tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11041041467195413282024-03-04T20:56:36.741-08:00There Goes Our HeroThis is my electronic art loft in my little piece of web estate. Wipe your feet before you come in.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.comBlogger148125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-31767729314029452512010-08-17T19:53:00.000-07:002010-08-17T22:55:24.161-07:00We Are to Be Dead Birds, But Not Today<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;">Look both ways before crossing the street Space Travelers. This evening, while driving home, a squirrel darted into the road. The car about 20 ft in front of me in the lane to my left prevented the squirrel from making it all the way across. I made for a hasty retreat, but Johnny Freedom Karr was headed right for it. I could not stop, nor did I have the maneuvering room to turn. I saw the squirrel flatten down just before its small frame disappeared behind the horizon of JFK's hood. It was hard to tell if the squirrel would be clear of my wheels. After passing over, I looked in my rear view mirror. I saw nothing. It vanished. I was relieved. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;">Twice before, I've struck an animal...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;">...Both were birds. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">One instance stands out in my mind. I was on my way into work one evening, and two birds swooped down. One went too low and I struck it. I heard the soft sound. I'd swear I could feel it in my hands through the steering wheel. I know that's very unlikely, but when it happened, I felt like it struck my heart. I was pierced. </span></span></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">As I drove, I looked back in the mirror. I saw it laying in the road. One wing up in the air. It was beating its raised wing with a terribly frantic rhythm. That, or it was already dead, and it was the wind that simply moved the bird's lifeless wing. As I slowed to the stoplight, I continued to look back in the mirror. The second bird landed next to dead or dying bird. It hopped around with its head down looking at the wounded bird. I'm not one to anthropomorphize animal behavior*, but I couldn't help but try and put myself in the bird's head. Did it know what had happened to the other bird? Did it feel sad? Did it hate me for killing the other bird? I pondered things like if they were mates, and what our chance cosmic encounter could mean. Did they have a nest? Eggs? How long would the bird stay there by the dead bird before it flew off? Would it return to that spot later, or would it leave and never think of the spot or occasion again?</span></span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"><br />
</span></span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">The light turned green. I could not stay there. I drove on, and as I left, I saw the bird still there bouncing around looking at the ground. The scene faded from view, but not from mind. Thoughts of this bird would be in my head all day while I worked. </span></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"><br />
</span></span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.birdsofmaine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/catbird-pair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="325" src="http://www.birdsofmaine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/catbird-pair.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta; font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">This</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px;"> was life. This was nature--It was not cruel, but indifferent. In my life, I'll have to be the dead bird only once, but all have to be the surviving bird numerous times over. I think the terror is that I realize I'm more prepared to die than to deal with death. To mourn is agony. It is not beautiful. So while I'm not the bouncing bird, I'll still have to fly away; I'll still have to still go when the light turns green. When death takes my friends and family, I'll have to keep moving. I can't stay arrested on the side of the road trying to understand it, there may be no answer. I can't just stay angry and blame something. I can't simply regret this... regret that. I'll be a dead bird one day, but until then, I can't use my life just staring at the earth.</span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;">*Space Traveler Fact: Anthropomorphizing is reserved for electronics and vehicles.</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"></div></span>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-76670112622682366092010-08-16T18:10:00.000-07:002010-08-16T18:34:54.956-07:00Chapter 33; Verse 1: The Autobahn Less TraveledGuten Abend mine Space Travelers. Ya! We are having fun now! He he. <br />
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</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;">It's been a while since I've strapped myself into plane and ventured off. I was investigating a trip to Europe for a while. I needed to get out and meet people; have a cultural experience. I needed to be put in a new context. I find that when I travel, I see myself in the third person (sort of). I think now is a good time for that. I'm coming out of a huge period of change and some reflection on who I'm becoming would be good.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.egmcartech.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/2010_vw_golf_gti_new_press_images_004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://www.egmcartech.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/2010_vw_golf_gti_new_press_images_004.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f1c232;">Hans Liberty Auto</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;">The plan is to land in Berlin on August 31st, and fly out on September 13th. I have a rental car reserved, and everything else (like lodging or figuring out how to order vegan food in other countries...) I'll improvise. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;">Not much of a plan, but I'm confident in my ability to make this work. In many ways this trip has many similar elements to my 2007 road trip that started this blog. I'm traveling alone, which in many ways seems like I'm missing out on the whole "sharing the experience." I do like to have travel companions, but there is something incredibly satisfying about the independence and autonomy of single travel. In 2007, I had not planned to hang a sharp turn and go off the planned route, but had I not, I would have missed Devil's Tower and (this detail stands out to me) the prairie dogs in the surrounding plain. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;">So I have a general path sketched out, but nothing in concrete. My goal is to hit Berlin, Amsterdam, Brussels, Zurich, Frankfurt, and anything that catches my attention in transit between.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #45818e;"> </span></div><iframe frameborder="0" height="350" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Berlin,+Germany&daddr=Amsterdam,+The+Netherlands+to:Brussels,+Brussels-Capital+Region,+Belgium+to:Zurich,+Switzerland+to:Frankfurt,+Germany+to:Berlin,+Germany&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=38.880076,-77.178075&sspn=0.009722,0.01487&ie=UTF8&ll=49.958115,8.88284&spn=5.18439,9.05866&output=embed" width="495"></iframe><br />
<small><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=embed&saddr=Berlin,+Germany&daddr=Amsterdam,+The+Netherlands+to:Brussels,+Brussels-Capital+Region,+Belgium+to:Zurich,+Switzerland+to:Frankfurt,+Germany+to:Berlin,+Germany&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=38.880076,-77.178075&sspn=0.009722,0.01487&ie=UTF8&ll=49.958115,8.88284&spn=5.18439,9.05866" style="color: blue; text-align: left;">View Larger Map</a></small>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-77026973434788827562010-07-29T03:17:00.000-07:002010-07-29T03:17:32.501-07:00Toilets: Stand Up, Seat DownLet's do it wrong Space Travelers! When was the last time you challenged why you do something? What defines what is the correct way? Try doing something wrong, and often enough, you'll find out.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">There is the perennial joke about men and how we leave the toilet seat up. Silly manfolk bipedal urinators, why pee standing? Nobody can function at such an altitude!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.splashdirect.com/Gallery/product/SPL057_bigProduct.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.splashdirect.com/Gallery/product/SPL057_bigProduct.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">I want this.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">I'd never really had to deal with the seemingly inevitable debate. That was until about four-ish years ago. I was scolded for leaving the seat up. I was confused. It seemed <a href="http://treebeard31.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/tumblr_l01xr7wyfa1qz6f9yo1_500.gif">harsh to meet such a sudden reprimand</a> for a single offense. I went into the bathroom and the seat was down. I assumed she had lowered it. A few days later, the topic came up again, and again I was confused. I went into the bathroom and the seat was down. In protest, I pointed out that the seat was down. It was when she came in that the issue became clear to me. She marched in, then lowered the </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">lid</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">. I had not been leaving the seat up, but rather the lid. The break down in communication came from the difference in what we were calling the seat. Quickly this became one of those cases where you simply<a href="http://fanrants.net/fants/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/dr_girlfriend.jpg"> let the girlfriend win</a> the argument because life is really too short to be fighting over <a href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:-jD50OHr-goZAM:http://www.hometips.com/articleimages/20070913131246_plb_toilet_componentsdiagram1.gif&t=1">toilet anatomy</a>, and it's a suicide mission to correct a girlfriend on matters of definition or terminology.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">We have in modern western society created a cultural practice of putting the seat down, and apparently this includes the lid (in eastern societies, they use a <a href="http://www.friedmanarchives.com/China/Page3/images/squat%20Toilet%202.jpg">different toilet</a> or the toilet just <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1OEWq8Wcm0">makes all the choices for you</a> while playing music. See also: </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><a href="http://www.google.com/images?q=weird+japanese+things&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=CVBRTO-fNcKqlAf9xqG8CQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CDAQsAQwAw&biw=1440&bih=797">Weird Japanese things</a></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">). It seems that to have an exposed and open toilet bowl is an offense worth a potty harangue from the lady-mate. Or so it seems. However, what in these last four years I haven't been able to wrap my head around is why? Who crafted this rule? Why do toilets have lids? If lids are a part of being polite, why don't public restrooms have lids on their toilets? It seems odd that our public choice should be less rude than what we choose to do in private residencies. Seat and lid down could be the righteous thing to do, but I want to understand why. The unexamined life is hardly worth living, and that includes etiquette in the water closet.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">As it turns out, some answers are available. The first matter to address is the public restroom. As it turns out, it's a <a href="http://www.propsunlimited.com/pics/Games%20-%20Go%20to%20Jail.jpg">law</a>. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilet_seat#Open_Front_Toilet_Seats">Uniform Plumbing Code Section 409.2.2</a> requires the use of an "open seat," but allows an exception for private residences. The reasoning offered for the use of the open seat varies (splash back, genital contact, ease of cleaning, etc), but all logic offered resolves to some sort of sanitary measure as the common denominator. In the interest of public health, the lid is omitted entirely. Civilization seems to have a low priority on the lid, so why and how did this become an element of good manors in our homes? </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTnQak0NaxsZQL0DvwONTj_2PSAwofE4kzT-8neoC_romhy9rg&t=1&usg=__TXqf_a3HYtmIAoLvlhANBMZaZcY=" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTnQak0NaxsZQL0DvwONTj_2PSAwofE4kzT-8neoC_romhy9rg&t=1&usg=__TXqf_a3HYtmIAoLvlhANBMZaZcY=" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">"No! I will not calm down! The lid is symbolic of this entire relationship!"</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">A male-female cohabitation is the battleground in which this war is commonly waged (drunk in a bar was a close second). The common assertion from our finer halves is that they are "tired of putting the seat down </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">for us</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">." Pulling someone else's weight can be a real drag so I am sympathetic. Not to nitpick, but aren't they putting the seat down </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">for themselves</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">? The reverse certainly could be said as well, and we'd think not twice about a man having to lift the seat for himself. He's not doing it because she forgot anything, he's simply putting the toilet in the desired configuration. If he leaves either the lid or seat up and the next desired configuration is that it be resting in a horizontal orientation, the action is no more dramatic than lifting the seat before toilet use. In fact, when transitioning the seat out of the upright position, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitation">gravity</a> is on your side. </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Voila</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">! Now, all of the above can be used to argue either way for whose responsibility it is to put the toilet seat where, but at the heart of this intellectual quest is the matter of determining what the default position is.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">In finding the default, let us summon science again. In the highest tradition of Newtonian physics, we note that a seat in the upright position is a dynamically stable system with a greater potential energy than the statically stable system of the seat being down. In the interest of using energy efficiently, it seems that lifting the seat is a waste. However, a lid in the down position requires the expenditure of energy for all users because it obstructs waste from entering the bowl. If the lid serves a function, then this use of energy may be a worth while investment. We should investigate possible functions.</span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Decorative_toilet_seat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Decorative_toilet_seat.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Get lost in the beauty</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">The purpose of a lid is in itself a debate. At its simplest, it is purely ornate. I've examined images of both toilets with and without lids. I've decided there is merit to this argument. The lid increases the surface area of the toilet as a unit and provides a large flat area which is ideal for decoration. Anyone who has researched the housing market knows that kitchens and bathrooms are what sell homes. So who wouldn't want to protect their investment? Transforming the one place where you produce the worst sounds and smells into a work of art is a creative pursuit, and I support that kind of thing.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Beyond aesthetics, there is a functional element to the lid itself. For those who find themselves tired after a long a stressful day at work, a toilet with its lid down provides a sturdy bench. In terms of posture, a firm lid promotes proper spinal alignment, and by most designs, the height is such that the hamstring and shin will form a comfortable angle with each other and with respect to the floor. If the toilet has a rear tank, the individual may find its cold porcelain therapeutic to sore muscles and enjoy the <a href="http://www.emotionalprocessing.org.uk/Research%20Collaborations/backpain.jpg">lower lumbar support</a>. To have good posture is to live well.</span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://losemyway.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/blackberrytoilet_540.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://losemyway.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/blackberrytoilet_540.jpg" width="139" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Earth day is everyday</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Another utilitarian theory about the lid is that it acts as a two-way defensive barrier. This school of thought takes into account two main (but numerous secondary) scenarios. The first is to keep whatever is in the toilet from escaping out. Currently, this has only proven effective against <a href="http://londonist.com/attachments/London_Lindsey/rat_bog.jpg">large vermin such as rats</a> that swim up the pipes. Attempts have been made to stop odors and insects from escaping, however, in 2010, our toilet technology simply does provide a viable solution for these common foes. The second form of defense is the idea that the lid will keep things from getting inside the toilet. It is unknown at this time, but conservative figures suggest that as many as 50 bazillion pristine toilet bowls have been contaminated when a user accidentally or intentionally dropped their $200.00 cell phone in. Most mobile phones and PDAs operate on <a href="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/autopia/images/2007/08/09/lithium_ion_batteries.jpg">lithium ion batteries</a> and the run-off toxins from such a spill would render the toilet water unsafe to drink. I don't need to belabor the point, the lid can provide both security and an eco-safeguard to the local watershed.</span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i.cnn.net/money/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2006/12/01/8394995/toilet.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://i.cnn.net/money/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2006/12/01/8394995/toilet.03.jpg" width="161" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">A prototype hybrid unit</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Given the complications that arise from toilets with actionable seats and lids, I began to wonder if it would be simpler if we simply fixed the seat to the bowl, and removed the lid all together. Seats and lids are movable parts and are prone to damage. The average American household <a href="http://www.commutesolutions.org/calc.htm">spends over $26,000.00</a> on toilet maintenance in a given year. This cost could be cut by up to 50%, and free up monetary resources for struggling families if fixed-seat toilets were installed. This removes an unnecessary choice when using the bathroom, and helps save time (no doubt, equally important as money). Don't think we can build it? Wrong dummy! This is the U.S. of A! We already have them, and they are being implemented in US prisons across the nation where in 2008 2,304,115 happy inmates use them daily without up-or-down dilemma. Additionally, a seat that can't be removed, can't be used as a weapon in a cell-block uprising. Now that's something we can all believe in: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlkqSfooHB1hpoLHgkeFmqN3EiofIcnwKMGNpp3LPfHmTgV_1uiB6I1lmWgw4RuLqXC8e0-EFlT9IxpArrWfRYS7cwYWG02hgT_K6wYh5YFhW-r6wAzRsKV1TbN-uw-1fm6JLjqpLLSeg/s400/EagleFlagFacesmall.jpg">A safer America</a>.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">I encourage all people to explore why we do what we do. I used to be a mindless drone putting the toilet seat and lid down because I was told to do so. Now when I place them down, I'm doing it for <i>my</i> own reasons. It shows I care. It's a message to my loved ones. A message that I take pride in the appearance of my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homelessness">home</a>. It says that I care for my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthritis">body</a>. It's a warning to rodent sewer intruders that "<a href="http://www.iraqbodycount.org/">United We Stand</a>." A lid down is the proud badge of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_crisis">eco-minded individual</a>. Lastly, it says to all those that follow me into the bathroom that I trust in their ability to make the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffrage">right choice</a>, and that without the <a href="http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/">freedom to choose</a>, it's no different than <a href="http://www.amnesty.org/">being in prison</a>. Don't just take my word for it though. I encourage everyone to set out on the noble quest to find answers to this and other very emotional and personal questions about the human condition. They may say "Whatever dude. You thought waaaaaay too much about this." <i>Cognito ergo sum toileto seato summissus.</i> I think, therefore I lower the toilet seat.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">"Go away! I'm pooping!"</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">~Plato</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">428–427 BCE)</span></span></span></div><br />
As a last note Space Travelers, in my research, I discovered many new and exciting ways to use a toilet. If you attempt these at home, it should be under proper supervision, and always after doing warm up stretches.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw1LIShgkYBaGZrKWywe35JunsyF4OUXCBw7lKuG1mfv8o7Ayy9-qQ4F5ma8z3gYybo2cm-iKYrjSouepP9C24AhrOp12g79fJMlCLYvLx23G3SHFfhc-ONNosAjOI_03tdZ8ActD2ijro/s1600/DSC00425.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw1LIShgkYBaGZrKWywe35JunsyF4OUXCBw7lKuG1mfv8o7Ayy9-qQ4F5ma8z3gYybo2cm-iKYrjSouepP9C24AhrOp12g79fJMlCLYvLx23G3SHFfhc-ONNosAjOI_03tdZ8ActD2ijro/s200/DSC00425.JPG" width="111" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-large;">The Side-Saddle:</span> This stance elongates the frame and is quite sliming. Showcase your classic elegance with this old time favorite. Good for group settings.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUkGt7psUC3nQUoHxxoiCdscYBLqIhmExFYSNqZ7IIGq4cjaYcDnUDXOlc8zikwnik5h7_kEDhGTZQpSu28uuIuihNIg5DVGNad0qoZVyjAP3-fyA4nLdx1YfFiUTo8bwzoGgbpMAVEZBd/s1600/DSC00427.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUkGt7psUC3nQUoHxxoiCdscYBLqIhmExFYSNqZ7IIGq4cjaYcDnUDXOlc8zikwnik5h7_kEDhGTZQpSu28uuIuihNIg5DVGNad0qoZVyjAP3-fyA4nLdx1YfFiUTo8bwzoGgbpMAVEZBd/s200/DSC00427.JPG" width="112" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-large;">The Sea-Doo:</span> This sporty stance is for advanced users only. This is of course a slight modification on the "Stallion" which required stir-ups. This method provides all the enjoyment of the Stallion without the expensive equipment.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-40875085394023715592010-07-27T09:41:00.000-07:002010-07-27T09:58:44.321-07:00vLog Unspecial 07: Impersonations<object height="303" width="495"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vPGWRZlSttE&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vPGWRZlSttE&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="495" height="303"></embed></object><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">Here is the companion video Space Travelers.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;"><object height="303" width="495"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pwOKnA7mniI&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pwOKnA7mniI&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="495" height="303"></embed></object></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">Don't forget to rate the video and follow me on </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/There-Goes-Our-Hero/138982712787984?ref=ts"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">Facebook</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">. I plan to keep drawing more faces as a side project. I will upload all the face pictures into a </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=21705&id=138982712787984&saved#!/album.php?aid=21705&id=138982712787984&ref=mf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;">picture folder</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;"> on the facebook account where you can post comments on the pictures themselves and what type of character you think they'd be.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs270.snc4/39856_141995505820038_138982712787984_329438_4992079_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs270.snc4/39856_141995505820038_138982712787984_329438_4992079_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: yellow;"><br />
</span>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-73499616434861216962010-07-21T02:48:00.000-07:002010-07-21T02:49:14.447-07:00Single Thought #9<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Some things hurt. Some things leave a mark. However, given the choice to never feel anything again, I'll take the mark.</span></span></span>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-86979174647966952742010-07-20T01:28:00.000-07:002010-07-20T04:46:52.562-07:00The Book Versus The Movie<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Salutations Space Travelers. I just got done doing some midnight cleaning of my apartment while trying not to wake the roommates. When they wake up and come out of their rooms, it will be like Christmas morning, if their letters to Santa requested that the damn kitchen be cleaned (They've been nice, I'm the naughty one). As I was cleaning, and organizing, I looked at the bookshelves. I realized that I have more movies than books. There is a debate that rages on between the book and the movie. Had movies won my brain's real estate?</span></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">I've never considered myself to be very literary. I was not the child with my nose in a book. I was too impatient. I couldn't be bothered to devote multiple days to stories that took only 80 minutes to tell on TV or in a theater. As my peers began to read more as an extra-curricular activity, I witnessed a trend. The more films I watched with them, the more I'd start to hear </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">"the book was better."</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> At first, I was arrested in a sort of disbelief. I often had enjoyed the film, and I didn't see anything wrong with it. Seeing my fellow audience seem so disappointed was mildly alarming. As I heard this phrase more and more, I started to worry that there was a whole world out there I was missing out on; a book world, where the story was always better. </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.boston.com/ae/celebrity/more_names/blog/fight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.boston.com/ae/celebrity/more_names/blog/fight.jpg" width="158" /></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">In 1999, A very special film came out. The movie was Fight Club, and it's dark visuals coupled with its gritty attitude was intoxicating. I watched it over and over. A few of my friends and I even got in fist fights in our garages. We were punch </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">drunk</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, literally (I told you it was intoxicating). It was a lot of </span><a href="http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=real+fight+clubs"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">reality mimicking fiction</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">. But hey, the story is about exploring the male condition, so perhaps this was a form or exploring the ideas in it. We didn't fight for too long, and never as fiercely as in the film. We tempered our enthusiasm, and cooled our teenage jets pretty fast when we discovered something important: We all fucking hated getting punched in the face. </span><a href="http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w251/farmalltom/Facepunch.gif"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">It was awful</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">.</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Fiction and storytelling can have a very powerful effect on those who digest it. It can become as real as the person allows. Since I was done getting decked in the jaw, I decided to read the book. When I came across a copy, it was a soft back with the movie art on the front. It was obviously a reprint made exactly for people like myself who had seen the movie, and now wanted to read the book. A funny thing happened right before I began to read Fight Club. I stumbled upon an interview with Chuck Palahniuk where he said that he like the movie </span><i><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_673760551"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">better</span></a></i><a href="http://www.premiere.com/Feature/10-Movies-That-Were-Better-Than-The-Books"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> than his book</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">. I was puzzled. This wasn't right. The book was supposed to be better! The author isn't supposed to say that kind of thing! habpasadfiuonfcwdnwepowcna'xa!!!1one</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Now, having read all but one of Palanuik's books, I look back and think that this isn't shocking at all. Not for Palahniuk. He likes very much to play the devil's advocate and his humor is often quite contrarian. Well played Chuck.</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">I read the book. It was good, but it was good in many ways because in my mind this was the cast of Brat Pitt, Edward Norton, and Helena Bonham Carter. Oh, and </span><a href="http://images.tribe.net/tribe/upload/photo/6a0/d3b/6a0d3b21-49ef-4793-8021-6e573e2be2c8"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Meatloaf</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">. Him too. To me, it felt less like a book, and more like a projection of the movie. The same thing happened when I read the Harry Potter books. I began after the first movie, and finished prior to the conclusion of the movies. J.K. Rowling does such a wonderful job of describing Harry, but the truth is that </span><a href="http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kqg21otVO91qzhmv5o1_500.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">no matter what she wrote</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, I will always think of Daniel Radcliffe.</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://agoodspirit.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/ss-cover-large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://agoodspirit.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/ss-cover-large.jpg" width="140" /></span></a><a href="http://dvdmedia.ign.com/dvd/image/article/102/1026268/ultimate-harry-potter-20090918111447969_640w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://dvdmedia.ign.com/dvd/image/article/102/1026268/ultimate-harry-potter-20090918111447969_640w.jpg" width="152" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Potter ala livre ou toile?</span></i></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">So how do I compare these works of literary art to their cinematic cousins? In effect, I've really just compared two movies: Their movie, and the one in my head; </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">my</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> movie. I can't be considered objective on a matter where my imagination is on one side of the scale.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">There are some books that I read prior to them becoming a movie. What? You didn't so? I'm hurt (</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">E tu Space Travelers)</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">. Another Palahniuk book, and notably my favorite, </span><a href="http://static-wear.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/choke.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Choke</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, was made into a film in 2008. It stars the very very very (I just completed a "very" </span><a href="http://www.gamearena.com.au/res/2007/images/features/custom/singlefeatures/combo.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">combo</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">!) talented Sam Rockwell. However... I didn't really </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">love</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> the film. It was okay. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">The book was better...</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> There, I said it. But was it? Or was it simply that I was struggling with someone else's manifestation of the characters? Was it just one mental director (me) being overly critical and envious of the actual director? For instance, I thought that instead of </span><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Kelly+MacDonald&btnG=Search&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Kelly MacDonald</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, the </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">obvious</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> choice was </span><a href="http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=Monica+Bellucci"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Monica Bellucci</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> for the role of Paige. Geeze. Get a Clue, right? Seemingly, the Director Clark Gregg never read the book, otherwise he would have come to this </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">inevitable</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> conclusion as easily as I did.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Maybe it's about the order of operations.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://210teenlibrary.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/cera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://210teenlibrary.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/cera.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Right now I'm really into the </span><a href="http://www.scottpilgrim.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Scott Pilgram</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> comics by Brian Lee O'Malley. Volume Six, the final volume, comes out today. The film adaptation of the omnibus is due in Theaters in August starring mumble champ Michael Cera as lead man loser-hero Scott Pilgram. Get excited. It looks visually exciting, and (the trailers at least </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgOLmjhxVVU"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">1</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjt4vhSqtFQ"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">2</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NUBVcit5VM"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">3</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">) captures the video-game-rock-n-roll-mid-twenties feel of the graphic novels. Last time I was at my local comic store, the store cleric explained, with the gusto and charisma of the </span><a href="http://rlv.zcache.com/sleepy_basset_hound_postcard-p239052123355237265td81_210.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">basset hound</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, that he was holding off reading Scott Pilgram until after the movie. Did my gregarious friend have a point? What if I've poisoned the well! What if I've ruined the cinematic experience! How can I enter the theater at all? I'll cross into that scared dark cave with the knowledge of the six volumes in my head, knowing that to fit the story into a two hour film, lots will have to be cut out. Cut out with a </span><a href="http://www.ereplacementparts.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/chainsaw1.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">chainsaw</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, not a </span><a href="http://www.horstmann.com/bigj/help/compiler/scalpel.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">scalpel</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, at that.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">I know that a graphic novel is not the same as a book (It has pictures. Weeeeee!). However, I think the reasons that one might enjoy the film less than its original form is the same/similar for both. Certainly the die hard Marvel and DC fans well tell you (No seriously, they don't shut up once you get them started) about how the recent comic book movies could have been better (Perhaps there is an exception for Christopher Nolan's Batman movies. They didn't try to be canon as much as feel correct, but hey, why so serious?). We like books and graphic novels. Opinion-fact! They have lots of details to feed our imagination so our mind's Director can compose a masterpiece.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div><a href="http://www.psp-themes.net/data/media/4/jurassic%20park%20theme.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://www.psp-themes.net/data/media/4/jurassic%20park%20theme.jpg" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">I don't believe I'll ever be able to compare the book and the movie. I won't be able to assign a value to some of a film's elements so that it is readily comparable to the book. Think of the many beautiful cinematic scores composed for films that became characters themselves. I for one, cannot think about Jurassic Park without thinking of that </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8zlUUrFK-M"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">beautiful symphony</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">, or how could I ever relive the climatic ending of Last of the Mohicans without hearing the dramatic and </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1ryJDVuZ6k"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">emotional Irish song</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> racing though my head (Wait? Irish? Daniel Day Lewis was in the film...). There are some things that defy value and discourage cross evaluation. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Maybe we should not seek to compare the book and the movie; the novel verse the film; the PDF against the MPEG. Let them be their own experience each. If they do cross paths, let it be a collaboration in our imaginations, not a competition for our favor. Some stories </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">may</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> not be able to arouse us in both forms. Some stories will remain on the bookshelf, and </span><a href="http://www.impawards.com/2004/posters/eternal_sunshine_of_the_spotless_mind_ver4.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">others</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"> will only light the silver screen.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;"><br />
</span> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Someday we could have a way to have project holographic images directly into our heads. We'd literally be in the story. If that day comes, I'll probably (like Palahniuk) declare that the virtual story is better than the movie, and perhaps even the book.</span></div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-10454688460330441402010-07-17T00:02:00.000-07:002010-07-17T00:05:00.107-07:00vLog Unspecial 06: Private Parts<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3RTrfrBG2sQ&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3RTrfrBG2sQ&hl=en_US&fs=1?color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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I don't know how this slipped through the cracks Space Travelers. I made this vLog Unspecial some time ago, and it seems I never posted it up! <br />
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Enjoy! I will it so!Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-26490317900783895832010-07-16T06:38:00.000-07:002010-07-16T18:36:01.687-07:00Lt. Dan is in the HouseLong time no post Space Travelers. I was a little blogged out for a bit after working on two blogs at once rather actively. The <a href="http://metricsofme.blogspot.com/">Metrics of Me</a> adventure in fitness and health is complete. I don't have any current quest, so I won't be posting there. I plan to leave the blog up because you never know if someday I might return there to document some other exciting life change.<br />
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I've created a <a href="http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#%21/pages/There-Goes-Our-Hero/138982712787984?ref=mf">facebook page</a> for the blog so people can follow it and get updates more easily when I post new entries. Additionally, I think this will be a good way to get more feedback and even take requests on future content. These days, I've been in a rather editorial mood with the blog. I've have my writing style critiqued as being rather didactic and another person referring to some of my arguments as being totalitarian and lacking respect for pluralism. I don't fully know how to process this feedback. On the blog, I've been wanting to talk more about ideas, and less about what is going on in my own life. I can't say I credit anything specifically for this trend, only that I've viewed this blog less as a diary and more as a creative outlet for my thoughts, and I don't know how creative I can be with the daily minutia of my life. Some bloggers are great at that, and I love reading their stuff. I wish I could make my logical Tuesday rich with metaphors and witty insight. I don't think my lifestyle currently fits that kind of blog, although I do like doing the "Chapter/Verse" posts when I do travel. This blog is my sandbox, it's often been experimental, but it's always been very intimate. For the last three years, I'd like to say thanks to all the Space Travelers reading.<br />
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... normally I'd try to offer some sort of introduction to the topic, but I'll just jump in...<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">I've been thinking a lot about the media relationship with Atheism. A few years ago, Space Traveler Leek pointed out one of his greatest frustrations in film: Lt. Dan. LD represents a mythological atheist: The atheist who believes in a god, but is mad/angry/upset with it. Needless to say, this is not an atheist. The atheist apostate meme is something that I believe creates a great deal of stress in many atheist's lives. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSWpBqBd6tlzSEkZrmRfpzDnk4NuSxWnZdDncSyXsBh5TBA_B5Ply1aS_m8OyUgawPN7ShVdWbpjm6RG_9584LfOmK3IxmMY6HcancZpd-LYg6qqEc3YTe1mCgLqg-J8C5WhYtTNkYmdkO/s1600/Lt+Dan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSWpBqBd6tlzSEkZrmRfpzDnk4NuSxWnZdDncSyXsBh5TBA_B5Ply1aS_m8OyUgawPN7ShVdWbpjm6RG_9584LfOmK3IxmMY6HcancZpd-LYg6qqEc3YTe1mCgLqg-J8C5WhYtTNkYmdkO/s320/Lt+Dan.jpg" width="320" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">That frustration can lead to actual anger as my girlfriend pointed out to me recently when she said: "You sound angry." My anger wasn't a product of my atheism. It was a resentment that I did not feel I was capable of expressing anger (in the same way and degree as a religious person), without it being some sort of statement about my beliefs. I'm human, and I experience the full range of emotions, and that includes anger. I'm not defined by anger, it should not mean that media generalizations of atheists are justified because I take objection to being put into a box. The more my anger is emphasized, the more my joy, love, and patience is deemphasized, and I feel less appreciated as a human being.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Two very lead fictional atheist characters right now are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_%28TV_series%29">House</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bones_%28TV_series%29">Bones</a>. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">While popular, they tend to be depicted as socialy flawed and unhappy individuals. To complete their task/agenda (whatever the plot is) they seem to require the compassion of other more well adjusted spiritual people.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">I had someone tell me in contrast that </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">"</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394;">Y</span></i></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394;">es, he's weak. But he's also right. Logically, clearly and obviously right about everything all the time. He points out delusions and comforting self-deceptions in others. I think [House] does atheism more good than harm, at least more so than those who have gone before.</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">" </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">They went on to say "</span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394;">S</span></i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0b5394;">ometimes see Hugh Laurie himself insisting on a more real representation of an atheist.</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">"</span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bUp5Iwsw1pRbIj5FYs1i3HYOUuYpfPj1MIuOpH_VnaqjRHxzldD-OCZrv4QibWgpU18upL1WEC5FJAWLo7KrTF04YfQjJbhacVu9NdQN7CfUqZj6cssyD3Fnc6X6MQcKgY2F4eh9cqhd/s1600/DrHouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bUp5Iwsw1pRbIj5FYs1i3HYOUuYpfPj1MIuOpH_VnaqjRHxzldD-OCZrv4QibWgpU18upL1WEC5FJAWLo7KrTF04YfQjJbhacVu9NdQN7CfUqZj6cssyD3Fnc6X6MQcKgY2F4eh9cqhd/s320/DrHouse.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">It could really go both ways couldn't it?</span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">His weakness and bitterness are unrelated to his ability as a doctor. Certainly he could be as sober and disillusioning to self-deceptions without being bitter and mean. One of the ways to make a story interesting is to give your protagonist idiosyncrasies. The TV detective Monk was OCD. This played into the role he had as a detective plus it provided for humorous scenes about how it affected otherwise normal social situations. House has no tact, which is makes his bed-side manor humorous and shocking.<br />
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House is perhaps a good atheist character in many ways. He doesn't choose the easy road. He chooses one with many hardships, and much pain as a result. That path however means that he helps many people, and it's no less meaningful because he chooses to do it (as opposed to doing it because he has faith that it is his purpose).</span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Honestly, House is fine. His character flaws are interesting ones, and his story is compelling. My worry is that these negative things are projected to be a part of his identity as an atheist. After all, it seems like his mental anguish would be lessened if he did believe in god. It would make all the nice people he has to see die feel like less a tragedy if he could delude himself with thoughts of an afterlife.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DCo_ji0C71NabnZpPL84W0lJIaUR1ux5xSbCpKPZ63Tuu9uQrZQkU7ybCdqFF4B_ZG_s_PKzaodkt7D0GNnBnDGTq0VOI5c56OBfuM_tBzzv8hpfPN-jLTB9zqMUB8txXy_Nn1Ch-hjX/s1600/Lt+Dan2.jpg.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DCo_ji0C71NabnZpPL84W0lJIaUR1ux5xSbCpKPZ63Tuu9uQrZQkU7ybCdqFF4B_ZG_s_PKzaodkt7D0GNnBnDGTq0VOI5c56OBfuM_tBzzv8hpfPN-jLTB9zqMUB8txXy_Nn1Ch-hjX/s320/Lt+Dan2.jpg.gif" width="320" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">While House is angry at the world, and Lt Dan is angry at a god, I can't help but feel like the subtext on both is the same: </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">All atheists are incomplete and hurt people who will ultimately be better and happier once they accept god. In the epilogue bits of Forrest Gump, we see Lt. Dan, clean shaved, in love, calm, polite, emotionally healed, and god loving. In the movie Signs, Mel Gibson's character, a former priest, rediscovers god, and is seemingly cured of his anger. I don't know how house will end, but he's already had scenes that were either supernatural or drug induced transcendent moments that suggest we are walking a familiar path. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,Times,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">House's pain makes him human. We connect with him. I'd like to see and ending with House emotionally healed too, I just don't want his Atheism treated like it's a wound.</span></span>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-79665132938354526352010-05-27T17:39:00.000-07:002010-05-27T20:24:51.861-07:00Son of a Gun<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh99S-JOmBOgSKBLhMuxw4rvsJFQ21YmmY0JmWm6TKAhWVV6rxR9fMSg2QIx-1xQktYLr_tHQ2NFyT5ITusdQQAYUyN0siTtyMVSCZGC7QHlxE5M4oxS-eZu4Mn0SfScEkV4cMva_5XDSam/s1600/bro_guns.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 310px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh99S-JOmBOgSKBLhMuxw4rvsJFQ21YmmY0JmWm6TKAhWVV6rxR9fMSg2QIx-1xQktYLr_tHQ2NFyT5ITusdQQAYUyN0siTtyMVSCZGC7QHlxE5M4oxS-eZu4Mn0SfScEkV4cMva_5XDSam/s400/bro_guns.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476156437140399410" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5Xl0Qry-hA">Bang Bang</a> Space Travelers. Keep honking, I'm reloading the rhetorical six-gun. Lock stock and and two smoking rhetorical barrels. Let's chit chat rata tat tat about guns.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">I own two guns. I never asked for either. They were gifts. One was a rifle gifted to me by my grandfather. It has a small caliber, but a decent scope. The other is a 38 Chief special, a small 5-shot snub-nosed revolver. You might recall this gun from my<a href="http://theregoesourhero.blogspot.com/2009/01/here-comes-another-vlog-wave.html"> Home on the Range vLog</a>. I don't desire the liability of owning either gun so I've asked a family friend to store them in his gun safe. I'm not afraid of guns, I just don't want the responsibility.<br /><br />I don't object to gun ownership. I don't think that if you own guns you're some nut-job either. That said, there are plenty of <a href="http://i391.photobucket.com/albums/oo360/banks272/Guns_cartoons/Gun_nut29.jpg">gun-nuts</a>, and they aren't relegated to some obscure corner of society; <a href="http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2009/0908/obama_gun_health_0818.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1917356,00.html&usg=__NHD8dBazRjs-fTRhnxCwTyRQb20=&h=200&w=307&sz=24&hl=en&start=2&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=FhPqsDbl_zQ0cM:&tbnh=76&tbnw=117&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dprotesters%2Bwith%2Bguns%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26tbs%3Disch:1">they're everywhere</a>. It's not simply enough to be able to own a <a href="http://bblmedia.com/bersa_handgun.jpg">firearm</a>, but rather they believe that they should be able to own <a href="http://pix.motivatedphotos.com/2010/2/4/634008750832559500-Guns.jpg">any number of guns</a> and of <a href="http://reason.com/archives/2007/08/16/the-right-to-own-a-bazooka">any type</a>.<br /><br />There are two major arguments I hear in regards to the ownership of advanced weaponry. The first is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-defense#Armed">self defense</a>, the second is that it is a form of control to keep the <a href="http://www.jpfo.org/filegen-n-z/six-about-2nd.htm">government in check</a>. I'd like to address both of these. I think however now is a good time to talk about some terms.<br /><br />An <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_rifle">assault rifle</a> is defined by it's ability to have selective rate of fire, intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine.<br /><br />An <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_weapon">assault weapon</a> is defined by having both a detachable magazine and a pistol grip, sometimes in conjunction with other features such as a folding stock or a flash suppressor.<br /><br />There is often some overlap in these terms, but in general these terms refer to legal language as outlined by the laws of the United States. Specifically, the term assault weapon draws a great deal of controversy from gun advocates. They say that any weapon is an assault weapon if used to assault someone. Cute, but hardly the point. The <a href="http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h110-1022">Assault Weapon Ban</a> written in 1994 was allowed to expire under President George W Bush. There has been a great deal of debate on what the effect of that has been. Other than debate, people have enjoyed frothing at the mouth.<br /><br />The argument of self defense is certainly a justifiable one. I have no objection to a person purchasing and owning a gun for self protection. As an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engineering">engineer</a> however, I have something to say about what guns are designed to protect and what guns are designed specifically for purposes of attack. Engineering is more than the fabrication of a item. It is the specific tailoring of an item to a specific objective with defined parameters.<br /><br />E.g. - In <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RWufDNN9hw">formula car racing</a>, the aerodynamic package will be changed each race and tailored for specific tracks. Tracks with long straight lengths will lead a design group to minimize drag, while a track with many tight curves would lead a team to optimize down-force. Either way, asking what type of car is the best is a questoin only answered given a specific context.<br /><br />Some firearms are certainly well engineered for self-protection. Their engineers clearly understand that the ability to operate a weapon properly and accurately is balanced with the ability to transport or store the weapon. Similarly, engineering a weapon for the purposes of attacking will have different concerns and therefore will drive different design elements. To pretend all firearms are equal or even designed to accomplish the same goals is foolish. I seriously doubt that the creators of the AK-47 or the M-16 market their weapon as anything but the ultimate in attack.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">Certainly, a <a href="http://www.samurai-sword-site.com/images/sword_diagram_bg.gif">sword</a> is nothing but a large <a href="http://www.geekologie.com/2007/09/21/knife-holder.jpg">knife</a>, but to pretend it was designed to <a href="http://www.evtv1.com/player.aspx?itemnum=4938">chop vegetables in your kitchen</a> would be to ignore the sword's <a href="http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/memoryalpha/en/images/thumb/9/96/Jean-Luc_Picard_stabbed.jpg/300px-Jean-Luc_Picard_stabbed.jpg">proper context</a>. This is the problem. Some groups are arguing that they have the right to chop their vegetables however they like, and when challenged on that front they are hiding behind some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_man">strawman argument</a> that they have a right to own knives!<br /><br />Here's the formula: Take an extreme position. When confronted, hide behind a reasonable position. Then argue there is no difference between your position and the reasonable one. By doing this, the reasonable position is used as some sort of <a href="http://www.geekologie.com/2007/10/17/water-gun-umbrella.jpg">umbrella</a> argument for all positions. Argumentum ad reductio. This is frustrating.<br /><br />Many argue that assault weapons are simply classifications which are only <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmetic">cosmetic</a>. I'm hard pressed to understand how a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_suppressor">flash suppressor</a> is a cosmetic change on a weapon. Flash suppressors have a very specific function, and it is not a defensive feature. It is a feature which tactically aides in concealing your position. If your position is concealed, who are you defending yourself from? What <a href="http://www.best-horror-movies.com/images/best-nonshooting-weapon-in-a-zombie-outbreak-44561.jpg">defense fantasy</a> are you in where this is self defense?<br /><br />The second major argument I hear is that the reason the constitution grants gun ownership is because citizen's reserve the right to defend themselves... <a href="http://www.bcrevolution.ca/defending_yourself_a_crime.htm">from the government itself</a>. This idea is that basically that the central or state government could become out of control and it would be the public's job to take control. No, I'm serious. I hear this one very frequently.<br /><br />While it is only speculation whether or not we've ever needed such a protection from our own government, it's obvious when inspecting our history that if we ever did need it to fight a police state (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_American_internment">Japanese internment camps</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_blacklist">Hollywood blacklists</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_State_shootings">National guard opening fire on students</a>...), we didn't use it. In spite of this, we do NOT have to speculate on the effect gun ownership has had on the <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8371731">household</a>. Perhaps, the recent attempt by the <a href="http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/268799/march-31-2010/tip-wag---hutaree-militia---abc">Michigan Christian Hutaree Militia</a> to kill police officers and start an uprising is what the founders meant. I hear plenty of dommsdaying about how Obama is a <a href="http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=Obama+socialist">socialist</a>, <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Obama+Marxist&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=">Marxist</a>, <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Obama+communist&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=">communist</a>, <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=secret+muslim&aq=f&aqi=g1g-m2&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=">secret muslim</a>, and eater of babies (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob's_your_uncle">Bobs ya uncle!</a>). I hear plenty about the inevitable <a href="http://www.overclockers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=64044&stc=1&d=1207939058">sky-is-falling</a> end of our <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic">republic</a>. So here is my question: Why aren't out proud gun owners storming the capital? Seems like they are the same people complaining about Obama and the <a href="http://www.connexions.org/Graphics/RedMenace02_675.jpg">creeping red menace</a>. Isn't this exactly what the argument calls for? Aren't we supposed to be putting our government in check? I'm calling the bluff. The <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20002337-504083.html">Hutarees</a> are the embodiment of this belief, and we can see that this kind of illogic leads only to madness. I say for all the tough guy posturing of the gun lobby, they seem perfectly fine with this argument... as long as it's somebody else.<br /><br />Plenty of ammo left here, and I know there are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics#Arguments">additional arguments</a>. I see them however as being closely enough related to the two I choose that I did not feel they demanded direct addressing.<br /><br />I believe that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution">2nd amendment</a> does grant the right to personal gun ownership. I however am not as dumb to think that it grants citizens a <a href="http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/carte_blanche">carte blanche</a> access to any weaponry they desire. The citizens, state and central government have a real compelling interest in limiting access to this kind of weaponry. Finding the balance of individual and civil interests will not resolve to <a href="http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh172/hawksgirl1977/lord-of-war.jpg">people owning more and more and more guns</a>.<br /><br />Americans should additionally know about how our gun laws and access affects the world outside of our borders. Recently in a speech to congress, the <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/0510/Calderon_presses_Congress_on_assault_weapons.html">Mexican president requested of the USA to better regulate our access to guns</a>. He explained to congress that when the Assault Weapons Ban expired in 2004, the cartels have become more armed, and they are using American purchased weapons. 80% of the weapons seized from the drug cartels are purchased in the USA. With the body count rising in Mexico, we are accessory to this violence. I defy anyone to explain to me how their desire to own an assault weapon is worth this. Gun apologists that say the cartels would get their weapons elsewhere, sure. However, they choose to get them from us, and it's because it's easier and cheaper. We're their <a href="http://www1.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/1803807/2/istockphoto_1803807_gold_star_2.jpg">favorite</a>. We <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,487911,00.html">arm</a> them, and we buy their <a href="http://trendsupdates.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/0105tijuana.jpg">drugs</a>.<br /><br />Dear Space Travelers, we live in a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcbXYQGFbEI">crazy and violent world</a>. I only hope that people realize that no solution is to be found in embracing either madness or violence. I'll close with a story.<br /><br />Yesterday I went to the <a href="http://www.nmai.si.edu/">Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian</a> with my mother. She has been an anthropologist her entire life. She knows a great deal about the native peoples, and as such was able to add quite an enlightening effect on the museum's displays. She told me the origin of the phrase "<a href="http://image.dromadaire.com/dromacartes/13281g.jpg">bury the hatchet.</a>" It involves the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iroquois">Iroquois Nation's</a> foundation. There were six tribes in total that came together, but they did not wish to come together peacefully and there was much blood shed. Finally, they met in peace and formed their confederacy. Their confederacy helped protect them from the ever expanding colonial presence in North America (they were not forced West). It began with them meeting in peace. In that meeting, a great pit was dug. Into that pit, the weapons of the six tribes were placed. They covered the pit in soil and planted a tree on top. To this day, the <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Flag_of_the_Iroquois_Confederacy.svg">symbol of the Iroquois Nation</a> is that tree.<br /><br />If you think you are in threat of your government abusing you, think about burying the hatchet. They do not regret their choice. If you think you prize your gun, imagine prizing a weapon you built with your own hands. They still put it into the earth.</span><br /><br />We cannot let gun ownership be the practice of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_assured_destruction">Mutually Assured Destruction</a> on the individual level. Such is suicide.</div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-42570980107639841982010-05-18T15:21:00.000-07:002010-07-17T00:05:36.077-07:00Chapter 32, Verse 1: The Ruins<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" width="480" height="385" flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2FAlias.S.Tagami%2Falbumid%2F5472718382996623361%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26authkey%3DGv1sRgCNCxn7mQpKC9YA%26hl%3Den_US" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed><br />
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A happy photo treat today Space Travelers! Om nom nom on these cool pics while I muse...<div><br />
</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">These are some select pictures from my trip to the Capitol Ruins in DC. Yes, the Capitol still stands, but if you (read: me) had not fallen asleep in history class so often you'd know that the Capitol was burnt down in the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_1812"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">War of 1812</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">. The rubble from the Capitol was moved to a hill in what is now </span><a href="http://www.nps.gov/rocr/index.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">Rock Creek Park</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">. Deep in the park on an unassuming trail, you'll discover an odd site. Ornate pieces of limestone and marble covered in soft green moss and overgrown by plants. <br />
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It seemed like the perfect place for a photo date Space Travelers. It's this kind of thing which makes you fall in love with this city.<br />
<br />
I've been going through a great deal of change lately. I feel like I'm in a very exciting and profound stage of </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metamorphosis"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">metamorphosis</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">. It was nice to visit somewhere old and in ruin, and yet so beautiful. What ruins will remain of </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1bOAVn1ZvE"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">who I was</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">?</span></div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-20860597132726619252010-05-15T04:30:00.000-07:002010-05-15T06:18:58.686-07:00"Queer Beer"A bit of a rant today Space Travelers. This has been bothering me as long as I've been aware of it (which is now about a decade): The bear trap.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">When I was becoming curious about alcohol in my teenage years, and began experimenting I quickly discovered that some alcoholic drinks were </span><a href="http://reason.com/assets/mc/_ATTIC/hard_lemonade.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">enjoyable</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">, and others </span><a href="http://ciceronito.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/495.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">tasted like piss</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">. What I also picked up on (like the observant youth I was) is that men and women had different drinking expectations, and whoever the authority on this was remained hidden in the shadows.<br /><br />Drinking was an experimental endeavor in high school. I understood drunkeness only to the capacity that you'd seen others act </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_intoxication"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">abnormally</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">. Even in the case where I might observe an individual sick or hung over, I had no ability to empathize. Wanting to feel what it was like to drink and be inebriated was far more alien than the more readily understandable media message about drinking: Holding a beer made you look </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-I-j-pwwpmOnZfCHMkTlabBOUQfbwYR1XH2Waq4QB80hy1inFF5MCItG7cFwmH1DdHdVgSed0YWl92Rr55HY1hgCXW3bMFh2jRbIeA5hOS3oH86EWBpZuXX9eAhX4DsD2OqpfR53zePUm/s400/Duff.JPG"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">cool, tough, and likable</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">. As a awkward young man who was convinced he was alone in awkwardness, beer seemed like it made sense as a part of the formation of who I'd like to be.<br /><br />One problem, I couldn't stand it. Beer sucked. Every time. I began looking for a new drink which could offer the exploration outside of sobriety and simultaneously offer me the social reward that I was pretending not to want. Casually. What I found instead was that the rejection of beer seemed to be in part a rejection of manhood. It was as if beer itself was a part of the </span><a href="http://twentyonwards.blogs.com/.a/6a00d834522e1369e2010536ab9215970c-800wi"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">blueprint of the modern man</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">. I didn't understand this right of passage.<br /><br />The next step was trying to find a beer I liked, because the types of beer that I had access to at high school parties (the type of beer that is sold in </span><a href="http://image18.webshots.com/18/0/10/32/200401032SUZLCQ_fs.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">30 packs</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">) was scoring pitifully with me (and still does). Once outside of the more commercial hemisphere of the beer landscape, I found it much more difficult to navigate what I was supposed to try and how to even start determining what I liked. In college, I did find a few beers I liked (I remain rather loyal to </span><a href="http://dairyairfoodgalley.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/delirium_tremens1.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">Delirium Tremens</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">). Despite finding some tolerable candidates, and an exclusive list of beers I moved into the enjoyable column, I started to wonder if I had simply traded one beer trap for another? Had I taken the </span><a href="http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/BeerSnob/BeerSnob_Feature.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">elitist bait</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">?<br /><br />Admittedly, the dilemma was significantly smaller at this point. I had made excellent friends with </span><a href="http://www.snooth.com/wine/stone-hill-golden-rhine-1/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">wine</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">, and had something of a friends with benefits relationship with a gin and tonic made with </span><a href="http://esper-magazine.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/hendricks-gin.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">Hendricks Gin</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"> (two limes for me cause I'm fucking special). Still, I wanted to figure out where beer and I stood and if we were more than just </span><a href="http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/389/Frenemies"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">frenemies</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"> with a common social circle. I began to wonder if there were other men like me who felt like me, that they were staying in this relationship because they didn't know how to get out. Things weren't terrible, but where was the spark?<br /><br />To recap where I'm at now, let's watch some commercials. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">When I was young, I understood that drinking was as much social as it was utilitarian.<br /><br /></span><object width="508" height="505"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lbT-8YztMYE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lbT-8YztMYE&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="508" height="505"></embed></object><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"><br /><br />As I experimented, I learned that men drink beer, and that it was cool. Damn cool. <br /><br /></span><object width="508" height="505"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UDTZCgsZGeA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UDTZCgsZGeA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="508" height="505"></embed></object><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"><br /><br />Then I learned that not drinking beer, made you less a man. If you wanted to sip on a Zima (do they even make this stuff anymore?) or a Smirnof Ice, you're being made a cuckold by a beverage while you sip your "</span><a href="http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g135/beilkesm/Queer_Beer_First_European_Gay_Beer.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">queer beer</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">." I believe "</span><a href="http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&gbv=2&tbs=isch:1&sa=3&q=bitch+beer&btnG=Search+images"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">bitch beer</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">" as was the popular phrase in the jock strap community (saints, all). It makes me wonder sometimes. How many gallons of the beer consumed in a given day is done in the name of not being a "pussy?" Hell, even drinking the wrong beer is a white flag these days.<br /><br /></span><object width="508" height="505"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/I_J5BP_foLQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/I_J5BP_foLQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="508" height="505"></embed></object><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"><br /><br />I'm a little wiser now. Don't get me wrong here, I still struggle with beer-gender. Typically, it's more about when I'm not drinking beer. There's some sort of artifact thought in the back of my head "should I be drinking a beer instead?" The wiser part of me is the part that reminds me that what I'm experiencing is very </span><a href="http://www.beerhistory.com/library/holdings/beer_commercials.shtml"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">powerful and effective marketing</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">. Rationally, we all know that beer has fuck nothing to do with a person's sexuality, yet it's so simple to get caught up in the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">meme</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"> of beer </span><a href="http://img.mynewsletterbuilder.com/userdata/BluesFestivalGuide/images/beer_heaven.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">glory and heaven</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">, owned and operated by the </span><a href="http://intoxicologist.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/stpauligirl.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">St Pauli's girl</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">.<br /><br />When I think about beer-media right now, I try to make it into something positive/constructive. As a feature on the gender landscape, I think my struggle with male self image as it relates with beer must in someway be a exercise in empathy for me. The intense media pressure to behave withing certain social norms and obtain degrees of material success is something that is not alien to women. Many women struggle with their </span><a href="http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/women_beauty.cfm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;">self image</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FFCC33;"> and how they square peg the the round hole of main stream media acceptance. </span><br /><br />Dear Space Travelers, be conscious of the media you digest and how you digest it. This really isn't about beer. It's about the <a href="http://www.channelmassive.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/633510761184062008-mid-life-crisis-little-red-corvette.jpg">car</a> we're supposed to have, the <a href="http://www.best-career-match.com/images/dreamjob.png">job</a> we're supposed to have, and the endless chase after <a href="http://user.media.sweat365.com/brad.sweat365.com/files/2007/12/real-six-pack-abs.jpg">six pack</a> <a href="http://www.arxmanhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/how-to-get-six-pack-abs.jpg">abs</a>. The first message of an ad is that you lack something. I'm here to say, you bought a DVR so you could skip the commercials, so do it. No DVR? You can find something to do for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vndBkOIuCF8">four minutes</a> that won't insult your self worth.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ericscheske.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Cheers.jpg">Cheers</a>.</div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-55085165891253936052010-05-13T11:00:00.000-07:002010-05-13T11:00:00.998-07:00How Free?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7vrxV2lGLOzAdkHPRrQh8NqPWeEcKU35rJWtFvLb8015OJkn39KZ6oPhAvHAsX0iVz_ayQXqtZ-00zHVWIW9lmGslv3tNwkcvnDEnNZ1nrHeDC1I-q19CTFsSqhFyujP3MFXq9Ez5rXAP/s1600/Muhammad.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7vrxV2lGLOzAdkHPRrQh8NqPWeEcKU35rJWtFvLb8015OJkn39KZ6oPhAvHAsX0iVz_ayQXqtZ-00zHVWIW9lmGslv3tNwkcvnDEnNZ1nrHeDC1I-q19CTFsSqhFyujP3MFXq9Ez5rXAP/s400/Muhammad.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469849010155926322" /></a>Hello Space Travelers, you're staring at possibly the most terrible offences to Islam: An image of the Prophet Muhammad. I drew it. Me. I'll tell you why.<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">Recently, the creators of <a href="http://thetechfaq.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/windowslivewriterallsouthparkepisodesareavailableonlinefo-144b8all-southpark-episodes-online-thumb.jpg">South Park</a> aired an episode which featured (<a href="http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2010/04/23/alg_south_park_censor.jpg">kind of</a>) Muhammad. On screen, he was a stick man, and later a black box that read "censored." The point was simple: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Pillars_of_Islam">Your beliefs</a> can't dictate my life and my speech, or rather that of <a href="http://threeminds.organic.com/images/threeminds/2007/08/27/southpark.jpg">Matt and Trey</a>. The creators and various staff received <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/apr/22/south-park-censored-fatwa-muhammad">death threats</a> for this. Eventually Viacom (parent company of comedy Central) said they would pull the episode. This displeased a lot of people. It wasn't because the episode was particularly good either (it was par for the course if you ask me), but simply the principle that people had successfully leveraged violence to get their way.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">I'm not really the type to provoke, and certainly as a I drew this, I was concerned about the Muslims that have nothing to do with this issue. Would drawing this make incense them and send the wrong message? Would it marginalize a group further that has been struggling to fit in? In the end, I decided to draw it and let it be what it will. I admit that I'm not well schooled in the dogma surrounding the rule about recreating the image of Muhammad. Perhaps in the end, what comments will come will serve to open up the dialog that is so terribly absent. Either way, I know that if this is truly an offense, it is not worth my life (or anyone's). I get offended daily. I'm not going to hurt someone. If this is serious enough that people are being threatened, the Muslim world is going to have to do some honest introspection on how they find harmony with the rest of the world outside of their customs. There is one question: Do you value free speech over being offended? I do, even if my blood boils as I listen to cruel bigots like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Robertson">Pat Robertson</a> use it to demoralize the entire gay population or even the <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=pat+robertson+haiti+comments&aq=2&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=pat+robert&gs_rfai=">people of Haiti</a>. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">I've never been a <a href="http://www.hehs.d211.org/academics/socialstudies/FlagEagle.jpg">USA</a> <a href="http://ttoes.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/eagle-flag.jpg">USA</a> <a href="http://www.shutterpoint.com/photos/B/20040918_001243_EagleFlag2_p1_view.jpg">USA</a> <a href="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kuctstVsG81qa7d37o1_500.jpg">rah rah rah</a> type, so when I say that I value the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution#Freedom_of_speech">freedom of free speech</a>, it's not some flag waving crap. Our ability to express ourselves without the fear of the government, and without fear of violent reproach is the foundation of all free societies. On May 20th, many artists (both professional and amateur) will partake in the drawing of the Prophet Muhammad to stand in solidarity with those who have already been threatened with violence. While it inspires a warm feeling inside, I hope it also serves to remind us how fortunate we are to be one of the free societies in the world that we can do this. Plenty cannot claim the same.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#99FF99;">I won't use the line that if we don't use our right's we lose them. That's a Tea Party rationale for bringing guns to a protest. Instead, I'll keep it simple, don't do this because it's "cool," or "controversial," it isn't a funny. I'd be just as worried about our freedom of speech if it became nothing more than a punchline, even if it started with a joke.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>Closing thoughts from Thunderfoot:</div><br /><object width="508" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/z7ok4njJXI8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/z7ok4njJXI8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="508" height="385"></embed></object>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-73892601349429067312010-05-06T14:52:00.001-07:002010-07-17T00:06:03.333-07:00vLog Unspecial 05: LullabyGood evening Space Travelers all timeouts come to an end and when you've got something to say (or sing), you should do it. No sense in dying with your music still inside.<br />
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<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BhJaagwFsXU&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BhJaagwFsXU&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#CC33CC;">It's not the greatest recording, and the urge to erase and rerecord was very strong, but I'm okay with it not being perfect. Anyone can be impressive, and singing into a desktop mic on a webcam in my gym clothes: Not charming. I guess no matter how I was clothed, I'd still at some level feel naked. shaaring this kind of thing is very personal and intimate.<br />
<br />
I feel like many things are changing in me lately, <a href="http://metricsofme.blogspot.com/">and not just physically</a>. I hope to share many of those things here, and perhaps with a melody at times. This boy has a song.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#CC33CC;"><br />
</span></div>Sweet Dreams Space Travelers.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-51791159201453875272010-04-19T13:42:00.000-07:002010-04-19T13:48:55.727-07:00Time Out<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmxC3iXviQOVmfAMnz2dXE9sEWy4GcVxPbNOjQFFWJUW4x7AiDdTUINsUFCnKnX3aVnx7IrYNiOs5LX_Xa9cyvFD4L7w3vQRpdR-sZ8cZVfIj69lPjhQY2Q77JtExihI0Ays3N5CoU5Za7/s1600/DSC00206.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmxC3iXviQOVmfAMnz2dXE9sEWy4GcVxPbNOjQFFWJUW4x7AiDdTUINsUFCnKnX3aVnx7IrYNiOs5LX_Xa9cyvFD4L7w3vQRpdR-sZ8cZVfIj69lPjhQY2Q77JtExihI0Ays3N5CoU5Za7/s400/DSC00206.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5461953259420182802" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Feel the burn Space Travelers. I've been going through lots of great changes as of late. I will be blogging a lot in the near future, but not here. I've been struggling to keep up on the posts here due to many new life changes. You can read about what I'm doing at my newest blog venture: <a href="http://metricsofme.blogspot.com/">The Metrics of Me</a>.</div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-35338234468727628802010-03-29T13:39:00.000-07:002010-03-29T13:52:00.389-07:00Chapter 31, Verse 1: Take-Off, Death, and TaxesGood Evening Space Travelers. I've been flying around a lot lately. I have recently been to San Diego to visit family and most recently to St. Louis for a wedding. I was supposed to go to Vail, Colorado, but I missed my flight. Stupid me, but I didn't lose any money on it. All this taking off and landing has increased the frequency in a activity I do when I'm on planes.<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#66FF99;">I acknowledge my mortality.<br /><br />As the plane takes off, I think about it crashing. It is something I think about every time a plane takes off or lands. I thought about how this could be my last moment alive. I felt okay about things. The people I love, they know I love them. I felt pretty free and at peace.<br /><br />I guess to me, mortality is more than death. When I'm acknowledging it, I'm not just digesting the idea of no longer being alive. I'm thinking of myself in terms of the finite. I do not believe in an afterlife, nor reincarnation. This is my one life, and so when I think about mortality, I think about what I'm doing with my one life.<br /><br />Often, after thinking about mortality makes me feel like I need to give more. It makes me inspect my relationships. I take a snapshot in my head of whoever I'm thinking about as the wheels leave the ground, and when I land, I make sure to contact them in the week to see how they are.<br /><br />If I'm to trace this back, I think it goes back to my father. He always told me to treat everyone like it was the last time I would see them. It wasn't some message of impending doom nor was it as morbid as it sounds. It didn't inspire guilt either. I've just wanted to live free of that kind of burden.<br /><br />It would bee terrible of me to leave others with an unresolved feeling if (for example) we had an argument. I wouldn't want someone to have to feel that way.</span><br /><br />Benjamin Franklin says that only two things are for sure in life: Death and Taxes. Having said that, in 2010, I'm celebrating my annual tradition of putting it off until the very last minute.<div><br /></div><div>And just because I felt like it, here is some more flash art courtesy of Facebook and free time.</div><div> <br /><br /></div><br /><div style="padding:5px;background-color:#F7F3F7;border:1px solid #ccc;width:495px;"><br /><object width="495" height="370"><br /> <param name="movie" value="http://s3.amazonaws.com/graffitiswf/graffiti_external.swf?random_name=bf4f80d2781d2b38e2ab8ccf783c2255"></param><br /> <embed src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/graffitiswf/graffiti_external.swf?random_name=bf4f80d2781d2b38e2ab8ccf783c2255" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="495" height="370"></embed><br /></object><br /></div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-5521442680929665472010-03-02T20:19:00.000-08:002010-03-02T20:24:32.103-08:00Bring on SpringHello Space Travelers, I think the snow is almost melted and maybe I'll get to ride LBJ this week if it gets up to 50 degrees and it's dry outside. Here's a little something fun I drew on facebook.<br /><br /><div style="padding:5px;background-color:#F7F3F7;border:1px solid #ccc;width:495px;"><br /><object width="495" height="370"><br /> <param name="movie" value="http://s3.amazonaws.com/graffitiswf/graffiti_external.swf?random_name=03c01a8c743bd89b2e22d1ab6aedeb6e"></param><br /> <embed src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/graffitiswf/graffiti_external.swf?random_name=03c01a8c743bd89b2e22d1ab6aedeb6e" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="495" height="370"></embed><br /></object><br /></div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-85749854124543542482010-02-13T08:25:00.000-08:002010-07-17T00:06:44.485-07:00Chapter 30, Verse 1: Make Love and an Open LetterI've got a headache Space Travelers. I drank too much last night. This is something that happens. Fact. The poisons of choice was two Chimay triples followed by a legion of cheap gin armed with tonic. I'm taking the morning to recover and I'm going to do something I've been putting off for a while: Compose an open letter to Cindy Gallop. I first learned about Cindy on TED. Here is her segment.<br />
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<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FV8n_E_6Tpc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FV8n_E_6Tpc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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I used to do wellness education in college, and many of the topics that I'd address were about sexual health. This is a topic I care deeply about, and one that I feel deserves a sober approach. I tire of the back-of-the-classroom giggling on the topic of sex. I was then very pleased when I was listening to Cindy. She spoke in a very confident and direct tone. She spoke much like we want our doctors to speak to us about our health. In many ways, her approach to talking about sex skipped all warm-up foreplay to make the audience comfortable. I very much appreciate this. However, something just wasn't right. While I was pretty much on board with her problem statement, I felt that her method of addressing it was tragically flawed.<br />
<br />
Her observations: Pornography has become modern day sexual education. That pornography as entertainment displays sexual norms that are not always positive or promote good sexual health. That in a society where discussion of sexual topics is taboo, people lack the proper resources to get the information they need.<br />
<br />
Her idea: Create a website to separate porn myth from sex reality. Her creation is a website called <a href="http://www.makelovenotporn.com/">make love not porn</a> and addresses specific topics and leaves space for users to leave feedback.<div><br />
</div><div>Lick some email stamps Space Travelers, and hope the internet postal service is running.</div><div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"></span></div><blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">Dear Cindy Gallop,</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">My name is Alias Tagami. I am writing to you to address some concerns I have after recently seeing your TED talk and after exploring your sexual education website Make Love Not Porn. This is not a letter from a church group; not a letter from some hyper crazy evangelical who thinks you're trying to get every 14 year old pregnant by saying the word "vagina" in public. I am a 26 yr old man who writes a blog about social issues. I do have a history as a wellness educator, and I am very passionate about sexual health topics. It is that passion that actually led me to find your TED talk in the first place. I very much respect and appreciate the sober manner in which you spoke. It is refreshing to see someone not beat around the bush and address sexual topics as serious things that are not to be giggled at or ashamed of.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">Your talk made one very profound point that stands out above all other things: That pornography has become modern day sex education. I agree. Further, I believe this is not a good thing, and not because porn is bad or immoral either. I believe we are on the same page here. I was watching your talk and quite impressed, at this point I was cheering you on. You had the tone, and you had delivered clearly your thesis.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">But then we had a split. Your message seemed to be very directly aimed at getting sexual education to girls and women, and yet you seemed to only address the porn mythos that exist in boys and men. Your statement that a certain level of "reeducation, rehabilitation, and reorientation" need to take place seemed heavily aimed at men, and yet your site seems to address girls and women. I see this as a disconnect. If modern day porn has become de facto<br />
sexual education, then should we not examine who is would be drawing any information from it? In other words, if a man is getting in his head certain sexual norms about sexual intercourse from porn, it doesn't make sense to address girls and women about a topic like cumming on a girl's face. The message on your website only further adds to the problem I believe. If the porn myth is that every girl likes this, and you put "not necessarily," you've done your job in diffusing the myth, but you've left the reader in an undefined place. I think this is a bad place to leave a person. Additionally, the user feed back on each page does not help a reader get reliable information and is often very contradictory. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">There is a functional issue as well. How does one find your site? If I am a 14 year old boy or girl who is looking for information on the web, what actually is going to happen? They will open a browser window and type in a question or phrase on google. Do you think they will navigate on their own to your site? But more importantly, in addressing the porn myth versus the sexual reality, you've chosen the wrong myths. What you've chosen are literally the mechanics of intercourse. To me, this is not where the bulk of where porn distorts human sexual relationships. A real porn myth worth addressing would be who you have sex with, and not how you have sex. In a porn feature a pair may have sex only moments after they've met a total stranger. Birth control is not addressed. Contraceptives are rarely used. These are the real important myths to address because these are the types of sexual topics which would promote an open dialog between sexual partners and allow for candid communication about all the other stuff. The mechanics of sex are in our genes, and no matter what we put down on paper or on the web, it is going to come down to the doing part of doing it. Let's address the issues of sex that take place before nudity, before arousal, and before humping and moaning. Let's get people to where you are in speaking without blushing on the topic. I think that would be the most empowering sexual education.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">Lastly, there is one more thing, and it's about the whole "reeducation, rehabilitation, and reorientation" thing as being what I perceived as your only break from earnest discussion. It felt like a punchline, and at that kind of a cheap shot. As a man, I felt your comment implied that misinformation about human sexuality was a bunch of bless their hearts (and boners) guys who just don't have the worldly perception that you do as a woman. I found the statement's subtext to be a bit sexist, and very unnecessary. Sexual education is of great important to all people, independent of gender. You should not turn off men to your message by inserting this kind of baggage. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">I can tell you deeply care about this, and I admire your initiative. I also envy your platform, so I hope you appreciate the opportunity you have now. Because, I'm rather wordy, I'll try my best to summarize what I'd hope you'd do with your platform. I would like you to reconsider your site's user feedback. I suggest that you at minimum put in place some sort of moderation for comments to safeguard against false information getting to a interested reader. Diversify the site's porn myths to include topics about sexual relationships and not just sexual mechanics. On the topics about sexual mechanics, please consider your audience and that it is not just men who express negative porn myths and practice porn norms. I would like you to review and do some critical thinking about how helpful the "some do some don't" statements are on your site. It feels like you're afraid to make a bold statement here, and waffling doesn't help a reader that is looking for reliable information.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">I am a supporter of your efforts, and though my summary is critical of the fruits of your labor, I want you to know that I admire what you're doing. I hope that my feedback is useful to you. This is an open letter that I will be posting on my blog http://theregoesourhero.blogspot.com. I believe that my readers would enjoy any reply you would send back. I feel your creation is incomplete, but still taking shape. I look forward to checking back on the progress you make, and hopefully one day, I'll be able to direct people to your site as a resource I endorse.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">Sincerely,</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;">Alias Tagami</span></div></blockquote><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#00CCCC;"><br />
</span></div><div>Hopefully she writes back. I hope I wasn't too harsh. I just felt that I need to speak as candidly about my concerns as she did with hers. Be cool and wrap your tool Space Travelers, there is no better way to be a better lover than to actively stay educated. Happy Valentines Day, and as a parting gift, some links.</div><div><br />
</div><div><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/datastatistics/">CDC Statistics Center</a> - Lot's of resources on reproductive health and STIs/STDs.</div><div><a href="http://www.hivtest.org/">Natl' HIV & STD Testing Centers</a> - Find one near you. Go get tested, and bring a friend.</div><div><br />
</div><div><br />
</div><div><br />
</div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-42972880312041686212010-02-12T12:25:00.000-08:002010-07-17T00:07:05.609-07:00vLog Unspecial 04: Religious Entitlement & Irony Purists<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MoyTMlkxBXI&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MoyTMlkxBXI&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-11479322869910089982010-02-11T11:50:00.000-08:002010-07-17T00:07:25.277-07:00vLog Unspecial 03: Synthetic Capitalism & Consumer EthicsDearest Space Travelers, please do go easy on me. I haven't slept in over 24 hours. So if my thoughts don't transition very well in this vLog unspecial, I've got an excuse.<br />
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<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/8SfCKbYk4As&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8SfCKbYk4As&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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Note: I still have not ate the Reeses.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-43156808726773856162010-02-11T10:54:00.001-08:002010-02-11T10:55:26.434-08:00Single Thought #8<span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">If existence is a rental, I'm cool with that. I feel like we're all renting, but some of us are saving up for the house that is neither built nor for sale.</span>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-4050906811845141572010-02-08T06:17:00.000-08:002010-02-08T14:50:00.325-08:00Chapter 29, Verse 2: ThawGreetings Space Travelers from the heart of the Snopocolypse. President Obama perfers to call it Snomageddon, but I think he secretly likes Snobama (either way, I think this means somebody in his office reads twitter and briefs him). SnOMG appeals to my nerd background, but ultimately the b-boy in me has a sweet spot for the Snowtorious B.I.G. Anyways. All this snow got me inspired, and when inspiration strikes, it's like blizzard. Words, like snow flakes appear, but how much falls, and how much sticks in the end we just have to wait and watch.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkGlg1Zud_K9CYSWO9TSmXlqwcNQh0ZKXwcKJBD6Yx5jiGVfu5CVJUAzkSaWg9yFcBG7nM24SoiPpy_PX9395TOtqausoQJlsb3FhZTuKmSutH1S8kKC895HmynCLRUn8ROO-jn4MRHw8/s400/4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 315px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkGlg1Zud_K9CYSWO9TSmXlqwcNQh0ZKXwcKJBD6Yx5jiGVfu5CVJUAzkSaWg9yFcBG7nM24SoiPpy_PX9395TOtqausoQJlsb3FhZTuKmSutH1S8kKC895HmynCLRUn8ROO-jn4MRHw8/s400/4.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We all want to be the snowflake that falls last.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We all want to be the one that lays on top,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">and sparkles in the dusk light.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We all want to be situated on a perfect drift of snow,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">far from the pedestrian foot path;</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">far from being trampled;</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">far from the the filth of the</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">shoes and tires</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">traveling fast</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">with no care to take in the beauty of a</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">picture perfect snow-scape.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We want to be untouched, and appreciated from a distance.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We don't want to be a part of someone else's design;</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">their half-assed snow man;</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">their snowball busted and melting against a warm car window.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">We want to be emergent and beautiful,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">and we want to be the</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">last</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">to</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><br />thaw.</span><br /></div><br />Let it snow Space Travelers.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-30222438125633324312010-02-04T14:56:00.001-08:002010-07-17T00:08:08.389-07:00vLog Unspecial 02: Having CakeOi Space Travlers, I've got a hankerin' for some cake. No I don't want to eat it, I plan to simply have cake. I think if you tried it, you'd find it rather enjoyable.<br />
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<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-vogiPHq1Ss&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-vogiPHq1Ss&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-19872425060322652782010-02-04T02:18:00.000-08:002010-02-04T02:46:43.761-08:00Chapter 29, Verse 1: On Cats and Closing DoorsI was laying in bed Space Travelers, and a muse struck me. At this terrible hour, I crawled to my laptop and felt I had something to share. I'll soon return to my cozy bed, but first, this.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">I raised a lot of animals when I was growing up. I had three cats, and they assumed three different characters: Little, fat and bad. They each had a very unique personality, and they would react to people in many different ways. </span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTk41HlQlT83lUZ2YNceGb8-hqY2iTEest8j86kCa2d0yu4nHPFk3BUSzqpmB0q1PxTCnuP92DpCrdAP-8oZG2XcHBMkZd_Hp3JPVRDB4pqoc5k85goWkGADTBL5S5B1ePQtbGT01BbIY8/s1600-h/iphone+231.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 399px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTk41HlQlT83lUZ2YNceGb8-hqY2iTEest8j86kCa2d0yu4nHPFk3BUSzqpmB0q1PxTCnuP92DpCrdAP-8oZG2XcHBMkZd_Hp3JPVRDB4pqoc5k85goWkGADTBL5S5B1ePQtbGT01BbIY8/s320/iphone+231.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434336279639820994" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Cats aren't really like dogs in that they don't really accept commands. Cats kind of do what they wish and certainly only what serves their (sometimes evil) agenda. I did learn one trick to manipulating a cat.<br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9YU8bBDguG2ec_vmCT4PUTZzpCzdkyhF5HpundQrsXxG9SZhSXfHSrumqbibrA1GC2fkSr9wsNJEaL6xIh80i-Y_v0ln1Y_B7FG0GW6wK_6_ZMJgdt3sXmoJcpEzmBiPWWyIB3vKcWsMx/s1600-h/iphone+014.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9YU8bBDguG2ec_vmCT4PUTZzpCzdkyhF5HpundQrsXxG9SZhSXfHSrumqbibrA1GC2fkSr9wsNJEaL6xIh80i-Y_v0ln1Y_B7FG0GW6wK_6_ZMJgdt3sXmoJcpEzmBiPWWyIB3vKcWsMx/s320/iphone+014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434336275740608658" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">If I wanted a cat to go into a room, calling her and waving at her would never work. If I didn't prove to her that it was in her b</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">est interest to enter a room, she wouldn't. As a grew up, I noticed that if I closed the door very slo</span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">wly, the cat would observe a dilemma and would always run to make it through the door at the last second (this is why we close the door slowly. No cat injuries...).</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbEp32FXmBB1qJO87YLZ3nhlifbJZkTRsAIcrzj-66YsBtSmm2zMjQzmYbsmcAR9oaOE2mwM-hVKO80k7Nz-ZSqejypemZuPnhCHf40_AYgKt0EAgxeqq6XszNHaHPg5c6S0MHhY0TQZg/s1600-h/iphone+008.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbEp32FXmBB1qJO87YLZ3nhlifbJZkTRsAIcrzj-66YsBtSmm2zMjQzmYbsmcAR9oaOE2mwM-hVKO80k7Nz-ZSqejypemZuPnhCHf40_AYgKt0EAgxeqq6XszNHaHPg5c6S0MHhY0TQZg/s320/iphone+008.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434336261679893778" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">I feel that life is often like this. So many doors slowly closing, and we unlike the cat sit in indecision. These doors often are new ideas, new experiences, and even the heart of another. Sometimes going through the door can be it's own reward. Free will is meaningless in stillness. We are alive when we move; when we exercise choice. I can't promise that every door you run through leads to happiness, but I know a lot of happy cats.</span><br /><br />Meow Space Cats.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKe5wGhZH896lf5-OEwE5WEK0avaTrxfih92fTozd_c8qTeutg1Gx9o4GnSG0eL8VNeNDulEOd7Fy7nKoYe5i_JBW5M_s7QMjy5j3mDC_gb8M6mBlwHJm9DNRhMElIL9MYk0BYm9fDyHB8/s1600-h/iphone+277.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKe5wGhZH896lf5-OEwE5WEK0avaTrxfih92fTozd_c8qTeutg1Gx9o4GnSG0eL8VNeNDulEOd7Fy7nKoYe5i_JBW5M_s7QMjy5j3mDC_gb8M6mBlwHJm9DNRhMElIL9MYk0BYm9fDyHB8/s320/iphone+277.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434336290978802450" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-89241130755506954202010-01-14T11:59:00.000-08:002010-07-17T00:08:40.422-07:00vLog Unspecial 01: Quit Playing on the Phone!So sometimes you have to just do Space Travelers. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: rgb(102, 255, 255);">You just have to make something and know it isn't perfect. Here goes. No edits. No cool transitions. I'm not even using my good camera. It's just me and my web cam with some extra time.</span><br />
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<object height="480" width="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SOVYMWF_lf0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SOVYMWF_lf0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="480" width="385"></embed></object>Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1104104146719541328.post-40964997702558650312010-01-14T10:37:00.000-08:002010-02-13T10:28:14.528-08:00Strange and Mysterious Bullshit.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OTmc_7eHyQuNeMWHe3mPdBcffU9Uj_1fCGODSdR3XJPfGkPbME_ravcPOZrihhhHuQRQoMiDfKDtA9Dn8THytMD1Ua6hX-I59p3my_rIE5lCtiLcRIs_eEgD-x9QJde8BmhJkFlxr5cU/s1600-h/titlephoto2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 204px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OTmc_7eHyQuNeMWHe3mPdBcffU9Uj_1fCGODSdR3XJPfGkPbME_ravcPOZrihhhHuQRQoMiDfKDtA9Dn8THytMD1Ua6hX-I59p3my_rIE5lCtiLcRIs_eEgD-x9QJde8BmhJkFlxr5cU/s320/titlephoto2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5426675636819030194" border="0" /></a><br />Space Travelers, it's a story we all know. Tragedy strikes, be it natural or man made. Soon after, people flock in to weigh in what this "means."<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">People want to know why bad things happen in the world. They want to know why a god would either allow them to happen, or even perhaps make them happen. For me it's very clear: No god. For others, it's harder. They must reconcile so many conflicting concepts to protect the beliefs they hold dear. What torture.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">No god did this. This tragedy is big enough without having to account for any gods that don't want to show up on gameday when humans are in REAL need.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">But there are plenty of believers out there so wrought in cognitive dissonance that they think that a god lets us go through tragedy to make us stronger and so we survive. However, we don't all survive. Ask the Haitians. Many have already died. Many will die in the days to come, and they'll die hungry, alone, and scared.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">There is no lesson from god here because there is no god. So while we wait looking for the lesson so we can feel better, it's ultimately just a means to advert our eyes from the real tragedy.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);font-size:180%;">There is no lesson</span><span style="font-size:180%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);font-size:180%;">There is no lesson</span><span style="font-size:180%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);font-size:180%;">There is no spoon</span><span style="font-size:180%;"><br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">The "strange and mysterious" line of reasoning used all to often by theist apologists.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">In short: There is a reason a god holds out on us. It's for our good. If it doesn't make sense, it does to god, and that's what matters.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);font-size:180%;">I say, weak sauce on that.</span><span style="font-size:180%;"><br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Holding out on us doesn't actually help us. We allow for this kind of illogical construction because we approximate it to our own experiences. You know... like falling off your bike when the training wheels come off, and dad lets it happen so you can pick yourself up? That's an analogy we like, but it's not fit with what we experience. If life is hard, like riding the bike and falling, then god isn't our father. Rather, gods are the training wheels, and we didn't learn to ride from our father, we learn from our neighbors who are trying to learn to ride their bike too.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Some theists resent the notion of blaming god, but accredit this to atheists. Only those who believe in a god can blame one. Similarly, there are those that see tragedies like Haiti, and blame... Haiti...</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5TE99sAbwM">Watch at your own risk</a><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">...</span><br /></div><object style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" height="505" width="508"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/f5TE99sAbwM&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/f5TE99sAbwM&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="505" width="508"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Sure Pat Robertson is just one guy, but he represents a focal point in the American religious landscape. His empire is built on supporters. That is the scary part. I struggle to separate his comments here the Westborogh Baptist Church's comments about the Tsunamis in the Thailand being a means of God to kill homosexuals. Am I the only one (surely not) to see that the only difference between the WBC and CBN is that CBN uses a powerful media platform to legitimize its bigotry?</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">When bad things happen, some blame god. It seems that there is another group of people, who sit on couches and write checks to CBN, who blame Haitians for the earthquake.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">I think the idea that people blame god when things goes bad is a religiocentric concept. When things go wrong and people blame other things (or even themselves) they probably don't even get a blip on their radar, but when a god gets mentioned they spring to their feet and suddenly everyone is blaming god for everything...</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Bless their heart Space Travelers, they only want to save me. But I'm still the heathen, who is a bobbin' and weavin'. Float like a butterfly effect, sting like the police (Rooooooxanne, you left the red light on, and our utility bills was high last month). I broke a stone, I bruised a brick, I'm so mean, I make medicine sick. </span><br /><br /><br />A last note. If you plan to donate to relief funds, make sure they are legit. I've been hearing about scammers on the news. How disgusting. Make sure your charity is vetted first.Chihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12135604595962195221noreply@blogger.com2