes."

Some samplings...

"The classic form of the big bang theory really says nothing about what banged, what happened before it banged or what caused it to bang."

- Alan Guth, MIT



"Most people come at this iwth the nieve notion that there was a beginning. That, somehow, space and time emerged from nothingness into somethingness."

- Edward Witten, Institute for Advanced Study



"Do I really believe that the universe was a big bang out of nothing? I'm not a philosopher so I won't say, but I would imagine to a philosopher that is a problem. But to a physicist I think it's also a problem."

- Burt Ovrut, University of Pennsylvania



"I actually find it rather unattractive to think of a universe without a beginning. It seems to me that a universe without a beginning is also a universe without an explanation."

- Alan Guth, MIT



"It's an intruiging idea. Unfortunately, there are a few technical problems."

- Brian Greene



"As promising and exciting as the theory is, we don't entirely understand it."

- Briane Greene

Science: The Elegant Universe on TV!

Check this out. If you haven't read Brian Greene's book THE ELEGANT UNIVERSE, and are even slightly curious about why you can clap your hands together without the atoms in one hand passing through the vast spaces between the atoms in the other, or string theory, or how many dimensions our universe contains, then you definitely should.

But now you can watch the book instead! They've turned it into a television program on PBS that you can view freely on the web!

NOVA | The Elegant Universe | Watch the Program | PBS

Kids say the darndest things!

Dad: "You have a lot of attitude for a three-year-old."

C: "My attitude is four!"

Fortune Cookies

"Fortune not found: Abort, Retry, Ignore?"

- from a fortune cookie

In the news: We will never learn.

komo news | Chilling List Could Lead To Biggest Molest Case Ever: "Chilling, handwritten lists of more than 36,000 suspected sex acts with boys has led investigators to what may be the most extensive case of child molestation in U.S. history."

Kids say the darndest things!

"I'm three years old....and that's a lot of little."

- C

Fortune Cookies

"Help I am being held prisoner in Chinese fortune cookie factory!"

- from a fortune cookie

Fortune Cookies

"Including others in your life will bring you great happiness."

- from a fortune cookie

Kids say the darndest things!

C (with a toy phone): "Ring ring!"

Daddy (with a pretend phone): "Hello! Who is it?"

C: "Hello, it's C."

Daddy: "Oh, hello, C. What are you doing?"

C: "Something terrible. Hee hee hee!"

Fortune Cookies

"Be prepared to accept a wondrous opportunity in the days ahead."

- from a fortune cookie

Fortune Cookies

"You are only young once, but immaturity can last a lifetime."

- from one of my fortune cookies

In the news: Jacko Found Not Guilty on All Counts

Respect for the rule of law. He's innocent.

Jesse Jackson has my apologies.

FOXNews.com - Foxlife - Jacko Found Not Guilty on All Counts: "Michael Jackson (search) has been acquitted of all of the charges against him."

And the master said:

"May God’s grace give you the necessary humility. Try not to think—must less, speak—of their sins. One’s own are a much more profitable theme! And if on consideration, one can find no faults on one’s own side, then cry for mercy: for this must be a most dangerous delusion."

- C. S. Lewis

Kids say the darndest things!

"When I grow up I'm gonna be an astronaut!"

- C 6/9/2005 - Kennedy Space Center

I took the sixties quiz!

Hat tip to Howie.

You can take the sixties quiz here.

I took the sixties quiz, which asks, "Who were you in the sixties?"

My results:

You are a Playboy. You perv.

The punchline: I was two! :-)

And the master said:

"Don't sleep on an argument, always share a kiss and hold hands before going to bed."

- Percy and Florence Arrowsmith - revealing the secrets of their marriage on their 80th wedding anniversary.

U.K. Couple Marks 80th Wedding Anniversary - Yahoo! News

And the master said:

"Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. And hate leads to...suffering. - Yoda

Here's something you don't see every day.

The ongoing debate: Health Care

In these "The ongoing debate" posts, I shall attempt to capture some of the many online debates in which I participate, whether I win or lose.

"In debate, no one loses if the truth wins."
- Xan Shui

Intuitive Science: What if?

Kids say the darndest things!

Today I happened upon our three-year-old holding her stuffed Grover (from Sesame Street) up in front of her and talking for it. "Hi there! I am Grover!" Came her gravelly imitation voice as she bounced the doll slightly to indicate that it was talking.

Smiling, I asked her, "What are you doing, sweetheart?"

Her reply. "I'm pretending that Grover has batteries!"

Mathematical models show how our solar system was formed.

Mathematicians model early solar system.

If mathematics can show exactly how forces we assume are random (unguided) created the precise orbits of the planets of our solar system, how can we then assume that guidance was needed?

It's ok. People of faith need their moments of doubt.

Medical: Explanation for clean hippies.

"Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a medical brain disorder that causes problems in information processing. It is not your fault or the result of a "weak" or unstable personality." - from the article below

With treatment, most people achieve meaningful and long-term symptom relief and some are completely cured. However, OCD "tends to be underdiagnosed and undertreated for a number of reasons. People with OCD may be secretive about their symptoms or lack insight about their illness. On average, people with OCD spend over 9 years seeking treatment before they receive a correct diagnosis and 17 years for them to obtain appropriate treatment." - from the article below

Obsession --> Compulsion
------------------------
Contamination fears of germs, dirt, etc. --> Washing
Imagining losing control or aggressive urges --> Checking
Forbidden thoughts --> Ordering/arranging
A need to have things "just so" --> Hoarding or saving

Learn more--> Obsessive Compulsive Foundation

Medical: Grandma's wisdom

Thousands of scientists - armed with millions of dollars in grants, laboratories filled with the latest in high-technology instrumentation, and minds carefully reshaped by our finest educational institutions - are finally beginning to achieve something like the wisdom of my Grandmother, who once told me, "I don't care what anyone says. A little fresh air and sunshine'll cure what ails ya."

My way news: Sunlight may prevent cancer.

Ongoing: When will we learn that we can't set people like this free?

A Florida man is arrested for kidnapping two girls, age 7 and 13, from their home, victimizing them and then sending them home with threats against their parents if they talked. Thank goodness the 13-year-old had the courage...

So here's our chance to show we can be taught. Put him away FOREVER and he'll never harm another child. A more lenient sentence you ask? Ok: Life in prison with paroll after serving 20 years if he agrees to be surgically castrated for the good of the society he might wish to rejoin.

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Man Charged With Kidnap, Rape of Two Girls

In the news: Providence?

The grenade thrown at President Bush last week during his visit to a former Soviet republic was live.

The grenade landed within its lethal range of the President. Because of a malfunction, "the activation device deployed too slowly to hit the blasting cap hard enough."

In the news: Newsweek sparks deadly riot with unsubstantiated story.

When idiology overpowers honesty: Newsweek Issues Apology for Quran Story

Kids say the darndest things!

"I'm a different kind of person. And you're a different kind of person too...just like me!"

- C 5/7/2005

In the news: Why do we set people like this free?

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Molesters Often Strike Again

Milestone: More than half of US Tax Returns filed over Internet!

Print Story: More Than Half of Tax Returns E-Filed on Yahoo! News

Nothing new under the sun...?

In the news: Here comes Tiger!

Os X Steps Ahead of Windows

Last week I went to the Apple store. Having been a Windows user for years, I was very impressed by the simplicity and intuitiveness of the interface and blown away by some of the capabilities of the G5 (as well as its price - over $6000 with the 30 inch flat panel monitor).

Apple may never take over the office, but it has a clear shot at our homes and music studios.

Yep, they really said it!

'I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate commerce.'

-- J. Edgar Hoover

And we make fun of Hollywood!

One of religion's favorite targets as a den of iniquity is Hollywood. Religious people like to make fun of the number of times people are married.

But 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners of the "How many times were you married? prize are:

Brigham Young, Mormon - 19 times
Muhammad, Prophet - 12 times (including a 9-year-old girl)
Joseph Smith, Mormon - 12 times

Frequently married celebrities

But it's ok folks! God said so!

Poetry: The Key

The Key

I had no heart
For Cupid’s dart
Stood far apart
An evil start

I had a mind
Outwardly kind
An awful sign
Of cruelty mine

I had a need
To kill a seed
Another's greed
With final speed

I had to laugh
At pain-filled gasps
Just did the math
Then freed my wrath

But heard a voice
Among the toys
Eyes with no choice
Fearing the noise

I know my age
But not my stage
I feel the rage
Turning the page

Wells up again
Wants to live in
My mind, the sin
The heartless end

I found a key
This key fits me
Turns me to we
Won't let this be

I felt the rain
It took the pain
And shut again
The door to Cain

- JT

Poetry: The Touch

The Touch – April 30, 1998

I stand on a path in the forest beneath a grey, cloud-filled sky.
It is an early spring morning and there is chill in the air.
I can see my breath.

The leaves have begun to open on all the trees now.
The new leaves a fresh bright, wet green color that gets deeper with distance.
Blooms of purple-pink and white spread brush-strokes across the forest.

A misty rain begins, so light you can barely feel it.
I turn my face to the sky and yes, it’s there.
I smile as I realize that even this light rain makes a gentle sound.

I can hear birds singing too and every movement in the forest.
A ground squirrel scampers through the underbrush to my right.
I don’t know whether he knows I’m here…oh, he’s gone.

Now I’m aware of my breathing, which makes me inhale deeply.
The smells of the forest enter freely with the air into my lungs;
Flowers, trees, grass, freshness. The smell of rain; her smell.

I begin to walk forward along the path.
It is clear and straight and easily walked.
Now and again a small tree has fallen on the path that I must climb around or over.

This is a hilly place and the path runs atop a ridge,
The landscape falling away on each side into deep hollows.
Ahead and down the path I see a place that is filled with misty light. I walk.

It’s funny what rain does to sound in a forest.
It wets the ground and leaves so your passing makes no sound.
Then its gentle voice hides the sounds of the other residents of the wood, leaving you all alone.

Suddenly I’m in a glade. A gentle, open space
where even with the summer’s thick grown canopy,
you would easily see the sky.

I stand in the milky light of the glade. The flowered trees illuminated
By the natural skylight overhead and the few rays of sunlight which would not be caught
By cloud and leaves and rain.

A new sound from the west. Like a rushing wind but not. Somehow different,
Yet clearly there and growing, coming toward me like a wave.
It’s rain. I hear it coming but it’s not here yet. A harder, deeper rain than I feel now.

It comes. A deep, cool, still gentle rain, though larger, more substantial.
It gently soaks me, standing in the glade.
Soaks me with her smell. Caresses me with her gentle kiss.

I love this glade, this open space. I’m lucky to be here right now.
For the rain would have come anyway. Whether I’d been there to feel it or not.
And had I chosen a different path, a different day, a different way,

I’d never have felt her touch so far away.

- JT

In the news: WHEN will we learn that we can't set these people free???

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Cops: Body Believed to Be That of Lunde: "Sarah was last seen on April 9, shortly after she returned home from a church trip and around the time a registered sex offender unexpectedly paid a visit to her family's home. The teen was reported missing two days later when her mother learned she wasn't at a friend's home."

Kids say the darndest things!

"Noodles are my favorite desert!"

-C 4/10/2005

Great Show!

Victor Wooten & Divinity - Newport Music Hall, Columbus, Ohio 4/12/2005

Kids say the darndest things!

Daddy: "Can I eat you all up?"

C: "No! 'Cause I'm not a french fry!"

1/15/2005

Yup, amen & all that. Eggsellent!

Leader of the Free World...and Bill & Hillary.

They apparently thought the Pope was a gas...

Picking Clinton over Carter for the Pope's funeral was a sell out.

Famous last words:

"Amen."

- Pope John Paul II

Free Thinker Slaves: "Free speech as long as you agree with us!"

William Kristol hit by a pie, Pat Buchanan hit with salad dressing. Grandstanding demonstrations of food throwing are becoming all the rage with the Free Thinker Slave community.

Buchanan Gets Face Full of Salad Dressing

Kristol continued his talk and finished his point, Buchanan thanked the audience for coming and declined to press charges.

Even as the Slaves succeed in their mission to call attention to themselves, in doing so they show the stark difference between thinking adults and blind adolescents.

Well done.

Koran predicts U.S. destruction in 2007!

Koran scholar: U.S. will cease to exist in 2007.

...by a giant tsunami even!

In the news: 1981 attack on Pope planned by KGB

"There are those who think that the Soviet Union ordered the assassination attempt on the Pope. But that is not true. We were not involved."

- Mikhail Gorbachev

1981 attack on Pope planned by KGB

In the news: How do we set people like this free???

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Body ID'd as Missing Iowa Girl

When will we learn that registering sex offenders who molest children is not enough! These people should never be set free.

Kids say the darndest things!

"I'm changing the TV because it's too dangerous to watch."

- C, age three - 1/30/2005

Yep, the really said it: John McCain

"Do you know why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly? Because Janet Reno is her father."

-- John McCain

Intuitive Science: Intelligent design revisit

This was an interesting post by a very intelligent materialist. I've engaged the blogger in discussion & wanted to post here for your enjoyment. We'll see where it goes.

Read the post, then follow the comments.

Intuitive Science: Intelligent design revisit

And the master said:

"The key to every man is his thought. Sturdy and defying though he look, he has a helm which he obeys, which is the idea after which all his facts are classified. He can only be reformed by showing him a new idea which commands his own."

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

In the news: When are we going to learn?

When are we going to learn that sexual predators, especially those who prey on children, cannot be set free? How many children have to die before we realize that, whatever we're doing, we're not succeeding in the rehabilitation process? When are we going to learn that registering sex offenders is simply not enough?

Fla. Police Recover Missing Girl's Body

Sexual criminals are more addicted than users of crack cocaine. If we can't or won't medically engineer their unrestrained urges away then we need to keep them away after the first conviction of a sexual crime involving a child.

When are we going to finally err on the side of the children instead of the criminal?

In the news: The sensitivity of the gay community.

"My son said, 'It's so embarrassing having you talk all the time on TV about being gay and you picking me up at school in painter's pants.' I told him, 'Yeah, yeah, keep it for your book.'"

- Rosie O'Donnell

Kids say the darndest things!

What do you want for Christmas next year?

"A reindeer if it walks and a frog for jumping with a bear."

- C 12/27/2004

Kids say the darndest things!

Daddy on Christmas morning: "Did you hear anything last night?"

"Yes, a car...and a bump that was Rudolph!"

- C 12/25/2004

Kids say the darndest things!

"That's a tannenbaum where our Christmas Tree is!"

- C 12/23/2004

And the master said:

"How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin."

- Ronald Reagan

Famous last words: Archimedes

"Wait 'til I have finished my problem!"

- Last words of Archimedes - mathematician

Famous last words: Dwight D Eisenhower

"I have always loved my wife, my children, and my grandchildren, and I've always loved by country. I want to go. God, take me."

Last words of Dwight D Eisenhower

And the master said:

"Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is."

C. S. Lewis -- Mere Christianity

Famous last words: Thomas Edison

"It is very beautiful over there."

- Thomas Edison

And the master said:

"Facts are stupid things."

- Ronald Reagan

To my one true love:

Reflections on Love and Luck
- jt

You are the winter's icy breath,
The springtime's sweetest rain,
The summer's shimmering heat,
And the Autumn's bountious beauty...

A whole year given
In a few sweet motions,
And now I see
How lucky I am.


You are a child's selfish needs,
A woman's gentle caress,
A boy's energetic orneriness,
A friend's hard, calm advice.

Everyone I've ever known given
In one personality,
And I do see
How lucky I am.


You are a daisy's brightest color,
A rose's deepest red,
A lilie's most delicate pastel,
An orchid's exotic shape.

A whole garden given
In a few un-noticed looks,
And it tells me
How lucky I am.


You are the sun's bright furnace,
The moon's clear answering glow,
The milky-way's delicate majesty,
The earth's perfect cradle below.

A whole universe given
In the few short years we've had,
And all to me...
How lucky I am.

I love you, M.
Happy Valentine's Day.

Famous last words: John Jacob Astor IV

"The ladies have to go first. Get in the lifeboat to please me. Goodbye dearie. I'll see you later."

Last recorded words of John Jacob Astor IV. The richest man in the world at the time, helped his pregnant wife onto a lifeboat and went down with the Titanic.

Happy Valentines Day!

And the master said:

"Don't be afraid to see what you see."

- Ronald Reagan

In the news: Can a single death make a difference?

Hamas, Islamic Jihad Agree to Halt Attacks

Famous last words: Queen Elizabeth I

"All my possessions...for a moment of time."

- Queen Elizabeth I

And the master said:

"Coersion, after all, merely captures man. Freedom captivates him."

- Ronald Reagan

In the news: Blackmail

I $ wonder $ what $ they $ want ?

North Korea Demands Bilateral Talks

Poetry: The Voice

The Voice
- JT

By the waterside I heard your name
Spoken sweetly
Lingering quietly
Freshening the air beneath the trees
With it's bubbly sound

I bowed my head in silent thanks
Barely said
Hardly heard
Envisioning a face to place beside it
A face that would be found

I closed my eyes to hear still more
Within the structure
Within the name
I listened more intently than ever before
To the bubbly sound

Inside the name I found a rhythm
Found a song
A melody
That shed new light on the rest of nature
On the world around

Inside this song I heard my name
Spoken tenderly
Sung lovingly
As I'd never heard it before
Tears on the ground

By the waterside I heard your name
Spoken sweetly
Lingering quietly
And there beside the springtime forest brook
Within that beautiful sound

God Spoke.

Just plain not-so-funny: Kim Jong Il, WMF Blowout Sale!

JabTV.com - Kim Jung IL's Weapons of mass Destruction Blowout Sale

In the news: You've got mail!

Microsoft and pharmaceutical company Pfizer, Inc. sue spammers over Viagra-related sperm...er...spam.

And the master said:

"We regard God as an airman regards his parachute; it's there for emergencies but he hopes he'll never have to use it."

C. S. Lewis -- In Religion

And the master said:

I Do.

"Feels like a Saturday, feels just like anyday
Feels like a moment suspended in time
Laughter in somebody's yard, I pull the wild card
It looks like another day everything's fine

I've got a good life
I do

My friend sees differently, or maybe he doesn't see
And he digs deeper with every blind turn
On one hand he understands the other hand's the other hand
Sometimes he tells me he wishes he'd die

But I've got a good life
I do

On one fine Sunday we sat in the gym
With our friends and the cheers and the team that would win
I saw you over there and I pulled your long hair
And it happened for life I would make you my wife

I've got a good life
I do"

- Ty Tabor

Rhymes with "sabre" - look him up.

Hmm: Mysterious Streak Above Hawaii

Interesting article about a strange site in the night sky above Hawaii.

APOD: 2005 February 8 - A Mysterious Streak Above Hawaii

Just plain dumb: Rugby fan mutilates self over game.

A Welsh rugby fan cut off both his own testicles to celebrate a rugby win.

Ouch!

In the news: Can a single death make a difference?

Israeli PM Ariel Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas met face-to-face at a Mideast summit Tuesday to announce an end to four years of violence and offer goodwill gestures they hope will start a new era of peace talks.

In the news: Lookout, they're looking out!

USATODAY.com - Security cameras patrol Big Easy's dangerous areas

And the master said:

"If you are really a product of a materialistic universe, how is it that you don't feel at home there?"

C. S. Lewis -- Encounter with Light

Poetry: Away

Away (Sans Irony)

I'm thinking about you there,
(Praying you'll be strong enough to love again someday)
and the sights flowing into those dark eyes
(And hating the thought of you going away).

I'm thinking about me here,
(Praying I'll be strong enough to lie to you someday)
holding these children and watching them grow
(And hating the thought of you going away).

- JT

Just for musicians: Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini

"It tells the legend of Paganini's dealings with the devil, his love of a woman, his troubles with the church, and his final defeat."

Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini

I think I know why I love Paganini...

And the master said:

"I pay no attention whatever to anybody's praise or blame. I simply follow my own feelings."

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

And the master said:

'The preservation of society, and of the species itself, are ends that do not hang on the precarious thread of Reason: they are given by Instinct.'

C. S. Lewis -- The Abolition of Man

Just plain funny: Handwriting experts confuse Blair and Gates

Experts examining a sheet of paper covered in doodles, believed to belong to British PM Tony Blair. They concluded that he was "struggling to concentrate", "not a natural leader" and "stressed and tense". There's only one problem...

In the news: Can a single death make a difference?

"...the latest in a series of steps to stop violence that have brought rare praise from Israeli PM Ariel Sharon."

Palestinian Authority Issues Weapons Ban

Just plain cool: New music technology

A new way to listen to music.

My Way News

Poetry: The Interest

The Interest

A glimpse, a spark, a moment, nothing more
A gentle breeze I’d never felt before
She brushes by, I catch just half a face
A smile, an energy; what, I cannot place

My thoughts returning then to just before
But something there imprinted on my door
Nothing more than that, she’s in my mind
No name, no background, yet my thoughts rewind

And later, though engaged in life again
I see her face replayed my mind within
Soon I look for her whenever walking
And she is seen, always engaged and talking

Not long before my eyes move from her face
To take in more, her boyish gait, her grace
Something stirring deep within my soul
A yearning, out of nowhere, needs to know

What is it there about her that I find
So presently encompassing my mind?
And so I speak of her to trusted friends
I only need her name and this might end

No one that I trust can place her name
I cannot ask around, for there is shame
So I begin to fear, no one can tell
And just as I despair, I hear “Mireille”.

A name that must mean flowers, moist with rain
Fills my ears and mouth like quiet singing
A name, unique and singular as she
And that is when I know that I must see

Soon, of course, it happens that we meet
And shaking, I extend my hand to greet
“Hi, I’m Mireille”, says she, so quickly by
“I’m Jim”, I choke. I’d never seen the eyes…

I’m fully known before them, swimming, reeling
Such deep, dark pools of unrestricted feeling
They sing of pain, ‘the curses of her mind’
Though seeing, they expect the world is blind

What passes in an instant through my heart
While not exactly fear, provokes a start
And though I force my eyes to meet her’s, braving
I’m now afraid of what my own are saying…

- JT

And the master said:

"Human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and can't really get rid of it."

C. S. Lewis

Once in a while: Victims of Communism

Victims of Communism

And the master said:

"I believe in God like I believe in the sun rise. Not because I can see it, but because I can see all that it touches."

C. S. Lewis

Homage: ARMOR GEDDON

A new addition to the "Those judged worthy" section along the right, this one deserves special attention.

Check it out!

ARMOR GEDDON

In the news: Can a single death change things?

Renewed hope.

"In the past five days, Abbas has met repeatedly with representatives of the three key militant groups - Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, which has ties to his Fatah movement. Abbas also held talks with smaller factions that are expected to fall in line if the larger three agree to a truce."

Militant groups ready for cease fire.

And the master said:

"If there is equality it is in His love, not in us."

C. S. Lewis -- Transposition and Other Addresses

Poetry: The Martyr

The Martyr

And so she waits.
Her nostrils flare as brown eyes narrow and lock upon the Thing.
The chatters of the night a cacophony of thunderous sound to her and yet
wholly unnoticed to itself as it sings along its life of gentle noises.
Each movement of the Thing is discriminated evenly and coolly in her mind
and separated from the backdrop of the night so that when the time comes
no distraction exists.

The Thing will give her new life.
It's heart will pump it's own blood out upon the ground as she holds it firmly in her jaws.
And she will take because she must.

And so she tightens.
Every muscle becomes a trembling rock.
Her head drops low, her vision clear and locked, her ears begin to hear
only the rushing of her own blood being squeezed into her brain by the
Tightening of her limbs and stomach and back.
The night is gone. There is only the Thing. Naked and alone.
Not waiting. Just steaming moonlit breath into the night.

She fills her lungs one last time; her vision reddening the breath of the profiled Thing in her eyes.
Her back arching high and so alive, her nerves become like needles,
and her mouth drops slightly open to form an almost mirthful smile.
She will take because she must.
But she will feel the feeling again tonight because she can.

And so she springs.
No sound. No violence.
Beautiful surges of power unleashed freely, even carelessly,
for the thinking is behind her.
Reduced to pure, efficient Act, the deed is art.

The Thing looks lazily over as it detects the growing, silent blur.
It's last breath is not a large one; a quickly taken, startled thing
that even holds the smell of the onrushing cat.
The impact is a deceptively gentle exchange of power
that tumbles them together among the ferns like playful lovers.
In the instant before the jaws closed, it might even have been a game.

The Thing will live for a few minutes more but will not breath again.
It's life will ebb in silence.
And the last things it knows are the warmth of it's own blood
and the sound of the gentle breathing of the cat in the blind, and
now completely silent, night…
as she waits.

No emotion lives here.
But the coldness of the narrow eyes affords the death a certain dignity
that it could not have had with the most sincere pity or kindness.

A space is filled.
A life is lived.
A cat walks lazily along to find a comfortable place to sleep.

-jt

For the record: NASA discovers Free Thinker Slaves!

NASA has discovered Free Thinker Slaves! Check out the entry at 01/10/2005 15:35:35:

blogs on http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/ice_berg_ram.html

Just plain cool: Kevin Costner's new movie?

Methane oceans...somehow fitting...yes...

Titan Seas

It's Fartworld...

Just plain funny: the new JibJab.com is up

Famous for fairness in their cruelty:

JibJab.com

So...while it's downloading (it'll be a while), read some other blog posts here! ;-)

In the news: Scientists find "master switch" to cancer

Scientists claim to have found a single gene which aggrevates other cancer-causing genes to form tumors.

Scientists identify single master gene associated with cancer

Pray for scientists.

In the news: At last!

At last! A conservative acting as much like a capitalist as Michael Moore!

A Conservative Answer to Michael Moore - January 21, 2005 - The New York Sun

And the master said:

"Mercy, detached from Justice, grows unmerciful."

C. S. Lewis -- The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment

Happy MLK Day!

Martin Luther King was not a perfect man. His words and works have been both unfairly heralded and unfairly corrupted. And, I don't know whether he practiced what he preached (or even whether he wrote everything that he preached), but I will say this:

At that time, he was right. Blacks were unfairly persecuted throughout the United States. He fought for change to real injustice and did so in a nonviolent way. And whatever you might say about him, that was a very courageous thing to do.

Oops: Thought Police arrest Harvard President

Either this man is extremely courageous for bringing for "saying things" against the PC Thought Police or he's extremely stupid.

One of these possibilities speaks well of Harvard.

local6.com - Education - Women Lack 'Natural Ability' In Some Fields, Harvard President Says

I'm sure Jesse Jackson will dive in immediately to protect his freedom of speech.

And the master said:

'All men alike stand condemned, not by alien codes of ethics, but by their own, and all men therefore are conscious of guilt.'

C. S. Lewis -- The Problem of Pain"

In the news: Can a single death change things?

Apparently not...

CNN.com - Sharon orders militant crackdown - Jan 16, 2005

Just plain cool: Landing

NASA - Cassini-Huygens: Close Encounter with Saturn

Just plain cool: Huygens lands on Saturn moon

CNN.com - Huygens lands on Saturn moon - Jan 14, 2005

In the news: Time to take the mobile back

British scientific study links mobile phones to ear and brain tumors in small children.

Tomour Risk - Times

And the master said:

"Love takes up where knowledge leaves off."

-- Saint Thomas Aquinas

Which Way?

"In the world there is nothing more submissive and weak than water. Yet for attacking that which is hard and strong nothing can surpass it."

-- Lao Tzu

In the news: The "news"

"The interests of Rather and Mapes in pursuing a story about President Bush's TexANG service date back to at least 1999. At that time, and again during the presidential election of 2000, they investigated allegations that then-Texas Governor Bush had received preferential treatment in getting into the TexANG in 1968...
...
"They did little further investigating on this matter until 2004..."
...
"The panel is aware that some have ascribed political motivations to 60 Minutes Wednesday's decision to air the September 8 Segment just two months before the presidential election, while others found political bias in the program itself. The Panel reviewed this issue and found certain actions that could support such charges. However, the Panel cannot conclude that a political agenda at 60 minutes Wednesday drove either the timing of the airing of the Segment or its content."

CBS News CBS Ousts 4 For Bush Guard Story January 10, 2005

And the Master said:

"You are my friends, and the greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them."

-- Jesus

The Passion of The Christ

Which Way?

"By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest."

-- Confucius

Just plain cool: Iceberg!

An event so large that the best seat is in space!

NASA - Get Ready for the Largest Demolition Derby on the Planet
Scientists say Slow-Motion Collision Near Antarctic Research Station Imminent

And the master said:

"God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

C. S. Lewis -- The Problem of Pain

Which Way?

"If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading."

Lao Tzu

And the master said:

"Whenever you find a man who says he doesn't believe in a real Right and Wrong, you will find the same man going back on this a moment later."

C. S. Lewis -- The Case for Christianity

And the master said:

"Of all bad men religious bad men are the worst."

C. S. Lewis -- Reflections on the Psalms

Just plain cool: Solar System Simulator

See the solar system in simulation - look any place from anywhere at any time.

NASA - JPL Solar System Simulator

In the news: Landing on Titan

Unbelievable. We're landing a spacecraft on a moon of Saturn. Titan is larger than Mercury and only a little smaller than Mars. It has an atmosphere.

ESA - Cassini-Huygens - Huygens begins its final journey into the unknown

And the master said:

"Badness is only spoiled goodness."

C. S. Lewis -- The Case for Christianity

In the news: One year on Mars

Hard to believe we've had two active probes on Mars for a year now. Although they were only supposed to last about three months, the probes are going strong. No one really knows why. As limited in success as in failure are we.

NASA - NASA Rovers' Adventures on Mars Continue

And the master said:

"No doubt those who really founded modern science were usually those whose love of truth exceeded their love of power."

C. S. Lewis -- The Abolition of Man

And the master said:

"Really, a young Atheist cannot guard his faith too carefully. Dangers lie in wait for him on every side."

--C. S. Lewis, in Surprised by Joy

In the news: Filming Has Wrapped!

The renaissance of the Oxford fantacists continues:

NarniaWeb - Filming Has Wrapped

Wow.

Thought number five.

"Understand impermanence."

The Buddhist idea of 'impermanence' is that we should all try to fully realize the truth that nothing remains the same even for two consecutive moments. We, everyone around us, everything created by man and everything we see, are all temporary.

It sounds like (and is) a simple concept, but the real point isn't the fact, but really grasping it - feeling it - knowing it - appreciating it - and allowing it to affect our actions and decisions. By contemplating impermanence, we are meant to learn to value the 'here and now' more clearly and acutely, and to better and more-deeply understand reality.

One obviously doesn't need to be a Buddhist to appreciate the value of this idea, so here are some quotes and thoughts that have helped me try to get there:

"O pilgrim look and look well, for I was once as you are and someday you will be as I am."
- inscribed on a skull in a Russian monastery

"We can never bathe twice in the same river."
- Heraclites

"Without impermanence, life is not possible. Without impermanence, how can our daughter grow up to be a beautiful young lady? ... If you look deeply into impermanence, you will do your best to make her happy right now. Aware of impermanence, you become positive, loving and wise. Impermanence is good news. Impermanence is an instrument for our liberation."
- Thich Nhat Hanh

"If you suffer, it is not because things are impermanent, but because you believe things are permanent."
- Thich Nhat Hanh

In the news: CBS News' new promise

The president of CBS News is on a fence-mending mission to the White House, promising to be "fair and balanced"!

CBS News President mending fences

"[CBS News President Andrew] Heyward was working overtime to convince [White House Communications Director Dan ]Bartlett that neither CBS News nor Rather had a vendetta against the White House, our source says, and from here on out would do everything it could to be fair and balanced. CBS declined to comment."

- from the article

Hat tip - Drudge

In the news: The strange story of Anthony Flew

An interesting article came out a while back about a famous atheist who has decided he now believes in God. The atheist in question is Anthony Flew. He is in his 80's. Here is a copy of the article:

Famous Atheist Now Believes in God


Anthony has been a prolific writer for some time on the subject of atheism. For an example of Anthony's earlier work, see this essay he penned several years ago on Islam.

Antony Flew describes 'The Terrors of Islam'


Not sure what to make of this, honestly. One disturbing fact is that shortly after announcing his new beliefs he indicated he would be elaborating on them in an upcoming book. $cha-ching!

In the news: A new .COM boom?

Here is an interesting article on a relatively new .COM business:

Car Sharing