Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Just something to keep an eye out for...
potential for "social engineering"In a study accepted for publication in the journal Social Cognition, the researchers describe how they fooled college students into thinking that as children they had become sick when eating certain foods. The students answered questions about their early eating memories. A week later, they were presented with a bogus food history profile that embedded a single falsehood - that they had gotten sick when eating pickles or hard-boiled eggs - among real memories. "This is called the false feedback technique, where you gather data from the subjects and use it to lend credibility to this false profile," said Dr. Elizabeth Loftus, a psychologist at the University of California at Irvine who led the research. But about 40 percent of the 336 participants confirmed in later interviews that they remembered getting sick or believed it to be true. Compared with a control group, the believers said on questionnaires that they would be much more likely to avoid eating pickles or hard-boiled eggs if offered them at a party. In another study, just completed, the researchers found that people who were told that they loved asparagus as children were much more drawn to that slender delicacy than those whose memories were left alone
Like Mama said -- always read the fine print. [It's made from peeeeeople!]
Peter's comment to
Dean's response to Peter's comment also touched me Please click through and read Dean's words first. No, Dean, I feel no sense of shame at all. I feel a deep sense of pride that a man of such integrity and courage believes in, and fought for, the same things I believe in. We *won* that war. There. That war was lost here at home by citizens willing, hell, eager, to believe the worst about their own country and countrymen. We lost faith in ourselves and all that we stood for. That is a lesson that I am grateful to Kerry, in all his misguided intentions, for bringing up to us -- US -- today. We need to take note of this particular bit of our history and just exactly how we allowed freedom of speech to morph into freedom of bullying and make us lose that war. We need to learn what is was that made us open to losing our focus and direction. We need to know how we came to believe we had lost our Honor. For in believing that we had lost it, we gave it up. We need to examine that part of our history closely for the lessons it has to teach us today. We lost that war in Viet Nam and the Vietnamese people paid. Dearly. We cannot afford to lose this war through the same mistake of refusing to believe in ourselves and each other. This time, not only will we pay dearly, but the people of many other nations will pay, in turn. We need to reacquaint ourselves with what is good and right and pure and unique about The Great Experiment that is America. We need to return to the roots of belief in the basic goodness of Man from which our approach to governance sprang. We need to give ourselves permission to be proud of all that we have accomplished in our mere 228 years and believe that we, indeed, still have the Right Stuff to continue to do credit to our forefathers, and to ourselves. We need to give ourselves permission to protect ourselves because what we have created and what we have done is worth protecting. And what we will do will be principled, and decent and right. Then we need to choose our course and commit to it, being willing to sacrifice to help others who would do the same, and do what we can afford to do for those who would not. We need to draw clear boundaries on how we will allow others to treat us and to speak about us. Only by respecting ourselves can we hoe to earn the respect of others whom we respect. We need to realize that it will be messy, difficult to the point of unbearable, unpopular and painful to follow through on our commitment. We need to remember that the alternative -- slavery -- is infinitely worse. We need to understand that the act, itself, of standing up for ourselves, for our families and for our country is right and decent and good. We need to respect ourselves, and each other, for doing so. So, no, I do not feel ashamed. Even though there are squabbles and disputes among us; even though some of our own so dislike their kind they are willing to restrict speech, restrict rights, restrict people and turn this country into a jail; even though free speech brings out all manner of ugliness amongst the decency; I feel proud. I feel proud of this country, proud of my people and proud of all we have accomplished, for ourselves and for the world.Monday, August 30, 2004
Little Fat-Face is At it Again
While the Winner's away, the Looser will play Remember that illegal aliens' Driver License bill? The one Schwarzenegger vetoed as theAt the same time that the governor's aides were reasserting his intent to veto the bill, opponents of the measure said they feared that Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, a supporter of the legislation, would sign it into law while the governor was out of state. I'm very supportive of the bill," Bustamante said through a spokesman. "As to whether I would sign it or not — that calls for an extreme amount of speculation."
"Speculation" - no. Unmitigated gall - yes. Little chorizo. . . . [ID/PW - latimes18485 ]
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Just put the check in the mail
m'kay?NYPost-Tehran IRAN'S national heritage organisation offered today to ..."send workers and meet all costs" involved in restoring one of Shiite Islam's holiest sites,...the mausoleum of Imam Ali ...in the central Iraqi city of Najaf
Great. Cool. Holy site, uhm'kay. -- hire Iraqis.
*Boff!* *Pow!* *Bam!!*
aaaaiiieeeeee!!Flight attendants nationwide will begin self-defense training this week, learning to fight, tie up terrorists and use on-board items like coffee urns as weapons. Nearly three years after the 9/11 suicide hijackings, the Department of Homeland Security is launching a voluntary program to train airline crews in the use of force.
That system could use a good cuppa joe and a little Metamucil™, eh?
"Passive resistance is no longer valid ...
There's a thought . . .
Take Back Our Bike Right Turn Lanes!!
JR - you are my hee-row! Lead On!
Ahhhh, bikers... Not those furry, leather clad road warriors on their full-throated hogs. The other kind -- the ones who ride around with their butts in the air, daring us "lower life forms" to sniff it. Spandex pants a-shine, pointy little helmets protecting pointy little heads, clackity shoes impossible to walk in. [and this from a woman whose favorite summer sandals were Candies -- you know, Barbie shoes. I could sprint across an open field in those...
ahhhh - good times. *sigh* But I digress...]
There is a road around here I take with great regularity. It parallels the main road into town but verrry few like to use it, which is why it's my fave. It's narrow and winding hanging onto a hillside for at least 2 miles. To the right a creek waaaay down there -- to the left sheered off , straight vertical dirt and rocks. Lotsa rocks. The lanes are the absolute minimum width carved as they are out of a dam-steep hill.
One merry day I'm driving to town. . .
. . . my friend J. and I chatting away relaxedly. Up ahead were a couple of cars -- not too unusual. But they were going kinda slow, so I slow and look harder. Nuttin'. No apparent reason. I assumed it was one of those old-men-in-a-hat, peering through the steering wheel on his way to the cardiologist. Ya gotta leave home waaaay ahead of time when you're an old-man-in-a-hat. NBD.
Then cars begin to pass -- something -- on a blind curve. [?!?] Yeah, you guessed it: Saturday, August 28, 2004
More Play
yep, I'm working on something and, yep, I'll share it I need your help. I am working to pin down the definition of a particular word. I know what the dictionary says but I'm looking for the current, cultural definition. Tell me what first pops into your head when you encounter the word ATHEIST. Thanks!Let's All Play
you know you wanna... I need your help. I am working to pin down the definition of the word SECULARIST. I know what the dictionary says but I'm looking for the current, cultural definition. Tell me what first pops into your head when you encounter the word SECULARIST. Thanks!Compare and Contrast
how long's it been since ya heard that phrase?• GDP grew at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 2.8 percent during the 2nd quarter of 2004. GDP increased by 4.5 percent in the 1st quarter of 2004. • Major contributors to GDP growth in the 1st quarter were consumer spending, which increased by 1.6 percent, and business investment, which increased by 12.1 percent. • Business investment, the lack of which drove the economy into recession, has now increased for 5 consecutive quarters. • A wider trade deficit (the difference between exports and imports) subtracted more than a percentage point from overall growth and offset the upward revisions to consumer spending and business investment.
[Good news. Kinda dry, though. Lacks the stimulation -- the titillation of this:]
Garofalo "A lot of these people that jumped on that slam-the-Dixie-Chicks bandwagon, these are people that just are misogynists, or just are people that hate, or people that are just racists -- you know, Arab is the new black now. I mean it's like let's just hate Arabs, so they write hate mail . . . "
[...and "these people" is the new "those people."]
Random Protester Bush is a dictator and he's a fascist, and he's just destroying America, and everything that Americans believe is ruined because of him.
[ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod] The first quote requires some thought and some knowledge of previous background. [...and mebbe some self-discipline to read it through] It requires an appreciation of a subtle -- dare I say nuanced -- trend. The second quotes just make ya wanna run out and break something!! Burn something! Yell and scream at the hopelessness of it all!! Rend your clothing at the loss!! In fact, not only do they give ya permission to set shit on fire -- the almost demand it in response to the outrageousness of the situation! The horror!! What's that say about the individual who is attracted to the one or the other?
Friday, August 27, 2004
Stop. Acting. Guilty.
or is it a case of picking your battles? Benjamin Ginsberg, chief outside counsel to the Bush campaign, has also advised the Swift Boat Veterans. Kerry calls the Swifties words a "smear" and says that Ginsberg's having advised both is evidence of Bush's involvement. Like he don't know how lawyers work... Ginsberg resigns."[Ginsburg] said two prominent Democratic lawyers are doing the same thing. He said Robert Bauer, the top legal counsel for the Kerry campaign, also is the attorney for an independent group, America Coming Together, that has been mobilizing voters in support of Kerry. In addition, Ginsberg said, Joseph Sandler is a lawyer for both the Democratic National Committee and for the independent group MoveOn.org, which has run advertisements attacking Bush."
I have, as yet, found not mention of Bauer and/or Sandler resigning . . .
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
How in BloodyHell Is This Right?!?
"1st Amendment" ring a bell?"Col. Cordier did not inform the campaign of his involvement in the [SBVT] advertisement," the Bush campaign said in a statement. "Because of his involvement, Col. Cordier will no longer participate as a volunteer for Bush-Cheney '04."
Nuh, no, no, no, no. This man is a private citizen volunteering to work for a candidate he likes. He has also related some experiences of his to a national audience. And because his views are controversial, or relate to a controversial issue, or are views that some people don't like -- he has to stop voluntary contribution of his time to a political candidate?!?!? 527s, as we're calling them in this incarnation, are still citizens speaking their minds about issues that relate to them. Basic American Right. And it's up to the citizenry to get smart and quit listening to anyone who tries to manipulate them, con them, inflame their emotions or get them to believe things without providing evidence of fact. Basic American Responsibility. Voting is a privilege paid for in blood and skull-sweat.
NEIN
who are these guys? Something worth keeping an eye on. . . Northeast Intelligence NetworkProtest Warriors -- not just a name...
gee, I like these folks... As pointed out by the beautiful talented, dangerous and knowledgeable Headmistress SondraK, there is fungus amongus here on the Lovely Interweb. Not only did these puerile pups hack the Protest Warrior website earlier today, they puked some of their pertinacious petulance onto the site and into the email boxes of members whose addys they stole. Being of sound principles, PW attracts some pretty serious geeks who cleaned up the pedomorphic poops in the blink of an eye. These geeky geniuses also laid on the smack-down. Those amateur "anarchists" don't know who dey messin' wit -- do dey? heh. A sample, for your enjoyment:Well you've all heard about the hacking incident. We have a pronouncement to make. ProtestWarrior hereby charges this hacker with cybercrime, for violating our constitutional rights. We request that all political websites and blogs stand with us in rooting out this felon. Even if you disagree with our ideas, we can at least agree that internet privacy should be sacrosanct. We've tracked him down, and we're 95% sure of who he is. To help us verify it, and if you think you've got the skill, we'd like to invite you to help us out. Whoever digitally hunts him down will receive full honors on our website, and membership in the PW Cyber Corps. It's ironic that we're about to prove that anarchy works, in that we're going to demonstrate that the Internet can maintain rule-of-law strictly by private netizens who are fierce about protecting their electronic property rights. Hey hacker, welcome to the wild wild west and we're puttin' up a Wanted Poster with your face on it. You best giddyup little doggie, cuz a posse is coming to hunt you down. As you know we live in Austin. Well you're about to learn a valuable lesson: don't mess with Texas. ...So we've decided that since you went to all the trouble, we'd take a look at what you have to say. You wanted a stage to preach, you got it.
the anarchist terrorist wrote: ... Right-wing extremists are modern-day brown shirts who abuse and harass activists who are fighting for social justice while claiming to be in the moral right.
Look in the mirror asshole. You're the ones who intend to abuse and harass activists. Oh yeah, they're Republicans, so they couldn't possibly care about justice. They just seek to bomb countries on behalf of corporations, that's what they're all about right?
Quote: By infiltrating and crashing legal, peaceful assemblies, the Protest Warriors are fighting against the democratic process while claiming to uphold the core values of this country.
Oh we see, so you're not always for anarchy. In this case you want the State to use force to ensure your right to protest. Got it, hypocrite.
Quote: It is unpatriotic to blindly accept and obey the dogma of the ruling classes, and to lash out at peace activists who are trying to build a better world is intolerable. We're shutting you down.
And just what are your ideas on how to build that better world? You people are always really vague with the specifics. You have to be, because you're a total intellectual vacuum. You're not pro-anything, you're just anti .
It is a truly wonderful response, treat yourself to the whole thing. bwahahaha! Moral: Informed intelligence and guile will win over ignorance and enthusiasm every fucking time, sonny. or Don't try to teach your Granny to suck eggs. Now run along you little anarco-wankers, adults are talking.
Get out your dictionaries and your red pens -- again
time to learn more 'newspeak' I love words. I mean, I really, really love words. Words are the tools with which we grasp ideas, concepts and passions. Tim Taylor's got nuthin' on me in appreciation for these tools. arrrr arrrrgh aaaarrrrghghghg Which is why this using-words-that-usta-mean-one-thing-to-obfuscate-another crap just pisses me off! The latest word to be tormented thus; nuance. Nuance used to be one of my favorite words. Itanother Kerry nanonuance
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Pathologically Pathetic
"Why are all these swift boat guys opposed to me?" Drudge has, in a *World Exclusive,* stated that Candidate Kerry has personally phoned an anti-Kerry swift boat vet. Could we call it "suspicious timing" as it comes hours after Bob Dole said:CNN Late Edition transcript: I mean, one day he's saying that we were shooting civilians, cutting off their ears, cutting off their heads, throwing away his medals or his ribbons. The next day he's standing there, "I want to be president because I'm a Vietnam veteran." ...I think he's got himself into this wicket now where he can't extricate himself because not every one of these people can be Republican liars. There's got to be some truth to the charges. ...Maybe he should apologize to all the other 2.5 million veterans who served. He wasn't the only one in Vietnam. ... three Purple Hearts and never bled that I know of. I mean, they're all superficial wounds. Three Purple Hearts and you're out. ...And as far as I know, he's never spent one day in the hospital. I don't think he draws any disability pay. He doesn't have any disability. And boasting about three Purple Hearts when you think of some of the people who really got shot up in Vietnam...
According to the Drudge story, Brant was skipper of the #96 and the #36 boats. He was also the man who used to put Kerry back to bed at night when Kerry was sleepwalking...
KERRY: "Why are all these swift boat guys opposed to me?" BRANT: "You should know what you said when you came back, the impact it had on the young sailors and how it was disrespectful of our guys that were killed over there." [Brant had two men killed in battle.] KERRY: "When we dedicated swift boat one in '92, I said to all the swift guys that I wasn't talking about the swifties, I was talking about all the rest of the veterans."
Brant declined Kerry's invitation to meet with him explaining, "that Kerry was obviously not prepared to correct the record on exactly what happened during Vietnam and what happened when Kerry came back. " . Rule of Holes: when you're in one - stop digging. . Why do I get this horrible feeling that if -- Dawg Fahbid -- Kerry won the election he would stand before the nation with tears sparkling in his eyes and say,
"You like me -- you really like me!" *sniff*
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{/if}
