Random Fate

Trying to wrap my brain around something

I've spent most of my evening trying to wrap my brain around several things I've been piecing together, along with much of what I've read over the past week in both blogworld and in the world at large, attempting to reconcile what I'm thinking with both rationality and with what I'm trying to accomplish in blogging by splitting my opinions versus my commentary between Radio Saigon and Random Fate respectively.

The world refuses to be so neatly categorized.

I'll work it all out, but not until tomorrow at the earliest.

Technorati Tags: commentary, weblogs

A few small repairs

Today is a holiday in France, Assumption Day. Despite being a fiercely secular nation, the majority of holidays here are based upon Roman Catholic feast days and days of obligation. Having a long weekend, I took the opportunity to go to Switzerland on Saturday, and today I'm cleaning the apartment and making some repairs.

I will also be making some changes to Random Fate. Some recent events have reminded me that this weblog is not going in the direction I prefer, so I am taking some actions to change paths.

I will continue to write commentary to post here, but opinion pieces and what can only be labeled as "rants" will be going on a weblog I have had as an experiment for several months, Radio Saigon.

Personal items along with photos and narratives from my travels in Europe will go on my personal site, jmgrant.net.

I want Random Fate to be a moderate site that takes a balanced look at issues, but also gives details on things outside politics in the United States, such as my "letters from Europe" along with increasing my writing on trends in science and technology.

I am also going to change how I handle comments in general. Up until now, unless it was obvious spam, I was approving all comments regardless of how hateful or insulting towards me.

I see no need to pay for the bandwidth enabling people to spew their bile.

So, all comments will remain moderated until I figure out how to set up "approved commenters" in MovableType.

I will approve comments for posting entirely at my discretion. If a commenter wants a forum to disgorge their hate for the world to read, there are many free (as in no-cost to them) resources out there for them to take advantage of without ruining what I would like to be open and productive discussion here, where I'm paying the bills.

I also hope to have a new look ready for Random Fate in the next few weeks.

So, don't be surprised when you see some changes.

I also have several non-blogging related projects I am working on that just may result in additional income for me, projects that will take at least SOME time away from the writing and posting needed to satisfy the beast that blogworld so readily breeds.

For those of you who have expressed your support of me in the past weeks, whether in the comments or by private emails, I appreciate what you have said. Be assured that these changes were merely accelerated by recent events, they were not prompted by them.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Not quite the last word for 48 hours earlier, but this one is...

...because a part of Hell did break loose, and I detected it...

..and the ignorant sycophants continue to spread the bile.

Sadly for them, the sycophants think that insulting my writing offends me.

As I quoted recently:

I make up my opinions from facts and reasoning, and not to suit any body but myself. If people don't like my opinions, it makes little difference as I don't solicit their opinions or votes.
   -William Tecumseh Sherman

Unlike some, my self-worth is not determined by those who choose to read what I write, and those who think so, along with the one who encourages them, are all the same, losers who are not worth the skin they inhabit nor the oxygen they steal from those more worthy.

For those who don't understand, be happy you do not, and email me for an explanation if you cannot live with your blissful ignorance.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

...on thinking outside the box

When I was in graduate school, on an exam in my Classical Electrodynamics class, we were asked to re-derive the Maxwell Equations assuming that in addition to the existence of electric charge, magnetic charge also was present in the universe (aka magnetic monopoles, of the north and south variety, analogous to positive and negative charge, magnetic monopoles definitely do NOT exist by the way).

The details of the theory are not important, but the implications of what we were asked to do are. In straightforward terms, we were asked to derive the fundamental equations that would govern the behavior of electricity and magnetism assuming that the universe was a different place; not as it exists, but a "what if" scenario.

Then, using the newly derived "electric and magnetic charge" equations along with the Maxwell Equations, we were given a set of real-world measurements and asked to use the two different sets of equations to predict the electric charge density and magnetic charge density required to account for the data.

Needless to say, the "electric and magnetic charge" equations resulted in answers that either did not converge to a solution or gave results that were not reasonable.

This is a routine exercise both in the process of learning the "how" of science along with being a key part of the methodologies of experimental and theoretical research. Working out what would happen if some variation up to and including the opposite of the theory or hypothesis under consideration was valid allows us to figure out what the results of an experiment would be, and then helps when the data is taken and must be interpreted, because data rarely matches the model cleanly enough to yield no doubts.

Engineers refer to this as "thinking outside the box".

Here at Random Fate, I put categories on all my posts, displayed prominently above the post title on both the main page and the individual entry pages. While I readily confess to having the traditional tendencies of any technologist to be anal retentive, I categorize so prominently for a reason beyond any need I might have for order and classification.

The categories of the posts are intended to be an indication of what I am trying to communicate. Opinion is not intended to be balanced and is therefore publicly acknowledged as "opinion". When I write something I label as commentary, I strive to be relatively balanced, as evenhanded as any human can be.

In posts under the heading Patterns in the White Noise I am trying to go beyond the short-term, ADD nature of both weblogs and the so-called MainStream Media (MSM) to find broader patterns that may be of interest or concern.

When I categorize a post as some thoughts... I am in effect "thinking out loud", trying out thoughts that may be well outside of my opinions and beliefs, trying the "what if" scenario, working out the math to see if the results conform with reality.

Recently, I wrote a post that briefly mentioned the bombing of Hiroshima by the United States near the end of World War II. I was trying to illustrate the limitations of using old thought-models to understand the current world, in other words using limited theories to explain data that went beyond the limitations, hence the categorization and title of the post "Some thoughts ...on using Newtonian Physics in an Einsteinian universe".

My brief mentioning of the bombing of Hiroshima was quoted completely out of context by someone whom I did not think would try to score cheap political points by engaging in such egregious distortions. I am not linking to the offending post because I am not interested in starting a pointless pissing match. Instead, I am trying to illustrate what I see as a grave drawback and potential problem relating to the interaction of weblogs and politics.

What I wrote, in the best context that can be provided without requiring a reading of the entire work, was:

Linear thinking in a complex, multifaceted, nonlinear world is simple-minded at best, and can lead to catastrophe.

Yet, most thinking on both the left and right in America is still linear, us-versus-them, whether "them" consists of the political opposition or "the terrorists", whatever that nebulous term really means.

For in the end, what does "terrorism" mean? In these days when we are about to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first use of an atomic weapon in warfare, and where we recently commemorated the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the death camps created in Europe by the fascist regimes led by Nazi Germany the question has not been fully answered, and not the least because of the tactics used by the victors of six decades past.

Germany set up a deliberate mass-murder holocaust directed against a group because of their religion, and Japan practiced genocidal warfare on a scale still not fully recognized in the West. Both Germany and Japan were defeated by the United States and allies using tactics that today would be called "terrorist" by the bombing of cities in nominal aims of disrupting production of vital war materiel in campaigns that by even the standards of the day were indiscriminate. The fires of Dresden and Tokyo stand in accusation of the terrorist aspect of the assaults.

These tactics are defended as what was necessary to defeat evil.

In these days of the Global War on Terror, who has the privilege of defining what is "evil" so that terrorist tactics can be used to defeat it?

If "evil" is that which seeks to destroy your culture and way of life, then can we truly call the Islamofascists "evil" when in their eyes the West, led by the United States, is destroying what they believe to be the basis of Islamic culture and way of life, and they use terrorist tactics to defeat what they perceive as "evil"?

"Evil" and "good", the two sides of the edgeless coin of bipolar thinking.

One side or the other, impossible for the coin to land on a nonexistent edge that might bridge between the two sides.

I was attempting to turn the "War on Terror" rhetoric on its head in an effort to find out if there was a non-obvious way to end or at least reduce the threat posed by the Islamofascist terrorist organizations.

I was rewarded by an out of context citation that referred to my discussion of the Hiroshima bomb as "someone in the moral equivalence industry" trying "to argue that the dropping of the atomic bomb was an act of terrorism."

I was very angered by this distortion, and unfortunately I reacted in a way that does not reflect well upon me, much to my regret.

In addition to leaving some rather heated comments to the post that referenced my words far out of context, I put up on Random Fate the following quote:

The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.
   -F. Scott Fitzgerald

I still believe in the truth behind that statement, but the insult towards the person I perceived had offended me that I included in the accompanying text only added fuel to a pointless fire.

As we all learn the hard way, however, good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from poor judgment.

In the end, it is the hardest lesson in life, what is done is done and cannot be recalled.

Yet in of itself, the incident shows the limitations of our ADD attitudes as we are constructing them in this brave new world of weblogs.

Attempting to "think outside the box" by presenting as rational what is apparently "unthinkable" to some results in cherry-picking of passages out of context to prove a point that has nothing to do with the original context.

Striving to understand instead of simply react seemingly results in more misunderstanding than illumination if the thoughts are expressed aloud.

Expecting people to be willing to make the intellectual effort to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time, especially on topics close to their heart, is unrealistic.

The final conclusion: Assertions that the advent of weblogs encourages a more widespread "discussion" that is more "balanced" than that displayed by the much-derided MSM is a will o' the wisp that if followed will indeed lead us astray.

We have the same blatant and subtle partisan distortions, the same out of context quoting, the same cherry-picking of events and data; the only difference is it is now being done by people who are NOT being paid to do so.

This is progress?

Until more people are willing to put in the skull-sweat to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function, we will grow more and more unable to cope with the complexities of the world.

As the phrase I used to create the title of my post that was selectively, distortedly quoted said, "We must stop using Newtonian Physics in our Einsteinian universe."

If you insist on adhering to the old models, cherry-picking your data, selectively quoting when it gives your "side" an ephemeral advantage, whatever the Hell "advantage" means today, go elsewhere and do not bother to read what I post here, for the work I put into these writings is not for you.

If you are willing to look at my arguments as a whole, not focusing on what offends your sensibilities but instead examining why you are offended, then please, read on, comment, argue even, but do NOT pick pieces to assault as if each piece represents the whole of my beliefs. If you do so, you only reveal your own small-mindedness.

The small-minded may well be the death of the grand ideals that are the foundation of the United States.

Technorati Tags: some thoughts

Implosion in blogworld

I may need to be revising the blogroll soon, because in the space of 24 hours, several bloggers have announced intentions or possibilities of going dark.

This, along with some other recent events in blogworld bring questions to my mind:

Some days, I ask myself, do I take this weblog thing too seriously, or not seriously enough?

Some days, I ask myself, does blogworld as a whole need a collective valium IV?

Some days, I ask myself, is anything in this chaotic anarchic imbroglio worth the energy expended?

Some days, I ask myself, what the fuck is the point?

Most days, I have no answers.

But...

I'm stubborn, and I'm not giving up, not yet, even though the level of idiocy seems to be reaching new depths.

I'll be the one on Doomsday to stand up and say to God, "Excuse me, but if You are merciful, why do You kill kittens?"

I may go to Hell, but at least I asked the question.

Technorati Tags: personal, weblogs

Well, there it is...

From the comments to my post "Forests and trees":

Couched in these terms I find very little about which to argue; however, while I concede there is a component in war time actions to strike terror and fear into the hearts of our enemies, it is but one small part of a much larger whole. After all, it is WAR.

I respectfully submit characterizing our war time actions as a whole as "terrorism" is painting with a very wide brush.

Nowhere in my post did I ever, directly or indirectly, characterize the actions of the US or the Allies as a whole as "terrorism".

So, now I am forced to ask, what the fuck is the point? I should stop what is obviously a waste of my time in writing of these matters, because this comment came from someone whom I know is intelligent and is willing to at least concede that they do not have all the answers.

Yet, a conclusion regarding something that was not there was jumped to none the less.

Everyone is so trapped in their own viewpoint that they read things that are not present in any arguments that do not support their preconceived answers to questions.

There is still a self-congratulatory theme running through many blogs about how they will change the world by circumventing the old media and providing a way for true cross-communication, even though bloggers have shown themselves to have the same feet of clay as their nemeses in the hated MainStream Media.

Blogging has not changed my world.

It has merely confirmed to me how the human race deserves exactly what it has: a self-created Hell filled with fear and violence and blood and death arising from no good cause but instead rooted in an absolute refusal to see a world in more than us versus them terms.

A refusal to do the hard work needed to think, instead choosing to follow the easy path of reacting.

We have brains that we use just enough to create better ways to kill more at once, but we don't use to find solutions to conflicts that stretch back centuries.

We have the world we deserve, because we are the ones who create it, every day, with every choice, with every opportunity to think avoided and refused.

Am I a misanthrope? No, for if I were, I would not feel this combination of rage and sadness.

Someone very insightful, intelligent, and of a poetic bent once wrote to me in an email:

subject: saw the worst thing yesterday...

there was a struck deer in the roadway... he was rocking back and forth and trying to get up.

unfortunately, his back was broken.

futility.

Well, there it is...

Technorati Tags: personal, weblogs

Jumping on the latest news can lead to jumping the shark

The Commissar of The Politburo Diktat illustrates how jumping on the latest hot news to score partisan points is not necessarily the best way to help "your side" in its credibility.

Technorati Tags: recommended reading, weblogs

Reality Distortion Fields

It is often said of Steve Jobs, the charismatic founder and current leader of Apple Computer, that he has a so-called "Reality Distortion Field" (or RDF) around him, where susceptible souls can be caught up in his enthusiasm for whatever he is proselytizing at the time.

I now wonder if each extreme of the political spectrum has its own RDF, because what I see from both sides has little to do with the reality of blood, death, danger, and loss that I see.

Of course, I could be within an RDF of my own.

Such is our curse, we never know for certain anything other than death and taxes.

Technorati Tags: commentary, weblogs

No one bats 1.000

So of course, I am wrong more than occasionally.

The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.
   -F. Scott Fitzgerald

Unfortunately, there are many in blogworld that fail this test, some of whom I thought would pass.

Technorati Tags: quotes, weblogs

Storytelling

John of Argghhh! reminds us why storytellers (and good verbal storytelling) are still valuable, and to those who understand, why storytellers are still valued, despite the other attractions in our ADD-inducing world.

'nuff said.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Inconsequential imbroglios

UPDATE: For all you knee-jerkers, there is a background to this post for which you have no knowledge, a history that has little to do with me and much to do with the blogger that I discuss and his pointless and needless insults to several women. Those who do know have already expressed their support for what I wrote here, and any opinions you feel the need to express here about how "thin skinned" I am are merely revealing the depth of your ignorance along with your poor character in judging me without knowing the facts of the matter.

---

One of my previous posts, when commented upon by another in an attempt to add levity to an overly-political blogworld, prompted an asinine response by one of the "bigger" bloggers.

This person is someone who is does not have the courage to either:

- comment to the post itself

- link to the post in question to dispute my statement and conclusions (with a trackback so I am aware of his commentary)

- email me to tell me of his dispute if he does not want to "give the traffic" to my weblog

In other words, this person does not have the courage to actually dispute me directly.

To state it plainly, he is a coward, as is evidenced by his relentless attacks on women (yes, I am Southern raised, and I view anyone who attacks women in the way this person does as both unmanly and cowardly).

I am not linking to the weblog of the person in question for two reasons:

(1) he has all the traffic he needs, those who need to know, already know, and

(2) he is nothing more than an oxygen-thief from the rest of the living world, someone who needs no more attention than he already has.

So...

Why am I now bothering to waste glucose and oxygen molecules to even peripherally comment upon this inconsequential imbroglio stirred up by this person who is a waste of skin?

I am writing because I've received an unprecedented number of emails in support of what I wrote, or at the least in opposition to the distortion of what I wrote, and in opposition to the ignorance of the screeds the particular "big" blogger likes to write, especially if they have a misogynist element added, and in responding to these messages I have not been able to write the posts I had planned to put up this evening.

Pissing matches are pointless, and that is what more than 90% of what any cross-commentary in blogworld boils down to.

If you agree with me, de-link and ignore this person and any others who spew piss and vinegar instead of actually discussing issues and being willing to admit they do NOT have all the answers.

I have found only a very few on the left, right, or between the two extremes of the political spectrum who are willing to discuss instead of simply name-call from the first post in disagreement with someone, and this is why I have little hope in blogging changing the political landscape, just as I have little hope in the majority of humanity.

If I am proven wrong, I will be happier than anyone else, including those who prove me wrong as they wreak that change in the world.

In the short term, I merely hope this dies down so I can return to writing about things that aren't the waste of time that this particular feeble-minded person prompts in far too many who are worth and worthy of so much more.

Technorati Tags: personal, weblogs

Sigh...

...

Too many things to write about and too little time, too little energy.

I have a day job, and they do expect me to put in some level of work.

I've spent the evening catching up, researching, and writing. What I'm writing isn't ready for publishing yet, even on a weblog.

Damn, I'm not getting paid enough for this. Well, actually, I'm paying to write and put this stuff up.

Not a good idea.

Hmmm...

There's a thought in there.

Technorati Tags: general, weblogs

In a result unsurprising to me...

...but perhaps not anticipated by some, using a reference that only old, true-blue fans of the show will really get, I am not Spock, either...

Take the Star Trek Quiz

Captain Jean-Luc Picard

Always in control, you are a great leader, deligator, and diplomat. These qualities attract people to you, and this sometimes annoys you.

Aloof, introspective, and philosophical; you enjoy quiet time in solitude.

Technorati Tags: memes, weblogs

I missed a meme...

...where I was tagged by Boudicca with "The Bedside Table Meme". I don't know if she will be disappointed or not, because I don't find what I have on my nightstand nearly as interesting as what she has.

Here's the list:

1 glass of Port wine I'm drinking before I go to bed

1 halogen desk lamp I'm using as a reading lamp (I read a lot in bed)

1 indoor-outdoor wireless thermometer with hydrometer and clock that I use as my alarm clock (and it tells me how damned uncomfortable I'm going to be when I go outside...)

1 pair of sunglasses

my watch

my wallet

car key

the token that generates the 6 digit code I have to use to get a VPN connection with my work

coins adding up to approximately 2 euros and 60-some odd centiemes (aka "cents"), much of which is in these damned two-centieme coins that I can't get rid of. They are worse than pennies, it's like having a two-cent piece in US currency. It's completely idiotic to have a two-centieme piece.

Ummm, excuse me...

OK, I feel better now. Back to the list.

my apartment keys

6 books:

Orcs - The Omnibus Edition, by Stan Nicholls (apparently only available in the UK, the first book is Bodyguard of Lightning)

Breakfast at Tiffany's/Petit déjeuner chez Tiffany by Truman Capote (a bilingual edition with the left page in French, the right the same passage in English, sold here to help folks learn English, needless to say, I'm using it to learn French)

The Catholic Church : A Short History (Modern Library Chronicles), by Hans Kung

Slapped Together: The Dilbert Business Anthology, by Scott Adams

Beyond Fear - Thinking sensibly about security in an uncertain world, by Bruce Schneier

Christianity and Paganism in the Fourth to Eighth Centuries, by Ramsay MacMullen

I did say I read a lot...

Technorati Tags: memes, personal, weblogs

...on thoughts better left unsaid

There are a large number of posts I have started and abandoned in the past weeks, often abandoning them not only because of my dissatisfaction with the quality of my writing, but also because of the lack of symmetry and balance in the posts themselves. The titles include, but are not limited to:

Confusing appearing with being

Long ago...

It's past time we accept that ALL reporting is biased...

And one that actually has a quotable passage:

An odd linkage of popular culture and politics of the day...

...comes from Salon.com (you can watch an ad to see the entire story, to me it's less obnoxious than a registration):

But before we all hail George Lucas for raising the level of political discourse in American cinema (and on that score, the accolades have already begun to roll in), let's remember that all of the "Star Wars" movies -- even the genuinely superb "The Empire Strikes Back" -- have a relatively simple piece of rhetoric as their backbone: Good must triumph over evil.

There's nothing inherently wrong with that as a theme for a series of fantasy movies. But it's much too simplistic to be taken seriously as a political statement. And it's the kind of oversimplification that plagues both sides of the current political divide. Neither of the Georges -- Lucas or Bush -- seems to realize that a black-and-white ethos is no template for a world that too often includes shades of gray.

I've read the published script for the soon to be released, ostensibly last-ever Star Wars movie, and there are some not-so-subtle digs that are sadly made more relevant by the recent passage of the Real ID Act as an amendment to a military spending bill along with many of the other bills passed into law, executive orders, and other changes in how the government exerts its power over citizens in the years since September 11, 2001.

Lost innocence?

The Star Wars movies going from good non-political popcorn-movie fun to a political statement on freedom in the United States is an unintentional metaphor that almost perfectly describes the path trodden in the years since the release of the first movie, going from the apparently clear and seemingly symmetric dichotomy of "good guys-bad guys" inherent in the Cold War to the confused moral and factual ambiguity of a so-called War on Terror that appears to be more of a fabrication of the spin-machines than a true conflict of civilizations, regardless of how some wish to portray it.

---

I write a lot, and I delete 90% of what I write.

Theodore Sturgeon once wrote, "Ninety percent of everything is crap."

I often fear that more than 90% of what I write is crap, which is why at least 90% of it is deleted.

An unusual case of symmetry in areas I have wished to post has arisen where others have posted on the topics from their respective points of view and I can retain the balance, and despite the seemingly unrelated nature of the posts there is more than one thread connecting them.

The fundamental connecting thread, the weakening of their respective arguments by naked partisan (and more than quasi-extremist) attacks on "the other side", which if not undertaken could have actually persuaded those not of similar political persuasions to support the cause outlined.

First from Thoughts in the Daedalnexus (thanks to Joe Gandelman at The Moderate Voice for the link), where there are a few swipes at "the right" that were not needed to make the fundamental case:

I have a question. Are we at war, or aren't we? We have soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan killing and dying on the President's orders, so in that sense we are at war. Bush II says we're at war, and when the President says so, his authority gives his words more weight than, say, mine. But in almost every way I can think of, we're not at war. Engaged in a dangerous conflict, yes, not actually at war.

How have we, as U.S. citizens, been asked to sacrifice for the so-called war on terror? We've been asked to give up some civil liberties in the pursuit of "homeland security," but that's pretty much it. Cutting our per-capita gasoline consumption would dramatically reduce the profits of nations like Saudi Arabia, nations that have been shown to bankroll Islamist terrorism. Reducing the flood of money going into terrorist bank accounts would probably have a dramatic effect on the conflict. Instead, Congress has refused to even consider raising fuel efficiency standards, and the IRS still gives a tax credit for the purchase of large trucks and SUVs purchased by small businesses, making gas consumption MORE attractive, not less.

We're running a huge budget deficit that is partly the result of our continuing military actions abroad, yet the President and Congress have not asked the American people to pay the higher taxes required to make war. Not only that, but taxes have actually dropped dramatically since the supposed war started.

Perhaps most damning in many respects is the fact that we have not been asked to sacrifice ourselves, our children, our husbands, or our wives to the war effort. Our professional, all-volunteer military (read "mercenary army composed of the undereducated and the poor") has not yet been supplemented with draftees, something that is all but inevitable in a real war. Instead, our government is requiring year-long tours of duty in a combat zone with six months or less R&R before being redeployed to another combat zone. This tactic is gradually killing military preparedness, driving the most experienced soldiers out of the military altogether, and making recruitment more and more difficult for the Army, the various National Guards, and the Reserves.

If the United States is truly at war, we should behave as if we are. Instead we're cutting our own throats economically and militarily, and we're bankrolling the very enemies we're in conflict with. We cannot continue to destroy ourselves this way. Unfortunately, I have little confidence that the federal government can change this suicidal course. It will take the people realizing that they've been led astray by ideologues and idiots before a new course out of this conflict may be charted.

A not unreasonable set of questions, but unfortunately diluted by the remarks starting with the parenthetical "read 'mercenary army composed of the undereducated and the poor'". I know more than a few of those who have served and still serve in the Armed Forces of the United States, and they have NOT been undereducated, poor, nor mercenary. To a man (and yes, all the ones I know are male) they have been intelligent patriots who are well educated and serve because they believe in the underlying principles of our nation, not because they are being "mercenaries".

So, even though I am predisposed to accepting the argument presented, the partisan swipe renders it almost unappealing to me without a tremendous effort to overcome my emotional negation.

Similarly, a post from Donnie (now posting under his real name) at Cadillac Tight, in a post on 24 July that seems to have disappeared from the post chain but still exists in the RSS feed and on his server, again the underlying theme of the post has merit, and is something I have been meaning to post upon for a long time, the inadequate (to say the least) compensation we offer to those fighting for us, but the argument is weakened by the partisan swipes, this time directed at "the left":

Not so fast, Chomsky...

---

Well, yeah. Recruiting is a problem in wartime, after all...and I'll discuss that a bit further down in this post. First, though, let me point out to the left side of the blogosphere that they may not want to climb too many steeples to shout this news from, as one of the article's points is:

an improving economy

Sigh. DCSPERS, what can we do with 'em?

Gah! Remember, lefties, your "worst economy since Hoover" posts of the past (we do, you know, we remember), and consider how we'll jam them down your throats once you start gibbering and capering about as if this Times article is GOOD news for your side.

Now then, recruiting. Yes, there's a war on, and before I get into any suggestions about how to address the recruiting problem, let me just say for the record that I think this administration has made a very big mistake in this regard. I understand the rationale behind the "go about your normal lives" approach to handling the domestic side of the war, given I have a pretty good understanding of the terrorist's goals - they'd like to fuck up our infrastructure something fierce, and rationing, et. al. would do a large portion of that job for them. Where I disagree with the president's approach to "business as usual" is in how he's neglected to reinforce the fact that while those of us who have already served our time, or who can't serve any time for one reason or another should, actually, go about our business, those who haven't served, but can, SHOULD.

And yeah, we're at the point where that needs to be said, and reinforced, and said again. This administration isn't doing that, and I'm fully aware of why they aren't - it's a political decision for them, and it by God shouldn't be. Look, there's no election looming on the horizon (last time I checked, 2006 is still 15 or so months away), the Rove "scandal" isn't all it's cracked up to be, the SC situation was brilliantly handled with a perfect nominee, and things, in general, are well for the Republican party. It's beyond time to get back to the business of prosecuting this war.

So, that kind of leads me into some recommendations. First, what I already said: Mr. Rumsfeld, and Mr. Bush need to make it clear, by whatever means necessary, that recruiting is a problem, and that Americans who are able to serve their country in uniform should do so, for the same reasons they have in the past, from Valley Forge to Normandy. This nation is at war, because it has been attacked - we are not involved in a "Police Action", or a "Peacekeeping Force" - we are AT WAR. We are defending our country against an aggressive enemy.

Next - the new recruiting package is nice. I mean, folks, it's nice. Had I the opportunity back in my day of availing myself of those re-enlistment bonuses, enlistment bonuses, college funds, and special pay, I'd be a lot farther along in my retirement planning than I am now, of that I assure you. The mistake that's just waiting to be made here, though, is that I can guarantee you some nimrod in the DoD will propose rolling back all of those cool incentives once the war is over (or even after it's simply settled a bit). Don't do it. I beg you guys, Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, whatever persuasion you are, don't roll these incentives back. We need a professional NCO and Officer corps, and we need them to be by cracky excellent NCOs and Officers...what better way to keep good people than to, well, reward them for being good?

Fucking Java programmers straight out of fucking DeVry shouldn't make more money than seasoned 11-B E-5's. No way.

Next - Don't fuck the vets, man...don't fuck the vets. If you touch any VA legislation, or any VA funding, you'd by God better be improving it, not re-allocating it, or downsizing it, or "managing" it, or re-distributing it. You know, even in peacetime, fucking the vets is frowned upon - just ask William Jefferson Clinton, or John "Jeng-Giss-Khan" Kerry. You go and fuck the vets in wartime, and kiss your ass goodbye the next time you send those absentee ballots out to the soldiers, whether there's an (R) after your name or not. Guaranteed. Worse still, (R)'s or (D)'s aside, you're telling the very folks you want to enlist that you don't give a shit about them if they become disabled, or need lifelong care.

Don't even give anyone the impression that you're fucking the vets, OK?

Next - and this relates to the first "Next" - those contractors you are experimenting with? The ones who are supposed to replace E-1's through E-6's in specialist jobs? Cut that shit out, guys. That's not even remotely cool, it's stupid, stupid, stupid. Let me tell you something - you give an E-2 or an E-3 the incentives the Times article mentions, give them a solid benefits package, enough cash to play poker with their contemporaries on the outside, and a goddamned career they can both be proud of and support their families on, and you won't have to play fuck-fuck with "contractors". You'll also take a big step towards building that professional NCO corps I mentioned earlier.

Finally, and nearest and dearest to my own heart, the Combat Arms guys? The ones you take great pains to sidetrack extra pay to in various ways, shapes, and forms, but you really can't get them what they deserve, or need?

Pay those guys. Just fucking pay them, and pay them well. Give them the very best weapons and equipment money can buy, give them all the honor and glory you have to offer, give them better pay, and quarters, and ceremonies, and clubs and facilities and beer and fucking whatever it is they want. Give it to them - there's no excuse not to, all PC bullshit aside. Every Company Clerk I've ever known realized deep down inside that the guys with the bayonets deserve more pay and bennies than they do, so why the hell don't you, the fucking DoD realize it?

Pay them. Pay the goddamned Infantry, and the Artillery, and the Combat Engineers, and the Armor, and the Air Cav, and the Signal Corps guys in the field, more than you pay the Personnel Clerks, or the JAG clerks, or the Quartermaster specialists, or the MPs, or the Medical Service Corps (different from the Medical Corps). Pay them, pay them, pay them.

Pay the Paratroopers and Air Assault soldiers well. Pay the Pathfinders and Jumpmasters better. Pay the Rangers more than what a fucking plumber takes home. Pay the Special Forces guys better than the Rangers. Pay the Delta guys, and the senior NCOs and Officers in each Combat Arms specialty even more. Cough it up, pay 'em.

Cut out the bullshit with the National Guard guys getting second class equipment and billets in fucking wartime - if they are going to see the goddamned elephant, give 'em a fucking cattle prod to use, at the very least.

Get rid of even the appearance of under equipping and/or underpaying our most important citizens, and you know what? You'll recruit more of them.

That is all.

Again, the points made are valid from any reasonable standpoint, and in my opinion outstanding and should be immediately acted upon, but the impact is diminished because of the swipes at "the left" before the opening of the statement of what is needed to fully support the Armed Forces we need.

Civil discourse, I've given up on that as a chimera that never really existed.

Now I have been reduced to being focused on showing how arguments are lessened by the partisan attacks.

One of the most critical and insightful military historians of recent times, B.H. Liddell Hart, wrote a book called Strategy, which extolled the virtues of the indirect approach.

I think that many of those who are making partisan arguments could learn much from this book, and this indirect approach.

In an indirect approach to their goal, perhaps, just perhaps, they may very well persuade those who otherwise would not have listened.

Technorati Tags: commentary, some thoughts, weblogs

I do mean to follow up on this...

...attempt at starting a meme by Rick at Rick's Cafe Americain, where he asks:

...progressive and conservative bloggers to post the ten things (principles, platforms, ideas, goals, beliefs, qualities, hairdos, whatever) that most clearly define their ideology.

Regardless of why he asked, I think it is a worthwhile thing to do, even if to clarify for ourselves what we believe and why we believe it.

So, I hope to put up my post describing the foundations of my beliefs in the next few days (even though that is indeed a tall order).

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Anger rarely makes your case

Earlier today, David Anderson of In Search of Utopia cross-posted "Pick your cotton?" here at Random Fate. In this post, David asks that a particular post by Paul of Wizbang be condemned as hate speech "disguised as some sort of sick satire." A firestorm of comments and trackbacks have arisen at the original post at In Search of Utopia.

Before I discuss any further, some background is needed. David is one of the many who did me the favor of guest-posting when I was on hiatus. I am also privileged to post at In Search of Utopia, where I did guest-post for David during one of his absences. I have not posted to his blog in a while because of time constraints on my part. I asked David to guest-post for me because I have always enjoyed his writing, and also, more importantly, because even though David has a particular, strongly left-leaning point of view, he does not dismiss opposing viewpoints out of hand as is often the case of people who could be described as "opinionated".

For some additional context it should be noted I took Wizbang off my blogroll long ago (over a year, I believe) because I felt that much of what I read there in both the posts and comments was fueled by unreasoning hatred. There have been several instances where bloggers have taken exception to posts at Wizbang, and not all those who disagreed were from the dreaded left-wing that the authors at Wizbang appear to despise. In essence, Wizbang represented the inverse of the attitude that prompted me to ask David to guest-post at Random Fate.

A final note before I continue, although I feel I have something to add to any discussion on race issues, given where I grew up, the people with whom I have worked, and now living on another continent in a different society, I do not write on the topic. My reticence is due to many factors, not the least of which are the high levels of raw emotion associated with any discussion of race.

I read the post at Wizbang that prompted David's anger, and what perspective I can provide is this: Satire is generally very difficult to pull off, and this post does not even approach what I would consider poor satire, much less that of well-written satire that prompts both a chuckle as well as deep thought.

Does the text of the post indicate that the author is a racist? I cannot answer that question, because the author and his attitudes were one of the primary reasons I chose to stop reading Wizbang. Since I no longer regularly read the site, I do not have the context for this single post nor the larger texture of the views of this author.

I do believe that David Anderson is not doing his case any favors by reacting with such anger. While the anger is understandable, especially given David's long history of posting on race related issues and his own personal experiences of being subject to racism, his anger is resulting in lowering the level of David's post to that of the hateful commenters always present at any pissing-match that the authors of Wizbang seem to be so eager to participate in.

I have made similar errors, posting in anger instead of letting the rage subside so that my point could be made in a way that people would read and think about rather than immediately cheer or deride. I have tried to learn from my errors, so in the past couple of months I have deleted posts before they were ever published, instead waiting to write something driven by reason rather than emotion.

Blogworld has enough writing aimed at generating knee-jerk responses. I don't want to add to the cacophony.

Technorati Tags: commentary, race issues, weblogs

Odd...

The majority of the Munuvian blogs have been inaccessible to me for the past few days. I've noticed they on occasion go offline for an hour or two but then come back quickly. This time, however, they're missing for days.

Is comment spam finally reaching the point where it overwhelms servers that have a lot of weblogs? I noticed a LOT of comment spam built up here while I was on hiatus, it took me a couple of days to clean it all up.

Whatever the problem is, I hope it is corrected soon. Many of the blogs I enjoy reading the most are on Munivia.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Slow news day

Several bloggers are commenting (complaining?!?) about the slow pace of news in the past few days.

These remarks ring hollow to me, especially in light of this (thanks to Ann Althouse for the link):

It’s cruel, too cruel. I’ve appreciated irony all my life. But my sons are both musicians. And I am going deaf.

A "slow news day", yet tragedies still occur both large and small, widely felt or falling upon an individual.

A "slow news day" with nothing worthy of commentary.

While murder still occurs in Darfur.

While death still holds entire populations in tyranny, it is a "slow news day".

While we examine our navels, the world moves on, judging us by our acts, especially in times of tyranny when we are warm and comfortable in our homes.

A "slow news day".

Yes...

Nothing to see here, move along...

It is a "slow news day"...

Technorati Tags: commentary, weblogs

A "thank you" is in order...

...to those who kindly helped me by guest posting here while I was away. I definitely needed the break, and I appreciate the efforts of those who helped keep Random Fate alive.

In random order, I would like to thank:

David Anderson of In Search of Utopia

Ron Beasly of Middle Earth Journal

Pennywit of Pennywit

Jennifer of Jennifer's History and Stuff

The Commissar of The Politburo Diktat

Joe Gandelman of The Moderate Voice

Key of Key Issues

Boudicca of Boudicca's Voice

Eric of Straight White Guy

Please go and check out their own weblogs, because all of them are well worth reading.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Guest posters

I am going on vacation for two weeks.

What does this mean?

On vacation means I likely will not post, even if I have internet access, which I am not sure I will have given both my lack of plans for my vacation accompanied with the death of my favorite laptop.

So, to prevent the slow death of Random Fate, I have arranged for a variety of guest posters to keep Random Fate alive while I try to recover my perspective and regain my sanity, which has been strained by numerous sources, none of which I will go into here.

The guest posters range quite widely in viewpoint, but I have found ALL of them to be reasonable as opposed to knee-jerking in their responses to the events and the politics of the day.

In addition, ALL of them are engaging and entertaining to read, which is why they are all on my blogroll along with being at the top of my RSS news reader list.

So, please click on their names when you read their posts here, for that links you to their own, personal sites where you can get more of their original thoughts. The quality and tone of what they have posted on their own sites is indeed why I asked them to post here.

Their thoughts are their own, not just a rehash of the talking points from a particular party.

They each have their own point of view, and they all deserve to be heard, for they are willing to consider other viewpoints as well.

I hope you can follow their example and do the same.

I've about had it with the Ecosystem...

...I've joined the first. and likely only, weblog alliance I will ever be a part of, the Raging RINOs, the Republicans / Independents Not Overdosed (on the Party Kool Aid).

The bloody Ecosystem won't recognize my latest posts and add them to the "recent posts" column on the RINO Alliance page.

Bloody freaking Hell.

Isn't living in a place where there are a bunch of folks who don't believe in deodorant or antiperspirant bad enough without having these time-zone issues with weblogs?

Argh!!!!!!!!!!

Technorati Tags: weblogs

A bit disappointed

I intermittently have problems connecting to Pennywit's blog; I have no idea why.

Today was another of those days. My newsreaders had managed to download the headlines, but I couldn't reach the associated posts. There was a post titled "Downing Street Minutes matter" that I thought had been written by Pennywit himself, because up until now only one other person who commented or set up their own blog at Pennywit's Drupal site had made it to the front page and the RSS feed, and I knew the other person would never, ever have a post with that title.

Upon finally being able to connect to the site, I discover that Pennywit has a new contributor with the nom de plume The Impolitic. He introduces himself with the post in question.

No problem.

Then I read the post.

His general thesis is just fine, it is not excessively partisan, although it does come from a certain point of view. However, when he asserts with no supporting statements or links, "But the DSM are not about solving the Iraq quagmire; they're about preventing future foreign policy blunders based on corporate interests rather the public good," I must cry foul.

I have read much of what has been posted on the documents in question, and I see nowhere in these documents or in any credible source reporting on them that they show any link with so-called "corporate interests".

I do have concerns regarding how the energy policies of the current administration do seem to have been excessively influenced by the energy/oil industry, but I have yet to see any even marginal evidence that "corporate interests" had a large influence on the march to war in Iraq.

So, links or other supporting statements to this assertion are required to be consistent with the standards Pennywit has established by his analyses that, while originating from a certain point of view, are not without external support.

Hence my disappointment.

I hope the future contributions from The Impolitic at Pennywit do not repeat this omission.

Technorati Tags: commentary, weblogs

Testing, testing...

I'm testing something out, so ignore this post.

Or not, but there's nothing of substance here. Less than what's between Britney Spears ears...

---

UPDATE: Bloody Hell... it didn't work. Even LESS to see here now.

Technorati Tags: ignore

Weaving it all together

I've been challenged directly by some and indirectly by others to pull everything together, to explain explicitly where I am coming from.

I thought I had been clear.

It appears I was mistaken.

Because of my error regarding my clarity, I am working on a long post that should clarify most questions I have received either in comments, by email, by direct challenges in other weblogs, or by indirect references also in other weblogs.

It will take me several days to complete it. Until then, I ask your patience. I do have a day job that does require more than a small measure of my intellectual energy, and with a semi-annual pow-wow for the sole benefit of big-wigs coming up, I'm having to find dogs and ponies for the show, which ain't always easy.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

A post for John

John of Argghhh! has been driven to say, "Argghhh!!!" by an idiotic preacher.

I can fully understand John's anger, and I share it.

For John, I can offer this, a song I remember when I run across overzealous Christians:

The Austin Lounge Lizards, from their album Lizard Vision:

"Jesus Loves Me But He Can't Stand You"

NOTE: 3.5Mb MP3 file, right click to download if you don't want network congestion problems...

NOTE 2: Their bluegrass version of "Brain Damage", originally from Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd is also not to be missed!!!

NOTE 3: I do not support illegal sharing of music. I ask you to delete the file from your hard drive after listening once, and I strongly encourage you all to buy the album if you can, it's really good!

John, I hope listening to it helps.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

A blogger on a personal journey...

...to find what is important to himself.

The pseudonymous blogger of the nom-de-plume-eponymous weblog TeaFizz (in other words, his real name is unknown to me) is still alive after returning to active duty and a refresher of Basic Training.

Go there and comment so he knows people are out here reading him.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

A clarification for my readers

I recently posted on my own concept of honor, and how I feel the honor of my country has been soiled and continues to be soiled by the choice of our government to maintain the extra-legal prison an Guantanamo Bay.

In that post, I disagreed with an assertion made by another blogger, someone whom I respect immensely.

I want to make it very clear I was not saying that the Average Tobacco Chewing Joe of Cadillac Tight has no sense of honor.

ATCJoe and I have had a relative long (in blogworld time) history of tussles and disagreements that have never degenerated to name-calling or a loss of respect for each other.

I want to make clear, unequivocally, that ATCJoe is at least as honorable as I am, perhaps more so.

For my regular readers, those that I have, I fully expect you to read what ATCJoe has to say with an open mind, and if you disagree with him, you can post comments in his weblog, but be sure to have both logic and facts upon your side, because he is a smart cookie, and tolerates fools no better than I do.

I tolerate those who do not respect my friends even less than I do fools.

Technorati Tags: opinion, personal, weblogs

Us versus the-rest-of-the-world

In an article discussing the move of Apple from PowerPC to Intel based processors I read this of all things:

(The Macintosh sycophancy) ...reminds me of another self-justifying group of Americans that will approve anything their party does, no matter what (apparently its leadership believes it's reasonable to frame all discourse as us versus the-rest-of-the-world; the rest of the world now including all dissenting Americans).

It seems you cannot get away from politics these days.

However, some others have noticed the same tendencies of "us versus the-rest-of-the-world, with the rest of the world now including all dissenting Americans". For example, the Commissar at The Politburo Diktat takes to task a prominent right-wing blog for using rhetoric that the Commissar feels is hateful:

Recently, here and here, I harshly criticized Captain Ed and other Main Stream Floggers. As far as this post today of Captain Ed's, a post whose tone matches the worst of Charlie Rangel, Howard Dean, and dKos, I regret what I said the other day. I regret that I did not denounce this hateful rhetoric in strong enough terms.

Another blogger asked me recently, "Do you still consider yourself a Republican? Yes, I do. And I ask in return, "Is Captain Ed's post Republican?" Is that what the GOP stands for? Waving the bloody shirt? Tarring anyone who disagrees with intransigence as a lyncher?

I suggest you read the entire post by the Commissar and the links he refers to, but please take his remarks in context. He does not necessarily agree with what follows.

Here is where I ask about fundamentals:

As I ask repeatedly, is this how we really want things to work?

Can we not frame things in any way other than "us versus the-rest-of-the-world , with the rest of the world now including all dissenting Americans"?

This seems to be the fundamental tactic of the current administration, with deliberate nominations of controversial figures for the purposes of both explicitly demonstrating the power of the administration in getting what it wants, and in rewarding those who have been personally loyal to the man who is currently President.

In other words, personal loyalty to George W. Bush is apparently perceived to be a more relevant qualification than any experience or other factors for any position.

Excuse me, but isn't this how any two-bit dictator, including the late yet unlamented regime in Iraq, operates?

Loyalty to an individual, NOT to the system.

Take a step outside of your partisan prejudices for a moment and look at the bigger picture.

Look at history, look at where we have been, and in light of that, look at where we appear to be going.

The current administration is pushing for making the USA PATRIOT Act permanent, and Congress is attempting to even expand the ability of the FBI and other government agencies to conduct searches with no judicial review. The Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee holding hearings on the renewal isn't even willing to hear dissenting voices.

The current administration has signed the RealID Act, a bill passed without any kind of public hearing or input, which provides an easy way for large corporations to gather information on and track any individual along with increasing government surveillance of individuals, not to mention what the identity thieves will be able to do in terms of invading privacy (oh, and by they way, this ill-thought out bill was sponsored and pushed by the very same man who refused to listen to any dissenting voices on renewal and extension of the USA PATRIOT Act).

How long before I, a patriotic American, am regarded as a "person of interest" because I am an expatriate in France?

Will I have to give up any semblance of privacy in order for me to return to my country of birth?

How long before you, who posts on a weblog, is regarded as a "person of interest" because you wrote something that didn't conform with the government line?

The preamble to our Constitution states:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

This was written by men who had not so long before fought and risked death for treason to establish their liberties.

What are the Blessings of Liberty?

Do those Blessings include establishing an extra-legal prison?

Do those Blessings include establishing the precedent that the President can declare anyone, US citizen or not, an enemy combatant with no recourse to any review, and no right to counsel?

Do those Blessings include establishing a mandatory national ID card that is machine readable, as outlined by the RealID Act?

Do those Blessings include establishing a system where dissenting voices are ignored and cut off?

Men fought and died to give us the Blessings of Liberty that we have enjoyed.

Men fought and died to defend the honor of our nation.

Are we honoring their legacy?

My answer: No, we are not, instead we are throwing it away and most don't even notice, while others who claim to be patriots cheer.

Technorati Tags: commentary, opinion, politics, weblogs

Testing, testing...

Average tobacco chewing Joe at Cadillac Tight needs a trackback after changing his weblog system, so here is one.

Off to Prague...

...and I doubt I'll have computer access.

Boudicca has kindly agreed to help keep things here from getting too quiet, so don't be surprised if you see a few posts from her.

Photos when I return on Monday!

New category

I have added a new category, "Rants", because I have lost patience with a lot of what I see, and I need to rant about it.

However, I want folks who are looking for balanced commentary to know what posts to avoid.

Hence, this seemed the best compromise since I don't really have time to maintain a balanced weblog and a rantblog, yet neither do I want Random Fate to be a rantblog.

Even though rantblogs get more readers, I do not want those kind of readers, and I want Random Fate to be more than a pointless echo chamber.

So, take the "Rants" for what they are, unbalanced, angry opinions.

Most of them will be hidden in the extended entries if they are long enough, but a few shorter ones may slip through. Ignore them if they offend you. If they don't offend but don't align with your opinions, feel free to comment, but don't expect a balanced reply unless you have fully thought out your comment.

You have been warned.

I used it all up on one post yesterday

No wonder I can't write anything tonight.

I have a lot I want to write about, but I just can't write.

Of course, I've spent the last 4 days reviewing technical papers for their suitability to be included in an upcoming conference (this is what is known as "peer review", which you may have heard about in the scientific and technical community), and my brain is fried.

It's absolutely NO fun reading 40 technical papers in a row, most written by people to whom English is not a first language, and the resultant writing, which tends to be dry even when done by a native English speaker, becomes more arid than Death Valley on an August afternoon.

Then, I looked at my post of last night, "A Case of Identity", and I realize how fricking LONG that thing is.

I'm surprised if anyone is reading it to the end, but it's getting some attention at The Moderate Voice, where I cross-posted it.

Geez, I wrote a lot last night, but it was all in ONE POST.

I think I used up my quota of words for a while...

Technorati Tags: personal, weblogs

I'm not the only one morally exhausted

Stephen Green, the Vodka Pundit, has two announcements.

The first, he's getting burned out because the truths that are self-evident seem to not be evident to those who should be his natural allies. I can relate to his feelings directly, because I was unable to post very much last week because every time I wrote, my anger caused the posts to degenerate into the vitriolic, epithet-filled name-calling that I despise.

It's so much easier to jerk the knee instead of actually think, which is why so many avoid thinking.

For those of us who do take the time and energy think, we are exhausted dodging all those knees.

His second announcement I will leave as an encouragement to read his entire post.

Technorati Tags: opinion, personal, weblogs

Rhetoric from the left and the right

The Average Tobacco Chewing Joe and I are engaged in a debate in the comments on rhetoric, actions, and judicial nominations over at his weblog, Cadillac Tight, if you want to go read and possibly join in.

Technorati Tags: opinion, recommended reading, weblogs

Some outstanding thoughts on "our thing"...

...aka "blogging" are to be found at Pennywit.

Why are you still here? Go read it!

Technorati Tags: recommended reading, weblogs

Overcoming all obstacles...

...he has returned to blogworld.

David Anderson, of In Search of Utopia, has had some serious issues with his web hosting service, but he is back online now.

Go visit his site and let him know he is not forgotten in our 24/7 world of instant gratification.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Before you do something you'll regret in your righteous outrage...

...think a moment about what the true teachings of God are.

Stephen, aka The Commissar at The Politburo Diktat has posted his "Personal Notes on Human Evolution".

I felt compelled to add to his post in the comments, and what I wrote is reproduced below:

Stephen, to add a wee bit to your essay:

The basis of science is forming hypotheses that are provable or disprovable given the available evidence.

As new evidence (which in the case of the distant past will always be incomplete) becomes available, the currently favored hypotheses and paths for human evolution will change.

That is the virtue of science. It changes to meet the available facts. This process is not without its flaws and foibles that are a result of human vanity and fallibility, but it is the best we can do given our imperfections.

Science does NOT try to refute the possibility of the existence of God. Science merely tries to find self-consistent explanations for physical phenomena based upon observable evidence that can be used to prove or disprove hypotheses.

Science is NOT in opposition to God. Any opposition is created by those who seek an opponent to gain power for themselves.

Therefore, it is important to question the motivations of those who are trying to say "Evolution is evil" or "Science denies the existence of a creator" when it does not.

Unfortunately, when matters of faith are involved, faith is placed in people who claim to have a hotline into the word of God, instead of faith in the Word of God that is documented in books such as the Holy Bible or the Koran (with the faith in people who claim to hold the truth rather than the actual teachings causing so much harm on 11 September 2001).

But the lessons are rarely learned, for faith is never rational, even when God says it should be.

Over and over we have seen the results of following men who claim to have a direct line into the word of God, be they Oral Roberts, Jim Bakker, Jerry Falwell, Pete Robertson, Osama bin Laden, or whoever, despite the discrediting of their true intentions, despite the failings of their self-proclaimed knowledge of will of God, they are still followed.

Repeatedly, they are shown to be charlatans or worse.

Yet, they continue to make an impact, in some cases on our very system of government.

Jesus himself said, "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's."

What exactly do you think this means?

It does NOT mean to impose and enforce your interpretations and will upon everyone else, claiming it is the will of God.

Look at the history of the early Christian churches for examples of what is truly Christan behavior before following these false prophets.

Take care, for God truly does understand what your intentions and motivations are, and in the end there will be no appeal from His judgment.

Technorati Tags: opinion, Christianity, religious right

Not yet back up to speed

I'm still very tired, possibly a bit burned out, so only one post today, and not one of my best written.

Hopefully, I'll have more mental energy tomorrow.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

Original posts on the way tomorrow

Sorry for posting only quotes today. I'm really tired both from work and lack of sleep (due to stress from work).

I should be back up to speed tomorrow.

Technorati Tags: weblogs

The unbearable lightness of being

A deliberately obscure message directed towards a few. Those for whom it is intended will understand. For the rest, think upon it a while, and feel free to comment or ask questions by email.

---

Not so long ago, a movie was released that had the title The Unbearable Lightness of Being, a story about seemingly lost souls caught up in the so-called Prague-Spring of 1968 and the subsequent Soviet invasion.

What does this title, even without the historical context, mean to you?

Think for a moment.

lightness - ephemeral

unbearable - refusal to accept

Perhaps tragic realization that in the end, we are nothing, resulting in an unbearable lightness of being?

Like the wind crying endlessly through the universe, Time carries away the names and the deeds of conquerors and commoners alike. And all that we are, all that remains, is in the memories of those who cared we came this way for a brief moment.
   -Harlan Ellison

Many in blogworld, aka "our thing", aka "the blogosphere" rant and rave, make pronouncements profound or profane, deep or petty, hateful or loving, poingient or pointless.

In the end, whether we get 20,000 hits a day or 20, what really matters?

Those who agree with what we say, or those who really truly cared that we came this way for a brief moment?

Regardless of the cold, hard logic of numbers, perspective matters more.

The soul matters.

Honor matters.

In the end, what else is there?

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...on the endings of beginnings

Sluggy Freelance is an online comic strip I have enjoyed reading for several years, although some of the experimentation that the author, Peter Abrams, has indulged in recently is not quite as entertaining. Not that I begrudge him his attempts at stretching his creativity, but much of the fun factor is missing.

Pete himself has recognized this, and he now has a co-artist/author who is publishing one strip a week set during the "bikini suicide frisbee days." An example of the spirit of those early days of Sluggy Freelance can be found in this particular strip:

Read the following strips to find the pleasant chaos that made it fun.

The early days of Bloom County have a similar, quasi-anarchic and amicably subversive feel that is so hard to capture and so easily lost.

Some call it "jumping the shark" enshrining an infamous episode of the television sitcom Happy Days when Fonzie performed a motorcycle stunt a-la Evel Kenivel by jumping his bike over a shark tank.

Somehow, the fun goes away.

The endings of beginnings and the loss of innocence and naivete occurs with almost everything, not just comic strips and television shows.

Sometimes the end of the beginning is noticed at the time it happens, sometimes it is not recognized until well after the change in spirit has taken hold.

As with any loss of innocence there is a wistful longing for the pure, artless, fresh fun that is no more.

Another beginning has sadly ended; the "bikini suicide frisbee days" of blogging are over.

I suspect t