Thursday, January 22, 2004

Casting Stones or Wielding Whips

In a post that touches on my post below, at least in regards to adultery, Richard Nikoley points to an Amnesty International posting entitled “Sudan: 16-year-old Girl to be Flogged for ‘Crime’ of Adultery." Though I would be under no threat of punishment in the Sudan because I committed adultery, I find this type of thinking in regards to punishment of individuals who pursue sexual fulfillment outside of “social” conventions, reprehensible.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/22 at 06:57 AM
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Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Basketball, Adultery, Education, Religion

I recently attended a sporting event, a high school basketball game, JV level.  The event was held at a local parochial school and the away team hailed from one of the local secular schools.  Christians versus seculars you could say, though faith had nothing to do with what went on on the court, unless you want to count the before game devotions held by the home team.

Though I’m not a rabid fan of the game, I attend these games religiously.  My twin sons play for the parochial school and make their dad proud.  I’m not afraid to be heard from the stands and unhesitantly offer my sons, in fact the whole team, coaching from my usual spot mid-court.  My sons tell me they can hear me fine.  Fortunately, for me, they take my coaching seriously as I ran my share of fast breaks in the day.  Having a couple trophies and MVP awards for them to marvel at doesn’t hurt either.

I’m happy to report that the parochial school is not as ultra-conservative as some individuals fear.  Sure the Bible is thumped in the curriculum offered, but it’s not as if the school is teaching algebra, caculus or Spanish from the holy book.  In fact, during warmups, rock and roll of the secular variety was blaring from the bar bones sound system.  Rock and roll during warmups sounds so much better from the sound systems at the public schools.  Those public educators spare no expense when building new schools to replace perfectly sound old schools.

I admit that the first time I heard rock and roll blaring from a parochial schools speakers I was somewhat taken aback.  My experience with these private institutions did not include such deviltry.  Of course that’s thirty or so years ago, and I’ll have to admit I am happy that the parochial schools haven’t gone the way of the madrassa.  The worst I think that can be said for the parochial schools, beyond some of the dogmas propounded, is they have fallen prey to a few of the public school foibles.  ADD is almost as easily swallowed as in the public schools and they also have those infernal hot lunch programs.

But, I’m getting off track.  Sitting in the stands is always an experience for me.  I sometimes feel I am surrounded by quidnuncs, a rather common byproduct in religions of all ilks, but I was fortunate at this particular event to sit next to or amongest some individuals I know very casually.  As we conversed at half-time, the subject of siblings and such was arrived at and the topic bounced to a certain behavior that was mightily frowned upon.  Adultery.

The individual, who was the catalyst for this topic, was roundly condemned and damned for the heinous act.  As I listened to this, I wondered if the same was in store for myself.  I wondered what the individual, to whom I was listening relate this condemnation of another individual, for adultery, would say, to me, if he knew that I committed adultery, got divorced and married the woman I committed adultery with.  Would the individual still so vehemently condemn the individual originally being damned?  Would the individual condemn me and think me the devil himself incarnate because of my ingratiating manner as we sat cheering on the team and me without my scarlet A?  Would the individual still want to sit alongside of me?

This dilemma never presented itself though because I made no comments during the entire adultery spiel.  I may have uttered an occasional “oh,” or, “too bad,” or nodded my head in acknowledgment that I was being spoken to, but I offered no words of encouragement or “here, here” to the judgment being levied.  I mostly felt sad for the individual doing the damning.  I’ve traveled that black road of ignorance myself in the past and though I reach my hand out to individuals still on that road, they must pay their own toll.

Overall it was an excellent evening.  An exciting basketball game, my boys, both starters, played admirably, the team went to 8-0 and I had a thought provoking conversation.  Life doesn’t get much better.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/21 at 06:53 PM
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Save the Beer

Now here’s a cause that should cross all ideological lines.

Send vodka, they have all the ice they need.

"Russia has sent in the army to bolster a week-long struggle to rescue 10 tons of beer trapped under Siberian ice, Itar-Tass news agency said Tuesday. A lorry carrying the beer sank when trying to cross the frozen Irtysh river, and a rescue team of six divers, 10 workers and a modified T-72 tank from the emergencies ministry have so far failed to save the load."

Via Yahoo News.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/21 at 06:53 AM
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Get Healthy - It's Your Right

"Idiotic Quote of the Day: John Kerry"

"This from the mouth of John Kerry, the haughty, French-looking Senator (who by the way served in Vietnam) on CNN TV (as reported by The Command Post): “Healthcare is not a privilege for the wealthy and the powerful ... it is a right for all Americans, and we will make it available to all Americans.”

Let’s see here--I exist and I am an American, therefore, I deserve my health care to be provided for me. Yet the wealthy and powerful will not respect my rights. I shall vote for John Kerry and he will break them.

If John Kerry does in fact win the Democratic nomination and he goes on to defeat George Bush in the general election, with logic like that, I say the people will fully deserve his presidency."

Entire post lifted from Nicholas Provenzo at The Rule of Reason.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/21 at 06:31 AM
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"Mikerowesoft"

Here’s a young man thinking quickly, crafting the domain name in the title bar above.  Of course, “Microsoft" doesn’t appreciate the young man’s mind.

"In November, Microsoft’s Canadian lawyers demanded that Rowe, 17, change the name of his Internet site, claiming copyright infringement. They said they would pay Rowe, who lives in Victoria, British Columbia, $10 for his trouble."

Via Arthur Silber.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/21 at 06:22 AM
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I Took A Walk

So, last night, the President gave his annual SOTU banality.  I took a walk instead, figuring I could readily conjure up what was spoken during said speech by actively using my imagination and adding a liberal dose of socialism disguised as altruism.  Simple words sprinkled on the masses, like the Pope offering a blessing in St. Peter’s Square, after which the faithful remove to their abodes to ponder the gravitas of what was uttered, and to count the future pennies, not yet stolen, the great master has promised them from the pockets of others.

Here, then, is a rebuttal to the SOTU, not by some namby pamby Democrat/Socialist, but, by an individual who understands what it means to be an American.  Jonathon Wilde of Catallarchy.

Update: If you are looking for a condensed version of the SOTU, Nick Gillespie, over at Hit & Run, has condensed versions for both Republisocialists and Demosocialists, including rebuttals.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/21 at 05:54 AM
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Tuesday, January 20, 2004

Well, at Least Kerry Wasn't Fired

I have no love for Kerry, or any professional job seeker for that matter, but what follows deserves to be disseminated.

The headline: “Clark Aims to Pull Rank on Kerry in N.H."

A quote from Clark from the linked article above.

"It’s one thing to be a hero as a junior officer. He’s done that, I respect that,” Clark said. “But I’ve got the military experience at the top as well as at the bottom."

I’ll say, Clark can’t get much farther from the bottom after being fired.

Headline link via Drudge.

Reality via Billy Beck.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/20 at 02:31 PM
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Spreading the Word

While digging around today looking for something appropriate to post at The Atlasphere’s Ayn Rand Meta-Blog, I stumbled upon the International Society for Individual Liberty website.  What interested me, while looking around, was a notice stating “Year of Ayn Rand” Book Project Launched. Interesting.  Taking a page from The Gideon’s playbook, the project’s stated goal, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Rand, is,

"The long-term goal of the project is to introduce the works of Ayn Rand and her philosophy to Russian-speaking countries, and to make these ideas a part of the intellectual mainstream of the culture. To accomplish this, we intend to print and sell millions of copies of Rand’s works throughout the Russian-speaking world."

I wish them success.  Hopefully Rand’s works will become more dog earred than the Bibles I find in hotel rooms.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/20 at 12:06 PM
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I've Got News for Reporters

In this article, from Reporters Without Borders, reporting on the death in April 2003 of two journalists at the Baghdad Hotel, the reporters have this to say.

"Reporters Without Borders called today for the reopening of the enquiry into who was really responsible for the US Army’s “criminal negligence” in shooting at the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad on 8 April 2003 and causing the death of two journalists - Ukrainian cameramen Taras Protsyuk (of Reuters news agency) and Spaniard José Couso (of the Spanish TV station Telecinco)."

As you read further into the article, you find these statements.

"The US shelling of the hotel was not a deliberate attack on journalists and the media. It was the result of criminal negligence."

And this.

"At the bottom level, Capt. Wolford and Sgt. Gibson reacted as soldiers in a battle situation. They directly caused the death of the journalists and wounded three others, but should not really be held responsible because they did not have information that would have made them aware of the consequences of firing at the hotel."

And this.

"Their immediate superiors - battalion commander Lt. Col. Philip DeCamp and brigade commander Col. David Perkins - also appear not to blame. Their reactions and the accounts of embedded journalists indicate they too had not been properly informed by their own superiors."

Which leads the reporters to conclude this.

"It is inconceivable that the massive presence of journalists at the hotel for three weeks prior to the shelling, which was known by any TV viewer and by the Pentagon itself, could have passed unnoticed. Yet this presence was never mentioned to the troops in the field or marked on the maps used by artillery support soldiers. The question is whether this information was withheld deliberately, out of contempt or through negligence.

At the top level, the US government must bear some of the responsibility. Not just because it is the government and has supreme authority over its army in the field, but also because its top leaders several times made false statements about the incident. They also talked regularly about the dangers journalists faced in Iraq."

So, if I understand this correctly, journalists think that the military high command should be briefing the troops in the field as to the whereabouts of reporters, especially if they are highly concentrated in one area, to facilitate the reporters’ safety during periods of intense conflict.  If, said reporters, who mingle both with coalition troops and those opposing them, happen to be in an area of a fire fight, coalition troops should refrain from protecting themselves until they can assure reporters’ safety.  Whether the troops realize said reporters are in the area or not, which of course they should be aware because, afterall, they are reporters you know.

I refer you Reporters Without Borders, and possibly common sense, to the following words of Colonel Hal Moore, as delivered in the movie We Were Soldiers, to the reporter Bill Galloway.

"I can’t guarantee your safety."

If Reporters Without Borders desire safety for their club members, they should consider being reassigned to the entertainment desk, say in Des Moines.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/20 at 07:09 AM
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This Parrot Could've Been a Sailor

"F*** the Nazi’s, F*** Hitler, so says Churchill’s parrot which is still alive, believe it or not, and enjoying its one-hundred and fourth year of life.  Cool.  Give that bird the biggest damn cracker you can find.

Via PrestoPundit.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/20 at 06:43 AM
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The Flimsiest of Connections

In the Telegraph this morning we are greeted with this headline, “Cannabis is blamed as cause of man’s death." Naturally, I was drawn to such a bold conclusion, wondering, if a one ton bale of primo African skunk, or more common variety Hawaiian, had inadvertantly been dropped on the individual.  Perusing the article, alas, I find this statement.

"Michael Howells, the Pembrokeshire coroner, said Mr Maisey was free from disease and had not drunk alcohol for at least 48 hours. Post-mortem tests showed a high level of cannabinoids in his blood.

He recorded a verdict of death by misadventure because Mr Maisey had died while taking part in an illegal activity. The death led to a warning about the changing strength of cannabis, which is to be reduced to a Class C drug on Jan 29."

According to the above, because the deceased ”...showed a high level of cannabinoids in his blood" the coroner was able to record ”...a verdict of death by misadventure..."

So, what killed Mr Maisey, cannabis or misadventure?  The link between Maisey’s death and cannabis is as tenuous as a rolling paper in the presence of a match.

Via Drudge.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/20 at 05:55 AM
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Monday, January 19, 2004

What Flyfishers Do In The Winter

During the winter months, fly fishing is, well, slow to non-existent.  At least here in the state of Michigan.  I get in the water a couple of times during the winter, but I usually have nothing to show for it except quite close to frost bit toes.  Damn those toes hurt as they warm back up.  I love it.  Anyway, during the winter months, since I’m more than likely not in the stream, I spend a decent amount of time at the tying vise so I have more than an adequate supply of flies when Spring rolls around.  Besides, it seems you can never have too many flies to tempt a trout, or just to have in your box.

Up north, where I spend most of my time chasing hatching mayflies and the trout that feed upon them, ice fishing becomes the panacea while the trout hold in the streams in a state of almost suspended animation.  My friend Rusty Gates, lodge owner, fly fishing god and fountain of knowledge in regards to local mayfly hatches, updates what’s up up north.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/19 at 06:41 PM
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History in Photos

I noticed this post by Greg Ransom of PrestoPundit this morning.  Greg’s post alerts us to the WWII Aerial Reconnaissance Archives at Keele University, which, per Greg, were supposed to go online today, January 19th.  Here’s the link to the archive. I’ve been trying to get in off and on all day to no avail.  I’d wager that the archive is being bombarded with the same intensity of Dresden’s blacker days.  Greg also provided a link to this BBC article announcing the launch, which also has a couple of photos to view.

Click on the first link in this post though and look at the photo Greg posted.  It’s of prisoners lining up at Auschwitz for roll call.  Remind me again why no country seemed to give a shit about this then, but today they’ll raise memorials to the travesty.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/19 at 03:04 PM
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The Passion and the Pope Provoke Distress in Frank Rich

Yesterday, Drudge linked to a Frank Rich article entitled “Chutzpah and spiritual McCarthyism," published in the International Herald Tribune. This piece was also published in the New York Times but with the more innocuous title of “The Pope’s Thumbs Up for Gibson’s ‘Passion’" I’m not certain if this is because the NYT headline writers did not want to mix Jewish and Catholic terms, chutzpah and pope, or because the phrase “thumbs up” is so closely related to movie reviews and utilization of the term may sell more papers as people may think that Roger Ebert has reviewed the film.

The above does not overly concern me though, and neither, in all honesty, does the fact that Frank Rich has his panties in a knot over the pope’s “endorsement” of Gibson’s film The Passion. What interests me is the vapidity of Rich’s distress.  A few examples, with my comments following each example.

The beginning of the second paragraph of Rich’s piece.

"In what is surely the most bizarre commercial endorsement since Eleanor Roosevelt did an ad for Good Luck Margarine in 1959, the ailing pontiff has been recruited, however unwittingly, to help hawk “The Passion of the Christ,” as Mel Gibson’s film about Jesus’s final 12 hours is now titled."

I’m not certain if Rich is upset that the pope is out bizarring Eleanor, or, that even though the pope is ailing and unwitting he is reviewing movies.  Either way, I think the pope’s auction type nod of approval is rather humanizing to the old guy.

Further into Rich’s piece, the fourth paragraph if you are following along, we find this statement by Rich.

"Since I am one of the many curious Jews who have not been invited to press screenings of “The Passion,” I have no first-hand way of knowing whether the film is benign or toxic and so instead must rely on eyewitnesses."

A couple of thoughts on this.  Rich appears to be pissed that he didn’t get an invite to view the film.  Well I didn’t get an invite either Rich, and you don’t see me pissing and moaning.  I guess we’ll both have pay $7.50 or so to get in with the rest of the riff raff.  As for relying on eyewitnesses, well, that’s all and good, in a criminal trial I guess, but it’s more akin to suspending your own judgement in favor of someone else’s dogma.  My experience with this suspension of judgement has been less than satisfactory and I would counsel you to not rely on “eyewitnesses,” as you call them, before passing judgement on a film.  Save that type of reliance for the courtroom.

Rich’s screed goes on and on.  Four pages in the IHT or two pages in the NYT, take your pick, they both read the same.  Meaning, Rich’s piece is the mere whining of a wannabe member of the movie club.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, the book mentioned in the sidebar, left, requires my attention once again.

Posted by John Venlet on 01/19 at 12:17 PM
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Are American Muslims Protestantizing?

Just stopped by Gene Expression and read a post, written by Razib, entitled “Islamicization, American style." According to the post, Razib comes from a Bangledesh family of moderate Muslims now living in America and within the post Razib examines how living in America has affected their piety.  The concluding statement from Razib’s post.

"Addendum: Though the secularization of the orthodox Jewry in the United States is common knowledge, the re-confessionalization of secular anti-religious Jews is not. I have read that levels of God-belief actually increased among Jews after their assimilated into American culture, as they formed a “Jew” to slot into the “Protestant-Catholic-Jew” trichotomy. My major point is that Muslims in the United States are re-organizing along Protestant lines, where my parents took Islam as a given during my childhood, they are engaging in pro-active indoctrination with my siblings, directly mimicking the church-going of their suburban neighbors. As has been noted before on this blog, French “Muslims” actually resemble French “Catholics” in their religiosity, a secularized majority and a devout minority. I think Islam in this country is going through a period of “Americanization.” Some Muslims will become absorbed into the secular-bobo cultural complex, some will form their own Protestant-like Muslim denominations and some will probably find a genial liberal Islam. I think the the fact that Muslim immigrants to this country are selection biased for education means that more will shift toward “low tension” religious groups than might otherwise be the case."

Posted by John Venlet on 01/19 at 08:50 AM
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