February 28, 2003
Everyone gets to play in the snow but me
For example: here's some people building a snow-thing in Jerusalem. It's hard to tell what this is exactly; it could be a snow-sheep on its hind legs, or a grouping of several figures. Anyway, one usually thinks of the Mediterranean area as being hot and sunny. I suppose it is, compared to, say, England or Scandinavia. But I rather doubt I'll see that much snow in Florida in my lifetime. (If it ever does snow here, the flakes usually dissolve before they hit the ground, or very soon after. It is usually too dry to snow during our "cold" season. The most we get are freezes, even as far north as the Georgia/Alabama border.)
Via Balagan.
Traitor's Gambit
Oops: there are things the "human shields" apparently didn't think of, such as the possibility that what they are doing really is treason. Sure, that charge has been thrown around many blogs concerning these folks, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be taken seriously. I can only suppose that to the people running off to Baghdad to "protect" the wimmin 'n' kiddies from Big Bad US Bombs the notion of "treason" was either something quaint, belonging to the days of tri-cornered hats when people were "less sophisticated," or that they are so deluded by their utopian, we-are-the-world fantasies that they actually don't know what the words "foreign country" or "enemy" mean anymore. (And they take that as a "strength," when it is actually the mark of a stupidity bordering on madness.) It would be nice if at least some of the leaders of these looney tunes had to go through a big, scary trial for treason, but I am not hopeful that this will actually come to pass. After all, Jane Fonda actually went to North Vietnam and shmoozed with the Viet Cong, and nothing happened to her.
Gathering of the Clowns
Lots of bloggers, myself included, have been moaning about the stupidity and moral vacuity of the "human shield" movement. But it has come to my attention that we are ignoring a prime opportunity here: the possibility that the conglomeration of idiots whose masks were torn off on September the 11th, 2001, are converging (no doubt due to some sub-cellular influence that draws idiots together while leaving people of normal intellectual composition unmoved) into one easily targeted mass. My proof? Deepak Chopra is heading off to Baghdad. Bombs away, I say.
(Via Mrs. du Toit.)
February 27, 2003
Hatebots
Well, well, sorry if anyone happened upon some obscene comments left by some enema calling itself "killjlo." I have deleted the comments. If "killjlo" didn't spend so much time making protein paintings in his underwear, he'd realize that he can't hide behind a fake name and email.
However, I am not an internet expert. I know how to look up an IP with whois, but beyond that I am stymied. Anyone who can further decipher these results from inputting IP address 207.6.147.104 into the search field at whois feel free to email me at webmistressATspleenvilleDOTcom:
OrgName: TELUS Communications Inc.
OrgID: TACE
Address: #2600 4720 Kingsway Avenue
City: Burnaby
StateProv: BC
PostalCode: V5N-4N2
Country: CA
NetRange: 207.6.0.0 - 207.6.255.255
CIDR: 207.6.0.0/16
NetName: TELUS-207-6-0-0
NetHandle: NET-207-6-0-0-1
Parent: NET-207-0-0-0-0
NetType: Direct Allocation
NameServer: PRI3.DNS.CA.TELUS.COM
NameServer: PRI4.DNS.CA.TELUS.COM
Comment:
RegDate:
Updated: 2002-04-08
TechHandle: PSINET-CA-ARIN
TechName: TELUS Communications Inc.
TechPhone: +1-613-780-2200
TechEmail: swip@swip.ca.telus.com
OrgAbuseHandle: AAT-ARIN
OrgAbuseName: Abuse at TELUS
OrgAbusePhone: +1-604-444-5791
OrgAbuseEmail: abuse@telus.com
OrgTechHandle: IA86-ARIN
OrgTechName: IP Admin, IP
OrgTechPhone: +1-403-503-3800
OrgTechEmail: add-req.tac@telus.com
OrgTechHandle: PSINET-CA-ARIN
OrgTechName: TELUS Communications Inc.
OrgTechPhone: +1-613-780-2200
OrgTechEmail: swip@swip.ca.telus.com
OrgTechHandle: TBOTP-ARIN
OrgTechName: TELUS BC ORG TECH POC
OrgTechPhone: +1-604-444-5791
OrgTechEmail: IPadmin@telus.com
The Failed Afghanistan Democracy
Some of you will remember in the heady days after Clinton was first elected (well, heady for Democrats anyway, and at the time I was one), when suddenly there seemed to be a spate of "failed Clinton presidency" analogies popping up here and there. This would have not been so notable much later in his presidency, or even now; but this was right after he entered office. It became a joke, and Dave Barry regularly referred to "the Failed Clinton Presidency" in his columns. I believe that one of the reasons was the "National Health Care" debacle, which had the interesting effect of uniting two sides, the Right and Left Wings, in mutual distaste. (The Right hated the very idea of any national health-care system, the left hated the fact that health care hadn't immediately become free for all Americans the moment Clinton took his oath of office. I exaggerate only slightly.)
Well, I am seeing something of the same theme running throughout left-of-center commentary on the current state of Afghanistan. It has only been little over a year since the Taliban was kicked out of the country, but already I am seeing reference to "Afghanistan, the Failed Democracy," "Afghanistan, Not So Rosy," "Afghanistan Isn't 100% Fixed Yet So the U.S. Failed!" and "Afghanistan, Where Women Still Can't Drive Naked," and so on. Any article that refers to the return of Afghan refugees to the country, increasing entrepreneurship and other evidence that the people of that country are taking advantage and rebuilding their lives, is counteracted by an article or a comment on how Karzai is still in trouble and doesn't have 100% backing of everyone in Afghanistan, there are excursions by Taliban forces, the women still don't feel comfortable wearing a bikini on the street, and so on. Think I'm exaggerating? Check out the first comment to this post.
It is true that the country is still a mess, and that it will take more than paper and happy words to repair many of the problems there, but it seems to me that all the detractors of people who speak hopefully of Afghanistan's chances are doing something akin to telling someone who's leukemia has just gone onto rescission remission*: "Well, it could come back you know, it's not like you're completely cured, so don't be so happy!"
*Thanks to alert reader mikeski for the correct word. For some reason I couldn't think of it.
People not to piss off
One of those would be Mr. Kim Du Toit. An unfortunate example of today's collegiate system had the audacity to write to Mr. Du Toit. He made two mistakes: 1) he used bad grammar and punctuation; and 2) he wrote something stupid. Then again, he signed himself as a "Sophomore Philosophy and Psychology major," so I am not surprised. The only thing worse is a Humanities major taking an English Writing minor.*
*Like me.
Celebrity Death Match
Ooh, Janeane Garofalo got her ass kicked on Fox and Friends on the Fox News Network. Brian Kilmeade was somewhat -- ah -- less than deferential to the august pronouncements of Ms. Garofalo. It almost makes me wish I had cable teevee so I could have watched this.
(Via Sharon Ferguson.)
Dumb Celebs
Another website dedicated to exposing the stupid celebrities in our midst is up: Dumb Celebs. Bookmark it, add it to your blogroll. I'm sure they won't run out of material!
Pathetic crybabies whine against war
What the hell is Robert Fisk talking about here??? I wasn't even going to bother reading this (I haven't read all the mites of antimight featured in this article either; just look at the freaking headline of the thing for a taste of the idiocy). But I let curiosity lead me. Now my head hurts. Here's why. Fisk says:
I wouldn't say I was part of an anti-war campaign.
Then he goes on to babble about his parents' experience of war and the battlefields they took him to, blah blah blah. I'm not sure how that is supposed to prove he is not antiwar; maybe he got a disapproving phone call from an elderly relative. But then, further down, we get:
What we should be asking ourselves is, what should we have done to prevent this situation? But it's always what shall we do now?
Let me ask this (update: I've put the rest in the extended entry field):
What. The. Fuck. Does. That. Have. To. Do. With. Solving. ANYTHING????
Of course, it doesn't. Every problem in the world that is solved, every trouble spot that is made untroubled, is one less place for Fisk to perform his patented sob-sister act over. It's that much less Exciting Career as a Journalist in the Danger Zone and much more ending his days writing obits for the village weekly. It's all about his career and his fame. I can't explain this blast of antilogic from the antimatter universe any other way.
As for the rest of the saddoes interviewed in the article, they are all of a piece: all stuck in that hide-the-ring-and-never-speak-of-it-again moment in Fellowship of the RIng, never getting to "What can I do." Action is anathema to these jellyfish of the left, fobbing off problems onto someone else and then blaming everyone but themselves for the inevitable disaster. "Make the war go away, Mommy!" A bunch of Fred Dursts, all of them.
(Via Tim Blair.)
More changes
I kind of like how I've redone the front page. Nice, clean, simple. Next project: to redo the Library. And maybe even finish those stories, though I can't remember when I have felt less motivated to do anything. I have been feeling just blah for months, it seems; it's never enough to be labelled a full-blown sickness, but I really don't feel healthy. I am trying to eat better, and force myself to get up every now and then and walk. But I am afraid that my malaise has trashed this semester for me. I might be able to pull a couple of the classes I am taking out of the trash-bin. Friday is the last day to withdraw; one class is going for sure, and maybe two. I think I will be taking some sort of summer semester class this year. I am hoping that there will be classes I can take; last year it was all freshman-year stuff.
Site deletions
I finally deleted the long-neglected phpbb forum, in order to free up some webspace; if anyone has http://spleenville.com/forum/ still bookmarked, that is a broken link. I have saved the entries as html pages, if anyone who posted there in the past still wants their posts for future reference.
February 26, 2003
No, you aren't going crazy
I just found a picture of Killer Hobbit that I liked better. It's a little more... well, it's bigger.
A win-win situation
Yes! Saddam Hussein vows death before exile:
Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein says he would rather die than leave his country, dismissing recent arguments by U.S. and Arab leaders that he could go into exile to avoid war.
What can I say except: "Happy to oblige!"
(Via cut on the bias: February 2003 Archives)
I hate the Belgians
How come they get a trailer for Return of the King? Grrr.
Then again, this guy could have hallucinated the whole thing. Or just made it up. I trust no one when it comes to movie rumors.
(There's also some other, trivial, political reason to hate the Belgians, but I can't remember what it is. Something to do with how they want to run the EU and turn all of Europe into a Franco-Belgian slave state or something like that. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on Google.)
Iraqis for the war
Iraqis speak out: Instapundit.com has all the links. Summary: they are not too thrilled about war, but they are even less thrilled about the idea that the US might go, "Aw, the peace protestors are right -- we can't drop bombs on the Children™!" and leave them in the lurch again.
Frankly, I can't understand the objections of the antiwar people. They were all about the US righting all its wrongs, and cleaning up its messes, and not abandoning people to fend for themselves. So, we are finally getting around to doing some of this, and suddenly it's the wrong thing to do? Because we can't do it with magic like Harry Potter? Twelve years of paperwork and Official Visits haven't made a dent in Saddam Hussein's arsenal or plan; the only thing that has ever worked are the constant patrols of American warplanes in the no-fly zone. Again: American arms do what bureaucrats can't.
And let me tell you something else: Arabs have been doing the paperwork dance for a lot longer than Europeans have. They practically invented the record-everything-in-triplicate mania that it took centuries for Europe to get around using. Please, I studied this: Bernard Lewis has several volumes out that are nothing but samples of the lists of everything -- every brick, teapot, gold coin, sheet of parchment, and what-have-you -- that were kept back in the days of the strength of the Muslim Empire. And tons more of this stuff is lying around untranslated, probably because it is mind-numbingly boring. (Historians of the 31st century are going to ignore our reams and piles of 1040 forms too.) And these UN and European bureaucrats think they can put one over on Saddam with their multi-digit resolutions and finicky procedures? Give. Me. A. Fucking. Break. It's all a game to him. All I can say is we had better be taking advantage of time by getting our forces in place, not doing the Clintonesque put-it-off-as-long-as-possible shillyshallying.
Why can't we deport these people?
Well, I was going to go to UF and get my master's degree. Suddenly that idea looks very unattractive.
Banned list addition
Bored now. The latest troll to bother this site, "Horatio," has had both his/her IPs banned. So she/he'll just have to find another IP. Which I will ban.
The IPs are: 129.42.208.139, and 32.97.110.142.
Aaand... 32.97.110.70. Moron.
An Immodest Proposal
As a counteraction to the recent "Naked Peace Protests" Michele is pondering a gesture of support for our troops. This gesture is not without historical precedent:
Tradition says that armies already wavering and giving way have been rallied by women who, with earnest entreaties and bosoms laid bare, have vividly represented the horrors of captivity, which the Germans fear with such extreme dread on behalf of their women, that the strongest tie by which a state can be bound is the being required to give, among the number of hostages, maidens of noble birth. They even believe that the sex has a certain sanctity and prescience, and they do not despise their counsels, or make light of their answers. In Vespasian's days we saw Veleda, long regarded by many as a divinity. In former times, too, they venerated Aurinia, and many other women, but not with servile flatteries, or with sham deification. -- Tacitus, Germania.
Noam Chomsky, Depraved Minion of Gibbering Evil
Henceforth, anyone who admits to me that they admire Noam Chomsky for anything whatsoever will be labelled the bearer of monster cooties and will be banished from my blog.
That's
MONSTER COOTIES |
February 25, 2003
They'll never eat lunch in this town again!
But they don't care: Hollywood Halfwits is a website dedicated to "Hollywood Idiots -- Exposing Celebrity Idiots and Anti-Americans." They've got lots of goodies, of course, and I am sure that there will be more. Via Tim Blair.
Reefer sanity
Kevin Parrott on the question of marijuana. Read it.
Announcement
All right, I have to say something.
I have already made up my mind re: this war. Nothing you say will change MY mind. I have all the information I need. Anyone who comes to these pages could figure that out. If you are looking for a debate, kindly check the link on the left that says "all the blogs," and click on it. (If you are using IE, it will open a side window; other browsers will have a second window open.) There are approximately 400 blogs for you to choose from where you may be able to find someone who is willing to argue over the finer points of Bush vs. Hitler or Bush vs. Saddam or Bush vs. Clinton, or whatever bee you have in your bonnet. I have no interest in getting into it. I do not support this war because of some sycophantic attachment to Bush: I didn't vote for him, so far he has my tentative approval in some but not all of his actions, about the same as Clinton had from me back in the day, and I did vote for him. Wow, that's some partisanship, eh? I'm sorry that my support for the war against Saddam Hussein and the rest of the Islamoloonies out there can't be fit into the slot of "oh, it's just because Bush is president and she has an altar to him in her apartment." You know what? I was all for the Clinton-overseen military actions in Bosnia, Kosovo, and what-have-you. I was supportive of the first Gulf War effort, and one reason I did not vote for Bush Sr. for a second term is because he crapped out on the Iraqis and gave in to the UN, leaving our Current Problem in power.
So trolls, and I mean "Horatio," who think you can fit me into the same sort of tiny little ideological box you live in, give up now. Go away, find some other sandbox to play in. This is my website where I record my thoughts and opinions. If you think they are lacking in "depth," "nuance," or some other deep philosophical bullshit, tough. You aren't paying for my server space or internet connection.
Update: oh yeah, and Horatio? Jacitelli wasn't praising Bush blindly, he was pointing out how the antiwar position the bulk of the "left" has taken is based mainly on partisan Bush-hatred, unlike the position I and others have taken that Saddam Hussein is a menace to our country and the rest of the world whose removal from power is long overdue, it doesn't matter what political party the president belongs to. If you are too dense to get that, then you are probably too stupid to understand anything else I have written; not a surprise.
Different strokes for different folks
Alert Reader Kenneth Summers sent me this article, on the quite different attitude one Miss Sheryl Crow had towards an earlier American military venture. I'm reproducing the entire thing here for posterity:
Singer-turned-anti-war-activist Sheryl Crow deplores President Bush's plans to liberate the people of Iraq, but she was singing a different tune when President Clinton dispatched U.S. forces to Bosnia in the 1990s.In fact, not only did Crow not protest when Clinton sent U.S. forces to the Balkans, she traveled to the region with then-first lady Hillary Clinton to show her support and joined a USO tour to entertain the troops.
"Once over there I felt extremely patriotic," Crow told USA Today in April 1996. "Here are these people, from 18-year-olds to military veterans, enduring real duress for the cause of peace."
The singer then gushed, "I don't ever want to play for a regular audience again, only military folks who are starving for music."
Crow was so supportive of the Clinton administration's decision to use military force in the Balkans that the Toronto Sun referred to her as "Hillary Clinton['s] sidekick in Bosnia."
The war-protesting songstress even penned a tune about what she saw. Dubbed "Redemption Day," the composition was "an anthem condemning America's apathy toward Bosnia," according to the Albany Times-Union.
I leave you to come to your own conclusions.
The Prisoner
Hey, kiddies, here's a story about a guy who got to stay in an Iraqi prison for fourteen whole years because he sold a roll of film. These prisons are one of the many important Iraqi institutions the war tourists human shields are protecting. Great job, guys! What he went through makes Gitmo look like a Club Med resort. He has a wish for the antiwar protesters:
“I am surprised to hear of all the anti-war demonstrations in the West,” he said. “I wish that the demonstrators could spend just 24 hours in the place I have come from and see the reality of Iraq.
“Fourteen lost years of my life. Nothing but bread for food — darkness, filth, beatings, torture, killings, bitterness and humiliation. I wish they could experience it for just 24 hours.”
Ah, he's just a little emotional. He'll get over it when he realizes that War is Not the Answer. (Don't think about the awful stories of beatings and torture. It's not as bad as, say, an artist in the States getting turned down for an NEA grant. Just think of pleasant things; go to the happy place. Ommmmm....)
(Via Wog Blog.)
Not ready for prime time player
Wow. Charles Austin hasn't watched prime time tv longer than I haven't watched prime time tv. Respect.
(Note: you have to go to the latest Scourge of Richard Cohen, Vol. LXXIX -- Goobloggle is boggled.)
February 24, 2003
I'm down
Ugh. I'm experiencing one of those ebb tide moments. I feel flat and uninspired. I have total writer's block too, which sucks considering I have an assload of stories to read and annotate and write essays on. But I feel totally drained of all inspiration.
Blech. What to do, what to do...
Extra: you know, it would help if the freakin' internet weren't slow as molasses tonight. What do I pay for cable for? (No, I am not going to go to dsl, I can't afford it.)
Site business
If the site gets a little wacky, that's because I'm fooling around with it. The main index page will be appearing/disappearing too. Patience...
Update: I tried to install Textpattern, which is in beta. A cute little program, not difficult to install, but I can't get the site index page to show. Sigh.
I'm just fooling around with different blogging software. I am way overdue in setting up a journal for my writing classes, and I've been trying to kick-start myself into doing it by this roundabout method. (I have all sorts of scribbled notes, but I want to put them in some kind of organized form that wasn't boring old Word docs.) Maybe I'll try pMachine. I've got a MySql database that's just sitting there, not getting used properly by the Textpattern software that won't work.
The people's Republic of Oregon
Well, there goes any plans to even visit Oregon, let alone live there. I prefer not to spend my money in tiny versions of Oceania, whenever possible.
Out of the mouths of babes, dept.
Things have gotten really weird when Kid Rock says something sensible:
Kid Rock on musicians pontificating about war in Iraq: "Why is everybody trying to stop the war? George Bush ain't been saying, 'You all, make shitty records.' Politicians and music don't mix. It's like whisky and wine. [Musicians] ought to stay out of it."
Maybe that friend of mine who thinks Kid Rock's stoopid white-boy shtick is just an act is right.
(Via a Joe, in Michele's comments.)
R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.
America, What's Not To Like? Solonor has collected them all (originally featured on a small victory.)
Peter Jackson on organ donations
Peter Jackson, director of you know what, is finding out some things about his homeland that were apparently an unwelcome surprise. For on thing, there were only 37 organ donators in New Zealand last year. Here's a Middle-Earth parallel that is not so cute:
“There is something Hobbit-like in the ‘she’ll be right’ complacency among most New Zealanders,” said Jackson. “ I was shocked to discover the low level of organ donation in this country as we are all in the position of potentially needing the replacement of a vital organ. This little girl will die, as will others like her, unless we all make an active effort to address this problem.”
And that's not all:
Mr Jackson also urges the Ministry of Health to buy a ‘liver bypass’ machine.
“End-stage liver patients have died, only to have a suitable organ become available shortly afterwards. A bypass machine would buy such patients a bit of extra time.”
He said he was dismayed to learn that New Zealand does not own one of these machines, which, at a cost of $25,000, should be within the Health Ministry’s budget.
“Liver bypass machines are standard health care in every other part of the world, China recently bought 60 of them.”
Hey, here's an idea: you've just directed a couple of movies that has earned you zillions of dollars. Why not check out how much a downpayment for one of those things will be, and donate one to the "Ministry of Health" yourself? Just a thought. Perhaps, now that the scales have seemingly fallen from his eyes, he'll realize that you don't have to wait for the "Ministry of Health" or any other government body to do things, not when you have money. (Though I wonder just how much of his earnings is taken out in taxes.)
Cry me a river
Sez Sheryl Crow: "Whine! Pout! Mewl!"
Backstage at the GRAMMY AWARDS on Sunday night, Sheryl Crow contradicted CBS and GRAMMY officials when she claimed GRAMMY reps called her managemment last week asking her to refrain from making anti-war statements during the Sunday night broadcast.
Assuming this is true, has it not occurred to the woman that her management was trying to save what's left of her reputation?
A web comic novel graphic thingy
I was just surfing around looking for images of Valkyries to use and I came upon this web comic: Ancient Messages. It's a complete web comic book novel graphic thingy. It's deceptively simple. I like it.
February 23, 2003
Meanwhile, back in the real world
LT SMASH is stationed Somewhere where there are some multilateral goings-on. Like this:
The British aren’t the only allies I’ve run across here, however. I’ve also spotted contingents of Australians, Italians, and Czechs.
And even:
“Canadian?” I said, somewhat surprised.
Check it out.
That's all folks
Well, that was fuckin' boring. I would've preferred a goofy peace protest.
Showstopper
You know, I think that this tribute to all the people the music industry has killed lost would have been improved by a shot of Pete Townsend being dragged off for questioning about his unusual activities on the internet. Oh, did I just type that?
"London Calling" -- anyone who can't sing can do it.
I'm beginning to remember why I don't watch tv.
Sheryl Crow and beyond
Sheryl Crow sure is dull. Strictly bar band stuff. Sorry, I'm not into her stuff. Besides, I have two Heart albums I could listen to instead.
She's wearing a pendant that is a peace sign inside a heart. That's it for peace so far. Oh, we don't get to hear Sheryl speak? Good.
Cindi Lauper just told a lame joke, and Alicia Keys decided to save the night by going right into Best New Artist. (Or as my friends and I used to call it, Best Artist That Will Never Be Heard From Again Because This Award is the Kiss of Death Award -- remember when Milli Vanilli won?)
Eminem on the Grammys
So... what's the big difference? He's sounding and performing like he always does, doing his whiteboy rap shtick.
(Or is it Grammies? Whatever.)
BeeGeeBees
Remember the good old days, when it was cool to hate the fuggin' BeeGees?
N-fuckin-Sync are doing the BeeGees tribute medley. They are currently just finished destroying the only redeemable song the BeeGees ever did, "Lonely Days."
Update: well, they aren't "Stayin' Alive" all that well; in fact, they are dropping like flies. They are down to a Be.
Sucrose intolerant
Jebus, this isn't the Grammies, it's a fargin' episode of Sesame Street. Cute widdle kiddies, a song called (I believe) "Dreams Are Real" and -- oh my ghod -- the ultimate horror...
Singing children.
::BARF::
Weird search entry of the day
What the hell is a "muskegon" and why is someone searching my blog for it?
Grammies
Score! I turned on the Grammies late, and the first sentence I heard from anyone was from Fred Durst (of Limp Bizkit), who said that "this war should go away!" Oh, the profundity!
I actually forgot it was on tonight, and stayed out doing various things. I rather doubt I missed anything. Already the boredom is setting in.
A tribute to the BeeGees?
Rock musicians are starting to rival opera divas in the ego department, with rather less justification: discuss.
An observation: this Target commercial is so annoying it makes me not want to shop at that store any more.
British anti-sex campaign scores
The British government, in a brilliant move, has done something that will guarantee celibate teens by the end of the decade: Government urges under-16s to experiment with oral sex. No, really:
The scheme, which has been pioneered by Exeter University and is backed by the Departments of Health and Education, trains teachers to discuss various pre-sex “stopping points” with under-age teenagers.
It aims to reduce promiscuity by encouraging pupils to discover “levels of intimacy”, including oral sex, instead of full sexual intercourse.
I can't wait for the brochures. And what's next, encouraging Mum and Dad to demonstrate for the kiddies? "This is how we managed to wait until we were married before getting in the family way!"
Britain will be back to "No sex please, we're British," before you know it.
(Via Pdawwg.)
Reality attack
Light slowly struggles to pierce the murk in Robert Fisk's brain. He valiantly manages to hold the fort against the invader, but only just. Is this the beginning of the end? One can only hope.
(Via Tim Blair.)
Ghost stories
Check out these cool gothy flash animations.
(Via Tex.)
Here comes the vaudeville hook
LOL. Check it out.
Stolen from Aaron, the Liberal Slayer. Check out his Celebrity Quisling Report.
The Biased Broadcasting Company
It looks as if those polls showing that 95% of the people in Britain thought America was like Nazi Germany only without the orderly queues were a bit... off. Or at least there are some people in England who are sick of the anti-Americanism that apparently permeates the BBC's current programming.
(Via Craig Ratapia on NZPundit.)
The Deadliest Meme
Max Sawicky, lefty blogger Who Is Better Than You extraordinaire, made a double whammy of a mistake. Not only did he think that it would be insulting to call Glenn Reynolds, Steven Den Beste, Andrew Sullivan, and Charles Johnson "the Four Horsemen of the Ablogalypse" -- something that backfired (see this post for more) -- he gave Jane Galt the oh-she's-just-a-girl male chauvinist treatment more thoroughly than any conservative male ever could. Joanne Jacobs commented here:
I think this four horseman thing is horribly sexist. Sawicky patronizes Jane Galt as stupid but nice, not worthy of the righteous bile of the left. She can be just as ablogalyptic as the lads.
Therefore, I have decided to help out. Therefore, I present to you, the
Furies*, as slightly altered by moi:
(click for larger)
(Joanne Jacobs is the one in the back supporting the wounded figure of Liberalism, Michele is Michele of A Small Victory, and Leftism is the poor sap they are hounding to madness for his grievous assault on Liberalism.)
Via Dailypundit and Sean Kirby. Check out Glenn Reynolds' response too.
*Update: I just realized that I made a mistake there. I had orignally wanted to use a picture of the Three Fates, but I couldn't find one I liked. So I went with the Furies. But when I typed this up, I typed in "The Three Fates" instead of "The Furies."
February 22, 2003
The Itsy Bitsy Keyboard
You know I am on the verge of buying one of those kiddy keyboards -- one of those gigantor things in bright pink or yellow with the humongous keys. If I had wanted a laptop keyboard with itty bitty little soft keys that were very close together, I'd have bought a freakin' laptop.
Update: turn off computer. Unplug keyboard from back. Take to wall. Smash keyboard against wall. Repeatedly. Until keys fly off everywhere and there are dents in the wall and cat has gone to hide in farthest corner of apartment. Take a deep, satisfied breath.
Don't worry, folks: it's just a fantasy. So far.
What Would Sheryl Do?
Oh, man -- this is going to be hilarious.
Get ready for antiwar protests at tomorrow night's Grammy Awards ceremony.
Despite a report that CBS executives had considered blocking politically outspoken rockers, the network said last night it would not pull the plug on anyone protesting a war against Iraq.
I might even watch it. Me, a bottle of (Aussie, Israeli, or California) wine, and the spectacle of big-headed rock stars making utter fools of themselves on national tv.
Sheryl's gonna be there!
Musician Sheryl Crow, who made headlines when she wore a "War Is Not the Answer" T-shirt at the American Music Awards in January, plans to hand out 300 "No War" buttons tomorrow.
Better make that a fifth of Jack Daniels. Or two.
Hey, I've got an idea! Who wants to get together and have a Grammy Night Blogbash? It's more fun to drink and mock in company.
(Via Scott Chaffin.)
If it's Tuesday, this must be Baghdad
War tourism: the cheapest way to see Iraq. Heck, they'll pay you, lots more than the average Iraqi makes. Well, go on, what are you waiting for? Surely you aren't afraid of a little ridicule? (P.S.: I wonder what "Adra'a Basharia" does mean. Human panty shield? Human diaper?)
E. Nough explains
The pattern seems clear to me too. I am not particularly smart or politically savvy (voted for Clinton twice), yet every time I read about Saddam Hussein's empire-building ambitions, I know exactly what we have to prevent. If Hussein gets his way, we'll be facing a new Soviet Union-like entity, only one on the political equivalent of methamphetamines. I got to see one Evil Empire crumble in my lifetime; I don't really feel like living through the rise of another one. (Those of you passersby who think that Amerikkka is the new Evil Empire can just keep on going.)
As to the mystery of why the administration hasn't spelled this out? I am sure that the reasons are complex. Among them is probably the fact that the reaction of people to this current menace (namely, "What, me worry?") is so much like that of the reaction of people to the rise of You Know Who back in the thirties that Bush probably just doesn't want to deal with the flack. I can't say as I blame him; but sometimes you just gotta lay it on the line, and if people don't like it, tough. (See the comments of one "Just John" to E. Nough's post for a typical dunderheaded response to the question of what more proof do we need:
But I think that we're still missing a triggering event. Iraq would need to actually DO something (currently, not 10-15 years ago) before I would support any kind of invasion.
I am afraid I cut and pasted those words exactly as I found them. I can't really add anything more, except to say that if I had to hear this sort of thing from people day in and day out, I'd give up on ever trying to communicate the urgency of the situation to them too. "But why should we lock the barn door? I say we wait until something happens showing that it is necessary to keep the barn door locked before we lock it..." I certainly hope "Just John" does not treat his finances with the same finicky care.
Anyway, read the whole thing. Know what I think? I think that E. Nough's secret identity is... no, if I told you, I'd have to kill you. ;)
Love Train
Paolo in Italy loves America. Go visit his website and practice your Italian! It will give me a chance to remember all that Italian I took in high school mumble years ago. (Found in the comments on E. Nough's blog.)
Not an idiot
I have made plenty of fun of Bono recently, but it isn't because he's part of the Celebrities Against Icky War Because It Makes Us Uncomfortable brigade. Whatever his faults, he is not about to join the ranks of the Saddamites human shields currently attempting to infest Iraq. Read this article to get his reaction to the carefree assumption by certain members of the FOS* that he would obediently trot over to Baghdad just because they asked him to.
There is an undertone of pique in the article about Bono's apparent refusal to spell out just what his position on the whole Iraq thing is. I have the feeling that he is probably keeping mum about this particular situation because he knows that a large percentage of his fans would spit up nails if he actually told them what he really thinks. He is not a fool about his own career, whatever else he might be foolish about.
*Friends of Saddam.
Doom of the IslamoNazis
After reading this article on the all-female crew of a KC-135 Stratotanker air refueling mission over Afghanistan, I thought this quote was apropos:
'But no living man am I! You look upon a woman. Éowym I am, Éomund's daughter. You stand between me and my lord and kin. Begone, if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you, if you touch him.' -- The Return of the King.
(Via The Imperial Canine.)
Outgunned
Best Self-Defeating Argument Ever: Molly Ivins, eager to score points against the Hated Bush Junta®, decided to take France's side in the current fuss. Her alleged beef: accusations of cowardice against the French are Not Fair, because they lost 100,000 men surrendering to fighting the advancing German forces during WW2. In her zeal to show how Kulcha'ed she is by bragging about her knowledge of French history, she forgot another fact that makes her look like the dumb hick she often tries to pretend to be. Ross Douthat reminds her:
If you want to know what a country that really wanted "to stop Adolf Hitler" might have done, consider Russia, which suffered a far greater defeat in the opening months of Operation Barbarossa, saw its front-line armies smashed to kindling and thousands of square miles of territory overrun, was far more out-manned, out-gunned, out-generaled and out-tanked than the well-armed French -- and then kept fighting, until Hitler was beaten and 6,115,000 Russians were dead. That's what it really means to "stand and fight."
I used to think Ivins was amusing back in the day, but lately she has given me the same feeling so many other pundits and celebs do: they have become bitter and mean, and they have sore loser written all over them. People will root for the underdog, and help a legitimate victim of circumstances, but no one likes a loser.
February 21, 2003
Adults only
Well, my boss knows my website so I am probably going to have to start cleaning up my language one of these days, but those of you who have no such worries might like Tart Graphics for some elegantly erotic free blog templates. WARNING: these really are adult-only (as the intro page will tell you), so if you are blogging from work, have inquisitive children, or are squeamish about erotica, don't go to that link. I won't be responsible for what happens if you ignore my advice!
I'm not telling you what my favorite was. I can't tell you all my secrets. =^)
Like talking to a wall
Glenn Reynolds has some advice for people against the war. Too bad so few of them will take it.
[self promotion] I noticed that my name is on the list of links on the sidebar. I'd never noticed before. Go me! [/self promotion]
Oil Refinery Explosion in Staten Island
Tim Blair had this entry (and he had it tomorrow!):
SOMETHING BIG is happening in Staten Island. Fire, explosions. No news links yet.
I decided to look around. Sure enough, the New York Times has this report up. There are the usual disclaimers of the "T" word.
Message to Osama
A Muslim writes to Osama bin Laden in response to the latest cobbled together fake taped message:
Shut up, bitch.
(Via Tim Blair)
A Poet Dissents
That's the name of this article, written by poet Frederick Turner. He is for the war, and wonders if this means he's not a poet anymore, considering the apparent attitude of the so-called "poet community." Perhaps instead of poet, we could resurrect the old term "bard" for him then. The poem he ends his article with might not be "good" poetry -- I have too little education in the matter to be able to say whether or not a poem is "good" -- but I liked it; it has a certain Beowulf -like rhythm. (Via Instapundit.)
Email woes
My spleenville.com email is acting weird. If you want to contact me by email, use my regular address, harrisandrea(at)earthlink(dot)net until further notice. You know what to change the stuff in the parentheses to.
Also, I have updated the FAQ.
Who are these people?
Via new Canadian blogger Paul Jané comes this report on the Brit Award Ceremonies. I used to follow the British music scene, but I lost interest some time in the mid-Nineties. I looks as if I haven't missed much.
British pop stars are much exercised about all this scary war talk. Of paramount concern is the mess it will make:
Ms Dynamite - who won best British female artist and best urban act - performed a rewritten version of George Michael's track Faith which said: "I don't want blood on my hands."
Chemical weapons kill without all that messy blood, so perhaps this is why Saddam Hussein's use of them on his own citizens does not seem to upset anti-war activists so much.
They are also extremely worried about Der Bush's plans for them. Apparently word has gotten out about Operation Wrap Party (the Bush Junta's® plan to assassinate uppity celebrities):
Coldplay's Chris Martin, who had earlier joked about how his band were the best in the world - "except for [boy band] Blue" - turned serious when he picked up the best British album award.
"Awards are basically a nonsense and we're all going to die if George Bush has his way, but thanks for these two awards anyway," he told the 5,000-strong crowd.
Serious indeed! Why, the thought of a world without Coldplay's music is just... just... quite frankly it's no different from the thought of the world five minutes ago, before I had ever heard of these people.
Hob-Bit*: Apparently Elijah Wood and Liv Tyler were supposed to present something, or receive something (this report is not at all clear, and I don't really care) but they didn't show up. Hmm... could they have been tipped off?? After all, they've got someone on the inside.
*(Get it? Har! I kill myself.)
Viggo's gonna hate this
Tired of comparing today's situation to World War II? Try this on for size. Sample:
Many of the people protesting war in Mordor agreed with Saruman’s remarks. “Sauron says he’s destroyed his Rings of Mass Destruction (RMD) and that’s good enough for me,” said one fellow carrying a sign that said “Elrond is a Balrog.” Another demonstrator urged, “Give the RMD inspectors more time. There’s no reason to rush to any judgment just because Mount Doom is belching lava, the Dark Tower is rebuilt, and Osgiliath has been decimated.” A third protester piped up, “I haven’t heard a single bit of convincing evidence connecting the Nazgul with Sauron. I think they destroyed Osgiliath on their own initiative without any support from Sauron. Besides, it’s understandable they’re angry with Gondor. We haven’t done nearly as much for the Orcs and Goblins and Easterlings as the Nazgul and Sauron have. It’s understandable they throw their support to them. It’s our own fault really.”
Oh, but you really must read it all.
(Via Asparagirl.)
Note: I decided to change the title -- if any of you read this in the last three seconds.
February 20, 2003
Interview with the Hobbit
My, MTV.com is an unexpected treasure trove of hobbity stuff. Here's an interview with Dominic Monaghan (Merry) and Billy Boyd (Pippin.) And here's one with Sean Astin.
Update: whoops, forgot to link to this interview with Elijah Wood.
Sam goes to the movies
Sean Astin's favorite movies. On the list: L.A. Confidential (he's seen it "37 times"), The Lost Boys, Patton.
Tiny Bean
There's a shrill buzzing sound emitting from New York City. What could it be? Oops -- there went another champagne glass... yes! It's society doyenne and failed magazine editor Tina Brown! Money quote:
IS IT JUST THE RESIDUE of fashion week that makes me wish there were more, or should I say any, gay men in the Bush Administration? At The Sunday Times in the Seventies one top editor used to shake his head when the paper became too humourlessly high-testosterone and say that what it needed that week was “more pooftah power”.
Correct me if I am wrong, but I am practically sure that there is at least one gay person in Bush's administration. I can't remember his name, or -- oh heck, let's use Google: Here's a little item from Newsmax (not a leftwing publication) on the number of gay people Bush has or had appointed to various positions. That Google search took me less than thirty seconds. As Big Arm Woman says, I guess Tina Brown really is a tiny moron.
(Via Juan Gato. Note: I left a version of this post in Big Arm Woman's comments. It actually did take me thirty seconds to find the Newsmax item above, not five minutes. Google is your friend.)
Fear Factory
Matt at Overtaken by Events takes on this fearmongering article in the New York Times.
The topic is, of course, our terrified country. The problem is, the country isn't, as Matt points out, particularly terrified. I myself have noticed a disturbing lack of fear and/or nervousness in my locale, even though I live near Disney World, which some think is favorite terrorist target. What can be done to avert this crisis? I know: keep telling everyone how afraid they are! These journalists or whatever they are don't seem to have actually talked to any people other than their close associates. If they had, I can only imagine the dialogue going something like this:
"You're afraid, aren't you?" "Um... no. Should I be?" "Come on, you can tell me! Share your fears." "Well, I was afraid that I forgot to set the vcr for last night's Buffy episode..." "No no, about terrorist attacks." "Terrorists? Bring it on, motherfuckers! I've got a .45 just waiting to be tried out on some raghead--" "No! You're supposed to be afraid!" "Why?"
The headline is "The Worst Defense," but it should really be "Aaagghhh! Mommy!" There's nothing so pathetic as the sight of a terrified newspaper reporter. Also nothing so hilarious.
Update: if I see anything that looks like Al Qaeda riding snowmobiles, I'm not calling Tom Ridge, I'm calling the doctor.
What's so great about the USA?
Tell Michele. It's all about the love, people.
Dead-tree media follies
At UCF we get the local paper "free" (meaning, part of our tuition costs entitle us to use our student ID cards to open the newspaper machines on campus, which do not take coins). But I rarely bother. After all, I don't have a bird, so I don't need any bird-cage liner. And in any case I would not want to expose a vulnerable feathered creature to something as poisonously pinheaded as essays like today's "My Word" column ("My Word" is a column wherein the Orlando Sentinel's editorial page features a local person's opinion).
The title of the column was "Howdy Doody, Where Are You?" That immediately warned me that we were dealing with a Baby Boomer here -- no one from a succeeding generation would know who "Howdy Doody" was, and no one from a preceding generation would care. Here is a sample of the drivel from the keyboard of this flower of the Common People™ (name withheld to protect the sensibilities of her kinfolk):
Americans have been afraid to speak against the president since Sept. 11.
And I am sure you are now quaking in fear of the Black Helicopters® after having this brave missive printed in the local newsrag.
But wait! There's more!
Now we are hearing from more and more citizens who stand firmly against the prospect of war against a country that has not been proven to be a direct threat to our shores. Colin Powell did not convince me that Iraq was involved in the terrorist attacks on our country.
And your expertise in judging what Powell had to say is--?
But wait! There's more!
More and more countries that used to be our greatest allies are, for the first time in decades, lining up to stand against us. Should we not listen to them?
How about, No?
But wait! There is still more!
Are we all letting ourselves be fooled by an administration salivating at the prospect of war?
Yup, they just can't wait to kill! kill! kill! Condi's got a new display shelf all ready for the skulls of Iraqi Children™!
Oh, there is still more...
Were we blinded by the events of Sept. 11 and frightened into thinking that we must appear patriotic at all costs and whatever the president wants is fine by us, even if we are not shown the "cloth" to prove it?
That's an I'm-so-original reference to "The Emperor's New Clothes," the use of which is so rampant that it needs to have it's own law akin to "Godwin's Law" concerning the overuse of Hitler as an argument-stopper.
The next-to-the-last paragraph contains all the sense that was not used in the preceding ones:
We should be pushing for more control of our own borders, focusing more energy on keeping terrorists from entering the country and weeding out those already here with plans for another attack on one of our cities. If Iraq has the technology to send a nuclear weapon on its way to the United States, we have better technology to intercept it. What we cannot seem to control are those who might be developing the weapons within the country to use against us. We would feel a lot more comfortable and safe if the monies funding a war would be funneled into our new homeland security efforts. This writer does not pretend to have the answer to world peace.
At least she admits her ignorance. I like, though, her childish faith in our "better technology" that will somehow be able to magically "intercept" Iraqi nukes that are on their way towards us. I can only assume she means the much-mocked "Star Wars" missile system, though something tells me that when that subject comes up she is against it too. And what does she imagine will happen when a nuclear missile is intercepted by one of ours? That they will both turn into candy floss? I do think that one of the things we are trying to avoid is having any nuclear explosions happen anywhere.
Also, I love the way she is A-OK with stepping up "Homeland Security." I wonder though, if she has really thought through what this entails. Is she for national ID cards? How about racially-profiling people of "Middle-Eastern appearance"? The tone of her writing has a leftist slant -- right-wing antiwar activists tend to not care much about the opinions of "our greatest allies" or any other set of foreigners. But I have read other left-ish leaning people say the same thing about "beefing up" security within the US, while almost in the same breath complaining about "Big Brother" and the "destruction of the Constitution" and so on. Sort of like the way she claims that we are all terrified to speak out against Der Bush, but also says we need to have "more control over our borders" and "weed out" terrorists.
And the newspapers wonder why their readership is dwindling.
February 19, 2003
Clichés come to life, Pt. 9864
The fucking hell?
Alexandra Vodjanikowa, Miss Germany, has announced that she will travel to Iraq, hoping for a date with Saddam Hussein.
Ostensibly it's to "talk him into disarming." Honey, you ain't that good-looking.
Via Power Line, via the Legal Bean
die, trend, die
No, I will not call them "freedom fries." Yeesh.
Why can't we do what the Brits do, and just call them "chips"?
Girls just wanna have fun
Via Steven Chapman we have
Lesbian Japanese Monkeys
Click the picture:
Wild kingdom
Tonight's episode comes from Down Under, and is brought to you by James Morrow, an American currently held captive residing in Sydney. Here he has a couple of shots of Oz's version of the possum. And here is a feature on the elusive Tim Blair, shown emerging from his native burrow to forage in the wild.
Are you ready?
Well, the website is.
(Via the Last Page.)
The wages of peace marches
Are making the enemy think we are pansies who can't take a little conflict. Or did the pro Saddam antiwar protesters ever consider the possibility that their activities might have this effect on Saddam Hussein instead of turning him into a latter-day Gandhi?
Something tells me "no."
(Via The Weekly James.)
Instapundit is the Borg!
You will be assimilated! Heh heh.
And guess what, he says something in this column that underscores what I said in my post below :
It's been forgotten now, but in October 2001, the media was full of dark predictions about a "quagmire" in Afghanistan, and claims that there wasn't enough "proof" that Osama bin Laden was behind the attacks. Noam Chomsky was claiming that the US was planning a "silent genocide" in which millions of Afghans would starve to death as a result of war, and humanitarian groups were more or less echoing his predictions. Meanwhile we were told that the Afghans, natural warriors, would pick off American troops by the thousand, and Muslims across the world would rise as one, plunging the planet into conflict.
Uh huh. That's why I and many others are wondering about the condition of the "peace" activists when much of their current blathering seems to be from a template with the word "Afghanistan" replaced by the word "Iraq."
Divided by a common language
Sometimes I wonder what we mean by "dialogue." I keep reading that "we need to have a dialogue!" concerning this possible war with Iraq, but I am not sure why. Everyone seems to have already made up their mind; I know I have. "Dialogue" seems to result instead in frustrating exchanges like the one in the comments to one of my posts. I have come to the attentions of one Colin Roald, who has his own blog, though it seems to be down right now (it was up earlier this afternoon).
Anyway, I found the exchange exasperating. Mr. Roald seems to be coming from an isolationist, or perhaps defeatist (in the "since we can't go/aren't going after all the evils in the world all at once, we shouldn't do anything" mode) position. Now I say "seems to be," because he became put out when I made a statement on what I thought he believed about something based on what he wrote in my comments. Now, I do not know Mr. Roald, nor can I get onto his webpage to scan it until I find a statement of his beliefs -- and in any case, what is the use of writing and engaging in "dialogue" if it is not to showcase one's beliefs? But he did not become snippy because I got his beliefs wrong, he was upset that I had attempted to say anything whatsoever about his beliefs. If he didn't want me to try to figure out what he believed, then what was all that writing for, a typing exercise?
Here is an example of what I mean: in one of the comments here, Mr. Roald says: "[...]things are maybe not so cheery in Afghanistan as you assume " (emphasis mine) and quotes from a news report from this Afghan-focused (and perhaps produced, though I can't find a masthead) website to emphasize, I guess, his own gloomy prognosis for that area. Now I would like to know just how he assumes I or my commenters have decided that things in Afghanistan are "cheery." One of the commenters merely said something to the effect that predictions of a Vietnam-like quagmire for US forces in that country have not come to pass. No one tried to pass off the situation in Afghanistan as "cheery" or anything else.
But this is why it is frustrating to have a dialogue with any of these antiwar people. When you point out to them that things they were certain would happen have not come to pass, they change the subject. When you expose their beliefs, they accuse you of abstract wrongs rather than explaining themselves further. And most frustrating of all, they keep writing the same thing over and over, using slightly different arrangements of sentences each time, the new internet version of "shouting" which has replaced all caps. You know, if I disagree with you on something, and you keep repeating it, I'm not going to slip up and say, "You're right," as if we were playing some demented version of "Simon Says."
In their own words
Fine, don't believe what you read on blogs about stale Vietnam-era ideas, ridiculous tinfoil hat conspiracy theories of world domination and oil thievery, and irrational hatred of George W. Bush being the main themes behind the recent "peace" marches. Believe what the "peace" protesters themselves say.
(Note: you'll need a high-bandwidth connection and the latest version of Quicktime.)
ah, nature
'Scuse me folks, I'm going to go wash my car while there is still a little light out. (Note to self: do not park car under tree in neighborhood where people feed the birds and squirrels popcorn and sesame seeds.)
Update: where people feed the birds and squirrels that birdfood that consists of sesame seeds bound together with some sort of sticky, honey-like substance. Jeebus. I'm so glad our furry and feathered friends are getting plenty of fiber in their diets.
Bloogle
Concerning the Google buyout of Blogger, Meryl Yourish has an interesting idea on what it all means.
Poets for the War
Yep, you read that right -- it's a website dedicated to
poets who support and understand President Bush’s policies, the war on terrorism, or the liberation of Iraq from under Saddam Hussein al Tikriti’s crushing heel.
I haven't read any of the poems yet, so I can't say if they are any good, but they have to be better (or at least no worse than) some of the anti-war offerings we have been subjected to lately.
(Via Spiced Sass.)
The last word
Best line on the peace marchers ever:
If it weren’t for the autonomous nervous system, some of these people would die because they’re too stupid to remember to breathe.
I know it's gilding the lily to say "read Lileks today," but -- read Lileks today.
February 18, 2003
Textile
I have installed the Textile plugin.
It is pretty cool ®.
You can take it from me!
It sure will save me some keystrokes anyway.
Seeds of Our Demise, the continuing saga
Oh yeah -- I forgot about this juicy nugget. Actually, I am almost sure that Bono and/or the band have been nominated before for this dog and pony show. I hope they don't win. I really don't feel like packing up all my U2 stuff and mailing it to Polygram. For one thing, there's rather a lot of it, and shipping costs are so dear.
(Via Dean's World.)
People with no lives, Pt. 2564
What the fuck? Is Usenet down?
(PS: I refer specifically to the logorrheac rantings of commenters "GT," "Lilly," "jill," "SteveM ," and "ND." Their bitchfestations have to be read to be believed.)
All the lonely tyrants
While reading this article on the life and times of country-boy-done-good Saddam Hussein, I began to envision a new sitcom, along the lines of The Osbournes. Only instead of family squabbles, backstage antics, and dog poop, it would feature assassinations, grandiose speeches, and summary executions. Call it Leader Knows Best, or simply, Al-Khatib.
Time to smack some people upside the head
Hm. It seems that Prince Faisal is not down with this whole invade-Iraq thing:
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal has said that any unilateral military action by the US would appear as an "act of aggression".Message to Prince Faisal:
Shut up, bitch.
(Via Sean Kirby, who claims to be a nineteen-year-old student. Hah! And I am an almost-forty-year-old spinster who lives alone with a cat! Oh wait -- I am.)
In other news, no-longer-president-but-can't-seem-to-get-over-that-fact Jimmy Cawduh continues to annoy. Now he has signed the UK Mirror's "Not In Our Name" Support Dear Leader Saddam Hussein Anti-War Petition. Message to ex-President Hamster: shut up you goddamn hypocrite.
I need a vacation
I need to go back to New Orleans. Now.
Hobbit World News
Taking a break from peace fools and cybertrolls, here's some news from Middle Earth:
This interview with Billy Boyd reveals that he will be in upcoming high seas adventure film film Master and Commander, with Russell "Ladies' Man" Crowe. Hmm. Watching the British Horatio Hornblower series last year gave me quite the taste for high seas Napoleonic-era adventure movies. (Iaon Gruffudd helped.)
Scroll down on this page to the entry titled "JRD Shoots 'Dragon' In Bulgaria" for news of a film that John Rhys-Davies will be in. Excerpt:
The film is called "Dragon Storms" by director Stephen Foerstein. Filming will take place in the medieval fortress Baba Vida and the dungeons of the "Venetian depot" in Vidin for 18 days. John Rhys-Davies plays the role of the evil king.For more news on this, check out Sofia Sideshow -- this is the film jkrank is working on. Oh, and by the way, add another actor to the list of Actors Who Are NOT Idiots.
For those of you who did not know: Orlando "Legolas! Squeal!" Bloom is going to play Paris in the upcoming film Troy. And Sean Bean (who played Boromir) is cast as Odysseus. Can't wait for that one either.
This interview with Ian McKellan contains the following amusing tidbit:
But, yes, it’s agreeable for a one-time Burnley boy to sit next to Meryl Streep at the Oscars, or have Colin Powell introduce himself as “your mailman” at the same ceremony and drop a missive from his niece into his lap[...]
 |
| Smoke 'em if you've got 'em. |
The Elijah's World AOL Chat (April 30, 1995)Heh.Lionrobby: Elijah, I've noticed you sign "God Bless You" on autographs, What religion are you?
Guest EJW: lion, I'm Christian
***************
The Prodigy Chat (September 12, 1997)Question: What are your religious beliefs?
Elijah: Well, I'm a Christian. I was raised a Christian. I'm not highly religious in some people's eyes because I don't go to church. It's not that I've made a choice saying that I do not want to go to church... It's more circumstantial than that. But since our family has not been to church in so long, it's not really something we've considered doing.
I don't feel that in order to be a "good Christian," that you have to go to church. You can be religious without going to church by just praying and living your life for God. And living your life by God's teachings, or the bible. It interesting...every bible for every religion says basically the same thing.
And here's a favorable Christian review of Fellowship of the Ring. However, there is one puzzling note: a "moderate" rating on the film for "drug alert." I can't understand what they mean: are they referring to the "leaf"? Repeat after me, people: "leaf" is just what Tolkien calls "tobacco." It is not cannabis: ignore the hippies.
Error 404
(Via Kathy Kinslet, via E. Nough. All Hail Blogcest!
Crap, crap, crap, crap
Today I had a deadline to upload a story to my web class. (Advanced Fiction Writing.) I went to upload it. The server is down. Now my story is late.
Crap, crap, crap, crap.
February 17, 2003
Sour Milk
Tim Blair on the impact of the "peace" marches. Summary: the left is dead.
Most rigged quiz ever
No, really, it is. Go check it out and make sure you look at "see all possible results." Note how Mother Theresa, the staunch anti-abortionist, is the quiz-maker's idea of someone who is "0% Republican." Anyway, here's my result:
How Republican Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla
Well that's one way to sell CDs
Well. Back when I saw unknown folk singer Jewel open for Peter Murphy (at the Cameo Theater in Miami Beach, sometime in the early 90s) she was just an innocent-looking little thing from Alaska or someplace. My, how we've grown. Now I see why her annoying songs are so popular.
(No really, she's pretty hot in this picture, and I am not the kind of girl who noticed such things.)
Reefer sanity
This is the best mustering of arguments against the War on (Some) Drugs that I have yet seen. Of course, it uses logic vs. emotionalism, so it won't win, but good show anyway. (Via Colby Cosh.)
Grand-père knows best
The US isn't the only country to get the shut-up-you-kids treatment from Wise Older Nation France: here is part of M. Chirac's message to the eastern European nations that have backed the U.S. position on Iraq:
"It is not really responsible behavior," he told a news conference. "It is not well brought-up behavior. They missed a good opportunity to keep quiet."How.... arrogant. Really, I have no words. Probably 'cos I'm a dumb, simplisme American.
(Via Juan Gato.)
Banned list update
Now IP address 64.105.100.81 will have to find someone else's comments to troll. I did not put up this blog so snowbound bored high school students could play games.
Update: go ahead, bitch. Keep changing your IP. I'll keep banning you. Tonight's my night off.
A different kind of rally
This might cheer people up some: there was also a Rally for America that was held in Denver yesterday. It's a little different from all the Support Saddam Hussein antiwar rallies that were being held elsewhere. For one thing, there is an unfortunate absence of puppets, clowns on stilts, and people in ugly costumes. So no wonder I haven't heard much about it. Just a bunch of ordinary joes and janes wearing their Sears best and waving a lot of (ugh!) American flags. There is even a sign saying "Pray 4 the USA." They'll never show that on CNN. (If it had said "Goddess hates war" that would have been okay.)
(Via Meryl Yourish.)
Update: Cranky Hermit has more pictures and an entry on this.
I guess I should have used pictures
Okay, what part of "STFU" didn't you understand?
