Brilliant wordiness of the year…

It’s the wrap up of 2006 and to sum up social commentary:

“Maximizing efficiency with no regard for social norms.”

Back to elementary school…

Sent of me by Dani, here’s a short but sweet flash game….a bit of violent humor for the 7 year old in us.
Throwing rocks at boys

Ding Dong, the [$%&%] is Dead….

At 6am in Iraq (12/30/2006), 3am GMT (12/30/2006), 10pm EST (12/29/2006), Saddam Hussein was executed by hanging for crimes against humanity for the deaths of 143 people in the village of Dujail in 1982. May those who died by his actions find this to be justice in their name.
News articles from NYT, Al Jazeera, BBC and CNN are here.
But even when dead he’s a pain in the ass. What to do with the body is a big question now, as in death he may become a martyr and his grave would most definitely become a rallying point. Personally, I believe that the body should be cremated and the ashes scattered over hundred of miles to at least remove a physical rallying point for further conflict. Of course, the execution itself may become one, but whether that will unfold is something we’ll have to wait and see.

UPDATE: Saddam is getting a proper burial in Awja (near Tikrit), his home village. Whether the grave and the execution be a catalyst for future violence is still uncertain. Though it is quite evident that the violence rages on in Iraq, unabated.

Yarn Madness…

You know that you may have the tiniest bit of an obsession with yarn if….

….you have determined that you can place all the balls, spools, skeins, and hanks of yarn on the floor of your bedroom and cover the entire floor. And roll around in the utter softness!

….someone points out that breaking your yarn habit would pay for a substantial portion of a motorcycle.

….running out of yarn makes you eager to finish the project because you can buy more yarn.

….non-knitting friends have considered if they need to stage an “intervention”

….you and your knitting friends have formed a “stash limiter” support group.

….online drooling over the latest colorways of your favorite alpaca and/or merinos is not an unusual thing for you.

….monthly budgeting of expenses goes in order: rent, utilities, and tied for third is food and yarn.

….you ask your well-traveled friend to stop at the local yarn store abroad. And then proceed to send him a power point presentation showing pictures of the yarns by type, color, and catalogue number.

….that same friend returns from abroad with more yarn than the distance between New York City and San Francisco. In a very large duffle bag. Taking more than 50% of his luggage.

Enjoy! And yes, some (not all!!) of these points have actually happened to me.

If you eat Bessie, will you eat Bessie II too?

The Food and Drug Administration gave a preliminary ok for the use of cloned animals as a source of meat and milk on thursday. Here’s the article.

Now, I’m not going to say animal products are good or bad; that’s up to you. I’m just interested in the use of cloning for meat and milk. Please keep in mind that genetic engineering has been in use in plant based foods for generations. Corn, wheat, and rice all have been cross bred for specific yields and durability, this being a cornerstone of the “Green Revolution” of the 60’s.
If we are willing consumers of modified crops, what the difference with cloned animals? In fact, an argument can be made that the clones are more “pure” as they haven’t been modified; just copied.
So tell me, will you eat Bessie I and Bessie II?

And there were four…

The 38th President of the United States, Gerald R. Ford, died this week.

One of our more underappreciated Presidents, he was one of the few politicians who will be remembered for taking the actions to forgive and heal a nation divided by the Vietnam war and Watergate against personal/political gain. His decision was a lonely one, and we realize now, the right one.
President Ford – To you, our thanks and gratitude. May more follow your path. Au revoir, sir, and rest in peace.

For the Materialist in us…

One of my girlfriends sent me this link, knowing my love of shoes….

Video attributed to Liam Sullivan….

Au Revoir, James Brown…

James Brown, aka, the “Godfather of Soul” died this morning.

From http://www.thesimpsons.com/

Here’s a toast to a man who’s musical influence lasted for decades and will resonate for decades more.

Will wonders never cease….

President Bush reads the newspaper??

I wonder how many people will be getting this for the holidays?

Ladies and gents…. here’s a gift giving idea for y’all….