Smarter Than Celery

Switchin'

2008-01-30T17:00:00.000-05:00

I've decided to go back to my original blog -- GotDesign. I know, this makes me seem a little schizophrenic, but it matches my e-mail address, my portfolio site, etc. So please take a moment (all 3 or 4 of you) and re-set your links back to GotDesign. Thanks. And, sorry for the inconvenience.

By the way, I've started posting more regularly at GotDesign. Go take a look.

Bit o' Fame

2008-01-07T21:28:00.001-05:00

Andy Warhol once said that everyone gets his/her 15 minutes of fame, I recently got a few seconds posted to my account. By now most people are familiar with the MSNBC/Dateline series called To Catch A Predator hosted by Chris Hansen. The show features adults who have contacted what they believe are juveniles under the age of 15 for the purposes of having sex with them. The reality is that these men have been chatting with decoys and those who follow through with their desires will drive to a house where an actress/actor portrays the juvenile and the "predator" is arrested for attempting to have unlawful sex with a minor. After the men meet the decoy, Chris Hansen comes out and starts interviewing them about why they are there. You get the idea.

Back in October 2007, the KY Attorney General's Office and the Warren County Sheriff's Office hosted an internet predator sting with MSNBC. The resulting episode of To Catch A Predator (TCAP) aired on December 28th, 2007. I knew the episode would be airing soon, but exactly when. Well, it turns out that I had a fairly significant showing the episode. My responsibility was to search the suspects' vehicles (after receiving consent to do so) and to inventory all items we took as evidence.

Last week, I received an e-mail from the Director of the KBI (part of the Office of the Attroney General) congratulating me for my appearance on TCAP. At which point I had no idea. So I went to the TCAP website where they had posted 6-8 short videos extracted from the episode. Well, I make a showing in at least 4 of these web videos (I've embedded one video below). Who knew? Some of the guys at my church are now kidding me about "Variety Pack." (You'll understand when you see it.)

Let me know what you think.

Road Sign

2008-01-04T20:29:00.000-05:00

...taken on the road (Branson, MO, to be exact)

A House Divided

2007-12-21T18:07:00.000-05:00

Live Blogging: Denver

2007-12-11T10:40:00.000-05:00

Coming to you live (sort of) from Denver, CO. My lovely wife and I are en route to Las Vegas, NV and we're waiting for our connecting flight. There are several inches of snow on the ground here and it's still coming down. It's quite lovely, actually. Snow is the one thing I really miss from my childhood. I can remember having continuous snow coverage from early December through mid-March. But enough of the nostalgia. I'll post a few pictures once we get to our hotel in Las Vegas.

And that's another thing to blog about...my new camera. Here is a brief description. I'll post more later.

TTFN!

Back in Action

2007-12-04T18:19:00.000-05:00

Several years back, I created and co-authored a blog -- The Cardinal Coalition -- for covering the 2004 Presidential election. We had several prominent Louisville-area bloggers giving their opinions on the race. But shortly after the election, the Cardinal Coalition basically rode into the sunset and disappeared.

Well, now I'm resurrecting the Cardinal Coalition for covering the 2008 Presidential election. Why now? Because the 2008 election is vitally important for our country. Their is the real possibility that our country could make a shift towards socialism by electing Hillary to the White House and giving the Democrats a larger majority (God forbid!).

Now, more than ever, we need a vigorous discussion of the political process in America. I hope that the Cardinal Coalition will provide that. Please take a moment to visit (give us a little time to get things rolling). Thanks.

Thanking God

2007-12-03T12:40:00.000-05:00

At about 7pm on Friday evening, my wife was sitting stopped in traffic less than a block from our house. A speeding motorist hit Melanie's Ford Escape from behind causing damage to the drivers-side rear wheel and quarter panel. After hitting my wife, the motorist spun out and continued forward striking at least 3 other vehicles. A by-stander who watched the accident approached the vehicle of the motorist who caused the accident and urged him to remain still and in his vehicle until EMS arrived. But the motorist then exited the vehicle and ran from the scene.

My wife was transported to Sts. Mary & Elizabeth Hospital, after complaining of neck and back pain, where she had x-rays taken. Her x-rays show no apparent injuries and she was released.
When you get a call telling you your wife was involved in a traffic accident, you hold your breath. Luckily my call came from my wife herself instead of from a Police officer. It's important at such times to trust God.

I cannot begin to tell you just how much I love my wife. Words fall short. Next to God's gift of salvation through Christ, my wife is God's greatest blessing to me. And I make sure she knows it every day.

I was lucky -- my wife was not injured. But somebody's spouse, sibling, or significant other won't come home from such an accident. If I have only one piece of advice for people, it is to make sure that the people you love know it. You don't know if you will see them tonight. Never miss an opportunity to tell someone you love them.

For the same reason, get to know Jesus the Christ. Having a relationship with Christ is not just important for life after death, but also for having an amazing life NOW. The abundant life that Jesus promised us starts now, not at death.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever! -- Psalm 118:1

Won't Get Fooled Again

2007-11-12T12:44:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been nearly 2.5 months since I last posted anything here. Far too long. So I will shotgun post a bunch of musings

Won't Get Fooled Again
I grew up with The Who. I still love their music -- it's the soundtrack to my life. Last week I caught part of a special on VH1(?) about The Who. As I watched and listened to the music of my youth, I realized that Grunge music -- made popular by Nirvana, etc. out of the Seattle, WA area -- was merely a rehashing of The Who. The Who wrote music of youthful rebellion against life in industrial regions of southern UK. But at least it come across as whiny and self-absorbed as Nirvana sounded. "Oooh, pay attention to me because I'm a disaffected youth." At least Pete Townsend, et al were dealing with the real economic and social concerns of their youth. Any.... just my opinion.

Pakistan
What a difficult situation! Radical islamists (Wahhabists and the like) on one hand and loosing your power to a group reformers who can only agree on their opposition to Pervez Musharraf. And what does the winner get? Control over about 50 nuclear weapons! That's right, I said nukes! I'm almost of a mind to recommend that the USA go in and take control of the nukes until the situation is decided. I tend to want to support Benazir Bhutto. She seems to have a plan (of sorts). And she also seems to be tough enough to stand up to the islamists.

Recommended Reading
I recently bought the audiobook version of Dallas Willard's The Divine Conspiracy. What a great book! It has truly changed some of my perspective on my faith and what salvation is -- the ability to live with God now! It largely came about from an explanation of the usage of the term Heaven. The original Greek term heaven means, basically, everything from the dirt up -- so to speak. The air we breathe, the sky the birds and airplanes fly through, and the inky black of space filled with stars and wonder. I don't want to give everything away, but salvation and heaven don't begin at our deaths -- we can have them now. But don't take my word for it, read the book!

That's all I have for right now. I hope to post some more in the near future. At least I hope it won't take me another 2.5 months to post again.

Until then, stay smart!

New E-Mail Scam

2007-08-28T07:45:00.000-05:00

I don't usually blog about such things as e-mail scams. By now, everyone should be familiar with the e-mail scam where someone from another country is trying to take advantage of a recent windfall of cash by asking someone to help transfer the money. You will of course have to put up some of your own money to help this person get his money and, thereby, get a bonus for yourself. But now someone is using the same idea but is using the context of a U.S. service member in Iraq (or elsewhere) getting a hidden cache of money out of Iraq. Here is the message I received today:

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am Captain Simon Smith of the US Marine Corps on Monitoring and Peace –keeping mission in Baghdad-Iraq. On the 27th day of August 2007, we were alerted on the sudden presence of some Terrorists camping in a suburb not too far from Karbala here in Iraq. After Immediate intervention, we captured three (3) of the Terrorists, twenty-six (26) were killed leaving seven (7) injured.

In the process of Investigation they confessed being rebels for late Ayman al-Zawahiri and took us to a cave in Karbala which served as their camp. Here we recovered several guns, bombs and other Ammunitions including a box contains some American US Dollars amounting $10.4M after counted it. Please
I want you to keep this in high secrecy. I am in keen need of a “Reliable and Trustworthy” person like you who would receive, secure and protect this box containing the American US Dollars for me on till my assignment elapses here in Iraq. Please contact me on this email only: Please assure me of your keeping this topmost secret to protect my job with the US Monitoring and Peace-Keeping mission.

Best regards,

Capt. Simon Smith.

The whole idea of this message is preposterous. The only time you see something like this is in the movies (i.e., Three Kings). So be on your guard. Be smarter than celery.

Coins and Currency

2007-07-19T18:23:00.000-05:00

Part of the reason I maintain a blog is because it is a way for my friends (and practically everyone else) to get to know me better. I few of my friends know that I collect coins and currency from around the world. Some of these coins and currency I have picked up in my various travels, some from friends, and most were purchased across the Web.

One of the problems I have with my collection is that I am the type of guy who wants to know all he can about his coins and currency. And while the Internet is "vast and infinite" (hat tip to Ghost in the Shell), I still have trouble finding information about certain coins. So I will start reaching out for assistance (and I will offer it where I can) by posting images of my coins and asking for help. Hopefully, there will be some knowledgeable numismatists ("coin collectors") who will hear my cry and come to my aid.

My first "cry for help" is to find a thorough source of information on coins from Panama. For instance, I am looking for as much information as I can get about the following coin -- a 5 Centesimo dated 1983 (see image).

If you know anything about this coin or Panamanian coins in general, please drop me a line. Thanks.

Expanding the Family

2007-06-11T08:30:00.000-05:00

Well, my wife and I have decided to expand our family. So I am proud to introduce the newest member of the GotDesign family -- Sparky.

Sparky is a 10-wk old miniature Schnauzer. And a cute one at that! He has really brightened our household -- when he's not peeing on the carpet, that is.

Sparky had a dubious start. The first night we had him, he whined and cried from 10 p.m. through until about 2:30 a.m. I had to call in to work and take a sick day because I had been unable to sleep that night. But since that time Sparky has not whimpered for more than 20-30 minute on any given evening.

The next challenge was to get him to be more clear about when he needs to pee or poop. I have gotten in the habit of taking him outside regularly and that has greatly helped cut down the number of incidents. But Mrs. GotDesign and I have to keep a constant eye on him -- the moment he disappears from our collective sight is the moment we find a puddle on the floor or a damp spot on a rug.

Sparky has also progressed into the "I have to mouth or bite everything within reach" phase. We have to be careful when we play with Sparky that he does not latch on to a finger, a hand, a shoe, a pant leg -- anything, really. We are rapidly increasing the number of chew toys we have for Sparky to try to focus his toothy fetish in more appropriate directions.

Hopefully, in the not too distant future, Sparky will get to an age where he acknowledges us when we call his name and responds to vocal commands. That will help immensely. In the meantime... pray for us.

Hate Crime

2007-06-11T07:48:00.000-05:00

While doing my morning reading, I came across what I feel is an important article. If you have followed any of my writing (either here or at GotDesign) you will know that I try to be fair in everything I do and I also work to point out hypocrisy wherever I find it. And believe me, you don't have to be even as smart as celery to pick this one out.

A young couple in Knoxville was carjacked, kidnapped, raped and murdered. While this is indeed a heinous crime, what is even worse is that prosecutors think it was racially motivated. But the snag is this -- the victims were white and the accused are black.

As the article points out, had this ethnicities been reversed, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and the like would have been descending on Knoxville like vultures to be sure that the world knew of this racially-motivated crime. Since the victims were white, no one wants to give the case any attention. Whites killing black -- a horrendous crime. Blacks killing whites -- not so much.

I have never been in favor of having special "hate crime" legislation on the books. I think it opens the doors to defining crime based on ideology. We are already seeing cases in Europe where Christians are being persecuted for standing up for the Biblical definition of homosexuality as being a sin. And the Europeans are doing this because it has been declared a hate crime to speak ill of homosexuals or homosexuality. Recently proposed legislation (H.R. 1592 -- the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007), which passed through the House of Representatives in May, "[d]efines 'hate crime' as a violent act causing death or bodily injury because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability of the victim." I could make all kinds of arguments about the "slippery slope" this legislation presents, but more basically it create a federal class of crimes that is already available in all of the states. All states have assault statutes that would cover exactly what is proposed here, but H.R. 1592 provides an arbitrary, special class of victims based on ideological guidelines. What I particularly disturbed about with this Knoxville case is the obvious double standard and the special class of victims that such a double standard creates.

What do you think? Chime in and let me know.

Gotta Love Fred

2007-05-16T09:21:00.000-05:00

Evidently socialist filmmaker Michael Moore wrote an open letter to Fred Thompson. I'm looking for this letter and will post it once I have it. In the meantime, Fred Thompson has recorded a video in response to Moore's letter. You HAVE to see it!

I'll be back later with Moore's original letter to Thompson.

OK. It turns out it was relatively easy to find (on Michael Moore's website). Here it is.

May 15, 2007

Senator Fred Thompson
American Enterprise Institute
1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036

Dear Senator Thompson,

Given that it has been publicly reported in The Weekly Standard, a leading neo-conservative publication, that you support Fidel Castro and the Cuban regime by being a purveyor of fine Cuban exports despite the trade embargo, I was surprised to see your recent op ed in a more traditional conservative outlet, The National Review, regarding my trip to Cuba (I suspect you choose The National Review in an effort to pander to an outlet that had criticized you for your opposition to medical malpractice legislation).

In your May 2, 2007 National Review article, “Paradise Island,” you specifically raised concerns about whether my trip to Cuba with 9/11 heroes, who have suffered serious health problems as a result of their exposure to toxic substances at Ground Zero that have gone untreated, was somehow going to support Castro and the Cuban government:

“It always leaves me shaking my head when I read about some big-time actor or director going to Cuba and gushing all over Castro.”

Putting aside the fact that you, like the Bush Administration, seem far more concerned about the trip to Cuba than the health care of these 9/11 heroes, I was struck by the fact that your concerns (including comments about Castro's reported financial worth) apparently do not extend to your own conduct, as reported in The Weekly Standard's April 23, 2007 story, “From the Courthouse to the White House Fred Thompson auditions for the leading role” (emphasis added):

“Thompson's work space looks just like what the home office of a successful politician or CEO should look like--though a little messier: a large desk, dark wood, leather furniture, lots of books and magazines and newspapers, a flat-screen TV, and box upon box of cigars--Montecristos from Havana.”

In light of your comments regarding Cuba and Castro, do you think the “box upon box of cigars – Montecristos from Havana” that you have in your office have contributed to Castro's reported wealth?

While I will leave it up to the conservatives to debate your hypocrisy and the Treasury Department to determine whether the “box upon box of cigars” violates the trade embargo, I hereby challenge you to a health care debate.

Survey after survey has indicated that health care is one of the top issues to the American voters. Today, more than 46 million people lack health care coverage, including 9 million children. We pay significantly more than any other country in the world - and get less back. Americans life expectancy is lower than other developed countries and our infant mortality rates are higher. And our heroic Ground Zero 9/11 workers live in a society where the Bush Administration has shown more concern about their travel than about their health.

Our debate would provide you an opportunity to appeal to the right wing of the Republican Party by continuing to attack me; it would give me a chance to discuss health care and tell you exactly what happened in Cuba, given your apparent interest; and it would provide the American people an opportunity to see just how serious Hollywood can be, with a purported conservative and an avowed progressive Hollywood personality on stage.

Over the course of the debate, we could specifically address the following issues:

(1) Your work as a lobbyist in light of the fact that the health care and insurance industries have maintained the current health care system through their effective control of the political establishment.

(2) The fact that you raised hundred of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the health care and insurance industries.

(3) Discuss the fact, highlighted in yet another conservative outlet The New York Sun, that you inexplicably wanted to cut funding for AIDS research.

(4) Your relationship with the Frist family and by extension HCA, one of the nation's largest for-profit hospital chains. It has been reported that former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (who was renowned for his over-the-television-screen Schiavo diagnosis) is serving as one of your confidantes on your potential presidential campaign. The Frist family has historically controlled HCA, which paid a record $1.7 billion in civil and criminal fines, including a $631 million penalty for Medicaid fraud – in other words, ripping off the taxpayers.

(5) Discussing whether Arthur Branch, as the District Attorney of Manhattan, supports a woman's right to choose, gun safety reforms, gay marriage, the trans fat ban and anti-smoking laws (which would impact Cuban cigars, including your Montecristos).

Like American Idol, we could even have the country vote to determine which one of us wins the debate. Though in the spirit of full disclosure, I feel obligated to forewarn you that I was the winner of the 1971-72 Detroit Free Press Debate Award for the state of Michigan.

The winner of our health care debate could even light a victory cigar with one of your Montecristos (though we may want to consider shipping them to the safe house where I have put a master copy of SiCKO in the event that the Bush Administration tries to seize the film).

Sincerely,

Michael Moore

And one other thing, I recently heard someone say that liberals are improperly named in our modern political discussion. Liberals are truly people who hold serious political philosophical views and are open to discussion and debate on this views. Therefore, the term "liberal" really doesn't call a spade a spade. Having said this, I will begin referring to those I have previously called liberals in more appropriate terms -- socialists. Socialists want to ascend to power in order to nationalize all social services and most commercial activities. This assures the collection of power in their own hands. There will be no discussion and no debate. And certainly, public say in the matter.

So I will call them as I see them.

Summer Spectacular

2007-04-26T08:37:00.000-05:00

I am soooo looking forward to this Summer. First off, the movie adaptation of Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix will be released on July 13th. Check out the newly-released trailer -- Quicktime 300 or Windows Media 300 or QT Hi-Def 720. I'm really pumped about this movie.

But even more exciting is the impending release of the final book in the Harry Potter trilogy -- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. To some it may seem childish, but the Potter trilogy is one of the best and most well-written series of novels in a long time. For those of you who still aren't convinced, please take a look at what I have previously written about the Potter books at my former blog -- GotDesign. I am really looking forward to reading about how the legend of the boy who lived turns out.

Finally A Victory

2007-04-18T13:24:00.000-05:00

The Supreme Court has ruled the partial-birth abortion ban to be constitutional! Yeah! Dance around! Make some noise!

Hopefully this will not be the last ruling against abortion. Hopefully, we won't have to wait too much longer for Roe v. Wade to be overruled. Pray for it!

Contribution Request

2007-04-10T10:35:00.000-05:00

A colleague passed this along and I had to share it with you...

Dear Friends and Relatives:
I have the distinguished honor of being on the committee to raise $5,000,000.00 for a monument of Bill Clinton. We originally wanted to put him on Mt. Rushmore until we discovered there was not enough room for two additional faces.

We then decided to erect a statue of Bill Clinton in the Washington, D.C. Hall Of Fame. We are having a bit of difficulty deciding where the statue should be placed. Our committee felt it would not be proper to place it beside the statue of George Washington, who never told a lie, or beside Jesse Jackson, who never told the truth, since Bill Clinton could never tell the difference.

We finally decided to place it beside Christopher Columbus, the greatest Democrat of them all. He left not knowing where he was going, and when he got there he did not know where he was. He returned not knowing where he had been, and did it all on someone else's money.

If you are one of the fortunate people who have anything left after taxes, we expect a generous contribution to this worthwhile project.

Thank you,
Bill Clinton Monument Committee

P.S. The Committee has raised $1.35 so far.
P.P.S. And another thing.....Now let me get this straight. Bill Clinton is getting $12 Million for his memoirs. His wife Hillary got $8 million for hers. That’s $20 million for memories from two people who for eight years repeatedly testified, under oath, that they couldn't remember anything.

God Bless America

What a laugh!

Why A Secret?

2007-04-04T07:37:00.000-05:00

Why is it that every prison or detention facility that the U.S. or its allies establishes outside the United States is automatically labeled a "secret prison?" Reports have recently been released claiming individuals are being held at a "secret prison" in Ethiopia. Why is it a "secret" prison? Are U.S. officials now required to publicize every single facility where detainees are being held? Put a big sign on the outskirts of Addis Abeba saying "Well-Publicized Terrorist Detention Facility," maybe? Lots of neon and a loudspeaker system? And why is something being held secret a bad thing? Reports of secret facilities always seem to conjure up nefarious intent -- as if not only are U.S. officials holding terrorists detainees, but they also have a special room where they all stand around kicking puppies, or something.

Let's talk about terrorist detention facilities. In our current Global War on Islamist Terrorism, from time to time some of the terrorists will be captured. What do we do to them then? Let's think about that -- they are people who hate all things non-Islamic; people who frequently play with things that go BOOM and generally try to kill non-Muslims. Let's us call them dangerous people. First off, do you want them kept in your neighborhood? "Of course I know where that is, Sir. The terrorist detention facility is three block further up, then turn right onto Maple Street, then go just past the 2nd traffic light. The non-secret terrorist prison is on the left -- you can't miss it. Lots of barbed wire and fencing." Next thing you know Ahmed's terrorist friends break him out of the non-secret terrorist prison facility using lots of explosives and killing 26, wounding 128. This is why a remote location and secrecy are desirable qualities in a terrorist detention facility.

I think a lot of the hysteria about such facilities comes from the way the Left and the mainstream media (MSM) have demonized the current administration. When you have prominent activists calling President Bush, Vice President Chenney, and adviser Rove -- among other things -- Hitler and the like, it is understandable that people would view legitimate activities with suspicion. But, right now, it is still just the MSM and the Lefties who are casting aspersion on the activities of this Administration. I guarantee you that if a Democrat were in the White House, these activities would go unnoticed.

I'm John Doe

2007-04-03T12:40:00.000-05:00

I'm on board...

Dear Muslim Terrorist Plotter/Planner/Funder/Enabler/Apologist,

You do not know me. But I am on the lookout for you. You are my enemy. And I am yours.

I am John Doe.

I am traveling on your plane. I am riding on your train. I am at your bus stop. I am on your street. I am in your subway car. I am on your lift.

I am your neighbor. I am your customer. I am your classmate. I am your boss.

I am John Doe.

I will never forget the example of the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93 who refused to sit back on 9/11 and let themselves be murdered in the name of Islam without a fight.

I will never forget the passengers and crew members who tackled al Qaeda shoe-bomber Richard Reid on American Airlines Flight 63 before he had a chance to blow up the plane over the Atlantic Ocean.

I will never forget the alertness of actor James Woods, who notified a stewardess that several Arab men sitting in his first-class cabin on an August 2001 flight were behaving strangely. The men turned out to be 9/11 hijackers on a test run.

I will act when homeland security officials ask me to “report suspicious activity.”

I will embrace my local police department’s admonition: “If you see something, say something.”

I am John Doe.

I will protest your Jew-hating, America-bashing “scholars.”

I will petition against your hate-mongering mosque leaders.

I will raise my voice against your subjugation of women and religious minorities.

I will challenge your attempts to indoctrinate my children in our schools.

I will combat your violent propaganda on the Internet.

I am John Doe.

I will support law enforcement initiatives to spy on your operatives, cut off your funding, and disrupt your murderous conspiracies.

I will oppose all attempts to undermine our borders and immigration laws.

I will resist the imposition of sharia principles and sharia law in my taxi cab, my restaurant, my community pool, the halls of Congress, our national monuments, the radio and television airwaves, and all public spaces.

I will not be censored in the name of tolerance.

I will not be cowed by your Beltway lobbying groups in moderate clothing. I will not cringe when you shriek about “profiling” or “Islamophobia.”

I will put my family’s safety above sensitivity. I will put my country above multiculturalism.

I will not submit to your will. I will not be intimidated.

I am John Doe.

For more info on the I'm John Doe campaign, heck out Michelle Malkin's blog. I'm even going to develop a button to post on websites. Watch this space....

OK. Here's the image I'm going to pitch to Michelle Malkin for her I'm John Doe campaign. Whaddayathink?

War for Profit

2007-04-02T11:40:00.000-05:00

It seems that you cannot go very far in this world without hearing some Liberal whine and complain about companies making a profit during a period of warfare. For some reason this is a heresy in their book. Although I think that most liberals believe that all profit is heresy. Anyway, someone has posted this same comment on Black Five's blog. B5 blogger "Grim" posted a most eloquent and well-reasoned retort to the liberal complaint of "war profiteering." Below I am posting a brief section of Grim's wise words, but I urge you to go and check out his full reply.

War is destruction. In war, people die; homes and lands are laid to waste; whole families may cease to exist. In pure war, as Clausewitz taught us, escalation is the rule. A truce or a retreat is temporary. The war is waged until one side submits.

And...

Profit, as a concept, means that -- at least somewhere -- things are getting better. Profit in war means that you have the strength to resist the destruction of war. It means that you have found a way to survive its fire, and put that fire to use.

Any hope to create a 'social contract' between nations depends on being able to sustain those constant wars, hot and cold, at a profit. The ability to do that is not a sign of evil: it is a sign of hope.

Well said, Grim! Well said, indeed.

In The Know

2007-03-28T07:38:00.000-05:00

Recently it has struck me just how uninformed the general American populace really is. For instance, I have been reading Rohan Gunaratna's Inside Al Qaeda. It is a fabulous book if you want to have a deeper knowledge of the world's leading terrorist organization. In the third chapter of the book, Mr. Gunaratna writes about Al Qaeda's presence worldwide. I was surprised to find (although in retrospect I shouldn't have been) that Al Qaeda was largely responsible for the debacle that was the "Blackhawk Down" incident in Somalia in 1993. According to Mr. Gunaratna, Al Qaeda trained, supplied and encouraged the Somali islamist militants who shot down that Army helicopter, engaged our troops in the ensuing firefight and desecrated of our fallen soldiers. To a large portion of the American people (myself included in this instance), Al Qaeda was not a real problem until the 1998 East Africa embassy bombing in Kenya and Tanzania. But they were extremely active much earlier as Somalia points out.

Monday night, after a Bible study, I was talking to a friend about some of the recent goings on in Iraq and Pakistan. Recent news out of these two countries has shown that local sheiks in Iraq and tribal leaders in Pakistan are turning against Al Qaeda and have fought gun battles against Al Qaeda and associated militants in their respective areas. In some of the reports I've read, as many as 50 Al Qaeda fighters have been reported killed. The question my friend asked me as I related these stories is, "why haven't I heard of this?"

Why indeed? I started hearing the above noted stories two weeks or more ago through various minor sources. Only earlier this week did I hear these stories in mainstream sources. The MSM does not report the successes of the Global War on Islamist Terrorism. For its own political reasons the MSM does not report on success unless it can't avoid doing so. How did I get such advance notice of these recent activities? I recently setup a Google News Alert that automatically e-mails me when it finds news that I have requested. For instance, I have setup an Alert on the term "Al Qaeda," so every time "Al Qaeda" pops up in the news or on the web (blogs, etc.) I will get an e-mail with a summary of these reports. I also try to read a wide variety of news sources and blogs. You have to dig for yourself -- you can't rely on the MSM to give you anything except their own political or social agenda.

Conspiracy of Silence

2007-03-19T12:52:00.000-05:00

Every time President Bush does something that can have a negative spin, you can count on the mainstream media (MSM) to foul the air with every kind of real or invented criticism. I can't drive a mile down any street near my house without seeing bumper stickers calling the President a "village idiot" or comparing him with Hitler or calling for his impeachment. But when President Bush shows his true character -- a glimpse into the man, as well as into a sitting president -- no one seems to notice.

Please take a moment to visit the above linked site and read about the President's recent visit to Enterprise, AL to tour the aftermath of the recent tornado. In reading this story you will see the President's true character -- a man of deep compassion.

Please read the article I listed above, then go read Psalm 35. I think you'll find it insightful.

Bread Is Dangerous!

2007-03-15T13:22:00.000-05:00

Research on bread indicates that:

1. More than 98 percent of convicted felons are bread users.
2. Fully HALF of all children who grow up in bread-consuming households score below average on standardized tests.
3. In the 18th century, when virtually all bread was baked in the home, the average life expectancy was less than 50 years; infant mortality rates were unacceptably high; many women died in childbirth; and diseases such as typhoid, yellow fever, and influenza ravaged whole nations.

4. More than 90 percent of violent crimes are committed within 24 hours of eating bread.
5. Bread is made from a substance called "dough." It has been proven that as little as one pound of dough can be used to suffocate a mouse. The average American eats more bread than that in one month!

6. Primitive tribal societies that have no bread exhibit a low incidence of cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, and osteoporosis.
7. Bread has been proven to be addictive. Subjects deprived of bread and given only water to eat begged for bread after as little as two days.
8. Bread is often a "gateway" food item, leading the user to "harder" items such as butter, jelly, peanut butter, and even cold cuts.
9. Bread has been proven to absorb water. Since the human body is more than 90 percent water, it follows that eating bread could lead to your body being taken over by this absorptive food product, turning you into a soggy, gooey bread-pudding person.

10. Newborn babies can choke on bread.
11. Bread is baked at temperatures as high as 400 degrees Fahrenheit! That kind of heat can kill an adult in less than one minute.
12. Most American bread eaters are utterly unable to distinguish between significant scientific fact and meaningless statistical babbling.

In light of these frightening statistics, it has been proposed that the following bread restrictions be made:

1. No sale of bread to minors.
2. A nationwide "Just Say No To Toast" campaign, complete celebrity TV spots and bumper stickers.
3. A 300 percent federal tax on all bread to pay for all the societal ills we might associate with bread.
4. No animal or human images, nor any primary colors (which may appeal to children) may be used to promote bread usage.
5. The establishment of "Bread-free" zones around schools.

This article was written by B.S. Wheatberry in a desert after consuming mass quantities of yeast bread then realizing his canteen was empty. (seriously :P )

Bullseye

2007-03-12T07:46:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I am a KY National Guardsman. While to some this conjures up images like the one below (photo to be posted shortly), the National Guard has changed significantly since my early days of military service. But I digress....

This weekend my unit went to the range for weapons qualification. I must admit that I surprised myself. While I have always done well with my M16A2 rifle, I outdid myself on the zeroing range. Zeroing is the process of setting the weapon's sights correctly so that the firer can put rounds on the target consistently. You zero your weapon by firing three rounds at the target while trying to place those rounds as closely together as possible. This is called a shot group. You then adjust your weapon's sights in an attempt to move the center of your shot grouping to the center of the target silhouette. So your first priority is a good, tight shot group -- about the size of a half dollar or less.

This would be the first time I fired this particular weapon so, not unexpectedly, my first shot group was a little erratic. However my second shot group was the size of a dime. I was surprised. But what surprised me even more was that my third shot group was directly on top of the first. I had put six rounds on target within less than the size of a nickel! I don't mean to brag but that's tight!

After you zero your weapon, you can then move on to the qualification range. There are two primary types of ranges on which you can qualify with your weapon. The first is a range where targets pop up from the ground at distances of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250 and 300 meters from your firing position. They pop up and you have a limited amount of time to fire at them. You also only have 40 rounds to engage 40 targets. The second type of range is where you one paper target affixed to a frame that is 25 meters away from your firing position. There are 10 different silhouettes printed on the paper target to simulate targets at the distances previously mentioned. Once again, you have 40 rounds for 40 targets.

When I fired, I was doing great. I fully expected to get near a perfect score. But at the end of my second magazine of ammunition I experienced a jam. There was gravel in my magazine that kept the last three rounds from feeding into the weapon properly. So, while I was move from one firing position (from prone to kneeling), I loaded those last three rounds into my last magazine. On my last magazine, I now had only 60 seconds to fire 13 rounds instead of 10 rounds. I also had to remember which targets at which I had not yet fired. When the smoke cleared, I had "dropped" 35 targets out of 40 -- Sharpshooter classification. This is still a good score, but I had been hoping to make Expert. Maybe next time.

A World Without America

2007-03-06T15:09:00.000-05:00

I don't know how many of you listen to Bill Bennett's Morning in America radio program on a daily basis, but Dr. Bennett recently talked about a advertising campaign out of Great Britain that tries to fight the trend of anti-Americanism that is prevalent on BBC. The conservative media group -- Doughty Street -- put together an ad campaign called "A World Without America." Below is their first TV spot. I love it, I hope you will too.

We're Fighting a War...

2007-03-03T19:40:00.000-05:00

...What are you doing? Sounds like a good bumper sticker idea. Put that next to the Army or Marine Corp logo. I like it.

If you want to get to know what the unreported story of the Iraq War is, please check out Pat Dollard's blog. Pat Dollard is a freelance video journalist who is currently in Ramadi (which is where my National Guard unit was stationed in 2005-06). Please check out his blog and running video series on life in Ramadi.

America is not at War. The Marine Corps is at war, America is at the Mall.

A quote taken from PatDollard.com

Osama bin Laden -- TU?

2007-02-28T16:12:00.000-05:00

It seems that the francophone intelligence community thinks Osama bin Laden may be dead. Supposedly, a classified briefing given to the King of Saudi Arabia says that OBL died of typhoid earlier this month. Wouldn't that be nice? Personally, I'd like to see him in chains being lead away to an execution chamber, though.

While there has been no corroboration of this story, the author of the story (linked above) -- Mr. Robert Fox -- thinks Osama's death would spell the end of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). And it just might. After all, Osama is a man of wealth and charisma. And few organizations with these types of leaders have survived their leader's death. There will always be disaffected youth who will rise up to fight for the cause -- be it militant Islam or the legalization of marijuana. But who out there could step into the empty shoes of OBL?

I find it a bit troubling that the author seems to think that the end of the GWOT would mean:

It will be a blow to the sloganising of the neo-conservatives - and their notion of the "clash of civilisations" - and to the high-flown rhetoric of President Bush and Prime Minister Blair.

Does Mr. Fox think conservatives have nothing better to do than "sloganize" and develop "high-flown rhetoric"? Is organized violence on a global scale merely talk? Even if it were all talk, the end of the GWOT would not relieve the need to continue promoting globalization within the lesser developed regions of the world. After all, these regions are the ones that bring us more than 90% of world terrorism. If globalization could be brought to these areas maybe the GWOT would then be just chatter.

What do you think?

(BTW: T.U. = Tits Up, a military term meaning "dead")

Scientific Gobbledigook

2007-02-25T18:13:00.000-05:00

This comes from the "Oh, this should be good for a laugh" department....

It seems that James Cameron -- of Titanic fame -- has produced a documentary that will air on Discovery Channel on Sunday, March 4th. The documentary purports to provide evidence that the tomb of Jesus Christ has been found in Jerusalem. They supposedly back their claim with DNA evidence. They further say that they have evidence that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had a son they named Judah.

How can they conclusively tie any DNA evidence to Jesus? Did our Lord leave an exemplar on record for us to verify it with? This is probably another case of James' ossuary. Remember that one? Someone claimed to have discovered the stone box that was used to house the bones of the Apostle James -- the Lord's brother? It turned out to be a fake. This Jesus Tomb will end up being a fake as well.

What do you think?

Flirting With Disaster

2007-02-22T08:32:00.000-05:00

This one definitely goes in the "What were they thinking" stack.

Democrats in Congress stripped a provision from a 2007 fiscal spending bill that would have provided $30M to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) for a program that would have developed a vaccination to prevent unborn babies from getting HIV/AIDS from their infected mothers. Evidently, scientists know how HIV/AIDS is transmitted to the babies and have developed a method of preventing this transfer.

The next question that should be rolling around in your mind is, "what did they do with the $30M?" The money that was earmarked to prevent Baby AIDS will now go to other programs funded by the CDC -- specifically, a program on how to flirt. That's right, a program on how to flirt.

Got Love? #2 - Flirt / Date / Score
February 10, 2004
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
STOP AIDS Main Office
2128 - 15th Street
Part two of our four part series. Want to flirt with greater finesse and date with more confidence? Who doesn't? Share your expertise in this interactive conversation and you'll hear how others are successful in meeting guys today.

Dirty Thoughts, Part 2
Saturday, April 5, 2003
Location: EROS
Event starts at 4:00 pm

A new 4-part erotic writing workshop. Start by exploring your fantasies and get support for you creative writing process. Open to all skill levels. Limited space, register now. Attendance required at all 4 workshops. Supplies and snacks provided.

In Our Prime: Men For Hire
Thursday, April 10, 2003
Location: STOP AIDS, 2128 15th St.

Joseph Itiel presents practical tips and covers the seven guidelines for safe and friendly relations with escorts. This is an event you won't want to miss!

Flirt, Date, Score
August 13, 2003
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
STOP AIDS Main Office
2128 - 15th Street
San Francisco

Want to flirt with greater finesse and date with more confidence? Who doesn't? Share your expertise and hear how others are successful in meeting guys and staying safe today.

See what I mean? The Dems are letting your tax money go for some pretty stupid stuff. Stuff like this is definitely dumber than celery.

(HT: Hugh Hewitt)

A New Paradigm

2007-02-06T12:48:00.000-05:00

Way back in the early 1990s, when the Cold War came to a close, I began telling anyone who would listen that we needed a new foreign policy paradigm. In the early days of World War II and the days shortly following the war, the Allies (the U.S., Great Britain, France, etc.) met to determine what would be the overall paradigm for how the war would be fought and how the peace would be assembled after the war. Most notably we have the Atlantic Charter and the Bretton Woods Agreement which laid the foundations for the post-war economic and political systems. By establishing this paradigm, the Western powers were able to steer a common course towards the future. We need to repeat this process for the post-Cold War world.

I was recently listening to the Hugh Hewitt program and he was talking about Thomas P.M. Barnett's The Pentagon's New Map. I knew immediately this was a book I needed to read. I found a copy at the local Half-Price Books and dove in. The more I read, the more this takes on the form of the new foreign policy paradigm that I have been calling for since the early 90s. Now it is given that when I "call" for a new foreign policy paradigm, practically no one listens -- after all, who am I? But policymakers need to be listening to Dr. Barnett. What he espouses needs to be the next foreign policy paradigm. The Pentagon's New Map is a must-read!

While I was not as wide-sweeping as Dr. Barnett when it comes to defining the lenses through which we must look at the world before us, I have at least put together the rudiments of a foreign policy that would fit nicely with Dr. Barnett's Core-Gap thesis. It is my conviction that U.S. foreign aid must be changed to promote the expansion of globalization wherever possible. In the 1990s I was saying we needed to champion the exporting of Democracy to any nation who would have it. But now I see there is a need to take it beyond just political change.

Even today, most foreign aid takes the form of monetary transfers. We open the American purse and pour out largess to whomever we deem fitting. Our motives have been mostly good, but often times we have inadvertently helped dictators to line their own pockets. It should be the policy of the United States to offer a more practical form of foreign aid. For instance, "Kreblakistan " is a fictional third-world country buried deep in Barnett's Gap -- a so-called "lesser included." The U.S. should send an evaluation team to Kreblakistan to evaluate what type of aid would most benefit Kreblakistan's populace and economy. Teams of experts would them move into Kreblakistan to begin forming training academies to train indigenous Kreblakistanis in road construction, waterway management, mining technology, organizational management, or whatever areas are determined by the evaluation team. This way the U.S. would be teaching the local populace how to fix and maintain their country -- giving them a talented workforce -- in other words, training them how to "go fishing" instead of handing them a halibut.

This form of foreign aid would not only training the future workforce, but it would also avoid lining corrupt officials' pockets. While I understand that corruption is a tricky weed to kill, this type of aid would limit its growth. I think it is also important that this type of foreign aid be implemented in such a way as to avoid making any serious changes to the indigenous social and cultural morays. We're not going into to the world to make the world into our own image -- little America Juniors -- but to help the lesser includeds become more productive members of the global economy, thus raising their standard of living and growing their economy.

While these lesser includeds are being brought into the fold, America would be able to begin planning for its future. Many of the American trainers sent throughout the world might have similar opportunities within the U.S. This would allow us to make use of their skills while training them for the future U.S. economy. Back in the homeland, we would be shifting our economy and workforce to better benefit from expanded globalization.

I haven't worked all of the kinks out of it, but I think it might be worth further review. What do you think?

Time to Punt

2007-02-05T10:28:00.000-05:00

Like some incredibly huge number of other Americans, I watched the S_per B_wl (I've used cryptonyms to avoid the wrath of the NFL for copyright infringement) last night. Can't say that I was impressed. I didn't watch much of the actual football game -- I tuned in to watch the advertisements. And I wasn't impressed with the ads either. What up with that? Did the ad agencies run out of creative juice? Even some of the funnier ads were merely updating some of the ads from last year's "big game."

What has animated me regarding the "super" event is what happen when the pigskin was nowhere in sight. Let's start with the NFL's megalomania. The NFL has initiated lawsuits against several churches for planning "Super Bowl" parties where the game would be viewed on large projection screens. Plus, I'm generally on-plussed about the League's over-strict enforcement of the copyright on the brand name "Super Bowl." Why the league can't see that widespread use of the term "Super Bowl" amounts to free advertising for the sports gala. Come on, I have an MBA and am a big supporter of the profit motive, but keeping the Eat Podunk Christian Church for gathering on Sunday evening to view the game on a projection screen system is ludicrous. I mean, that's another 30+ people watching the game, seeing all of the money-generating advertising. What's the big problem?

My other disconnect is -- you guessed it -- His Purple Badness. That's right, I'm talking about Prince. Where did they dig him up? Can't he just be content with cameo spots on 80s and 90s music specials on VH1? While I will grant you that he has a decent voice and plays the guitar fairly well, he is just too obscene for me. Today on the Laura Ingraham Show, they are debating on whether or not his shadow play against a curtain was an obscene phallic display or merely the Purple Wonder being dramatic. I just wish he would go the way of Vanilla Ice.

Maybe next year I'll just skip the Super Bowl.

Postscript
It wasn't until after I made my initial posting that I heard about Tony Dungy's remarks at the awarding of the Lombardi Trophy. Here are Coach Dungy's words:

“I tell you what, I’m proud to be representing African-American coaches, to be the first African-American coach to win this,” Dungy said. “It means an awful lot to our country. But again, more than anything, I said it before, Lovie Smith and I, not only the first two African-Americans, but Christian coaches showing you can win doing it the Lord’s way. We’re more proud of that.” (emphasis mine)

It makes me proud to hear Dungy and Smith give credit to the Lord for their success.

Vegetables and Intellect

2007-02-02T10:49:00.000-05:00

You may think that "Smarter Than Celery" is an interesting name for a blog. Contrary to what some may think I am not engaging in vegetable profiling. I guess it all goes back to High School when I got in a fight with another student. It didn't get to actual fisticuffs because I engaged him with taunts and verbal barrages such as:

GotDesign: "You are so stupid..."
Student: "Oh, really?"
GotDesign: "Yeah. You have the intellectual capacity of a small, brown soap dish."
Student: "What?" (Insert blank expression)
GotDesign: "See? You don't have the brainwave activity to lightly toast bread."
Student: "What do you mean?" (Again with the vacant expression)
GotDesign: "Game, set, and match!" (Walks away)

This style of fighting (originated by a very young Bruce Lee ...no, really) kept me from getting pummeled too frequently.

I plan to post my pontifications here for all to read. You may think this is a vain activity and I guess it might be. But, you see, I had a previous blog -- GotDesign -- where I had garnered a good deal of fame due to the attentions of radio talkshow host Hugh Hewitt. Hugh actually selected my GotDesign blog as one of his Blogs of the Month. But I let my posting fall off and pretty much lost my audience. Well, what do you expect? I was unemployed for just over 5 months -- my attentions were obviously directed elsewhere. So now I am starting anew blog in hopes of getting back on the horse, so to speak.

Anyway, I would greatly appreciate any comments you would care leave. Personally, I thrive on dialog and debate. So, join the fun.