Friday, March 30, 2001, 10:37am

     This is perhaps one of the most interesting articles of news I've read in months. An Ivy League professor defends, uhh, bestiality. Princeton's DeCamp Professor of Bioethics says that when it comes to sex with farm animals, the only real issues are whether you get the animal's consent, and you don't kill it as part of your pleasure. Which, of course, is consistent with Professor Peter Singer's key ethical contention: that the belief that human life has an inherent dignity higher than animals is mere "speciesism," a "prejudice no better founded than the prejudice of white slave-owners against taking the interests of their African slaves seriously."
     Hmm. I am going to keep my comments to myself. Except one. My little friend will steer clear of everything and everyone except female human beings - that is one discrimination with which I have absolutely no problem.

Friday, March 30, 2001, 10:26am

     Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream. According to this ad (not surprisingly on MSNBC), no one hears his speech. "No throngs cheer his call for racial justice." The ad starts out with King's speaking, as one might expect, but as the camera pans around, you see a very empty Washington, D.C., as if no one were there to hear him. No one hears him speak of an America where children (he actually said "my four children") will be judged "not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." Instead, over an empty Washington, a voiceover in the ad informs that "before you can inspire, before you can touch, you must first connect."
     Sadly, this is a technology commercial, but the message itself is an excellent one. I have a feeling that not very many people - of any size, shape, color, or gender - ever really understood what King was trying to say. Hell, I don't think I get it. But I do believe that this ad rings just a little truth to it, in a very subtle and unintentional way. Going back to the issues I've spoken on the last few days, I would say that the people I have spoken of have not been touched, but merely given an idea, and they took their primative views of what they thought it to be and let that idea manifest itself.
     I honestly believe that almost no one shares the same ideas and dreams that Martin Luther King shared, and while his dreams were admirable, some parts of even his dreams were a little questionable. He may have spoken metaphorically, but how are we supposed to know what he meant? He spoke of every valley being exhalted, every mountain and hill being made low, rough places made plain, and crooked places made straight. I like the metaphor, but the direct image that many undoubtedly received (and cheered for) of leveling all the land would not be something I would preach for. Another argument that asserts a bit of a bias is his dream for "the glory of the Lord [to] be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together."
     This would be absolutely wonderful, I tell you, if the Lord would reveal Himself, but as history has asked so many times, what are the chances of that? I am a Christian, and I believe faithfully that the Lord is here. Do I think he is going to "reveal" anything to everyone? No. This argument is where King strays, I believe. He argues that with "this faith" ... basically we can solve all of our problems. Why this faith? What's wrong with the rest of the people believing what they believe? I know that, as a Christian, it is my duty to share my Christian beliefs, but this is not to say that I am to convert them. This person is responsible for accepting the Lord into his own heart. As Morpheus would say, "I can only show you the door; you're the one that has to walk through it."
     Let me just say that, as a piece of literature, as most "experts" would look at it and review it today, King's speech is a bit narrow in scope. He claims that he is fighting for equality of all men, but not once to I hear or read any mention of any men other than whites, blacks, or "God's children." Okay, by most stretches of the imagination, we are all God's children whether we believe it or not, but how are you going to convince someone that does not believe of that? King was a visionary, an idealist, one who saw hope in this great mass of evil. I do not consider myself an idealist, but a realist, and I see hope. The pessimists would argue that there is no good reason for the human race to pull out of its funk and save humanity and the earth for what they are; the optimists would argue that there is no good reason why we won't. You choose your point of view - I'll stay with mine. But let me just offer you a piece of information; if we all felt the same, preferably optimistic, the world around us would probably reflect that.

Thursday, March 29, 2001, 10:48pm

     Reb, give me the guy's/office's address, and I'll have eighteen hundred spammers sending them all kinds of junk, just for you. Sucky policies should not be enforced on anyone that is educated enough to avoid the problems that result in not following them - know what I mean? And they should especially not wake you up to yell at you like that. How rude. How socially unacceptable. I say call the cops. (Or not.)

Thursday, March 29, 2001, 10:41pm

     Timothy McVeigh is a cold, heartless bastard, yet we should forgive him for his mistakes because it was his misbent and misguided youth and environment that conditioned him that caused his actions, right?
. . . . .

     Well, whatever. He's an asshole; he has no heart. I say give the man what he wants. If he wants to die early, give him the chair early! When someone wants to die, and they have earned their death in the way that McVeigh has, don't argue to keep them in prison. That's insane! Cause millions of people tax dollars to keep him alive? HELLO! He wants to save us money! Let the bastard... (I am not an advocate of the death penalty by any means - actually I am against it in nearly all cases - this is not one of them.)

Thursday, March 29, 2001, 7:52pm

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Heroes in a half-shell
Turtle power!

They're the world's most fearsome fighting team (We're really hip!)
They're heroes in a half-shell and they're green (Hey - get a grip!)
When the evil Shredder attacks
These Turtle boys don't cut him no slack!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Splinter taught them to be ninja teens (He's a radical rat!)
Leonardo leads, Donatello does machines (That's a fact, Jack!)
Raphael is cool but rude (Gimme a break!)
Michaelangelo is a party dude (Party!)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Heroes in a half shell
Turtle power!

     You know, it's been a long time, but surfing the 'net this afternoon, I was finally blessed with one of those wonderful childhood memories, and I remembered just how much I used to love those turtles. I'm sure you recognize the song - it was only the greatest cartoon ever. The official web site has a very interesting history of the turtles, a profiles page which is a bit better at telling the fictional part of the story, and a toys section with images of every Ninja Turtle toy ever made! I think that was my favorite part of the site - going back and clicking through the scores of action figures I used to have. For the record, I prefered the original characters, meaning I didn't like all the "wacky action" or "superstar" turtles. I liked all the different weird characters, but I had no use for any strange second version of any of them. I think my brother and I had about fifty figures together. One disappointment, however, is that this page has very little information on the cartoon. However, the best fan site has loads of information on all aspects of everything about them! I know I'm probably having a little too much fun with this, but this site offers episodes for download! Yeah! Cowabunga, dudes! (Couldn't resist, sorry.)

Thursday, March 29, 2001, 6:05pm

     This is complete nonsense. We have entered a time in which our educators would rather assert their domination over and fear of their students than actually educate them. These educators are simply taking away these children's education for the few days for an undeserved suspension. If something so horrible is really at work, perhaps our educators should attempt to educate the children rather than send them home. In an increasingly lazy society, providing these children from time off from school simply reinforces the behavior - they realize that they can lose school time, and some of them will do their best to do it again.
     Simply put, our schools are sending the wrong message. We are exploiting our fear in the faces of the students and in the face of the nation. We are allowing the media to broadcast horrible acts, only proving to these attention-seeking kids that the attention they crave is not out of reach.
     My point? Stop exploiting the violence. Stop the ridiculous punishment. Try to actually educate the children. That is why they are in school, right? To be educated? Or do we need to redefine the purpose of our nation's educational institutions?

Thursday, March 29, 2001, 12:28pm

     If Brian Hickey thinks that all political positions on the left are ultimately the same, does he also think the same thing can be said about all political positions on the right? That is to say, if liberalism and communism are ultimately identical, then are conservatism and fascism ultimately identical as well?

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 10:01pm

     She's back! Natasha has finally found a new home for her babbling. Yay. I have something worthwhile to read again!

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 9:32pm

     There's a little old man, stopped and very hirsute, who lives in a cave high in the Canadian Rockies. Periodically he emerges and lights a large torch on the ledge in front of his cave. A very agile young man then climbs up to the ledge and takes from this hirsute old man a tablet, sometimes two tablets, on which the old man has written one or more words and their definitions. By the time the old man is ready to retire, the youth has found an even younger man to do the climbing, grows a beard himself, and becomes the new old man.
     By this system has the English language developed to the point where it dominates much of the world.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 6:00pm

     Show me you love me. Buy me this. (In the bizarre case that you actually decide to buy it for me, let me know, so that I may tell my millions of other crazed fans not to buy it. Thank you for your cooperation. You may go about your lives now.)

     On a side note, this is the first time I have ever reached the letter K in my updates (meaning I have updated eleven times for the first time ever). I expect more before the day is over. Um. Yeah.

     Happy birthday to Emily. A little over a year ago, she and I dated for a little over a month, sort of. I kinda screwed that one up, but it was all for the best, I think. Oh well. Everyone find her and wish her a happy birthday. I'd call her, but I'm not sure she would appreciate that. :-)

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 5:38pm

jpmccord: once again claire... I LOVE YOU MORE THAN ... RICE CAKES!
...
jpmccord: she says "hey thanks!"
funky strike: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
funky strike: wait
funky strike: i'm "rice cakes," right
jpmccord: wait what?
funky strike: ?
jpmccord: um... no, i don't love her more than you nick.
funky strike: ok
jpmccord: you two are in two completely different spectrums
funky strike: good to hear
funky strike: for a minute i thought you were cheating on me
funky strike: my entire world collapsed
funky strike: and i was just about to dive out this third-story window here
funky strike: it was pretty bad.
funky strike: THANK YOU PAUL
jpmccord: l33t love cannot be compared to chickie love.
funky strike: bahahahahaha

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 5:05pm

     Let me just say that I have a knack for understatement. "Displeasure" doesn't begin to describe it. You should have heard me yelling and screaming a few moment ago, learning that they had shipped a CD to me that had never been ordered. Sailors don't cuss like I just did. At first I suspected my mother, for she has heard of this guy, but upon investigation, she has had the CD for several months, and my order history showed no evidence of such an order. Why do they have to screw up my order now? Oh, right, they're professionals...

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 3:36pm

     I still like the idea of IM conversations without line breaks. That makes them so much more difficult to read. Don't you think? Don't worry... I decided not to do that this time, you lucky sons of...

me: It is only recently that I have discovered that my dad's and my beliefs clash, and because he is the father and I live under his roof, guess who wins. :-)
Six: heh....well, thankfully i'm old enough to clash and still have my own roof. but internally, the fear of him still hasn't left yet. i still have a heckuva lot of trouble disagreeing with him on the phone or in person about things.
me: i'm "old enough," but i don't have the financial resources :-)
Six: (didn't mean "old enough" as a crack about your age or anything silly like that)
me: nah, i understand
me: i'm an 18 year old college freshman, and i prefer living at home
Six: eheh....been there, done that, got the t-shirt, had it autographed
Six: 18?!?
me: yeah.. how old did you think i was?
Six: see, it's times like this i feel idiotic. here i am at 28 just learning stuff that 18 year olds like you already figured out
me: hah. i'm no better than anyone! i just learn different things. i bet there are tons of things that i'm incredibly ignorant about because i haven't bothered with them.
Six: yeah, well you seem pretty damn well-rounded to me. take my words as a compliment, for they are just that

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 3:13pm

     I applaud Reb in one of her recent rants: What does it mean to be a woman?. If I were to write something such as this, she takes a very similar view that I would. While I may not necessarily introduce any bias to what being a woman really means, you know, not being a woman, I would take the same view in that many women are disenchanted with the idea of simply being "typical" mothers and/or housewives. This is not to say that women do not belong in the workplace, for I believe that they have every right that men have to be there (if they do not have the same rights in writing, then they should be understood). Any woman qualifies as an individual just as well as any man, and she deserves any rights that any man should have - except, perhaps, to use the men's restroom (and vice versa, for that matter). Again, we are taken back to the argument for decency, integrity, and community regard. Use your senses, people. Decide for yourself what you feel is right - do not simply allow it to be told. As John Stuart Mill suggested in a quote that I provided yesterday, we cannot arrive at any complete truth without extracting the partial truths of everyone's opinion.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 2:37pm

     Oh look. Steve mentioned me. He was going to link me too, but he did not know my address. Oh well. :-) I liked his site very much, hence the link to it here. Go see it. Go dislike it. Come back and tell me how horrible I am for telling you what I like and forcing you subliminally to click on it. Go. I dare you.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 1:00pm

     Once again I am being accused of being "conceited" or "self-righteous." This time, however, the accusation was made much more formally and friendly than most, and therefore I can actually respect the person's opinion. However, I still feel as though the allegation is a reaction to my strong will and individualistic nature. I am one who says what he feels as he feels it, and I am not afraid of the repercussions. Of course, because of certain repercussions, there are limits to what I will say (oh look! I am admitting a limit to my "freedom" of speech!).
     Anyway, the most disturbing of the allegations is that "everyone seems to know you're not perfect except you." Hmm. If I am not mistaken, I admit my fallacy all the time. I know better than anyone that I am not perfect. I know better than anyone that I am not better than anyone. However, I do understand the allegation that I "attempt to portray [myself] as the perfect citizen" with my political and philosophical views. This is not my goal, but I can understand how one might come to that conclusion. I do not know that I can justify my means so simply, but I would try to do so by saying that, as an individualist, I merely stand for what I believe and try to convince others that this is what I believe. What I believe is who I am. This does not mean that I am trying to convince you to believe what I believe. I am only providing what I feel to be proper support of my views so that I am not approached with weak arguments against them. I enjoy arguing my views against another's, but I do not enjoy doing so in anything less than a mature and comfortable manner. So I attempt to back myself up as fully as I see necessary.
     If one is to actually read my philosophical writings, one might more fully understand that which makes me who I am. I am not sure that I can explain it any better than the several things I have written over the past eighteen months, and I am not sure that you would care to have me explain exactly what makes me tick right here, right now. In fact, I am quite sure that I would not be able to accomplish such a task. To define one's personality is horribly difficult, especially through introspection. One cannot decide his own personality traits. To define a personality one must also examine the reactions and influences of and from those surrounding him.
     In short, if you have any specific gripes, I would be more happy to address them, as long as you keep to a respectable tone. I do not care for insult, for it is pointless, and I do not care for ignorance. I know I am a hypocrite, for quite often I let an insult slip or I ignorantly share my point of view on something that I should probably research just a little more, or once in a while I'll just slip and say something wrong. I'm not perfect. I only know of one man that ever was. So, if you have something constructive to say, my email-box is waiting eagerly.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 12:27pm

     As I have pointed out in the recent past, there are a few misconceptions driving our nations educators. I am convinced that their first priority is to assert their authority over the children, and that education is a distant second priority. Think about it. Teachers are more concerned today with school shootings and lawsuits than about your child's education. I like the way Neal Boortz puts it, even if he is only referring to primary schools:
     Mm-hm, I see. And sadly, I agree. Our institutions of learning are not what they used to be. Perhaps it is the fault of the few unruly students that decide to take advantage. Perhaps not. Perhaps it is the fault of the parents that do not properly raise those few anomalies. Perhaps it is the fault of the educators for placing so much emphasis on the few incidents that occur. Perhaps it is the fault of the media for creating the mass hysteria that brings so much attention to such events. Perhaps that is the only reason why several of these kids do it in the first place - they want the attention, and they know that, because of our wonderful media, they will get it if they do something like that.
     What am I saying? The kids are not to blame. I'm not sure what you believe, but I believe that the environment around a child is what shapes him for the rest of his life. I do not wish to explain this in detail, but think about it. It's an idea called empiricism - that everything is based on knowledge gained from experience. That only what you have experienced can affect your actions in life. There is also that tendency to diverge just a little from that which you have learned and experienced, hence so many "new" things, but really, where would that "new" idea have come from had you not experienced all those previous ones? The kids are not to blame; the kids are not mature enough to have developed any pure logic behind their actions. They are only reacting.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 12:15pm

     I mentioned an eight-year-old honor student suspended from school the other day for drawing a picture of a soldier. The suspension was "justified" because the school could not tolerate any weapons, even in drawing. You be the judge: here's the picture. Tell me, did this kid really deserve to be suspended? That is what our government-funded schools would most likely say. However, our government would likely say something completely different. Why the discrepancy? Could our educators and our governors possibly disagree over such an issue? And if so, could you tell me why? (I have too many theories that could support all sides of this issue, so I would much rather hear someone else's point of view than choose one of mine.

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 12:02pm

     Yesterday Tony approached me with a question. He asked me if I found the word minority to be offensive. I do not believe that the word is offensive when used to classify one's status in any of a number of studies that prove that one is outnumbered in some respect. However, when that respect is the color of one's skin (or a number of other classifications that can be deemed discriminatory), and someone uses the term to exploit that discrimination, then I believe that the word minority is very offensive.
     Yesterday I did not understand the point in such an argument, but I guessed that Tony had probably read/heard that someone had declared the word offensive and demanded that we stop using it. I was not really interested in this particular battle, but this morning I found it anyway. It would seem to me that one side of the argument is pushing for the word to disappear from political speech. People like Neal Boortz make the argument that changing our speech to reflect how we refer to minorities will not solve any problems. He basically says that the goal of this movement is to "solve all our race problems." He also says that moving from "negro" to "colored" did not solve our race problems, moving from "colored" to "black" did not solve our race problems, and using the politically-correct "African-American" term hasn't been so hot, either.
     Neal, you can cram that argument up your ass. The point is to stop referring to anygroup as a minority based on the color of their skin. I could stretch this to cover all kinds of discriminatory classificaitons, but this argument is specifically aimed at the black/white issue, so I will keep it close. People need to tell Neal Boortz that it is because of people like him, those that see black people (or African-Americans, or hell, Mexican-Americans, Oriental-Americans - any frickin' Americans) as different from white people are the reason why so many of our racial problems exist. Sure, black Americans can be just as much to blame for exlaiming that they are different, but then you wonder why they might think that? Could it be that that is what the majority of Americans have always told them their entire lives?
     I realize that a majority of the population in the United States has white skin. I realize that a much smaller minority has black skin. I also realize that several other minorities have other skin. This does change who these people underneath that skin are. They are still people. Aside from their skin, they are no different than you, me, or anyone else. Skin color should not be an important factor in any discussion. Period. When any conversation is based on skin color, I tend to look the other way and disregard anything said, or I tend to take an argumentive approach such as this. Either way, I can have no respect for the arguments that we are different from one another because our skin color is different.

     Once in high school, I was sent to the principal's office for "incorrectly" bubbling in part of a test score sheet. Under racial or ethnic or whatever word this particular test used, rather than bubbling in the "white" bubble as I had been taught, I decided to bubble in "other." In the blank next to it, I wrote, "I'm human. Why does it matter?" My teacher walked past as I wrote this and felt it to be "inappropriate behavior," and because she had no jurisdiction to act over such a thing, she sent me, along with my score sheet, to the office. I had never been the extroverted type in high school - I hated that place - but oh your god I must have been the happiest boy in the world when I found out that I was going to the office to "tell them exactly what you were thinking when you wrote that, young man!" Let's just say that my argument held up, and they could do nothing. They convinced me that that section of the test was purely for statistical purposes, and that I should fill in the bubble accurately so that my test be classified correctly. Rather than take the obvious way out and ask why it is so important that we be classified differently, I told Dr. Melnick (the principal), "well then let the statistics show that at least one student at Warner Robins High School does not care for the color of skin." She and the two assistant principals next to her just stood there for a moment, half-shocked, half-amazed, and she handed me my test and sent me back to class. My teacher was awe-struck when she saw my grinning face walk back through the door without changing my "incorrect" bubble. I win. :-)

Wednesday, March 28, 2001, 11:32am

     Have I ever told you that I rarely get sick? If not then I probably should more often. I think I told Nick several times a few weeks ago when he was under the weather. I even offered my immune system for a while, because I know that no matter what he's got, my immune system would kick its furry little ass. Oh well. Something's day has come. The day is its. I rue the day. My mother's a... (Hmm. I think I'm taking that too far.) Er, back on the subject, I believe I may have finally found an illness that can keep me down for a couple of days (hopefully no longer). I developed a rather intrusive headache yesterday after about three hours of school. That was no big deal, although I had not had a headache in over two months - since Claire and I got together anyway, which was basically two months ago. Actually, that is interesting; I had not had a headache since long before Claire and I got together, possibly in January, or possibly as far back as December or November. In fact, it has been so long that I lost all memories of what it was like to have a headache!
     Yeah. Well, I remembered yesterday. It hit me, and I was enduring a couple of sinus annoyances on the side, so being the smart guy that I am, I took a couple of maximum strength Tylenol allergy/sinus gelcaps, attempted to take a nap, and I woke up with my headache all but gone. My dad came home a half an hour later and threw something small, round, and squidgy (one of those little foam earth balls, you know? a stress-reliever thingy) at my chest, and, the room being dark and I being not all there, I had no idea what it was so I jumped back. The sudden jolt instantly brought my headache back - threefold - and I endured the rest of the night, feeling worse and worse as time progressed.
     So I thought that was the end of it. I never get sick to any degree; I'm healthy as the healthiest of horses! Not today. I woke up initially with just enough time to hit my alarm, take a quick shower, hit the road, and make it to class by 9:00am. Nuh-uh, screw that. My headache was still there, my stomach was churning in seventeen different, weird ways, and my eyes felt really funny. Have any of you seen Sixth Day with Arnold Scwarzeneggar (I guess I spelled that right)? I felt sort of like he did when he woke up in the cab. Only he was fine and ready to hop onto his feet. My feet had this weird tingly feeling that you get when you know you're sick, and all of my muscles and bones ached in that funny little way that they do.
     So, there you have it. Mark this day on your calendar, folks. This will not happen again for a very long time. I would guess that it will be next Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays, for my immune system has a very funny attitude about this - it loves to take a break when everyone else does, thus allowing an illness to infiltrate me for the entire sixteen day holiday and be healed and gone just in time for school's rebeginning. Oh, I really hate when that happens. It happened three years in a row once. If my immune system weren't so dear to me, I would have killed it that third year, for it was then that I could tell that it was no longer just chance - my immune system was toying with me. Bastard.

Tuesday, March 27, 2001, 11:08pm

     FOXNews reports that a golf-range business owner is in jail for refusing to comply when the Fairfax County (Virginia) zoning board ordered him to move some "improperly planted trees" on his golf range. John Thoburn contends that he is "in jail for the right to operate my business on my property. It's private property. I'm defending property rights." Thoburn has already spent over one hundred thousand dollars on trees mandated by the board, but now they are demanding that he move thirty trees alongside the nearest homeowner's property as a protective screen. "In an interesting twist, however, that neighbor is John Thoburn's father, Bob, who says the landscape requirement is ridiculous."

     I keep reading new about the American people as individuals infringing on the rights of various constituents of the music industry; where's the fight for the industries infringing on the rights of the American people as individuals? I'll tell you where. It's in the hands of those like Hillary Clinton who believe that "we should stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society." Sorry, Hitlary, but society cannot exist without a firm base of individuals. If we are not allowed to think freely and share our opinions, where, then, will the answers come from?
     Political philosopher John Stuart Mill said it best in his essay On Liberty, published in 1859:
     In other words, without individual rights, society cannot function at its best. I am an advocate of individual rights, if you have not guessed that by now. I am not against groups or unions or political parties, but I am against any hint of conformity or hypocrisy orinating from expectations or influences caused by such groups. I push (in what little ways that I may) for a society of individuals - those with the ability to think freely; those that exercise that ability.

Tuesday, March 27, 2001, 8:13pm

     Take a look at this 1999 news release from the ACLU web site. According to this, the ACLU aims to block prayer and religion from public schools. The underlying rationalization is not too horrible, that "parents and houses of worship should be responsible for religious education," but to banish any indication of religious preference or prayer in schools is nonsense. Any student has the same right to believe or not to believe in whatever he/she wants, in school or out of school, and the ACLU cannot take that away.
     In another case, the ACLU threatened legal action against a Richmond, Virginia, middle school that had allowed a girl to come back to school with pink hair. Virginia Attorney General Mark Earley distributed a letter to local school superintendents accusing the ACLU of trying to micromanage schools. In another letter sent to the Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction, Earley wrote, "No one understands the importance of observing the legal rights of students more than you, but the ACLU continues to disregard our children's right to learn in a safe and productive environment." While Supreme Court rulings have made clear that students do not have the right to engage in conduct "that materially and substantially interferes with the requirements of appropriate discipline in the operation of the school," Earley cites that "if our school administrators tell us that certain behavior detracts from the learning environment, we should give them, not the ACLU, the benefit of the doubt." I believe in the ACLU's right to defend our student's rights, but I also believe that pink hair does not materially or substantially interfere with the students' safe and productive environment. When such becomes the case, it is not an issue of the hair, but an issue of the faculty of the school placing extraordinary emphasis on that which deserves no more than anything else.
     In still another case, the ACLU is suing the U.S. government for forcing the removal of an artist's six-minute video from the Internet. I would normally side with the artist in such a case, but perhaps I should clarify the video "uncovered" a fictional Army plot to incite a riot on New Year's Eve at Times Square. The ACLU lawsuit accused the FBI and federal prosecutors of trying to suppress the men's free speech and due process rights. The video artist and web site host said that they feared arrest if they did not comply after calls from FBI agents. If these overzealous agents had been around when Orson Welles broadcast "War of the Worlds," they probably would have attempted to shut down the radio station that aired the program. The agents did not present a subpoena, court order, or any other legal basis for approaching them. At worst, then, the ACLU has a case for improper procedure, but defending a video that could incite rebellious acts against our government is almost absurd. The only possible loophole is that citizens have the right to watch what they choose behind their own walls, and that the video incites nothing - however, in this case, I side with the government that such a video involving the United States Army should have been, and was, removed.

     Follow the trend? The ACLU claims to stand up for the rights of the American people, but continually chooses sides. This inevitably leads to the ACLU occasionally choosing the wrong side. I would not go so far as to say that the ACLU chooses their arguments based on money (although that argument could probably be made), for I do not believe that to be the case. No, sometimes the ACLU just makes bad decisions, like any organization, and any organization, the ACLU must feel the heat from these decisions. The ACLU is claims to be the guardian of liberty, so they had better make sure that they are on the right side when they fight for it.

Tuesday, March 27, 2001, 3:05pm

     For the nonbelievers, solid evidence (if not cold, hard proof) that the national debt is very much a good thing: When Debt Is Good. For those of you that do not feel like spending a good ten minutes reading this article, I have borrowed from the introductory paragraphs the basic principle that drives the argument that I would make. Read and be merry.
     So there you have it. The national debt is a good thing. If this is not convincing enough, then perhaps you should read the article that I fished out for you (okay, so Tony fished it out, big deal). The article covers the national debt's benefit in so much greater detail than I could - go read it.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 5:17pm

     The following words came from a Houston man(?) (I presume Houston, Texas, although I live in Houston County, Georgia, which, by the way, is pronounced house-ton, not like hue-stun the city in Texas) in regard to the offensive diveristy issue:
This quote, and several others in response to the diversity issue, can be found here.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 5:15pm

     Does anyone else find it necessary to clarify the purpose of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution? I do. Unfortunately and reluctantly, I do. Organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) insist that virtually anyone has a right to say or do virtually anything at any time, and so, in my opinion, the ACLU stands for nothing. The ACLU insists that only the rights of the speaker matters, and so the ACLU denies the very humanity of those assaulted by that freedom. The ACLU insists that the First Amendment is to be interpreted in a way that our founding fathers never intended. I can just imagine Jefferson, pen in hand, looking over his shoulder to Madison:


     The ACLU can imagine that. The ACLU believes that. The ACLU is trying to convince us of that. Confidential to the ACLU: The First Amendment is there to protect that which may be deemed unpopular views regarding religion and politics, not hatred, stupidity, or indecency. Try to tell the ACLU that and they'll issue a press release exploiting your ignorant and bigoted views. Jimmy and Tommy would roll over in their graves - I am quite sure that they wrote the First Amendment to support decency, integrity, and community regard.
     It's because of organizations like the ACLU that millions of Americans who believe ardently in freedom of speech are simultaneously longing for a freedom from freedom of speech. That's their legacy. That's their vision of America. That's the position of the American Civil Liberties Union. I know I'm biased, but I dare you to provide sound evidence that my argument isn't sound.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 4:01pm

     Watch/Read any good news lately? One recurring theme that is starting to bother me is something referred to as "zero tolerance" - zero tolerance to violence or any creativity that may possibly have been inspired by any remote thing that could be linked to something violent. What am I talking about? I'm talking about two eight-year-old kids suspended for making threats with paper guns in New Jersey. Another eight-year-old honor student in Louisiana was suspended for drawing weapons - yes, drawing weapons - on paper. This kid's drawing was of a soldier holding a canteen in one hand and a knife in the other. The boy's father claims that the kid has relatives in the Army. Or more locally, kids at Warner Robins High School are being punished with In-School Suspension for "taking" a test from a teacher that refused to give it to them until they asked for it properly. Or how about In-School Suspension for cussing?
     Do you want to know what is really going on in secondary school environments? The children's education is no longer the top priority, nor was it ever, really. The top priority of every school system is to promote itself and its constituents. Teachers feel as though they must assert their authority over the students. Teachers would rather control the students. What happened to the homy feel of the schools that dated back to their old schoolhouse roots? I would rather say that schools today feel more like a prison environment than a home environment.
     Why do teachers find it so necessary to dominate? Can't they just befriend the students and educate them, as it is their job to do so? I would argue that perhaps the resentment that builds and leads to violence in schools could very well result from this general attitude of today's "educators." Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone! (Pink Floyd reference. You like?) I would also venture to argue that perhaps these students would feel less resentment if you would just do your jobs and educate them. A truly educated person would not commit the horribly cruel acts that we see so often.
     Teachers, your job is not to dominate the students. Your job is not to punish them. Your job is not to judge, to control, to compare, or to desert them. Your job is to teach them, hence the label "teacher."

     My freshman science class once erupted in argument over the odd teach methods of our teacher. She had us, the students, read the chapters and "teach" the material based on what we read. None of us even now have degrees in education or in science, so needless to say we were not pulling out all that was necessary, nor were we providing the proper information for the others to learn the material. When we questioned our instructor about it, she simply stated, "My job is not to teach, it is to evaluate." ... You can probably guess our reaction, but I'll state it anyway ... "Why the hell do they call you a teacher, then?" I think those were my exact words. From that day to the end of the semester, our class came together to prepare a long letter and a petition for such "evaluators" and other problems that we had seen with the teaching in our school. Needless to say, our school's administration didn't care at all. They looked at it and through it away, citing that we should have other priorities. My education is pretty damn high on my list of priorities. Damn you, Warner Robins High School.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 2:35pm

Erich called me a sissy.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 12:17pm

     Suggested reading alert! I have spoken on the issue of affirmative action and diversity quite a bit in the recent past. FOXNews reports the Supreme Court re-entering the debate, agreeing to decide whether a federal program to help "disadvantaged" businesses amounts to unlawful race discrimination. For the particulars of the argument, check the FOXNews article. If you don't care, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?! err I mean ignore the article.

Monday, March 26, 2001, 12:00pm

     ReparationH. "Especially for those that suffer from 'Post Traumatic Slavery Syndrome' - ReparationH - because THEY owe it to yoself..." (Warning: the link is to a 140k image. It's funny, I say. Credit to boortz.com, unless Neal stole it, in which case he can't have my credit.)

Monday, March 26, 2001, 1:49am

     Crucial decision: I have decided that, in finding that I am not capable of forming coherent thoughts on Janice Daugharty's Like A Sister tonight, I am going to go to history for those notes that cannot be missed in the morning, and I will promptly come back home and sleep for a few extra hours. Despite loving every moment of that carefully written story, my writing abilities are no match for the combined excesses of sinus pains, caffeine, and work, and a severe lack of sleep. So, there you have it. I shall miss English for the second time this semester. This is not a good trend to start, but I can see no other way though it. I have tried to form some coherent mass of words for the past three hours and it just isn't working. Shhh. Don't tell Dr. Wilson.
     Whew. I think I need something to drink. Oh, and Max, I prefer to be called Paul instead of John. Not that it matters, really, but if we were to ever actually meet, I would probably not respond to being called John. So you know. Oh, and one more thing Max: Would you be so kind as to take new screenshots of this page on all of your browsers? (Wow! You have 'em all. You rule, man.) I would greatly appreciate it!

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 10:26pm

     During the seventh inning of the Arizona Diamondbacks split-squad 10-6 victory against the San Francisco Giants yesterday, the 2000 National League Cy Young winner Randy Johnson hit and killed a dove flying in front of home plate with a 95mph fast ball. Johnson's pitch to the Giants' Calvin Murray was about three-fourths of the way to home plate when it struck. The bird flew over catcher Rod Barajas' head and landed a few feet from the plate amid a sea of feathers.
     "I'm sitting there waiting for it, and I'm expecting to catch the thing, and all you see is an explosion," Barajas said. "It's crazy. There's still feathers down there."
     Giants second baseman Jeff Kent picked up the dead bird with his bare hands and jokingly pointed toward Johnson before taking it to the dugout. Johnson was not amused by the incident.
     In August 1983, Yankees outfielder Dave Winfield killed a seagull in Toronto with a warmup throw. The Ontario police charged him with animal cruelty, although the charge was later dropped.

     There is one good thing about all this. The fact that this had made the news makes one thing very clear: baseball's back! Say hello to seven months of baseball action, everyone, and say hello to a very happy ME because of it!

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 9:54pm

     You've seen The Matrix. You know about the young, talkative Mouse annoying the "adults" with his mindless discourse of skepticism and creativity. "How do the machines know what chicken tasted like? You know, maybe they got it wrong. Maybe they couldn't figure out what chicken tasted like, which is why chicken tastes like so many things!" Is Mouse nothing more than a nuisance? Or is he there to represent the skeptical genius of young minds? Nevermind that, let's focus more on this chicken nonsense.
     Qualitative experiences - or qualia - can exist only in conscious minds. Because the machines are assumed only to have intelligence and not consciousness, they could never know what anything tastes like. So Mouse essentially concluded that perhaps the taste of chicken that everyone experienced in the virtuality of the Matrix had no resemblance to the actual taste of chicken. In fact, because the nuclear holocaust had occurred and passed so long ago, no one could still be alive to account for the true taste of chicken. Because the machines do not have the ability to feel the sensations that our senses produce (that sounds redundant), they could only guess. Without a consciousness, the machines could not possibly know how to interpret the actual conscious experience of tasting chicken, or seeing the color red, or just about any other experience of any kind. As artificial intelligence these machines could only guess about such things. In that sense, how could the machines have ever guessed on so many various sensations to create a "reality" so similar to that of our civilization in 1999? (I know, I know, if they didn't then we wouldn't have a movie. I'm just making a point!)
     While I'm on the subject, did anyone else ever notice that the Oracle never said a word about Neo being "the one"? She asked him if Morpheus had said anything about it, what he thought about it, and said, "sorry kid," after Neo wrongly accused himself of not being "the one." She also said that either he or Morpheus would die, and that he would choose which it would be. This is true, is it not? Neo died for quite a few seconds before waking to rearrange the Matrix. The way I see it, if his mind is so powerful that he can read the Matrix in its encrypted form, why the hell can't Morpheus. And as for "the mind makes it real," once I had it in my head that the whole thing was a virtual reality and nothing was real, I would simply accept that - and if that were true, death could be virtually impossible. Think of it this way: If Morpheus had never convinced Neo that "the body cannot live without the mind," do you think Neo would have caught on to his being "the one" any sooner? If Morpheus did not believe that the body cannot live without the mind, do you think that he would have just as great a chance of being "the one" as Neo? In a world built on rules that they can break, their minds are truly their only limits. If they would simply convince themselves that they are in control, the Matrix would belong to them.
     Then comes the problem of freeing the people. We probably have billions of people in tubs in the "power plant" just waiting to be freed, but where would they go when they were freed? Is it just me, or aren't they living normal and wonderful lives (as far as they can tell) as they are? By freeing these "slaves," Morpheus and Neo would only endanger the entire world! And speaking of these billions of people ... remember when Neo was first awakened? His body required lots of work because of his usage of this body that had actually not moved in thirty years. Could you imagine the amount of work that would be required if billions of people were suddenly flushed from their respective tubs? Oh wait. Have we even thought of their inability to swim or the inability of the ship's crew to pull them out before they drown?
     Okay, a couple other little details that I don't like. What did Morpheus do with the blue pill? He took it in his hand and reached for the door - and POOF - no more blue bill! Okay, so the cameras shifted which allows for a toss of the pill across the room, but I really do not think Morpheus would just toss a perfectly good blue pill, do you? Another detail I do not like is Neo's miraculous rebirth. Okay, sure, we all know that this was necessary and inevitable, but my complaint is not inside the Matrix - my complaint is with the sentinals on their search-and-destroy mission. If the machines wanted to win and wanted Neo dead, why didn't they just disrupt the pirate signal and cut Neo off? Without that signal, his mind is separated from his body forever, and he dies. Of course the machines have no creative abilities, only that which was supplied to them in their creation and can be supplied to them by their crop of plugged in humans, so they probably have no experience with such matters ... it can be overlooked.

     One last topic that I would like to discuss is the plausibility of the virtual world suggested in The Matrix. Just how realistic is it? Who are we to say that it is impossible? According to several mystics and metaphysicians, such a world is very possible. In fact, many believe that the world we live in is, in fact, illusory. The actual experiences are real, but the physical world that they seem to depict is just not there.
     So if that is the case, what is driving this virtual reality? Different systems of believe attribute this driving force to differently, but in any case, this driving force would be the equivalent of God or some supreme intelligence. However, because this entity driving the virtual reality does not have the qualities typically associated with the God of any religion, I will call it the metamind.
     So what is this metamind? It is a vast mind, or some mind-like entity, that created the whole of the manifest world and is running the show. Within this virtuality are relatively ordinary minds like yours and mine. We communicate normally via the metamind in such a manner that we have the illusion that we are communicating through some physical medium, such as sight, sound, or the internet.
     This virtual reality is generally tied to physical rules, which we would refer to as the laws of physics. However, there are nomological interstices, or loopholes in this system in which an ordinary mind might operate outside the limits normally set by the metamind. It has been established that mental intentions can modify the occurence of random events. This is inexplicable from the standpoint of physics (so much so that I cannot comprehend it, hence why I only mention it briefly), but it can be comprehended somewhat if we accept the theory that this world may be a virtual reality.

     This is all very interesting, you know, but I personally cannot see it as anything more. If some definitive answer can ever be found, I will certainly alter my views accordingly, but, until that time, I can only see such philosophical debate as little more than interesting. While it may not be completely impossible, it is all but impossible to apply any definition to our existence in logical terms. You may as well just find some belief that you are comfortable with, read up on the rest, and enjoy life while you have it!

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 6:57pm

Congratulations, this document validates as HTML 4.01 Strict!

     It's about damn time, too. As I have clearly demonstrated in this pathetic waste of dedication today, I am perfectly capable of accomplishing that to which I set my mind. Do you want to know the most annoying nitpicks of HTML 4.01 Strict? Of course you do.
     1. <img> tag requires ALT attribute.
     2. external HREFs must be quoted or </a> is read as an end tag to an unopened tag.
     3. attribute values with any non- letters, digits, hyphens, or periods must be quoted.
Ugh. That last one is particularly annoying because I have several hundred anchor references for which my search-and-replace utility is useless because no two anchors are alike. Ugh. There are still several other annoying nitpicks, but those are the big three.
     What does this mean for you? This means that if this page does not look absolutely perfect to you then it is your fault. I have done my part be conforming to the web's one and only HTML standard so that any proper web browser will render it correctly. If you use something horribly improper, such as Netscape 4 or Mozilla, I suggest you get one of the following browsers:
     Windows: Internet Explorer 5 or 5.5, Netscape 6, or Opera 5.
     Linux/Unix: Konqueror (KDE) 2.1.
     Macintosh: Internet Explorer 5 - Macintosh Edition.
By my understanding those are the only compliant browsers, and I would guess that those for Linux and Macintosh are only listed because they are the best available. The point is that anything not listed above is not up to the standards established by the World Wide Web Consortium and will not render my page correctly (or half of the rest of the internet, for that matter). So do yourself a favor; make your internet experience greater; get a quality web browser!

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 4:44pm

     I have come to the conclusion that I am a nerd. I am one hundred percent (100%) nerd. Actually, a nerd can be defined as one who studies excessively and tends to be socially inept. I certainly study excessively (though not necessarily for the things they want me to), but I am not socially inept. However, I have noted a sharp decrease in my number of friends in the last year, and a sharp increase of social clashes of various types, so based on that, one could say that, well, maybe I am socially inept. This is not the side of the definition of nerd that I am looking at though. No, what really defines me as a nerd is this: "someone who knows what's really important and interesting and doesn't care to be distracted by trivial chatter and silly status games." Oh your god - I have just fallen in love with the American Heritage Dictionary! To make things better, the next sentence states, "Compare the two senses of computer geek." *&#@*(&$( HAH! That is me! That is exactly me!
     Of course this does not define my personality; I am quite certain that nothing does. However, Keirsey's Temperament Sorter has provided the most accurate description of me than any other personality examination - ever! I meant to show you my results here several days ago, but I never got around to it. Well, here they are. According to the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, I am an Artisan. Below is Keirsey's detailed description of the Artisans, and my comments in white text.

All Artisans (SPs) share the following core characteristics:
     (1) fun-loving, optimistic, realistic, and focused on the here and now. Is it just me, or have I claimed to be an optimistic realist for several months now? I base my convictions on realism and let optimism affect my interpretations. I am certainly focused on the here and now (and its plausible effects on the future); I certainly do not dwell on the past. I am not so focused on the here and now to be labeled as one who celebrates the ideals of the "carpe diem" mentality, but to some extent I subscribe to it.
     Artisans pride themselves on being unconventional, bold, and spontaneous. Yes, yes, and yes! I do not necessarily "pride" myself for such, but I am certainly unconventional, I am certainly bold (hence the clashes I endure), and I am certainly spontaneous! (I hate being trapped into a schedule; some things must be planned, but I love just going with the flow.)
     Artisans make playful mates, creative parents, and troubleshooting leaders. I do not think that I qualify as a "mate" just yet, but Claire could provide some insight (I guess) on my playful nature. ;-) I would like to think that I would be a creative parent, but first and foremost a good parent, and I am certainly a troubleshooter, and those around me tend to believe that I would make a good leader in the right situations (i.e. I could do it, but my convictions would keep me from being a "good" military leader.)
     Artisans are excitable, trust their impulses, want to make a splash, seek stimulation, prize freedom, and dream of mastering action skills. I disagree with this somewhat. I do not really want to make a splash so much as I just want to be an ordinary person. I definitely prize freedom, and I trust my impulses, but as for the other two ... I cannot really say that they are on or off.

     Consistent with this view Artisans are described as adaptable, artistic, and athletic - as very much aware of reality and never fighting it - as open-minded and ever on the lookout for workable compromises - as knowing what's going on around them and as able to see the needs of the moment - as storing up useful facts and having no use for ignorance - as easygoing, tolerant, unprejudiced, and persuasive - as gifted with machines and tools - as acting with effortless economy - as sensitive to color, line, and texture - as wanting first-hand experiences, and in general enjoying life. SPs (Artisans, as seen by most, are very much like one another and very much different from the other types, the SJs (Guardians), NTs (Rationals), and NFs (Idealists). And by the way, this paragraph describes me most perfectly of all. That was amazing. If you must know, I fall in best with the Artisans, but I believe I am fairly strong in the other categories as well. I would say that I am 40% Artisan, 30% Guardian, 20% Rational, and 10% Idealist, if I had to make a wild estimate.
     There are four Artisan character types: composers, crafters, performers, and promoters. While I show qualities of all four, I believe I would fit in best as a promoter.

     I sat down to convince you that I am a nerd, and I went on and on and babbled about my personality. You're welcome. :-) What really makes me a nerd today is that I just spent two and a half hours simplifying the HTML to be coupled with my newly implemented CSS base across my entire website. Perhaps this is where many people believe that utilizing PHP would be an excellent task to undertake - eh, one day. Essentially my task this morning was to replace every <font> tag with a nice little <a class=""> tag, of course with the proper class ID instead of quotes to form the text correctly. Did I do a good job? In case you haven't noticed, the entire site renders exactly the same as it did last night, so I do not expect that you should notice. However, the combined file size of all of my HTM files has been reduced from 2.13 megabytes to 1.94 megabytes - and I have added about 17 kilobytes of text since last night. In other words, I have replaced all text conformities with their CSS counterparts, and my site is all the better for it. I hope you enjoy.
     Oh, and if you use Netscape, that's your fault. Get a real browser.

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 2:47am

     I could have sworn that I had read Erich's page fully, for I do my best to do so on a daily basis, but today as I was skimming through his page I realized that I had inadvertently skipped over one of his updates. That update just happened to be the one that he decided to mention me. That's not the point. I don't care that he does or does not mention me, but the attention leads me to believe that I have done something right or wrong, and no matter the case, I have had some kind of effect, and ... I no longer know where I am going with this, except that I am trying to relate it to the reason for my name being mentioned: the Napster Debate.
     Erich stated that, while I use the record industry's increased sales as an argument for the continuation of Napster's services, there is another argument: "Compact disc sales within five miles of college campuses have decreased by four percent (4%) over the last two years." I am going to counter this argument, but before I do so, I would like to point out that Erich also declared his neutrality in this debate, and that he also noted that he had not read complete statistics for either study, and his purpose was to show that there are always two sides to a story.
     My counter-arguments: Perhaps college kids, you know, paying for college, are finally learning that buying a CD every couple of weeks really eats into their money supply. Perhaps the drop in sales are somewhat of a reaction to the increase in prices. Perhaps I really should not attempt to fight this fight, because I realize that Napster has been known to be a problem on several college campuses. Perhaps, then, the issue should not be Napster, but it should be the lack of internet bandwidth to allow Napster to survive. The future is leading us, whether the RIAA and every one else likes it or not, toward a time in which just about anything and just about everything will be available on the internet - from text, to software, to music, to movies, to ... virtual or simulated ... stuff? Face it, our world is built on technology, and technology can only improve. Should we sit around and allow business - money - to hinder our improvement?
     Answer this: Do you really think that owner of the patent to the four-legged chair gets anything at all when a new four-legged chair is invented? Do you think that the inventor of paint gets a call when a new color is developed? Do you think that Al Gore gets a nickel every time anyone uses his invention, the internet? These examples are coarse and could easily be ridiculed and deemed irrelevant, but the fundamental mode of thought behind them cannot. This is a time in which each individual should stand for his beliefs - not for promotion, not for money, not for any type of reward or recognition - but for what he truly believes. Stand for yourself. Stake your claims. Do not let the "almighty dollar" try to tell you who you are - you are in control of your own life. As for Napster, let it live or die, but do not decide based on your involvement or any kind of reward; decide based on you truly believe is right. I'm done.

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 2:14am

     I said I would deliver, and I have delivered! Welcome, one and all, to the new ... um ... well, this place has no official title, but it seems to have been dubbed "story of my life" by nearly everyone on the planet that has visited it more than once ... so ... story of my life! Now please excuse me while I blatantly rip Nick's words. To plagiarize is to admire. Unless one is making money through plagiarism, causing the original author/work to lose money, or actually blatantly claiming credit for the copied work without giving credit where credit is due, then I do not believe that any anti-plagiarism argument should hold. Period. Anyway, I'll continue with my plagiarism; sorry for the digression. Please allow for the necessary changes in the transition of Nick's work to mine; we write in a very similar style, but not exactly the same, and obviously our sites are not exactly the same, so the details should differ.
    
I have done five things this weekend:
     - Spent a solid day with Claire.
     - Copied Nick.
     - Copied Nick again.
     - Bowled rather lousily, but insanely, so fun was had and all was merry.
     - Completely re-did the code of this site back to front (read: Copied Nick again).

     I don't need to elaborate on the first three, because you really shouldn't care about my personal life or that I am copying Nick. And you really shouldn't care that Nick sleeps with a "pink horsie," as he likes to call it on occasion.
     What you should care about is the fact that my site design is no longer a function of difficult-to-follow/code tables. Furthermore, it uses something weird and crazy (and possibly satanic? Nick, were you smoking?) called Cascading Style Sheets, or CSS, to position and lay out the entire site. This is done through the usage of many <div> tags with the attributes id="" and class="" to set margin and column widths, font properties, scrollbar effects, and so on.
     CSS essentially allows you to not only specify attributes for a single element, but it allows you to control all the properties every time a certain tag is used (for example, every time I use an <a> tag, it makes it bold and turns to #FFD000 when hovered over; every time I place an <A class="title"> tag, it makes it 11px verdana with no underline: when hovered over or clicked on, it puts in underline and overline and no color change). Pretty versatile, huh? It allows you to not only eschew the <FONT> tag every time you want to put in a given element, but it also allows for lots of other neat elements of control you simply wouldn't be able to get with bare-bones HTML.
     [Obviously, a good many of you should know this by now, for a healthy portion of the regular visitors to my site are mad elite web designers (like Nick). Most of the remaining visitors are close friends (whether online or not, either way "close" is a relative term), possibly family, and all others visit on their own accord and have no other affiliation with me of which I know.]
     ...Right. Yeah, I kill Nick. [Every hour on the hour, and you heard it hear first.]
     What does this mean for you? Absolutely nothing, other than the fact that my site now validates completely for both HTML 4.01 Strict and CSS, level 2. As a result, your (hopefully) standards-compliant browser should be able to render this page (hopefully) flawlessly. I'm currently testing it on IE5.5/Win. I'll trust any of you using anything different to drop me a quick line. Theoretically the page loads wonderfully for any standards-compliant browser. Yay! Right?
     If you have an older version browser that doesn't fully support standards, though, this page will almost definitely break terribly and Nick will laugh at you to no end. (He'll do it! I've seen him do it! He's crazy! He'll do it!) He will then post your email address, in public, on the front page of his site, so other people can send hilarious emails to you, telling you what a complete, unquestionable moron you are for obstinately adhering to browsers that don't follow standards. (Why would anyone stick with an older browser anyway? Send any good reasons, please, because I am dying to know.)

And now: some black space in honor of Nick's anti-Netscape/Mozilla rant!
















     For more information on web standards and how important they are to maintaining a web that everyone can view, head over to the Web Standards Project. For the view of you that might actually be interested, the Web Standards FAQ.
     Thanks for being a good sport Nick. I couldn't support you without you!

Sunday, March 25, 2001, 12:34am

mp3otd: Blue Man Group - Rods And Cones.mp3

     Has anyone else noticed something ... lacking ... lately?
     Come back, Bill Clinton! America's political comics are aching to forgive you! They haven't raised a decent laugh since the Clintons drove off from the White House with a load of presidential silverware. Dubya is proving an alarmingly serious fellow who has yet to pardon a single drug-dealer ... which has left Ben Stein starved of material as he prepares for a media dinner with Bush this week: "It's hard to think of a joke about a tax cut," he sighs.
     Hmm. Well, I don't know about you guys, but I can't really think of anything to joke about for or against Bush. I'm at a loss, here. The only thing I can really look back on is election time, but none of that's funny any more. Well, I take that back. That snickers commercial is still hilarious. "My dad and I wear the same pants." "I invented pants!" BAHahahaha!
     I apologize. Go about your business. :-)

Saturday, March 24, 2001, 8:33pm

     Let's play follow the leader! What do I mean? Nick has converted his uberific web site from the <table> design of old to the nicely drawn CSS + <div> design of ... right this minute. I, being the follower that I am, have followed in Nick's footsteps and have completed the conversion of this page into CSS + <div> format: see? Pay no attention to those dotted lines - they will vanish. I used them to line things up, and I chose to leave them there because they look interesting ... I guess. Anyway, that's that. I would begin the transition process now, but I must go bowling! It should be done by the end of the night though.

Saturday, March 24, 2001, 6:40pm

     Two hundred years ago, Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia and as enlightened as men were at the time, revealed his suspicion that "blacks are inferior in the faculties of reason and imagination." Today, our elites pompously malign Jefferson for this "suspicion" while simultaneously pushing programs based on it.
     Last month the University of California's president, Richard Atkinson, suggested that the SAT requirement for applicants be discontinued. His problem is that the student body doesn't reflect his ideal racial composition. Not enough blacks are gaining admission because they don't score high enough on the SAT. Time was, California addressed this dilemma in the same way that most other selective schools still do: by holding black students to lower standards. But five years ago, the state's voters put an end to that practice by approving Proposition 209. Now Mr. Atkinson has come up with a way to undermine the voters' will.
     Discarding the SAT in deference to campus cosmetics is, like lowering standards, a nod to the notion of black inferiority. It assumes black students lack "the faculties" to compete with whites. For three decades, this form of racial paternalism was dressed up as affirmative action. Lately, however, America has grown weary of that term and what it represents. In 1996, the year Proposition 209 passed, the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, in Hopwood v. Texas, that race couldn't be used in university admissions in Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The state of Washington ended the practice in 1998, and Florida a year later.
     Proponents of racial preferences are fighting back, but they're doing so increasingly in the name of "diversity," a term that now holds the hallowed status that "affirmative action" once did. Hence, educators can attack objective standards, or defend racially skewed admissions criteria, without regard to the ugly implications. So long as they act in the name of "diversity," any criticism is sacrilege.
     Servants of diversity do injustice not only to the constitutional provision of equal protection but also to the attitudes of young blacks toward academic achievement. Why does the adage "Expect more of people, and that's what you'll get" not apply to black students?
     Late last year, a federal judge in Detroit accepted the diversity defense of racial preferences in a case involving the University of Michigan. District Judge Patrick Duggan found Michigan's system of admitting white and minority applicants under different criteria to be "constitutionally sound." As the ruling, now on appeal, clashes with the 1996 Hopwood decision, I predict Supreme Court interest. In the meantime, the arguments accepted by the Michigan court provide an education in the startling evolution of racial preferences.
     Relying on the social science research of a professor employed by the university to defend its discriminatory policy, Judge Duggan found "solid evidence" that a "racially and ethnically diverse student body produces significant educational benefits such that diversity, in the context of higher education, constitutes a compelling government interest." This rationale is significant because it strays from the historical justification for racial preferences, which is held to be the correction of past injustices suffered by blacks. The implication, clear even to liberals, previously was that a time would come when such policies would no longer be needed. But if, as the judge suggests, a racially balanced student body is "a compelling government interest" because everyone's education is improved, then racial preferences are defensible indefinitely.
     Judge Duggan has, in effect, discovered a constitutional basis for holding blacks to a lower standard. Worse, he's countenanced racial determinism by allowing Michigan to maintain a two-tiered admissions policy based on race, one that automatically relegates black applicants to the lower tier. The Hopwood court, by contrast, rejected such thinking. It observed that "the use of race in admissions for diversity in higher education contradicts, rather than furthers, the aims of equal protection." Speaking more broadly, the court added that such policies sanction "the mode of thought and behavior that underlies most prejudice and bigotry in modern America."
     Racial discrimination, even in the interest of remediation, inclusion, or diversity, is still racial discrimination, which is immoral and extraconstitutional. While waiting for the Supreme Court to decide whether to settle the issue, conservatives can take comfort (as usual) in Justice Clarence Thomas's reasoning in another case: the 1995 desegregation decision, Missouri v. Jenkins.
     Thomas writes, "The theory that black students suffer an unspecified psychological harm from segregation that retards their mental and educational development not only relies upon questionable social science research rather than constitutional principle, but it also rests on an assumption of black inferiority." It's an assumption, he reiterated later in the opinion, "that blacks cannot succeed without the company of whites."
     That same assumption is all that holds together the diversity defense as well.

Friday, March 23, 2001, 2:05pm

     Sixty-two days into his presidency, and forty days before everyone talks about and writes about his First Hundred Days, some thoughts on George W. Bush and how he's doing.
     The great question from those who had not supported him, which is to say from half the country, was: "Is he up to the job?" The headline on his tenure so far: Yes, and maybe more than you know. Maybe more than he knows, too.
     He has shown a certain mastery in his dealings with Congress, approaching them with an attitude of easygoing insistence. He's demonstrated that he will stick with the issues he campaigned on, and put them forward as legislation. He's shown an ability to communicate with audiences. He's shown toughness in terms of some issues he wouldn't dodge. In international affairs he's been sharp with Iraq, candid with Korea and strikingly blunt with Russia - throwing out 51 Russian spies in an apparent message-sender after the revelations of Robert Hanssen's damaging espionage. In the words of the New York Post's Deborah Orin, "Clinton wanted to be liked around the world - Bush wants to be respected." [Bush said what he meant, and he is carrying out the meanings of what he has said.]
     We are getting used to him. In his first few weeks, when the television stations would say the president was about to make a statement, Georgie would show up on the screen and you'd be surprised: "Oh, it's not Clinton anymore. It's Bush." Now you expect him and have an image of him in your head before he appears. This is because, as time passes, you always get used to the new guy. It's also true that the new guy is leaving his imprint, his mark, on things. He has been semi-ubiquitous, not as all over the place and always in your face as Clinton, but there every day, in a speech or at a meeting, pushing for what he wants. And what he wants is clear.
     The first to notice Bush making his mark were the Democrats, who watched warily for a few weeks and then concluded that the president was, unfortunately, not a fool or a phony. They seem a little lost and a little angry, leaderless and unsure who should lead them. Robert Reich writes an essay saying the Democratic Party is dead, and it's hot but not controversial; that is, Washington seems either to agree or to not know exactly how to disagree.
     What the Democrats need now is for someone, some known or unknown leader, to come forward with a stirring and thoughtful and data-filled and nonmanipulative speech that draws a vivid line in the sand by declaring what the modern Democratic Party is, what it stands for, what it means to be, and what it aims to achieve: what the vision of a Democratic future is. This has not been done by a Democrat in a very long time. Billy Boy never did it, nor did Al Gore ever dream of it. It's time. You can rev the troops and reinspire weary leaders by reminding yourself what you're fighting for.

     The biggest chance the Bush administration has taken so far seems to be with the tax cuts. I speak not of the decision to go forward with them, which wins praise on pretty much all sides, but with their size - that is, whether they are too small to make an impact on the economy. It is possible that when the cuts pass they will have a positive affect by at least seeming to be the right symbolism - a way of signaling to markets that more money in the economy and less for government is a governing intention from here straight through to the end of the Bush administration.
     But there's an interesting and very timely argument from the economist Alan Reynolds in which he says that the current market downturn should spur Bush to move forward more boldly and insist that his cuts be phased in more quickly and deeply.
     Bush could throw the ball over the heads of the media and straight to the American people by announcing that current circumstances demand more dramatic action. If he has the audacity and the will, he could use the events on Wall Street and the depressed mood to his great benefit, and to the country's. Ben Elliott, former head of the Reagan speechwriting department and now on Wall Street, has noted that "with markets being linked ever more closely, and the reverberations spreading ever faster and further, the new challenge to be nimble and flexible but also right applies not only to business leaders but [also] to political leaders."
     This could be another defining moment for Bush, a time when he seized the new terrain instead of letting it be filled by Tom Daschle, Olympia Snowe and rest of the timorous Senate.
     Bush and his people are making mistakes, and in time we'll know of some of them. All new crews in the White House make a million mistakes, but these people seem not to be making big ones - not yet. It continues to look as if the adults are in charge, and Bush is looking like a young man who's up to it - maybe more than up to it. I continue to wait for him to do something stupid or cynical so I can loudly disapprove of him and prove my ability to be objective within a context of obvious political sympathies and beliefs. But nine weeks in, I'm still waiting.

Friday, March 23, 2001, 1:47pm

     The Soviet space station Mir fell to Earth harmlessly early this morning. Well, almost harmlessly. Ananova reports that "a Taiwanese depressive has committed suicide because he couldn't cope with the suspense of where the Mir space station might crash."

Sigh.

Friday, March 23, 2001, 1:43pm

     Talk about a world in disbelief if this article holds any truth: Is second-hand smoke actually healthy? Okay, whoa. I guess one reinforcing fact in this study is that it was not conducted by our oh-so-wonderful American government, meaning that it might actually hold some truth. Now that I have established that... what does this mean for advocates of parents not smoking around their kids? Are our arguments just thrown out of the window? I still don't quite understand how second-hand smoke might not be a bad thing. Hmm. I guess it's just one of those things... like trying to computer 2 + 2 to get 5. You can change the rules of math if you want to, but 2 + 2 will always be 4 to me!

Friday, March 23, 2001, 1:38pm

     The San Francisco Chronicle reports that "San Jose, while trying to block construction of a new power plant, is set to approve a vast computer complex that could overwhelm California's already strained power grid." The world's largest "server farm," which won preliminary approval last week, "would drain about 150 megawatts of power from the state electricity grid. If granted final authorization on April 3, the $1.2 billion project would add the equivalent of about 150,000 homes to California's power system."
     Um, gee, that's a great idea. Let's force 250,000 people (probably many more) out of their homes! Don't hear me wrong, people, but don't be surprised to see central or eastern cities like Chicago, Atlanta, and New York picking up population where the west coast is slacking. As much as I would love to live in California - it's beautiful and the weather is awesome - I don't think I could handle such nonsense. Would anyone be upset if I called this ordeal political nonsense? Ugh. I'm not going into it. But... Nice one, California. Way to go...

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 7:42pm

     I deem this hour, the twentieth hour in the Eastern Time Zone of March twenty-second, the year two thousand one of our Lord, THE NEAL BOORTZ GREAT QUOTES Hour.


     This my favorite of the political quotations, and one of Neal's favorites. No, he wasn't writing about the United States. This quote is well over one hundred years old. Tyler was writing about the fall of the Athenian Republic.





     Mencken was a genius, and is unfortunately correct. I would be happy to support any movement(s) to correct the problems that his quotations above have outlined. I do not propose any form of coup, or overthrow of our government, but if it could be done correctly, I would propose the removal of nearly every politician from his respective office, a redefinition of many offices and a large portion of the structure of government, and replace all of that with qualified, uncorrupt men who actually care for the people as individuals and as a whole. There are enough men in the world for the jobs, but there is not enough resistance to the current system to initiate such a transition. Bah. Oh well. We may as well read of more problems with government...


     This is precisely the type of man that we need in government. One that is honest in that he says what he means and means what he says - and the people, the government being theirs to which to elect officials - would still elect that man. Choppy sentence? I don't care. You understand. :-)


     Another reason why I believe that the focus of today's politicians is on all the wrong issues. Individualism is one thing, selfishness is another, and there is a line between them.


     Mussolini would have been such a great man had his convictions been such that this quotation had those last three words removed and the word or moved back a couple... He makes such a wonderful argument for the State. Excuse me, Mr. Mussolini, but what about the State of the World? War is evil, and is not a necessary function of society. Period.


     Bitch.

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 5:20pm

     The Des Moines Register reports in this article that a man who wore a disguise and ordered a convenience store clerk to empty her cash register did not commit robbery. James Heard appealed the robbery conviction because it was a crime defined as theft committed during an assault or while putting someone in fear of "immediate serious injury." The Court of Appeals noted that the legal definition of robbery requires physical contact, a threatening gesture, or at least "nonverbal physical movement," and it reversed Heard's conviction of second-degree robbery. Neal Boortz: "There you have it, Iowa thieves. Take all the loot you want, but don't use force. Just ask nicely. Look for crime in Iowa to increase."

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 4:44pm

     Here's an article worth reading. The NBA's Rasheed Wallace was recently approached by a candy company inquiring about buying tattoo space on what is already a crowded billboard of human flesh. Wallace's agent responded: "I thought this [offer] was creative...and being a lawyer, I think it presented some interesting free-speech issues." A league spokesman rebutted: "We do not allow commercial advertising on our uniforms, our coaches, or our playing floors, so there's no reason to think we'll allow it on our players." Now I'm as disenchanted with hyper-materialism and ad creep as anyone I know, but this is one issue I don't think the NBA gets to decide... especially since it would appear to be based on the fact that there's no payoff for them in the deal.

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 4:24pm

     As anyone with half a brain could tell, I am nearly constantly changing and updating my site. Most people will only notice the content, for that is the site's main purpose. However, I alter the look of the site often too, although most of the time the changes are fairly subtle. You can see that I have moved the outside links from my left navmenu over to the right, so my site now has two navmenus. Right now, and although it may not always be the case, but generally speaking, the left navmenu will provide internal links (those sending you to other parts of my web page or my other online holdings), and the right navmenu will provide external links (those outside of my influence or control, such as sources of information and ideas). You will learn to love this, or you will die. Actually, you will eventually die anyway, unless you're one of those weird immortal superbeings.

     Now I feel like explaining the presence of my new navbar. The top section contains news and informative sites of some nature. The link to the official site of Major League Baseball should not surprise you. I absolutely love the game of baseball. I cannot begin to describe the impact that baseball has had on my life, except to say that it is huge! FOXNews is the best news source in existence. The FOXNews staff is fair and balanced, or more so than the so-called "Liberal Media," and while I do not allow such arguments any credibility, I do believe that FOXNews is the best news source. Aside from their fair and balanced news coverage, Bill O'Reilly and his O'Reilly Factor are good reasons to watch FOXNews. (Local Cox Cable subscribers, try channel 63 for your next news report, or the O'Reilly Factor at 8:00pm. So you know, O'Reilly don't take nothin' from nobody and ain't afraid to show it! Moving on... Neal Boortz is a loud-mouthed Libertarian and is very similar in many regards to Bill O'Reilly. He doesn't mind being offensive for the sake of the truth (like me!), and his only goal is to inform the American people of what is really going on (as is the goal of FOXNews). Take your pick, but both of those sites are equally informative, though the FOXNews site is a bit more professional. The Wall Street Journal's Opinion Journal can be very interesting to read at times, and not at others. This editorial section of the Wall Street Journals offers opinions as what the writers believe, not necessarily as the truth. Journalistic philosophy at its best, I think, even if I don't always agree with what they say! betanews is a good stop for some of the latest programs and applications in their brand-spanking-new form(s). However, a lot of what is available here either isn't ready, isn't what you're looking for, or is archived before you know it! I download about one out of every one hundred available downloads, I would say. slashdot is a geek site, for the most part - a site for news in technology - "news for nerds, stuff that matters." Kuro5hin (or K5) is totally a community edited site. It is based on technology and culture, and the users are responsible for writing and rating the articles. I'm not sure that this is necessarily the best thing there is, but in the primitive form of K5, this is an excellent idea with excellent potential!
     So now that I have justified the news sites, take a peak at the other sites. Those are weblogs. Yes, weblogs. Web-logs. You know, logs (or journals) on the web. The word is a word, despite staunch opposition to the fact, and I would like you to help spread the word. A bigger argument is for the word blog, a nonce word that has taken the meaning (as a verb) "to keep a weblog." Applying other conjugations to the word, one could say that blogging is "the act of keeping a weblog," or more precisely updating one. Tony provides the interesting argument that all words in the English language have some derivative, or have derived from some previous words. Hmm. Take a log on the web and call it a weblog. Update a weblog and call the process blogging. Use the word to the point that it becomes widely accepted, and it becomes a word. I will grant you one part of your argument Tony. You said that no word can be a word until/unless accepted by [insert that official English language association here]. Well, if such association exists, I will agree with you that no word is "officially" a word until accepted by that "official" group. However, by the American Heritage Dictionary's definition of a nonce word, "a word occurring, invented, or used just for a particular occasion," then words such as weblog and blog are very much words, even if they are simply nonce.
     Now why did I take that tangent?

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 9:59am

     I've always been the type of person that has been able to find something to do. If nothing approaches on the social front, I get online. I have found that turning on a television is probably the worst mistake, for it is more highly addictive than any drug out there, especially because it costs next to nothing to keep in comparison. Dependency on the television leads to a higher tolerance of it, much like drugs, and then when you have more important things to do, you can hardly tear yourself away from that nasty habit ... it just has you sucked in. Television is a drug.
     But that's not the point. The point is that there are always ways to do something. No social outlet at the moment? Get online. Write. Draw. Think. Sleep. Take pictures. Call your mom. Little, tiny things to keep the day flowing... There's no excuse to be bored - that only shows the minds incapacity for freedom of thought!

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 9:53am

     I have established a shrine to nickd. It has nothing to do with Neil or Adam keeping the place alive, although their quips are much better than the silence I would otherwise be dealing with. The first item to be worshipped in this shrine of mine is Apollor Four Forty's Electro Glide In Blue, music first suggested by Nick, then downloaded, then bought. This is perhaps one of the greatest musical albums of all time. Maybe. I guess it has to be your kind of music, though. Oh, and the reason why it is taking space in a shrine for nickd.org? Well, it's no simple coincidence that Nick recommended the music to me. You see, his nickname "BlueCalx" can be derived from the "Blue" that Apollo Four Forty has been obsessed with for years - and, in fact, that blue is very similar to the color of my dream car, a late 90's (or yet to be seen) Pontiac Grand Am GT - roughly 200 horsepower, good gas mileage, very comfortable - probably the best American car made year after year. Of course, if anyone would like to give me a Mustang, Ferrari, or any other beautiful gas-hog, I would not turn it down!
     Okay, my train of thought left me at the station. The next item to dive into my nickd.org shrine will be my plane ticket to Chicago, unless I get a Blue Man Group CD or DVD first. I do not own a DVD player yet, so any DVDs are unlikely for now. Nick needs to recommend a few more books and essays, such as Rand's The Virtue of Selfishness, so that I may stick them in there too. Maybe when this shrine has taken a nice, appealing shape and form, I'll allow you boys and girls to have a peek. As for now, a test on hard drives is screaming out.
     Have no fear - when I have more time than just ten minutes to write you something, I will let loose on my thoughts about Janice Daugharty and her book, Like A Sister. In the meantime, the book is a very quick read, so I suggest you go pick it up, or sit in a Barnes & Noble for about two hours, and read it so that you may know what I'm talking about when I bring it up. You also might want to give Whistle a try; I have not read Whistle, but it is about an excon working on a field who finds his boss's wife's murdered body - and knowing that his criminal record would lead people to believe that he killed her, he stashes the body. I believe the book then twists and turns through his head, asking if he did the right thing, will he be caught, and is there any way that he could be trusted if he were to come forward...? The book looks to be very good, and it seems to capture some of the problems of society, whether ancient and extinct or ancient and evolved. Hmm. Go read. :-)

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 1:37am

     Oh yeah. After taking a four hour nap, I put everything back in my pockets as usual ... except my wallet. Um, oops? Don't tell my dad - he wouldn't let me drive to school to meet Claire to get it back tomorrow! :-) So Claire has my wallet, my money, my gas card, my credit cards, someone's number (I can't remember whose), my IDs, and ... oh I hope she didn't find that. Good night bunnies. (Yes you.)

Thursday, March 22, 2001, 1:04am

     I have so much on my mind that I want to discuss, but I do not have time to discuss. Most of my ideas for discussion bear some significance in the fields of: politics, psychology, economics, religion, philosophy, science, and society in general. I would like to talk about racism a little more. I would like to talk about esteem. I would like to talk about writing. I would like to talk about the stock market's ... drop. I would like to challenge your conceptions, but in a very non-offensive sort of way. (If you are to be offended, then it is you that offend yourself, for I only speak my natural opinion and the truth, which by nature cannot be offensive. It can only be misinterpreted.) I would also like to talk about the ridiculousness and nonexistence of misinterpretation; the fact that I just used it as an excuse in those parentheses back there means nothing. (In other words, you can interpret anything in any way that you wish and it will not be incorrect - in your mind. This does not mean that the words coming out of my mind were offensive; it only means that the reactions incurred on your side were defensive.) Ooh, I like that. I also wanted to talk about Janice Daugharty and her book and our conversation, but that will have to wait. Hopefully the details won't slip away. No matter. I shall contact her fairly soon.
     Um, I also wanted to talk about how much I love Claire, but you guys don't want to hear any of that, which is why I didn't mention love and stuff. So, sorry, I can't talk about any of those things. I have to go to bed, sleep for eight hours, get up, go to school, get a psychology test back, take a test on hard drives, come home (or go to Claire's), go to Claire's (unless I didn't go home)... and then my day begins. Either way, I do not expect that you shall hear from me at all for the rest of the day, and it is looking like you may not hear from me on Friday either. That would be horrible.
Wednesday, March 21, 2001, 11:53pm

     I expected today to be a horrible day. I slept for about two hours last night due to a horribly timed research paper being due this morning, and I had to sit and listen to some author of some book that I read last week talk to us and such. I had no idea, however, that I would find so much to talk about and so much in common with that author, and by the time our hour was up, I had decided that I was not finished with her yet. For those of you that may care, Janice Daugharty has written several novels, only one of which I have read, that being Like A Sister (1999). From what I have read and from what she said today, I would say that the several of her novels and stories are set in her county in southern Georgia (that she gives a fictitious name, much like William Faulkner gave a fictitious name to a place that recurred frequently in his works). I do not want to say too much right now because I just walked in the door, and I have some strawberry shortcake sitting in front of me just daring me to eat it, but I will address Janice Daugharty and Like A Sister in greater detail later - possible tonight!

     Oh, and for all of you dwellers of the northern hemisphere, merry spring and stuff. I'm aiming this to anyone and everyone in particular: my writing(s?). That's right, I give my werd. I guess that means that I would like you to immerse yourself in any and all of the material on that page that interests you in the least. I have decided that, as the collection has grown and continues to grow, it will soon be necessary to reorganize the topics or sections of said page. If anyone has any brilliant ideas as to new labels for a group of my writings, feel free to drop a hint my way. I will probably split them into groups such as social, political, economic, psychological, philosophical, comical, etc... Ehh, it's a wide array of stuff. Yeah. Stuff.
     I'm glad Tony kicked me out. I almost didn't make it today. Thanks Tony.

Tuesday, March 20, 2001, 10:28pm

     Everyone go take Keirsey's Temperament Sorter right now. This is by far the most accurate personality quiz/test/examination I have ever taken. There are seventy (70) questions, two choices apiece, so it's not like they take all day to answer. If you are not sure or you are absolutely torn between two answers, then do like I did and don't answer it! I'll share my results of this quiz in a day or two. Right now I just want you to take it! (And share your results if you feel like it.)

     And just in case you don't remember, I have a huge research paper (trial 2 of 3) due tomorrow. It will be read by and criticized on Friday, at which point I will take all reactions to heart for the paper to be rewritten one last time by mid-April. Eh. No worries. :-) But this means that I have to go, and I will not be back for quite a while. Busy week, whee! Good night, my sex puppets.

Tuesday, March 20, 2001, 6:52pm

     Test two of three this week went fairly well this morning. I feel as though I may have actually gotten an A on this psychology test (B on the last one), which is good, because I really want A's in my Honors classes. That would impress. :-) As for my test over hard drives and stuff that I am going to take on Thursday, that's nothing. Hell week has turned out to be a bit overhyped, because the history research paper was no problem at all; I researched a little, fixed old mistakes, and in about four hours I had added seven hundred words to an almost seven-hundred-word paper. Subtract the paragraph that was completely reworked, and I've got about thirteen hundred words in that paper (not including semi-annotated footnotes). Take margins and double spacing into account, and that's (last I checked) six pages. Take into account the proofreading and revising session to take place later this evening, and I expect this paper - the greatest potential for stress this week - to fade as that which has caused me the least amount of stress.
     To be perfectly honest, the greatest stress of all this week, aside from having to sacrifice my time and not see Claire at all (that sucks), was, is, and will be registration for the Fall semester. I first found that I had to take 9:00 and 11:00 classes (MWF), and then I discovered that there was not a single 10:00 class that I could take to fit between them, leaving an hour open. That would really suck. After fishing around in the registrar's office this morning, I did find one class that wouldn't be a complete waste of time that had not been labeled properly in the schedule that I had downloaded last Friday. I also reluctantly signed up for Trimboli's Calculus III class. Don't read that wrong - I'm very eager to take Calculus III - but the class is twenty miles away at 6:00pm on Tuesday and Thursday nights. That means that I'll leave home at 5:15 to return at about 8:00 (at the earliest) - that's two twenty mile trips per day! Oh, did I mention that this means I will have to get a job? Not that I wasn't going to anyway, but now it is necessary! Ugh.
     I have not decided on registration for Summer classes yet, and I doubt that I'll take any, but it's an option to be considered. If I do not take any classes, I can work full-time for a couple months solid and really earn my schooling next semester. If I do take classes, then I can probably still work full-time, but I would have to work it around school, and I would likely not have time to actually enjoy myself. However, it seems to me that this is what life becomes during that transition from childhood to adulthood; you find yourself with less play more work. As long as I don't lose those other things that I hold dear - you know, Claire, Mike, Zach, Tony, mom, dad, family and friends, food and shelter, music, and my supply of caffeine - I do not expect my outlook on life to change. In fact, I don't expect my outlook to ever change, that, as an optimistic realist, things can and will happen, but I will always be able to interpret the good of it. I also have a touch of idealism in me, but that's the hipathetical side... so you know.
     I guess this is getting long enough. Before I conclude, I'll list my tentative Fall 2001 class schedule. The semester does not begin until August, so this is definitely subject to change, although I doubt that it will.

Number	Title	Hr	Class Time
3255	Systems Analysis and Design	3	M W F   09:00am-09:50am
2201	Business Computer Applications	3	M W F   10:00am-10:50am
1101H	HONORS American Government	3	M W F   11:00am-11:50am
21A2H	HONORS Humanities	3	T R     09:30am-10:45am
3261	Web Applications Development	3	T R     11:00am-12:15pm
2253	Calculus III	4	T R     06:00pm-07:45pm

Mmm, nineteen hours. That's an overload that required the signature of an advisor. Luckily I am an outstanding student, or so they say, so that was rather easy to get. I'm aware that course numbers are different depending on the school, but here at Macon State, classes less than 1000 are generally remedial, 1000-2999 are generally lower classes, 3000s are upper (generally electives toward major categories), and 4000s are upper (generally classes for a specific major). I guess this means that I am running out of lower-level electives to take. I believe that I am taking Physics II and Honors Economics next spring, Honors Sociology next fall, and perhaps one other elective to fill my core; otherwise the remainder of my college life will be spent on a major (or more than one?). Whee! Cheers to the real world.

Monday, March 19, 2001, 10:13pm

     Cruising through the EPA's site on Global Warming in science class today, I came across a few trends, such as the average land temperature rising about 1°F/.6°C, precipitation increasing by about 1%, and sea level rising about 8in/20cm - all in the last century. I was curious, so I checked the National Climatic Data Center's Global Warming section, and they said basically the same thing, adding that our planet is hotter than it has been in 1000 years, and that the warming in the last century is unprecendented in the last 1000 years. This is where I'm confused. Just how far back do these organizations' case studies go? And if they happen to be accurate, how do we know it's not just Mother Earth being bitchy? I know I go through phases...

Monday, March 19, 2001, 8:33pm

     Oh yes. This is supposed to be hell week for me. Novel read by today. Test today. Test tomorrow. Research for research paper today. Write research paper tomorrow for Wednesday. Another test Thursday. And as if I needed a bad start to a bad week, not only did I get no sleep last night, but I started my day by knocking over a shelf full of Tony's mom's porcelain (or something similar) birds. Luckily she wasn't upset because she had extras of those that I broke, but that didn't stop me from waiting in fear to tell her when she woke in the morning. Ugh.
     Okay, so the day really began in History, but that was normal, so I'll start in English. Dr. Wilson handed back some papers that we turned in before Spring Break. I was pleased to be handed my first A+ paper of my colle