Swan Diving

I just saw the most audiaciously contrived dive ever by a German player about 5 minutes into overage.... amazing.... What's more amazing still is that the ref didn't fall for it.

The Right Reverend Rob

Introducing the Right Rev. Rob Mark..... surrounded by Future Father Christopher, Oh-so-adorable Claire and an ominously pregnant Trish Ohns-orck.

So I think Tim (who has sent 2 Botanie mailings with no note this week alone!) and I will have to run for Bishop in order to "out God" our former roomates who are, quite frankly, amazing. Then again, I think the wonderful women we married are being amazing enough for the both of us.

Statistics

There's a joke that 43% of statistics are useless, as well as the oft quoted Twain reference, but nonetheless here are some numbers:

200,000: number of troops needed to restore order in Afghanistan, according to RAND via USA Today
94,000: number of security employees in Afghanistan today (28,000 coalition forces, 66,000 Afghani police)

57; 679; 206 - amount of aid dollars per person in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Iraq respectively.

Source: Center for American Progress

Inspire me

Looking at AFI's list of 100 most inspiring movies (of which I've seen a not-so-inspiring 62, I've also seen 63 of the best movies, does this mean that I'm 2/3 of the way to the end of my decent movie going life? ) I have come to the conclusion that what movies have inspired me (The Power of One, Cry Freedom, Romero) do not inspire Hollywood.

One movie in particular that is on the list, Hotel Rwanda, I found more horrifying than necessarily inspiring. Despite the fact that Paul Rusesabagina is a bonifide hero and probably deserves whatever recognition the movie has brought him, the fact of genocide - the legacy of the 20th and 21st centuries - should be a item of overwhelming shame and humility to all who lived and did nothing (or are in fact doing nothing about Darfur).

Family Values

The "party of family values" has once again presented itself as more a target for irony and disgrace than honesty and morality. According to The Washington Monthly, all three front running republicans for the 2008 election have habits of having rather messy and public affairs and resulting divorces. In two cases this scenario repeated itself twice for each candidate (Gingrich, Guiliani).

The 10 people listed as "front runners" for the democratic party have no reported incidences of adultery. Despite Hillary's somewhat philanderous husband, her record appears intact.

Now I certainly hate smear campaigns, but certainly the irony of the GOP gaining the support of Pat "I love Charles Taylor" Robertson, James "Let's not let the Bible get in the way of religion" Dobson, Jerry "My cousin is gay, but let's not talk about it" Falwell, and other religious fundamentalists deserves a closer look. Why would these people support such flagrant "sinners"? hmmm....

The NRA and other Terrorist Organizations

"We cannot let the NRA continue to deceive the American public by spouting conspiracy theories about the UN banning guns. This UN conference is about stopping the flow of weapons into the ilicit markets where guns are diverted to arm human rights offenders and violent insurgents.”
– Legislative Associate Scott Stedjan describing the National Rifle Association’s efforts to undermine United Nations Conference on Stopping Illegal Weapons Trade.

 

Flooding most foul

So in case you've been away from the news the DC area has been slammed with some torrential downpours and flooding over the past few days. This is probably not as bad as the weather that hit Boston a few months back, but there seems to be water everywhere, we even have a river in the back yard.
Of course the rain didn't just hit the sprawling megalopolis of Singers Glen, but also the huge Eastern Mennonite University Campus, source of the Blacks Run River. The Blacks Run which is both the name, and a general description of the water color begins it's ignominious life on EMU's campus. Although normally the stream looks like a glorified trickle, today it is closer to class 5 rapids.

But the source pond, although ineffective at filtering out pollutants is quite picturesque and home to a family of ducks.

In the news

Bush called the leak of the story about the government tracking bank records a disgrace recently. So journalism is the real disgrace here George?

In other bad news...
U.S. to Deploy Patriot Missiles In Japan to Counter North Korea reports the Washington Post. Great, now we're playing the role of Russia in the Cuban Missile crisis - and I don't think Pres. Kim Jong Ill is going to be as calm or diplomatic as Pres. Kennedy.

Probation

Several men in Harrisonburg received no jail time, and only a small fine and brief probation for their roles in wiring money home to their families in Kurdish areas of Iraq and Turkey. The judge cited overwhelmingly strong community support for the men as a reason for their "reward".

Several hundred residents of our small hamlet (as the Washington Post called it) showed up in the rain to pack the court house, and surround the building in support of the Kurdish men.

'tis a good day for justice... (although a bad one for the viability of the Patriot Act).

Another great weekend...

The weekend away was very much needed for several of the group that joined us, and the setting could not have been more beautiful (at least in Virginia).

Now... on to soccer. Brazil play Ghana today, in what I predict will be a 4-0 shut-out. Ghana's lead scorer is out, and Brazil doesn't even consider any of their players as reserve:

"But that is just part of coach Parreira's approach of having no-one in the squad whom he regards as being a reserve.
"Whatever team plays we will be well represented," he said.
"Our objective is to win the World Cup. I have 23 solutions and I don't have any problems." "

Worst Game Ever

The soccer match today, Ukraine v. Switzerland is perhaps the worst of the entire World Cup. The play is bad, the ref is bad, but apparently the coaches are well attired, at least according to the very bored BBC commentators:

"Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin has the chance to change things with three substitutions up his sleeve. That sleeve is short, blue and yellow. He and his staff on the bench are wearing matching, brightly-coloured kits akin to the sort of thing old Eastern Bloc baddies would have worn in their underground lairs in a Bond film. He looks relaxed and there's no sign of an imminent change."

Money Money Money

So I changed the by-line of my blog to "Pretensious but with a hint of knowledge" after a long and variously humorous conversation over a bottle of Whitehall Sugar Ridge White, during a very entertaining weekend in Abingdon, VA. I think this by-line might stick, who knows. Now to more reasonable and weighty issues.... I have what seems to be nothing to do at work, obviously.

Warren Buffet is giving away ~87% of his fortune, some 37 billion dollars to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. I can't help admiring that.

In the 2nd of yesterday's WC games there were 4 red cards and 16 yellows, thus adding more evidence to Terry's assertion that this WC will be remembered by a 2x4 inch card in a primary color...

In the news of the bizarre

The BBC is reporting today that an insurance company has revoked the insurance of three Inverness nuns who had insured their virginity in the event of the immaculate conception of the second coming of Christ. The money was to be used to raise the child, reportedly.

What is odd about this, in addition to the very strange nature of the policy, is that the policy has been intact since 2000. So why cancel it now?

Scary, stupid quote of the day

"All right. You've covered your ass now." -- George W. Bush to the CIA briefer who on Aug 6, 2001 warned him about an imminent Bin Laden strike

Uncle Boberino

So why am I scheduled to work during nearly every U.S. or Brazil game? Is this some sort of cosmic revenge for some slight of which I know not? Probably.... (I can hear all of you saying yes and then mentioning 10-15 examples.... so... thanks...)

So, Uncle Bobby, or Ub as I shall now call you - why must I call you "Uncle Bobby"?

explanations for some weird in-laws

Yes Bob, I know you are kidding - I swear it's part of the family genetic code.

And in answer to your and Tara's question of "what is knured?" Since neither of you can read (or write) I have no idea. KNURD on the other hand is:

... the opposite of being drunk (also drunk backwards... clever eh?); not sober, but as far from sober as drunkenness, except in the opposite direction. It strips away all the illusion, all the comforting pink fog in which people normally spend their lives, and lets them see and think clearly for the first time ever. This, needless to say, is a very traumatic experience.

It is from an early Terry Pratchett book.

Alone in the shop.... indefinitely

Feeling totally knurd today.

Last Weekend Was Grand

I've neglected to write what has been happening in my life (as opposed to the life of the world, the nation, the poor or otherwise) these past few weeks, and now it is a time to put an end to that.
Last week saw the annual Singers Glen "Lawn Party". For those of you not familiar with the parlance of the Rural Virginian a Lawn Party is a town carnival. Now for those of you who don't know of Singers Glen it is the purported home of sacred music in the south due to the publishing of the first collection of American sacred music, The Harmonia Sacra, by one Joseph Funk in 1832 (first titled A Compilation of Genuine Church Music).

This lawn party concept encompasses several days of activities put on by the local Ruritans featuring auctions, carnival type games and even a parade (this years was somewhat disappointing). Thursday evening while I was out walking the canus familiarus I wandered through the festivities (before being told dogs were not allowed) and saw some rather touching mid-American scenes. You see, Thursday was the beauty pagent night. So among the farmers, and head-covered Mennonites were these young women dressed to the 9s in ball gowns and heels. People were snapping off all sorts of photos and the atmosphere was truly festive.

It would be easy to condem this display as hopelessly idyllic, or quaint, but in many ways the stereotypical displays of gender and southern culture were beautiful. There was a real sense of community in the air, this was in complete opposition to my feeling like an outsider despite having lived here for 3 years- which is definitely more my fault than the communitity's. The sense of genuine mid-Americana was further reinforced over the weekend as we viewed the parade with several friends (terry, elizabeth, tracey, heather and lilly). There were several fire companies, including the local SG branch (whose very cool logo would be on the left if blogger would let me upload it) muscle cars and old tractors, baton twirlers and floats for various vacation Bible schools.

See what I mean by quaint? Sometimes small town life is wonderful.

And now answering automotive questions...

From Road and Track review of gas vs. hybrid models of cars (Camry, Civic, Escape)

Environmentalists: AT-PZEVS Scrub the Air
Our three hybrids qualify in California as AT-PZEVs, Advanced-Technology Partial Zero Emissions Vehicles. Their Honda and Toyota siblings are ULEV-2s, meeting the second phase of Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle standards. The gasoline Escape is a Low Emissions Vehicle, Phase 2.
To put these in perspective, a LEV is roughly 90 percent cleaner than a pre-emissions-controlled car. A ULEV raises this to about 96 percent. It has been noted that a ULEV literally scrubs the air of a typical urban environment. An AT-PZEV is more than 25 percent cleaner still, bringing its reduction well into the 99-percent range. By almost any measure, hybrids offer significant environmental payoff.
What about hybrid batteries? Aren't they an environmental tradeoff? At first, this was something of an unknown. But our earliest Honda Insights and Toyota Priuses are now into their sixth year (eighth, in their home market). Indications are that battery packs are lasting the life of the car; that is, they're every bit as durable as gasoline engines. What's more, the recycled value of their nickel is high, and a secondary market of reconditioned batteries is evolving.

Quote of the Day

"the vehicle was flying along like a redneck in a snowstorm"

Futbol

So I'm going to make a new prediction.... if the great rivals Brazil and Argentina meet this World Cup it will be a game for the ages. Brazil is favored, due to their star roster but have played only a mediocre game so far. Argentina, on the other hand did not do well in their last WC showing in 2002, but just obliterated Serbia and Montenegro 6-0 today. This game included a goal the result of a 21 pass play by Argentina topped off by a back of the heal pass to the final striker - definitely the best play of the Cup so far.

The result of today's game means that now the U.S. is third from last in the standings.... yeah...

They had better beat Italy.

You figure it out....

... is coming ....





tonight...

An Explanation of Today's Posts

1. My favorite word is an archaic old English spelling of Whitsuntide (Pentacost), not some sort of Omian rite performed before the Apocralypse.

2. No that is not "My favorite view of the mountain", my favorite view is from Cornish - as I have so (un)clearly stated in the past..... or wait was it the view from Killington...?

3. Words are fun for two reasons: 1. They allow us to communicate and 2. They seperate us from other species, and the president.

4. The political posts represent that I am: 1. Against the Guantanamo Prison because it dehumanizes the captors as much as the captives 2. Against supplemental funding in general, and especially against supplemental funding for war because in the current millieu it represents a blank check to gov't contractors and hides the cost in non-itemized line items. And finally 3. I was against the Iraq invasion from the beginning, not only because it perpetuates a myth of redemptive violence in the nationwide psyche but also because it represented a further power-play by the adminstration shuffling jobs to their cronies and hiding the cost in dollars in supplementals, and hiding the cost in civil liberties in patriotic language.

My new favorite word

qhythsontyd

Interesting geographical anomaly

Our home in the beautiful state of Vermont near the slopes of Mt. Ascutney (we lived across the street from this picture.....be jealous)was almost 600 ft. closer to sea level (968') then the beautiful glen we live in now (1566') .... who would have guessed....

What we know about prisons

So I wonder if David Ignatius of the Washington Post knows about the Stanford Prison Experiment..? Certainly he is making a very similar argument about how prisons, in the modern system, and especially at Guantanamo dehumanize not only the prisoners but also the guards and the entire society in which they are based. Certainly the suicides of the prisoners may have been political, but regardless of their motivation it is clear that this was the only choice left to maintain some form of dignity.

and yet more thrilling news

Yes that's right, less secure....

Some trivial facts....because I'm bored

When you eat a wiener, the name comes from Wiener Snitzel - or in English, Vienna Sausage.

The word Doosey (doozy, and many other variants) comes from Duesenberg, an automobile known for it's size and audacity and the favorite of early H-wood glitterati.

And according to Hasbro there are 16 words that have the letter q without a u following, can you thinkg of more? I've got one.... but I'm not telling.

Now for the words:
FAQIR - Variation of FAKIR, a Hindu ascetic.
FAQIRS - Plural of FAQIR.
QAID - A variation of CAID, a Muslim leader.
QAIDS - Plural of QAID.
QANAT - A system of underground tunnels and wells in the Middle East.
QANATS - Plural of QANAT.
QAT - Variation of KAT, an evergreen shrub.
QATS - Plural of QAT.
QINDAR - Variation of QINTAR, a monetary unit of Albania.
QINDARS - Plural of QINDAR.
QINDARKA - Albanian currency.
QINDARKAS - The plural of QINDARKA.
QINTAR - See above.
QINTARS - Plural of QINTAR.
QOPH - A letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
QOPHS - Plural of QOPH.
QWERTY - A standard typewriter keyboard.
QWERTYS - The plural of QWERTY, see above.
SHEQEL - An ancient unit of weight and money.
SHEQALIM - The plural of SHEQEL, see above
TRANQ - A variation of TRANK (i.e. tranquilizer).
TRANQS - Plural of TRANQ

.... and in other news....

Yesterday, the Senate voted unanimously to “force President George W. Bush to submit a budget for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars instead of financing them in emergency bills that are pushed through Congress with minimal scrutiny.”

Funding, Soccer and Sunrise

So the po-dunk little NGO I've been working for has finally gotten funding - look for a link to a website soon.... hopefully.

Now, of course I'm working in front of the TV, alright, I'm blogging in front of the TV prior to heading off to work (where there is no tv, drat). In case you're wondering Ecuador is beating Costa Rica 1-0 at 16:40.

So, living in separate cities from your spouse sucks, even though it looks like this here......

Why We Need International Institutions

Recently, our incomprehensible bluster monkey at the U.N. (John Bolton) nearly developed an extra head with which to scream when the deputy secretary general Mark Malloch Brown, in a moment of truthful pique, implied that Bolton’s UN posturing was merely a larger domestic political ploy to attract a more conservative and isolationist Republican base. Well, duh… Of course it is a Republican ploy, unfortunately the denuding of the UN has the most direct impact on our international security of any budgetary restraint, or expenditure. International institutions provide potentially “neutral” policing bodies, provide a global moral imperative, provide no single country or organization (Halliburton, anyone?) a financial gain after action (presumably), provide a non-national solution to the non-national problem of terrorism, and in the case of the UN they provide balanced development, diplomacy, and defensive capabilities.

… yes but isn’t going it alone is so much fun…..

For a good review of the UN situation (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/11/AR2006061100765.html )

DRAT!

The U.S. World Cup team just got spanked by the Czech Republic 3-0.  It was absolutely awful, the U.S. team did not even show up.  Hopefully they can get it together against Italy, or else it is all over…..

Speaking of Hiking....

Here's the tongue-sticking-out-babe now, on what was a very exciting (thunderstorms in tents are intense) hiking trip up the Long Trail in VT.

America is Sick

Quite literally.

This is a third hand account of how sick we are by Paul Krugman (NYTIMES) via Malcolm Gladwell's blog,

"The first conclusion is that Americans are really, really sick compared to the British. In every socio-economic group, for instance, the prevalence of diabetes is roughly double in the United States than it is in the United Kingdom. Rates of hypertension, heart disease, heart attacks, stroke, lung disease and cancer are also all higher in the United States. And not just a little big higher. Much higher. So, for example, 2.3 percent of the English have had a stroke, versus 3.8 percent of the Americans."

The remainder of the blog goes on to review the differences in the US (spending $5274 per person) vs. UK (spending $2164 per person) healthcare systems, and the differences in lifestyle (so did you know that if you are rich and well educated you are more likely to be a heavy drinker than if you are poor and undereducated?) - and the suggestion is that stress is the major reason why Americans are sicker.... go figure.



People who are not sick......

Sickening

This is truly sickening, I cannot understand why we continue to stand behind a country that does this.....

Zarqawi, Oil, Delay Out, and the World Cup

.... ah.... cape cod.....

Upon hearing of al-Zarqawi's death, from my semi-present housemate my first response was one of incredulous cynicism (surprise! although I'm well aware of what Stephen Colbert said about cynics, and I agree). I believe my exact quote was, "Well, he'll be replaced in about 10 minutes." Not that he wasn't a "bad man", not that the world might be a slightly shinier place now that he is gone, not that I in any way support terrorism... but....

With these loosely affiliated networks, as with other loosely affiliated networks (like LINUX or other open source programmers), the beauty of their system is that there is always a backup - always someone to step in an patch the software, or plan the bombing. It is, of course, another unintended side-effect of globalized techonological availability.

Of course upon hearing of the death of the leader of al-Qeida in Iraq oil prices dropped below $70 a barrell. (what is a barrell?) Which brings us to point #2, oil.

Energy policy = oil prices. Consider this from Molly Ivins:
"....Ken Lay gave $139,500 to Bush over the years. He chipped in $100,000 to the Bush Cheney Inaugural Fund in 2000 and $10K to the Bush-Cheney Recount Fund. Plus, Enron's PAC gave Bush $113,800 for his '94 and '98 political races and another $312,500 from its executives. Bush got 14 free rides on Enron's corporate jets during the 2000 campaign, including at least two during the recount. Until January 2004, Enron was Bush's top contributor.

And what did it get for its money? Ken Lay was on Bush's short list to be energy secretary. He not only almost certainly served on Cheney's energy task force, there is every indication that the task force's energy plan, the one we have been on for five years, is in fact the Enron plan. "

Oy vey. But in the good news category, after today the swindler Delay is out of the U.S. Congress.

Oh.... and for a very good examination of gay marriage, by Bill Bennett, and Jon Stewart....

Haditha and Kabul, the hidden danger

Regardless of what really happened in Haditha, or Kabul the perception in Iraq and Afghanistan is that their worst possible fears have been realized. Those fears, at least in Iraq, are that the people now have to fear random religious violence (Shia vs. Sunni), random ethnic violence (ethnic Palestinian, "Arab", Kurd), and now random and horrific violence from the occupying forces. This fear is hardly ameliorated by what little development work the military is doing, or providing security for. In Kabul the frustration is more complex due to the international effort there, but with rising levels of violence countrywide, stagnating levels of development, and only moderately successful governmental bodies, the security of the individuals is rapidly deteriorating.

We need to get as much aid money to Afghanistan as possible and it needs to go through the UN.

Bach'n it

So the "little lady" (oh, I'm so dead) is at Ferrum for June, which means a variety of things:
1) I will become reaquainted with the hot dog - probably occaisionally even meeting the mythical cold hot dog (innabun)
2) I get to watch all those guy movies I'm too embarrassed to rent otherwise. Tonight's flick, LeMans.... Steve McQueen.... nuff said
3) Bedtime now varies between 11pm and 3 am. Although strangely morning still comes at 7. ouch.
4) The lawnmower actually gets fixed.... mostly out of boredom (note: garden also gets weeded-though that was done out of a basic guy compulsion not to have to talk to the other male roomate)
5) I tend to not watch TV - which is odd, and will definitely change once the World Cup begins.
6) I spend an inordinate amount of time on craigslist looking for that elusive $50 Harley.
7) Shaving? What's that?
8) The dog has developed a real attitude towards what I owe her in terms of walking, food, time now that the Alpha member of the household has left. That's right, I may be an alpha male, but I'm a delta dog.

Bonitas non est pessimis esse meliorem

Repugnant quote #1: "If English was good enough for Jesus Christ, it ought to be good enough for the children of Texas. " Texas Governor Ma Ferguson, est. 1924. Quoted in All Pianos Have Keys, 1994

Having lived in VT for quite awhile I'm sure that the legislation to promote English our official language is going to make several thousand native (to America, as opposed to Native American - who have their own valid issues with this legislation) French speakers very upset.

.... the same goes for the large population of Portuguese speakers in Fall River and New Bedford, MA

... and Italian speakers in the Bronx, and Federal Hill (Providence)

... and Norweigan Farmers (Bachelors or not) in Minnesota

... and German speaking Amish and Mennonites...

Let us not forget that German was nearly the national language, by vote, and French by force... and that the Spanish were hanging out in NM (part of the Kingdom of New Mexico c. 1540 long before the English made it to Jamestown (1607)

damnant quodnon intelligunt

Funniest Title Ever

yes... it is...

Is this just a kinder, gentler hell?

In the less than newsworthy news today..... and yes I am listening to Ben Harper (thank you for the title, and I suppose he should thank G.H.W. Bush for the kinder gentler quote too).

And now for someone actually doing some good in the world, ladies and gents, The Fez World Sacred Music Festival. This festival which started shortly after the Gulf War I (or II, if you count the whole Iran/Iraq festivities which we sponsored), seeks to bring people of all faiths together to celebrate the beauty of their sacred music.

Now With Revealing Photos!

OK, if this were a picture..... it would be here.....
<--

And ah-ha... so it is...

Ladies and Germs, the State Department (in this case REVEALING a former Rwandan MP looking somewhat bored) OK so here are some fun things for the day:

1. 6 countries propose a diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear ambitions - completely missing the point, of course. The reason why Iran wants nuclear capability and not power (ignoring the current presidents psychotic rants about Israel for the time being) is that they live in a nuclear neighborhood, are surrounded by the U.S. military (who funded their enemies just 20 years ago, not to mention the whole Shah thing), and are completely isolated (well, except for Syria - and what a pair they make). Iran knows the U.S. won't attack if they have the bomb, witness N. Korea. Unfortunately - they do have the post-cold war equivalent to the bomb, a vast population of young people who are largely unemployed - but exposed to the influence of western culture and the vast poverty gap. Perhaps we should be sending jobs to Iran, not enriched uranium.

2. DHS Deathwatch day 1: how long until we shut down the newest government body? My guess is June, 2009. Once again we have completely missed the point of security. Even if security were a matter of checking one's shoes the DHS doesn't actually provide enough funding to do their shoddy and ineffective jobs well. (what a contradiction) New cuts on the chopping block include a vast percentage of DHS funds for New York and D.C.. How very ironic that the very cities that were attacked thus providing the impetus for this departmental debacle and the vast restriction of civil liberties are now going to face a security funding shortfall of 10s of millions of dollars. So how long will it take to get rid of this body and actually install a department where it is needed - between defense and state? [more on this later]

3. Exxon is steadfastly refusing to continue to fund clean-up efforts due to the wreck of the Valdez tanker in Alaska 17 years ago. The U.S. Gov't today asked for a further $92 million which prompted Mark Boudreaux, media relations manager for Exxon Mobil, to postulatie that a link between the remaining oil and effects on wildlife "is no more than a hypothesis".
No more than a hypothesis?
Isn't that where you start with all scientific study?

Somewhere a high school science teacher weeps.

If you want something done right.... don't ask me...

well, that surely did not work

Last time I try to post copied pictures into the blog…. grrr

Posting pictures keeps some people happy

So here are some fun ones…. – or at least so I thought during the last election cycle…

pix deleted.... grr

… and the upcoming election cycle

And some more random images of the non-political variety…

Ha – the right to bear arms…. That always makes me laugh

Ok that was the mindless post of the week.