:: eyedot ::: images information ideation ::

:: EYE (anatomy), light-sensitive organ of vision in animals.
:: EYE (verb), to look at to look at something or somebody inquisitively.
:: EYE (noun), an ability to recognize and appreciate something; a point of view or way of thinking.

:: 9.30.2003 ::  

Quote of the Day

In short, in order to protect Bush from the ramifications of using fake evidence to support his war, this White House destroyed an intelligence network that was protecting us from the threat posed by chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons.

The above is from a TomPaine.com article, forwarded to me by Serena, about the recent outing of a CIA operative by the Bush administration, apparently in retaliation for her husband's vocal criticism of the President. The whole article is worth reading; there's a lot in there that I want to lift and place here wholesale for you to read. But here's one more taste, to whet your appetite:

Peel the second layer and you discover the rank illegality of it all. Section 421 of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 reads as follows:

"Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both."
...

Ray McGovern, who was for 27-years a senior analyst for the CIA, further confirms the status of Plame within the CIA. "I know Joseph Wilson well enough to know," said McGovern in a telephone conversation we had today, "that his wife was in fact a deep cover operative running a network of informants on what is supposedly this administration's first-priority issue: Weapons of mass destruction."

Wow. Thanks, Serena! In related news, the Justice Department just announced it has opened a criminal investigation into the disclosure, but without the use of a semi-independent special counsel (Ashcroft has refused to comment on that decision). Articles on the subject from MSNBC, the Nation, the Washington Post, Democrats.us, and CNN.

:: Deb 3:50 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

I recently finished a book by Frank Herbert called The Dosadi Experiment; it's not my favorite book by him by far, but I found some remarkably pertinent statements in it. Here's one:

Power held too long within a narrow framework moves farther and farther away from the adaptive demands of changed conditions. The leadership grows ever more paranoid, suspicious of inventive adaptations to change, fearfully protective of personal power and, in the terrified avoidance of what it sees as risk, blindly leads its people into destruction. (p.266)

Frank Herbert was apparently deeply interested in the inner workings of politics, both the one-one-one interpersonal relationships and interactions that go into political maneuvering, as well as the overarching plans and designs and plots and conspiracies that develop and intersect and succeed or fail... and eventually become part of history.

Here's another very timely quote from the book:

Does a population have informed consent when that population is not taught the inner workings of its monetary system, and then is drawn, all unknowing, into economic adventures? (p. 252)

Now I suppose that since the US is actually a republic, where we democratically elect people to make our decisions for us, that as long as those people are informed about the inner workings of our monetary system they will (theoretically) act to avoid drawing their constituencies into dangerous "economic adventures" that we are unable to fully comprehend. Whether that assumption is founded in fact remains a big question. I was reminded, upon reading the above statement, of Paul Krugman's scathing analysis of the Bush administration's plans for Social Security, not to mention their entire economic policy.

Finally, the statement that first made me sit up and pay attention:

Does a populace have informed consent when a ruling minority acts in secret to ignite a war, doing this to justify the existence of the minority? History actually has answered that question. Every society... today reflects the historical judgement that failure to provide full information for informed consent on such an issue represents an ultimate crime. (p. 246) [emphasis added]

I read this only a few weeks ago, when the mainstream media was finally starting to question the reasons given by our leaders for a preemptive war on Iraq.

And I'll leave you with this little gem:

The more control, the more that requires control. This is the road to chaos. (p. 210)

All page numbers for Frank Herbert's novel, The Dosadi Experiment, refer to the Berkeley Medallion 1978 edition of the book.

:: Deb 12:39 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.29.2003 ::  

Okay, just one more:



Thanks again to "Dykes To Watch Out For," by Alison Bechdel, for the image. Several people have remarked on the GOP's seeming lack of faith in the electability of their own candidates, as demonstrated by their willingness to manipulate the democratic process to their advantage; as Bill Maher said recently, "I'm beginning to think that Republicans will do anything to win an election — except get the most votes." Anyway, please note the stuff I posted on Friday, which relates to this.

:: Deb 2:51 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

I'd just like to say one more thing, something I thought of last night.

Your government's main purpose is to protect you. Period. There is no other reason for it to exist. If it you are harmed, it is not fulfilling its purpose.

Our government has the directive that its citizens have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The only reason to abridge any of those rights is if one citizen interferes with the rights of another citizen.

There's an old adage, "Your freedom to swing your arms around ends at the tip of my nose."

Not before it.

Therefore, a government that arrests a man for cultivating a particular plant IS NOT DOING ITS JOB. In fact, it is acting against its own prime directive - to keep that man from harm. A felony charge means that man can no longer vote, i.e. can no longer participate in the system of government that has deprived him (and can do so again) of his most basic rights. This, to me, falls under the definition of harmful: "causing damage or injury."

The issue gets a little grayer when you're talking about self-abuse. Should the government step in to prevent someone from harming themselves? Does "step in" necessarily mean "make an arrest"? There's drug abuse, and suicide... but what about a bulemic, or someone who cuts themselves when they're upset? How about someone who smokes 3 packs a day? All of these are self-harming behaviors, but I certainly don't think the government should be interfering with them.

What do you think?

:: Deb 2:18 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

THE COST IS CLEAR: Benefits of U.S. Clean-Air Rules Far Outweigh Costs, Report Says

The benefits of some major U.S. environmental laws appear to dramatically outweigh the costs, according to a new federal report that is giving environmentalists reason to cheer. The Office of Management and Budget found that tough clean-air regulations implemented over the past decade brought health and social benefits -- including fewer premature deaths, emergency room visits, and lost workdays -- that were five to seven times greater in economic terms than the costs of complying with the rules. "In this case, the data show that the [EPA]'s clean-air office has issued some highly beneficial rules," said John Graham, director of OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Enviros and some lawmakers accuse the Bush administration of trying to roll back clean-air regulations just as the nation is coming to recognize their effectiveness.

Story in the Washington Post; thanks to Grist Magazine for the summary.

:: Deb 1:53 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

This is a photo of a sculpture made of bright orange styrofoam and rebar and rusty metal plates... fanciful and huge, it is one of many pieces created and still located on a strip of land in the East Bay known as the Albany Bulb Landfill. The artists call themselves the Sniff Art Collective. This year the landfill – a lumpy, overgrown park adjacent to the Golden Gate Fields Racetrack on the Berkeley-Albany line – is threatened by a state park plan that will likely sanitize and forever change the culture of the place.



There have been several articles in the Chronicle about the Albany Bulb; here's one about a film documenting the homeless encampment located on the landfill for 10 years before police shut it down in 1999; and here's one that goes into more detail about the battles over this piece of land and many others in the East Bay: "The popularity and passions result in never-ending skirmishes pitting developers against preservationists, dog lovers against bird lovers, people who want some rules enforced against a group of self-described artists and free spirits called 'Let It Be.'"

:: Deb 10:18 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

JOB LOSSES AT LEVEL OF GREAT DEPRESSION CONTRADICT PRESIDENT BUSH'S WISHFUL PREDICTIONS

Instead of creating 510,000 jobs in 2003, as President Bush predicted, the Republican-led economy has suffered a net loss of 473,000 jobs so far this year.

The Timken Company, an Ohio-based steel and bearings manufacturer where the President launched his Jobs and Growth package in April, embarrassed the Administration two weeks ago with an announcement it will cut 900 jobs.

Story here.

:: Deb 10:15 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

ACLU Sues Secret Service for Violating Rights of Anti-Bush Protesters

At events across the country, the Secret Service has been violating the free speech rights of anti-President Bush protesters, the ACLU is charging in the first nationwide lawsuit of its kind.


When President Bush came to Neville Island, PA last year, protesters were herded behind a chain-link fence in a remote area while supporters were allowed to line the motorcade route.
The ACLU has seen a significant spike in such incidents under the Bush Administration, indicating a "pattern and practice" of discrimination against those who disagree with government policies.

Local police, acting at the direction of the Secret Service, have violated the rights of protesters in two ways:

-- People expressing views critical of the government were moved further away from public officials while those with pro-government views were allowed to remain closer; or,

-- Everyone expressing a view of any kind was herded into what is commonly known as a "protest zone," leaving those who merely observe, but express no view, to remain closer.

"The individuals we are talking about didn't pose a security threat; they posed a political threat," said Witold Walczak, Legal Director of the ACLU of Greater Pittsburgh and a member of the national ACLU legal team that filed today's lawsuit.

The ACLU's legal papers list more than a dozen examples of censorship at events around the country. The incidents described took place in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, Texas and Washington, among other places. All were initiated at the behest of the Secret Service and are evidence of a growing -- and disturbing -- trend.

Read the ACLU's complaint in this case.

Read examples of police censorship against protesters.

Read the ACLU report, "Freedom Under Fire: Dissent in Post-9/11 America."

:: Deb 10:10 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.26.2003 ::  

Jesus or Nothing

On April 28th I posted a link to a story about how touch-screen voting was an elaborate scheme to co-opt and falsify American votes. Simply a conspiracy theory? Perhaps... but another blogger, Mark Crispin Miller, posted a letter on Wednesday about this very story. Apparently, the executives of Diebold, Inc., one of the companies that manufactures electronic voting machines, all donated funds - on the same day - to a Senatorial candidate from North Carolina named Lauch Faircloth.

An added twist is that Lauch Faircloth has alwasy been openly opposed to allowing all Americans to vote. He is a leader of CNP, the Christian reconstructionists who believe only Christians should be allowed to vote. How can a voting machine company have so many executives line up behind a candidate who is opposed to counting all the votes?

This is a very good question.

A quote from a Christian Reconstructionist website defines it as, "A recently articulated philosophy which argues that it is the moral obligation of Christians to recapture every institution for Jesus Christ." The foundational doctrines of Christian Reconstructionism, from the same site, are:

1. "God's covenant with Adam required him to exercise dominion over the earth and to subdue it (Gen. 1:26 ff) under God according to God's law-word."

2. "The restoration of that covenant relationship was the work of Christ, His grace to His elect people."

3. "The fulfillment of that covenant is their great commission: to subdue all things and all nations to Christ and His law-word."

R.J. Rushdoony, The Institutes of Biblical Law (Nutley, NJ: Craig Press, 1973), p. 14.

And a final quote, this time from the sect's founder, Dr. Rousas Rushdoony: "Man is summoned to create the society God requires."

Anyone scared yet?

If not, read "Jesus plus Nothing: Undercover among America's secret theocrats", published several months ago in Harper's Magazine. Chills and thrills galore, guaranteed.

Happy weekend, everyone!

:: Deb 6:10 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.25.2003 ::  

Quote of the Day

"We need to remember that the enemy here is George Bush, not each other."

- Democratic Presidential candidate Howard Dean, in the debate today.


Here's another snippet from the debate, this time from retired General Wesley Clark:

Challenged about his political pedigree, Clark had a ready reply.

"I am pro-choice, I am pro-affirmative action, I'm pro-environment, pro-health," he said. "That's why I'm proud to be a Democrat."

In a slap at Bush's foreign policy, the former supreme NATO commander said the United States should "engage with allies, be a good player in the international community, should use force only as a last resort."

Sounds good to me! Personally, I think Clark and Dean would be a tough ticket to beat; I just wonder which of the two of them would be willing to be VP...

Here's the NBC story on the debates, which includes a video clip link. And here are audio files and transcripts from the September 4th Democratic debate.

:: Deb 5:01 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.24.2003 ::  

I got an email from Michael Moore today that many of you may have read already. However, I want to place special emphasis on a few paragraphs from that letter:

And who among the other candidates does not have blood on his hands? John Kerry? He killed people in Vietnam. Bob Graham? He executed people as governor of Florida. Howard Dean? He says he would have voted in favor of bombing Afghanistan (at least 3,000 civilians slaughtered) and he's already said he would execute people on death row. So would Edwards. Gephardt voted for both wars. Dennis Kucinich used to vote for laws restricting a woman's right to an abortion, potentially forcing women back to the alley and, for many of them, to certain death.

No one is innocent here. And yet, there is, in everyone, a chance for redemption. John Kerry bravely led the anti-war movement when he returned from Vietnam. Dennis Kucinich changed his position and now supports a woman's right to choose. Howard Dean (with Kucinich) stood alone against the Iraq War when it was not the popular thing to do. People change. If we don't accept this, we are never going to get rid of Bush.

We, the voters, have a job to do right now: Remain strong and steadfast in pushing these candidates to behave, straighten up, and do the right thing. There will be plenty of time to get behind the one candidate who is nominated to defeat Bush. What we should be doing now is making our voices heard so that we can influence them to take the right positions. [emphasis added]

This is very important. It is so easy to get caught up in the race, so easy to pick one candidate over the rest and pin all your hopes on him or her... we need to remember that all of these candidates have the potential to be our next President, and now is the best time to influence the face the eventual Democratic nominee presents to the American people when it comes time to vote next November. Write to Kucinich, to Mosley-Braun, to Kerry, and tell them what issues are most important to you. Tell them you want a moratorium on the death penalty, that you want the ERA ratified, that you want half the Pentagon budget diverted to education - whatever. Just TELL THEM. They won't know what you want unless you do.

:: Deb 1:34 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.23.2003 ::  

Argh. Argh argh argh.

And when Russert asked Cheney about a Congressional Budget Office report that says that the Army "lacks sufficient active-duty forces to maintain its current level of nearly 150,000 troops in Iraq beyond next spring," Cheney ducked this tough issue, replying that "failure's not an option." He did not say whether the Bush administration has an unannounced plan for dealing with this or whether it is simply ignoring the possible crisis ahead.

Link thanks to Tom Tomorrow.

:: Deb 5:54 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.22.2003 ::  

Quote of the Day:

"I have grown up with guns all my life, but people who like assault weapons should join the United States Army, we have them."

- General Wesley Clark, former Supreme Commander of NATO and Democratic candidate for President of the United States, in answer to a question about his position on gun control. Source: Interview on CNN Crossfire Jun 25, 2003

Thanks to Michael Moore for publicizing the quote, and to Leslie for telling me about it. Oh, and also for this link, which has more detail about his position.


Oh, and act now to free Tommy Chong!

:: Deb 2:30 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

Here's a photo I took of the roof of the Winchester Mystery House; it's this crazy 160-room Victorian mansion down in San Jose.



Curt and I went with our friends Matt and Sid; there's a 3-hr tour through the whole house, and our legs were pretty tired by the end but we really enjoyed it. Sarah L. Winchester was a pretty wacky, amazing lady.

:: Deb 12:33 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.19.2003 ::  

Quote of the Day:

"It may, in fact, pose a choking hazard for the president's Democratic opponents."

From this article about the Bush "Elite Force Aviator" action figure, forwarded to me by Kevin.

:: Deb 4:24 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

Quick thing this morning : this is the blog of an Iraqi calling himself Salam Pax (or "Peace Peace" for those unfamiliar with the Arabic/Latin), begun just before the inception of the war on Iraq and now apparently a worldwide sensation. I heard the author interviewed on "Fresh Air" last night and thought I'd check out his site... more on this later, after I've actually gotten a chance to read thru it a bit.

Also, just got this forward from my co-worker, Andy: "This was what the 'war' was for.... the tip of the iceberg to be sure," as he says.

:: Deb 10:19 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.18.2003 ::  

Oh, and I like Drew's drawings a lot. This one made me giggle.

:: Deb 5:44 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

In an effort to be true to my original intent, I'm going to start posting photos on this page. Cool-o!

The guy with the hat is my friend Steve; we're sitting in the Alcatraz dining hall.

:: Deb 4:47 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

My friend Dave forwarded this article to me today; it's the personal account of an American soldier currently serving with the 101st Airborne in Iraq. An arresting quote from that piece:

" I once believed that I served for a cause: "to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States." Now I no longer believe that; I have lost my conviction, as well as my determination. I can no longer justify my service for what I believe to be half-truths and bold lies."

Here's a quote from another interesting piece on the same site: "Biden says we must win the war. This is precisely wrong. The United States must learn to lose this war-a harder task, in many ways, than winning, for it requires admitting mistakes and relinquishing attractive fantasies."

:: Deb 4:42 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.16.2003 ::  

I saw some of Bill Maher's show last night, with Jesse Ventura and Paul Krugman and some columnist I'd never heard of... Krugman is great, I heard him on NPR last week talking about the Bush administration's seeming unconcern for the effects of a ballooning deficit. Now a short-term deficit is not much of a problem, economically, but as Krugman explained to Terry Gross, eventually the people who finance the deficit, those who buy government bonds, will stop buying bonds because they will stop trusting that the government will be able to honor them, and the US will be forced to borrow at usurious interest rates, spiralling further and further into debt. He says we have 3 options: either we have to increase taxes (and therefore governtment revenue) back to pre-cut levels, or we have to make huge cuts to all the social safety nets financed by the federal government, or the US economy will eventually collapse. And he alleges that this administration is intentionally "starving the beast" in order to get rid of US entitlement programs permanently, while pretending to be interested in protecting Social Security and Medicare etc. because of course if they were honest about their intentions they would never have gotten elected.

Now here's the question: how can these people go this course? What do they think is going to be the long-term effect of this? Have they not thought about it at all? An interesting tidbit he revealed: if you go to the back of the budget, you'll find a chart projecting the deficit into the future - and it just continues on its present course, proving that they know at least the immediate effect of their actions. Here's an email I sent to a friend of mine on the subject:

i can totally believe it's all on purpose - i certainly don't believe that they (whoever they are) have no clue, esp. after hearing about that chart hidden at the back of the bugdet. but i find myself asking the same question terri did, and not coming up with a satisfactory answer - how can they do this on purpose? do they just not care what happens to the country, to their children, when this policy has run its course? do they think they and their children will be immune of repurcussions, and fuck everyone else? do they believe, as mr. krugman suggested, that it will all somehow magically right itself? or are they really so shortsighted that they're not even interested in looking past the immediate and obvious results of their actions, i.e. the end of US social programs for the foreseeable future?

What do you think?

Those of you in the Bay Area can see+hear Paul Krugman in a few weeks in Berkeley. Thanks to Peter for the heads-up.

:: Deb 12:49 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

From this morning's moveon.org mailing:

...today at 11:30am EDT, the Senate voted 55-40 to roll back the entire FCC rule change.

We're on a roll, and you've been instrumental in making it happen. When our friends at Free Press and the Consumer's Union delivered your petition comments to Senators' offices on Thursday, they were impressed and shocked. We know your signatures contributed to the big win today. Special thanks to those of you who made calls -- over 10,000 of them in the last week -- which played a critical role.

Your petition comments were also prominently featured in a press conference with Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Trent Lott (R-MS) on Thursday. For a photo of part of the petition (just part!) and the two Senators, go to: http://www.moveon.org/images/dorganlott-big.jpg

That's quite a picture...

:: Deb 10:24 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.15.2003 ::  

I look back over a week of posts and they seem so impersonal; there's very little there in terms of my own commentary, tho I guess you can glean some idea of my political leanings from the articles I cite...

I really intended to upload more images, specifically photographs of my own, but so far that hasn't happened, for various reasons. Sorry about that.

I was prompted to begin the above reflections after reading thru my friend Zach's blog, which is really more in line with what I'd like to do. And I like that people can write responses to his posts. Not sure that's really doable on blogger... I'll check that out, tho.


Here are some thoughts for today:
I'm happy that there were no major terrorist attacks on US soil or foreign interests on 9/11/03. I don't think it's inevitable that there will be more along the same magnitude as the WTC/Pentagon/White House attacks, but I do believe that our current foreign policy is not improving matters.
...
I have grown to like dogs quite a lot. I have been a "cat person" for most of my life, and still identify strongly with them, but I've really enjoyed interacting with my housemate Sage's dog, Ursa, since he adopted her 6 months ago. Dogs are certainly a lot of fun to roughouse with :)
...
I've seen some great live music this summer... let's see: Beck, Peter Gabriel, Liz Phair, Yo La Tengo, Bjork and the White Stripes. I'd seen none of them live before, and we had a great time at every show - Jack White is a guitar GOD. I'm hoping to see a local band called 20 Minute Loop this fall, after they're done with their new album.
...
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a truly shitty movie. In many ways.
...

Well that's all I've got on the top of my head this evening... off to voice lessons I go!

Ta ~

:: Deb 6:33 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

More from Yahoo News:

Despite their financial woes, middle-class families are often in a Catch-22 situation. They typically make too much to qualify for federal aid programs, and yet they don't earn enough to benefit much from expanded retirement plan limits, tax cuts on dividend income, capital gains and the like, consumer advocates say.

Full story in USA Today.

:: Deb 12:26 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

U.S. Appeals Court Stops Oct. 7 Calif. Recall Vote
Updated 1:31 PM ET September 15, 2003

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an preliminary injunction Monday stopping California's Oct. 7 gubernatorial recall election, in the latest unexpected twist of the unprecedented ballot to decide whether Gov. Gray Davis remains in office.

"The secretary of state is enjoined from conducting an election on any issue on October 7, 2003," a three-judge panel ruled Monday.

The court stayed its order for seven days to allow the parties to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Thanks to Serena for the forward. Story here.

:: Deb 12:24 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.12.2003 ::  

From the Daily Grist email newsletter:

CHENEY REACTION
Appeals Court Rejects Bush Attempt to Withhold Energy Documents

A federal appeals court yesterday rejected the Bush administration's argument that it should not have to release documents related to Vice President Dick Cheney's Energy Task Force, marking the fourth -- yes, fourth -- time the judiciary has told the White House the information must be made public. The suit against the Veep was brought by the Sierra Club and Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, both of which sought to learn who participated in the task force and what role Cheney played in it. Now that the appellate court has ruled against it, the Bush administration's only remaining options are to appeal the case to the Supreme Court or turn over the requested documents. "The vice president has been told by multiple courts that he is not above the law. Perhaps now he will give up his legal stonewalling and begin complying with court orders to turn over his secret energy task force documents," said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.

Original article in the Washington Post.

Another article from today's Grist:

U.K. Calls on PC Users to Help With Global Climate Experiment

Concerned about the world's climate and wondering how you can help improve scientific understanding of it? Wonder no more. If you own a PC, you can become part of what's being billed as the world's largest climate-prediction experiment. Organized by a coalition of British universities and corporations, the experiment is expected to produce "the world's most comprehensive probability-based forecast of 21st century climate." How? Individual computer-users who join the experiment will download a unique version of a climate model developed by the Hadley Centre, one of the world's most important headquarters for climate science. The model will run when the computer is on but no other applications are in use, and the results will be sent back to the organizers via the Internet when the experiment is complete. "Together, participants' results will give us an overall picture of how much human influence has contributed to recent climate change, and of the range of possible changes in the future," said Oxford University's Myles Allen.

Story in BBC News; join the experiment - help predict the effects of global climate
change, right there on your personal computer!

:: Deb 3:00 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

 

One of the stupider headlines I've ever seen:
Chong gonged for selling bongs
From this article:

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 11 — Comedian Tommy Chong has been sentenced to nine months in federal prison and fined $20,000 for selling bongs and other drug paraphernalia over the Internet.

:: Deb 2:47 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.11.2003 ::  

To give credit where credit is due, I'm including a link to Bizarro's online comics. This particular cartoon manages to be both surreal and realistic, and therefore scary; most of his stuff is just surreal.

:: Deb 1:03 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.10.2003 ::  

This is cool:

Dr Hill said he got the inspiration for the female-like robot after watching a television program on the female brain. "I went in the next day and re-programmed them."

The benefit is that rather than setting up an entire production line for a single job, a single line can do a range of low-cost jobs simultaneously, even to the extent of every product on the line being different. "It suits the Australian environment, where runs tend to be small," he said.

:: Deb 10:04 AM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.09.2003 ::  

J.K. Rowling's juvenile writing style, rehashed ideas and idiotic characters have annoyed and bored me for the last time, dammit!!!

For any of you out there that have been reading Harry Potter because you just want some new fantasy to read and/or you don't know any better... I highly recommend the lyrical prose of Patricia McKillip (I recently bought, and am currently reading, Winter Rose), the inventive and hugely varied stories of Ursula K. LeGuin, Guy Gavriel Kay's Tolkeinesque trilogy The Fionavar Tapestry, even the older dragon books by Anne McCaffrey.

For those who are more into sci-fi than fantasy, I also recently enjoyed Carl Sagan's Contact; he tends to get a tad technical, but the book is still quite engaging, and much deeper than the movie.

:: Deb 4:47 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::

:: 9.08.2003 ::  

Quote of the Day:

The president is clearly making a judgment that it is more important for us to rebuild Iraq and Afghanistan than it is to deal with the very serious problems that we have in the United States.

-- Sen. Bob Graham, D-Florida, a 2004 White House hopeful who opposed the war, also said the $87 billion is "more than the federal government will spend on education this year ... twice as much as the federal government will spend on our roads, bridges, highways and public transit systems." CNN story here.

Sorry about the hiatus... got swamped at work.

:: Deb 5:21 PM :: permalink :: [0] comments :: ::