So what are you up to this weekend? And, ya got any links?
By the way, this is the new Weekend Open Thread, which may be bumped throughout the weekend so there will be only one. ;-)
Defending the liberal tradition in history, science, and philosophy.
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Without initial comment, I offer two links for discussion, both from the Philadelphia Inquirer:
A column, and readers’ responses to the column.Â
–|PW|–
Everyday is "weekend" when your retired, so not much going on. How about a funny I heard today instead.
Governmentium (Gv) — A new element in the Periodic Table of Elements
Evolution has produced an element that has become clearly identifiable in the past decade or two.
Recent hurricanes and gasoline issues are proof of the existence of a new chemical element. Research has led to the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science.
The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.
These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. A minute amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second to take from four days to four years to complete.
Governmentium has a normal half-life of 2-6 years; it does not decay, but, instead, undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass.
When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.
First!Man, you people are fast!I get to enjoy the three-day weekend. After three long weeks of 60-70 hours each, we shipped our software yesterday. It was on-time and under budget; and a reasonably objective observer declared that it was the most solid software release in the ten-year history of this product.
So my boss took us to see Hancock, and then ordered us not to show our faces anywhere near the office until Monday.
In counterpoint, I offer this Washington Post editorial.
–|PW|–
I found the Philadelphia Inquirer editorial overwrought and flawed by a deep ignorance of what our government has done historically and an hysterical overstatement of what our current government has done.
Maybe I’ll open a thread on the much, much greater use of "torture" and attacks on civil rights that were much, much more prevalent in times past, under numerous Presidents, some still alive.
Or maybe there’s no point, as it feels like I’ve done that many times already, only to have it ignored.
Moral absolutism always feels good to the person who doesn’t actually have to live it, and doesn’t have to know anything about the history he babbles about. Or anything about how truly oppressive regimes behave.
In short: "What a maroon."
Let me throw another bit of fuel on the fire.
–|PW|–
PS. I’m wrestling with home electronics this evening. Trying to get an XBox 360 and an HDMI switch all wired up and playing nicely.
One final link. And I promise this one’s not about torture or patriotism. It’s groovy.
–|PW|–
Yes, Americans, hang your heads in shame. You liberated 50 million people from dictators. Your efforts persuaded other dictators to turn grudgingly and falteringly towards more freedom and less terror. You shattered a global terror network. While carrying out these efforts, you performed massive disaster relief in Sri Lanka, China, and elsewhere (even Iran). And you kept your 300 million citizens from suffering new terror attacks. And in pursuit of your nefarious ends, you waterboarded 3 terror leaders, none of whom suffered permanent harm; and a few rogue guards crossed the line into torture and abuse, for which they were investigated, tried, convicted, and punished. How can you live with yourselves, having betrayed the memories of great Democrats like President Roosevelt (who, after all, only locked up a few Japanese Americans) and President Truman (who, after all, only blew up a couple of Japanese cities)?
Or in other words: Mr. Satullo can kiss my ass. (And my apologies to Presidents Roosevelt and Truman, but they’re the best examples to prove that Mr. Satullo’s either ignorant, a hypocrite, or both.)
Mind if I toss this at you, Martin?
–|PW|–Â
I’d expect Martin’s answer to be quite close to mine: May we see the actual report, please, and not merely a story describing it?
It would also not change much of what I’ve said, unless it indicates that somehow whatever crimes were committed were not only intentional and known about at the highest levels, but also worse than what’s been done in the past. Not that past behavior excuses present behavior–it does not. But if present behavior is used to suggest that we are worse than we were in the past, then that requires substantial evidence.
All that said, I am quite interested in this report. If you have a link to it, I’d like to read it. If there have been genuine crimes without justification that have gone unpunished, then they need to be answered for swiftly.
Ironically, CNN’s Web operations used to understand the new world of journalism much better. Once upon a time (1998 or so), CNN would take the time to find a link to the report, then run it with the article in a little box that said "useful links."
The group itself seems to be fairly anti-Bush. Still, I urge you to set aside both their ideological biases and your own.Â
Here are links to the executive summary and the actual report
–|PW|–
PS. As I said before, I’m wrestling with home electronics, so I reserve the right to be very, very cranky.
To change the subject: Tonight I’m missing my kids so much it hurts. Ah well. Movies help. I just finished watching Marjane Satrapi’s remarkable animated feature, "Persepolis." By coincidence, the second film featuring Iranian girls in the wake of the hideous "revolution" I’ve seen in the last year. Both were powerful in different ways. I really liked this, although it was depressing. I guess it’s probably not for everyone, but I think anyone who’s genuinely interested in what oppressive regimes are like should see it.
Dean,Â
Don’t feel so down.
At least you have kids….
 So, who all thinks it was just a coincidence that McCain was in Columbia at the very moment the hostage rescue of a generation went down?
Happy thoughts may dampen cravings.
Stem cells from any tissue.
Bizarre "flat" atom.
JLBussey’s last blog post..America The Beautiful
I am embarking upon the first two week vacation I’ve taken since I left college back in 1986.
What will I be doing on this vacation?
NOTHING!
God, what a relief…
pennywit’s articles remind me that, in addition to killing off the religious calendar, there are folks out there that want to kill off the civil calendar too. Yes, they hate the USA.
Not doing much special this weekend.
Went to see Wall*E [which was dumb. We only went because it was convenient timing and we had free tickets. Maybe I didn't like it because the iced coffee was down, I dunno. That just soured everything.]
Going to Mendon Ponds today to look at critters then out for Thai, then working.
Tomorrow probably just going to wash my cash.
Columnist Satullo forgets the actions of the Militia of his own state of Pennsylvania during the Revolutionary War. They were responsible for the Gnadenhutten massacre of 96 Christian American Indians. They were accused of raids into Pennsylvania on behalf of the British which they were innocent of. The Pennsylvanian Militia held a council and voted to kill them all anyway. The entire village.
I feel your pain Dean. Kills me but my kids prefer to go to their Dad’s this summer. They miss him and his girlfriend. :(
Ugh – it kills me. I’m the mean responsible one – why wouldn’t they rather go over there?
I’m off today and would love to spend some downtime with the kids. Nope – I get ‘em back when it’s time to haul ‘em to rehearsal and dentist appts and we need to clean the house and do laundry and I have to get to work.
Ugh – why did I start?
When you’re dealing with a situation where your ex- has more resources to throw at having fun with the kids–and believe me, I know exactly what that feels like–it’s humiliating and frustrating. But it’s also worth keeping in mind that kids are just kids, and once they’re past a certain age (say, 7 or 8 or 9) they start being much less interested in you and a lot more interested in their own lives. Give it time and be patient. They’ll be back.
I enjoyed Persepolis, but I think in some ways it suffered from being truly autobiographical rather than fictional, because of the pacing of her actual experiences. Â They worked better in the graphic novel format to some extent than on screen.Graphic novels and comics really have come into their own, haven’t they? Â I’m still bummed that Y: The Last Man ended, but man, what an ending.
Bad’s last blog post..Blog Shorts: Bush Smears Jefferson, Colson Smears Atheists, Cthulhu Smears Your Entrails Across Campaign Trail
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