Posts from — December 2007

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is picking up as many awards as Al Gore. He already has the highest awards from Germany, France, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and now he is Time‘s Person of the Year.

Interesting name “Vladimir” – it is a combination word in Russian from two roots. “Vlad” is power, while “Mir” can mean peace, world or village. His last name comes from the word for path. “Vladimir Putin” could be interpreted as “the way to a peaceful reign” or “the road to world conquest” – your option.

Over two centuries ago a man named Thomas Paine said: “Lead, follow, or get out of the way.” Tom was annoyed that people didn’t seem to want to commit to a plan to do something about the abuse of power by the executive of government, at the time, King George III. Then doing something carried the significant risk of being arrested for treason and hanged, so a certain reticence is understandable.

Today we have another executive headed by a guy named George, and it is being every bit as obtrusive, but this time there is no gallows waiting for those who oppose him. For some reason the people with some power who might do something about it are, with a few exceptions, just milling around kvetching.

Yesterday one Senator led. He came back to Washington from his campaign for President and stood on the floor of the Senate prepared to talk as long as he was able to stop the loss of more rights. The two “leading contenders” chose to stay on the campaign trail and send notes saying how much they disapproved of what was happening.

Chris Dodd chose to lead, Clinton and Obama chose to avoid making a real stand. If you believe in the Constitution who is the best choice for President?

Oh, Senator Reid, Congresswoman Pelosi – why don’t you just get out of the way.

At the end of every year people start gathering their choices for the best and worst in multiple categories for the year that has just ended. If you don’t want to compile, your own list you can vote on other people’s.

That’s what MSNBC is doing with the Weird Science Awards. Click over and vote for the odd moments in science and technology of the past year. I don’t want to influence anyone’s voting, some people might find kittens that glow under UV light useful.

From the Associated Press [this time CNN is faking it], a bank that understands the spirit of the season: Bank to employees: Pay it forward

FARGO, North Dakota (AP) — A bank is giving its full-time employees $1,000 each and part-time employees $500 each. There’s one condition — use it for people in need.

State Bank & Trust Chief Operating Officer Michael Solberg said each full-time employee will receive $1,000 and each part-time employee will receive $500, as part of a $502,000 “Pay it Forward” initiative.

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From the Associated Press [at CBS News, so you’ll think they are still a news organization] good news from the Rockies: Colorado Bans Most Electronic Voting Machines

(AP) Colorado’s top election official decertified electronic voting machines used in many of the state’s largest counties Monday, calling into question equipment used in past elections in a move he said could have national implications.

Electronic voting machines used in Denver, Arapahoe, Pueblo, Mesa and Elbert counties cannot be used in the next election because of problems with accuracy or security, Secretary of State Mike Coffman said.

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CBS News shows its bias with the headline of the story: Dems Lose Fight To Aid Abortion Groups

(AP) Unable to override a promised veto, Democrats have backed down on their insistence that the 2008 foreign aid budget reverse President Bush’s ban on providing aid to family planning groups abroad that offer abortions.
…

“This dogmatic adherence to an illogical position diminishes our influence around the world and prevents us from working effectively to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS and unintended pregnancies and reduce abortions,” said Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., chairwoman of the House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations subcommittee.

The Hedgemony refuses to fund anything except “abstinence only” programs, and disease and death follow.

As the Washington Post reported US states are rejecting grants from the Federal government for “abstinence only” programs. These programs don’t work, and the states don’t want to fund them.

Go over to Odd Neighbor Illustrations and catch Catnapping’s Twelve Days of Christmas graphics.

Unless you expect to live forever do not take the poll on MSNBC – it is 20 minutes you will not get back.  It isn’t the number of questions, it’s the wait when you hit the submit button.

Mustang Bobby of Bark Bark Woof Woof received an early NODWISH present: one of his plays, Can’t Live Without You, is being produced in New York City.

I wrote about the case of the Templars which resulted in the burning of de Molay in 1314, despite the fact that his confession was the result of torture. The King of France owed the Templars a lot of money and had no intention of paying it, so a few confessions and he seized all of their assets.

Digby’s post, Torture Works, highlights a witchcraft trial in Germany in 1628, where the principle defendant confesses under torture and implicates other innocent people.

Proving that facts have no influence on fear, Kevin Drum posts a justification for torture from a correspondent who says it saves innocent lives, and cites the claims of John Kiriakou regarding the torture of Abu Zubaydah.

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“Boldly going

where no man has gone before.”

The Wright Brothers make the first powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

Florida License Plates

Beneficiary

A weekend feature of Why Now.

Go see Keith at the Invisible Library to learn about J.K. Rowling’s The Tales of Beedle the Bard, just purchased by Amazon.com for £1,950,000 [about $3.9 million].

There is a lot of misinformation winging around the ‘Tubes about the Baptists and I would like to clear a few things up because I know something about the situation.

I attended a Baptist university, Colgate in Hamilton, New York [yes, same as the toothpaste because when the Colgate family owned the Colgate Soap and Candle Company, they donated a lot of money]. I learned later that a distant relative was one of the founders of the institution in 1819 to train Baptist ministers.

In the middle of the 19th century the Baptists split into two factions on the issue of slavery and the Southern Baptists became a separate group. Each of the two main groups, the American and Southern Baptists have spun off smaller groups over various points of dogma.

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