Saturday, October 12, 2002

CalPundit vs. Fisking

Kevin Drum, the CalPundit, takes aim at fisking in this post, where he takes apart the Gettysburg Address in a line-by-line dismantling, similar to the manner in which many sites, including this one, do with leftist idiots with whom we disagree. He considers it childish, and dismisses the whole phenomenon with a condescending "knock it off".

I believe Mr. Drum has missed the wider point—dismantling idiotic columns serves a purpose beyond the obvious venting on the part of the writer; it allows others to understand why certain memes irritate them (many times, a fisking has made clear to me why I dislike a certain point of view, rather than leaving me with a vague feeling of disgust). Not everyone shares the smug, leftist worldview of the New York Times and its partisan imitators, and fisking serves as a outlet for aggrevation.

posted at 01:08 PM | permalink | Comments (2)

More Baseless Dem Smears

Robin Roberts, at Final Protective Fire, discovered an article in the Rocky Mountain News that demonstrates the total disconnect with reality that permeates much of the Democratic Party. The Colorado Democratic Party sent out a press release e-mail claiming that Proposition 30 (which prevents registering to vote within 30 days of an election) is supported only by white-supremacists. They (along with the NACCP, Council of La Raza, and the League of Women Voters) have tarred anyone who disagrees with last minute registration as racists. I will tar anyone who supports such a measure as a flaming moron, because it is an invitation to fraud.

Check out the link, and the rest of Robin's blog while you are there. It's well worth the visit.

posted at 12:38 PM | permalink | Comments (0)

Friday, October 11, 2002

Deadlines

Another senate contest, another dropout.

Montana's Republican candidate for senator, Mike Taylor, is suspending his campaign against Max Baucus, citing a sleazy, homophobic ad campaign from the Democratic National Committee, which had destroyed his credibility.

The interesting point is that Montana's filing deadline (like that in New Jersey) has passed. Are the Republicans planning on substituting another candidate?

Initial indications are that the GOP are going to take the high ground by running a write-in campaign instead (a write-in campaign has a 15 day deadline). The whole issue might be framed to embarass the Democrats, since Taylor was already down by 19 points before the unseemly ads began running. By refusing to do a bait-and-switch routine, the GOP can (and should) point out their belief in the rule of law, which has never been a Democratic Party strong suit.

It is interesting that deadlines are so very important to the Dems when discussing Bush's tardy filing with the SEC or the receipt date for overseas ballots in the 2000 campaign, but unreasonably restrictive when it comes to ballot deadlines and submission of vote certifications also from the 2000 election). Double standards, anyone?

UPDATE—October 12/12:45 PM—This Howard Kurtz article looks a lot like mine. I had not read his article until today. No plagiarism was intended on my part.

posted at 06:19 PM | permalink | Comments (0)

Antidote to Britney Spears?

The Los Angeles Times has an interesting story about retailer Nordstrom teaming up with a duo of Mormon women to produce prom gowns that are both stylish and modest.

Mormon teens often have to improvise when it comes to fashion, because their religion prohibits the bare skin that is a staple of much of the current style for young women. Two Mormon mothers contacted the Nordstrom store at South Coast Plaza, a large, upscale mall in Costa Mesa, CA, about a fashion show featuring less revealing fashions. The show sold out (900 tickets) very quickly, and offered over 30 different designs, including a pair of custom-made gowns from a local Mormon designer.

While this show was promoted primarily among the Mormon community, there has been considerable interest from other groups, especially Muslims and Catholics who are distressed by the current styles, yet understanding of teenagers' desire to look nice for formal occasions. Nordstrom may discover that their dresses fly off the racks as they fill a niche that few other retailers see, despite the fact that it is a rather large and obvious hole.

posted at 05:56 PM | permalink | Comments (1)

Handicapping the senate vote

As noted just about everywhere, the US Senate voted today to support the Bush Administration's request to commit US troops to compelling Iraq to comply with the multiple UN resolutions regarding Iraq's weapons programs. CNN even had a roll call of each vote. All 100 senators voted (50 Democrats, 49 Republicans, and 1 Independent). 48 Republicans and 29 Democrats voted in support, while 21 Democrats, 1 Republican, and 1 Independent voted against the resolution.

What I found to be interesting was the way the fall elections skewed the votes—of the 21 Democrats voting "no", only four are facing reelection this year; nine senators (and Torricelli/NJ) who are up for reelection voted for the Bush initiative, including such stalwart lefties as Tom Harkin (IA), Jay Rockefeller (WV) and John Kerry (MA). Of the four that voted against the resolution, three are sure bets to win their races—Durbin (IL), Levin (MI), and Reed (RI). Only Paul Wellstone (MN) is risking his seat with his vote.

One has to wonder how much influence the election played in the voting, although most of the Democrats who voted in support are from the more moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and a majority of both parties supported the resolution, unlike the vote in the House of Representatives. 61 percent of the Democratic representatives voted against the measure, and they face election every two years, as opposed to the six-year terms of senators.

posted at 05:08 PM | permalink | Comments (2)

Wednesday, October 9, 2002

New Slogan?

According to the Prior-Art-O-Matic, my slogan should be:

Horologium

Horologium is a wristwatch that encrypts all of its data! It looks like a stereo system.

I'm not sure if I like that, but it is interesting that it ties in with the whole timepiece thing. I'd be interested if that is a coincidence, or if there is some sophisticated linguistic decoding behind it all. (There's not a whole lot of info available at the site.)

(Link courtesy of Spleenville World Domination HQ and Doctor Weevil.)

posted at 07:59 PM | permalink | Comments (0)

Tuesday, October 8, 2002

Laugh for today

[Note: This has made the rounds for those who work with military aircraft. If you fall into this category, you have probably seen some of these before.]

One of a technician's little joys is the opportunity to sign off a discrepancy reported by the flight crew (especially the rather silly ones) with a witty response. Usually, the more pungent replies are sanitized before the paperwork gets filed, but occasionally a funny one slips through. Below are a few examples of the slightly skewed minds of the maintenance community (most of these are USAF, but there are a few USN samples for variety).

Problem: Left inside-main tire almost needs replacement.
Signoff: Almost replaced left inside-main tire.

Problem: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.
Signoff: Auto-land not installed in this aircraft.

Problem: Number 2 propeller seeping prop fluid.
Signoff: Number 2 propeller seepage normal.
Problem 2: Numbers 1, 3, and 4 propellers lack normal seepage.

Problem: The autopilot doesn't.
Signoff: It does now.

Problem: Something loose inside cockpit.
Signoff: Something tightened inside cockpit.

Problem: Evidence of hydraulic leak on right main landing gear.
Signoff: Evidence removed.

Problem: DME volume unbelievablyloud.
Signoff: Volume set to more believable level.

Problem: Dead bugs on windshield.
Signoff: Live bugs on order.

Problem: Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200-fpm descent.
Signoff: Cannot reproduce the problem on ground.

Problem: IFF inoperative.
Signoff: IFF inoperative in OFF mode.

Problem: Clock doesn't work.
Signoff: Wound clock.

Problem: Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick.
Signoff: That's what they're there for.

Problem: Number 3 engine missing.
Signoff: Engine found on right wing after brief search.

Problem: SDC makes sound like little green men with hammers banging on case.
Signoff: Took hammers away from little green men.

Problem: Speed brake indicator barber poles when aircraft porpoises.
Signoff: Could not duplicate gripe; test station would not porpoise.

Although they are likely apocryphal, I have heard persistent rumors of technicians signing off particularly stupid gripes with the corrective action of "removed and replaced pilot". A signoff such as that is very likely to result in punishment of some sort, because that crosses the line from humor to outright disrespect.

posted at 05:52 PM | permalink | Comments (3)