Bald Eagles Refuse to Move to Milwaukee 

Here's an interesting story... I guess Milwaukee doesn't want to see anyone move there:

Mequon, WI - Three miles north of the Milwaukee County line and a mile west of the steady drone of traffic on I-43, two adult bald eagles have made history by building a nest atop a dead hardwood tree along the Milwaukee River.

The young couple is believed to be the first pair of eagles nesting in southeastern Wisconsin in more than 100 years.
...
When the couple was asked why they moved to the suburbs, instead of somewhere in the inner city, the male said "We had been told by several local politicians that 'we weren't the right type of birds for Milwaukee'. We wanted to move to the city, but finally we got sick of the politics, and then we found this wonderful tree in the suburbs."
...
When asked to comment, Milwaukee Alderman Bob Donovan said that bald eagles were far too predatory for this city, and indeed weren't the right type of bird for Milwaukee. Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-Milwaukee) agreed, and went further saying, "We would much rather see some more Mourning Doves and Chickadees, rather than large birds that fly around eating other animals."

Is It The Weekend Yet? 

You can make your own South Park character too if you want.

The McBride Flip Flop 

I'm sorry... but could Jessica McBride be any more transparent? Today we see the following small post on her blog:

From a thorough and balanced story by the Journal Sentinel's Stacy Forster about Van Hollen's claims that terrorists are training in Wisconsin:

The FBI's (Mike) Johnson said Van Hollen's comment about the FBI was "completely inappropriate" because Van Hollen doesn't speak for the agency.

And just a few days ago she was all over Stacy like white on rice for her "twisting statistics in favor of Lautenschlager", which I blogged about here. Now arguably, this story today also helps Peg as much as it helps McBride's husband. But isn't it interesting how all of a sudden a reporter is "fair and balanced" if it also helps her man.

Can You Hear Me Now? 

Good! Last night I was a guest on the GPL Podcast with Aaron and Jenna. We had a great time and it went pretty smooth. We talked about the Carnival of the Badger, The Coding Monkey, and then Jenna and I had a throw down on terrorism. So go ahead and take a listen, for I am now declared podcast friendly.

As for the mascot Aaron has chosen for their little venture... don't blame it on me. I may have pointed out the site where it was found, but I actually tried to convince him not to use it. You want to attract people to your podcast, not scare them off.

Lessons in Stupid Marketing Decisions 

I'm not a big console gamer any more, and I haven't owned a Nintendo since the original NES... but this still puzzled me. The new next generation Nintendo, which was code named "Revolution", has been renamed to it's official marketing name of... drum roll please... "Nintendo Wii". Now quick... without looking... how do you pronounce that?

And that's why it's a stupid name. Singles to C-Notes, the most popular pronunciation among people who don't know any better will be "Nintendo Why"... which is a bad name for your top shelf product to have. Although I have to say, the official pronunciation of "Nintendo We" isn't much better.

Need Something to Gross You Out? 

Are you sick of all the sugary goodness that you get when you visit Cute Overload? If so, then head on over to Ugly Overload... it's just what you'd imagine it to be. Yuck.

Thanks for the pointer Be... I think.

Shhh... Use Your Inside Voice 

Are you enjoying "Annoy your cube neighbor" "Take your child to work" day? I've always thought of this day as tantamount to torture for a young child. This is a damn boring place to be, even for those of us who enjoy our job. Why destroy the hopes of young people by showing them what the real world is like? They'll find out eventually... don't ruing their dreams today.

Is Van Hollen That Desperate Already? 

The Terrorist card? Already?

"We have in Wisconsin terrorists who are training and raising funds," Van Hollen told reporters at a Capitol press conference this afternoon.

"Terrorists in this country and around the world are not disappearing. They are laying low. They are waiting for an opportunity to strike again," he said in an apparent reference to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, D.C.
...
Van Hollen declined to offer details, saying that he learned of the terrorists' activities while he was U.S. attorney for the western half of Wisconsin and is still prohibited by federal secrecy laws from disclosing further information.
...
"But I am able to stand up here and say, having been U.S. attorney, that we do have a major and continuing terrorist problem in the United States of America, and the Western District is just as at risk as anywhere else," he said.

I especially like the part where he says he "knows of the groups" but can't say more because he's not allowed. Then why say anything? Anyone else reminded of when John Kerry talked about all the foreign leaders he wasn't allowed to name that would like to see him be President? I'm sorry... but this just wreaks of sensationalism at this point. Could terrorist strike western Wisconsin? Well sure. Would they? Would you? Just step back for a second and imagine the propaganda that would be launched in the Middle East after an attack by the terrorists...

Terrorist #1: Allah be praised for we have destroyed the people of La Crosse!
Terrorist #2: You mean the infidels who play that silly game with the netted stick and tiny ball?
Terrorist #1: No! The city! In Western Wisconsin!
Terrorist #2: Where is Wisconsin?

Or perhaps...

Terrorist #1: Allah be praised for Hudson has been incinerated!
Terrorist #2: Rock Hudson? The Actor? Those infidels and their love of television will pay sorely now! Wait... isn't he already dead?
Terrorist #1: No! The city! In Western Wisconsin!
Terrorist #2: Where is Wisconsin?

If we're just as at risk as everyone else... why wouldn't the terrorist strike anywhere else? After all, if Los Angeles is just as vulnerable as Hudson, I have a feeling that Los Angeles is more of a target. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to make light of the terrorist threat. But we've gotten to the point where we're using that threat in every debate, whether it's deserved or not. People try to use it as a way to stop debate immediately.

Why does West Bend need a new city hall? If the local government wants to try to get it, I suppose they can try, and it would make a worthwhile debate. But already they're saying its because of "security" issues, as if terrorists are going to strike at the heart of American democracy by blowing up the city hall of a city in Wisconsin that three quarters of Wisconsin residents couldn't point out on a map if they were asked. They're using it to suppress debate. It's not up for debate they'll say... we just have to have it because of security concerns.

I'd suggest that all the AG candidates stick to real debates on real issues that they have real control over.

Where Is This Week's Carnival of the Badger? 

Hey Nick! Where is this week's Carnival of the Badger? Well, you should be asking Belle, because this week she has all the answers. I want to thank everyone who participated this week... we had a really large number of submissions. So be sure to check it out... after all, everyone sends in their best work for the week (or so I hope).

Next week's edition will be hosted by Stepping Right Up, and after that... who knows... maybe you!

It's That Time of the Week Again 

Tomorrow's Carnival of the Badger is going to be hosted by Leaning Blue. Be sure to get your submissions in today! If you're interested in hosting one, let me know.

There Oughta Be a Law 

It's amazing that any children have ever been able to survive without this law:

Senator Julie Lassa and Representative Amy Sue Vruwink announced today the Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice and Homeland Security will hold a public hearing on a bill to ban the sale and distribution of the "yo-yo waterball" after receiving a complaint from a constituent.
...
According to Autumn Deedon, of Pittsville, her 7-year old son was playing with the yo-yo waterball when the toy wrapped around his neck, cutting off his blood supply. As a result, he passed out and fell head first to the ground. Ms. Deedon rushed her son to the emergency room and found that he suffered from a concussion.

In researching the toy, Deedon discovered her son’s entanglement was not an isolated incident, yet the Federal Consumer Product Safety Commission has so far refused to recall the product, stating only that it poses a "low, but potential risk of strangulation." Australia, Canada, France and the United Kingdom have banned the toy.

Also to be considered in separate bills by these legislators are bans on bicycles (rolling machines of death), dodge ball (which teaches children to torture each other), tree houses (what if they fall?), and hoola hoops (my God! Look how they move their hips!).

Via Charlie.

How Big of a Nutshell Is It? 

I have another review up at BlogCritics.org, this time on Visual Basic 2005 in a Nutshell... "No, this is me in a nutshell: 'Help! I'm in a nutshell! How did I get into this bloody great big nutshell? What kind of shell has a nut like this?'"

And in case you're wondering whether all I do is review technical books, my next review will be on Andrew Napolitano's new book, The Constitution in Exile. I'm reading it right now, and hope to have the review up this weekend. It is definitely a great read, and the man holds no punches in this book.

How To Waste Away a Saturday 

A brief review of the speakers from the WI-INETA Deeper in .NET Conference, at my other blog, The Coding Monkey.

Cycling Factoid 

Disclaimer: Before clicking on the following link, make sure that you don't have any liquids in your mouth, lest they end up on your screen.

Have you ever wondered why cyclists wear black bike shorts?

Now you know. And knowing is half the battle. Thanks for the pointer Be.

Update: By the way, this is also the reason why I don't wear Speedos. I hate looking like I'm smuggling fruit.

Not Too Far Off Actually 

Except for the fact that I don't own a single pair of yellow underwear...

Your Lucky Underwear is Yellow

You're an extremely happy, laid back, fun soul. And your lucky yellow underwear can help you get even more out of life. In life, you rather play than work. You're apt to quit any task that doesn't nourish your creativity and inner child. Sometimes your drive for freedom hinders your quality of life. You find it impossible to do anything unpleasant. If you want to have responsibilities and still have fun, put on your yellow underpants. They'll help you make a party out of the most mundane tasks.

Via Sam, who wears red. No surprise there either.

Did You See That? 

Eyes: I think my retinas just burnt!
Brain: That outfit was an awful lot of bright pink concentrated together wasn't it?
Stomach: I swear, if I was upset, I'd think I could drink that to feel better.
Brain: Even her shoes were pink to match the pants and top. That's just wrong.

Damn Straight It's Necessary 

The headline for this Newsweek piece was pretty silly, since they never answered the question they asked... 'United 93': Is This Film Necessary?:

But the movie's strength—its wrenching realism—is also its limitation. Greengrass gives us the surface and sensation of reality. As a picture of behavior in extremity, it rings true. But without context, psychology, politics or contemplative distance, you may wonder what, exactly, this re-creation illuminates. 'United 93' isn't exploitation, but what is it? On some basic level, it can't help but be a thrill ride, albeit one that leaves you somber and drained. Whether you need that ride is a question you'll have to answer yourself.

Contemplative distance? Context? The problem with those things is that they distort what really happened. I haven't seen the film yet, but if it truly is shot in documentary form, without trying to change history, then it would be a very worthwhile film. It will remind people of what actually happened, and let people interpret those facts for themselves, without someone else providing what they deem to be "needed context".

An Actual Reagan Republican? 

There is an interesting bio of Senator George Allen in Opinion Journal:

Mr. Allen is an increasingly prominent figure in the Republican Party. He is running this year for re-election to the Senate, with a bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 still a matter for future consideration. His silence on abortion might make for some awkward moments with journalists, but it also makes political sense. He's figured out a safe, even popular, way to deal with a polarizing issue. Polls show a solid majority of Americans opposed to overturning Roe v. Wade. They presumably think the result would ban abortion. But when the issue is put a different way--letting states decide--their view becomes more favorable. Clever, isn't it?

It goes into his "Libertarian" leanings, and talks about a bunch of good issues from immigration to Iraq. I'd have to look more in detail, but if he actually voted the same as he spoke, then he might be a candidate I could feel happy about voting for. Of course that means he'd never make it out of a primary. Go figure.

Fear a Government That Fears Your Dildo 

Another southern state has decided what is and what isn't good for adults to do in the privacy of their bedroom:

Lucy's Love Shop employee Wanda Gillespie said she was flabbergasted that South Carolina's Legislature is considering outlawing sex toys.

But banning the sale of sex toys is actually quite common in some Southern states.
The South Carolina bill, proposed by Republican Rep. Ralph Davenport, would make it a felony to sell devices used primarily for sexual stimulation and allow law enforcement to seize sex toys from raided businesses.

"That would be the most terrible thing in the world," said Ms. Gillespie, an employee the Anderson shop. "That is just flabbergasting to me. We are supposed to be in a free country, and we're supposed to be adults who can decide what want to do and don’t want to do in the privacy of our own homes."

In related news, prices for banana and cucumber futures increased 10% and saw elevated trading on the markets this morning. I wrote about this last year in regards to a similar law in Alabama. What is it with southern states anyway?

Via Boing Boing.

The Racine Shutdown 

Did you know that some places actually still close on Sunday? I was hanging out with my friend Nicole who lives in Racine. We went out and saw American Dreamz, and then tried to go out to dinner after.

By the way, American Dreamz wasn't that great. If you're looking for good political satire, go see Thank You For Smoking instead. Sarah and I saw that last weekend, and we both thought it was hilarious. I know a lot of people are calling it an anti-smoking movie, but it's really not. It hits both sides very hard, which is the key to good satire. If you watch that movie, and only come away with the impression that it's anti-smoking, then you weren't paying attention.

Anyway, back to the story. After the movie we started driving around to different places (that weren't fast food joints) for something to eat. It took us 3 tries before we found a place that wasn't closed on Sunday. What's with those people? I know God rested on Sunday and all... but I'm sure he was still hungry. After all, he worked hard those other 6 days. If only the Bible had read, "On the seventh day he rested, and went out to dinner to indulge in every culinary excess, and it was good." Imagine how much better our world would be today.

How Brookfield Is Becoming Like Santa Barbara 

The very first thing I thought of when I read this was my old home town:

An upscale McDonald's that will be virtually unrecognizable as a fast-food restaurant is being planned in Brookfield. It would drop the iconic yellow and swap Ronald's bright primary colors for subtler earth tones such as hunter green fabric awnings.
...
"We set very high architectural standards, and they met them," Ertl said. "It's state-of-the art in terms of design, and they believe it has the most character of any restaurant they have built recently."

Under a plan being reviewed by the city, an existing McDonald's at 300 N. Moorland Road, across from Brookfield Square mall, that has the chain's familiar sloped mansard roof and golden arches, would be razed and rebuilt with a larger, taller restaurant.

The new building will feature brick, slate and tile and fake the appearance of a second story - something the city is requiring in that mall corridor and other key city entrances. Its roof will be flat.

Actually... what Brookfield is doing is nothing compared to what Santa Barbara enforces with extreme vigor along downtown State Street. In Santa Barbara, all businesses use the same ugly Mediterranean facade with stucco and Spanish tile. All of them. They have to. Several years ago a French Bistro dared to break the mold, and created a gorgeous cafe exterior right along downtown State Street (which is a prime tourist trap shopping area). I actually got to see it during one of my visits and was suitably impressed. The city threatened to shut them down, and they were forced to remodel the exterior to conform to the city standard.

Brookfield is apparently attempting to follow suit. Fear this change. When you give a city council this amount of power over businesses, they use it in all sorts of other ways too. The city of Santa Barbara doesn't just enforce these sorts of standards on looks, that's just the most easily visible.

Bang! Bang! Bang! 

You're sitting peacefully at your desk, trying to read an email about an important issue at work. *BANG* *BANG* *BANG*. After a second you realize that someone is using the power stapler to staple their two or three pages together. Since when did it become such a burden to use a good old fashioned stapler to do this task with a nice *click* *click* *click* sound? I can understand if you have 20 pages to staple... but for three? Are you just that lazy?

Who Is Twisting The Numbers Now? 

This time I was reading Jessica McBride having a hissy fit over a Journal Sentinel article talking about the backlog at the state crime lab. Jessica is concentrating on how the percentage of closed cases has decreased under Lautenschlager. Unfortunately, the percentages that Jessica is using to show the decrease is actually unfair. She's looking at the percentage of cases closed for each period, and saying that because the percentage went down, Peg did a bad job.

If we look at the numbers given in the Journal article (which are very poorly organized), we see the following:

There were 4,382 new DNA cases brought to the crime labs from 2003 through 2005, Bauer said. From 2000 through 2002, when Gov. Jim Doyle was attorney general, there were 3,351 new cases. During the same time periods, the number of cases involving fingerprints dropped from 3,094 to 2,800.

During Lautenschlager's three years in office, 3,561 cases, or 49.6%, were closed, compared with 3,387, or 52.6%, on Doyle's watch from 2000 through 2002.

At the end of 2002, the backlog in the DNA labs was 504 cases, compared with a backlog of 550 at the end of 2004 and 1,375 and the end of 2005.

Looking at these numbers, it's very hard to tell whether there has been improvement. The problem is that the numbers are presented by the reporter in a very confusing and mixed way. But if we crunch them, some interesting facts come out.

Although the percentage of cases closed during each period went down, the total number of cases closed went up. The problem is that there were more cases coming in. The number of total cases climbed more than 10%. If we compare the total cases closed during the two terms, we see that the total number of cases closed climbed during Peg's term by close to 5% (from 3,387 to 3,561).

The other problem is that it looks as if the number of fingerprint cases went down, while the number of DNA cases climbed dramatically. DNA cases climbed almost 24%, while the number of fingerprint cases decreased by 10.5%. The issue here is that DNA cases take much longer to process than fingerprint cases. I think the fact that there was any increase in the total number of cases closed is miraculous given those numbers.

Now then, with that said, is the backlog acceptable? Well no. If the number of cases is increasing that dramatically, then more resources are going to be needed in order to close that gap. But I don't think you can look at these numbers (which actually show improvement) and say that Peg has done a terrible job. There was improvement. One could very easily argue that it would be hard for anyone to quickly overcome such a dramatic rise in the number of DNA cases given the skill needed to properly process DNA.

It would seem obvious that Jessica is just as guilty of trying to twist the numbers in favor of her husband, as Stacy Forster is guilty of twisting them for Peg. Oh that's right... Paul Bucher is running for state Attorney General isn't he?

Anyone? Anyone? 

After reading Elliot's post on iTunes:

The major music labels have been trying to force iTunes to charge more that .99 cents for "popular" songs.

This really pisses me off, because the labels already make more money per track from an iTunes sale than they do when they sell a CD.

Plus, there's no "supply and demand" argument that you can use for charging a premium for more popular songs because there is no scarcity to drive up the cost.

With digital music there is an unlimited supply of every song.

I was suddently reminded of this scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off:

In 1930, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, in an effort to alleviate the effects of the... Anyone? Anyone?... the Great Depression, passed the... Anyone? Anyone? The tariff bill? The Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act? Which, anyone? Raised or lowered?... raised tariffs, in an effort to collect more revenue for the federal government. Did it work? Anyone? Anyone know the effects? It did not work, and the United States sank deeper into the Great Depression. Today we have a similar debate over this. Anyone know what this is? Class? Anyone? Anyone? Anyone seen this before? The Laffer Curve. Anyone know what this says? It says that at this point on the revenue curve, you will get exactly the same amount of revenue as at this point. This is very controversial. Does anyone know what Vice President Bush called this in 1980? Anyone? Something-d-o-o economics. "Voodoo" economics.

Now then, the Laffer Curve actually refers to the point at which Government "maximizes revenue" through taxation (ugh), but there is a similar theory when it comes to price points for a product in a free market.

In this instance, a song on iTunes has a fixed cost. No matter how many units of the song are sold, it cost the same amount to make and market the song. Each song sold creates only a minimum cost for bandwidth to move it across the wire, which for all intents and purposes can be removed from the discussion. Just because there is an "infinite supply" of the song, doesn't mean the price should automatically be negligible. In reality, the company selling the song has to recoup the cost of creating it, and marketing it. Anything they make after that is simply grave. The goal for them is then to charge as much as they can, as long as people are willing to pay it. They can charge what the market is willing to bear.

In fact, even if the number of buyers decreases as the price goes up (which logically it would), the company can still increase the cost, as long as the cost increase offsets the loss in profits because of fewer buyers. There is a theoretical point then where you can maximize the profit.

For instance, if you can get 100 people to but a song for $0.99, you'll make $99. But if 90 people are willing to buy a song for $1.25, you've now made $112.50! Why wouldn't a company want to charge $1.25 then? In fact, if they increase the cost to $1.50 per song, and only 75 people buy it, they still make $112.50. But if they jack up the price to $1.50 and only 50 people buy the song, now they've only made $75. The idea then is for the company to find the point where they can maximize profit. That's what sets the price, not supply and demand.

Supply and demand is certainly an important economic concept to understand, but it isn't what drives all decisions.

I'm Number One! 

Ever since I wrote this post, I've seen a lot of Google hits coming in for searches similar to "katie couric dangling her shoe". It seems that I'm actually the number one result for that search phrase. Who would have thought that so many people were interested in her footwear habits. There's probably a website dedicated to these types of people somewhere... men with fetishes for journalist's shoes. If not, I'm sure there will be soon. Isn't the internet grand?

A Parenting Question 

I went out running after work today, and when I was a few blocks from home I happened to see a small baby shoe lying in the middle of the sidewalk. As I ran past the shoe, I was thinking to myself, "Well somewhere there is an angry mom pacing around looking for something she won't find." About two blocks later I saw an exasperated father looking around like a mad man, pushing a small child with one shoe down the sidewalk in a stroller. He was probably thinking something like, "My wife is going to kill me if I don't find this shoe."

Me: Looking for a shoe?
Exasperated Father: Yes! Did you see it?
Me: It's in the middle of the sidewalk about two blocks away. You can't miss it.
Exasperated Father: Thank you!

As I finished my run, I started to ponder something. Why does a baby being pushed in a stroller need to wear shoes? It was almost 70 degrees out, so it's not like his feet were going to be cold. He's in a stroller, so he's not going to be walking around. So far I've come up with the following reasons:

1. I'm wearing shoes. You're wearing shoes. What are you trying to say? My child isn't good enough for shoes? Isn't the right to wear shoes what this country is all about?!
   
2. I'm afraid that if I don't put shoes on my child, wild animals will run up and bite his toes off.
   
3. I know he doesn't need shoes, but my wife said he does. After you've been married for a while, you learn to pick your fights. You'll find out some day.
   
4. But they're so cute! With their little soles, and tiny buckles! Why wouldn't you want to put shoes on his feet?

Any other ideas I'm not thinking of? Will some kind parent clue me in here? Because to me, it just seems like another thing your kid can lose which will annoy you later.

Hopefully CNI Newspapers Use Spell Check 

I probably shouldn't poke fun at this. Lord knows that I'm a terrible speller, and that sometimes I let some funny stuff slip through to my blog. But one spelling mistake caught my attention in this article for the CNI Newspapers by Charlie Sykes:

But Moore and Donovan complained that BuySeasons would not have created the "right kind" of jobs, even though the average employees at the company's New Berlin center make $11.55 per hour. Seasonal employees make $9 to $16 an hour.

What is not clear is exactly what kind of jobs did Moore and Donovan think would be more appropriate for unemployed city residents? Biotch researchers? Software developers?

"biotch" researchers? Is that someone who studies the budunkadunk on a ho? Or did you mean biotech? Just curious.

The article itself is good too, spelling mistakes aside. What I find even more disturbing than the fact that local politicians would block a company from moving to Milwaukee, is that they are capable of doing it at all. What's next? Are politicians going to decide who can move into what house in the city? If I want to move to a duplex in the City of Milwaukee, will I need the approval of the common council?

Update: Interestingly enough, not that long after I forwarded this post on to Charlie, the spelling error was fixed... with nary a mention to me. Tsk tsk.

Body Check Your Way Over 

There may not be a theme to this week's Carnival of the Badger at Badger Blogger, but there is a penalty box. That's 2 minutes for "Late Submission" at 4:19. Next week will be hosted by the lovely masked one. If you'd like to get in on the action, be sure to let me know.

One List I'm Glad Not to Be On 

What do Gilbert Gottfried and Brad Pitt have in common? They're both on the list of 100 Unsexiest men in the world. Hold on a second Nick. Brad Pitt? Why?

100. Brad Pitt: He may look good, but if the rumors about his hygiene and BO issues are true, then he's probably not worth it.

I had to double check that I wasn't included. Though I suppose if I was, at least that would mean I'm famous.

H/T to Ann.

Here's Some Good News 

New statistics on longevity are out for the United States:

In what appears to be an amazing success for American medicine, preliminary government figures released Wednesday showed that the annual number of deaths in the U.S. dropped by nearly 50,000 in 2004 - the biggest decline in more than 60 years.

The 2 percent decrease, reported by the National Center for Health Statistics, comes as a shock to many, because the U.S. is growing in population, aging and getting fatter. In fact, some experts said they suspect the numbers may not hold up when a final report is released later this year.

I love that last sentence. They couldn't possibly hold up could they? After all, we're not exercising enough, and we're all eating terribly. I always get a kick when people in government start believing their own lies. So despite our "poor health", we're all living longer. That doesn't mean that Uncle Sam still won't try to tell you what to do.

Don't Forget Your Submissions 

The Carnival of the Badger is being hosted by Badger Blogger this week, so get your submissions in early so they can be included in tomorrow's edition. If you'd like to host, be sure to let me know.

Burn It All Down!!! 

You scored as Anarchism. Anarchism 83% Republican 50% Socialist 50% Democrat 42% Green 33% Fascism 25% Nazi 8% Communism 8% What Political Party Do Your Beliefs Put You In? created with QuizFarm.com

I'm assuming this is because they don't have a category for Libertarian. And as we all know, Libertarian and Anarchist are pretty much the same thing. I have no idea how I ended up as 50% socialist. Maybe I answered too negatively to the question "Do you believe in the idea of, 'From each according to his ability, to each according to his need'?" and to the ones about group ownership. The test must have thought I was overcompensating for something. I'm a closet socialist!

I'm assuming however, that the people who wrote this test are 0% mathematicians. Do they realize that the percentages don't add up to 100%? H/T to Jenna who is a lot less socialist than I am, but seems more indignant about it.

Get In My Belly! 

Congratulations to Katie and Tom on the birth of their new daughter, Suri. Not surprisingly, Tom insisted on a "silent birth" as required by Scientology. Exactly how Tom got Katie to agree to this, while she was pushing a baby out of her is beyond me. I can only imagine the choice words that she chose to scream out while Tom was telling her "Quiet honey, you promised to do this quietly. You're just as bad as Brooke." Speaking of which, in a small twist of fate, Brooke Shields gave birth yesterday as well.

Reportedly, Tom was also intending on eating the placenta after it was all done:

The actor, 43 - who wants her to give birth in silence according to his Scientology cult rules - said: "I'm gonna eat the placenta, too."

"I thought that would be good. Very nutritious. I’m going to eat the cord and the placenta right there."

Say it with me everyone... Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Anyone else reminded of Fat Bastard saying "Well, listen up, sonny Jim: I ate a baby. Oh, aye, Baby: the other, other white meat. Baby: it's what's for dinner."

Streeeeeeetch 

One thing I did not do a good job of during the off season was keeping up with my stretching. I've never been a very flexible person, but by the end of last season I was making progress. Well, I lost all that progress during the off season. As I've been trying to get back into my running form, I've found that I'm definitely tight again, and its affecting my ability to run well.

This was really stupid of me, and I can't stress to the rest of you how important good stretching is, especially after exercise when your muscles are warm. Besides the basic stretches you probably remember from gym class, here are some other good ones to do after running.

Does Your 4 Year Old Need a Sunroof? 

My sister Sarah flew into Chicago on Friday for a trade show this week, and rented a car to drive up this last weekend. No surprises... we had a great time. She had rented a Chevy Malibu Maxx (which is a boat with no turn radius). It also had a sunroof... over the back seat! Why would you want a sunroof over the backseat, and not over the front seat? Does your 4 year old need a sunroof? (That's just a generic comment... Sarah doesn't have kids).

Protecting Their Own 

Frankly, I'm pretty damn surprised. I didn't follow the case very close, but I'm still surprised by the verdict. One thing is for sure, these officers, in fact the entire Milwaukee Police Dept., will not come out of this clean. The actions of these officers, and their colleagues who "protected their own" was absolutely shameful. The fact that officers who try to do the right thing are tortured by their own is even worse. These sorts of events abound in this country, and it is starting to get to me. The idea that the people who are charged with protecting us are not held responsible for their wrong doings.

In Virginia, there is a similar controversy over a SWAT officer (whose name is being protected by the local police) who wrongly shot and killed an unarmed man. In that case, the prosecutor is refusing to even press charges against that man, and is withholding information from the family, which is just shameful.

Police forces will never have the trust of the people who they are supposed to serve and protect unless they are open and honest about their mistakes, and don't protect those who don't deserve protecting. We hold some rights very high in this country. There is only one group of people who are allowed to take those rights away from us. Those people, those who can take from us what is most dear, need to hold themselves to the highest standards. Those standards aren't being met.

Their Rules Are Weird 

Sometimes I just have to rail against the English language. Everyone remembers this rule from grade school right?

"I before E, except after C, or when sounded like A as in neighbor and weigh."

Well, their and weird have the E before the I, and it's not after C, and they don't rhyme (don't get me started on the H in that word) with neighbor or weigh! How anyone is able to compete in a spelling bee is beyond me.

And why isn't phonetic spelled phonetically? And why is there an S in lisp? That's just cruel.

South Park Redux 

As I think a little bit more about the whole South Park controversy that's brewing, I have two additional thoughts. First, I think Comedy Central should just get rid of the show right now. Granted, I never really watched it all that often, but the more I think about them censoring Mohammed (and not re-airing the Scientology episode), but not having a problem with Jesus crapping on a flag, the more it pisses me off. Granted, I'm not really a follower of Christianity anymore, but I also think its damned unfair to completely destroy one group of people, as the South Park writers have done to Christianity for years, and then somehow claim that another group is protected. Either allow all of it, or do none of it.

I have to wonder if this isn't what Parker and Stone intended all along. When you watch the episode, they use Family Guy as an allegory for South Park. And they say that if you censor that image, then it will destroy the show, and that eventually it will be canceled. I wonder if that's their way of saying that they will cancel it themselves if Comedy Central were to do what they did. I wouldn't be surprised if South Park ended with this season.

Any Fool Can Criticize... 

"... condemn and complain... and most fools do."
- Dale Carnegie

I have another review up at BlogCritics.org, on The Visual Basic 2005 Jumpstart from O'Reilly.

I'm Anti-Social?! 

Gee... thanks. Nice to know my efforts around here are appreciated. I guess that explains my traffic.

Did South Park Get Censored? 

Some people seem to think so. I actually watched last night's episode, even though I normally don't watch South Park. I thought it was hillarious, and when they showed the "censored panels" at the end, I laughed my ass off. I personally think it was part of the joke, and I bet that Stone and Parker don't say a word, and keep people wondering, which only would serve to emphasize their point. And as one commentor on Volokh pointed out, Comedy Central has already shown a cartoon of Mohammed.

Update: Apparently Comedy Central did censor the image. So now Jesus crapping on a flag is OK, but Mohammed standing there innocuously is not. Makes you proud to be an American doesn't it?

Update II: More thoughts here.

A Little Thursday Self Deprecating Humor 

I'm thinking of changing my blog's tag line...



You can make your own Einstein image here.

Carnival of the Bunny 

You read that right... this week we have a Carnival of the Bunny over at Wigderson Library & Pub, including pictures of rabbits getting all boozed up that you would swear belong here. I'm not sure where things will end up being next week, but if you'd like them to be at your blog, let me know.

The New Kyoto Protocol? 

At first I thought this guy was kidding. The fact that people actually think like this... scares the bejesus out of me:

America is fat and getting fatter. Today 140 million American adults are overweight or obese. Their bodies carry 4 billion pounds of excess fat, the result of eating 14 trillion excess calories.

Numbers of this size belong in the domain of economists, not physicians. And therein lies the solution.
...
Food calories are so pervasively and inexpensively available in our environment that they should be regarded as a pollutant.
...
Public policies have succeeded in reducing air pollution. They can teach us how to reduce calorie pollution. Tradable emission allowances, for example, establish markets where permits to emit air pollutants can be bought and sold. Market forces then provide incentives to reduce pollution emissions.
...
A specific example illustrates how tradable emission allowances could work. Suppose the calorie-emission allowance is set to 100 calories for each ounce of food emitted into the environment (i.e., sold). A four-ounce food item having more than 400 calories could not, therefore, be sold unless "calorie credits" were purchased to cover the excess calories. So a standard four-ounce stick of butter, containing 780 calories, could not enter the marketplace until the butter producer acquired 380 additional calorie-credits from someone having credits to sell.

This is how people would like to run your life. To people like this, you don't have a right to make choices, any choices, on your own. Your body belongs to the government, and doing anything to desecrate it is a crime in this person's mind. I could say a lot worse about him, but frankly, this entire idea is really beyond parody.

The One Problem I Have With Spring 

Tis the season when companies refuse to put on their air conditioning. It's kinda warm out, but it is really warm in the office today. I'm sitting here, hot, sweaty, and unable to concentrate. Of course, it's "too early" to put on the air conditioning... or so they say. For some reason, building maintenance doesn't think that working for a company with a few thousand employees, each of which having a computer or two adding extra heat to the mix, would make a building hot.

*pant*

You Know The Drill 

Get your posts in tonight for tomorrow's edition of the Carnival of the Badger, to be hosted at Wigderson Library & Pub.

And with that, the hosting list will have run dry again. If you've never hosted a Carnival, it is a great way to get some exposure to your little corner of the blogosphere. It's not that hard, as many previous hosts will attest to, since they've done it multiple times. So step on up and let me know if you're interested.

Can a Sequel Be Better Than The First? 

The general rule of thumb with movies is that sequels rarely live up to the first in the series. General exceptions to this rule are Rocky II and Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. In the case of this sequel, I think it would be way better than the first... and I haven't even seen the first one.

Dr. King Would Be So Proud 

Remind you of any movie in particular?

Alan Moldawer's adopted twins, Matt and Andrew, had always thought of themselves as white. But when it came time for them to apply to college last year, Mr. Moldawer thought it might be worth investigating the origins of their slightly tan-tinted skin, with a new DNA kit that he had heard could determine an individual's genetic ancestry.

The results, designating the boys 9 percent Native American and 11 percent northern African, arrived too late for the admissions process. But Mr. Moldawer, a business executive in Silver Spring, Md., says they could be useful in obtaining financial aid.

"Naturally when you're applying to college you're looking at how your genetic status might help you," said Mr. Moldawer, who knows that the twins' birth parents are white, but has little information about their extended family. "I have three kids going now, and you can bet that any advantage we can take we will."

Like this one perhaps? The irony here of course is that racial preferences were meant to equalize disparities in economic classes, and here we have a well off family who can afford an expensive DNA test using it. Heaven forbid that people should get into college, or get a job based on their merits, and not based on ancestry they never knew they had.

H/T to Ann Althouse

Cynthia McKinney Goes to Her Local Michelin Dealer 

Salesman: Good afternoon ma'am, how can I help you?
McKinney: I came in here to buy some new tires for my car, but the first thing I see is that big white guy smiling at me from the corner!
Salesman: That's the Michelin Man ma'am.
McKinney: If all these tires are black, why the hell is your mascot white? *
Salesman: *blink*
McKinney: And why are white wall tires treated like some sort of special feature, like making a tire white is somehow better then keeping them all black?

How Do You Move Without Movement? 

Here's an interesting little rant:

Here's the thing, talk radio acolytes. Your revolution doesn't exist. If you'd all take 12 steps back from that self-congratulatory circle jerk in the blogosphere, zip up your fly, turn 180 degrees, and look at the rest of Wisconsin, you'd know just what I mean.

We've had to listen to you blowhards gloat about killing ethanol and TPA and make stupid RINO jokes about anyone who dares so much as to disagree with you. Well, now it's time for you kids to sit down, shut the hell up, and take your medicine.
...
And therein is the second point. Movement politics doesn't win elections. It is the sound and fury signifying nothing. Walker, Dean, McGovern, Goldwater. It's all the same campaign. A bunch of people on the fringe are angry and pissed off. They try to storm the castle and get mauled by the establishment. Then they slink back under their rock and plot their next unsuccessful coup attempt.

In a battle between movement conservatism and mainstream conservatism, middle-of-the-road Republicanism is where your money should always be. And that was the difference between Mark Green and Scott Walker. Mark Green soft-sells the tax and spend message. Scott Walker pushed it like an Amway salesman.

Does he have a point? Is "movement politics" worthless? I've often times pondered this idea as I listen to some people screaming at the top of their lungs for what I consider radical change. They have no hope of winning, no hope of getting their ideas passed, and yet there they are... screaming away at the top of their lungs ever still. Of course, to those people, their ideas aren't radical. Those ideas are simply theirs. Just like I consider my views to be very common sense and smart, even though to some I'm a heartless person, and not keeping up with our "progressive" society. It truly depends on the eyes you use to view the world.

If you are in a political minority, the reality is you have to scream. If you desire to be heard (and everyone in politics does), then the smaller your group, the louder you have yell to be heard. Large groups can speak softly because the number of voices turns it into a roar. But when there are just a handful of you, you have to speak up to be heard over the crowd. This has it's downsides of course... for each individual is automatically viewed as a radical. But if they hadn't screamed, they wouldn't have been noticed at all.

But is it waisted screaming? Even if none of your extreme candidates are ever elected, was it worthless to try? The answer to that question is no, and a quick perusal through history will prove this out. Throughout the history of American politics, third parties have played a major role. By espousing radical ideas in loud tones, these fringe groups often times force the larger parties to incorporate their ideas in order to stay relevant. These ideas are then generally toned down, but they do move in that direction. Sometimes third parties can have rather serious implications in elections, as George H. W. Bush and William Howard Taft will attest to.

It's what we adults like to call compromise. We can't all get what we want, but often times we're perfectly happy to just pull you a little bit in our direction. Americans politics is a lot like a semi truck heading down a hill. If you want to stop it, or change it's direction, a little bit of a push in the opposite direction isn't going to be felt. You have to apply a lot of force to even see a little bit of change. The journey of a thousand miles starts with one.

H/T to Jenna

Much Better Than a $100 Laptop 

This is how Engineering makes lives better in poor countries:

A group of Milwaukee School of Engineering students will try to change that when they travel this week to a small Guatemalan town to build a bridge.

Six students will leave Thursday for San Lucas Toliman in south-central Guatemala. Natural disasters have made it difficult for residents living in smaller communities to travel to neighboring towns where there are schools, hospitals and other services.
...
The students have raised about $10,300 for building materials, including wood, concrete, reinforcing steel and supplies, Stahl said. They also have raised about $4,000 for travel expenses.

The fact that it's all being done by MSOE students makes it all the better. That bridge will stand for a long time.

Anyone Else Think This Is Kind of Funny? 

Ann Althouse is complaining that Stanley Fish's blog on NYTimes.com is behind their Times Select firewall:

You know, over the months that TimesSelect has limited access to its key writers, I've started to skip over columns as I scan through the paper in the morning, making quick decisions about which articles to read. Maybe Maureen Dowd said something provocative, but if I can't engage with it by blogging about it, I don't even take the trouble to find out what it is.

But this Stanley Fish blog is just crazy. It's a blog. But you can't link.

Since when does Ann Althouse link to other bloggers? Granted, it's not like she never does... but it is a rare event. She links to articles and columns, and comments on those, but not really on other blogs. Who are you kidding Ann? You're a link sink, not a link source. Now then, don't get me wrong. It's her blog, and she has every right to do exactly that. It just seems kinds funny to complain about not being able to do something she rarely does anyway.

A Bachelor and His Wallet Discuss The Current Monetary Climate And Inflationary Economics 

Bachelor: Wow, I sure do have a lot of singles here.
Wallet: So, another trip to the strip joint then?
Bachelor: It's called a gentleman's club.
Wallet: Yeah... right.
Bachelor: You'd think as the relative prices of common goods continues to rise, that the $5 bill would be the more common currency at a strip club these days.
Wallet: Of course, then you'd have to decide what to do with all those singles that keep making me look fat right before the summer bikini season.
Bachelor: Well, a single and a quarter stuffed in the slot always buys me something.
Wallet:
Bachelor: What? I'm talking about the soda machine at work. What slot did you think I meant?
Wallet: Never mind dude.

I Have Another Review Up 

As Mel Brooks once said, "Critics can't even make music by rubbing their back legs together." But we can certainly write. Check out my latest review on BlogCritics.org of the "C# Cookbook, 2nd Edition".

It's The Benefits Stupid 

Whether big government liberals want to admit it or not, they are the cause of the backlash against immigrants. Asymmetrical Information has been blogging on illegal immigration a lot lately. Her posts, as always, are very insightful, and have caused me to think a lot about the subject. And of course, now Congress is trying to pass an amnesty program for these illegals (and has failed). For my part, I've blogged on the subject numerous times.

One of the main points that Megan at Asymmetrical Information makes, which is true, is that most of our families come from a history of immigration. We are, as so many like to point out, a nation of immigrants. Some of my family came from Germany and Poland in the early 1900's, though I have a strong tie to this country through family that came here before here was called the United States. That branch of the family, while not coming over on the Mayflower, was on the next boat. But that's getting away from the point.

The idea is, how can so many people who can trace their lines to immigrants, tell these people now that they can't do the same, in an effort to better their lives from the destitute conditions they suffer through. After all, if you were in their place, living in squalor, what are a few laws to break if it means you are providing a better life for your family? And she has a point. What is the difference between what my family did a few generations ago, and what many of these illegal immigrants are doing today, besides the fact that my immigrant relatives came here legally through Ellis island, not illegally across the southern border?

As the title of this post gives away... the difference is the benefits. We live in a welfare society today that simply did not exist back then. Government provides services to the poor today, at taxpayer expense (read our expense), that my immigrant relatives never had access to, nor even dreamed of. When they came to this country, they had a couple suitcases, a little money, their families, and a dream. That's it. They found a place to live, they found a place to work, they built up a life, and they did it mostly on their own, and with the support of immigrant communities. When they had kids, those children were citizens, but that didn't entitle them to anything from the government, other then a place to live, and the rights guaranteed us all in that document.

Compare that with what an illegal immigrant has access to today. From education, to health care, to welfare for illegal mothers who happen to have a child on this side of the southern divide. We pay for illegal immigration in a way that we never did before, and that is the difference. They aren't merely coming over here to work and support their families. They're coming over here and telling us to support their families too.

One of the primary arguments for amnesty is that there are far too many illegals here right now, and it would be impossible to put them all in trucks and deport them. Of course, amnesty will do nothing to prevent more illegals from coming over later, thus forcing us to revisit this exact same problem in a few years.

Why does nobody ever suggest getting rid of these benefits as a way to get rid of some of the illegals? Why don't we ever suggest tweaking the Constitution to close the loophole that allows any old someone born on this side of the border to be considered a citizen? If we get rid of some of the benefits, then there will be less of a draw for illegals to cross. I say less, because there will always be some sort of draw. But at least then, they'll actually be making it on their own.

Something to think about.

On Being a Schizophrenic Blogger 

First let me say that I don't suffer from real schizophrenia. I'm basically referring to the fact that when I blog about politics or current events, I generally approach the topic from one of two directions. Either I blog about the way something ought to be, or I blog about the way something could be.

The idealistic 27 year old personality likes to talk a lot about the way things ought to be. He has delusions of grandeur, and imagines himself being Emperor of the World some day. He's the guy who enjoys reading Calvin and Hobbes, especially when Calvin plays in his sandbox and imagines being God ("But Calvin is no kind and loving god! He's one of the old gods! He demands sacrifice!"). Of course, he would be a much more benevolent ruler than Calvin.

The Engineering personality likes to talk about the way things could be. He understands that idealistic worlds don't exist, and that you have to compromise with people who don't think the way that you do. He knows that when the way things are is very different then the way things ought to be, that it takes time to move from one place to the other, and that sometimes along the way you discover a whole new route to someplace else you never imagined. He's much more like Hobbes in a lot of ways ("There's more to this world than just people, you know.")

Unlike the comic strip, my inner Calvin and Hobbes don't really talk to each other. In some posts I'm Calvin, talking as if government bureaucracy could be easily eliminated with the stroke of a pen... going down the toboggan hill as fast I possibly can. Other times I'm Hobbes, taking a much more measured approach to life, asking "What's at the bottom of this hill?" before I go down. When I'm more like Hobbes, I might even laugh at people who act like Calvin, when I myself have done the same thing, and don't even realize it.

And there you have it. Some personal insights into the type of blogger that I am. So as you read through the thoughts I put here, keep in mind that you're looking at two different people, and they don't usually meet eye to eye, or even know they're looking through the same eyes.

I Think I Can, I Think I Can, I Think I Can 

The latest Carnival of the Badger is up over at The Happy Circumstance. It's short and sweet, which means you should head over and check it out... it won't take too long. Next week will be hosted by Widgerson Library & Pub. After that... who knows... maybe you.

When TLA's Strike 

I'm talking about Three Letter Acronyms, over at my other blog, The Coding Monkey.

Where's The Carnival of the Badger Going to Be This Week? 

You got me.

Update: Alright, it looks to be light on posts, but it will be over at The Happy Circumstance.

So Will The Camera Pan Out More? 

I have a small confession to make. I used to have a crush on Katie Couric. In fact, I used to watch her on the Today show before going to school in the morning. Granted, as I matured, I still appreciated her legs, but became disgusted with her politics. I tried watching her with mute on, but it seemed to be rather pointless. And so my fascination with Katie finally died.

Now most recent rumors have finally been confirmed:

On her 15th anniversary on 'Today,' Katie Couric told viewers Wednesday she's leaving NBC to join CBS, where she will become the first woman to anchor a network weekday evening newscast alone.

I remember several months ago, Katie guest hosted on the Tonight show, and they removed the back of the desk on stage so the camera could pan out and see her legs... as a joke of course. I wonder if that will be the new permanent gimmick on the CBS news to help revive their ratings. Will they do more features with her in a comfy chair, so the cameras will have the chance to show her in profile with her legs crossed and her shoes dangling? I know... men are such simplistic and predictable animals aren't we?

As If One Mother Wasn't Enough 

I decided to vote today, even though there was only one contested race, and the anti-war referendum didn't make it to Tosa. I went running after work, and since my voting place is on my running route, it was convenient, so I ran in and voted.

As I was feeding my ballot into the machine, the poll worker (an elderly lady) who watched me feed it in gave me a very stern look and said:

Poll Worker: Does your mother know you're out dressed like that?
Me: Pardon?
Poll Worker: Does your mother know you're out in shorts and a t-shirt?
Me: *laughing* Well I'm actually out running, which warms you up quite a bit.
Poll Worker: It's a good thing I'm not your mother. I don't think that's nearly warm enough for this weather young man.

Let Me Get This Straight 

Meteorolgists can't accurately predict whether it will rain tomorrow, let alone the temperature, but I'm supposed to believe that they can accurately tell us whether a lake could freeze for a few days here and there a few thousand years ago?

Rare conditions could have conspired to create hard-to-see ice on the Sea of Galilee that a person could have walked on back when Jesus is said to have walked on water, a scientist reported Tuesday.

The study, which examines a combination of favorable water and environmental conditions, proposes that Jesus could have walked on an isolated patch of floating ice on what is now known as Lake Kinneret in northern Israel.
...
The results suggest temperatures dropped to 25 degrees Fahrenheit (-4 degrees Celsius) during one of the two cold periods 2,500 to 1,500 years ago for up to two days, the same decades during which Jesus lived.

So a lake could have been frozen for a few days here and there during a 1000 year period... of which Jesus only lived for about 40. Given the track records of most weather men, I'm more inclined to believe the Bible than a statement like that... and I haven't been to church in a few years now.

Of course, anyone who has grown up in Wisconsin knows that "spring ice" is usually incredibly thin, and a male adult would easily break right through it. Not to mention that floating ice, bobbing on a lake is... well... kinda slippery. I think the apostles would've noticed Jesus trying to keep his balance.

"There are only two things I can't stand in this world." 

"People who are intolerant of other people's cultures... and the Dutch." Speaking of which, Samantha Burns points out that in South Korea, Canadians have been banned from a group for cultural understanding:

An organization that promotes cultural understanding and brings together people from different nations is open for anyone in Seoul to join. Anyone that is, except Canadians.

In a classified ad in KScene, a free biweekly magazine, World Class describes itself as a group that "brings together all nationalities to discuss world issues and break down cultural barriers and prejudices."

Breaking down the prejudices, however, doesn't extend to all countries. "No Canadians please," the ad continues.

When contacted by a Korea Herald reporter by e-mail, the organizer of the group, Bernard Carleton, elaborated further, "The thing is, CANADIANS ARE SCUM! They are self-loving, welfare supporting, over taxing, work ethic hating scum!!! They are not welcome in our group."

But at least they're not being prejudiced, and are understanding of other cultures.

More Blogrolling 

I mentioned Cute Overload a week or so ago, and just finally got around to actually adding them to my blogroll. If you can go to that site, and come away without saying "Awwww, that's sooooo cute", then you need to go see the wizard. They update the site daily with fresh pictures, and it's just plain fun.

Culinary Reminiscing 

There's nothing like having really bad enchiladas from a cafeteria to make you think about what real Mexican food tastes like. Living in California, if nothing else, spoiled me on good Mexican food. I never eat at Taco Bell, and I rarely eat at Qdoba, though I do prefer Qdoba to Taco Bell if I have to make a choice. For those of you who think that there is no such thing as authentic Mexican fast food, I encourage you to go to Super Cuca's in Santa Barbara if you're ever in the area. They've been voted best in the county I don't know how many years in a row, and deserve every accolade.

Of course, thinking of Super Cuca's instantly reminded me of another Santa Barbara staple... The Monkey Flip. Unfortunately, I just found out from my sister Sarah, that Kysers, the natural food store that made them, went out of business. Kysers had a health food bar in their store where they made, among other things, protein shakes. The Monkey Flip had their protein shake powder, a banana, chocolate syrup, chunky peanut butter, and a couple scoops of ice cream all blended together. It was heaven in a glass. I did go searching around Google, and found this recipe for something similar by the same name:

1 medium banana
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2 cups skim milk
2-3 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
6-9 ice cubes

First blend all other ingredients in blender until smooth then add ice cubes. Grind to blended milk shake stage.

The recipe I know of looks more like this:

1 medium banana
1 healthy squirt of Hershey's chocolate syrup
1 cup milk
1 scoop crunchy peanut butter (same scoop size as for the ice cream)
2-3 scoops vanilla ice cream

First blend all other ingredients in blender until smooth then add ice cream. Frappe until smooth.

The version I found is probably a little healthier than the one I know of, so pick the one that goes better for your lifestyle. Enjoy.

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't 

So the MMSD dumped more crap into the lake again, and are short of good reasons as usual. The MMSD, and the infamous "Deep Tunnel" (Freudian interpretations aside) are good blog fodder I suppose. In fact, on more than one occasion I have complained about their dumping myself. The one basic question that always comes up when discussing the Deep Tunnel is... why on Earth would you want a combined sewer and storm drain system anyway? The solution seems so obvious. Simply separate the two, and our pollution problems go away! On at least one occasion, I've even floated that idea... until I remembered living in California.

In most cities in Southern California (I was born in Santa Barbara), they have a separate storm and sewer system. The storm drains flow to various runoff basins throughout the area (popular for skateboarding during the dry seasons), which then run directly to the ocean. The problem with this system, is that rain water isn't the only thing that runs into the storm drains. You also have stuff like this:



Remember, when you have a separate system, none of this waste will be treated. So where does it end up?



That's why its not uncommon to find things like cups, cans, and syringes on the beaches in Southern California. Don't forget too, that unlike Los Angeles, Milwaukee has to deal with winter runoff from melting snow which contains road salt going into the drain systems. Left untreated, all that salt, along with other road chemicals would flow directly into the lake. Of course, that leads one to ask. Which is worse? The picture above of a river flowing into the Pacific ocean, or this picture of Lake Michigan after an MMSD dump:



The fact is, there are no easy answers. If there were, we would have done it already.

It's That Time of Year Again 

My friend Bev has taken a vacation from her normal blog, and has set up shop again at Like Waiting for April. April is national poetry month, and she will be sharing her favorite works all month. Do you have any poetry that you've penned? Have a poet you particularly like? She takes requests too.

Quick! 

What number am I thinking of?

It's Not Your Fault 

A recent long conversation with a good friend of mine, as well as thinking further about "white privilege", has lead me to the subject of this post. When we're facing a problem, there are no words in existence that make us feel better about our situation than "It's not your fault". It is so relieving to know that our lot in life is not our own doing. Those four words are so comforting, that sometimes we'll say them to someone who is down, just to make them feel better, even if we know it not to be true.

The problem with "It's not your fault", is that not only does it relieve someone of blame, it also tends to make them feel relieved of responsibility. After all, if this problem I'm facing is not my fault, why should I have to fix it? It's a natural question that people ask all the time. The answer of course is... Because it's your problem!

The one basic fact of life is this... people are greedy, selfish, self-absorbed animals. So while someone might have a vested interest in creating a problem for you, only you have a vested interest in solving it. Is it incredibly unfair? Absolutely... but what's your point?

While you might be able to get help from friends, loved ones, members of your community, or government... in the end... the only person who suffers terribly if nothing is done is you. So why are you waiting for someone else to fix it? And what if they don't fix it? Do you really want to roll the dice on someone else? Do you really want to depend on government for your well being?

So remember... while the problem might not be your fault, not solving it is always your fault.

Random Facts About Me 

I see these kinds of posts on other blogs every now and then, and I actually enjoy them. Beyond all the political tripe, it's kind of fun to find out little worthless bits of trivia about people.

I hate my middle name. I'm actually named after a great grandfather I never knew. While I understand he was a wonderful person (thus the great)... I still hate our middle name. In fact, my name was decided long before I was even a twinkle in my parent's eyes. Their first born son was going to get my name, no matter what. I'm also the youngest of four children... which just goes to show that some people will stop at nothing to have a son. You'll notice how I haven't mentioned the name yet. It's actually a closely guarded secret. I hate it so much, I don't even like telling people what it is.

I have memorized the lyrics to a lot of Neil Diamond songs. It's not because I was the member of a Neil Diamond cover band either. This fact I can blame squarely on my mother, who absolutely loves Neil Diamond, and who basically only played his tapes in her car when I was growing up. Love him or hate him... if you hear Forever in Blue Jeans enough times as a kid, it'll sink in.

My right foot is about half an inch longer than my left. Did you know that you can't go into a shoe store, and ask for a 12 1/2 right shoe, and a 12 left shoe? Actually... just finding half shoe sizes above 11 is a pain, which is why I sometimes end up buying 13's, depending on the brand. This problem only really gets to me when I buy running shoes like I did this weekend, because I want a closer fit so my arch is supported properly. Luckily Nike Air Motto's in a 12 are a perfect fit. Seriously, they might as well be glass slippers. Well... except for the the fact that you wouldn't want to run in glass, and well... I'm definitely not a Princess.

Blog Rolling 

Lately I've just been adding and removing blogs from my blogroll silently. I don't know why... well actually I do... it's just easier. But it seems cheap somehow. I add people to my blogroll for a reason, and I ought to point that reason out. Anyway... I'm adding The Confidentials to my Wisconsin list. She's a local gal, who has some insightful, if not downright clever writing. Not only that, she comments here from time to time, and she's been reading my blatherings for a while now. Now if she'd just get rid of that white text on the black background template.

I Like Getting Email 

For some reason, after writing this, I seem to be getting more mass emails from various groups than I did before. Maybe I should just keep my mouth shut, and maybe I shouldn't. On the one hand, I suppose it means I'm becoming more popular, and that people are thinking to add me to their mass email list. This of course is a very nice ego stroke. On the other hand, mass emails, even if not advertising the latest penis growth formula, still feel like spam to me. I always end up replying asking to be taken off their list.

Maybe I'm shooting myself in the foot by doing that. People may very well look at that and say, screw that guy. In fact, one person has already replied as if I was the rude one, because I politely asked to be removed from a list I never asked to be on in the first place. But as I look at the type of blogger that I am, I have come to realize one important thing. I'm not Instapundit. I don't want to be Instapundit, though I wouldn't mind his traffic. I'm not a public utility that repeats pre-manufactured posts, or simply links to someone else and says, go read this.

I blog on topics that interest me, not someone else. I blog on things where I have something I want to say. More importantly, I am the type of person who likes to engage in a dialog with people. At work, when I have a question to ask someone, I'm much more likely to walk over to their cube, sit on the edge of their desk, and have a real conversation with them. A lot of other people will simply IM or email. Being part of a mass email list is not a conversation. It feels as if something is being shoved down my throat.

So with all that said... if you'd like to email me (my address is in the sidebar to your right), then I'd love to hear from you. If there is something that you think I would enjoy blogging about, please feel free to forward it to me. But if you have something you want to send to "My list of Wisconsin/Conservative/Libertarian/Semi-Popular Bloggers", don't bother. Nothing will get your email deleted faster than not including my name somewhere in the body of the message. Then again, starting your email with "Hi Nick" will get it read very carefully, and most likely get you a response some time soon.

Talk to me... not a mailing list.

I'd Never Listen to The Brew 

Have you seen the new commercial on TV for The Brew? The one with the ugly fat guy dancing around without a shirt, and the Brew bottle cap logo painted on his belly? It's an ugly, awful commercial. I would never listen to that station after seeing that commercial. In fact, I immediately change channels when that commercial comes up. Talk about terrible advertising.