A few weeks ago I heard, on the radio, an ad that really pissed me off. Surprise, surprise the company it was advertising was First for Women Insurance… my old nemesis.
Damn straight.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
I am the win!
Friday, February 17, 2006
How beautiful is she?
The Coolest Girlfriend in the Universe is so much prettier than me, I still don't know how I managed to get her to go out with me.
I feel like Jim Belushi in Life According to Jim, or Justin Louis in Hidden Hills. I didn't believe it was possible for an average-looking, not particularly successful guy to get an intelligent, gorgeous girl like Courtney Thorne-Smith or Paula Marshall in real life. The physics of it just don't balance out. It's like trying to divide by zero.
But here I am, living proof. *shrug*
I've won the girlfriend lottery... in the face of all reason and logic. Not only does she let me spend time with her, she's actually in love with me!
So, because of my unfathomable stroke of good luck (the exact opposite of being struck by lightning, only less likely), I will do whatever is necessary to make sure our relationship perpetuates.
I want to list all the things she does for me that make me happy, but the truth is she doesn't have to do anything to make me happy... the fact that she is in my life does it. The rest is icing on the cake.
I want to list all the things I want to share with her in the future... but then I wouldn't get any work done. She already knows anyway.
qabang, parmaqqay.
Monday, February 13, 2006
Tourism vs Science
SALT, the South African Large Telescope is under threat from a nearby golf-estate development.
The R200-million telescope which is the largest optical telescope in the southern hemisphere may have its scientific mission compromised by light pollution from a proposed 500-unit golf estate in Sutherland.
Sutherland was chosen as the site for Africa’s Giant Eye because it’s clear skies and distance from the chemical and ambient light pollution from cities.
Ambient glow from electric lights nearby decreases the effectiveness of the optical equipment. Ambient light is even more detrimental than other forms of pollution, like smoke.
SALT is so sensitive, it could detect the light of a single candle on the moon. The slightest bit of light contamination can render the expensive and valuable equipment essentially worthless.
Astronomers working with SALT discovered the development plans for the golf estate almost by accident, and were shocked to learn that developers were using the telescope as a selling point for their units: claiming that buyers could rent out their chalets to visiting international researchers bringing dollars and euros into the country.
In violation of Environmental Impact Assessment laws, the developers, the Sutherland Golf Trust, failed to involve the observatory in their assessment of the environmental impact.
This demonstrates the absolute worst of the capitalist system: money-grubbing bandits attempting to exploit our resources so as to make a quick buck – consequences be damned.
We must welcome those who would like to enjoy the splendour of our natural, and now scientific, resources. But at what cost? Can we afford to allow our country to be turned into a theme-park for richer-than-god eurotrash types? Despite the allure of the dollar signs, we must resist that temptation.
The plans for development are still pending approval by the provincial authorities. Let us hope they are able to see the illogic at work here.
The R200-million telescope which is the largest optical telescope in the southern hemisphere may have its scientific mission compromised by light pollution from a proposed 500-unit golf estate in Sutherland.
Sutherland was chosen as the site for Africa’s Giant Eye because it’s clear skies and distance from the chemical and ambient light pollution from cities.
Ambient glow from electric lights nearby decreases the effectiveness of the optical equipment. Ambient light is even more detrimental than other forms of pollution, like smoke.
SALT is so sensitive, it could detect the light of a single candle on the moon. The slightest bit of light contamination can render the expensive and valuable equipment essentially worthless.
Astronomers working with SALT discovered the development plans for the golf estate almost by accident, and were shocked to learn that developers were using the telescope as a selling point for their units: claiming that buyers could rent out their chalets to visiting international researchers bringing dollars and euros into the country.
In violation of Environmental Impact Assessment laws, the developers, the Sutherland Golf Trust, failed to involve the observatory in their assessment of the environmental impact.
This demonstrates the absolute worst of the capitalist system: money-grubbing bandits attempting to exploit our resources so as to make a quick buck – consequences be damned.
We must welcome those who would like to enjoy the splendour of our natural, and now scientific, resources. But at what cost? Can we afford to allow our country to be turned into a theme-park for richer-than-god eurotrash types? Despite the allure of the dollar signs, we must resist that temptation.
The plans for development are still pending approval by the provincial authorities. Let us hope they are able to see the illogic at work here.
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
My new phone
So I'm posting this from my brand, spanking new Nokia 6680 with 3G, video calling, 2 cameras, Symbian Series 60 operating system, 74mb of storage, Bluetooth and full multimedia capability.
All you fools who don't have one: I pity you.
Monday, February 06, 2006
Open letter to the crazy guys who burned that embassy and their pals
Cartoons? Come ON people!
Okay, I get it, you guys don’t like having your prophet portrayed in artistic works, and it was probably particularly offensive to have him represented as a terrorist. That sucks. I would probably be pissed off too.
But to go on the rampage over it? Jeeze people. Get a grip. So some idiot thought it would be funny to draw a silly picture (badly, I might add.) And some other idiot thought it would be funny to print that picture. So what? We all know they’re idiots… their actions prove that. But unfortunately being an idiot isn’t a crime. And as long as idiots walk this Earth they have a fundamental right to say whatever idiotic things pop into their heads… provided what they say doesn’t imply the threat of violence towards or discrimination against other people.
While I’ll admit these idiotic cartoons do teeter on that line, the legitimate authorities (who may or may not also be idiots) have ruled that they are on the safe side of the line.
Sure, you guys have every right to be upset about the cartoons. They’re offensive. So complain to those authorities, make a stink about it, get people thinking and talking about how they should be more sensitive to other people’s religious beliefs. Burning down embassies and missions and trashing Christian neighborhoods is not a good way of doing that. All you’re accomplishing by that is proving the point that idiotic cartoonist was trying to make in the first place. Don’t you see that?
Perhaps idiocy isn’t limited to just one side of this issue.
But why are these cartoons causing such a fuss? It’s not as if no-one in the mass media has ever made fun of a religious figure before.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of the South Park animated series, are seasoned bashers of religions. They have depicted and made fun of figures from Christianity, Mormonism, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Scientology and Islam too. Where were the protests when South Park showed Jesus having a magic contest with David Blain? Where were the embassy burnings when they called Joseph Smith and his followers “dumb”? And why didn’t you guys riot when they showed the Prophet as a fire-wielding super-hero?
I don’t buy it. You guys are making much too big a deal about this. I think you’re overreacting, and you’re being unreasonable. Proving a point is one thing, you’ve done that already. But this must stop.
Just knock it off now, okay? We get it.
Okay, I get it, you guys don’t like having your prophet portrayed in artistic works, and it was probably particularly offensive to have him represented as a terrorist. That sucks. I would probably be pissed off too.
But to go on the rampage over it? Jeeze people. Get a grip. So some idiot thought it would be funny to draw a silly picture (badly, I might add.) And some other idiot thought it would be funny to print that picture. So what? We all know they’re idiots… their actions prove that. But unfortunately being an idiot isn’t a crime. And as long as idiots walk this Earth they have a fundamental right to say whatever idiotic things pop into their heads… provided what they say doesn’t imply the threat of violence towards or discrimination against other people.
While I’ll admit these idiotic cartoons do teeter on that line, the legitimate authorities (who may or may not also be idiots) have ruled that they are on the safe side of the line.
Sure, you guys have every right to be upset about the cartoons. They’re offensive. So complain to those authorities, make a stink about it, get people thinking and talking about how they should be more sensitive to other people’s religious beliefs. Burning down embassies and missions and trashing Christian neighborhoods is not a good way of doing that. All you’re accomplishing by that is proving the point that idiotic cartoonist was trying to make in the first place. Don’t you see that?
Perhaps idiocy isn’t limited to just one side of this issue.
But why are these cartoons causing such a fuss? It’s not as if no-one in the mass media has ever made fun of a religious figure before.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone, creators of the South Park animated series, are seasoned bashers of religions. They have depicted and made fun of figures from Christianity, Mormonism, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Scientology and Islam too. Where were the protests when South Park showed Jesus having a magic contest with David Blain? Where were the embassy burnings when they called Joseph Smith and his followers “dumb”? And why didn’t you guys riot when they showed the Prophet as a fire-wielding super-hero?
I don’t buy it. You guys are making much too big a deal about this. I think you’re overreacting, and you’re being unreasonable. Proving a point is one thing, you’ve done that already. But this must stop.
Just knock it off now, okay? We get it.
Bad Astronomy Blog » Blog Archive » Outrage at attacks on NASA science
Bad Astronomy Blog » Blog Archive » Outrage at attacks on NASA science
I have no words. But Phil does. I suggest you read what he has to say.
I have no words. But Phil does. I suggest you read what he has to say.
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