Colin Powell: Coward

I was really disappointed watching Colin Powell on Rachel Maddow.

I understand that Powell is trying to protect his image here, but it's disappointing nonetheless. I really want to respect Powell. I think he has more integrity than anyone else from Bush's cabinet. But his refusal to come clean on torture makes it difficult for me to maintain a high opinion of him. What the Bush administration orchestrated is one of the greatest moral blights on America in our history. For Colin Powell to not stand up and accept some responsibility, to not come clean, is cowardice pure and simple. And if he doesn't want to fess up, then he shouldn't be doing interviews at all. He should just stay home and shut up and think about what went on and why he didn't do more to stop it.

Economy Got You Down? Get a Vasectomy

Vasectomies are up in our troubled times.

"My staff came to me and said, what's happening?" said Jones, the chairman of the Department of Regional Urology of Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. "Why are we suddenly having an explosion in guys asking for vasectomies?"

They looked at their statistics and realized the uptick started around November as the economic crisis deepened. October went down in the history books as one of Wall Street's worst months.

Since then, the Cleveland Clinic has seen a 50 percent increase in vasectomies, an outpatient surgery that is the cheapest form of permanent birth control. Vasectomies are less invasive and cheaper than tubal ligation, which involves blocking, tieing or cutting a woman's fallopian tubes to prevent pregnancy.

There's a joke in here somewhere, but I can't quite get a grip on it.

Weekly Music Video

This is a great song about longing and despair from a prog metal band that usually writes songs about mythology.

Symphony X - "Candlelight Fantasia"

Those Damn Dressed Up Dogs

A guy I know, Abram Hagstrom, wrote an article for our local paper recently about needing to focus less on ourselves and more on helping others.

We are controlled by fear - the self-perpetuating fear that comes from believing the lies of individualism and consumerism. Being so controlled, we have each exchanged loving our neighbors for honoring ourselves.

This exchange has failed to yield any real value because it violates a deep truth that we have long kept hidden.

This truth is what Jesus alluded to when he said, "Love your neighbor as yourself."

He wants us to grasp that, as members of one body, namely, the human race, our neighbors' relation to us is such that when we actively love them, we are loving ourselves. Likewise, when we mistreat (or disregard) them, we end up doing the same to ourselves.

You see, while the worldly economy of competition is win-lose, Jesus' economy of community is win-win. He wants us to adopt a lifestyle that resounds with the reality "I am you."

The main thrust of Hagstom's article is a good one and a point I have tried to make manifest in my life and to instill in my daughters. That's why I was disappointed that Hagstrom diluted his point by beginning his article mocking people who dress their dogs up.

We are controlled by fear - the self-perpetuating fear that comes from believing the lies of individualism and consumerism. Being so controlled, we have each exchanged loving our neighbors for honoring ourselves.

This exchange has failed to yield any real value because it violates a deep truth that we have long kept hidden.

This truth is what Jesus alluded to when he said, "Love your neighbor as yourself."

He wants us to grasp that, as members of one body, namely, the human race, our neighbors' relation to us is such that when we actively love them, we are loving ourselves. Likewise, when we mistreat (or disregard) them, we end up doing the same to ourselves.

You see, while the worldly economy of competition is win-lose, Jesus' economy of community is win-win. He wants us to adopt a lifestyle that resounds with the reality "I am you."

Both beasts sported thick, elegant, turtleneck sweaters - the kind that Paris Hilton would wear if she were a dog.

In contrast, today in Thailand a 12-year-old girl will be rented to and raped by 12 different men. Today in Zimbabwe, a family will die from cholera because its members could no longer keep from drinking the only water available.

Today, in India, Samir will toil as a third-generation slave to repay his grandfather's $10 debt.

Today in America, you will have a choice.

Please understand me. I have no interest in taking shots at people who love their pets.

Dapper dogs are just one of many signs of our time. The question we need to ask is: What is the ethos of a world where hundreds of thousands of innocent adults and children are systematically enslaved, starved, raped and murdered while others primp their pets (or play pro sports, race jet boats, buy second homes, etc.)?

He tries to step back from this with his line, "I have no interest in taking shots at people who love their pets," but it ends coming off more as, "I'm not racist, but..." Hagstrom knows nothing about the people who owned those dogs. Perhaps their pets are their one hobby. Perhaps they donate large amounts of time and money to charity. Perhaps they don't, but the point is that Hagstrom has no clue and it is unfair to use someone to make a point when he knows nothing about them.

The attacks against people who "play pro sports" and "race jet boats" are strange, as well. So everyone who participates in these activities is a selfish prick who only thinks of themselves and never lifts a finger to help others? Really?

This attitude is, I believe, one of the reasons Christianity can turn off people. Instead of coming across with a humble attitude, Hagstrom, like so many other Christians, has a holier-than-thou attitude. I have my own strongly held personal beliefs, but if I didn't people like this would certainly not turn me into a believer.

If Christians want to spread their faith they would do well to keep in mind the words of Mohandas Gandhi: "It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err."

UPDATE: I suppose I should make it clear that I do know Abram and I do not think he is arrogant. I just think that's how his article comes off.

Weekly Secret

PostSecret

Internet Anonymity Getting More Difficult

I'm not really sure how to feel about this.

Republican politicians on Thursday called for a sweeping new federal law that would require all Internet providers and operators of millions of Wi-Fi access points, even hotels, local coffee shops, and home users, to keep records about users for two years to aid police investigations.

The legislation, which echoes a measure proposed by one of their Democratic colleagues three years ago, would impose unprecedented data retention requirements on a broad swath of Internet access providers and is certain to draw fire from businesses and privacy advocates.

"While the Internet has generated many positive changes in the way we communicate and do business, its limitless nature offers anonymity that has opened the door to criminals looking to harm innocent children," U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said at a press conference on Thursday.

"Keeping our children safe requires cooperation on the local, state, federal, and family level."

On one hand, it's hard to argue with anything aimed at going after scumbags who target children. On the other, what happened to our right to privacy. Supporters of this measure will, of course, argue that the records are only accessed if someone is suspected of a crime, that honest, law-abiding citizens have nothing to fear. That sounds good, but where does it stop. This is a slippery slope. What if the government wants to start tracking where all automobiles to have GPS devices and a database tracking where each car goes? What if they want to track everything you purchase with your credit card? What if they want to put chips in people to monitor where they are?

Perhaps I am going to absurd levels, but the point I want to make is that we need to ask ourselves how much we are willing to curtail our civil liberties in the name of safety.

Teleportation is Coming

A group of scientists have succeeded in teleporting an atom. Well, more technically, they teleported the information encoded in the atom and not the matter of the atom.

Using a pair of ions, or charged particles, group leader Christopher Monroe and his team place each in a vacuum and keep them in position with electric fields. An ultra-fast laser pulse triggers the atoms to emit photons simultaneously. If the photons interact in just the right way, their parent atoms enter a quantum state known as entanglement, in which atom B adopts the properties of atom A even though they're in separate chambers a meter apart. When A is measured, the information that had been previously encoded on it disappears in accordance with the quirky rules of the quantum world. But all is not lost: because B is entangled with A, B now contains the information that was once carried on A. That information, in a very real sense, has been teleported.

Quantum mechanics is cool stuff. Now if someone would just get the Theory of Everything, worked out, we'd be getting somewhere.

Live Long and Prosper

Happy Birthday to Leonard Nimoy a.k.a. Mr. Spock on Star Trek. March is a good month for Trek.

Hero of the Day

Wow.

An Italian doctor completed a brain operation despite having a heart attack after realizing his patient would never recover if he stopped the surgery.

Surgeon Claudio Vitale started feeling pains in his chest half way through the operation but refused to stop despite his team's urging and the pain worsening.

After finishing the surgery, the doctor had an angioplasty operation to treat his attack.

Stories like this make me feel a little less cynical. Well, for a few minutes anyway.

Psychiatry is at the root of Osama's Problems

Seeing stuff like this really makes me wonder how anyone can take Scientology seriously or become a member. Yeah, yeah, different strokes and all of that; but, still...really? I mean does anyone listen to some guy claiming that psychiatry is why Osama bin Laden became a terrorist and then go, "Ah, ha! It is all clear now. I must become a Scientologist in order to garner more critical information about how the world really works." Shrug. I guess if Scientology floats your boat, great, more power to you.

Just don't expect me to take anything you say seriously.

The Reason for Twitter

Not too long ago, I started a Twitter account. Being a computer junkie, I was curious about it and how people use it. It's interesting in that it seems to be mostly random one-off thoughts or just what people are doing at any given moment. If I didn't have a gadget on my desktop for it, I probably wouldn't use it because having to click to a webpage every time I want to use it would be just irritating.

However, today I have discovered the true reason to be on Twitter. Christopher Walken. Seriously, you have to check it out to read gems like this:

She said, "What if you really are you?" and that blew my mind. Okay, it didn't blow my mind. It feels like a good answer though.

Or:

An associate told me that he'd been cheating on his wife. He asked me not to talk about it and I probably won't. Unless it comes up somehow.

Awesome.

Cruelty to Cats

Some people just deserve a good, harsh beating.

A CAT was 'thrown' from a car outside the entrance of Tesco at Broadbridge Heath in full view of shoppers, animal rescue workers said this week.
*snip*
"After ten days of hiding under the trollies, we eventually managed to catch her in a cat trap, lent to us by Andrea at Caring for Cats.

"She really was terrified and very thin. We're pleased to say that she has already learned to trust us and is very affectionate. We will be looking for a loving new home for her soon."

Don't mess with cats. That's just not right.

Jesus Dino Tamer

Freakin' awesome.


From a Flickr user.

Weekly Secret

PostSecret

Happy Birthday, William Shatner

Today is the birthday of William Shatner, best known, of course, for being the lucky person chosen to portray Captain James T. Kirk in the semi-autobiographical series, Star Trek. Truly he was blessed.

Happy Birthday, Bill!

Obama's "Special Olympics" Remark

Much of the talk about Obama's appearance on The Tonight Show last night is centered on his comment regarding his bowling skills.

The comment came midway through Obama's appearance on the late night comedy show, when host Jay Leno quipped about the president's lack of bowling skills: “I imagine the bowling alley [in the White House] has just been just burned and closed down," Leno said.

“No, no. I have been practicing,” Obama said. “I bowled a 129. It's like — it was like Special Olympics, or something."

Now, I do believe that words are powerful especially when they are coming from someone like the President of the United States. He should apologize for the remark as he did. He should not make comments like this in the future. However...

When are we going to admit that people make jokes like this all of the time? When are going to admit that jokes like this are not always bad? That humor is a vital part of the human condition and helps us grapple with complex issues? I have a black co-worker that I routinely make jokes with about his skin color. He laughs just as hard as I do and jokes about it as well. Should I not do that?

I suppose the difference, though, is that in my case it is on a personal, one-to-one level. My co-worker knows that I don't care what color his skin is and I do not in any way judge him or disparage him for it. When the President or anyone else makes a joke like this in a public forum, not everyone knows that he doesn't actually think less of disabled people. In short, jokes or comments like this are probably fine in a small group when everyone knows everyone and is comfortable with them and not in a public, impersonal setting.

I do hope that we don't hear any more about this after today. Any Republican thinking that they can spin this into any sort of meaningful or effective attack against Obama is going to be sorely mistaken.

I should also take this opportunity to link to a favorite article of mine.

UPDATE: As Joe Klein writes: "Yes, he should apologize, as he has. But we shouldn't belabor this. I'd much rather see Presidents caught in the act of being human than in the promulgation of egomaniacal excess."

Incompetent Bosses

A new study proves what most of us have known all along. You don't have to be competent to become a supervisor.

Social psychologists know that one way to be viewed as a leader in any group is simply to act like one. Speak up, speak well and offer lots of ideas, and before long, people will begin doing what you say. This works well when leaders know what they're talking about, but what if they don't? If someone acts like a boss but thinks like a boob, is that still enough to stay on top?
*snip*
"Dominant individuals behaved in ways that made them appear competent," the researchers write, "above and beyond their actual competence." Troublingly, group members seemed only too willing to follow these underqualified bosses. An overwhelming 94% of the time, the teams used the first answer anyone shouted out — often giving only perfunctory consideration to others that were offered.

This is how con men work, too. Most people, despite what they may say, are very trusting and take things at face value. If you walk like a duck and talk like a duck, people will point at you and say, "Duck!" even if you are in the middle of a desert.

TANSTAAFL

New research shows that modafinil (aka Provigil) is not as safe as once thought at least when it comes to addiction.

That was the thinking, at least — but the thinking now turns out to be wrong, according to a new study published on March 17 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The authors say modafinil is not only the latest in a long line of chemical stimulants designed to keep users awake, alert and happy; it's also the latest to go straight to the brain's addiction centers in the process.

"This drug is not safe to use the way people are using it," says Dr. Nora Volkow, head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and co-author of the new study. "Not safe at all."

I take Provigil because one of the side-effects of my MS is fatigue whether or not I've done anything to warrant it. I've written about it before, how I usually feel sluggish and out of it by mid-afternoon if I do not take it. On the weekends, I try to not take it and nap instead. My neurologist suggested I do this in order to not build up a tolerance to the drug, but this was before this study came out so there was never a mention of addiction.

I've been taking it for two years now, but I don't feel like I have an addiction. I can quit anytime I want! More seriously, I often don't take one on the weekend, at least not both days. There are also days I forget to take my pill. I don't feel anything other than fatigue when I don't take it.

The growing number of people taking Provigil simply because they want a "pick me up" probably need to re-evaluate their decision. Of course, it's only one small part of our society's decision to take drugs anytime they have a sniffle or just want to feel good. Get high on life, man! *crickets chirp* Well, maybe not that; but when is our society going to realize that we can't avoid all things (aging, common illnesses, emotional woes) that we might like to. A life full of ups would be tedious because there would be nothing to measure the highs against. Day is beautiful because we have night. Life is meaningful because we have death. The human condition is about the awe-inspiring highs and the devastating lows. Attempting to avoid it rather than simply accepting it is a path to madness.

Misquoting

Some people just think they're cool, but they're not.

Men View Scantily Clad Women as Objects

File under the "No Shit" category.

New research shows that, in men, the brain areas associated with handling tools and the intention to perform actions light up when viewing images of women in bikinis.

The research was presented this week by Susan Fiske, professor of psychology at Princeton University, at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

"This is just the first study which was focused on the idea that men of a certain age view sex as a highly desirable goal, and if you present them with a provocative woman, then that will tend to prime goal-related responses," she told CNN.

Although consistent with conventional wisdom, the way that men may depersonalize sexual images of women is not entirely something they control. In fact, it's a byproduct of human evolution, experts say. The first male humans had an incentive to seek fertile women as the means of spreading their genes.

My favorite line in the article?

"Many men make foolish choices because of sexual attraction."

Ya think?