In the Gloom, Some Levity...

This is shaping up to be a particularly gloomy day -- Terry Schiavo has been judicially murdered and our beloved Pontiff is said to be extremely ill, possibly to the point of death. Not to make light of any of that, but rather to inject a little bit of goodwill into the day, I am reproducing a portion of the OpinionJournal's Best of the Web Today.

I hope this makes all of you feel a little better, as it did me:

Dispatcher: Sheriff's department, how can I help you?
Caller: Yeah, I'm over here at Burger King, right here in San Clemente--
Dispatcher: Mm-hmm.
Caller: --um, no, not San Clemente, I'm sorry. Um, I live in San Clemente. I'm in Laguna Niguel, I think that's where I'm at.
Dispatcher: Uh-huh.
Caller: I'm at a drive-thru right now.
Dispatcher: Uh-huh.
Caller: I ordered my food three times. They're mopping the floor inside, and I understand they're busy. They're not even busy, OK, I've been the only car here. I asked them four different times to make me a Western Barbecue Burger. OK, they keep giving me a hamburger with lettuce, tomato and cheese, onions. And I said, I am not leaving.
Dispatcher: Uh-huh.
Caller: I want a Western Burger. Because I just got my kids from tae kwon do; they're hungry. I'm on my way home, and I live in San Clemente.
Dispatcher: Uh-huh.
Caller: OK, she gave me another hamburger. It's wrong. I said four times, I said, "I want it." She goes, "Can you go out and park in front?" I said, "No. I want my hamburger right." So then the lady came to the manager, or whoever she is--she came up and she said, um, "Did you want your money back?" And I said, "No. I want my hamburger. My kids are hungry, and I have to jump on the toll freeway [sic]." I said, "I am not leaving this spot," and I said I will call the police, because I want my Western Burger done right. Now is that so hard?
Dispatcher: OK, what exactly is it you want us to do for you?
Caller: Send an officer down here. I want them to make me the right--
Dispatcher: Ma'am, we're not going to go down there and enforce your Western Bacon Cheeseburger.
Caller: What am I supposed to do?
Dispatcher: This is between you and the manager. We're not going to go enforce how to make a hamburger. That's not a criminal issue. There's nothing criminal there.
Caller: So I just stand here--so I just sit here and block--
Dispatcher: You need to calmly and rationally speak to the manager and figure out what to do between you.
Caller: She did come up, and I said, "Can I please have my Western Burger?" She said, "I'm not dealing with it," and she walked away. Because they're mopping the floor and it's all full of suds, and they don't want to go through there, and--
Dispatcher: Ma'am, then I suggest you get your money back and go somewhere else. This is not a criminal issue. We can't go out there and make them make you a cheeseburger the way you want it.
Caller: Well, that is, that--you're supposed to be here to protect me.
Dispatcher: Well, what are we protecting you from, a wrong cheeseburger?
Caller: No. It's--
Dispatcher: Is this like, is this a harmful cheeseburger or something? I don't understand what you want us to do.
Caller: Well, just come down here! I'm not leaving!
Dispatcher: No, ma'am, I'm not sending the deputies down there over a cheeseburger! You need to go in there and act like an adult and either get your money back or go home.
Caller: I do not need to go. She is not acting like an adult herself. I'm sitting here in my car. I just want them to make my kid a Western Burger [unintelligible].
Dispatcher: Now this is what I suggest: I suggest you get your money back from the manager and you go on your way home.
Caller: OK.
Dispatcher: OK? Bye-bye.
Caller: No--
[click]

Link

What are Artificial Means, Anyway?

Reuters has a piece containing the following statement from Pope John Paul II:

'The administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act,' he said. Denying them this treatment would amount to 'euthanasia by omission.'

Reuters then proceeds to make the following statement:

The Catholic Church has traditionally taught that doctors and families could end artificial life-extending measures in good conscience if a dying patient's prospects seemed hopeless.

Reuters, of course is attempting to have you believe that Pope John Paul II is once again dragging the Catholic Church back to the pre-Reformation days and ignoring the progressives in its midst. Reuters would have you believe that the supply of nutrition and hydration is "artificial" if it is delivered via a tube, but "natural" if delivered with a fork and spoon. This seems to me to be a somewhat arbitrary and capricious distinction. Why is a tube artificial? Does this mean that astronauts who consume their food via straws are being kept alive artificially? I think not. Although I'm sure the bio-ethicists could and would come up with a deep philosophical definition of artificial, I think that that is so much sophistry. An "artificial" means of life support would include those methods that have no natural analog. Therefore, a heart-lung machine and a dialysis machine are artificial; there are no natural analogs to these devices. A feeding tube, however, is natural, inasmuch as it does possess a natural analog: the aforementioned eating utensils or even one's own hands. It is not different in kind, just different in methodology.

As much as Reuters tries to spin this topic by the use of quotes from Jesuit priests who don't agree with the Pope, its not going to change the Church's essential position on this issue.

Link

Sadness for the Pope?

According to reports, Pope John Paul II attempted, but failed to read aloud a blessing to the assembled faithful at St. Peter's Square. On one level, we share with sadness the Pope's own evident frustration at his inability to do what he does best -- communicate. On another level, however, we should rejoice in sharing the world with this man, for despite his inability to speak, he is still communicating as forcefully for the good as ever. While we in the United States have been deluged with the sad story of Terry Schiavo and the evil of those who would choose death for her over life, Pope John Paul II continues his own testimony as to the value of human life, even life that is ravaged by disease and disability. No one can dispute the iron will that still drives the frail body.

If it is sadness that we feel, it is the sadness of impending loss (whenever that day inevitably comes). However, it is my hope that we should be more like Mary Magdalene, who weeping for the death of the Messiah, was asked by the Messiah himself why she was crying -- leading to revelation. We shall find that Pope John Paul II will have himself gone on to his rightful honor in a happier place and that he will have left this world a better place for those of us who remain.

Link

Another Reuters Attempted Hatchet Job on the President

"Reuters" is at it again, spewing "outrage" over the length of time it has taken for President Bush to comment on the Red Lake school shootings. For a news organization that doesn't care a whit about what the President says on any topic that matters, this is pretty lame. Are they saying that nothing matters until the President comments on it? I don't think it takes a rocket scientist to note that EVERYONE was appalled at what happened; it certainly does not take any commentary from the President to make it so.

No, this is another attempt by Reuters to cast the President in a bad light, insinuating that if this had happened at a Texas school, he would have even gone to the site. But, because this happened at an Indian school (I am specifically not using the term Native American, here, because these peoples are no more (or less) native to the Americas than any of us), it is cast as racism.

Get over it Reuters.

Link

The Ultimate in Making Tracks

Now here's the ultimate in Making Tracks! (Mars Rover) (From CNET News.com)

Link

Techno Hackery

This story is another example of the hubris amongst much of the techno-elite. These individuals believe that rules are only for those who don't have the power to break them. The programmers in question have come up with a hack that allows them to access Apple's iTunes store and download music that lacks Apple's copy protection. Apple makes its terms and conditions very plain to read (even if most users don't). One of those terms is to accept the copy protection.

However, the hackers come up with all sorts of explanations for why they do what they do: "it's legal in MY country"; "Apple includes 2 layers of security, so, hey, if I leave one layer out, its ok"; etc....

They can rationalize all they want, but what they are doing is stealing -- plain and simple. It's a shame that society's moral compass has drifted so far off North that so many fail to see theft for what it is.

Link

Poetic Justice?

Barry Bonds fears that he may miss the entire 2005 baseball season due to a recurring knee injury. Given his attitude about things, I will not be shedding too many tears for him.

Link

Another Democratic End Run Blocked

The Supreme Court today denied certiorari in a pair of cases involving the President's ability to make judicial appointments when the Senate is in recess. At issue is Article 2, Sec. 2, Cl. 3 of the U.S. Constitution, to wit:

The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.

This clause does not indicate how it must come to pass that the Senate is in recess, only that it be so. It does not specify that the Senate be formally adjourned.

Of course, the Democrats are trying to make some political hay out of the recess appointments of Charles Pickering and William Pryor to the Federal Circuit bench after the Senate Democrats filibustered efforts to get an up or down vote on these men. The Democrats hope that eventually the Supreme Court will put a restrictive reading on the meaning of the term "recess" such that the only time a President could make a recess appointment would be when the Senate has adjourned for the final time at the end of a session of Congress. Since recess appointments last only until the end of the Congressional session, this would completely gut the power.

Justice Stevens telegraphs where at least the liberal wing of the Court would go with this when the case reaches the Court following disposition by all lower courts:

"It would be a mistake to assume that our disposition of this petition constitutes a decision on the merits of whether the president has the constitutional authority to fill future (judicial) vacancies, such as vacancies on this court," Stevens wrote.

I hope at least 5 Justices disagree with Justice Stevens.

Link

What Will They Think of Next?

Here's a story about a guy who blogs using ... paper! What a concept! He could call this sort of thing a diary, copyright it and make a mint!

Link

Schiavo Legislation Signed by President Bush

President Bush early this morning signed the legislation allowing a federal judge to hear the Terri Schiavo matter. Still too early to tell what will come of this, but at least it opens some doors that were previously unavailable.

In a post about this, Michelle Malkin notes that a couple of bloggers (Xrlq and NZPundit) have located Florida's statutory definition of persistent vegetative state, which I reproduce below:

“Persistent vegetative state” means a permanent and irreversible condition of unconsciousness in which there is:

(a) The absence of voluntary action or cognitive behavior of any kind.

(b) An inability to communicate or interact purposefully with the environment.

Now, I am not a doctor and my reaction is based solely on about 15 seconds of video that I have seen of Terri Schiavo (and I don't know when it was shot), but if the video is representative of Mrs. Schiavo's current condition, it sure seems to me that she does not meet at least subsection (a) of the statute. At the very least, there should, in cases like this, be a presumption that any ambiguities will be resolved in favor of life. I hope the Federal Courts see it that way, too.

Link

The Erosion of Local Control

Congress has acted in the Schiavo case. While I applaud the action of the national legislature in this specific case, I lament that Congressional power was necessary to fill the void left by the State of Florida's in/misactions in this case. There is an old legal saying that hard cases make bad law. I fear that this may be true here: conservatives have spent decades trying to get the Federal Government out of local matters; now conservatives, pursuing an undeniably just cause, have allowed the camel's nose under the tent flap. Who's to say where this will end. At it's worst, it could result in the end of the concept of sovereign U.S. states once and for all.

All because one state chose to abdicate its role as protector of the innocent and helpless .

[Post

Sick Headline Writing --"Yahoo! News - Schiavo Spending First Full Day Off Tube"

How sick is this? AP carries a headline about Terry Schiavo: Yahoo! News - Schiavo Spending First Full Day Off Tube. They make it sound like she's spending the first day of vacation or something else enjoyable, not being murdered.

How about the following headline: "Schiavo on First Day of Starving to Death"? That's a bit more accurate.

Link

Iran with Cruise Missiles

Great.

Link

FireFox Gets Another Boost

Firefox is getting another boost, this time from Yahoo. As those of us who use Firefox extensively know, Yahoo products are a bit spotty with the browser. For instance, Yahoo Messenger does not work with Firefox currently. Yahoo has now pledged to include Firefox to its supported browsers which will make it easier for all of us.

Link

Toys R Us

I think everyone who thinks that the impending purchase of Toys R Us by a consortium of investment capital firms will result in the saving of the company is crazy. I will bet that the company will be broken up within a couple of years and sold for its real estate.

Link

ANWR -- Open for Business

The Senate's action in moving to allow oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) seems hopeful. After all, with oil prices hitting an all time (nominal) high yesterday, it would seem that this would be a no-brainer. Not so, unfortunately. There are a lot of people out there more worried about potential harm to a bunch of caribou than about inner city kids freezing to death because their parents can't afford heating oil or natural gas. I'd like to see some studies about the horrific impact the Alaska Pipeline (remember that? You probably won't unless you are at least 35) has had on wildlife. I doubt anyone can produce such a study (at least a serious one) because the pipeline has had almost no impact on wildlife. Why should the ANWR drilling be any different?

Link

Don't Hire Me to Make Your Stock Picks...

I actually had a buy order in for Ebay on the day it went public...but I told my broker not to go higher than $17-18 (the IPO strike price was about $13, if I recall correctly). It closed that day at about $60. One share purchased that day for $60 is now probably worth more than $1,200 (after splits).

I also once considered purchasing KMart at $30, but figured it was overvalued.

Whoops!

Link

"Senators Reassure Bloggers". Then Why Am I Not Reassured?

Senators McCain and Feingold rushed to reassure bloggers today that they will not be prohibited from posting on political topics by the McCain-Feingold Campaign "Reform" Act. That's all well and good, but the decision whether blogging can be regulated is no longer the Senators' to make -- it rests with the Federal Elections Commission and the Federal Courts, both of which have been known to, shall we say, improvise from time to time.

The chickens are definitely coming home to roost and we all potentially will pay the price with our hard won freedoms.

Link

Are We Losing the PR War?

Dr. Demarche has a roundup of Iranian anti-American propaganda videos and notes that we are quite possibly losing the public relations battle with the Enemy. I agree with the good Doctor that the United States needs to take this more seriously and counter the propaganda being directed against us.

Link

Lost?

Apparently Americans are not taking to in-car navigation systems like they are in other parts of the world. Gizmodo reports that only 300,000 vehicles with such units were sold (including aftermarket) of the 17,000,000 or so vehicles sold last year. I was one of the 300,000 in my company vehicle and think these things are the greatest. They are only going to get better as they add real-time traffic information from XM Traffic, where the traffic info is beamed into the car along with the XM broadcast. How cool is that?

Link

Reuters -- Completely Irresponsible Reporting

In what has to be one of the most irresponsible texts ever attempting to pass itself off as a news story, Reuters this morning has completely signed on to Eason Jordan's team:

"ROME (Reuters) - Italian hostage Giuliana Sgrena, shot and wounded after being freed in Iraq (news - web sites), said Sunday U.S. forces may have deliberately targeted her because Washington opposed Italy's policy of dealing with kidnappers."

Subsequently in the article, however, Reuters states that "[Sgrena] offered no evidence for her claim" but that "it was possible the soldiers had targeted her because Washington opposes Italy's dealings with kidnappers that may include ransom payments."

Perhaps an explanation for this becomes apparent when we learn the ideology of the paper for which Sgrena writes: a communist daily. I haven't read this paper (and probably could not, since I can't read/speak Italian), but I am going to take a wild guess that the editorial policy thereof has never been particularly in favor of the U.S. policy in Iraq.

What is appalling is that Sgrena would use the death of an Italian serviceman or intelligence agent and make the claim, with admittedly no evidence supporting her assertion, that the U.S. targeted her. Italians should be shrieking at her for using the death of an Italian hero for political hay. Reuters should be similarly castigated.

Finally, the headline itself is designed to make it appear that the Italian government has bought into Sgrena's sick theory: "Italy Rejects U.S. Version of Iraq Shooting". This headline is irresponsible in that nowhere in the article is there an indication that the Italian government disputes the version of events issued by the U.S. military. The article quotes a couple of ministers, both holding minor posts in the government, and even then neither official claims that the U.S. deliberately targeted this so-called journalist for execution. There probably are private citizens who believe this tripe, but if that is the most support there is for this nonsense and that is how it looks, the headline should read "Italians Reject U.S. Version of Iraq Shooting."

There really is no vilification extreme enough for Reuters. If McCain Feingold is designed to limit partisan speech, Reuters is far more offensive than bloggers.

UPDATE: Someone must have applied some heat to Reuters as they have somewhat altered the original article. Now, they have Sgrena backpedaling with the following statement:

"You could characterise as an ambush what happens when you are showered with gunfire. If this happened because of a lack of information or deliberately, I don't know, but even if it was due to a lack of information it is unacceptable."

Frankly, I don't care. Reuters is on a political mission and should be treated as partisan advertising for the Democratic Party.

UPDATE 2: Now that I am doing my late-day blog scan, I see that Michelle Malkin posted on this topic a couple of hours before I weighed in this morning, and to much the same effect. Good; I'm glad she got this topic out there, particularly about how everyone is ignoring Sgrena's political affiliations. Perhaps we should start a rumor that Sgrena set this whole thing up to make the U.S. look bad? That's probably more plausible than the Army targeting her specifically...

Link

The Homer in Me Showing

I am from Detroit. The city does not always make me proud, but it is home, no matter where I happen to live. Few cities can compete with Detroit, however, for its all around sports. I will always be a Detroit Tigers, Red Wings, Pistons and Lions fan. ALWAYS.

That being said, the Lions, which have mucho room under the salary cap for next year are not making a big splash yet in the free agency market. Given the success of Millen / Mariucci in the free agency and draft market last year (conceded by most to have been the most successful), I am prepared to wait and see. However, our collective patience grows thin; the team must be playoff competitive this year or heads are gonna roll!

Link

WinFS To Be Available on Windows XP

Microsoft Watch notes that WinFS will likely be available on Windows XP. OK, so it joins Indigo, Avalon and Fundamentals in that respect; in other words, all the eagerly anticipated technologies that are to be the Longhorn release of Windows will be available for WinXP.

Why bother with upgrading?

Link

Where have you gone, alt-ctrl-del????

That's a very good question. The answer: the gwhizkids family is getting ready for a move from the sunny (and mostly warm) southern US to the colder climes of western New England. While this move won't be happening until the gwhizkids-kids are done with school in May, there is much to be done. Not to mention that gwhizkids has a new job...

All that being said, I expect blogging to continue to be light, except for brief periods of inspirations coinciding with infrequent free time (say 1-2 posts per day?)

Now, all that could change if my supposed sidekick Trajan would stop driving around in that Caddie of his and actually sit down and post something...

Link

What People Will Do to Win a Bet

This article details how 2 University of Georgia students decided to walk about 60 miles in 36 hours... just to win a $50 bet.

Who said our universities were not turning out intelligent people?

Link