Thursday, June 30, 2005

Accountability: Whoops, that's 2 days. And no flexibility in the after-work schedule to make it to the gym tonight. Maybe if I call this a streak, it will end, too. By the Power of Jinx, I Have the Power! (does that work as a written reference? comment your guess)

Anything exciting happening in your worlds? Not much in mine, although something could break soon. I shouldn't say anything publicly until it happens, but it would be a fun change.

Reading Montaigne's essay on education, which is also good. I will sit down with the book and my computer, and start talking about some of his ideas on here. Hopefully I won't be the only one finding it interesting.

Things I've Learned: 1) Laser surgery allows for declawing without mutilating a cat (I know what I'm doing in the future). 2) Time does move slower when you're waiting. 3) I think I absolutely NEED the upcoming 3-day weekend.
posted by Unknown 2:27 PM | 1 comments

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Accountability: Yeah, didn't feel so great this morning. Not a valid excuse, just the reason I didn't hit the gym. See what I get for calling it a streak yesterday?

Texas has solved school financing! Of course, they haven't done anything about funding it, just reduced the tax rate ceilings and promised more money. Seriously, my job would be so much easier if I could just promise people their computers would work better without actually doing anything to make them work better.

I know no one likes to think about it, but I think I'd vastly prefer a flat income and business tax (no loopholes so we can raise the floor of who pays as high as possible) with the promise (not a lottery promise) that it's all being invested in education and infrastructure. The short-term would be rocky, but it would make Texas a much better place for citizen-employees and companies in fairly short order. I'd also suggest an estate tax, but then everyone would claim to be a Maine resident to avoid paying it. I know some people don't like the estate tax, but aren't most of the protesters the same ones who say welfare recipients should be pulling themselves up by their bootstraps? Do the same!

Things I've Learned: 1) I will probably never be able to run for office after this post. 2) Bad school administrators can wreak incredibly disproportionate damage. 3) Legos are a fun "background activity" - something to do with your hands while you're focusing elsewhere.
posted by Unknown 11:07 AM | 0 comments

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Accountability: Played racquetball today (well, I don't think my performance merited the description "playing" but I chased a ball fruitlessly around a small room). This is starting to turn into a little streak of sorts. Of course, that probably jinxed it.

This (no login required) has got the be the best response to the eminent domain decision next week. It's a hotel I'd invest in. Yes, yes, I know, the decision was more nuanced than this, but what would happen if this goes to court? Can any judge objectively evaluate a case involving a Supreme Court justice?

There are a lot of bumper stickers encouraging us to be aware of motorcyclists. I'm usually in favor of this, but then I saw the guy weaving in and out of cars this morning, even cutting people off. Don't get me wrong - we should always be watching out for anything in the road, but if a motorcyclist is going to zip all over the road, a driver who can't react in time shouldn't be held liable if anything happens.

What I've Learned: 1) If dinosaurs are direct ancestors of birds, some scholars think chicken would no longer be kosher. 2) Winning a College World Series is great, but I wouldn't mind winning a title non-fans would remember longer than a day. 3) Rescheduling is a slippery slope.
posted by Unknown 2:44 PM | 1 comments

Monday, June 27, 2005

Accountability: Well, only one other guy showed up for basketball on Saturday and neither of us actually had a basketball, so not much working out for the weekend, but I think I earned that. This morning, made it 2 miles in 17:20 on the elliptical, plus 3 sets of arm curls and 4 of leg presses (upping the weight to 230 - that's gonna leave a mark). And as of Saturday, I'd lost 8 pounds in 8 days, down to an oh-so-svelte 331.

Karate Kid II was on USA this morning - was Miyagi trying to imitate Yoda with those grimaces? Kept looking for Frank Oz's sleeve coming out of him. I really liked some bad movies when I was a kid - I'm sure some think my taste is no better now. On a possibly related note, Bewitched was pretty good Friday night - another movie Will Ferrell didn't make stink.

While we're on the 80s, why was Donkey Kong named Donkey? He was a gorilla, and there was no donkey anywhere in the game. And how did neither Shrek movie not make a joke about this?

Had lunch with a guy who helps out the Christian Service Center at University Avenue church of Christ - looks like I might be helping them build a database. Since, ya know, I have nothing else to do with getting married and a possible job change. As I told my dad, juggling's no fun with just one ball.

What I've Learned: 1) Database design is apparently not actually instinctive. 2) I have gotten good reviews from the last 3 interviews I thought I bombed. 3) The store's in good shape, but apparently no one's keeping an eye on how clean the merchandise is at Target.
posted by Unknown 1:15 PM | 1 comments

Friday, June 24, 2005

Wal-Mart and Target have apparently been making use of eminent domain to get room for stores, which is the use approved yesterday by the Supreme Court. Anyone else scared yet?

My problem with this is similar to the problem I have with impatient speeders. I really don't mind people speeding, but if it's a 2-lane 55MPH road, and the right lane is moving at 50MPH, I think my right to drive 55 (and the right lane's right to drive any speed they're comfortable with over the minimum speed) supercede the right to drive faster than the speed limit. Similarly, I don't want someone else's right to improve the value of their property (which, granted, is a more legitimate concern than speeding, as well as legal) affecting my right to own my property. That's a very dangerous precedent.

Had a good discussion with Mike about how this could be used to take what I think the law calls "blights" - non-profitable businesses, run-down unlivable properties - and create economic developments that are better economically as well as aesthetically and quality-of-life (an area of his town that did this even included subsidized housing in the new development). I can see that working to everyone's benefit in the right scenario.

But the government determines the compensation paid. And if the goal of government is to raise business tax revenue, what about if KMart's running a store, but the local government believes a Wal-Mart or Super Target would do better and pay more taxes? Wouldn't this principle allow them to take the store and hand it to a competitor? This might seem outlandish, but it's not unreasonable to imagine a company attempting this, and a greedy/cash-starved locality cooperating.

Would there be limits on the practice of using eminent domain for private development that we could set to prevent abuse? For any libertarians out there, is there any situation where this would be tolerable to you? Looking forward to any comments.
posted by Unknown 1:48 PM | 0 comments

I don't have my speakers hooked up at work, so I can't guarantee the quality, but the concept of Statler&Waldorf reviewing movies is great.

Continuing the confusion of real life and the Internet, a minor-leage baseball team is letting fans "play" the first 2 innings of a real game on a video console. Someday there will be a video game where you control a character as s/he plays a video game. Although I would be in favor of making kids physically play a quarter of basketball or an inning of baseball before finishing the video game.

Apparently Texas Governor Goodhair was overheard saying "Adios, Mofo" when he thought the cameras were off. He claims it was a joke directed at his aide, but he was also apparently upset with a reporter, so who knows. Where is the radical right protesting such vulgarity?!? Oh, that's right, Republicans already have their pew cred.

btw if you're a basketball fan, I hope you saw Game 7. Tim Duncan finally played like a superstar, taking over the game far more than his stats show. Great game from the Pistons, too - I don't think they lost. Awesome defense, good shooting, generally good coaching (why they let Manu in the lane for a layup in the last minute is beyond me). And now that has to last me through another Summer of Sports Desolation. That is, after UT wins the College World Series this weekend.

Accountability: An hour of outside basketball last night - was playing pretty well, unfortunately a neighborhood group had reserved the court at 7PM so we had to leave. And played racquetball this morning, continuing my amazement at Steve's ability to adapt to and dominate any sport he tries.

What I've Learned: 1) It's more often the first idea accepted than the best. 2) Most sportscasters have all the intellectual consistency of a redistricted politician. 3) There are too many cool books to read to spend even this much time at work.
posted by Unknown 9:44 AM | 0 comments

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Sorry to throw so much out there, but found one more thing I want to share, a quote by Will Durant in his Story of Civilization: "A nation is born stoic, and dies epicurean." I haven't read it, so don't know if he was laying down a general theme or discussing a specific culture, but sounds pretty general and all too applicable to me.
posted by Unknown 2:26 PM | 1 comments

This is one of the scariest things I've ever seen (CNN link, no registration). Doesn't this mean that the government can decide it's in the public interest for my property (which could include more than land) to go to someone else?

I'm guessing from the limited info in the article that this is part of a planned public policy that is meant to benefit the displaced residents as well as the commercial developers. I still don't think that's justification for this kind of intrusion. And the imitations could be horrendous.

Are there any readers who can think of any reason this should be allowed?

btw, here's what Urban Renewal Eminent Domain looks like elsewhere.
posted by Unknown 11:03 AM | 1 comments

Accountability: Made it to gym last night. 3.65 miles in 30 minutes, plus the weights. My usual leg press machine has my back horizontal so my legs are pushing up - that machine was broken last night, so I got on one where you sit normally and push out: much harder! But good effort, I suppose.

Enjoying Montaigne. Many thoughts from the first essay will be posted over the next week as I have time to review. Kind of a serial book report thing.

Does anyone else think it's a really bad thing that jobs are expected to be more than 40 hours now? I applaud people who really enjoy their work and whatever time they get to spend there, but it seems that we're caught up in the scorekeeping of productivity and stock value rather than activities that make lives better. I think I've hit this before, and I'm betting I come back to this angle again, but it just depresses me. Glad my job right now is a pretty straight 40.

What I've Learned: 1) Everyone knows something is different in my appearance, but very few people realize it's the goatee being gone. 2) Taking it easy is a lost art. 3) You never want to turn off a UT game before the last quarter/inning.
posted by Unknown 10:10 AM | 0 comments

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

Accountability: No gym this morning, but planning to go after work.

Work put bowls of chocolate out and around the office. Tis a very nice thought, but oh-so(too?)-tempting.

Reading Update: Finished Wicked last night - excellent exploration of all the shades of green between black and white. It should be noted that people who like protagonists will be disappointed, as every character is more or less an antagonist. I'm sure that's technically wrong, but I'm betting anyone else who read it would agree.

So now onto Montaigne's essays for the Great Books. The first one is titled "Of Custom, and That We Should Not Easily Change a Law Received." As a moderate Catholic in the middle of religious wars, appeal to custom would have been reassuring. So far, it appears that he's linking custom to repeated physical exercise - I don't think that's a definitive parallel as far as benefits are concerned.

But he has made an interesting point that traits in children are more obvious indications of the traits they possess as adults (subject to correction, hopefully). I guess the main thing I thought profound in his paragraph is this aside: "and, indeed, it is to be noted, that the [play] of children are not performed in play, but are to be judged in them as their most serious actions" I wonder how that applies to adult play, especially in the era of computer games.

His previous essay was a single paragraph, so I had to read "That the Profit of One Man is the Damage of Another." Basically he says that every businessman is filling a need, so in order for profit to exist, need/hurt/suffering must exist. He's not condemning the businessman - he's actually responding to a quote about how horrible funeral directors are for taking advantage of the bereaved, and points out that all business transactions are filling a need, hopefully most less serious. I found it interesting but don't quite know yet what I think. If I think any more on this, I'll letcha know.

As to basketball, Horry is apparently good for one victory per big series - here's hoping Tim and Manu can come up with a third from their side. In other sports news, UT is in the driver's seat to reach the College World Series final. Hook em!

Things I've Learned: 1) Everyone seems to think most people can never be on time. 2) 17"/19" CRT monitors are worth $50/$70 on eBay. 3) Literal French translations are very pretentious stylistically (this might only apply to Renaissance texts).
posted by Unknown 2:59 PM | 0 comments

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

Accountability: Actually made it to the gym last night. 2.16 miles in 19 minutes (no idea why I stopped at such un-round numbers), 3 reps of 8 curls at 100, 90, and 60 pounds, and 4 sets of 8 leg presses at 180 (2 together, 2 alternating). Soreness. Worked most of that out playing racquetball today, though, even if I still can't win a single 7-point game.

This is an interesting experiment in applying capitalism creatively to real problems on an individual level. And as a techgeek, this is pretty cool - I'll be curious to see if anyone can cross Gates and live to tell about it.

What I've Learned: 1) I can read a book on an elliptical without ruining it as long as it tends to lie open. 2) I don't always know as much about my job as I think I do (this might apply to other areas of life, but I'm not willing to concede those yet). 3) Even a job you love needs to be enjoyed in moderation to prevent burnout.

Nothing deeper today.
posted by Unknown 1:29 PM | 0 comments

Monday, June 20, 2005

Here's a question for folks - what can I do about/for all those people on street corners? I'm sure some of them are scamming, some of them are just looking for free handouts, but it seems likely some of them are trying to get back on their feet. So I'm not a big fan of giving someone cash, but what can I do to help them? Is there a phone number I can give them for a place that can assess their situation and give real help? Any other ideas?

If anyone's a basketball fan and didn't see last night's Game 5, catch it when it's replayed as an Instant Classic. Horry just caught on fire the entire 4th quarter/OT, and I couldn't believe how open they left him for the final shot. It was a great game to watch.

Accountability: Played basketball outdoors Saturday morning. And I'll claim light-exercise credit for loads of drinks bought at Sam's on Sunday, and loaded/unloaded in the car. Yeah, not so much this morning. Didn't get to sleep until after midnight, and so the alarm at 6AM didn't do too much good. Will try to make it tonight. Also, I started following the Weight Watchers point system this week, and discovered that my Tuesday racquetball combined with just one hour of basketball would meet my activity goals. I know that shouldn't make it harder to wake up in time to get to the gym, but it does.

Things I've Learned: 1) Never, ever, under any circumstances leave Robert Horry unguarded at the 3-point line in the final minute. 2) Here are the rules for castling, including that it is forbidden when the king is in check. 3) The Weight Watchers point formula is (calories/50)+(fat grams/12)-(fiber grams/5).
posted by Unknown 11:06 AM | 1 comments

Friday, June 17, 2005

Not much to say today. I've got a toenail that looks pretty gruesome, but apparently it's growing out naturally and will not be a health problem. Oh, well, no one likes the looks of my feet in flipflops anyway.

Accountability: Basketball last night (leading to the toenail referenced above). Planning on basketball tomorrow, and we'll get the whole back-to-the-gym groove next week. I hope, I hope.

Things I've Learned: 1) There are far more sports columnists than there are sports stories. 2) Computers kept under a desk get awfully dusty. 3) 29 doesn't seem like a scary age. Yet.
posted by Unknown 12:16 PM | 0 comments

Thursday, June 16, 2005

Interesting story about parents who lost custody of their daughter for not following up chemotherapy with radiation treatment. They're claiming they were misled as to how necessary or useful the radiation would be relative to the risks, but I'm interested in the first part.

Especially in a situation like this where no therapy is 100% successful, are they wrong for evaluating the risks and benefits differently from the doctors? I mean, it turns out they're wrong, but does making the decision make them bad parents?

My thinking is this is hypocritical. We don't punish parents for not taking their children for checkups that could catch these diseases early, or if they let their children fail in school. These are from sources as authoritative as the cancer specialist, but more people make these choices.

Interested in other thoughts. I don't know if I have a conclusion on this one yet, although I'm leaning toward not removing custody.
posted by Unknown 1:27 PM | 2 comments

Check it out and give your own ratings in a comment: http://www.bookofratings.com/sstreet.html

My ratings are based on who would win the Sesame Street cage match, defaulting to size, particularly height. I'm ordering them:

Snuffleupagus: based on my memories, no one could see him, so he could stomp them all silly once he gets the Bird out of the way
Big Bird: too nice to actually win, but did you see him go after Homer when he tried to renege on his PBS pledge?
Cookie Monster: there are no "sometime" foods! place cookies strategically, and he'll tear through anyone between him and the cookie like the Tasmanian Devil
The Count: his army of bats beats a lot of people but I assume we could tell Cookie they were flying cookies and buh-bye bats
Bert&Ernie: mostly because they'd be watching each other's backs, but I bet Ernie has a nasty streak
Grover: everyone would be gleefully tearing him limb from limb once they were done with ...
Elmo

There should be a special tribute to the things in Ernie's flower garden - anything trippy enough to get into the worlds-within-worlds theme has to be LSD-inspired, which I suppose makes for surprisingly good children's television.

It should be noted that if the Muppets Show muppets were in the cage match, Fozzie would go just above Grover, Kermit above Fozzie, and Miss Piggy above Snuffleupagus, just below Animal.

Wow, maybe I do have too much time on my hands.
posted by Unknown 10:45 AM | 0 comments

Only one month until what would have been the highlight of my summer.

Accountability: Was heading to the gym when something else came up. It's not an excuse, but I'm OK with my decision. Playing some basketball tonight - I can't wait!

A career change is a very odd thing to think about. Starting to play with it more in my mind - dunno if I have the cojones to move on it quickly, but starting to figure out areas I'd like to move in. I think it'd have to be something related to education, and probably focusing more on bringing bad schools up to par than enhancing the good schools. I'm glad people are working on the enhancements - the goal needs to keep moving, and I know how much I benefited from Honors/AP programs - but I don't think that's what would motivate me.

3 Things I've Learned: 1) The email alert for Harry Potter 7 is already available (yes, I'm on it). 2) I'm apparently the only person who enjoys decorating the top of my cube wall (2 fake plants and a picture of Provincetown). 3) Email addresses that reference wizards are considered unprofessional.

So I had an idea for a game that I dunno if it would work, or if it's even already a game, but could be simple and amusing. 2 decks of cards - one has a situation, one has a superlative or other measure (best, wackiest, most creative, least likely, most violent, what Dumbledore would do). 1 card is drawn from each stack, and everyone except for a judge has to say how someone could respond to the Situation that tries to fit the Measure on the respective cards. For example "Someone is stealing your bike." could have responses of "Wait for the extra-terrestrial in the basket to float it back to me." or "Jump on the purple elephant next to me and chase it down." I think I'd need someone much more creative to help write and flesh out rules here, but it seems more creative and no less obvious than a lot of games being sold these days. Just a thought.
posted by Unknown 10:24 AM | 0 comments

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Accountability: Didn't make it to the gym this morning - hoping to after work. I have not been good this week, but I'm still hoping to turn it around.

Things I've Learned: 1) Excess Cheerios dust ruins an otherwise good bowl of cereal. 2) Offices really are as much better than cubicles as I remembered. 3) I'm really bad at follow-through.

Not much else on my mind today that is worth sharing/OK to share.
posted by Unknown 11:41 AM | 0 comments

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

Got a call from the Austin Blood & Tissue Bank today - they desperately need blood. I've never been called before, so I assume the need is reasonably urgent. If you live in Austin and can help, I suggest going by. The cookies are excellent. :-)
posted by Unknown 10:55 AM | 1 comments

As part of the Great Books discussion group, one of the commenters offered this Timeline of Applied Ethics:

Socrates: "Take the pears if your daemon tells you to."
Aristotle: "Don't take the pears unless your reason tells you to."
Plutarch: "Take the pears if you're Caesar, otherwise don't."
Jesus: "Take one pear, but feed twenty people with it."
Augustine: "Don't even think about taking the pears."
Machiavelli: "Don't take the pears unless a neighboring state might get the pears first."
Gargantua: "I'm sorry - were those your pears?"

Any other offerings for this list?

Accountability: I ended up slacking yesterday. Playing racquetball at 11:30 today, so will try to get back up on that horse.

What I've Learned: 1) Even the most informed decision still involves value judgements as to what evidence you choose to believe. 2) Idealism may not be dead, but pessimists have already had the funeral. 3) Motivation would be the most interesting intellectual process to study - not Pavlovian bells, but what really sparks a person to do something (especially vs what they tell themselves sparks the action).
posted by Unknown 10:00 AM | 0 comments

Monday, June 13, 2005

Indianapolis was nice. Highways were incredibly uncongested, so either they have great city planning, or people don't want to live there. Take your pick. Most memorable moment was probably when Fiancee was introducing everyone at the shower and introduced "my flower girls," a 5-year-old second cousin (not a flower girl) shrieked "WHAT?!?" and started crying (apparently more due to embarrassment than outrage). We still don't know what she was expecting or why.

There was also someone at the airport who mentioned something to Fiancee about "her husband." We assume she meant me, and it was kinda cool.

Accountability: I was traveling, so aside from lugging a lot of luggage (we got 2 suitcases at the shower that were packed with shower gifts, so 4 suitcases and 2 backpacks on the flight home), not much in the way of exercise. This morning, I didn't go, but plan on making it up tonight.

What I've Learned: 1) Handel's Ice Cream is some of the best stuff ever made. 2) We do travel well together, which is nice to know. 3) There is a plane with a ceiling I can reach with my spine (ie, with my head bowed all the way forward, my neck touches the ceiling).

What I'm Reading: Finished The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody. Very humorous style, great anecdotes, but got a bad aftertaste from 2 final chapters that were supposed to be catch-alls and were actually pretty boring. Since it was assembled posthumously, I won't hold it against the author.

As part of the Great Books process, I read Plato's Apology and Crito yesterday. I'm still less than impressed with Socrates' constant disavowal of sophistry via his use of ... sophistry. And his arguments' bases are usually less than automatic truth, but I'll assume it was something fresh and interesting in his time. And his discussion of why anyone would choose to corrupt others was interesting - made me think of the Sith vs. Jedi philosophies.

Crito was far more interesting to me - the concept that choosing to live in a city (or modern country) implies accepting the laws of that place, even more so when a democracy allows citizens to affect those laws. Most people seem to embrace the laws that benefit them (unemployment benefits, public roads) and steadfastly ignore/berate the entire government whenever it's unwelcome (speed limits, April 15). There seemed to be a lot more universal/valid truth in this one than the Apology, or maybe I just agreed with these arguments' bases.

This morning I started Wicked by Gregory Maguire, the witch's life and perspective on Dorothy et al from the Wizard of Oz. So far it's fun but the witch hasn't been born yet, so I don't know how it will continue. But I've heard great things.

I've also been watching basketball. Anyone else expect the crunch-time matchup last night to be Milicic vs Nesterovic for Best Player Whose Name Ends With C (recently given up by Vlade Divac, who was also the Best Flopper of all time)? Hope the Pistons make it interesting at some point, but I'm still holding to Spurs in 5, with 4 more likely than 6.
posted by Unknown 12:12 PM | 0 comments

Friday, June 10, 2005

Flying to Indianapolis to meet the fiancee's clan. How many times do you think I can sneak the phrase "War of Northern Aggression" into the conversation? I think the reaction would be fun.

Accountability: Played basketball last night, so no gym this morning. Yesterday probably overdid it a little bit, but learning limits is good. Here's hoping I've got an exit row seat today so I can stretch my legs.

What I've Learned: 1) This section is tougher to do regularly than I thought it would be. Would love any suggestions from readers. 2) Popes in the Middle Ages frequently had children - apparently celibacy was only required of the brotherhood's pledges during hazing. 3) Mandolins are cool.

Have a great weekend, everyone!
posted by Unknown 11:29 AM | 0 comments

Thursday, June 09, 2005

A glimmer of hope!

Accountability: Did 2.2 miles in just over 20 minutes today. Then found arm curl and leg press machines that proved just how weak I am (relative to body size at least).

What I've Learned: 1) Monkeys are the only animal crackers that wear clothes. 2) We're all heathens to someone. 3) TBD is not a universally recognized acronym (To Be Determined, for the curious).

I've been thinking about insurance. It's supposed to be in case of an emergency loss. As I've discovered, insurers' opinions of what constitutes an emergency loss is far greater than mine (when my ceiling starts falling, it's fairly urgent for me). So why is health insurance supposed to pay for everything? Why is it supposed to pay for on-going prescriptions? For cosmetic treatments? I think this is one reason why people are against a national health insurance - we'd all like to help people who are badly injured, but acne medication for all and all for acne medication? Not so much.

What if a national health-care system only paid for actual injuries that require treatment above a certain amount (perhaps a % of income)? Probably more coverage/treatment for pregnant women and kids would be included so adults could start their independent lives healthy. Maybe there would be some kind of incentive for regular checkups, not smoking, losing weight, and other healthy behaviors, but not paying for it, just an incentive for it. Seems like that could be done much more cheaply and without all the excess bureaucracy (I can't remember the exact figure, but I think something like 19% of health-care costs are due to filing/tracking/correcting paperwork). And if employers or individuals want other services, I'm sure private providers would offer them.

So that's just some rumination. Please let me know what you think as it's nothing like a finished proposal yet.
posted by Unknown 10:41 AM | 4 comments

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

This is from the Constitution of Grace Bible Church in Tulsa, OK. Having trouble telling where the grace is in here:

The accountability of church discipline will follow the outline of Matthew 18:15-20, without partiality. Once the Elder Board has been informed of a member's unrepentant sin and having investigated these charges, finds them to be true, they will privately appeal to the church member through several appointed Elders. If the member does not turn from the sin(s) in question after a period of time set by the Elders, then the Elder Board will send the offending member a letter stating that at a regularly called meeting of the church, the Pastor or Chairman of the Board of Elders will announce the person and transgression to the Church. Then after continued refusal to repent, again with sufficient time given, the Pastor or Chairman of the Board of Elders will excommunicate the offender by public announcement. Excommunication prohibits fellowship with or attendance at the Church, until the Elder Board is satisfied the person has demonstrated a lifestyle of genuine repentance.

That follows an earlier comment that membership in the church is a privilege. I don't disagree with that statement - I just thought God was the one controlling access, and he's pretty much just giving away. Oh, well, I assume there will never be a shortage of people trying desperately to condemn all the people God hasn't gotten around to yet.
posted by Unknown 2:01 PM | 0 comments

Gonna try something in most if not all posts from here on out: What I've Learned being 3-5 possibly consequential things I've discovered.

What I've Learned: 1) I wear a size 12 ring. 2) Similar to the matter-antimatter equilibrium, every cost carries with it hidden costs. 3) I'm not sure what people refer to by the good ole days in a moral sense - crassness/greed/envy has always been present and usually pretty available to the masses.

Hmm, that was enlightening. Or not. But it stopped me and made me think before I typed, which is always good.

Accountability: Made it 3.3 miles in 30 minutes on the treadmill this morning. I think that might be where I leave it for a while until it's too easy, and then might increase the resistance rather than the time.

Howard Dean called the GOP "pretty much a white, Christian party." Not to disagree with him, but I think the main difference is the Democratic party restricts white Christians to its leadership? Unless there's been a non-white, non-Christian Presidential candidate I'm not aware of (and I believe at least the last few national chairs have been as well). Even more impressive that the GOP Party Chair is Jewish. The sad thing is, by making it a potshot generalization, Dean missed the chance to make serious comments about the fact that the GOP is only concerned with representing white Christians, and try to differentiate the Dems' approach (not that I've personally seen much of a difference in approach, just in success).
posted by Unknown 11:22 AM | 0 comments

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Played racquetball at lunch. I still have yet to win a game (and didn't make it out of 3rd place in 3-man games today), but I think I'm making them work harder for it.

Finished Rabelais' Pantagruel last night. Still don't see much of the classic in it, although I saw things that might have become plot/character standards later. Non-bad-guy thieves are the main things that come to mind, but it also reminded me of a comic book at points. One chapter could have been the Justice League if our heroes were all horny French men. But I could see the Simpsons or Family Guy being too current and topical to people in 20 years, much less 400. I'm glad I read it, but I doubt I'll come back to read the rest of his works.

So now starting The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody. It's a pretty tongue-in-cheek look at history that I think has lots of interesting tidbits, but it's tough to distinguish facts from jokes. And it was assembled after the author's death, which is a red flag ever since I attempted Silmarillion. But it's fun and will be a good book before I tackle Plato.

I've noticed a distinct Soapbox tendency since I started doing it. To those who have suffered from IMs, my blog comments, or my day-to-day babble, my most humble apologies. Hopefully something quasi-useful will come of these ramblings.
posted by Unknown 2:27 PM | 0 comments

Monday, June 06, 2005

For accountability, I'm going to try to post some personal information on here. I know there's only a handful of you at most, but you're probably the ones whose opinions matter most to me. Made it 2.7 miles in 26 minutes on the elliptical this morning.

I don't know if this is supposed to happen, but the more I explore my religion (and I believe a greater reliance on the Bible is considered "conservative"), I'm finding myself growing politically liberal. For a far more eloquent take on this process than I could hope to provide, check out Larry James.

And finally, thoughts and prayers are with Cat, whose grandfather passed away last night. Her father had to execute the living will to disconnect the machines - I can't imagine how hard that would be. I don't know what to say except I'm sorry for you and your family, Cat, and that the healing will be as pervasive as the grief.
posted by Unknown 9:13 AM | 0 comments

Sunday, June 05, 2005

A friend of mine today pointed out that Tom DeLay has done notable work for foster children, including being a foster parent. I've been able to more or less verify that he and his wife took in 3 teenagers at different points. He also has done notable charity work for foster/abused child advocacy, but those have been tainted by ties to his political scandals.

Regardless, anyone who takes in 3 foster children, especially the usually more difficult teenagers, is worthy of respect. Politically, he still makes me wish we had a more moderate fascist running Washington, but I'm encouraged that even he can do something worthwhile in his life.
posted by Unknown 6:02 PM | 0 comments

Friday, June 03, 2005

Saw a sign for a pawn store today: "We have lots of tools." Amazing how pretty much every company I know can say the same (barring my current employer, of course ;-)).
posted by Unknown 2:34 PM | 0 comments

MTV now reaches almost 4 times as many foreign households as American ones under many national/regional brands. I wonder if they actually get music as part of MTV, or if the name is as confusing to them as to us.

Bush denounced the stem cell research bill, saying he wouldn't "destroy life in order to create life." (quote from last week's Newsweek) How does that contrast to sending American soldiers to die in Iraq, whether it's to preserve/enhance American or Iraqi life? Seems like we determine what's worth dying (or sending others to die) for already - stem cells aren't all that new a moral dilemma.

Since I'm trying to use this to record what I think as well as communicate with you fine readers (both of you! (I hope)), I'm actually against stem cell research if it involves creation/destruction of embryos. I think it's a better use of excess embryos than just destroying them, but I'd prefer to not have excess in the first place - is creating a baby worth creating extra embryos that you plan to destroy? I don't know exactly how/where to define life (anyone who says they know has a real problem not knowing what they don't know), but I'd prefer to err on the side of valuing any potential human life. And yes, that means I'm against war, too, although I do think a lot of good is going to come out of the Iraq invasion.

And speaking of Newsweek, they now indicate why anonymous sources want to remain anonymous in an effort to avoid any more Quran-flushing scandals. From everything I've read, they followed standard journalism practice and didn't act irresponsibly, but I suppose tightening regulations for this kind of thing will usually help more than harm. And America loves a good public self-flogging. Oy.
posted by Unknown 10:48 AM | 0 comments

Thursday, June 02, 2005

Today I read a Times editorial about the failure of liberalism in Europe. Dunno if he's right or not - there are statistics to support just about any claim you want to make (ask Al Gore!) - but there was one sentence that started the old pot stirring: "The core fact is that the European model is foundering under the fact that billions of people are willing to work harder than the Europeans are."

Is this a good thing? Do we want to consider the best society the one in which people work the most? Let's define work first - I assume he means economically productive labor, including management and executive jobs. Would we be a better society if we spent 80 hours at our jobs on average instead of 40? I don't think so. The happiest people I know are those who are the most active, who spend most if not all of their time proactively pursuing their goals. For some lucky folks, their job involves their passion, so for them, I suppose it would be the same thing. But what about everything else? Technically, the press could be considered a waste of resources as it only uses capital that could be more profitably invested elsewhere.

I suppose part of this is my own discontent with my career. I like my job and the people I work with - I just don't care about what I do. I will meet my deadlines and do good work, but I don't feel any kind of personal imperative to make a computer system work a little better so a company can spend a little less money and their stock can go up a little bit. Dunno where I'd be more fulfilled, though.

Hmm, dark set of posts this week. Will try to get in a better mood, for my sake as well as yours.
posted by Unknown 9:56 AM | 0 comments

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

It's been a little while - went out of town this weekend and have been catching up. Ever felt you didn't have enough red dust in your life? Want roads in such bad condition you can trip just walking across them (actually happened, although not to me)? Then I can heartily recommend Oklahoma! Good folks (at least my relatives - probably also other people I haven't met), but that's about all that's there to recommend it. Although I did see a portable building (yep, like schools use) advertised as a casino. That's high class.

Got a quick rant. We went to get tuxes yesterday. There was a, er, enthusiastic salesman who really did his job poorly, from engaging the customer to making knowledgeable recommendations to fully understanding the paperwork, he botched most steps. Fortunately the other guy stepped in and it worked out well. Then we get to the receipt, and for the first time, I am made aware (only because I read the receipt) that every tux has a cleaning charge in addition to the price. You'd think a fee that is approximately 10% of the price would be mentioned at some point in the process. The cost doesn't even change my mind about using them, but I almost want to cancel the order since they do business that way.

Yeah, yeah, everyone does business that way. Congratulations to them for inching over the so-high standards we hold businesses to. On a less-sour note, congrats to several of our vendors (most notably Stems & Icing, StudioJ Photography) who have done a stellar job of making all their costs known up front.
posted by Unknown 4:47 PM | 0 comments