NEWSFLASH: MAGIC NOT REAL, HILARITY ENSUES

read this.

hilarious.

I already "shared" a link to ForgottenBooks.org, which I recommend you check out. More specifically, though, I'm currently reading On Liberty by John Stuart Mill (full text), whose works express some of the most important ideas in human history. He also happens to have been a feminist. I wish every person in the world would read this essay. But I think it's especially relevant to the discussion a few posts prior, about Christianity, the ethical code contained within the New Testament, and whether the believers of Christianity take this ethical code to heart as something which motivates their actions. It also addresses the incompleteness of the ethical code found within NT and the necessity of examining minority or heretical opinions for missing pieces of truth.

It is an amazing essay, and if you haven't already read it, you should.

Don't talk to the police.

Evar.

I can't sleep, but I'm in a remarkably good mood. I've discovered these things that are overshadowed by Christmas. Notably, the births of Sir Isaac Newton and Rod Serling, the death of Charlie Chaplin, and Washington crossing the Delaware. Also, a test run of the internets?

Need Some Bibble Help

Amanda just shared this article from the Huffington Post. Now, the article gets to the heart of why I really despise religion. Thanks for sharing it. At any rate, not too far in, you have the line:

The Bible says you should leave your family and join Jesus Christ. The religious right pretends that Jesus was about family values. He wanted you to abandon your family. Read the Bible.

Stephanie, I was wondering if you would be able to justify this claim or maybe just give a hint of context. I'm a hater on this issue, but I'm not about to go out and actually read a "book" which I know I will ultimately end up burning.

Aaaaand STAGEFREEZE! (you don't say stagefreeze, you just do it!)

A List of Unusual Deaths

Here. I especially like the ones involving "anus".

Why yes infact!

this is why i love the internet

something awesome

meta-dominoes. it's just such a damned pleasant sound.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

'tis the season

http://www.creepychristmas.net/

There's nothing more descriptive I can say than that. Just go there.

(The content really is quite creepy)

lulz

this and this gave me a chuckle.

(The embed code on the video didn't work.)

OMG I CANT BELIEVE I FOUND THIS

This is so awesome I can't believe I found this in a pile of crap from high school.

I have described this totally meaningful piece of art to everyone who reads this blog.

behold.

110% original. by hand. took HOURS.

totally worth second place ;)

This is why i hate computers

This. This. This makes me sick...

WHY CANT SANE PEOPLE DESIGN COMPUTER INTERFACES!!@!!!?!?!?

SCIENCE!

I know some of us already read Pharyngula, but this article is too effing cool to pass up: investigators have used an MRI to read images off the visual cortex.

Louis CK And the Future of America

I think it's interesting to find this much wealth of wit in a comedian. I can't say I disagree with him on some of his more practical points of view. We need a society that values contributions first and formost. And, at least based on some of the people i've been forced to work with at work, we really do need a larger appreciation for who we are as a society. There's so much unhappiness and grief that elicits more grief and unhappiness - it's disheartening and pitiful.

TheFLC chatroom: More Blog PMO

Hey everyone,
I know I've been doing a lot of random overhead shit lately for the blog, but I've just got so many mediocre ideas...

So here's my latest one: We're almost universally on AIM, so what if we all joined a common chat channel. We all seem to have a pretty good time when we orgify...

I nominate "TheFLC" as the chat room name. Here's how to set it up in iChat:
1) open iChat
2) from File, select Go To Chat Room...

3) enter TheFLC into the chat room name
4) add the room to your favorites list by clicking the "+" in the bottom-left corner.
5) click the auto-join check box to join the room whenever you open iChat. The cool kids and I have agreed that this is the correct procedure, but auto-join is 'technically' optional...

6) hit join
7) sate my loneliness

KTHXBAI

Perhaps it is a slow week for news...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081210/sc_nm/us_religion_perfume_2

Summary:

Some archaeologists found some perfume from the time of Christ, in his old neighborhood. There's this book about him that says he got his feet washed by a lady of sketchy reputation from the other side of the tracks? Therefore, this ancient perfume might be sort of like the kind that that person or another person of the same time period may or may not have used to possibly wash feet that were maybe his. Sooo...yeah.

As an afterthought, finding nearly 2000-year-old perfume is kinda cool by itself. I guess. I wonder what it smells like.

I would like to point out that this article is filed under (and made of) SCIENCE.

Somebody seriously needs to market a "Christ's Feet" scent for perfumes. And candles. CHA CHING

In the spirit of bizarre yet alluring musical renditions...

Who said the [shirtless] accordion can't be sexy?

I don't know how the accordion works, but it looks frickin complicated.

I think I'm in love.

I know this might be old news to some of you, but I just saw this video tonight. It makes me feel like I'm 14 again with a crush on a pop star. I mean, I actually giggle when I watch this.

If you don't want to watch the whole thing, fast forward to one minute in. That's what I'm talking about. :)

an animation

this is a little bit bloody

it reminds me of the dead-soldier-in-the-afterlife film in the animation show.

A musical recommendation

Those that like Guster may enjoy Wilco.
You may now resume your normal activities.

Oh my Blog!

there was a huge creationist/ atheist debate over the weekend, here in cicny, and I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW!
for those that don't know the Cincinnati Zoo wanted to do a sales promotion for the holidays with the Creation Museum, i.e. buy tixs to both at a reduced price, something they do with the Reds, ect.
then the internets got a hold of this news. Blogs and email crusades followed, resulting in the deal not going forward.

Don't Panic

in case you ever become an alien on your own planet, or get stuck in the uk for a while. the bbc has got your back. just remember to bring your towel.

Crazy-awesome

I found a cool website. I recommend you start at the beginning and just click through all the entries. None of them is very long, and they're all sort of awesome.

For example, this is as close to hell as people get. Oh, and guess who created it? Humans was the correct answer...we were looking for humans. But it looks effing cool.

Also, comprehensive sex ed from Germany and a bizarre Super Mario World-esque island fur realz.

OH! And we read this creep-tastic book in my family violence class.

Dirty Vegas Single

The following was posted by Steve Smith via MySpace:

well, what can we say?
after a four year break we are about to release our first single as Dirty Vegas.

a break like that gives you chance to really fall in love with music again and become fans again, not slaves to a record label.

after a writing week in London earlier this year and another in the US in October, we all feel we have the makings of a great album!.

'Pressure' which certainly feels apt for times like these, is our first digital single back into the scene from where we came....House Music!.

Pete Tong, David Guetta and Tom Novy are all championing this track and Ibiza-Voice has called it, "an intensely emotive, truly distinctive slice of clubbing gold that's destined to follow 'Days Go By' to become a genuine classic!
we are working our butts off so that we can get out there and play live again in 2009!
Peace
Steve
XXX

This is insane... in a sense...

'nuff said.

KBR causes me to lose faith in humanity. 

What a giant dick.

(Please do insinuate anything sexual from that.)

I will have a cake like these some day. Even if I buy it for myself.

shared posts

in the continuing effort to enhance the blog, I've added a shared articles widget on the side. After I get home tonight Im going to add your guyses feedses to the widgetses. I tried to get it to work with notes, but maybe we can save that feature for later.

please let me know if you want me to keep the shared feeds private.

Beatbox Fame Game
Uploaded by loranger

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BLOG?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?F:KJS LKFJ;djklsadg;lkasjafas;ogie;roitje;rlgjnsd/klbnma/d;lknj'

Looking for criticism of religion in all the wrong places

While preparing my last comment for my prior post, I came across this. And in my mind, simply because Uncyclopedia is an internet satire, it isn't a place I'd be actively looking on my weekly religion crit hunt.

It caught me off guard. Anybody else have any good examples of accidental religious nya nya nya?

This is where we live.

Does anyone else think "World AIDS Day" sounds a little cheery for what it's supposed to be recognizing? Call me a crazy, cynical asshole, but I swear it sounds celebratory.

Ideas for the blog

Hey all,
So this thing has been around for a little bit, and aside from the little hiccup with the ads, I think it's been going relatively well.

I HOPE YOU AGREE.

At any rate, I've been messing around with the layout and the various sidebars. Today I added the RSS stuff at the bottom and the post history on the right. check it out.

One other idea that I had that maybe some people could provide some input on is whether or not we should get a full domain for this thing. It's $10 a year, and familylearningchannel.com is open. $10 isn't too much to really put a damper on the plans, but I thought I'd get some input from you guys before I did it anyways.

If we did that though, maybe we could try the ads again. I think the sex-based ones were primarily because of the semi-sex-based nature of the blog itself.

Lastly, and certainly not leastly, I really would like to hear from you guys if there's anything you want for this thing. Seriously.

I still don't believe you.

Urbandictionary is a vile place full of lying stupid idiots.

Relief never felt so goddamned relieving

This thing has very seriously been sitting on my desk/table since I originally mentioned it nearly two monthsago , although I'm pretty sure it did very little to motivate me. I've submitted my online applications and application fees; today I went to the post office twenty minutes before it closed to get my Penn State application stuff overnighted. Tomorrow I just have to take my Michigan envelopes to the post office and send them off. Next week I have to figure out why my boss hasn't submitted her online letter of recommendation yet, and then it will be smooth sailing until it's acceptance/rejection letter time in March or April. I can breathe again.

I have applied to the University of Michigan and the Pennsylvania State University because they are the only two schools in the country that offer joint Ph.D. programs in Psychology and Women's Studies. I was going to apply to a California school or two, but none of them were a good fit. Even Berkelely, the only UC to offer a Ph.D. program in clinical psychology, just didn't feel right. Their program is much more empirical-research-based and less practice-focused. I didn't get to apply to Wright State University like I had planned because I discovered, at the last minute, that they require the GRE Psychology Subject Test, which I have not taken (because I thought I had checked and that none of my schools required it). I have been considering applying to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln because they have a good program and because applying to three schools will make me feel better than applying to two, but I just don't feel as good about it as I do about Michigan and Penn. Do I really want to live in Nebraska? Could I be happy there? At this point, I seriously doubt the answer to either of those questions could ever be "yes" or even "maybe, sort of?".

So. The enormous weight that I have been carrying on my shoulders and in my stomach for over a year has been lifted, and it will have fallen off completely by December 5th, which is the later of the two deadlines. I just felt like writing this out. I'll refer back to this when I'm writing my tirades about getting in or not getting in to grad school, and I'll have a nice little chain of blog entries past to which I can link.

Also good news: all of my student loans have successfully been put into forbearance, at least while I'm doing AmeriCorps. Now I get to re-learn what it's like to live without the constant nagging pressure of worry and dread. I'm unbelievably excited for the holidays. Too excited to even criticize the Puritan assholes who founded this country.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

It's just like Rock Band, except the instruments are real!!!!

I don't really know anything about Rush except that their music is pretty weird, and they have that one song that's in Rock Band. It's kind of cool to watch them play it for reals. Also, the interview is funny.

roflpwn

cool images part ii

these are fantastic.

cool images

I especially like "liberty and justice" on the illustration/stock page.

Oh Abortion, how I love your never-ending controversy.

No God for you, silly Obama voter!
Did someone say something about the separation of church and state?
Seriously?

Ancient Rome in Google Earth

Short post, got to get to work soon, but this came through the trucks (FUCK sorry I meant the tubes) a few days ago, and I thought it worth mentioning.

Check it.

when your best defense is a strobe light attached to your sword?

Ashley and I discovered this: What do Napoleon, Lenin, and Caesar have in common?

Other than being megalomanicas who were a little bit batshit crazy, they all (probably) had epilepsy. It's an impressive list, actually.

An Excellent Punch at Religion

Leftism Versus Liberalism

I was having an argument with a co-worker the other day. It went something like this:

Co-worker: I believe that countries with socialist governments are better off.
Me: A reasonable thesis, what are your metrics? (I proceed to pull up the HDI by the UN)
Co-worker: Well, there are really liberal countries like Norway -
Me: Wait, don't say 'liberal.' Socialism isn't liberal.
CW: Sure it is.
Me: No, socialism might be a leftist ideology, but it sure as hell isn't liberal.
CW: What do you mean?
Me: Well, countries with socialist governments typically have to tax more, which isn't a liberal idea, and a lot of the time they also have to engage in protectionism.
CW: That is being liberal...

So, the conversation diverged and we both decided that the office wasn't a great place to have a political discussion, but I thought I might bring it up here. The left has some great ideas, and I understand why a lot of people get the two confused. But make no mistake, Liberalism is not Leftism.

I've had this discussion with Scott, who, for all his merits, is a Leftist. Liberalism I believe can best be currently summarized by the primary tenet of individuals rights. For this reason, I think we can generalize the Constitution as a liberal document, as (at least the way I have interpreted it) that was its primary focus. Many of the founding fathers did also agree with me verbally on this.

Here are some things that I see as being leftist but not liberal:
• Regulations on Free Trade
• Government Mandatory Union Laws
• Social Security
to name a paltry few. I'm not anti-Union, you might note, and I don't think of myself as a perfect liberal. I do like to think that I try to think about individual's rights when I decide if an idea is worth supporting though...

And what better time to discuss all this than on the heels of one of the most leftist idea's I've seen in a long time. Obama thinks it's a good idea to require high school and college students to work a minimum amount of hours in community service. Hearing this idea made me cringe. America needs a socialist president right now. With the economic recession around the corner and the effects looming, public works are going to be the lifeblood of the country in the coming years. That said, it sickens me to hear that he proposes what is essentially a draft. America was built on the individual's drive for merit. The individual must be given a choice to succeed or fail. Obviously it's not that cut and dry, but the idea is a relative one. To take advantage of the environment and brain that you have been given by 'god' (because I still don't know how we select what body we're put into) or to accept the status quo and allow ones self to be consumed by mere existence. I don't believe humans are destined for any particular situation, but I think the path is clear. Upwards and onwards, so to speak.

No, I will not engage in any nihilistic arguments.

I think the timing of this is doubly interesting as Amanda just posted on Ayn Rand. I think Rand can espouse the individual bullshit I've been talking about here way better than I, and likewise Nietzsche over Rand.

Anyways, discuss further in the comments. I'd like to know what you guys think of all this, especially since I happen to know we're all at least marginally Obama supporters.

Oh, and for the record, I think I'm currently closest to Libertarian.

Photographs. Again. :)

Leaves in my driveway.

I recently got a new camera. It's pretty awesome. (A Nikon D90, for any inclined to research.)

These are kinda in the opposite order of how I wanted them. And this top one is just rebellious? . . . Blogger is a dick, I guess.

I'm really looking forward to next semester when I'll be taking a photography class. I'm excited to actually learn how to do this and get some feedback. Some of these are from before I had my new camera. I'd be interested to see if the quality difference is noticeable to any of you . . .

Winston. He's quite photogenic.

Ginger. 

A really cool pink bus I found around the Dayton area. 

Sharon Woods.

Some graffiti. Along the wall where I found the pink bus.

Leaves in my yard. I'm a sucker for leaves.

One of those fantastic moments of being in the right place at the right time.  This was at Sharon Woods on top of a little waterfall. 

Carmel, California.

Point Lobos, California.

Point Lobos, California.

Point Lobos, California.

Alcatraz Island.

Golden Gate Bridge. As you probably guessed.

Point Lobos, California. Another one of those moments. Dave can attest to how awesome these guys were.

Point Lobos, California.

I had to be the first . . .

 . . . to thank Ohio for not fucking up this time.

Y'all better VOTE, bitches.

Also, free coffee @ Starbucks.

Why didn't I think of this?

riled up again!

so i had posted my own personal defense of marriage, of anyone a few days ago right?
so my thoughts are still the same and pretty fresh.
this is when my sisters friend stops by for resume help. mind you he spent all 3 hours playing on her macbook, bashing macs, and not actually fixing or making a resume
he then decided to , make himself further known as richard the dick. he decides hes going to "have a conversation about abortion" " let's talk about politics" meanwhile he spouts very vehemently that hes for obama, but cant vote for a black man, nor does he support pro choice anything, nor should gays marry or adopt, or have "natural" children. (did i mention he was a member of the cicny police force? no? and no one ever thinks cops are biased or racists.....)
and he wants my opinon on these issues, knowing i know a lot about these issues from a historical factor, also, he knows, or my sis has told him im a crazy liberal. i do not in fact consider myself as such. im not liberal about anything but equal rights really.
so my response, i gape at him, tell him to read guns germs and steel, then show him how to reserve a request and hold at the library
also i wont burn him cds.
im pretty sure he thinks im an evil cold hearted bitch. i hope so, maybe then he will stop provoking me and let me be. or better yet not loiter in my house for 4 hours bithcing he dosent want to work anything that involve actual skill or brain power, and payes better than 30 bucks an hour.......... i went to my room, shut the door, put on head phones, grabbed my book and retreated to my happy place, where vampires and werewolves are in love with the same girl...

I dreamed I had woken up without the ability to control my eyes. I couldn't move them to look at what I wanted to see, and I couldn't focus them. It effectively rendered me blind. It was terrifying.

I kind of really like my job?

Which is a really weird thing to say. I guess this is what meaningful employment feels like. I know that I am lucky, and I am trying to be more appreciative of what I have. I'm pretty openly selfish, which I don't consider to be a wholly bad or unusual thing, but I at least want to balance it out.

In the class I am an aide for, every continent is represented except Australia. We have students from Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Romania, Sweden, Italy, Turkey, and Iran. I tutor 3 Koreans, 3 Japanese, 1 Chinese, 1 Venezuelan, 1 Turkish, 1 Sudanese, and 1 Vietnamese. My highest level is a medical doctor in his home country here to take master's level classes. My lowest level is a refugee who is illiterate in her native language, can have a conversation in English, but whose only writing consists of putting letters together to make the simplest of words. They're all pretty amazing people, I think. There are more, of course; those are just the people I am in contact with on a weekly basis. It makes me feel privileged to know English.

Also, meaningful employment, in my case, means I get paid not a wage or salary but a "living allowance." It's basically a stipend, meant to be enough for me to survive. And that's all it is. Rather, it should be more than enough for me to survive, but I am still adjusting to the notion that I cannot simply purchase anything I want any moment that I want it. I am starting to notice a few of the absurd American privileges I usually take for granted. It's too early to tell, but I think this is going to be really good for me.

Lonely Days

So today was long. I ended the day at 7:30 because of a goddamned weekly status meeting. I've been sick lately and in the meeting it felt like the whole room was turning into a boiler. Started to freak out midway through, pretty sure I had a mini panic attack. Got a call from a friend that we were all gunna hang out at 8, but that he needed a ride. Told him I wouldn't be back until 8:30. 8:15 rolls around and I realize I'm not going to be able to provide. I HATE going back on plans. I know I know. I make plans sometimes thinking I'll be able to do things that I obviously can't. Anyways...

Stomach is in knots. Parents are out of town and when I came home all I had was Max.

I hate being alone. I'll be getting a place downtown soon. Anyone who can look for a job in Sac should start looking now. I'll post the actual address when it's official. But, I can definitely support people for a while while they look...

HRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

all riled up!

so dave sent me a link....
and things worked out from there in my head all day. now i do not know the person in question, but his post is here on facebook
this is my response
feel free to comment on your own!

Marriage:
-A bond of two people in love, declaring each other for one another alone.
Marriage:
-A contract signed between two parties cementing inheritance , rights and property. A merging of assets in two families.

Which do you think is more important?
It depends on when you lived, or where you live. If you think both are true for the average American family, you are kidding yourself. Love matches, or what we think of when we think white dress wedding bells, is a verymodern idea. Meaning the idea that you can choose your mate, and not only choose, but love them. This was completely unheard of just a few hundred years ago. You cite Judaism as the start of marriage, right area of the world, off by a thousand years. Look to the creation myths of the ancient Sumerians, Enki and Ninhursag, a precursor of the genesis myths. And yes, genesis is a myth, a story, with thousands of variations and interpretations. Meaning, you can’t find the definition of marriage in Adam and Eve. If you do, you’re forgetting Lillith. Marriage as it was known then was contracted selling of one sex to another family. It was never a merger of equals, never a merger of rights, never about love. Sex was often forced. Young girls often as young as 12 were sold off by their families to another, to unite grazing areas, political influence and cash value for dowries.
Using the bible as a scapegoat for marriage is fine, if you are only talking about religion. But this is not the case in modern marriage. This is sanctioned by the church and the state. You need a license from the government as well as a religious ceremony to seal the deal as it were. You can however have a wedding without involving any religion whatsoever. That is the appeal of keeping it simple or having a judge or captain wed two people.
Civil law should have the right to marry two equals, no matter what the laws. Recent marriage laws had to take into the fact that women were not the equal of men. they were “other” “ non-male” why should people who happen to love someone of the same sex be treated any differently under the eyes of the law? Laws change, they are beyond religion and faith of one person, or a group of people. They have the responsibility to hold values for all. Not just Christians. Or if this is purely and economic issue, would you deny marriage to two Buddhist lesbians? Two Shinto gay men? Santeria? Aboriginal? If this is a religion issue, we must avoid the use of ONE religion as the foundation of values. And I do not accept the argument that western culture is Christianity, because it could just as easily be Baal or Juno we worship rather than Yahweh. Thought it would be completely fitting to put this denial of equal rights of some over the comfort of others. That is fitting with the treatment of “non conformists” with the Christian tradition. Burn the heretics, kill the Jews and Muslims, convert and pray. Is this really what we want? Conformity? By denying some the rights of all, it is what we are doing. Pressuring some to conform, or in this case deny who they are in order to receive “fair” treatment.

Architecture for the masses

There is a point I've come to realize in the past few years. When it comes to art or architecture or design in general, one can never know if it will be praised or loathed. what makes a masterpiece is entirely subjective, and usually what the critics like. Rarely is there the Monet or Manet that rises to the point of super stardom after the critics in the time of the releases lampooned them as cheap or low art.
Such is the case with the Chanel Pavilion in Central Park. Despite the overall sense of commercialism, based on the image and concept, one would think it would be praised as much as Christo's Gates a few years back. yet, the author of the review scorns it, saying its a sell out, and not with the ideal of the park.
Maybe its the fact that it is a negative Times review, but i find it refreshing to see someone no oohing and ahhing over the latest ideal of concept architecture.

I was looking through my dad's library and found a 200-year-old book. I think that's pretty cool.

its a cartoon off!

your and mine favorite comic is put to the test!

Nostalgia

Did anyone else read these books when you were younger?















I did. A lot. I checked them out from the school library over and over again, even though they terrified me for the most part. The stories and illustrations still haunt me today. Yesterday I saw all three of them for sale at a thrift store. I almost bought them, but I thought it was probably better to leave them for someone else.

Banksy

I know a lot of people here are fans (or should/would if they could) of Banksy. I've been looking all morning for a print from him for when I move, and everything I see I can identify with in my classical libertarianism/sense of humor. In my searches, I came across a site called "Pictures on Walls." You know a site is big when you see abbreviations for it on other sites (POW) and don't know what it means until you finally find a link. Point being, there's a ton of really great stuff from people other than Banksy on POW and you should all look at it.

However, it looks like this site is sort of a clearing house for these artists, and is kind of perpetually sold out of prints. If you're similarly desirous of a Banksy print, you might have to look elsewhere.

Personal fave: the rats.

Fuck Sarah Palin.

Okay. The other day on (possibly) digg.com I saw an article about a "Sarah Palin porno." My understanding was that someone basically had a casting call for Sarah Palin lookalike porn actors and is planning to make a porn that features a Palin-esque leading lady. I chuckled when I read it. I asked myself: Am I as a feminist offended by this? The answer was no. Although I think pornography as it exists today is, for the most part, anti-feminist in nature, this is overwhelmed by my belief in free speech. It seemed perfectly natural that in 2008, politics have changed along with our culture and political candidates have become celebrities. And that someone would put a character in a porn film with the intention of parodying Mrs. Palin. Because the performance would have been parody.

However, today I was reading about the Sarah Palin sex doll, and I was disgusted. The first bulleted point in the ad is "Sarah Palin makes sexism sexy." I remembered the Palinporn incident and wanted to try to figure out why my reaction to one of these incidents was a shrug and the other so much more severe.

I think it's because I thought of the porn as a parody. I assumed the title would be something about Miss Alaska or have a reference to the vice president in it, but I assumed Sarah Palin's name would be left out. They would have at least made an atrocious pun. (I briefly considered attempting one, but I'll refrain.)

Perhaps a porno featuring a look-alike of a male presidential candidate has never happened (Although Nixon seems like he was begging for it); I haven't done any research on that. But we parody everything in our culture. The parodies of politicial figures of SNL have been going on since the show came on (nearly 30 years ago), and the Clinton sex scandal opened the door for our leaders' sex lives to be talked about openly. (As opposed to Kennedy's sex life, which was an open secret that nobody talked about openly.) The SNL skits about Clinton weren't pornography, but they did tend in sort of the same direction.

The fact that there exists for purchase a Sarah Palin Sex Doll offends me because in our sex-soaked culture that would never happen to a male candidate. If Sarah Palin were a male vice presidential candidate, this would never have happened. I will admit, though, that I think the degree of absurdity and ridiculousness demonstrated by Sarah Palin probably does have something to do with it:


There's talk about whether people's remarks are sexist or not, whether a particular claim made about Clinton or Palin was sexist, but these days people for the most part know to watch what they say when a microphone is in front of their face (with occasional exceptions). You have to look other places for the nebulous remains of sexism. The existence of a sex doll of Sarah Palin, brazenly stating Sarah Palin's name in the title, screams sexism. I'm not saying it should be censored or that they should be stopped or anything. I'm not saying that Sarah Palin sex dolls are the problem, but they are a symptom that the problem is still there.

I think (hope?) this is the closest I will ever get to defending Sarah Palin.

Another One . . .

Wow.

While more terrifying than funny, this article reveals the sheer hypocrisy, double-standards, and opportunistic demagoguery of the McCain-Palin campaign. Not that you had to look very hard anyway.

talk nerdy to me

A theme is emerging.

science is fun

this is really cool. a guy accidentally stuck his head in a particle accelerator and got blasted with protons moving at the speed of sound, apparently. and lived. so this is what would have happened if Tony Shalhoub had gotten stuck inside one.

Sacramento's got a giant vagina

Yes, we do. And, it's more anatomically correct than the one from Korea that I mentioned earlier.

Moving and moving on.

It's raining and I'm taking my second sick day in a row off work.

I love it when it rains in Sacramento. It makes me feel like I'm in front of a hearth, warmed by a fire. Even when I'm not. Inexplicable, right?

Anyways, the real reason I'm posting is because for the first time, I've been looking seriously at apartments. I'm getting paid on Tuesday, and depending on the size of that check, I could move fairly soon. Combinatorial, I'll be getting my first credit card in a few days, which could help with my moving situation too. So, moving has been on my mind. I won't be making a ton of money right out, but just the desire is enough for me to just jump the gun so I can get my own place and not worry about silly things like a couch or dinner table.

The desire is to make my life my own, and that is happening.

I have a good job that I can do decently (well enough to avoid getting fired). It's made me think back to school and how much I hated certain parts of it. How, if it came down to just exams, I'd have failed out.

Every so often, I get the feeling like I'm at a cusp. Graduation oddly didn't feel this way. Going to Miami the first time definitely did, but leaving somehow felt like things didn't end. Maybe because I chose to not walk. Dunno. Back then, it was a shock, and I sent an email to a bunch of people all at once. The only response I got was from my high school French teacher.

But moving out, with the pressure low and the first storm in seemingly over a year in Sacramento looming, does. Realizing that for the most part I'm already financially independent. Realizing that soon, we'll start to fill our living rooms with playpen balls. That soon, we will have what we choose. Not the corporate townhouse with a million plasma tv screens, or the rural cabin with no manner of communication, but our future. Just seems so... foreign.

It reminds me of how many people at my work seem to have such a singular track. I know that when I say I work ten or eleven hours a day, people assume the same from me. I know that there is an expectation from those in my position to push themselves harder and further just from the opportunities to do so.

Anyways, this is just me rambling. I know I have it good and I'm not trying to rub it in anyone's face. I'm trying to preserve the moment so that in six months, I can look back and see how naive i was.

An earnest attempt at self-motivation

I really need to get on this shit. Perhaps my sense of dread is a sign about my future?

Who's excited to see Biden whoop Palin during the VP Debate on Thursday? I am!

:'(

i have a bad feeling in my stomach about what is happening in the economy right now...

American Psycho Broadway Style

I wonder if there will be a Phil Collins Song in this

A fun mad-lib?

Today I went grocery shopping. On my way home, I saw a man standing on a corner waving a sign at cars that said "Abortion kills [noun]." I was driving, so I didn't catch the bottom. You can fill it in as you desire. I like "Christians," personally, but I'm an optimist.

As most of my acquaintances know, I am unflinchingly pro-choice, in all situations, the end. Seeing this guy made me wish a little bit that I still had those giant "Vote Pro-Choice" signs so I could stand on the corner opposite him and balance things out a little bit. It also raised my heart rate a tad, but I just went home.

It did, however, trigger a memory that I now realize is my earliest memory of having an opinion about this issue. I didn't know the term "pro-choice," and I probably barely understood what abortion was, but looking back, even if I couldn't name it, that was it.

I was on the school bus home. I was sitting with a girl named Jessica somebody who lived a few houses down from my grandparents. We were friends for part of elementary school. I remember it was close to election time, and it was definitely a Clinton election. So I'm guessing it was his second term in 1996. Somehow, as unlikely as it sounds that ten-year-olds would be discussing politics, it came up.

Jessica said (obviously regurgitated from her parents) that Clinton was bad because he was for abortion. She explained that abortion is where a woman is pregnant and someone gives her a shot or a pill (inaccurate, but prophetic) or something and it kills the baby. My approximate response was, "Only if that's what you want. It's not like he wants to do that to everybody."

Even at ten, it seemed perfectly reasonable to me that someone might get pregnant by mistake, and might choose not to actually have the child. Not just reasonable, intuitive. I don't know where I got that attitude; it isn't as if my parents were terribly forthcoming about sexuality or pregnancy or politics. But it was there, and it hasn't wavered.

So, vote pro-choice.

I'm a nerd.

I love language. That's no secret. I'm going to make it my beeswax to use the following archaic/obsolete/unusual words more often, and perchance inspire a language revolution?

methinks: I think, it seems to me
mayhap/perchance: perhaps, it may happen, possibly
overmorrow: day after tomorrow [from German übermorgen--extraordinarily useful. we need a word like this]
verily: in fact, certainly
usward: toward us
flibbertigibbet: flighty, gossipy, whimsical person [admittedly, I'm just very partial to this word]
penultimate: next-to-last. [I learned this word first in Spanish (penúltimo, and also antepenúltimo, next-to-next-to-last). Apparently, there's also preantepenultimate, three from the end.]

Please add to my list. If you want.

google ads....

I don't know how google ads works per se. I always believed it was something relative to the topic matter or of the same genre of the page in question.
Now the question is, does google think our blog is, um lacking something. True the female posters out number the male, but really? I didnt know we needed " enlargement". I dont think I need this right now , thanks google. I really dont feel the need to be "Shocked" right now, I got enough going on in my life. Less shock would be helpful, do you have something to help that? Maybe we should keep using words like douche- because it will make it more feminine. In all honesty, I found this to be quite amusing. I can't wait to see breast pumps or tampon ads. OOh maybe a swedish maid penis enlarger pump:P
* ps * when once posted, the ads, were still the same

Science (fiction)

Last night, in the wee hours of the morning (when else?) there was a 1995 X-Files episode on Scifi featuring a younger and adorably disheveled Tony Shalhoub as a physicist researching dark matter with a particle collider. I can't imagine that this was a coincidence, as CERN's LHC went online yesterday. Since reading this book, I am kind of excited to see what is and isn't found at the LHC.

In the episode, Shalhoub's character accidentally got locked in the room with the colliding particles, and he survived, but his shadow was burned onto the wall where he stood (think There Will Come Soft Rains). From then on, Tony Shalhoub's shadow, whether cast on a wall or the floor, instantly incinerated anyone who "contacted" it. Meaning, if his shadow's on the floor and your foot gets in the way, you're a goner.

X Files =/= the Twilight Zone, but it was cool.

Sim City Shanghai

This is crazy! Lets see what else cheap, talented labor from China can do. For more info, check out FlowingData.

Lulz

Poor, poor Jesus.

O.o

What the hell . . . ?

Just doing my part...

I pretty much hate politics pundits these days.

Maybe there is justice in the world?

This made me feel warm and fuzzy inside to read. Via this.

Who knew Enzyte came from Cincy? It fucking figures Ohio would be involved somehow.

comments and tags

im a firm believer in both
so do as much as possible

McCain is a douche.

Meta blogging

Fractals are kick ass anyone want to experiment in making one- this is a brush pallate reminds me of electric sheep

Science is fun!

WIN.

Huge Breakthrough in Fish Cancer Research!

Why don't you guys ever comment on my articles? I know it was a hook line and sinker, but i thought maybe if I tailgated steph's article maybe you guys would actually read it?

Tell me why you don't discuss... in the discussion!

Blogs, Comments, and the lack of faith in humanity

Now as this it endeavor itself is a blog, this is a tad hypocritical. Maybe since most of "our" comments are meant in jest or corrallation, it might not be as bad. But I find that the more comments i read on blogs or posts, especially targeted at "Middle America" I find my trust in the better nature of humans falling in each in every post. maybe its the painful realization, that now that I'm out side of the collegiate, academic and traditionally socalily liberal environment, I don't understand those who are convinced anyone who is not, 1) Christian, 2) Republican, 3) Pro- life, and 4) Creationist is insane and not worth being human. Maybe it's just Cincinnati, or Ohio, or the Midwest, but this is not the environment I can see myself growing into a valued member of society.
If you ever feel like testing this theory, that If one reads comments, ip so facto, one becomes disgusted with humans. Let's test it any day on let's say the reputable newspaper of the Cincinnati Enquirer. This is but one example, but any article from as mundane as announcements are fraught with what I consider reasons to leave and emigrate to Britain or Germany. I might do that anyway.

Tool, indeed.

I keep seeing commercials for this ridiculous object:

It's a shower pouf. Or a mesh sponge. Axe calls it a "Detailer Shower Tool," because putting it into the vocabulary of cars and machinery and packaging it like a Craftsman tape measure makes it butch. It costs around three or four times what a mesh sponge costs.

[[On a small (potentially insignificant?) scale, this is an illustration of a concept I have encountered many times in feminist discourses. In order to gain power, subjugated groups sometimes strive to be like the (perhaps misguided) dominant group, e.g., women take to wearing clothing traditionally only worn by men (pants), or otherwise aspire to seem more like men (shoulder pads) in order to be seen as their equal. It is much less likely that a dominant group will strive to take on the characteristics of a subjugated group ([most] men don't aspire to dress like women). In other words, taking the simplistic example of attire, there has been a gradual equalizing over several decades of the types of clothing it is acceptable for men and women to wear. Both have shirts and pants and shorts. There are still men's and women's versions to account for bodily proportions and other social cues (like color and material), but the differences tend not to be of kind. However, this equality arises from the subjugated group (i.e. women) taking on characteristics of the dominant group (men), not the other way around. It was not a two-way street. Characteristics of the subjugated group, if possessed by members of the dominant group, seem out of place, inappropriate, and negative. (Men dressing as women, men being emotional, etc.)]]

So, even though a mesh sponge or sponge or loofah or shower pouf might sometimes be a convenient way to wash oneself in the shower, it's a gendered item. Women use shower poufs and loofahs. They are not butch. But Axe wants badly to market them to men. Bill O'Reilly (butch!) isn't even clear on what a loofah is, whether he should sexually harass women with it, or eat it in a Mediterranean restaurant. Ay, there's the rub. Axe has probably spent millions of dollars on ads that tell men that women will find them sexually attractive if they smell good (read: like Axe). Axe has been slowly pushing perfumed personal hygiene products on men--gently, so as not to scare them--for several years. The shower pouf seems a bit radical. Also, faggy? Butch guys do not want to seem faggy. They want to be sexually attractive to women, not other men! Axe has made it very clear that the scents contained in its products are engineered to be attractive to women. How do they solve this marketing predicament?

Fucking Detailer Shower Tool.

For those of you . . .

 . . . who (really fucking) hate Rosanne Barr: 

This may give you a chuckle.

This may cast you into a pit of despair so deep and so consuming it seems inescapable.

I would expect nothing more from a woman who grabs her crotch after singing the Star Spangled Banner at a professional baseball game.

Leave it to Rosanne Barr to keep it classy. (wink)

Korea's (got a) Giant Va-jay-jay

Half Dose #52: Ewha Womans University Campus Center

Seoul, Korea has erected a building at the Ewha Woman's University that ArchiDose "recalls the Velodrome & Pool he designed for Berlin", I would say severely undercuts the issue here. Not that there really is an issue here, but I'm not sure the Burj Dubai would fit in that thing. Seriously though, we have waaaay to many penis-resembling buildings.

Big props to Archidose.

ARE YOU PRO-SKUBB OR ANTI-SKUBB!?

Casper & Casper: The Real Initech

Thank sweet baby Jesus that school is starting soon, because I'm not sure how much more time I can spend in an office this summer. While I am thankful for the weekly paycheck, the time I have spent under the flourescent lights and between the filing cabinets has been quite enough, thank you very much.

For those of you who don't know, I was working at the small law firm of Casper & Casper (whose ad has graced the back cover of the phonebooks in the Cinci area for years) for the summer. I won't go into the details of the horrifying tediousness of my job as file clerk, but I will say that my time here has given me plenty of experience in "read this 558 page medical record and tell me when this guy had that surgery", "scan this", and "I need 24 copies of this by noon". 

One aspect of my job is to close and update files, which entails calling clients to ask them if anything in their often sad and pathetic lives has changed (for better or worse). I ask about new doctors, medications, tests, or if they have any questions about their claim, appeal, or hearing. Often, the clients don't know, or they do know and answer accordingly. But sometimes . . . sometimes I get someone who thinks they're too good to talk to a file clerk, someone who just wants his money, and, very rarely, someone who can't read the latest letter we've sent to them. These are the tough ones, but the ones I enjoy most, because, whether I laugh silently at them or help them read the letter in question, my day is made better.

And now, I believe I have provided enough context for my story.
The other day, I was calling a series of clients to discuss everything that I mentioned earlier. They all went without issue, and I finally worked my way down to the very last file of the day. I called the client, and this is the word for word dialogue that he and I shared on speaker phone:

"Hullo?"

"Hello, my name is Sara calling for Casper and Casper attorneys regarding your claim. Do you have a few minutes to talk, sir?"

"It's about fuckin' time you called me! Jesus, I've been waitin' around here forever waitin' to hear from SOMEONE."

(At this point, I turn to the rather cute law student paralegal with whom I share an office. He's already chuckling.)

"I'm sorry, sir, but we're doing the best we can to keep all of our clients up to date-"

"HK! HK!"

"I'm sorry?"

"HK!"

"Sir, would you mind answering a few questions, please? It will just take a moment."

"HK! HK!"

(It was at this point that I began to multitask and open Urban Dictionary to search for "HK." What the hell does HK mean?? I got several results, and came to the conclusion that this man was half-kidding about something, or calling me a man-eater. But neither really made sense. I decided to ignore it for that moment, and tried to see if he would answer something.)

"Have you been seeing any new doctors?"

"HK!"

"Are you on any new medications?"

"HK! HK! HK!"

(What the hell was this man saying? Cute Paralegal was laughing pretty hard now, and I was losing patience. I decided to go for the gold.)

"I'm sorry, sir, can you tell me what HK means?"

"HK! Who cares! HK! HK!"

(I raced to pick up the receiver and cover the speaker before Cute Paralegal and I burst into a fit of laughter. It was inappropriate, yes, but irresistible. I had learned earlier to never correct a client, so I left him to keep thinking "who cares" was spelled "hoo kares.")

"Sir, I care. We at Casper and Casper care."

"Bullshit!"

"If you would please just answer some questions with valid answers, we can  help you."

"What the hell is that s'posed to mean? You callin' my answer unvalid (sic)?"

"Sir, HK is not an answer."

"I don't care! HK! HK!"

"Thank you for your time, sir. We'll be sending you a letter regarding your case. Call us if you have any questions. 

You have our number?"

"HK!"

"Alright, then, have a nice day."

(It was, without a doubt, one of the funniest moments in my life, and I had to see how it would write.)

Joker + Real Estate Listing = win

Yes.

via

Mc Cain is Pirate!

I do not like to think of myself as knowing who I would like of the stupid men running for president. But I must say, that I'm beginning to hate Mc Cain. first off, his very famous celebrity ad is essentially mud throwing, something only the weak, and fearful do in my opinion. it means that he has nothing good to say about why he is worthy of the job, nor his plans once he gets there- mind you, none of them will happen, as we are not a dictatorship and the congress is still Democractic for the next year- good luck !
Anyway to add fuel to this very familliar fire, as an Ohio resident i get blessed to see this ad every time i turn on the television, let alone the olympics, you know that old yarn of brotherhood, peace and a sense of fair play. Never mind ad space is up to 750,000 . i would love to have just the funding of one ad!
and finally, John McCain is no better than the musical pirates that as, a GOP hes supposed to hate- oh wait, that's supposta! It seems his ad, not only uses images of celebrities like Paris or Britany, now hes on the RIAA's most wanted, or at least he should be. Wired has a great article on how much Mc Cain sucks- even more than what i said. I think we should so a photoshop contest or find one that shows either McCain as a pirate or a theif. Both look good on a resume of the next president.

I Get a Job, and Apple Rues the Day

So those of you who haven't heard yet, I got a job offer from Accenture programming in Java for the CalPERS. When I interviewed with my probable future boss, he seemed really chill and approachable. He mentioned he was just in Columbus (yes, that one) at OU, and I asked him what for: "It was a mission trip with my church." So there you have it.

Anyways, it looks like I have some pretty good perks - medical, dental, 401k, all the IKEA I can dream of... er, scratch that last one, I'm going to meet someone on a plane that will advise me to drink my own urine. So far, it looks like I'm going to have at least 18 days a year paid time off, so I'll probably be able to make it out for a little bit - in a while. I don't want them to get the wrong idea... yet. And I know none of you probably are looking for this, but Accenture has been such a pleasure to talk to through this entire thing that I just have to recommend them for anyone looking for their sort of gig. The CalPERS contract is a 6-year (4 years remaining) contract for the state of California, working on-site with real state employees.

Anyways, the real reason I chose to post this now was that I found out that Apple had a huge fire on their campus in Cupertino last night. Now I know what you're thinking - don't jump to conclusions, David. BUT I HAVE TO. Apple was a wretched hiring experience (from what I hear Ash and I went through similar stuff with our first prospective) which culminated in my not knowing for a good two weeks if they were planning on calling me back. (no, fuck it, I still don't know!)

So, without further ado Sara's favorite online IT newspaper reports on how the company which screwed with me has a three-alarm fire on the day that I got hired.

Oh, and if this seems too suspicious, I do have an alibi - I went out to dinner with the 'rents to FAT'S to celebrate while I assume this was going on.

So, apparently the Bible can't be used to entirely explain modern actions!?

Didn't even know this was going on, but... yay!

Via Pharyngula

Iggy Pop's Not so Hidden Message

While driving yesterday, I was listening to " the Sound" as is my wont when the dj made the comment that a song played previously was used in a cruise ship commercial, and the directors of said commercial were probably unaware of the content of the song. The song in question is Iggy Pop's "Lust for Life". It is a fun and bouncy song, and I've heard it on tv and else where a few times. Now as we all know, I can't hear lyrics worth a damn, and even more so when the singer is a punky British man. Thus my interest was piqued.

Here are the lyrics for your own personal reading pleasure. I happen to agree with the dj about the content and suitablity of cruiseship material, unless it has Cuba Gooding Jr. and Hortatio Sanz.

Here comes johnny yen again
With the liquor and drugs
And the flesh machine
Hes gonna do another strip tease.
Hey man, whered ya get that lotion?
Ive been hurting since Ive bought the gimmick
About something called love
Yeah, something called love.
Well, thats like hypnotizing chickens.

Well, Im just a modern guy
Of course, Ive had it in the ear before.
I have a lust for life
cause of a lust for life.

Im worth a million in prizes
With my torture film
Drive a gto
Wear a uniform
All on a government loan.
Im worth a million in prizes
Yeah, Im through with sleeping on the sidewalk
No more beating my brains
No more beating my brains
With liquor and drugs
With liquor and drugs.

Well, Im just a modern guy
Of course, Ive had it in my ear before
Well, Ive a lust for life (lust for life)
cause of a lust for life (lust for life, oooo)
I got a lust for life (oooo)
Got a lust for life (oooo)
Oh, a lust for life (oooo)
Oh, a lust for life (oooo)
A lust for life (oooo)
I got a lust for life (oooo)
Got a lust for life.

Well, Im just a modern guy
Of course, Ive had it in my ear before
Well, Ive a lust for life
cause Ive a lust for life.

Here comes johnny yen again
With the liquor and drugs
And the flesh machine
Hes gonna do another strip tease.
Hey man, whered ya get that lotion?
Your skin starts itching once you buy the gimmick
About something called love
Love, love, love
Well, thats like hypnotizing chickens.

Well, Im just a modern guy
Of course, Ive had it in the ear before
And Ive a lust for life (lust for life)
cause Ive a lust for life (lust for life)
Got a lust for life
Yeah, a lust for life
I got a lust for life
A lust for life
Got a lust for life
Yeah a lust for life
I got a lust for life
Lust for life
Lust for life
Lust for life
Lust for life
Lust for life