Iran: What's Cookin' Bad Lookin'?

Well, Iran seems to be combusting or splitting something over there. The rhetoric isn't the only thing heating up. Via Instapundit, Chester has a "sinking feeling". His analysis seems right on to me.

Learning Models

Passionate Users has a downloadable workbook on learning theory based on the post I linked to before. Might help you help others.

Mac Looking Better and Better

Bill Gates says I'll be able to turn my computer on and off and everything will just work. Shurrrrre it will, Bill. CBS tech dude Larry Magid says this:

I have no doubt that the combined efforts of Microsoft, Intel and the PC makers will help to create products that are better than what we have today, but it will take more than a few impressive demonstrations to convince me that Microsoft and its partners have turned the corner and are poised to release products that are truly reliable, easy to use and safe.

I’ve been to enough Consumer Electronics Shows and Bill Gates keynotes to know that what looks great on a Las Vegas stage may not perform quite so well are your house.

Rebooted my Dell Inspiron with MS2000 today myself...twice.

Better, Almost There

After trying to fix things, then making them worse, then going back to the beginning, then ending up with what I have here, the result is that the commenting feature is not working. I'm taking it as a message from God and leaving it that way. (I just can't figure out what is wrong with the code but invoking God makes it seem more meaningful.)

Anyway, you can't leave comments. You may, however, still email me and your comment could possibly make it into a post. Or not.

Reality Check

Seeing if this all works.

Blogger Problems

I'm having problems with my Template here in Blogger land. More than a little irritated that changes would work. Don't know enough to know that I'm not at fault for what is going on, but it seems that the internal workings of Bloggers page is at fault. Who knows. Anyway, my page looks different due to this.

Infertility Dx for Men

Men represent approximately 50% of all infertility problems. Resistent to being tested (it's humiliating, afterall--women however may suffer all manner of intrusion and musn't complain, but I digress....) they will soon be able to test their fertility in the privacy of their own bathroom. The thought is that the couple can get treatment faster once the dude is on board.

Cholesterol: Latest Medical Hoax

Remember my prediction last year that cholesterol levels (lowering them for health) would prove to be the latest version of HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy)--meaning that it was bad for patients but great for pharmaceutical companies.

Here's some new research saying that low LDLs (the supposed bad cholesterol) is BAD for the elderly.

Children Traumatized When Mom Is Abused

Someone was paid for this research?

Soy: Bad for Your Health

Research showing it worsens heart disease in men. Just say NO! to soy.

Cell phones: Bane or Boon?

Read more here. Sounds like bad news for the Blackberry set.

NYT Leak

Traitors or purveyors of truth? You decide.

Censorship in China

I have wanted to switch to a Mac for some time now but was afraid to do so because of software expense. Reading this about Microsoft caving in to China makes me want to switch even more. But who's to say that Steve Jobs or the Google guys will be any better?

Everything Is Beautiful

Jesus loves the little children, all the little children of the world
Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight
Jesus loves the little children of the world

Everything is beautiful in its' own way
Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day
Everybody's beautiful in their own way
Under God's heaven, the world's gonna find a way

There is none so blind as he who will not see
Ww must not close our minds, we must let our thought be free
For every hour that passes by, you know the world gets a little bit older
It's time to realize that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder

Everything is beautiful in its' own way
Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day
Ah, sing it children
Everybody's beautiful in their own way
Under God's heaven, the world's gonna find a way

We shouldn't care about the length of his hair or the color of his skin
Don't worry about what shows from without but the love that lives within
We're gonna get it all together now and everything gonna work out fine
Just take a little time to look on the good side my friend
And straighten it out in your mind

Everything is beautiful in its' own way
Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day
Everybody's beautiful in their own way
Under God's heaven, the world's gonna find a way

Ahhh! Remember the 70s? Remember Ray Stevens singing? Unfortunately, I do. Swaying with the kids choir, holding hands, wearing hot tights and tighter braids and singing baby, singing!

The line to which I protest the mostest? "Everybody's beautiful in their own way." My husband and I while watching the kids climb at the public park debated the premise of the statement.

My sweet, sweet hubby opined that eveyone is beautiful, that "there is someone for everyone" and that people should be graded by how they measure up to three levels:

1. Beautiful
2. Really beautiful
3. Drop dead gorgeous

After hurling on the green lawn, I said that there is one broad category of people and that is "ugly".

Even most Hollywood types are weird looking and forget Super Models. When you see them up close, they look alarmingly skinny with oddly proportioned faces.

The fact is, most people are ugly and most Hollywood people are just less ugly with good make-up and lighting. It is the rare person who is so breathtakingly beautiful that you go: when I die, I want to come back as her.

Secretly, in our dark evil hearts, we know the truth of this. It begins early. We delude ourselves from the moment our children are born saying usually out loud to the discomfort of everyone around, "Have you ever seen such a beautiful baby?" Uh, I don't want to devastate you sweetheart, but no and thank God for that.

Then, on the playground of life, we look at all the other ugly kids and look at ours and say inane things like, "Have you ever seen a child with such a beautifully proportioned head? I mean everyone elses kids heads are disproportionately large, but my child....ahhhh.... my child has the perfect head."

Anyone within earshot of this blind mother tries not to cough and choke and simply smiles blandly while looking lovingly at their far superior large-headed (full of brains, of course) off-spring.

The reason we think our squat-legged, squinty-eyed, perfectly proportioned-headed kid is so beautiful is that he or she looks just like, well, me! Vanity, all is vanity. The same women who will cluck-cluck in the mirror about pointy noses, thin lips, large foreheads, and sparse hair will wax radiant when describing the same characteristics in their children.

Proving my point, a raggy red-headed college kid with beard and twiggy, fawn-like legs who was a dead-ringer for the Mr. Tumnus character from Chronicles of Narnia attempted to play frisbee football and loped into view. I just looked at my husband and said, "See?"

Oh, he wasn't the only homely kid, either. In fact, I challenged my husband to pick one fine looking speciman from the whole rabble. He's still at the park earnestly seeking beauty.

Ray Steven's sang the real truth when he said, "It's time to realize that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder." Claiming that everyone is beautiful ignores reality. Like Syndrome says in The Incredibles, "And when every one is super, NO ONE WILL BE!"

As regrettable and disappointing as it is, everyone, save the very few, is ugly. Everyone, that is, except for my smart little pumpkin heads.

Ralph Reed: Christian Coercian

With the whole Abramoff thing gripping Washington D.C. in angst, it emerges that conservative Ralph Reed is not the goodie-goodie he would have everyone believe.

Meanwhile, the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling's Mr. Grey is one of many angered by Mr. Reed's conduct: "The money was given to Ralph to protect gambling interests, and Ralph Reed became an agent for gambling. . . . The real story here is that Ralph Reed used social conservatives for his own corporate ends. You don't get much more of a public betrayal than that." (emphasis added)

Not surprised. Mr. Dr. and I worked with a very publicly mouthy Christian for a while. Anybody who has to tell you what they are rather than show you by actions what they are...well the old saying "actions speak louder than words" comes to mind.

I never much liked Ralph Reed anyway. He seemed to choir-boyish smarmy to me--like some cliched embodiment of what Christians are supposed to look and act like. Yuck.

Real Christianity looks "fouler and feels fairer" than that to quote Tolkien.