Friday, November 4. 2005
Flu pandemic hypothetical, from RRWH Reid's foolishness: RWNH A Swede encounters California education: Atlas
French Tolerance, etc. With the Moslems setting France on fire, let's see what these condescending politicians will do now. The HT has an opinion article: "The suburbs of Paris, whether the faubourgs of the French Revolution or the banlieues of today, have a long history of violent uprisings by enraged citizens. But the nightly clashes in the grimy northeastern environs of the city over the past week were dismally contemporary: The rioters torching the cars and pelting police around the low-rent apartment blocks that abut the City of Light were the sons of African and Arab immigrants, most of them Muslims, who have never been integrated into French society, who work for the lowest wages, who live in ghettos rife with crime." Read entire at Int. Herald Tribune
More on blogs, free speech, and the Dem's efforts to defeat political speech: Am. Princess An interview with Alexander McCall Smith. Looks like he has moved past Mma Ramotswe - what a shame. Bookslut
The greater danger, for most of us, lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark... Lord, grant that I may always desire more than I can accomplish.Michelangelo
Thursday, November 3. 2005
Thanks, Chris Our blog looks the same, but the guts have improved. We are not really a slick blog, but I think we will have gotten rid of those dang Texas Holdem spammers without having to resort to registration for comments, which I find to be a deterrent.
Dems oppose free speech on internet: Powerline. This should be front-page news, but it won't be....which is why free speech is necessary. Left and Right don't matter: centralization of power is what matters. Cafe Hayek ACLU opposes proof of identity when voting. Cao
Foot Fetish No, I do not have one of those. But these folks have good shoes.
 Asclepius, with his trademark one-snake staff, overseeing a physician on a Greek frieze. (see piece below)
 The Caduceus of Hermes and the Staff of Asclepius
These are two entirely different things which look similar. The caduceus, a traditional symbol of Western medicine, is in fact the staff of Hermes and has nothing to do with the 1200 BC Greek physician Asclepius, who was later deified, as the Greeks were wont to do with their impressive people. The caduceus story in brief: Tiresias, the blind seer and soothsayer, was said to have tried to separate two copulating snakes with his staff, which act transformed him into a woman until he was able to undo his act by repeating it, making him the first serial transgenderista. (Fair warning to snake-handlers.) Somehow, this staff, with the two snakes in love, was passed on to the god Hermes (Roman Mercury), the messenger god and the escort of the dead. (Hermes was a derivation from the Egyptian bird-headed god Thoth, to whom is attributed the authorship of The Book of the Dead.) The word caduceus is a derivation of the Greek karykeion, or "herald's staff." The association of the caduceus with medicine was an odd one, as in the 1600s Hermes was taken on as the symbol of alchemy (hence "hermetic", referring to magic and the occult) and hence to medicine. The more appropriate symbol of medicine, and increasingly in use, is the staff of Asclepius, the god of healing - one snake only and no wings of Hermes. The Asclepia were the Greek medical schools (Asclepion - singular) and healing centers. Was the original sign that Greek physicians hung at their doorways a worm on a stick, signifying their ability to de-worm people? It's not clear. But the asclepia were known for keeping non-venomous snakes around, for some reason. Pets? More detail on the subject here - a piece which I was surprised to find addressed exactly what I had intended to.
Euro-weenies Short report at LGF. Afraid to speak out against Jihad? Pathetic, especially when rationalizing timidity as "sensitivity." How sensitive do you want to be towards people who want to kill you and turn your country into an extension of the caliphate? Do you imagine that those who have contempt for you will react warmly to your weakness? What would Winston say? How would Adolph react? But if you don't care what they would say, hey, why not just give your country away to them, you sanctimonious Euro-weenies, and move to the US, where we try to have a little more self-respect and courage and appreciation of our heritage, and also appreciate the virtues of firearms? And when you come, just wade across the Rio Grande via Mexico in your Le Chameau wellies. You'll get more sympathy and better benefits that way than if you try the whole silly legal paperwork visa hassle, and our immigration is tilted against Europeans anyway thanks to the bozo NJ Dem Peter Rodino years ago. And the guards won't be able to confiscate your stash of Cuban cigars. If you do stumble into some Immigration government folks with sidearms, just say "Jose Gonzales, no speaka Inglese." They will leave you alone. Or you can always try the reliable "These aren't the droids you're looking for," if The Force is with you. Which it isn't, obviously.
Freakonomics Orson Card reviews Freakonomics by Levitt and Dubner, and sort-of concludes that everyone should read it before they vote. Thus far, it has seemed to me that this book has been more talked-about than read. The review focuses on the correlation between the increase of abortion and the decline in crime rates: "The innovative policework in New York City was given much of the credit, but the same thing was happening in cities with no new theories or practices. All kinds of theories were advanced, but they all fell apart against statistical realities -- none of them explained why crime rates fell at exactly the time they began to fall. Except for one explanation. Abortion." Read his entire interesting review.
Anderson on Detainees and the Geneva Conventions A somewhat lengthy, very thoughtful legal consideration of the advantages to applying the Geneva Conventions to terrorists. The subject is worthy of debate. One excerpt: "Given, however, that the Bush administration engaged in the utter foolishness of taking a bunch of religious fanatics and giving them solely a Koran for reading material, rather than loading them up on decadent Western entertainment and thought, thus reinforcing their sense of martydom and heroically self-referential world view, it seems a little late for arguing about these issues. The US has done more to reinforce anti-American Muslim resentment, paradoxically, by kow-towing so stupidly to supposed Muslim mores, in ways that no Muslim country would do in war or conflict. But if you announce in advance that you are going to make Muslims happy, then you in effect reward further Muslim resentment as a way of getting more reward, and that has been the sole result of all the goofy politically correct multi-culti way in which so much of the cultural side of the war on terror has been run. It was and is a foolish strategy, exemplified at this moment by a person truly out of her depth, Karen Hughes, and by those who dreamed up a strategy in the first place of trying to show the world that the US would be nice to Muslims, even ones trying to kill the infidel. They artificially set the bar for behavior at a level that angels in heaven itself could not meet, and then seemed surprised when the response from the Muslim world was not, look how humane they are, but rather, what have you done for us lately?" Read entire.
Clouds so swift
Rain won't lift
Gate won't close
Railing's froze
Get your mind off wintertime
You ain't goin nowhere
Whoo-eee, ride me high
Tomorrow's the day
My bride's gonna come
Oh, oh are we gonna fly
Down in the easy chair! Bob Dylan, from You Ain't Goin' Nowhere on The Basement Tapes
Wednesday, November 2. 2005
Insurance Getting some Tamiflu for your family and loved ones is simple insurance. You pay the $95. for a box for one person, and you pray that you will never need it. Or you can just hope that Mommy Government will or can miraculously save you from a pandemic. But Nature is far more powerful than any government. I, optimistically, doubt we will need it - but I have mine. It's a lot cheaper than dying: compare the cost with the cost of a coffin. Some hedge fund, you just have to imagine, is already long the funeral industry, just in case. And you know those guys have the medicine: they ain't stupid.
Carl on Alito and the NYT: "Forget Fox News or newspapers. Bugger the bloggers, on earth or in the MSM. Never mind The National Review. Useless is US News (and World Report). Screw The Standard (Weekly) and the Spectator (American only for now).
They're all reasonable, right and rational, of course. But the best argument for confirming Samuel Alito to replace "Harriet O'Connor" comes from the mixing-results-and-reasoning, misguided, but no doubt typical, liberals who penned the lead editorial in Tuesday's New York Times:" Read the whole thing at No Oil. This guy is a classic blogger, and he shreds the NYT.
More on The Religion of Peace, rioting, etc. Denmark too. Missed that. LGF
Essential Reading from Michelle: "When you read The New York Times (if you still bother to read it), always ask: What is the Times NOT telling me? The answers are invariably more compelling -- and newsworthy -- than what the paper actually deems "fit to print." Read entire at Town Hall
That's Funny - You Don't Look Anti-Semitic From the Foreward of Steve Cohen's 1984 book: "Steve Cohen's little pale-blue book on left wing antisemitism caused a rumpus in the colleges when it first came out. Helped by the arresting title, which still raises a smile, That's Funny You Don't Look Anti-Semitic appeared in the coffee bars, Labour Clubs and Jewish Societies during the Miners Strike of 1984-85. Back then there were lots of Jewish lefties and the campus battles between Jewish students and the operational antisemites were starting to hot up again." The book can now be read online, here.
Moslem riots in France continue to their sixth day: CBS.
How do we prevent ourselves from being guilty of schadenfreude with those arrogant and self-righteous French? And how does their pride and self-satisfaction in their culture coexist with an utter unwillingness to defend it?
Dangerous Disciples An interesting prayer of Jesus for his disciples throughout time; lines 16-18 really capture it: NRSV John 17:11 And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 15 I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. 16 They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth. Read Brian's comments regarding this prayer, and discipleship, here.
Bird Flu, From Mr. Free Market:
Air Pollution and Second-hand Smoke From Norm: Every year, according to a paper published by the British Medical Journal, some 54 bar staff in the UK die as a result of their exposure to other people's cigarette smoke. And every year, according to the EU, some 39,000 deaths in this country are caused or hastened by air pollution, most of which comes from vehicles.
Read entire. Cover-ups, when there is no "underlying" crime We did a piece on this a week ago: this better piece from neo-neocon: "Rothstein says to avoid this kind of trap, special prosecutors should use their prosecutorial discretion not to file coverup charges when there is no evidence related to the alleged underlying crime." Read entire. From Atlas, a piece on The David Project:
 "Jewish students on American college campuses are facing an onslaught of anti-Israel campaigns and propaganda. We at The David Project have documented this in the now famous documentary film taking place at Columbia University, where students were harassed and intimidated in and outside of class by anti-Israel faculty. Clearly, Jewish college students need to be prepared for what they may face on their campuses. columbiaunbecoming.com (WATCH THE VIDEO!)"
Our editor asked me to do a little piece on wellies, as wellie season has arrived, or is arriving - snow, slush, mud and muck. I have gone through many pairs from many makers, and I own many pairs now - more than I will ever need. They will probably bury me in one of those pairs, but not soon. Wellies are, of course, Wellingtons, named after the Duke of Wellington who was copying Hessian military boots. Only later did the term refer to rubber, rather than leather, muck boots. History of wellies here. Different sorts of wellies are made for gardening, walking in the rain, European hunting, and American hunting. Ladies look great in them. I am mainly interested in the rugged, uglier varieties which are suitable to northern climes where mud, snow, slush, muck, streams, and marshy areas abound. Much as I may admire the LL Bean Maine Hunting boot, I tend to return to my rubber boots for all-purpose hunting, wet hiking, snow, marsh work, bird watching, and barn-work: they make you feel that you can go through almost anything. Over the years, the material has improved, and so has the design, so that they are more comfortable, and grip your heel much better so they don't pull off in muck and leave you waving a socked foot helplessly in the air like an idiot. There are several considerations with rubber boots. First, you may want to be able to tuck your trousers into the tops (to keep them dry and to prevent the fraying which happens quickly in raspberry brambles), in which case you need spacious uppers on them. Second, assuming we are talking about uninsulated or lightly insulated wellies, you need a size that can handle liner socks and heavy socks. I keep different sized boots for both warm and cold weather. Third, you need to decide what height. I like the maximum height for fording streams, for deep snow, for dew-laden fields, and for bramble protection. Fourth, tread: I like a forceful tread for mud and snow, but the European boots tend to have minimal tread. They aren't used to snow, and their style of hunting does not typically include brush-busting in swamps - they let the beaters do that. So you have to check the tread. Fifth, lining: for versatile outdoor activity, you want some kind of lining or light insulation. Lastly, color: Color hardly matters, but black and green are classic. Many brands come in camo these days, which I feel is unnecessary since they end up covered with mud anyway if you are going anywhere interesting. I do not like Le Chameau too much - you cannot tuck your pants in them very well, because most seem to be designed for breeks which Americans rarely wear. Plus they are too expensive, too fashionable, and most have a lousy tread. Still, they are probably the best-made wellies and they have a following - I own some. I am sorry to say that I do not love my LL Bean boots because the leather uppers get wet, tend to collapse and chafe your ankles, and they are not made for tucking in trousers. I like Aigle and LaCrosse. Here is one Brit source for some unfamiliar brands, and here is another. You can find very inexpensive versions of wellies, and they are probably just fine but might wear out faster, but who cares? Worn-out wellies means you are living. Heavily insulated wellies for standing around in the snow in Vermont, sitting in a duck blind on rocks on a Maine island, studying Polar Bears on Hudson's Bay, or for ice-fishing in Minnesota, is another topic for later, perhaps, because standing-around, extreme-cold boots do not need a close fit. Work boots for chain sawing, etc., and plain dry-weather hiking boots are also another subject of interest to me. It's all about "happy feet." And, on the subject of happy feet, never wear boots for 6-8 hours without using foot powder - it works. Photo is one of a number of styles of LaCrosse hunting boots, in camo.
Bush on the avian flu. This scare story from Canada is not the dangerous avian flu - just a normal bird flu. Laughter in marriage. Corny, but a good idea. Alito will be confirmed. It's a done deal. All that is left is the posing, posturing, and partisan exploitation for fund-raising purposes.
Times are hard. Children are disobedient, and everyone is writing a blog. Cicero (updated)
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