“… long time posting …?”

For some reason, after having mentioned it the other day, the Digest Post plug-in stopped working after Friday’s edition. Shy little thing, I guess.

If it doesn’t restart tonight, I’ll have to spank it, though.  Because …

Hang on a sec …

AHA!

My server got upgraded (or, rather, I got moved to a Bright Shiny New More Powerful Server) over the weekend.  So now I’m in PHP 5, not 4.  And I distinctly recall that being an issue …

Investigating …

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It’s podcastic!

by ***Dave on 7-Feb-10 11:55pm · 1 comment

in Blogging

Les and I did the inaugural SEB Podcast this evening.  What I’d thought would be about half an hour ran nearly three times that length, but it was just plain ol’ good fun, akin to sitting back with a couple of beers and shooting the breeze on everything from “Avatar” to the Episcopal Church to DOF to Awful Internet Pictures … but far less coherent than that makes it sound.

It was fun to do.  I have no idea if it will be fun to listen to.  I suspect that, if/when we ever do it again, we’ll end up trying to (a) zero in on a topic for (b) a shorter period of time.

Les is busy doing some clean-up and tweaking of the recording.  I’ll let you know when it’s available online, so we can be totally embarrassed by sounding like a couple of geeks with microphones.

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Tweets from 2010-02-07

by ***Dave on 7-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • Date Night — "Avatar" and late dinner at Old Blinking Light — a very pleasant success. Thanks to @Doycet and @DaphneUn for watching K! #
  • Must admit, as they loaded 100-odd cases of Girl Scout cookies into my van yesterday, was tempted to make a run for the border. #
  • First podcast with @lesjenkins complete. Hour-plus of nattering = 38Mb of "unparalleled mediocrity." I'll wait for the Les edit … #
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Tweets from 2010-02-06

by ***Dave on 6-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • Million zillion cookies all picked up, sorted, set up for parents to come pick up. Yay. #
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Cookies!

by ***Dave on 6-Feb-10 2:44pm · 4 comments

in Uncategorized

All sorted and ready to go!

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Tweets from 2010-02-05

by ***Dave on 5-Feb-10 11:30pm · 4 comments

in Tweets

  • Up too late last night exploring a teeny-tiny corner of the Alpha Quadrant. TGIF. #
  • Non-work goals for today: finish cleaning up Xmas in the living room (to make room for GC Cookies), and install LastPass on Margie's PC. #
  • Gutter cleaning dudes came by to finish the job. Now, if we just get some snow, the melt can run off instead of pouring onto the driveway. #
  • Christmas plates/mugs packed away. Dead house plants dumped. Tchotchkes back on display. Feeling productive! #
  • Still have to think twice when I start writing IMs to realize that I don't have to restrict myself to 140 characters. #
  • And all Xmas decor boxed and away until … well, after Thanksgiving. Ho, ho, ho! #
  • "Hotel for Dogs" is one of the most relentlessly stupid films I've ever had to watch. Please, euthanize me before K starts it again. #
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We can quit any time we want to!

We can quit any time we want to!

Quiz by Shane Snow, at Gizmodo.

Are You Addicted to Technology?

Like other substance addicts, tech-crazed geeks live in a state of denial. Let’s face it, if you’re reading Gizmodo, you’re probably addicted to technology to some degree.

What about if you’re reading Gizmodo in an RSS reader?  Uh-oh …

But just how addicted are you? Take this simple test to find out.

Answer each of the 50 questions below and give yourself one point per question you answer “yes” to. At the end, score yourself. Be honest, this is just for your own benefit… until you report your shocking score in comments, that is.

Or blog about it.  Uh-oh …

1. Do you eat most of your meals while at the computer or in front of the television?

I’m usually at my computer at home.  I’m not infrequently on my computer while eating dinner, or else the TV is on.  Count this one as Yes.

2. Do you sometimes bring your laptop when you sit on the toilet?

No.  (Sighs relief he didn’t ask about my Blackberry.)

3. Do you check your feeds more than 1x per hour?

Sometimes.  If I’m at the computer.  If I’m not, then no.  Sure.

4. Do you make a nervous habit out of refreshing your inbox over and over, just in case someone emailed you in the last 45 seconds?

Not unless I am explicitly expecting a message from someone.

5. Can you not remember the last time you didn’t check online reviews before eating at a new restaurant?

I never do that.

6. Do you freak out if you’re in a car and there’s no GPS?

No.  Though if I’m going someplace I’m not familiar with, I like to use either “Sheila” our GPS, or else Google Maps on my Blackberry.

7. Does the verb “tweet” come up regularly in your real-life conversations?

Um … yes.

8. Have you ever changed vacation plans based on wi-fi availability?

No.  But I usually look up wi-fi availability where we’re going.

9. Are there more than two portable electronic devices within reach right now?

Laptop. Blackberry.  No, not more than two.

10. If your house were on fire, would you run in to rescue your laptop?

No.  My laptop is backed up continuously via Backblaze to an offsite server.  So there!

11. Are you closer with some online-only friends than people you actually see in real life?

There are some folks I assocate with online that are closer than, say, my office mates.  I’ll call this a yes, just to be fair.

12. Are you pretty sure you’d have killed yourself if you lived in the days before Internet?

Dude, I grew up in the days before the Internet.  (Just don’t ask me if I would have killed someone else in order to get early access to it.)

13. Do you buy things online that you could easily drive across town to get in person?

Yes. One-click on Amazon with Amazon Prime free 2-day shipping is a hell of a lot easier than schlepping over to Buns & Noodle or Best Buy.

14. Do “electronics” have their own category in your monthly budget?

No.

15. Are you a member of any sort of online “guild?”

Not any more.  I serve my time.

16. Do you answer questions in support forums when you’re bored?

No.

17. Do you bring your smartphone with you to church?

I do, but I don’t use it there.  Well, sometimes to mark down dates in my calendar.  I will go ahead and take that as a yes.

18. Do you own 3 or more video gaming systems? (Oh come on, portables count.)

Wii.  Playstation 1 in the basement, though I don’t play that.  The Nintendo is Kitten’s.  I do my gaming on my computer, but that “doesn’t count.”  So no.

19. Do you have multiple t-shirts with references to Internet memes, linux, or webcomics?

Oh, yeah.

20. Do you know what the word “meme” means, for that matter?

Oh, yeah.

21. Has your significant other (or mom, if applicable) ever banned you from your smartphone?

No.

22. Do you spend more time on Facebook than you do in the presence of actual people?

God, no.  Hate Facebook.  Would never go on it, except to the extent that it is socially necessary for some contacts.

23. Are you currently in a virtual relationship? (WOW, Second Life, etc)

No.  I game with my wife, for the most part.

24. Do you have 3 or more active social media accounts?

Hmmm.  I actually have three active Twitter streams, though one of them is a utility for moving data from here to there.  I do have a Facebook account I check out weekly.  So … yeah.

25. When something happens in your life, is your first thought usually “How can I fit this into 140 characters?”

Mmmmmmmm … sometimes.

26. Do you need multiple wall outlets to charge all your stuff at night?

No, only one thing gets charged (my Blackberry).

27. When you sit down in a coffeeshop, do you tend to position yourself close to a power outlet “just in case”?

No.  Though I usually keep an eye out at airports.

28. Do you generally spend most of your day looking at a computer screen and then go home… only to look at a computer screen for the rest of the night?

Well … yes.

29. Have phrases like “BRB” and “ROFL” worked their way into your real vocabulary?

Okay, sometimes, yes, though often ironically.

30. Do you often skip meals because you’ve lost track of time in front of the computer?

No.  Kind of which I did.

31. Do you call people by their screen names when you see them in real life?

Almost, in a couple of cases.  I’ll say yes, just to be fun.

32. Do you have more than five tabs open in your browser right now?

19, so yes.  And that’s on my home laptop, and just in Firefox.

33. Are there more than three screens of some kind in the room you’re in right now?

My laptop.  Margie’s computer.  The TV.  Kitten’s laptop (though that’s closed). My work laptop (in my briefcase).  Still, I’ll say yes.

34. Are there more computers in your house than there are people?

My personal laptop. My work laptop. Kitten’s laptop. Margie’s computer.  Margie’s old computer.  (Temporarily) my old work laptop.  So … yes.

35. Do you tweet or read blogs while watching movies at home?

It’s been known to happen, though only if it’s not a great movie.

36. Do you put your phone on vibrate at the movie theater rather than turn it off, even though you’re not expecting anything important?

Yes, because I’m technically on call 24×7.

37. Have you ever turned down a romantic encounter in order to play video games?

Definitely not.  Don;t be silly.

38. Does your Internet usage cut into the time you should be spending on personal hygiene?

No.  It cuts into the time I should be spending on household cleaning.

39. When you see the last names Cerf, Otellini, Ballmer and Berners-Lee, do you know who is being mentioned?

Not all of them, no.

40. Do you ever leave your laptop open in social settings, even though you aren’t actually doing anything on it?

Sometimes, to show people stuff.  So, yes.

41. Have you ever had a dream where you were surfing the Internet?

No.

42. Can you type text messages faster than you can handwrite the same words?

No … but it’s still more legible (even with typos) than I can handwrite.  And I can text longer than I can handwrite any more.

43. Have you ever left an event or date early so you could get online?

There may have been some moments in the past where there was some event we were scheduled to do in CoH where we jetted early from something, but, no, not in the sense that’s intended.

44. Would you classify yourself as an “expert” multitasker?

Probably yes, though I’m feeling my age.  “Veteran” multitasker, maybe.

45. Can you read machine code?

Nope.

46. Do you regularly have to put blocks of ice, portable fans, or frozen packages of hash browns on or near your computer to keep it cool?

No, but I have to make sure I leave the vents clear from junk.

47. Do you have carpal tunnel syndrome?

God forbid.

48. Do you keep multiple webcams around your house?

I have a webcam on my laptop, but I never (thus far) use it.

49. Are you up on the computer past 3am at least once a week?

Since I get up at 5 to go to work, that would be fairly insane.  And Margie would mock me.  So, no. Though if I were independently wealthy, I probably would.

50. Did you make it all the way to the end of this quiz?

But of course!

So, final score: 17.

Scores:

0-1: Clean as a Whistle – You are either 95 years old, or you lie compulsively to make yourself feel better about your internet addiction. Sorry to call you out like that.

2-9: Social Drinker – You’re not great with technology, but dabble. You probably play sports and actually have a significant other. Either that or you’ve recently been released from Internet rehab and haven’t slipped back to the old ways yet.

10-19: Coffee Fiend – You’re about as plugged in as the next person—but you gotta have your daily fix. Let’s face it, gadgets are everywhere nowadays, right? That’s what you tell yourself at least, but what you don’t know is everyone calls you “nerd breath” behind your back.

20-29: Chainsmoker – You recognize that you’re a little too plugged in, and you’re trying to quit. Your tech addictions are starting to ruin your social interactions, between signing out of the real world every 10 seconds and stinking up the room when you enter. Take this as your cue to shower.

30-39: Pothead – You’re addicted, but you have no desire to quit. There’s a box of Ho Hos on the desk, and you had to brush Cheeto dust off the keyboard to log into your computer, which you keep password protected with heavy encryption. You hurried through this quiz because your guild is waiting for you in the other window. You really should consider counseling.

40-49: Crackhead – You get all shaky when you think about technology, always searching for your next fix. You’ve considered constructing a biotech bathtub for your body to lie in, so you can plug your consciousness permanently into the Internet. Family members are planning to stage an intervention and check you into a clinic. You look forward to the shock therapy.

50: Permafried – There’s no higher brain activity going on anymore. Doctors should prescribe you video games and/or marijuana for medicinal purposes. Just to keep you from flat lining.

So, yes, I have enough Real Life I participate in to avoid being too badly addicted.

Whew!

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School days, school days, dear old Golden Rule days ...

School days, school days, dear old Golden Rule days ...

I’ve been reading a lot over the past several months about all the reactionary Right-wingers appointed by Gov. Perry in Texas to the State Board of Education (ten of the fifteen now being fine, upstanding, Texas Republicans).  Texas is currently going through a review of its social studies curriculum, and the Right has been gleefully proposing and pushing through all sorts of proposed changes — downplaying slavery (except for its abolishment); touting “causes and key organizations and individuals” of the “conservative resurgence” in the 80s-90s (NRA, Phyllis Schafly, the Heritage Foundation, the Moral Majority); confirming that Joe McCarthy was right about all those commies infiltrating the government; teaching how to differentiate between legal and illegal immigration. Other discussions have involved how to involve more discussion of America’s Christian past (at the expense of talking about Washington and Lincoln), and whether folks like Thurgood Marshall or Cesar Chavez ought to be mentioned. As yet undecided are the extent to which “confrontational” civil rights leaders will be discussed, and how the civil rights movement has led to unrealistic expectation of “equal outcomes” (and how advances in civil rights are all because of the Republican Party and whites). Oh, and whether it’s more proper to refer to America as a “republican” rather than “democratic” polity. So I was more than a bit surprised to receive an email from the Liberty Council (”Restoring the Culture by Advancing Religious Freedom, the Sanctity of Human Life and the Family”), warning me about all the Horrid Awful Liberal Agenda being advanced against the American Way of Life and Our Children’s Very Souls.

TSBOE will soon finalize the language that textbook publishers use to align their textbooks to current standards. As Texas is a leader in textbooks, most other states purchase the same educational materials. The textbook controversy in Texas affects every American because, to have a bright future, we must know our past. America has a rich past founded on Judeo-Christian values and to forget them, or worse, to distort them, will doom our future. Those who want to reshape America begin by rewriting our past. We repeat the mistakes of the past when we are ignorant of them.

Yes, those who want to reshape America begin by rewriting our past.  As the preceding examples demonstrate, there’s a lot of rewriting going on.  But the Liberty Council has apparently been reading from a different text.  For them, it’s all about the Liberulzzzzz!

Some of the suggestions that have come forward at various times include:

  • Removing references to Daniel Boone, General George Patton, Nathan Hale, Columbus Day, and Christmas.
  • Including the cultural impact of hip hop music, ACLU lawyer Clarence Darrow, and the Hindu holiday of Diwali.
  • Replacing the term “American” with “Global Citizen”– stating that students need to be shaped “for responsible citizenship in a global society” without any mention of citizenship in American society.
  • Replacing expansionism and free enterprise with imperialism and capitalism.

Huhguhwuh? Never mind that the board, as constituted, is definitely stacked toward (and support of) a conservative historical agenda — changing/rewriting the current curriculum to something more to their liking.  While I have no doubt that there are folks on the Left  who have proposed “Replacing expansionism and free enterprise with imperialism and capitalism,” the chance that the Board of Ed would okay that is somewhere between Slim and None. Interestingly, there was some actual discussion about hip-hop (you know … that colored music)

The most passionate debate of Friday’s session heated up when the board looked at hip-hop’s effects on American culture. Don McLeroy, a board member from College Station, asked to remove hip-hop and insert country music in its place from a proposed set of examples of cultural movements. He said the musical style should not be included in social studies curriculum alongside Tin Pan Alley, the Harlem Renaissance, the Beat Generation, rock ‘n’ roll and the Chicano Mural Movement. But Lawrence Allen, who represents Fort Bend and Harris counties on the board, disagreed. He argued that hip-hop is a key form of communication for the black community and that its impact on American culture deserved to be an option for classroom study. The brief boardroom quibble was settled by Patricia Hardy, who represents Fort Worth and other communities in North Texas. Hardy said she dislikes that class of music and that it has a negative effect on society. But, she added, students still need to study it. “When we don’t discuss things — positive or negative — we don’t know. To pretend it’s not there is crazy,” she said. “These people are multimillionaires, and believe me, there are not enough black people to buy that. There are white people buying this. It has had a profound effect.” The amendment to remove hip-hop was defeated, and country music was included in the curriculum under a separate measure.

So (a) we get country music as a sop for those who think hip-hop is un-American, and (b) we get hip-hop because, you know, it’s so popular that even whites are listening to it. As for the whole “Christmas” thing — apparently there was a proposal at one point that, as part of social studies, sixth graders (who are learning about world culture) be taught about a major holiday from each of five major world religions.  As part of that, Christmas was dropped — in favor of retaining Easter.  Which, Evil Secularlization aside, is actually a more important Christian holiday; after all, the point is not that Jesus was born, but that he rose from the dead, right? The previous curriculum had kids being taught (or, in curriculum-speak, being able to explain) Christmas, Easter, Ramadan (Islam), Yom Kippur, and Rosh Hashanah.  Christmas as dropped, as is Rosh Hashanah, but Diwali — a key holiday of the third largest religion in the world, Hinduism, is added. The Right of course,  pitches a fit about this

“America is not equally divided among these five religions,” Barton wrote. Mentioning Christmas and Rosh Hashanah “does not promote either Christianity or Judaism; rather, it simply acknowledges with accuracy the religious culture of America as it actually exists that these holidays have been awarded their place in the culture by the people themselves.”

Except, of course, the curriculum is not about religion in American culture, but about world religions.  There is, in fact, a whole world out there, and a lot of them aren’t Christian or Jewish.  (Indeed, Judaism is a tiny religion in the world stage; if the curriculum were truly balanced, we’d have Buddhism, Sikhism, and both Chinese and African traditional religions coming up first.) Actually, this whole cloud-cuckoo land of “the Left is trying to rewrite history in Texas this year” gets better.  The above text about Awful Changes is from the Liberty Council’s website.  To the Faithful, their email has a parallel but much simpler and inflammatory message:

Right now, the Texas public school system is embroiled in a major battle over efforts to re-write our history and remove references to our Judeo-Christian heritage from their textbooks. The Texas State Board of Education will soon finalize the language that publishers use to align their textbooks to current “acceptable standards.” Many of the suggestions that are coming forward are shocking:

+Replacing the term “American” with “Global Citizen.”

+Stating that students need to be shaped “for responsible citizenship in a global society.”

+Removing all references to Daniel Boone, General George Patton, Nathan Hale, and Columbus Day.

+Replacing “expansionism and free enterprise” with “imperialism and capitalism.”

+Even stripping “Christmas Day” from all textbooks.

You’d never guess that the Board of Ed was serious majority Republican, or that the re-writing already adapted are all toward the social conservative Right. (And … George Patton?!) For those who don’t know, how Texas chooses what their textbooks should cover has a massive, disproportionate influence over the textbooks in the rest of the nation.  So it’s not just the education of kids in Texas that’s being affecfted by all of this folderol, but everyone’s kids.  Which is the one point where I find myself in full agreement with the Liberty Council. It’s a strange, strange world out there.  And getting, sadly, stranger.

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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
  1. Ollie North On What Happens If Gays Are Allowed To Serve Openly In Military: ‘NAMBLA Members’ Are Next: Igor
  2. The Religious Right Will Decide What Is Best For Women in Uniform: Kyle
  3. Couples who say ‘we’ do better at resolving conflicts – Interesting — and, honestly, not all that surprising. Now, the question is, is this an attitude / framework into which a couple can train themselves (if it doesn’t come “naturally”)?
  4. Corporate Personhood: Bill Would Force CEOs To Say “I Stand By This Message” – It will never pass, but I LOVE it.
  5. Florida Christian Group Purposely Uses Wrong Photo To Mock Adoptive Couple – “Deception, insults, and petty schoolyard taunts. It’s all they have.” But remember, when you do it for God, it’s okay!
  6. Top Ten Mistakes Managers Make With Email – WSJ.com – I’m probably going to send this to a lot of folks at my office. And … tape a copy of it to my own wall.
  7. Scott Brown Claims That The Stimulus Has Not Created ‘One New Job’: Guest Blogger
  8. Flashback: Shelby Pledged To Do ‘Whatever It Takes’ To Deliver ‘Up Or Down’ Votes On Bush Nominees – And the hypocritical hits keep coming.
  9. FillAnyPDF Lets You Electronically Fill In and Sign Any Form [PDFs] – Hmmm … interesting idea …
  10. Lobbying Imperils Overhaul of Student Loans – NYTimes.com – If they can spend millions of dollars on lobbying, that makes it pretty clear they’re making a lot more money than that. No wonder they’re pulling out the stops to make sure the money train keeps chugging their direction.
  11. Sen. Shelby Holding Up All Obama Nominees — Including Top Security Officials — To Secure Pork For Alabama – I understand it perfectly — it’s professional malfeasance on behalf of a Senator who considers it more important that his state gets plenty of pork than that the government works. Idjit.
  12. Tancredo says Obama won because we lack a ‘literacy test before people can vote in this country.’ – I am SO glad he is no longer my Congressman.
  13. Robertson’s Ties to Charles Taylor Raised in War Crimes Trial – Sorry — the very idea of an ostensibly Christian leader owning a gold mining company … is surreal to me.
  14. CADC Fisks Year-Old Obama Speech To Prove Christianity’s Superiority – In other words, “It’s unfair to criticize Christian intolerance in the same way you criticize it in other religions because, you know, Christianity’s TRUUUUUE!” QED.
  15. A Sculpture That Perpetually Sells Itself On eBay – This is … I can’t decide if it’s brilliant, stupid, or both.
  16. Depressing, the button… – Been there, deleted that. Just not enough hours in the day. [Link fixed.]
  17. The autism-vaccine lie that won’t die – Salon.com – I suppose the media ought to be happy with what influence they have. Too bad that with that great power we don’t see more great responsibility.
  18. Glenn Greenwald – Salon.com – This ought to be required reading for every US citizen. No joke.
  19. Carly Fiorina’s Holy Grail of unintentionally hilarious attack ads waves its private parts at your auntie – Wow. That is so awful in so many ways, it’s amazing to believe that the campaign actually approved it. DEMON SHEEP! (Although I do like the implication that “good, responsible conservatives” are, themselves, sheep, albeit arguably non-demonic.)
  20. Prayer Breakfast Fallout: Christian Group Defends Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill – Ugh. This would be disgustingly laughable if, y’know, they weren’t talking about KILLING TEH EVIL GAYZ. And if the dude clearly didn’t want us to do the same in the US.
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Another Last Airbender trailer

by ***Dave on 5-Feb-10 7:18am · 0 comments

in Media - Movies

I keep trying to keep expectations down about this movie, but this new(er) trailer looks … pretty darned good.

I’ll keep being pessimistic, just so I can be pleasantly surprised.

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Les and I need questions!

by ***Dave on 5-Feb-10 6:51am · 2 comments

in Blogging

Les (of Stupid Evil Bastard fame) has been planning on doing a podcast for quite some time, and has been gracious enough to invite me to join him.  He’s soliciting questions for us to discuss …

Here’s the thing: As most of you who follow both SEB and ***Dave Does the Blog already know, outside of him being a theist and me an atheist, we have more in common than not. My concern is that we’re going to ask each other questions about topical items and we’re going to agree with each other so much that the entire podcast will be similar to this:

Me: I think Pat Robertson is stone-cold crazy.

***Dave: I agree completely. And I think the Teabaggers are a wee bit deluded.

Me: I totally agree.

I suppose there’s some risk there — though I think we could probably both speak at length (and not necessarily in full concord) on why Pat is an idjit, or in what ways the Teabaggers are deluded.  That gets into further questions or discussion about religion, society, political liberty, the media, etc.  Still …

Which is going to make for a fairly boring podcast. So I’m opening this up for you guys to participate. Got a topic you’d like to hear us pontificate on? A question burning a hole in your brain? A query you’re curious if we can help you with? Leave it in the comments or alternatively drop me an email or drop ***Dave an email if you prefer. Topics can be anything you want – politics, religion, technology, pop culture – and we’ll do our damnedest to talk about them in an amusing manner.

And I throw the same invitation open here.  Drop either of us a line, or  leave a comment.

We’d been planning on Saturday night to finally get this done, but that’s turned out to be Date Night at the Consortium, so I’m working with Les to reschedule.  But soon! Soon!

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I get emails from the American Family Association.  And today’s was … entertaining.

I invite you to join other believers in wearing and giving away these “He Lives” Easter buttons.

Create an opportunity to lead a friend, neighbor or even a stranger to the cross of Jesus Christ. Keep several in your pocket or purse; ready to give someone a button when they ask. This beautiful button with its even more beautiful message will be a powerful silent witness of Christ’s resurrection.

Also available for display on your vehicle is a 5 1/2″ glossy sticker with the same beautiful and effective message as the buttons.

Easter really does mean, HE LIVES! So visit store.afa.net and wear ‘em and share ‘em.

Purchase enough for your entire church or civic group by getting a Display Box or Church Pack of Easter buttons and stickers.

Okay, does anyone really think that wearing a button with some crosses* that says**, “Easter means HE LIVES!”*** is really going to bring someone to Christ?  “I was wandering, lost, alone, wondering what the purpose of life was.  Then I saw your button, and the Spirit came to me, and I was saved.”

Um … seems unlikely.

These buttons are, instead, clubby “Look at us! We’re devout right-thinking Christians” buttons, advertisements for self-righteousness and ostensible salvation.  Oh, and they make the AFA a nice little “suggested donation” profit.

Yeah, just what Jesus would do. Because he was all about the public display of religious affiliation.

* The cross would seem to represent Christ’s death. For his resurrection, and as a reference to Easter (vs Good Friday), wouldn’t you want an image of the empty tomb?

** In addition to the AFA’s website name, which is an interestingly self-aggrandizing advertisement to blend with the “beautiful message.”

*** actually “Easter” is the name ( “Eostre” ) of an Saxon goddess of “fertility and sunrise” whose Vernal Equinox feast day roughly corresponded to the lunar-based date of the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection … and so was used (per Venerable Bede) by the Saxons as the name (along with various traditions) for that celebration.

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Tweets from 2010-02-04

by ***Dave on 4-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • Just finished watching Doctor Who "End of Time" finale. Successful manipulation of all emotional heartstrings to the 10th Doctor. Excellent. #
  • Wow – not-cold enough this morning to go gloveless at the train stn. That makes reading, writing email a lot easier. #
  • Can't believe it's already Thursday. But I'm pleased by it. #
  • Planning Date Night with M on Saturday. Glee! #
  • End of a (short) Era: took M's knee scooter ("turning knee caddy") back to Youcan Toocan rental shop yesterday. Healing continues. Huzzah! #
  • Busy but productive day. Glad the week is (nearly) over. #
  • RT @doycet: People: "Problematic" means indefinite, unsettled, uncertain, questionable, doubtful… NOT "a problem". #newpetpeeve #
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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
  1. Obama Publicly Condemns Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Legislation: It Is An ‘Odious’ Bill – A nice way to turn the National Prayer Breakfast back on the Family, who are tied in multiple ways to the Uganda bill.
  2. Wallbuilders’ Narrow Notion: Religious Liberty For Me, But Not For Thee – “You keep using that word. I don’t think it means what you think it means.”
  3. Box Turtle Bulletin » Sen. Hatch “clarifies” that he meant the opposite of what he said about DADT – “Flip. I firmly declare flip. And, also, flop.”
  4. Fischer: Everything Would Be Better If Homosexuality Was Illegal – Disgusting.
  5. Barney Frank calls John Fund a ‘liar’ and a ‘coward’ and explains how the Right Wing Noise machine operates – I’d call that sort of mendacious behavior … well, evil.
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Well, yes, I’m one of the last to have actually watched it, but we got round to it last night.

Short form: Woot! One of the best Doctor Who season finales since the series was restarted.

Long form (and SPOILERS): Below the cut. Read on, MacDuff!

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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
  1. The NY Times shines a light on ‘The Family’ and its ‘National Prayer Breakfast’ – Actually, Jesus regularly dined with sinners …
  2. Why did Republicans side with AIG bonuses instead of everyone else?: Chris in Paris
  3. UM’s open shame, the Center for Spirituality & Healing [Pharyngula] – The hurt-feewings response of woo-meisters responding to scientific criticism is so predictable. “Ow! Why you so mean?”
  4. Fun with punctuation – I will have to send this around to my team, as I’m known as “Too Many Commas Man” by my boss.
  5. The Straight Dope: What’s this “pact with the devil” that Pat Robertson says caused Haiti’s woes? – Money graf: “If the claim is that superstition and ignorance impede progress, you won’t get an argument from me. Haiti possibly is one example. Pat Robertson is another.”
  6. Apple granted patent for touch-sensitive bezel – Cool enough, but I hope this is a patent for a particular technical implementation, not for the whole concept of a touch-sensitive bezel. Knowing the US Patent Office, though …
  7. Analyst: Email will lose ground to social networks – So email will blur with social networks … but social networks will supplant email .. so … Gartner will get lots of consulting money. Got it.
  8. House Republicans Assail White House Briefing on Christmas Day Bomber – Political Punch – So when the White House actually mentions progress in a terrorism case, it’s all about dangerous politics that endangers national security. Got it.
  9. Flashback: McCain cited Colin Powell as justification for opposing DADT repeal. – What, like he needs to actually come up with a coherent reason for changing his mind?
  10. McDonnell: Opposition to gay measures based on law | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com – Right! Discrimination won’t be tolerated … but it won’t be illegal. Got it!
  11. A Horrifying Picture of Life With Christians In the Workplace – Brilliant. Simply brilliant.
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Tweets from 2010-02-03

by ***Dave on 3-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • If birthdays seem to come faster with age, 6 month dental checkups seem to come twice as fast. Yeesh. #
  • The pina colada-flavored tooth polish at dentist is not as awful as one might think. #
  • Another good dental check-up. I may have awful skin and dodgy eyes, but I have great teeth, by gum! #
  • "G-Force" is no "Citizen Kane,": but I've seen a lot of movies released of late, kid / teens / adults, that were more stupid and less fun. #
  • Wineries should have to flag which bottles have plastic corks, so I can avoid getting them. They tend to mess up my corkscrew. #
  • I love, *love*, "Phineas & Ferb." #
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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
  1. Comcast Rebranding Itself As “Xfinity” – Oh, yuck. Ugly name, ugly logo.
  2. Watchmen 2 Looks Like a Real Possibility – And leading up the list of “Comic (and Film) Projects Not Only Least Necessary but Definitively Unwelcome” …
  3. Palin Abandons Her “Screw Political Correctness” Mantra – Why anyone would take Palin’s utterances — past, present, or future — seriously is beyond me.
  4. 8 Ways To Make Sure Your Complaint Letter Will Be Ignored – Moire people would be more happy if they read this. Though, heck, I kind of wish I could send this out to everyone in my company in regards to their emailed complaints about IT service …
  5. Religious freedom is self-contradictory? – No, it’s not — as long as people are willing to see religion as a personal, not societal, structure. My personal salvation doesn’t depend on my neighbor’s. We can get along quite nicely even if he and I disagree about metaphysics and theology — unless one or the other of us demand the other’s adherence to their own beliefs.
  6. Teens think blogging is about as cool as Rick Astley hits – “Hey, you kids! Get off my social media!” No, seriously, no surprises here. Blogging takes a focused, concerted effort. Kids (not just these days but any days) go for minimum effort, maximum social cool. Facebook is easy, and provides a creative outlet inside an authoritarian structure — it’s not surprising teens are all over FB, vs. the less structured (and thus, paradoxically, more effortful) Twitter.
  7. Study: Time spent on Web linked to depression – As Marvin would say, “The first 5 million sites were the worst … the second 5 million sites were the worst, also …”
  8. Watch As This AT-AT Walker Stomps All Over Flash [Flash] – Fired up Chrome and … yup.
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I’ve been researching and struggling with a problem in my Unblogged Bits.  I noticed the other day that … not everything I’d Shared in Google Reader was showing up in my nightly post.

Hmmm.

Presently what happens is that there’s an Atom feed from Google Reader for my Shared items that goes over to Feedburner to turn it from Atom to RSS (since the standard WordPress RSS engine, Magpie, can’t handle Atom).  Then each night, a WP plug-in called “Digest Post” sucks in the feed and formats it for my Unblogged Bits post.  (Per modified code given here and here.) Easy-peasy.

Well, kind of.  If I’m Sharing stuff around when it does that (5:30 pm or so), it can sometimes mess it up, leading to duplicate posts.  Or it may be that if something hits this blog (a comment, etc.) at that point, it also throws a spanner in the works.  Again, leading to dupes.  Or, sometimes, a digest with mangled links.  Discouraging.

I’ve looked into alternatives at various times, but with no luck.

Anyway, I started poking and prodding into the Rube Goldberg device that is the above setup.  I couldn’t find anything in the Digest Post code that would throttle the number of comments.  Feedburner only showed the 20, but I couldn’t find anything there to control it.  Google Reader doesn’t really have any configurations, either. (The feed is cunningly hidden in your Shared page, the link to which is cunningly hidden in your Sharing Settings which is cunningly hidden in the Your Stuff item.)

Well, much searching and reading and looking into still more alternatives later and … huzzah!

It appears to be Google Reader’s fault.  Its RSS feed only carries 20 items at a time.  Which means that my Unblogged Bits items can only be 20 items at a time.

That’s annoying, because I’ve already Shared 22 items today, and several more last night after the above process fired off.

So … either I need to figure out how to increase the size of Google Reader’s RSS feed (which seems highly unlikely at this point), or maybe figure out a way to make the Digest plug-in execute more than once per day.

Of, of course, I can just Share less.

Hrm.

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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
  1. MI5 hunting breast implants of death – BOOBS OF DOOOOOOOOOM! (”Oh, and subscribe to our Wingnut security newsletter!”)
  2. Jamison Foser: Why does The Hill think D emocrats would be the ones tainting the process?: Jamison Foser
  3. Flashback: GOP Senator Challenging Bayh Questioned Clinton’s Motives For Targeting Bin Laden – Ah, those heady, benign days of the Clinton administration, where the craziest Right-wing conspiracy theories were only that Vince Foster was offed because he knew something about Clinton and Lewinsky …
  4. Comcast Passes Gigantic, Approaches Planetary – Business is booming for nation’s biggest broadband, third biggest phone company – I guess I should be … happy I do business with them? (Though I refuse to let them handle my phone service.)
  5. McCain’s Convenient Flip Flop on DADT : Dispatches from the Culture Wars – As usual, McCain finds a way to further tarnish anything resembling a reputation. It’s not going to help him in his senate re-election, but he inevitably takes the politically expedient course. Disappointing, but no longer surprising.
  6. Who Keeps Pooping In My Bags Of Salad?! – Taking note of this.
  7. REVERSAL: Colin Powell Joins Call For Repeal Of DADT: Joe
  8. Jesus Didn’t Tap Out – Yes, because between curing the sick and preaching hope for the poor, Jesus was well known for going a few rounds in a steel cage mixed martial arts arena. Yeesh.
  9. Thanks To Obama’s Rejection Of Torture, Abdulmuttalab Has Been Providing Intel On Al Qaeda – You mean … acting civilized and following a rule of law can actually … be … a GOOD thing? Even helpful? Even when dealing with (whisper) TERRORISM? Inconceivable!
  10. Exclusive: Bush Lawyer Debunks Limbaugh’s Claim That Professors Wrote Obama’s Law Articles – Sometimes I just want to slap Limbaugh silly. But he’s already silly, so it really wouldn’t help.
  11. Deficit Peacock Newt Gingrich Doesn’t Recognize His Own Feathers – Perhaps Newt would like to move to Colorado Springs in the near future to see how his ideals work in real life.
  12. Anti-Choice Groups Slams Randall Terry – Interesting — and encouraging — to see folks from the anti-abortion movement ripping Terry a new one. “when your self-promotional excesses discredit the entire pro-life movement with reckless theatrics, it would be irresponsible for the rest of us to signal indifference, or worse, agreement, by our collective silence.”
  13. FRC’s Sprigg Wants To See Homosexuality Criminalized – (1) I find it interesting he suggests that homosexual attraction is not a choice, only acting on it. (2) He seems to think that the Uniform Code of Military Justice is how we ought to organize our society, or at the very least, once written down, ought never be changed. (3) Yes, he really does want to see it criminalized.
  14. Ducking like a quack [A Few Things Ill Considered] – As much a commentary on journalism (of the scientific and non- varieties both) as on skepticism.
  15. How to Trim Your Query to 250 Words (or Fewer): Advice from Agent Janet Reid – Easier said than done, of course, but some very good advice here (probably extensible to other sorts of summaries).
  16. 10 apps to schedule tweets (plus one!) – Holy Kaw! – Flagging this for later review. Sometimes it would be handy to schedule tweets.
  17. Rush Limbaugh: ‘I love the women’s movement — especially when walking behind it.’ – Oh, oink.
  18. : Hannity graphic asks: “Is Pres Obama Pushing Us To Financial Ruin?” – “And does he still beat his wife?”
  19. Crystal Light, Thinner and Lighter – The package design is much superior. The new logo is less “crystalline,” but arguably more attractive (and certainly more “feminine”).
  20. Judge censured for ordering class-action lawyer to take pay in $125,000 worth of gift-cards – Actually, I think it was a fine solution. If lawyers had to accept consequences of their settlements, they might make better settlements.
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Tweets from 2010-02-02

by ***Dave on 2-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • Transferring at Broadway. Metallic banshee wail fr coal train grinding by over rough track. #
  • No fair being tired this morning – I got to bed on time. Grumble. #
  • RT @maddow, @thejointstaff: Stand by what I said: Allowing homosexuals to serve openly is the right thing to do. Comes down to integrity. #
  • Karate tonight was less of a back-breaker. Plus, I’m actually beginning to learn the new kata (Jion). Woot! #
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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
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Tweets from 2010-02-01

by ***Dave on 1-Feb-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • Rrg. Ran out of the house this morning w a reading book I just finished reading. Annoying. #
  • I enter the week unaware of any looming crises I'm doomed by this week. In and of itself, that's worrisome. #
  • If co. turns all mobiles over to employees, not sure I'll leap to an iPhone, but will cheer I can get rid of frelling Blackberry security. #
  • New laptop is 1280×800. Desktop monitor does 1280X1024, stretching image. Hilaruity, eye strain ensues. #
  • Apparently laptop resolution problem stemmed from not fully toggling video from laptop to external monitor. Duh. #
  • RT @iamepiscopalian, @Floridagordon: As #Haiti fades from the media spotlight it's important to remember that it still needs our help. #
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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
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Tweets from 2010-01-31

by ***Dave on 31-Jan-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY! TIME FOR MONSTER CHURCH SERVICES AND MASSIVE BRUNCHES! JUST CALL TICKETMASTER! Ahem. Not sure where that came from. #
  • RT @adamisacson: Hate when urinal auto-flushes while still using it. Did I just cease to exist? Am I back now? If not, where am I peeing? #
  • Today's parish annual business meeting exemplified why nobody likes to attend, but everyone should. Bylaws, budgets are necessary suckitude. #
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DC goes pulp

by ***Dave on 31-Jan-10 6:50pm · 0 comments

in Media - Comics

DC Comics is doing an intriguing pulp era comic book series this spring.  First Wave (w. Brian Azzarello, which means it will be imaginative and dark; a. Rags Morales, which means it will look nice”) is, I guess, an opportunity for DC to possibly open up something akin to, but different from, Marvel’s Ultimate-verse (wherever that is today), but taking a serious look at a super-hero world of the 1920s-30s.  Quoting Azzarello …

Tommy guns & get planes, dirigibles & Gerraris, computers & walkie-talkies. Art deco skyscrapers overlook shantytowns.  Men are bruised, and women are painted — and doing a lot of the bruising.  Cities are urban jungles — and there are also uncharted mysterious countries with their own jungles as well. It’s a world where you’re guilty before being proven innocent — something that rarely happens.  Little people make big mistakes and suffer the consequences.  Life is cheap, and everyone has their price.  Where part of the thrill of being rich is watching the poor suffer.

What’s cool here is what DC is pulling into this world.  We have a 30s Batman — Bruce Wayne in Year 1-2 mode, still learning about fighting crime, still a bit the cocky playboy, still learning how to use fear.  We have Doc Savage and his men as the Establishment’s heroes.  We have the Avenger and Justice, Inc. as the darkly driven vigilante.  We have the Spirit.  We have a reimagined Black Canary.  And Rima the Jungle Girl.  Plus some newly imagined villains.

It looks and sounds pretty cool, and DC is flogging it hard in this month’s comics.  First Wave #1 comes out in March.  There’s already a Doc Savage and Spirit book in the offing.  More info (and pictures) here.

Looking forward (and backward) to it.

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I’m sure there were a couple of months that went by there, but the last thing I remember was November was done, Thanksgiving was over, I’d reached my NaNoWriMo goal, and …

… then it turns into a big technicolor haze of Stuf.  I think there was some ukulele music somewhere in the middle there, but I can’t be sure.  I hope someone took pictures.

No, basically we went from “let’s start prepping for Christmas” to Margie breaking her ankle and all the subsequent brouhaha and all-hands-on-deck for that.  Then swoosh to California, a blur of Christmassy bits, then swoosh to Hawaii, then swoosh back to California, swoosh to home, and a January that was about eleven colors of crazy.

I think I had a birthday.  I’m sure the gifts were great.

I think … think … that February is going to be a scosh more normal.  There’s a bunch of Girl Scout Cookie stuff during the month, and Margie’s still several hit points down in her leg (enough to reduce movement to half), but barring a plague of locusts or a meteor landing in the back yard or a zombie outbreak … I might just be able to catch up with all those big plans I was having back in … oh …

November.

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Unblogged Bits for Sunday, 31 January 2010

by ***Dave on 31-Jan-10 5:00pm · 0 comments

in Potpourri

Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
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Tweets from 2010-01-30

by ***Dave on 30-Jan-10 11:30pm · 0 comments

in Tweets

  • I'm not quite sure why I stayed up until 3 a.m. researching quotations by St Augustine … "give me sleep, but not yet." #
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Links (most recent first) that caught my eye, but did not warrant full-blown blog entries ….
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