September 26, 2003
Bugatti Atlantic- oo la la
See many more such pics EU PC run riot
There are many holy places in the world, some of them shared by more than one religion and world-famous. There are some which are lesser known, but important nonetheless. For instance- bq. When we hear about the Middle East, we frequently hear about the holy places that are important to religious believers. Some date back to the beginning of recorded history. There are holy places that are mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. This is true about Israel and what may become Palestine and now we hear the same thing about Iraq. There are many shrines that Muslims regard as extremely holy. Iraqi tradition holds that Iraq was the Garden of Eden, the paradise created by God for man. Disobedience resulted in Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden. bq. Well, there is a holy place for some Christians, which is not as well known as those in the Middle East, but which has been understood as sacred ground for more than one thousand years. bq. I am referring to Mt. Athos. This holy mountain for Orthodox Christians is located on a peninsula in the northern part of Greece. It is occupied only by monks. In the Western church (mainly Roman Catholic) some monks teach or do social work or other kinds of worldly activism. In the Eastern Christian church (Orthodoxy) monks do only one thing. They pray. Sounds rather old-school and harmless, right? But noooooo- bq. Who could object to such an arrangement? The European Parliament, that's who. You see Mt. Athos is all male. Only males who are monks can reside there. Only males can visit. bq. That violates today's extremist ideology. That ideology demands that there never be separation between the sexes. No all-boy schools. Not even boys' choirs. Even in athletics there is a challenge to the male domination of some sports. bq. The European Union, when it was formed, adopted a position against discrimination of the sexes. But it granted an exemption to Mt. Athos because of its special status as a holy place. Now, however, the European Parliament is in the process of reconsidering that exemption. Naturally, it is the French who are taking the lead in this. An all-male monastery (duh!) is a threat to women's rights all over Europe. Bastards. Or do I mean bitches? Makes me want to puke. Read about it here and hopefully you'll be as outraged as I am.September 24, 2003
Joke of the day
bq. A squad of Infantrymen drove up the highway between Basra and Baghdad. They came upon an Iraqi soldier badly injured and unconscious. Nearby on the opposite side of the road was an American soldier in a similar state, but he was alert. As first aid was given to both soldiers, they asked what had happened. bq. The American soldier responded, "I was heavily armed and moving north along the highway. Coming south was a heavily armed Iraqi soldier". bq. "What happened then?" the medic asked. bq. "I told him Saddam Hussein was a miserable piece of shit, and then the Iraqi told me that Tom Daschle, Ted Kennedy, and Bill Clinton were miserable pieces of shit. bq. "We were shaking hands when the truck hit us." Thanks to Right Wing NewsSeptember 23, 2003
Engines to Warp Speed, Scotty
Another milestone in Burt Rutan's quest for the X-Prize has been passed-
bq. SpaceDev will now be the sole supplier of operating components for Scaled's hybrid motor. SpaceDev's highly innovative hybrid rocket motor technology uses nitrous oxide (N2O) or laughing gas, as an oxidizer, and hydroxy-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), or rubber, as the fuel. Both of these are inexpensive and can be safely transported and stored without special precautions, and will not explode when combined, thus making the ideal propulsion system for manned space vehicles.
bq. Rutan's SpaceShipOne is competing for the worldwide X-Prize, a $10 million purse to be awarded to the first person or team to fly a privately-funded suborbital spaceship 100km (62 miles) to the edge of space, return safely, and then fly again within two weeks.
Still on schedule as near as I can tell for the first flight before Christmas.
To the Universe, and beyond!
RTWT here.
September 19, 2003
Shuttle Stuff
Space Daily has an interesting article about what we've learned from the Space Shuttle after Columbia's demise- bq. The clock is ticking on the Space Shuttle program. Although the CAIB is publicly insisting that the Shuttle is "not inherently flawed", a close reading of their report reveals that they essentially share the views of the Shuttle's most extreme critics (such as its original chief designer Max Faget) who hold that it has reached the end of its safe life. Consequently, the Board has levied a requirement that the whole Shuttle system be retested and requalified by 2010. This would be impossibly expensive, given that many of its components and fuels are so old and dangerous that they would have to be replaced. I'm not sure we have either the will or the cash to do this, or even if we should- bq. Like the zeppelin, the spaceplane can be just barely made to work with an immense amount of skilled labor and public funding, but is so inefficient and dangerous that it would never compete with a vehicle designed specifically for the new medium of space from a clean sheet of paper. bq. The basic problems with airplane-like designs are numerous and crippling. Many of these problems are so bad that the Space Shuttle's engineers and flight controllers (the only people who deal with a real nuts-and-bolts spaceplane instead of an idealized fantasy vehicle) have developed well-justified phobias about them. These phobias were well in evidence during the doomed last flight of Columbia, and made significant but little-noted contributions to that catastrophe. Maybe with a little more input from the private sector we could actually make some progress instead of having a huge welfare program for cutting-edge 70's technology. Read the whole thing here, and be sure to read the follow-on article linked at the bottom.September 18, 2003
Get Back
The Beatles (or what's left of them) are going to release a new album- bq. “IT’S ALL EXACTLY as it was in the room. You’re right there now,” Paul McCartney said on Thursday of the album “Let It Be ... Naked.” After Abbey Road Studios put their 21st century digital technology to work on the original 1969 album, McCartney said of the no-frills result: “This is the noise we made in the studio.” Ringo Starr, the only other surviving member of the world’s most famous pop group, was equally re-assured by the new-look album. “When I first heard it, it was really uplifting,” the drummer said. “It took you back again to the times when we were this band, the Beatle band.” A statement from management company Apple Corps said the album will be released worldwide on November 17. It said the group had originally set out to make the 1969 album with no studio effects and no over-dubbing of voices and instruments. But the album was caught up in the turmoil of the band’s break-up. It was re-produced by Phil Spector and never released as the Beatles had originally intended. Hot damn. I can't wait. RTWT here.September 17, 2003
Fcuknig amzanig
Caught this over at Volokh- bq. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Fcuknig amzanig huh? Hhe. Idened.Opening Eyes
A Federal judge, Don Walters from Shreveport, Louisiana, describes his epiphany in Iraq- bq. I have seen the machines and places of torture. I will tell you one story told to me by the Chief of Pediatrics at the Medical College in Basra. It was one of the most shocking to me, but I heard worse. One of Saddam's security agents was sent to question a Shiite in his home. The interrogation took place in the living room in the presence of the man's wife, who held their three month old child. A question was asked and the thug did not like the answer; he asked it again, same answer. He grabbed the baby from its mother and plucked its eye out. And then repeated his question. Worse things happened with the knowledge, indeed with the participation, of Saddam, his family and the Baathist regime. Later, he makes a plea for our soldiers- bq. Our soldiers, God love them and keep them; they smiled every time I got a chance to talk to them. They want to come home, but I did not hear one word of complaint nor a question as to why they were there. This is boring, HOT, dirty, and dangerous work. They stand in 120 plus degrees in full body armor. They are amazing. Their entertainment was largely self-generated; boredom doesn't stop when they stand down. Write a letter, send a note or email; send a book, cd, tape, or magazine; do something. Read the whole thing here. Thanks to Lucianne for the pointer.September 16, 2003
Avast, Mateys!
Don't forget- Friday is Talk Like A Pirate Day, me hearties. Thanks ti Dave Barry for the pic.
September 15, 2003
Why Osama attacked
Walid Phares writes at Townhall.com about Osama bin Laden's motives for the 9/11 attacks- bq. It is one certainty that the man who ordered the destruction of the American centers of finances, military and political powers aimed at creating national chaos in the United States. The mass killing of civilians, including personnel in the military bureaucracy doesn’t produce a battlefield defeat as in the case of Pearl Harbor by way of comparison. While the element of strategic surprise –infamy- was the most common characteristic between the two aggressions, Nippon ultimate goal was to break down US military power in the Pacific, hence removing American deterrence from Japanese immediate designs in Asia. In the case of al-Qaida the direct outcome sought by the Jihad war room from 9/11, was to bring chaos to the American mainland, even though US Task forces were not touched around the world. The real and first objective of the Ghazwa (Jihad raid as it was called by UBL) was to trigger a chain of reactions, both on the popular and political levels. He saw hundred thousand Americans in the streets exploding in anger against their Government as Israelis have done against their cabinets in the 1980s. He hoped Congress would split in two and get paralyzed, campuses would rebel and companies would collapse. He wanted chaos, and a divided nation, scared, and turning onto it self. He believed time was ripe for the fall of the giant. He had many reasons to believe so. The way we actually reacted was, of course, very different. There are traps we still could fall into though. RTWT here and see how close we're coming. Thanks to Neal Boortz for the pointer.A Perfect Storm
Man. am I glad I live inland and at some altitude- this is one bad momma. Buckle up East Coast...
Pic via Space.com
September 12, 2003
Thanks, Isabel today
Hurricane Isabel from earlier today- 195 mile-per-hour winds. Woo-hoo! I'm glad I live in North Georgia- the worst we'll get will be rain.
Snagged the pic off of Drudge because they go away so quickly from there.
Someone Gets It
U.S. Representative Nick Lampson has re-introduced his Space Exploration Act, citing- bq. "America's human space flight program is adrift, with no clear vision or commitment to any goals after the completion of the International Space Station. The intent of the Space Exploration Act of 2003, is to provide a vision and a concrete set of goals for the nation's human space flight program after the International Space Station," said Lampson. "This legislation sets forth specific incremental goals that are challenging, exciting and that build capabilities and infrastructure needed for an ultimate human mission to Mars." Alist of the actual goals is both interesting and ambitious- bq. Space Exploration Act of 2003 Fact Sheet bq. Requires the NASA Administrator to set the following goals for the future activities of NASA's human spaceflight program: bq. Within 8 years of enactment, the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space vehicle capable of carrying humans from low earth orbit to the L 1 and L 2 Earth-Sun libration points and back, to the Earth-Moon libration points and back, and to lunar orbit and back. bq. Within 10 years of enactment, the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space vehicle capable of carrying humans from low Earth orbit to and from an Earth-orbit crossing asteroid and rendezvousing with it. bq. Within 15 years of enactment, the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space vehicle capable of carrying humans from lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon and back, as well as the deployment of a human-tended habitation and research facility on the lunar surface. bq. Within 20 years of enactment, the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space vehicle capable of carrying humans to and from Martian orbit, the deployment of a human tended habitation and research facility on the surface of a Martian moon, and the development and flight demonstration of a reusable space vehicle capable of carrying humans from Martian orbit to the surface of Mars and back. The bill establishes an Office of Exploration within NASA, headed by an Associate Administrator, which will be responsible for planning, budgeting, and managing activities undertaken to accomplish the above goals. bq. The bill establishes an Office of Exploration within NASA, headed by an Associate Administrator, which will be responsible for planning, budgeting, and managing activities undertaken to accomplish the above goals. Who knows how far this bill will get, but at least the effort is being made. The only issue I have with it is it is not more proactive in getting the private sector involved.September 11, 2003
From Silly Lawsuits
A judge has refused to throw out another frivolous lawsuit, one asserting that somehow Boeing and the airlines were at fault when the hijackers took over the airliners 9/11/2001- bq. Judge Alvin Hellerstein said negligent security screening could have contributed to the deaths of 3,000 people in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the crash of a hijacked plane in Pennsylvania, according to an Associated Press report. "The aviation defendants controlled who came onto the planes and what was carried aboard," Hellerstein wrote. "They had the obligation to take reasonable care in screening." bq. American, United, Boeing and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey moved to have the suits dismissed, saying they had no duty to anticipate and guard against deliberate, suicidal aircraft crashes. The defendants also argued any alleged negligence on their part was not the cause of the deaths and injuries, AP said. In his 50-page ruling, Hellerstein said, "Airlines reasonably could foresee that crashes causing death and destruction on the ground were a hazard that would arise should hijackers take control of a plane." The victim mentality is alive and well, and the great cash grab is on. These people have no shame. RTWTSome Gave All
I thought I was over it. I was wrong. I cried this morning as if it was just happening.
Never forget. Never forgive. Bastards.
Thanks to Lucianne for the photo.
September 10, 2003
Kofi Annan Tells the Truth!
Donald Sensing notes that Kofi Annan has admitted the U.N. is a largely irrelevant organization- bq. "Repetitive and sterile debates often crowd out the items that really matter," he said in the report. "Decisions can often be reached only on a lower-common-denominator basis and, once reached, command little or no attention beyond the confines of the General Assembly chamber." My god, he gets it! Sensing goes on to write bq. It may be helpful to remember that the real reason the UN was established was spelled out in January 1942, when President Roosevelt began using the name, "United nations." That month that the US, Britain, the USSR and China signed a Declaration of the United Nations "to defend life, liberty, independence, and religious freedom, and to preserve human rights and justice in their own lands as well as in other lands." bq. The UN was conceived as a means by which those four Great Powers (France was not originally included) would enforce order and discipline upon an unruly world. Franklin Roosevelt stated this intention clearly to British Foreign Minister Anthony Eden and Churchill in the spring of 1943. That fall the US, UK, USSR and China signed the Moscow Declaration in which they agreed to maintain international peace after WW II ended. Membership in the UN was to be open to any sovereign state, but in Roosevelt's mind the responsibility for policing the world would belong to the four Great Powers. I grew up thinking only Birchers had this attitude, but now I say- US out of the UN, and the UN out of the US! Let 'em meet in Brussels. Without us. Read the whole thing here.Which Heinlein book am I?
You belong in Starship Troopers. Your idea of a
good time is bouncing across an alien
battlefield blasting the foes of humanity into
extinction.
Which Heinlein Book Should You Have Been A Character In?
brought to you by Quizilla Somehow I don't find this surprising....
September 05, 2003
Aboard an Airliner
This was touching enough to quote in full- bq. For those without relatives in the military, war news can become a blur of daily press briefings and TV news reports. For Teri Merickel, the conflict got up close and personal during a flight from Chicago. She walked aboard her United plane to San Diego behind a Marine captain who was with a young woman. The officer was carrying what appeared to Merickel to be a beautiful trophy in his arms. The two passengers were seated directly across the aisle from her. Merickel admired the "trophy" but didn't have a chance to ask what it was because another passenger quickly came back from the first-class cabin and invited them to come up to that section. After they moved, the passenger returned and took one of the empty seats. He started sobbing. bq. After a few moments he composed himself, apologized to Merickel and explained: He, too, was a Marine en route home from Iraq. He informed her that the beautiful "trophy" she had seen was actually carrying the remains of a fallen Marine. The wife of the deceased and the urn were being escorted home by the officer. bq. The story doesn't end there. Merickel soon learned that the fellow who had done this good deed was returning home to San Diego on a brief 26-hour turnaround for the first time in nearly a year. bq. His 9-year-old daughter had saved all her money to help buy a first-class ticket for her dad. But when he saw the grief-stricken widow and her Marine escort sitting in coach seats, he asked a flight attendant if he could give his seat to the woman, and if the captain could take the empty seat next to it. bq. When the plane touched down, the pilot announced that a fallen Marine was aboard. Everyone was silent and the passengers remained in their places while the widow and her escort disembarked. As Merickel said goodbye, she asked the Marine passenger next to her if he was going to tell his daughter he gave up his first-class seat. bq. He thought and then softly replied, "Maybe someday." Just chokes me up. God bless our military.More Eye Candy
From Space.com-
bq. A new Hubble Space Telescope image, released yesterday, shows what a little patience can produce. The picture is of a spiral galaxy named NGC 3370, about 98 million light-years away.
bq. The galaxy was imaged for the purpose of ferreting out variable stars. To do so, astronomers needed to make pictures frequent and often. Over time, a lot of photons were collected -- the combined exposure time amounted to about 24 hours.
bq. So Hubble officials decided to put it all together for what they say is one of the deepest images Hubble has ever made.
The width of the picture is about 95,000,000 light-years. Hubble, by the way, is to be deorbited and burn up in the atmosphere sometime during 2010. That will be a sad day indeed.
Nope, they don't like us. Not one bit. Bastards.