… in so many ways. Check out the happy paranoid lunacy of the International Tesla Electric Company. I couldn’t possibly make this up, people….
… in so many ways. Check out the happy paranoid lunacy of the International Tesla Electric Company.
I couldn’t possibly make this up, people.
When does patriotism become jingoism? When does standing together for national solidarity in the face of crisis (or even as part of our normal, political system) become group-think lock-step us-against-them…
When does patriotism become jingoism? When does standing together for national solidarity in the face of crisis (or even as part of our normal, political system) become group-think lock-step us-against-them xenophobia?
I’ve been fortunate enough not to witness much of this so far. Most of the people I’ve heard commenting on Red Tuesday has been angry, dismayed, etc., but most have also had a sense of level-headedness, of not wanting to act wrongly, precipitously, not tarring another people with one brush, not proposing violence and bloodshed of innocents to match what has been done to us.
Fortunate because I suspect my blood pressure has already been running high, and I hardly need a stroke at this point.
We have an American flag flying in front of the house. It will be up there at least through the weekend.
My folks finally hit the road today, headed back to California in a rental car, since DIA is still not yet really open. A nice, fun visit, but a long…
My folks finally hit the road today, headed back to California in a rental car, since DIA is still not yet really open. A nice, fun visit, but a long one, too.
I look forward to a nice, quiet evening with Margie and Katherine.
I’ve nearly decided to give up on the Blackberry. It’s a half-unconscious conclusion … I’m just finding that I’m not using the darned thing. I walk around with it, sometimes,…
I’ve nearly decided to give up on the Blackberry. It’s a half-unconscious conclusion … I’m just finding that I’m not using the darned thing. I walk around with it, sometimes, but I also leave it sitting in the dock. If I’m not using it — why use it, if you know what I mean.
The consensus with a couple of other folks I’ve talked with is what I’ve decided: It’s a great wireless e-mail solution coupled with a mediocre PDA. And since the PDA functionality is at least as important as the e-mail side of things for me ….
I did a little digging on-line today. Love to replace my Palm Vx with a Palm m505, except that it doesn’t have a wireless modem option yet, and it would be keen to be able to maintain some level of e-mail connectivity. I’m going to check out a few of the PocketPC iPAQs from Compaq … but everything I read still indicates they’re a horrible battery hog (like, recharging daily or more in normal use, as opposed to both my Palm and the RIM which will run for a week without charging).
Anyway, we’ll see. Just thought I’d update on this particular “project.”
And now for something completely different (thank God) … Okay. Mostly my bad. Clearly the template editing processes is doing some interpreting or compling of the template as it is…
And now for something completely different (thank God) …
Okay. Mostly my bad.
Clearly the template editing processes is doing some interpreting or compling of the template as it is saved. So, for example, you cannot save a template that does not have a [Blogger] or [/Blogger] tag, or lacks that section altogether. Which is what was happening (I left off the closing tag).
Only mostly my fault because, well, jeez, folks, interpreters/compilers have been giving meaningful error messages for, well, decades now. You don’t just say, “Huh, doesn’t fit the format, so lah-dee-dah, we’ll just pretend he never hit save.”
Now I just have to keep tweaking it so that it all fits on the screen and so that it loads in something less than five minutes. I have to do something about my nested tables, clearly.
The Lavender Kitchen A fine, heart-felt post on the subject. (You know, The Subject.)…
A fine, heart-felt post on the subject. (You know, The Subject.)
I’m going to try and at least appear to be doing some work today, rather than the torrent of blogging I indulged in yesterday. Therapeutic as it was, I run…
I’m going to try and at least appear to be doing some work today, rather than the torrent of blogging I indulged in yesterday. Therapeutic as it was, I run the risk of Letting the Bastards Win if I let them keep me from performing my duties much longer.
There seems to be — and not just in the not-nearly-as-overblown-as-it-might-have-been(-just-wait) media coverage — a real sense that Things Changed yesterday. The Universe turned the page, and there’s a new chapter heading up there, giving portents of what lies ahead, could we but read type that large.
Being of an historical bent, I’d rather wait for a few weeks, months, years, before leaping to that conclusion. I think there’s something to it, but trying to assume an historical perspective while in mid-crisis is always a good way to write comedy.
Sitting around the dinner table last night, we engaged in the “Where were you?” game. That, above all, may be the deciding factor as to how this affects us.
That and, what happens today? I mean, want a really panicky populace? Pull some crap today. Let folks think it’s a real trend, vs. a (hopefully) one-off tragedy. That would damage confidence, among other things.
I hope I am not being a Cassandra here.
The other thing we “need” is a pithy name. Most events of this sort get named after the location. Unfortunately (speaking with irony here), we have too many locations. “Remember the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and some field in Pennsylvania” doesn’t do much as a rallying cry, any more than it does would if you used the same phrase in a “Where were you?” activity. And the media’s “Attack on America” theme is kind of lame, too.
“Bloody Tuesday”? “The 11th of September”? (“Remember, remember // 11 September, // of aeroplane terror and plot …”)
I leave it to the media hacks.
I was reminded, as I considered my call yesterday to rebuild the WTC, of Babylon 5 and some dialog from the pilot episode, “The Gathering.”
DELENN: “Why Babylon 5? If the prior four stations were lost or destroyed, why build another?”
SINCLAIR: “Plain old human stubbornness I guess. When something we value is destroyed, we rebuild it. If it’s destroyed again, we rebuild it again … and again and again and … again. Until it stays. That as our poet Tennison once said is the goal: to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.“
I don’t know as the WTC is as noble a symbol as B5. But it is, in some ways, a symbol which has been thrust upon us. To leave it as rubble, or to let something else take its place, would be, in some small way, an admission of defeat.
110 stories. Twice over.
Now think of the Murrah Building in OKC. Nine stories.
The mind reels.
Finally, there is this. We are what we let this make of us.
We may become fearful and isolationist. “Don’t let the bad people hurt us — withdraw from the world!” That’s been a typical, if unstated, theme in American history. Indeed, in some ways, that’s just what we’ve been doing in the early days of the Bush administration — pulling out of treaties, acting on our own, being unconcerned about what the rest of the world does. It may well be, though, that by having been attacked so publicly and bloodily, that we will break out of that typical funk — that we will realize, “The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot for ever fence it out.” (Tolkien, Lord of the Rings).
Or we may rage back in the other direction. Hunt ’em all down. They were Arabs? Attack the Arabs. They were Muslim? Attack the Muslims. Their leader was holed up in Kabul? Carpet-bomb Kabul. In which case, they have, ultimately, won, by transforming the US into just what they claim it is — a killer and bully and infidel. “It is hard to fight with anger; for what it wants it buys at the price of soul.” (Heraclitus)
And we may decide that the only way to proceed is to insist on safety — no matter how it encroaches on liberty. E-mail monitoring? Censorship? Political oppression? Restrictions on freedom? Those will give at least the illusion of safety, at the cost of privacy, freedom, and the value of open debate.
If I have prayers for the future, it is not for safety, for life itself is not safe, and while I may never be blown up by a terrorist bomb, I can as easily (and more likely) be hit by a car in a parking lot. And it’s not for vengeance, though I think that, right at this moment, I’d grimly and willingly flip the switch/drop the pill/open the scaffold/give the order to fire.
No — it’s that we (and by “we” I mean the US, and those who will stand with us) act in our response to this in a fashion that we can be proud of, that can be a model for others in the future. Justice, mercy, freedom, respect, tolerance, commitment. We find the guilty and punish them, but we do so in a fashion beyond reproach, even if it’s harder, even if it’s less satisfying in some atavistic sense. And we take steps to protect ourselves, but not in a way that unduly compromises the basic freedoms that we claim we stand for.
This can be our finest hour. I pray we don’t blow it, and that we use it to show the world that we are in fact that “shining beacon of freedom” that the President spoke of last night.
Risk more than others think is safe.
Care more than others think is wise.
Dream more than others think is practical.
Expect more than others think is possible.
— Cadet Maxim, West Point
Why am I more affected by 200-odd firefighters and 70-odd police losing their lives than by the almost inconceivable concept of 10,000-plus civilian deaths? I mean, those sorts of 10K…
Why am I more affected by 200-odd firefighters and 70-odd police losing their lives than by the almost inconceivable concept of 10,000-plus civilian deaths?
I mean, those sorts of 10K numbers are the sorts of things that hit Third World countries after earthquakes or floods or monsoons.
The numbers are boggling.
I found myself, unexpectedly, looking forward to a speech by Dubya. This could have been a Presidency-maker or -breaker of a speech. For what it’s worth, I think he did a fine job — not enough to bring me to my feet cheering, or to my knees praying … but enough to be willing to accept him as the President. He gave a speech that a Clinton, or an Elder Bush, or a Carter or Ford would have given.
The future will tell.
That having been said, I disagree that this was all an “attack on freedom,” or because the US is the “brightest beacon of freedom in the world.” This was not an attack on freedom. It was a pursuit of an ideological goal to the exclusion of value of human life. It was an attack on life itself, on civilization. But “freedom” (or lack thereof) doesn’t seem to have had much to do with it.
The other question that came up was that of Evil (with a capital E). Is there Evil in the world? Is there a personification of Evil, driving these sorts of tragic events? Were these Evil people? Or were they misguided people? Was it a matter of fanaticism? Is it just a drive of testosterone, of speech-possessing primates squabbling over their selfish, trivial concerns?
I dunno. I think it was an Evil things. I am more inclined to attribute Evil to actions than to people (that way demonization of ones opponents lies). But I think there was something more meaningful to this than simple territorialism or primate squabbling or a random collection of organic compounds interacting in a destructive fashion.
Believing in a personification of Evil is out of fashion these days, and sometimes I think it’s an easy way to scapegoat one’s actions — “The Devil Made Me Do It.” But I do think there is Evil.
I think today’s efforts stand as proof of that.
“Now is the time to embrace one another, and work together to show that good is always the victor.” — The Christian Science Monitor, “Resliance and Restraint” (editorial), 12 Sep…
“Now is the time to embrace one another, and work together to show that good is always the victor.”
— The Christian Science Monitor, “Resliance and Restraint” (editorial), 12 Sep 01.
The Monitor also has a good (early) article on the possible long-term effects of the World Trade Center/Pentagon attacks.
(Neither URL doesn’t look like it will be stable. I’ll check back in a day or two to see if I can find it again.)
Pictures, for those who want them Rey has been pulling together various sites showing pictures of the WTC attack. It is grotesque, fascinating, dismaying, terrifying, engrossing. The ultimate “car wreck…
Pictures, for those who want them
Rey has been pulling together various sites showing pictures of the WTC attack. It is grotesque, fascinating, dismaying, terrifying, engrossing. The ultimate “car wreck at the side of the road.” Unreal. Or perhaps of unwanted reality.
I have no idea if it was planned this way or not. But if you were planning it, you couldn’t have done better than to crash a plane into one…
I have no idea if it was planned this way or not.
But if you were planning it, you couldn’t have done better than to crash a plane into one of the WTC towers, wait 15-30 minutes, then, once all the media were assembled, news choppers winging past, TV crews down on street level, then, and only then, crash another frickin’ plane into the other tower, so that it can be broadcast and rebroadcast and rerebroadcast around the world.
I don’t know if I want things to have been that well planned.
The most reliable site (both in terms of what they report, as well as availability today) has been the BBC Online. They’ve already got some good analysis up there, as…
The most reliable site (both in terms of what they report, as well as availability today) has been the BBC Online. They’ve already got some good analysis up there, as well as rock-steady information.
But I don’t think I’ll write about it. I’ve already babbled enough, and when I’m angry, I invariably say thing I don’t like to have said. Doyce has a really,…
But I don’t think I’ll write about it. I’ve already babbled enough, and when I’m angry, I invariably say thing I don’t like to have said.
Doyce has a really, really nice quote from the Tao te Ching on his blog this afternoon. Read it.
People watch with horror as the planes crash into the WTC towers. Fire burns. Buildings collapse. Mass hysteria. Evacuations, police sirens blaring, news sites swamped, a stunned population tied to…
People watch with horror as the planes crash into the WTC towers. Fire burns. Buildings collapse. Mass hysteria. Evacuations, police sirens blaring, news sites swamped, a stunned population tied to their TV sets.
I don’t know how to say this without it sounding flip, if not grotesque, but that’s life in a comic book universe. Buildings collapse, planes crash, hundreds die (off-screen) on a regular basis. Pick up any copy of Avengers, Fantastic Four, Justice League, Green Lantern.
How do you survive in such an environment? Not just physically, but emotionally?
Y’know, this may seem odd, but comic books have never seemed as unrealistic as right this moment.
The big question is, of course, who? But as important (and tied to it, part and parcel) is how? How do you coordinate three (probably four) skyjackings? What security holes…
The big question is, of course, who?
But as important (and tied to it, part and parcel) is how?
How do you coordinate three (probably four) skyjackings?
What security holes do you exploit?
How do you keep it a secret?
Whose support did you need?
Or am I seeing more sophistication here than it warrents? Am I in that denial thing some more by finding it easier to believe in a big state-sponsored conspiracy than that a group of homicidal fanatics managed to coordinate something like this on their own? Because that’s a pretty scary prospect.
Boy, not just a little anger in that last post, was there? And, contemplating my writing earlier this morning, I can see denial wending its way through the desert. Note…
Boy, not just a little anger in that last post, was there?
And, contemplating my writing earlier this morning, I can see denial wending its way through the desert. Note the immediate going into over-intellectualizing mode? Not only does that push away the emotional blow of something like this, but it gives an illusion of control.
Walking around at lunch, it was weird. Bright, sunny, pleasant day here in Denver. A little breeze flapping the sprinkler line flags. Ducks in the pond. Same ol’ Tokyo Joes to eat at. People talking, laughing, working, as though nothing were different.
And in the restaurant, the TVs were all turned to news channels, and I got to see the video footage. It was like (a bit more denial here) some medioicre special effects from a movie. The plane swings behind the closer tower, a ball of fire erupts from the other side. One tower collapses. The other. Mediocre because any sfx house worth its salt would show you what was happening more clearly.
After the Mount St. Helens eruption some years back, one subtle but definite impact was on the Portland skyline. The “perfect cone” of Mt. St. Helens (as LeGuin described in The Lathe of Heaven) was gone, a crumbled peak left behind. So, too, I wonder whether the destruction of the tops of the two towers (and, perhaps inevitably, the demolition of the whole structure) will have, in its absence, an ongoing psychic impact on those whose view of the NYC skyline included the WTC.
Margie’s off to the airport, to pick up the ‘Rents. They are (so we’ve heard) allowing vehicles in for that purpose. We’ll see. Hope there are no problems.
Update: Got a call from my mom no more than a minute later. They’re on the way to the house. Huzzah.
Okay, working on the assumption that this was done by Arab/Palestinian/anti-Israeli forces, out to punish the US for supporting Israel and and that sort of thing … (This isn’t an…
Okay, working on the assumption that this was done by Arab/Palestinian/anti-Israeli forces, out to punish the US for supporting Israel and and that sort of thing … (This isn’t an unreasonable assumption, given the attacks on US embassies, the previous WTC bombing, etc. And at least one such group has already claimed responsibility, though you know how that game goes. On the other hand, it is not proven by any means, and recall that similar accusations were the first response to the Oklahoma City bombing.)
The sad, sick, awful irony here is that sympathy for the Palestinians has been on the upswing. Sure, a lot of folks still consider “them” terrorists. But Israel has been playing quite a bit of the bully of late. Firing missiles into buildings with innocent bystanders. Bulldozing buildings. Shelling towns. I’ve perceived quite a distinct shift, from “The Palestinians [tarred with one brush] are terrorist scum” to “A pox on both their violent houses.” People in the US, and the US Government, have been less quick to automatically voice unequivocal support for Israel.
And now this.
And if it turns out that it is some sort of pro-Palestinian/anti-Israeli group of murderers behind this, they’ve set their cause back thirty years. Because the only way Israel is going to back down is if the US threatens to withdraw its support. And by provoking the US, the chances of that pass from slim-but-increasing to none.
Stupid, stupid, stupid …
Rrrg. Feel like whapping someone upside the head.
Well, at least two of our offices (besides Oak Ridge) have decided to close, along with a number of DoD-related jobsites. My folks are in the main terminal building at…
Well, at least two of our offices (besides Oak Ridge) have decided to close, along with a number of DoD-related jobsites.
My folks are in the main terminal building at DIA. The concourses have been evacuated.
Margie is hearing on the TV news that cars going to the airport are being turned away at the old toll plaza. Doyce called to say he’d heard that folks at the airport were being bussed out to the old toll plaza.
Called my folks on my Mom’s cell, and, amazingly, got through. They’re being told that people are being allowed in to pick up people, but that the airport is being closed.
Meanwhile, Doyce mentions that he’s hearing that the FAA doesn’t know where five planes are still. Though whether that’s Sinister or simply A Sign The ATC System Needs To Be Replaced is not clear to me.
This day is increasingly becoming more and more Looking Glass in style. Margie mentioned that “they” have closed the road across the top of Cherry Creek Dam. Now, granted, if the dam were to somehow be blown open, there would be quite a bit of death and destruction. But the chances seem awfully slim. Margie noted, “Better safe than sorry,” but, by the same token, if we do too much squawking about like chickens with heads cut off, we simply aid and abet “the enemy.”
Still, I suppose the folks in the Denver PD (or whomever “they” are) are looking around desperately for something to do other than sit there and listen to the ongoing depressing news.
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’ On Death and Dying identified five stages that a dying person goes through when they are told they have a terminal illness. Those stages are: denial, anger, bargaining,…
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’ On Death and Dying identified five stages that a dying person goes through when they are told they have a terminal illness. Those stages are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Those stages have been applied as well (though, some would argue, incorrectly) to those who have suffered a loss.
In looking at my own feelings on today’s terrorist attacks, and the reactions I hear from those around me, I see this happening.
1. Denial: “Oh, no!” “Oh, you must be mistaken — I’ll check on the news myself.” “Man, I can’t believe this is happening!” “This is a crazy world we live in! [i.e., this didn’t happen for a reason]” “Those people are nuts. [ditto]”
2. Anger: “We should bomb them [which “them”?] back to the stone age!” “We need to find those guys and hang them by their thumbs!” “How could God have allowed this to happen?” “Where were the FBI? Why didn’t the government protect us?”
3. Bargaining: “How can we stop this from happening?” “If we spend this money, take this action, pass this law, impose these restrictions, can we make it go away?”
4. Depression: “It’s just going to get worse.” “This is only the beginning.” “People are animals.”
5. Acceptance: “Okay … where do we go from here?”
Think about it. And when you hear our leaders talking about this, try to figure out which step they’re in — or which step is being pandered to.
Well, maybe my folks won’t be staying with us tonight. They’ve closed the road to the airport (security? trying to avoid more people being dropped off?). Not clear if/when Margie…
Well, maybe my folks won’t be staying with us tonight. They’ve closed the road to the airport (security? trying to avoid more people being dropped off?). Not clear if/when Margie will be able to get through.