I had an idea in Physics today. I decided to start a political weblog. I’m hoping to get it launched by tomorrow so I have some mad coding to do.
If you love me, you’ll buy me something
Republicans Playing Hardball
It seems that the Republicans are playing hardball in West Virginia and Arkansas or at least according to the Kerry Camp. It also appears that the liberals have divulged all of their secret plans to the Republican National Committee. Hasn’t this happened before (except the other way around)?
Presidential Debates
The first presidential debate is next thursday, the 30th. It takes place at the University of Florida and starts at 6:00. Foreign policy and domestic security will be covered.
Ode to Bus Stop Rants
Bus stop rants… There is so much to say about these wonderful yet pointless necessities of public transportation but words cannot begin to describe them. If you have ever ridden a bus, you probably know what I’m talking about.
Yes, that drunk guy with the greasy hair and the long beard truly makes the bus experience worthwhile. First, there is some great entertainment while waiting for a bus or even while you’re on one. Also, there is some great knowledge to be learned from these inspirational transients. One of my favorites was this man I was sitting across from on the 34.
“Don’t talk to me, don’t touch me, it’s against United States Law … It has been known to cause assault and even murder … It’s like me coming up to you saying hello and you shooting me with a shotgun.”
At first I thought he was talking to some woman but when she got off the bus, he kept going. I still have no idea what “it” was.
There was another one today while I was sitting, waiting to catch the 150 home. I was listening to music so I couldn’t quite make out what he was saying. I could pick out a couple things though. “THIS IS CALIFORNIA MAN!! … Man, they already **mumble off** why the @#$% do they want to get married?!?!” I could only wonder if he was talking about homosexual marraige. This man was especially inebriated, not only could I smell the beer from where I was sitting +15 feet away, he was smoking, and not just tobacco.
Anyways, bus rides would not be bus rides without these important men and women that make up the wonderful experience that is ranting on public transportation. By the way, here is the bus stop.
How democratic…
Wow, I didn’t realize how democratic a school could be… We had our first “crime” at school on Friday, vandalism. Vandalism would generally be a miniscule incident at a school with 1000+ people, but in a tightly knit community of approximately 200 people and a new school, it can be a real problem.
The broken window theory could be used to explain the seriousness taken by both the Dean of Students and the Principal.
The researchers did a test. They took a nice car, like a Jaguar, and parked it in the South Bronx in New York. They retreated back to a duck blind, and watched to see what would happen. They left the car parked there for something like four days, and nothing happened. It wasn’t touched. So they went up and broke a little window on the side, and went back to the blind. In something like four hours, the car was turned upside down, torched, and stripped — the whole works.
The part that impressed me most was, in the morning, after we had our “community meeting” about the incident, we broke up into smaller groups to discuss what steps could be taken to track down the culprit, prevent an event like this from happening again and a proper punishment that should be given to the student(s). We brainstormed on a couple ideas and the staff member that was advising us reported back to the administration. The administration then took the data and synthesized it and reported back to us later in the day.
It amazes me because I have never seen this on such a large scale. I have had many classes where the students, with help from the teacher, draw up a “Class Constitution” and each student has to sign a contract that says they will adhere to all the guidelines outlined but I would’ve never thought it would be in such a large scale as used earlier today at school.
Parent Categories
Is it just me or does movable type 3.1 not rebuild parent categories?
It was Genocide After-all
Mr. Powell stated today that what happened in Darfur, Sudan is, in fact, considered genocide. Up to 50,000 people are thought to have been killed and more than 1 million people have fled there homes.
“We concluded that genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the government of Sudan and the Janjaweed bear responsibility and genocide may still be occurring.”
Three quarters of the, approximately, 1,800 refugees interviewed about this conflict said that the Sudanese military was involved. 10 years ago, the UN failed to stop genocide in Rwanda so who knows what could happen here.
School…
School started yesterday, and all the underaged bloggers are posting about it. I, falling under that category, am obliged to at least spend a little time on the subject. This might as well kill two birds with one stone and be my universal answer to the question “How is your new school Chris?”
As I hinted at in a previous post, I am going to a different school than all my friends. The school itself is also new. It focusses on international studies with an emphasis on project based learning. There is a lot of stuff to do with the United Nations, border studies, that sort of stuff. In 11th grade, there is an internship program and they are trying to set up an exchange program so students can study abroad.
So far it’s been excessively boring, but the beginning of school is always boring. I have 3 classes, so it’s structured kind of weird. 2 of my classes take up two periods, but they also cover two different subjects. The student body is interesting, to say the least. Nobody knows anybody else, except for the people that went to the middle school that feeds into the different “High Tech” schools.
I will have a “Digital Portfolio” in a few weeks with all my projects and work, nice and neatly laid out in a beautifully designed, XHTML compliant site.
Yay for ecto 2!
Adriaan released the ecto 2 public beta today. Overall, a very good upgrade, but there is one problem that I’ve found.
I can’t seem to figure out how to change the Formatting (I usually use Markdown with Smartypants to format my entries). When it changes to html mode, the formatting menu is still grayed out, just as if it were in Rich Text mode.
Overall, it’s a very good upgrade. It needs work, but what can you expect from a beta project. I’m expecting great things out of this.
Update: Figured a quick fix out. Go to the preferences window, in the editing tab, change the “Default Mode” menu to HTML.
Assault Weapons to be Legalized?
That’s right! Or at least unless the President extends the ten year ban on assault weapons that has angered pro-Gun folks and the NRA. On September 13th, many parts of the “Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994″ are set to expire, specifically the Federal Assault Weapons ban.
California has strict regulations on assault weapons. Many people claim that the categories in California’s definition of an assault weapon are so vague that it is hard to tell what is banned.
Sources
Zell Miller on Hardball
Zell Miller on Hardball. The one I mentioned on the previous post. via Jess’ Blog
Republican National Convention’s Memorable Quotes
- “Senator Kerry has made it clear that he would use military force only if approved by the United Nations.” — Zell Miller
- “U.S. forces armed with what? Spitballs?” — Zell Miller
- “Get out of my face. If you are going to ask me a question, step back and let me answer. I wish we lived in the day where you could challenge a person to a duel.” — Zell Miller (to “Hardball” host Chris Matthews)
- “This is like winning an Oscar! …As if I would know! Speaking of acting, one of my movies was called “True Lies.” It’s what the Democrats should have called their convention.” — Arnold Schwarzenegger
- “I remember watching the Nixon and Humphrey presidential race on TV … I heard Humphrey saying things that sounded like socialism, which is what I had just left. But then I heard Nixon speak … Listening to Nixon speak sounded more like a breath of fresh air. I said to my friend, “What party is he?” My friend said, “He’s a Republican.” I said, “Then I am a Republican!” And I’ve been a Republican ever since!” — Arnold Schwarzenegger
- “To those critics who are so pessimistic about our economy, I say: ‘Don’t be economic girlie men!’” — Arnold Schwarzenegger
- “But, contrary to what you might read in the papers… our parents are actually pretty cool. They do know the difference between mono… and Bono. When we tell them we’re going to see Outkast, they know it’s a band… and not a bunch of misfits. And, if we really beg them, they will even ‘Shake it Like a Polaroid Picture’” — Jenna Bush
- “You know all those times when you were growing up and your parents embarrassed you? Well, this is payback time … on LIVE TV!!!” — Jenna Bush
Sources 1. Text of Zell Millers Speach at the RNC 2. Miller objects to ‘Hardball’ questioner 3. Text of Schwarzenegger’s Speech at RNC 4. Text Transcript of Bush Daughters – Jenna and Barbara
St. Peter, the Vatican, and Devastation
On Sunday I took a grand trip around San Diego county. One could call it a pilgrimage due to the fact that the escapade was entirely faith-based.
A two hour drive up through Julian brought us to Whispering Winds, a Catholic retreat devastated by the Wildfires last October. I had been there on retreat twice with my family, but now it was completely different. What used to be a forrest on a hill is now a barren, blackened mound of ash and dirt. What was formerly an outdoor chapel in the was devastated and turned into a temporary parking lot for the four hundred people expected to show up for the grand reopening mass.
We got there early so we could get good seats at mass and just take a look around. What we saw was nothing we remembered. There were few trees in the camp, formerly in what one could almost call a forrest. Most buildings were gone and replaced with temporary structures. The one thing that remained was Mary. The Union Tribune put it very well by saying…
Mary was spared. The fire danced around the statue of the mother of Jesus, leaving a scorched ring as if it were a grim calling card that hell had paid a visit.
Well, actually you have to see it, the fire came within 10 yards of the area that is commonly called “Mary’s Grotto”.
The actual mass was so large that there were people sitting outside and behind parked cars to listen. Needless to say, it was 80+ degrees, inland. The water supply had a high algae content and was unfit for drinking purposes. Luckily there were jugs of water that they brought in.
At the conclusion of the mass, there were the thank you’s and then a free lunch. We couldn’t make ourselves cozy though, we had to head back into the city in order to pick up our 3P.M. tickets for “St. Peter & the Vatican” at the San Diego Art Museum.
St. Peter and the Vatican was long but interesting. They had tons of drawings, plans, and holy pieces on display. It was crazy, there were plans for the original Basilica, and they were in better condition than the United States constitution. It takes you through the time of St. Peter, all the way through modern times.
Something that I thought was very interesting was the process in which a new Pope is initiated. It’s just one thing after another, seems like it could take hours. Some other things I found interesting were the “liturgical drinking straws” and the “papal snuffbox”. What could a liturgical drinking straw be used for?
And that was the conclusion of the day…
2600 founder arrested
Emmanuel Goldstein was arrested yesterday. Currently, there isn’t much information on it, but it looks like he was a videotaping a protest on 16th street, in New York you dorks.
Update: 2600 has posted about the incident. It seems he, along with about 150 other people, is being charged with “parading without a permit.”