Here we go again...

Our country is rating other countries on the amount of religious freedom that exists in them. First, it's not our job. We can hope that other countries will espouse tolerance, but we should never make any attempt to enforce tolerance. Using a carrot and stick in the effort to coerce other countries to take on our rather liberal view of tolerance is just plain silly and likely to reinforce already widespread resentment of the United States. Your tax money, hard at work....

What do you get when you remove a tyrannical leader (who was supported by the US for years) who maintained an iron grip on his country in the Middle East? Let's hope the CIA's worst predictions don't come true. That article is at the New York Times. You can either register for free or go here for logins from people who have registered bypass accounts. If the first one doesn't work, click the "This login didn't work" button for a different login.

I guess that one of our reasons for going in is scheduled for termination. The Iraq Survey Group is about to release a report saying that we have found no WMD (excluding a decades old sarin shell). I still wonder why we had bio-weapons related material going to Hussein AFTER the first Gulf War...

Lest I forget....

Go wish Jim and company the best of luck. This bastard Ivan looks like he wants to take a drive right up I-65.

I've never been much of one for signs or omens or the like (and I'm still not)...

However, it's totally unusual (I've never seen this) to see an immense rainbow (while I was on the way home from work this morning) that looked as if it spanned the width of the Mississippi River and then see another full and colorful arch right before sunset this evening. Perhaps the Norse gods are coming back via Bifrost.

This morning I noticed that Achim's blog had been updated recently. While looking around his links page, I noticed that he had links to a couple of Wikimedia sites. I had no idea that there was so much info available via Wikis. I didn't say much about 9/11/01 on 9/11/04 because I wanted to contemplate in silence and refrain from tarnishing a day of remembrance with my abhorrence for the fact that our ELECTED leaders still believe that we need to spread democracy (or any of our other ideals) throughout the world or create peace in areas of the world that have seen strife since before our country came into being. However, I noticed a wiki project that has great potential for the fourth and/or fifth anniversary of 9/11. It would be amazing to see the 9/11 Memorial section of Wikipedia grow by leaps and bounds as a tribute to what was lost on that day. Anybody can contribute to the wiki. If you have something to say, go say it. It would probably be best to familiarize yourself with how to do so first.

As we are often prone to do, we were having a discussion at work the other night...

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First and foremost, there's an amber alert that doesn't appear to be showing up on the ticker yet...

This amber alert is from Silvis, IL. See here for details. Maybe it will show up a little later. Update: This appears as if it has been canceled.

I think I've recovered from the twelve-hour nights. You can ask Suzanne. I was 100% WAXED. It's better now...

The bunnies have left the yard.

I have three gmail invites. Leave a comment with an email address and I'll speed an invitation on its way.

Zeitgeist anyone?

We're about T-20 days and counting...

Perhaps I'll have my desktop fixed by then. At least I've got the laptop. I had a few issues with my desktop recently and now it's acting like the power supply is wonky. If I have to buy many more new parts, I might just bite the bullet and buy a cheap new system. I like the ease of piece by piece replacement. Heck, I've had most of my current system for at least four years (some pieces longer). However, it seems like the point of diminishing returns is getting near.

Charley came and went. That beeeeeyotch Frances did another number on Florida. Ivan's now waiting in the wings. You might ask what the next series of storms will be named. Click here and see. Actually, that whole site has a great deal of information.

P.S. - I was able to mow the lawn today without killing any bunnies. However, I think I did scare the crap out of them. Perhaps they are scarred for life. For what it's worth, I don't subscribe to the philosophies presented at the aforementioned link. I just thought it was funny.

C-Span...

I'm watching C-Span right now. Michael Badnarik and David Cobb (Libertarian and Green respectively) are in the midst of a pre-recorded debate that actually took place on 8/31/2004. I'll bet you didn't hear anything about it in the "news". I hope that it will be available online sometime.

Suzanne's last paragraph in this entry is making fun of Dubya. I have deeper problems with other things that Dubya says. One of the blurbs he has been repeatedly using for a little while is, "The wisest use of American strength is to advance freedom. I believe America is called to lead the cause of freedom. I believe that millions in the Middle East plead in silence for their liberty. I believe that given the chance, they will embrace the most honorable form of government every devised by man. I believe all these things because I understand freedom is not America's gift to the world, freedom is the almighty God's gift to each man and woman in this world." I happen to disagree that "American strength" is the best way to get the word out.

In keeping with the finest traditions of Labor Day, I labored. I can't complain much. Suzanne worked for four hours this morning and I worked until 3 PM.

If you're Chinese, you'd better not peddle porn online. 250,000 clicks on a Chinese-owned porn site could land the owner in prison FOR LIFE. I realize that there are plenty of people in this country who wouldn't mind seeing penalties similar to that for porn-peddling (or perhaps even surfing). While we're at it, let's lock up all cheesecake-eating, cigarette-smoking, beer-swilling, non-church-going, dissent-speaking (or any combination thereof and more) people. We'd be better off, right? That brings me to one thing we were talking about at work today. I don't see how anyone would ever want to be a polygamist. However, I think that the Supreme Court decision that upheld law against it was wrong. I don't care what the European traditions said about polygamy. I care if anyone's right to life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness is being violated.

So....The four remaining bunnies are doing fairly well.

So is our kitty. She's not so sure what to think of bunnies. See (click the pic for more animals)?



Well, we're doing our 12-hour days starting tomorrow so I need to go crash.

What Arnold says...

"If you believe that government should be accountable to the people, not the people to the government...then you are a Republican! If you believe a person should be treated as an individual, not as a member of an interest group... then you are a Republican! If you believe your family knows how to spend your money better than the government does... then you are a Republican! If you believe our educational system should be held accountable for the progress of our children ... then you are a Republican! If you believe this country, not the United Nations, is the best hope of democracy in the world ... then you are a Republican! And, ladies and gentlemen ...if you believe we must be fierce and relentless and terminate terrorism ... then you are a Republican!"

-Arnold Schwarzenegger, Republican Convention 2004, 8/31/2004

What I say...

If you believe that government should be accountable to the people, not the people to the government...then you are a RepublicanLibertarian! If you believe a person should be treated as an individual, not as a member of an interest group... then you are a RepublicanLibertarian! If you believe your family knows how to spend your money better than the government does... then you are a RepublicanLibertarian! If you believe our educational system should be held accountable for the progress of our children ... then you are a RepublicanLibertarian! If you believe this country, not the United Nations, is the best hope of democracy in the world ... then you are a RepublicanLibertarian! And, ladies and gentlemen ...if you believe we must be fierce and relentless and terminate terrorism ... then you are a RepublicanLibertarian (however, force isn't the only way a Libertarian would work on terrorism)!

The key to reasonable political dialogue...

I don't agree with the political stance of many of the people I work with. We still get along. Last week, my wife pointed me to "MY Vast Right Wing Conspiracy". I checked it out and even though I don't agree with everything she's saying, I can still be friendly. People often lose sight of this. There are frequently violent protesters at political or other major gatherings. I'm not saying that these people don't have the right to protest or even protest where they want (in public at least). However, the violence is often intriguing considering that at least part of what they are often protesting is violence.

I feel that there are a few important things to remember. I don't think that we're to the point where we need a revolution. That eliminates the need for violence. Another point to remember is that you can't always change people. You can present your argument for what you believe and then let it be. If you're told, "Enough!"... leave it at that. Frequent obscenity (although I am sometimes an offender) might prove that you are emotional about issues, but doesn't add much else to the political discourse. Civility is always the best way to go.

McCain said it well on Monday night:

"All of us, despite the differences that enliven our politics, are united in the one big idea that freedom is our birthright and its defense is always our first responsibility. All other responsibilities come second."

One side note...To read about goings-on from the convention from the vantage point of the NYPD, click here.

Until this afternoon, it had been quite some time since either of us had seen an IMAX film...

We went to the Putnam Museum IMAX theater to see the third Harry Potter flick. The movie wasn't bad and we've always loved a good IMAX experience. We'll be going back for other films. I told Suzanne that we should check out the rest of the Putnam Museum as well.

It was interesting to see Michael Moore at the Republican convention last night. He's writing for USA Today (still waiting to see any mention of Badnarik, Cobb, or Peroutka at USA Today). Moore put out this op-ed for USA Today last night. One interesting thing to note was that USA Today had a noted conservative covering the Democratic convention back in July. That's a pretty funky way to do things. I like it.

Also of interest (I have to admit that I haven't read either document yet) are the Democratic and Republican platforms for 2004. I happen to believe that my thinking will be more in-line with the Libertarian platform. For further reading, here are the Green and Constitution Party platforms.

Check out the August issue of Ballot Access News.

I'm not totally sure what I think of what follows below...

George Bush is using the White House website to host a description of his "accomplishments". This seems as if it belongs on Dubya's campaign website. I don't care if Bush is posting a record touting what he says he has accomplished. However, he is using a federal government website to do so. Interestingly enough, Dubya's WHITE HOUSE HOSTED WEBSITE ABOUT ECONOMIC GROWTH AND JOB CREATION doesn't mention the latest report from the Census Bureau that talks about poverty growing in this country. Additionally, Dubya's stance against gay marriage was deemed important enough to be the last item on this page. That seems like a great use of American taxpayer money...

I'll catch her at the pass...

I'm sure that Suzanne will later regale the world with tales of my dastardly deed for the day. Before she does, I'll say it myself. I never walk down the yard before I mow it. I suppose that I should and I will be much more likely to do so now. I killed a baby bunny. Weapon of choice? A lawnmower. I had no clue that there was a nest of the babies in my backyard. Unfortunately, the little lepine was still alive. Fortunately, the others appeared to be fine. I covered their nest back up (and marked it) after I retrieved the mortally wounded bunny baby. I felt bad about it, but I put the poor animal out of its misery. It still sucks and now Suzanne is calling me a bunny-killer.

It seems like time has flown. The closing ceremony is tonight.


On a much happier note:

Happy Birthday Olivia!

Don't ask me why, but...

One of the thoughts that kept crossing my mind at work on Thursday (before I got to take off for my six days off) was if Japanese (or Chinese or Albanian or Ethiopian) monsters universally say, "Rawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwrrrrrrrrr!" As I said, don't ask me why that thought crossed my mind. I have no clue.

The Badnarik.org site has a new section. It's all about ballot access. Michael currently has more ballot access than any of the other third party candidates. Do you hear much about him? Nope! Can you do an article search at a major newspaper website like USA Today and have 0 results returned? Yep! Why is that? Will you see Badnarik in the debates between Bush and Kerry? I would personally love to see him there, but it's a slim chance. Nader has significantly less ballot access than Michael Badnarik, Michael Peroutka, or David Cobb. However, if a third party is included on a major media outlet website, that candidate is likely to be Nader (sites like usatoday.com's Campaign 2004 candidate guide and msn.com's 2004 Election Guide are examples). That seems very strange...

One last issue, Bush wants to get rid of 527s. I guess free speech in a campaign only applies to certain people. Perhaps Orwell was a prophet...

"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."

My initial gut feeling (complemented by a little research) was right...

I guess that some normative psychological evaluations assume that if you answer that your life is too good, that could be a bad thing. I don't completely understand how it's possible to be feeling too good. I suppose that I don't understand a lot of things...

So there I am last night...One of the first annoying things (other than the usual spam announcing the same useless crap) I got in my email was a completely unoriginal virus hoax. Within five minutes, I received the following (cut for some measure of brevity) from the same individual:

"Dear Friends:

Pray for the President as he is peparing his acceptance speech. And pray for him as he gives his speech.
Prayer makes a difference.

--cut to protect privacy--
ATTACHMENT part 2 message/rfc822
From: President George W. Bush
To: --cut to protect privacy--
Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2004 03:05:00 -0400
Subject: Will you help me?

President George W. Bush
www.GeorgeWBush.com

Dear --cut to protect privacy--,

In two weeks, I will proudly accept our Party's nomination for the Presidency of the United States. I will then travel the country to ask for the vote, telling Americans about my agenda to make a safer world and a more hopeful America in my next term.

I will win if you continue to stand with us in the weeks ahead. There's a lot to do and our convention is a wonderful opportunity to energize our fellow Republicans and draw to our banner discerning Democrats and Independents. Will you help me do that?

www.GeorgeWBush.com/Party

Will you open your home during the convention and reach out to your friends, family and neighbors by hosting a convention watch party on September 2nd, the night I make my acceptance speech?

This would help spread our positive message in a very important way. There is no better messenger for me than you. There is no better way to help us communicate our ideals than by sharing our convention with neighbors.

Will you help me?

www.GeorgeWBush.com/Party

Victory depends on all of us making every effort to persuade people to join us and then getting them to the polls. I hope you will share our celebration and host a party in your home.

Thanks again for all you do.

Sincerely,
George W. Bush"

Needless to say, I will not be praying for Dubya. I hope like hell that Barney eats his speech and that Dubya will have to improvise. That would undoubtedly make this individual's quest much easier. I don't hate Bush, I just want him back in Crawford. I almost wish that I could run the streets of NYC during the Republicon convention. I suppose that I could, but I have better things to do.

In no way am I going to say, "Go vote for Kerry!"...

However, the latest "Swift Boat Vets for Truth" ad is just more proof that political activist commercials don't necessarily have to tell the complete truth. This is true whether the creator of the ad is the Swift Vets or Michael Moore. I don't even think that I've seen the ad on television (other than in news analysis). However, it gives little snippets of John Kerry's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1971. The ad doesn't come anywhere close to providing context. I fear that in our "instant gratification", "give me a snippet and it'll be good enough" society, the full picture of what Kerry said in 1971 might be hard to visualize unless you read the whole thing. Yes, it's long.

The Annenberg Political Fact Check Center has a decent write-up on why half-truths are allowed to continue. The hard thing to accept is that I know there are people who won't do their own research. Believe it or not, there are some people who will take Fox News (O'Reilly and Fox are still too chicken-hearted to have Michael Badnarik make an appearance) or Democratic Underground at face value.

So, there we are about a week and a half ago, taking a 567 question psychological test. For some reason, mine was flagged as requiring follow-up. My curiosity has been piqued. Some of my co-workers say that I should wear the kilt to the interview on Wednesday. I don't think I will. When I mentioned this to Suzanne, she seemed a little worried. I'm not so worried.

Wazzup?

I'm of half a mind to believe that shimmering sheets of ice engulfed this town in early July. Why do I believe that Hell (MI) might have frozen over in July? Well, it started on July 8th at this place. Yes, John Dvorak now has a blog. After his speech at Gnomedex last year (and several articles in PC Magazine), I figured that Dvorak would never blog.

I'd never even heard of the "Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer". That link says that the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer is "the free, best practices vulnerability assessment tool for the Microsoft platform." I downloaded it and ran it and, sure enough, it said that I don't have SP2. I won't for a little while. Hey, this free security test tool might be worth the download. Every little bit helps.

Well, it's almost time to get ready for work. I volunteered for it. Hell, it's hard to beat 45/60$ an hour for working overtime. With that, adieu...

I've never been very fond of Michelle Malkin...

Last night's debacle on Hardball doesn't necessarily help matters. She later made this post on her blog about her fun at MSNBC. About halfway through, she mentions, "I am used to ad hominem attacks." I don't know if she agrees with them or not. However, given the title of her post and other things I've heard her say, she dishes out ad hominem attacks as well. I find it odd that she has written a book defending internment of Japanese Americans during WWII and perhaps suggesting parallels to our "war on terror". Perhaps she should be shackled up and locked somewhere incognito. After all, her parents immigrated from the Philippines. As everyone knows, the Abu Sayyaf group is also based in the Philippines and is designated as a foreign terrorist organization. Hell, we should have locked up a lot of white males after Timothy McVeigh. I don't ever see Malkin's "solution" being used. As I've said before, I'll keep watching.

We're watching the Olympics right now. I saw a commercial for the spin-off of Friends that is supposed to begin in the new NBC fall season. I would just like to know why they chose the most air-headed character from Friends as the basis for a new sitcom. I was already "Friends'd" out when the show went off the air. I probably won't be watching the spin-off either.

Iacta alea est!

As Suzanne mentioned earlier, we are GOING TO GNOMEDEX. I'm 101% stoked about this because I didn't originally think that we'd be able to make it this year. We made it to Des Moines for the last two years. Now we'll be hittin' Tahoe at the end of September. Suzanne arranged everything this morning.

I have occasionally visited the archive.org website. I never perused through it a lot. It was interesting to note this morning that they are more than a web archive. They also have sections devoted to movies, books, and audio.

There's still hope...

Suzanne was telling me that she wouldn't mind doing Gnomedex again this year. If all goes well, I'll know whether I have the days off in the next day or so. I'm ready to party my ass off and get geeky. Wait, I'm already there.

I want to see this sport in the Olympics. At the very least, net footbag would be interesting.

One of the neighbors behind us was walking his two dogs down our street tonight. No biggie, right? The only thing that bothered me was that his 2-3 year old daughter was holding the leash for one of the dogs. Being the weird one that I am, Suzanne and I were standing out front with our cat. Needless to say, the dogs were interested when they saw our cat. That's understandable... The dog that the little girl was holding lunged a little, dragged the young girl down, and got free. Suzanne said she felt bad for the little girl. So do I. Why try to let such a young girl control a dog (that probably weighs as much as she does) when you know that the dog might try to get free? I suppose I could have taken my cat inside, but it's my front yard. Screw that!