massdestruction

Bush is French. Bush is an Existentialist.

The other day President Bush (the lesser) quoted Albert Camus while talking in Brussels. Now we have to give the most powerful imbecile a little bit of credit - he did pronounce Camus' name correctly (Kə-Mu) but one has to wonder if he was either reading Cliff's Notes, or someone else told him to use the line. I'm voting for the second scenario since Mr. Bush admitted he didn't read.

So what's the big deal? The quote is a nice one. As Bush related it:

"Albert Camus said that 'Freedom is a long-distance race, We're in that race for the duration and there is reason for optimism."

See, nice. I'd agree with the sentiment. However, if we move past the Cliff's Notes version (I don't think they do a Camus publication) we see that the quote actually reads more ominously in its full incarnation:

"I didn't know that freedom is not a reward or a decoration that is celebrated with Champagne. Nor yet a gift, a box of dainties designed to make you lick your chops. Oh, no! It's a choice, on the contrary and a long-distance race, quite solitary and very exhausting. No Champagne. No friends raising their glasses as they look at you affectionately. Alone in a forbidding room, alone in the prisoner's box before the judges, and alone to decide in face of oneself or in the face of others' judgment. At the end of all freedom is a court sentence; that's why freedom is too heavy to bear, especially when you're down with a fever, or are distressed, or love nobody."

Um... yeah. I would agree more with Bush's version to some extent. However this is the same man who, on more than one occasion, has complained about the press taking him out of context. Most recently he was shown as saying (on the recording about his marijuana use) about the press "They just float sewer out there." Well, I'm not sure exactly what he was trying to say but I am assuming he is saying that the press makes up stuff - or misquotes stuff. So perhaps if he decides to use the work of a French Existentialist he should be sure that his aides actually read the work first.

My favorite Camus quote:

Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal.

My favorite Bush quote:

Gosh, I just don't think I ever said I'm not worried about Osama bin Laden. It's kind of one of those exaggerations.

You see... we wrote this book. along time ago..

Another woman filed suit against Koko today and this report brings up a couple of issues in my small understanding of the law. In this new filing there is the report that

"...Koko was communicating by sign language that she wants to see your nipples".

OK so someone very close to the case <cough> informs me that perhaps Koko's vocabulary is about 10 words, not 1,000 words. If this is a claim to be made in this case is it possible that Koko would need to take the stand?

Can Koko take the stand? What does the law say? Is there anything about a witness being a human? Does the presence of language skills change the situation? Can the court be satisfied with the translation of Koko's sign language?

Here's my dream scenario:

<Bailiff> Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?

[interpretation]

<Koko> What is God?

<Judge> Council! In my chambers!

I really want a courtroom pass.

Koko fetish

I am sure most of you are familiar with the legal case filed against Koko the Gorilla but the thing that brings this story close to my heart is the lawyer who filed the suit. Steve is an old college buddy of mine and it always freaks me out to see people I knew then on TV (and no, Steve is not the first college buddy to be on TV¹). Seeing people from college talking about gorillas who like to see nipples doesn't freak me out at all - that's normal for my college friends, that's why they're my friends.

Can you say "courtroom passes?"

¹ Nationally broadcast T.V. shows my college buddies have been on (that I know of) Updated!

• Sesame Street
• Late Show with David Letterman
• Late Night with Conan O'Brien
• Tonight Show with Jay Leno
• Good Morning America
• Today Show
• Wolf Blitzer Reports
• Saturday Night Live
• The Daily Show
• The Jenny McCarthy Show
• Fox News magazine
• VH1's I Love the 80s

If you are an old college buddy and have been on a Nationally broadcast tv show not listed, please let me know.

Libros

This week's PAW entry is from an earlier interest of mine attempt photgraphing old books with overblown highlights. I had tried doing this before and have many negatives of those other attempts but I never thought I had nailed it. Today, with my digital camera, I tried again and think I am getting closer. I like this one.

Why dogs rule

If I were preparing dinner for any person I currently know I am sure that if I were to drop it on a not-as-clean-as-it-should-be floor and then gathered it all into one pile with my decidedly-unclean foot they would not dive-in nose first to eat it up, and thus clean it up for me.

Dogs rule.

The speed of regression

Havoc, I so made that point back in 1998. I also made the point more succinctly, and in less words than you.

I'm a pro

I now have two nieces named Caroline. I now have eight nieces/nephews. You will find very few people more professional at being an Uncle than me.

An uncool confession

I always liked the idea of Hunter S. Thompson more than I liked his writing. Truth be told, I never liked anything I read of his. I certainly understand his place in literature/journalism, his place in culture, and his impression on our society but I just never liked his seemingly endless accounts of halucinations. I'd take Kerouac any day for my reading. Perhaps they occupied different places, but I discovered at the same time (high school). My opinions notwithstanding, it is sad that he is gone, sadder still he has left in such a way. So long Duke.

The Fifth Sentence

I thought I would continue the meme I stumbled on reading jfleck's blog

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.
5. Don't search around and look for the "coolest" book you can find. Do what’s actually next to you.

My entry:

So it is with Christianity.

In all honestly the closest book to me at this moment is a book called Parables of Kierkegaard, a collection by Editor Thomas Oden of Søren Kierkegaard's stories and short thoughts. I picked up this book after reading the section in the beginning of Richard Rhodes' The Making of the Atomic Bomb about Niels Bohr. One of the things that strikes me about most of the major players in early 20th century physics is how well educated they were in other disciplines and took many cues from things such as philosophy. Most of the engineers, scientists, and coders I know do no such thing. Rather, they tend to pick one thing and repeat it incessantly. It strikes me as an interesting juxtaposition.

Olympus

I think Olympus has turned into one of the most confusing companies making digital gadgets today. On the one hand they create the m:robe which is critically laughed at and then spend the stupid amounts of cash on advertising it on the superbowl so it can be universally laughed at. Oh, and note the website URL olympusgroove.com. Oh yeah, when I think Olympus, I think groooooovin'!

On the other hand, here is a company that has just announced two lenses for their digital SLR cameras: 35mm equivalents of 28-70 and 70-200 which both have a constant f/2.0 through the range. In layman's terms thats two lenses that give the user what is a more than full range of magnification with the ability to handle very low light situations - its quite astonishing.

In a more contained way we can see this odd duality from the company in just one of their new cameras. The E300 "Evolt" is one of the smallest and most advanced SLRs I have seen. It looks to be a great camera at a great size and yet they decided to call it the "Evolt". The "Evolt"? Give me a break.

Maybe its a company of decent engineers being run by a lunatic - that seems to happen a lot.

Texas

I find myself taking great interest in the way commercials get singers to try to sound as much like a current star as possible. For example, the endless stream of Sheryl Crow-sounding commercials for a while there. Tonight I saw a commercial asking us all to pay a lovely visit to Texas but the voice used for the song was a dead-ringer for Norah Jones.

Now Norah Jones is many things, talented, young, pretty, half Indian... but there is one thing she ain't. She ain't Texas.

I should work at an ad agency.

doomed

Oh No!!! A fully operational death star!!!!

PAW Week 7

This week andlast in my PAW Project I have been exploring fluid pixelation with digital images. I really like making the effect but I haven't yet gotten a "workflow" that gives me the effect in a consistent way. At any rate, enjoy this week's photo.

Robert

This is Robert. aka "Carrboro Man". aka "Marlboro Man". Robert is a fixture in Carrboro as he wanders around saying hello to anyone who looks his way. I learned today that he is a former coal miner from W. Va. and lives on settlement money from a black lung case. He lives above "Cliff's Meat Market" and is usually at the Open Eye Cafe (Coffee shop). This is simply him saying hello to me - he likes to flip me off.

That's Robert.

American Commercial Idols

Last night I was really hoping that Paul McCartney would unzip the fly and whip it out. I figured he would have had nothing to lose. If his career is great enough to survive a song like that "Freedom" shit he did a few years ago then he can survive whipping it out for billions of people to see. It would have been a brilliant rock and roll moment and I bet his audience would have increased - keep in mind that there were only a handful of complaints to the FCC about "the nipple" so that means that the majority of the audience didn't mind.

Also, I'd like to go on record in case this actually happens - this is my idea:

A new "American Idol" style show in which commercial "creatives" vie for a chance to spend millions on placing a Superbowl ad by being voted on by self-righteous, washed-up ad makers. That way we can hope for more entertaining commercials because thats the only reason why we watch, right?

Tea

I don't think I have ever overtly used this blog to advertise but I feel like doing it now. For years I have been a connoisseur of fine teas. Most of the teas I buy come from Upton Teas. I cannot say enough about these people. They know their teas and they know how to give great customer service. My love and knowledge of tea is personal in the sense that I tend to be quiet about it. Certainly if someone asks I will impart but if I find myself in, say, a coffee shop that has good teas, I will ignore them and go for coffee making sure they offer the knowledge to me.

At home, however, I am the tea-king. I don't generally drink blends and my favorites tend to be Ceylons without regard for their reputation of being milder or more boring. I think "herbal teas" are blasphemous, though I can understand the desire for them. And despite my love for a good, smokey scotch, I think the smokey Lapsong Souchong teas are generally overrated.

So, if you want to get a good tea, and you don't know what to get, drop me a line and, most likely, I will recommend one of Upton's teas.

D.C. Statehood Now!

I didn't watch the State of the Union address last night. I was afraid I would throw things at my TV, and I am fond of my TV... its pretty. Instead I saw some of the Duke v Wake Forest game and read a book. However, I would like to point out something that makes me seem a bit like I watched it:

Bush talked a great deal about freedom and democracy last night especially in regards to Iraqis triumphantly experiencing a democratic election. However, does it not seem a bit harsh to talk about such things in a city where the citizens have no representation in the federal government?

I think about D.C. Statehood more than one who doesn't live there should. If I lived there I would be a rabid "D.C. Statehood" activist. In the traditions of the country I would advocate dumping tea... no, wait... oil into the potomac and not paying taxes until there is adequate representation. Its what the country is about.

Condi

I really hope that Secretary Rice's "handlers" sit her down and talk to her about how much good a smile can do. Certainly the opposite is true. Yikes.