God is.

My twin found this for me. Amazing new movie coming out.

I've always had a lot of respect for Ben Stein. I enjoy people that are both intelligent and humorous. Seems like a nice guy, too - I wrote him once about a fight I got into when Nixon was accused of Watergate. I was in the 6th grade, and some liberal kid wouldn't shut up, so I kicked his ass. Ben was one of Nixon's speechwriters. I actually wrote him just to say I appreciated his work and the story came with it. He wrote back! Nice guy.

He has a movie coming out in April 2008, called "Expelled." Watch the trailer here. He investigated and now reports on the professional difficulties of people in academia and the sciences that look at Intelligent Design as a scientific theory. Seems their careers are being destroyed. I never understood why. Well, not unless you look beyond Darwin's theory and assume a more sinister agenda: the denial of God. Do you think?

No need to dwell on it, but have you noticed that being politically correct means that you have to agree with the liberals? If you disagree, then speech is no longer free. Everybody has to be happy and treated with respect - unless you disagree. Then you get pummeled.

That's the issue in Expelled. If you disagree with some guy that drew birds over a hundred years ago and knew nothing of DNA - who thought that a cell was filled with this protoplasm icky stuff which itself was the lowest form of detail in life - then you are committing ... wait for it ... heresy! How ironic, eh?

I read a well-reasoned refutation of Darwin in Biochemist Micheal Behe's Darwin's Black Box. (I'm not going to honor it with a link - but if you google the book title, you get a whole lot of nasty scientists trying refute the book. If only they would spend that energy on Algore.)

Darwin said that if a system in nature is irreducibly complex, then Evolution as a theory does not work. That is, since the theory is one of incremental change forward and we are presently viewing evolved systems, we must be able to work those systems backward to their original state. If an evolved system cannot be reduced because the removal of one part would make the entire system not work, then that system is irreducibly complex. Behe started with the example of a mousetrap. Remove any one part and it won't catch mice (which seems to be its purpose for existing). Work it forward and the same conundrum arises - a metal bar can't be held back without a piece of wood which itself doesn't need a hook. There are evolved pieces in a mousetrap that had to be designed.

Behe uses several examples from the human body. I love the blood coagulation example. The proteins involved in coagulating blood are remarkable. And think about it - if blood flowed to provide oxygen but never coagulated in the earliest life forms, every member in a species would have bled out and died before being able to evolve. Then when coagulation did begin, why didn't the entire body gum up and the host die? But dig into the biochemical reactions at the site of an injury and learn how coagulation begins and ends, and it becomes clear that there is no reasonable manner except scientific bullshit ("there is so much unused stuff in the system that it just ... it just ... um, it just happened because all the precursors were there!") to refute it.

But, ah, therein lies the issue. Instead of giving Intelligent Design it's fair run (which they would do if, say, we ignored solar activity and its effects on the icecaps of Mars, and instead blame us for Global Warming), they put up impossible obstacles - Intelligent Design? That's a GOD. That's RELIGION. Then they break out the stakes and kindling.

So now Ben has joined the argument. Can't wait to see the film. Will it get as much play as Algore's piece of unscientific garbage on melting icebergs?

Here's the Blog that Ben is keeping. Here's a few-page Press Kit.

Should be fun.

And now a self promotion. I wrote a piece some time ago - October 2005 - Evolution and Intelligent Design - and reproduced here:

Evolution theory works something like this: there was, you see, this big BANG!, then like, WHOMPF! all this stuff was just screaming outward at incredible rates of speed and then somehow or another some of it started spinning really, really fast (instead of continuing outward as a result of the original propulsion, some of it started to circle back!) and that spinning stuff caught on fire, well, nuclear fusion kinda sorta that starts at the core of this spinning thing where the pressure is so great that hydrogen is like smashed into helium-4 (the loss of mass creates energy – ever hear of the theory of relativity, duh?!?) and then the energy becomes a photon and starts moving outward and does this photon-gas-photon-gas thingey to like 10 to the 25th times and finally it reaches the surface (like 100,000 to 200,000 years after the hydrogen pressure thingey) and then there’s this convection of hot and cooler gas – anyway, light and heat is spit outward and while all this is happening other stuff started to spin around those firey things and on one of them a cell emerged – quite by random chance, mind you, well maybe the saline solution helped but that just kinda appeared, too – and that cell split into two pieces and then, and then it evolved (!) to optimize its in situ experience and then, and then eventually it evolved into us (and monkeys, too!): each cell in our body contains a copy of our DNA; each dual strand of DNA in each of our cells is made up of 3,000,000,000 (three billion) molecules; each human body contains 100,000,000,000,000 (one hundred trillion) cells. One hundred trillion multiplied by three billion (btw, 300 sextillion; unless you are in Europe where it is called 300 trilliard because what the Brits call a sextillion we call an undecillion; confusing, I know – let’s be clear, we’re talking 10 to the 21st, not 10 to the 36th; if it were a hard disk, it would be 300 zettabytes – ok, I’ll stop) and with all that evoluting goin’ on there is only one form of humanoid on our planet – go figure – what a glorious random chance event we are!!!

oh, btw, that stuff preceding the BANG!, the stuff in the first instance, was sumptin' outta nuttin'.

And you people think I'm the one going on faith?

hazleton gets purdy

Wanna chew some aspirin? Let’s go …

This is a story, albeit bereft of links to substantiate only because I am too lazy to find them, of how sausage is made. If you know that warm, cozy feeling of sitting at the table with your Jimmy Dean and a few aborted chickens over-easy, then here is the final sausage, all grilled up purty.

The link is a pretty legal brief in support of a town local to me. The town, Hazleton, passed an ordinance some time ago requiring landlords and businesses to get proof of citizenship prior to renting to or hiring employees. The brief looks so official and makes a sound constitutional argument. I am sure the local political hacks feel smart when they read it.

Here’s the reality.

Hazleton is a dirty little town with closed storefronts and aged buildings. There’s a junk yard just off main street that houses enough rats to serve everyone in Asia a three-course meal for a week. Go just one block from the main drag, and the market becomes a mercado. Every sign changes to Spanish. Nothing wrong with that.

The claim, and I listen but neither believe or disbelieve, is that “these people” are sucking the town’s resources dry with their welfare draws including, most discussed, showing up the hospital emergency room. In Pennsylvania, maybe everywhere, every county has to have one hospital designated for providing care regardless of ability to pay. In my county (not the same as Hazletons) that designated hospital just so happens to be the one closest to me. I have gone to the ER a couple of times, just once for myself, and when I check in and offer my insurance card they tell me, “We cannot ask for or process anything on insurance until the emergency services have been completed.”

The purported illegals in this area are largely migrant workers, or were when they originally came. I had some overlap with the societal structure when I represented a runner in federal court. These folks are here for years and years. They routinely send money home. They come and go between countries not often but regularly. Getting IDs, including Social Security cards, was merely a matter of paying the price – with the money, access was not an issue.

My guy told me that he could be back in the US at will. He was going to be deported as a result of the charges against him. I said to him, “So how long will it take you to get back here?” He said, “I haven’t spent much time with my family lately, so I’ll probably stay there two weeks.”

So with all the illegals so plain to Hazleton’s ruling elite, they pass the law to push them out of their backyard. Of course, Hazleton would be a great location to shot a 1950s film of a poverty-stricken town, but that’s another issue. Of course, without the illegals shopping in the mercados and elsewhere the commerce in Hazleton would dry up like a thin puddle in Arizona, but that’s another issue.

“Push ‘em out,” says Jim-Bob.

“You tell ‘em!” echoes Mike-Bob.

“Burn the witch! Take her shoes! Let’s go eat!” says Dave-Bob.

All the other –Bobs join in. Sausage is made.

I am certain the federal Court of Appeals will overturn the local decision. There is precedent for the law. Afterward, Hazleton will be able to resume its downward slope into non-existence unimpeded by the financial impact of those nasty illegals.

How do we solve the illegal-population situation? How the hell do I know? But I will suggest that the very question subsumes the direction: It is a “situation.” It is not some hypothetical situation with Tommy Jefferson shooing away little red-headed black kids by saying, “I told you never to visit me at work!” “OK, daddy …”

The borders were porous; illegals poured through. Now they are here and have been for decades. Our economy has conformed to their presence. Play too heavy a hand and there will be nasty economic consequences both here and in Mexico. It is not different that Iraq: We are there; pull out and leave a vacuum, then it will collapse. Something measured needs to be done. There is also recognition that we cannot reward illegal behavior. You figure it out.

Onward.

Are you high? Here you go. Welcome.

Meghan doesn’t document her findings on origins of phrases, but I have no reason to disbelief her. I am not a group-hug-let’s-sing-Kum-Bai-Ah kind of guy, but I have just removed the phrase “rule of thumb” from my lexicon. Meghan: No, this phrase is definitely NOT "P.C"! Who knew? "Rule of thumb" derived from the days when woman were sometimes beaten with a switch. To be "kind" the switch could not be thicker than a thumb's width. This was made law in 1782 when an English judge stated that men were allowed to beat their wives but that the stick could not be thicker than one's thumb.

This is interesting. You need to drop the page just a little until you see the spinning girl. It is described in the text – but look at the pic first. I am right-brained, and if I put the image into my peripheral vision, I could make it change direction, and hold that changed direction when I looked directly at it.

Is you pet suicidal? Give it anti-depressants. Really. How utterly pathetic.

I’ve had those confirmation links you have to hit in an e to activate some account. I like the idea of a 15 minute e-mail address. It dies quickly, as does the ability to clog your spam folder.

Later …

hb2me

it's my party, dammit, and if i want t.rex on, it will be. smile.



had enough? no? fine. same song, with party favor wrapped around his neck. hb2me! hb2me! laughing to empty space, eyes wild, spittle on keyboard from screaming about download speeds ...



what the hell is this?!?

when libs actually said something

Oh, for the good old days when entertainers made actual comments about what was actually happening in society. People are just useless today with their politically correct speech.

I was quoting the Masochism Tango to my daughter earlier and we went to You Tube to find it. Video below. Then I started going through Tom Lehrer’s bits. Just perfect – when you grow you will disgust me … smile at people inferior to you for just one week … Catholics are funny with their rituals … there’s nothing more fun than poisoning the pigeons in the park. All the videos are below, and all the lyrics here.

The Masochism Tango



When You are Old and Grey



National Brotherhood Week



Poisoning Pigeons in the Park



The Vatican Rug

Citizen of the Month Great Interview Project

I was cruising the net some time ago and came across the Citizen of the Month Great Interview Project. It seemed to have passed, but I left a comment saying I would be interested in participating. The premise is that people are paired up, view each other’s blogs, and then conduct asynchronous interviews.

I didn’t get a response and, frankly, had forgotten about it. Then a couple of days ago, Erin at State I am In wrote me and apologized for not getting back to me! That was cool.

So I just got her questions, and will spend some time prepping questions for her. First, her interview of me …

1. Let's start out this interview with the question that all interviewers should ask: how do you feel about cheese? Cheese carries with it, remarkably, a long history with me.

It was a favorite of my dads. Black wrapper, shaped like a large stick of butter, the unfortunate label of “Coon Brand,” extra-sharp cheddar. I remember when I was 8 or 9 years old. We sat in the living room and I “discovered” that orange slices and cheese were a great combination. He let me think through the conversation that I had made some great discovery. I went to bed that night feeling special.

One of the things that changed my life was in 2000, when I got diverticulitis. An old person’s disease in 41 year old. I wound up leaving my Sigmoid Colon (the bottom 18 inches or so of that run) on a medical waste dump. The rest of me just got re-sectioned and I was basically back to normal save the 12 to 18 months following surgery. I have since been unable to eat feta cheese.

I’ve seen cheese made, and it falls into the category of “Who Thunk This Up?” along with mayonnaise, tofu, and distilled spirits. They are all good in their sphere, I just don’t understand who had so much time on their hands.

2. An aisling is an Irish vision poem (I didn't even need to read your sidebar to find that out!), what inspired you to use this to name your blog? I went to Ireland and visited every area but the Occupied Territories. I had been reading a lot about The Troubles. The country was everything I had hoped it would be. Just beautiful. Food was great, alcohol was better, people were gracious and rugged. I grabbed some words from Gaelic. My dogs are named ceiligh and trean. “Aisling” is just a wonderful concept. I enjoy language. I think etymology is fascinating. It is remarkable to me how much history you can learn just from studying words.

3. You've been blogging for several years now. What got you started? Politics. Well, I initially thought having my own space on the net was a cool idea. I was amazed that space was free. So I started to write, but my soap box was all politics. I since broadened my writings. I think as a body of work, if that isn’t too pathetic a statement, that it reflects a lot of how I am, a lot of the turns in my life. I am not comfortable with going back to read.

4. What does blogging mean in your current life? Why do you continue to blog? It’s a vent for me. I get rid of angst. I have some returning readers – some are anonymously from my previous lives, more are people I have never known. I use the blog as a diary sometimes. I also like to surf the net and share interesting sites. I’ve actually learned a lot about myself as I changed formats, wrote out my thoughts. Won’t it be interesting for my grandkids to read 20 years or more of what their grandfather wrote before he lost his mind?

5. You're a Beatles fan. Growing up, we had a Beatles shrine in our house. I walked down the aisle to "All You need is Love," and danced with my dad at my wedding to, "In My Life." What are your top 5 favorite Beatles' songs, and why? Rocky Raccoon. I was 9 when the White Album came out. RR was the first song I sat on the floor and learned every word to. I can still picture learning, and then walking in my grandfather’s fields singing. A simple time.

Two of Us. I have had many partings in my life that were forecasted. Time was allowed to live the relationship knowing it was terminally ill. “You and i have memories / Longer than the road that stretches out ahead.” Those words have echoed through me as I tried to come in for a safe landing.

Across the Universe. John said that he was working too hard to write a song all day. Nothing came. He went to bed and, upon arising, this song was within in its final form – words and music. Lots of folks say it had to be written by George. But I have a lot of Beatles bootleg. No version of George. And for all the years after the breakup, why would songwriting credits remain wrong? When I listen to the song, it is similar to Rocky Raccoon in that it creates a whole new place for me. I think singing something like “Nothing’s gonna change my world” subsumes that my world is perfect as it is … that’s the point of music to me – to rewrite the world in front of you and allow an escape.

The Ballad of John and Yoko. I remember when the 45 came out. Was Old Brown Shoe the flip side? I was following The Beatles closely at the time, and I knew many of the events in the lyrics. But I also thought it was like reading John’s diary. I later enjoyed it for different reasons – I didn’t know at first that it was just John and Paul over the course of one day in the studio. Those two were an amazing combination.

Her Comes the Sun. Another escapist song. I loved the clean guitar, George’s accent on “clear.” I was driving to Philadelphia last year. In the car for over an hour in the local radio market, and then, after teaching for a few hours, for another hour. Some DJ must have quit his job. This song was playing over and over again, and still was hours later. I wonder how he sealed up the booth.

6. Personally, I like Ringo...largely because no one likes Ringo and I like to root for the underdog. Who is your favorite Beatle? I like RIngo. My favorite was John when I was growing up. I thought him a radical, not afraid to speak his mind. I have adopted one comment I heard about him – you may not always like what he says, but you know what he is thinking. I feel that is an honest approach to life. Over the last ten years or so, I have read more about John’s personal life and have come to question many of his choices. I have also listened to a lot of George’s solo music and learned of his life. I have switched allegiances. Smile. But lest you think me odd, I have read a lot about both, listened to a lot of published and unpublished music, but I have “studied” neither. They are musicians. Nothing more. Interesting lives, but not replacements for mine.

7. You sidebar is packed with quotes, links, etc. What should someone new to your blog check out? I think the link to the very first version of alice. I didn’t know it existed, and then I found it in full image format. It is a very cool read, complete with illustrations.

8. What are your favorite blog posts....yours or others? If you check out my labels (Mine Shafts) and select “j” you will get the posts about my daughter. She’s probably the coolest person I have ever met.

9. Finally, what is your six-word bio? Was, am, always be coal trash.

writing

I haven’t written for a while, so should probably give an update. Sorry for not paying attention to you all.

I’ve been sniffing around a book to write for the better part of a year. Got 15 hours of tapes covering about two-thirds of the twenty year cycle. I’ll three times that tape, of course, by the time I am done. But I have everything I need to write the chapter … so write, dammit.

So I did. And I rewrote with my twin’s guidance. And rewrote another ten times. Found the voice and refined it. Then had my co-author fact check. Then rewrote a few more times. Now it is in the can. Lots of room for an editor to hack – almost 12,000 words. The book starts strong. I am actually pleased with it.

Onto Chapter 2. Dialogue low, lots of background and facts. Wrote it so poorly. Twin to the rescue. Over-compensate. Twin to the rescue. Whew. Now ready for four targeted tapes that co-author is dictating. She’s moving this week, so I am traveling onto Chapter 3.

No, can’t give any specifics. Wouldn’t be right, eh? But I’ll tell you this … it is not the great American novel everyone dreams of writing. This book scares the hell out of me. True story start to finish.

I hope to have the first draft by early summer. 600 pages? Sounds about right.

Then I need an agent.

So that’s my life right now. Listen to tape – sometimes 10 seconds at a time, write my version, research the issues, rewrite … before I know it hours are gone.

I’ll write more here as general posts. Promise.

your moment of zen

your moment of zen

obama's rough ride

It takes 2,025 delegates to win the dem nomination. Under their system, however, over 19% are unpledged and can enter the convention floor and vote for any candidate they choose. In order for Obama to secure the nomination, he needs to win a supermajority prior to the convention. By my calculations, in order to silence Hillary, he needs to win 60% of the remaining total delegates.

Going to open-source-and-always-fun-if-not-frightful-to-cite answers dot com, I found a context for these numbers. There are currently 4,049 total delegates to the Democratic National Convention, including 3,253 pledged delegates and 796 superdelegates. The total number of delegate votes needed to win the nomination is 2,025.

As an aside, there are currently 2,380 total delegates to the Republican National Convention, including 1,917 pledged delegates and 463 unpledged delegates all but 123 of the unpledged delegates are vote assigned. The total number of delegate votes needed to win the nomination is 1,191. Bottom line to this digression? 19.4% of the dem delegates can vote for any candidate they choose, compared to only 5% of the pub delegates.

I suggest that 2,025 is not the real number to secure the nomination for Obama. It is 2,183. He needs not just a split on pledged, but a supermajority of unpledged in order to lock those folks into casting according to popular vote.

Pick a number to represent the supermajority, but I am going to assume that number of is 70%. Anything less and Herself is on a level playing field. One-half of the unpledged is 1,626; 70% of the pledged is 557. The total Obama needs is 2,183.

According to CNN, here’s the pledged and unpledged dem counts so far: Omaba, pledged 908, unpledged 131, total 1,039; Herself, pledged 877, unpledged 223, total 1,100. There are 1,910 total delegates left, both pledged and unpledged.

With 2,183 delegates coming from primaries and caucuses as the goal, Obama needs 2,183 less 1,039, or 1,144. With 1,910 left to be decided (4,049 less 2,139), Obama needs 60% to achieve the goal.

So now the superdelegates and pundits are talking. Maybe they’ve done the same math and realize that 60% is a tall order. Chris Bowers, whoever the hell he is (even though he is from my home state), says he will quit the dem party if the superdelegate vote goes against the popular vote. Donna Brazile says the same thing.

Conversely, Ann Althouse, “a check on freewheeling democracy.” (Hunh?) Glenn at Instapundit, says he understands the logic (I guess something akin to a judicial function in government), but that Ann’s “attitude is not going to be shared by many people who've spent the last nearly-8 years claiming that winning the popular vote is more important than winning the electoral vote.”

More than interesting … are all of the remaining runway walks proportional delegate allocations? If Herself gets a winner-take-all contest by a couple of points, the 60% climbs quickly.

t.rex again - dandy in the underworld

This is the cover song for the last album. Released in March 1977. They were on tour when the album was released, so this performance was probably late spring or early summer. He died in September that year ...



Prince of Players, Pawn of none
Born with steel reins on the heart of the Sun
Gypsy explorer of the New Jersey Heights
Exalted companion of cocaine nights

'Cos he's a Dandy in the Underworld
Dandy in the Underworld
When will he come up for air,
Will anybody ever care

At an old eighteen exiled he was
To the deserted kingdoms of a mythical Oz
Distraction he wanted, to destruction he fell
Now he forever stalks the ancient
Mansions of hell

Now his lovers have left him
And his youth's ill spent
He cries in the dungeons and tries to repent
But change is a monster and changing is hard
But he'll freeze away his summers in his
Underground yard

i wasn't angry when i started to write ...

In a post entitled, Pravda, tagged Humor, and offered up on 2/8/8, one of my daily blog reads relays a line I will find useful at some time in the future. To wit:

It's been reported that proud Soviet automakers challenged their American counterparts to a competition at the Brussels World's Fair in 1958.

A Swiss engineer made an exhaustive comparison of a Soviet and an American car, and he favored the American.

After an awkward pause, the Soviet press reported that "in a recent international auto competition, the Russian car placed second and the American car was next to last."

White snow flaked
Onto the humped-over dog
She shivered
As her canine colon
Released its brown mass.
The accumulated snow
Caressed its steamy gift.

Interesting video of a six-gill shark at 3,300 feet. Massive. I muted the sound – people narrating live video allows annoy me.



If you follow this link after being told what it is, then you need to seriously review your life. The intro screen explains it … seems it is a staring game like we did as kids. The woman on the screen will eventually blink. Go for it, loser. And if you lose but keep on trying or seem to enjoy winning a bit too much, go here.

This thing called fuzzmail looks like it could fun. It records your typing an e – including pauses, adds, changes, deletes, etc., and then sends a link to the receiver of your e so they can read the e as you typed it. A little thought can result in something rather humorous.

Alright, enough about them – what about me? Trying to change banks so I can begin to control what little money I seem to have left. Because I never got one reissued, I need a new driver’s license because I moved a couple of years ago. The local DMV does DLs on Thursdays. One day. That’s it. I will not give up. Tired of money not being available when I know damn well it should be.

I have four trips in the next 5 or 6 weeks, Virginia and Connecticut twice each. Boston needs to fit in there, too. Just underscores that I need to get my finances baselined and under my sole control.

I ended a major project on Friday by releasing for review 19 applications at an average of 150 pages each. I am still staring ten miles away after the dry-heave stage of those docs finally ended. Took me five weeks at hyper speed to generate them.

WT PIAPS is all in a huff about MSNBC saying they “pimped out” Webster Hubbell’s daughter. Well, she was pimped out. She was calling super delegates and saying, “you are not voting for Senator Clinton, you are voting for my mom.” How pathetic. Young lady, your mom’s job description is basically domestic and emotional. The President of the United States is precisely the opposite. Clinton had a child making some emotional plea – yeah, pimped out. What’s the issue here?

Last political note. Obama is going to clean up today and the next few days. Listen to WT PIAPS not speak of him at all – she will down play the victories as “expected” and will shift her discussion to attacked McCain. “Expected”? Why, because of the number of blacks in those states? Because of – what, exactly? Washington State is somewhat pale, eh? I’ll tell you why they are expected. She ONLY does well in large states where she has bought her votes since the co-presidency of 1992/3-2000/1. Those states had something to offer so those were the only ones she paid any attention to. Small states were just that – small. So she ignored them. And is paying the price now.

Read an article about a dem that offered a competing health-care program with bipartisan support. To quote WT in a closed-door meeting with him, “We will crush you. You will wish you never mentioned this to me.” Hey, WT! Blow me. Arrogant bitch …

politics simplified a bit more

Romney is brilliant.

How, pray tell, does one drop out of race after scoring recognition as the only conservative worth anything in the race and then get labeled such an accolade as “brilliant”? Is this similar to a sportscaster’s use of the word when describing some otherwise fast-food-counter-boy’s catch of a football off his head for a 35-yard gain?

What a finely crafted set of interrogatories, my friend! Allow me kindly to elucidate and perhaps broaden your political understanding.

The premise is the old political adage that when your opponent is headed for the cliff, get out of the way.

Let’s marshal some facts …

We all know that Hillary is not made for long-term use. She cannot control her temper, she whines, she cries, she loses her voice, her money sources turn up dirty, her cold shrilly bitch self shines through like an illuminated 40-watt bulb behind so many rotted holes in old cardboard.

“What to do?” a girl asks herself in such a predicament. Why, move the primaries up! Bunch them so early that I can spend my way to an early coronation! Brilliant! (Yes, this is the sportscaster use of the term.)

But not everyone in Liberal Mecca agreed with her plan, and Michigan and Florida were stripped of their delegates. “No big loss,” Humungo Thighs mused, “I won’t need them!” But alas, it seems that she does … but I am getting ahead of myself!

We all know that the Clinton stock-in-trade is personal attacks. BJ Clinton was dispatched to South Carolina. Ut oh! Too bad, BJ, looks like ad hominine attacks are, shall we say, so 1990s, so passé.

So the Pig in a Pantsuit (hereafter, PIAPS) did not clean up on Super Tuesday. In fact, the deepest review of numbers shows she got her electoral clock cleaned. She is descending faster than Howard Dean after the yell in Iowa 2000. Can I get a YEEE HAAW?

The money game is also causing PIAPS quite the concern. Seems Obama is raising a million dollars a day. Every day. PIAPS is writing her own checks, and had the typical gall to suggest that her staff was working without pay – typical Clinton, “they offered. They said you [PIAPS] are doing your part, so we are going to do ours.” The statement hung out there for a news cycle, until it was confirmed that NO ONE went without even a single paycheck. White trash.

Oh, before I forget, since she was the only name on the ballot in Michigan and Obama upheld his pledge to the party to not campaign there, WT PIAPS won both contests – and promptly said that those states should have their delegates reinstated so as not to disenfranchise them. The request fell flat like an Uncle Buck pancake.

So now, it seems that she is in for a long fight. Obama has money and appeal. He is the only fresh face out there. WT PIAPS is old guard. Delegates are even. Obama owns the short-term momentum. It is lining up as a fight to the convention, just two months before the election.

Romney views all of this. He realized he was the only real threat to McCain. “Why did that piece of dirt from Arkansas/Illinois/New York/Your State Here want such an early Super Tuesday? Because with no incumbent, not even a seated VP running, the pubs would clearly fight it out. She could begin the national campaign in February, while we are still trashing each other until August. She could have a shadow government in place for months!”

Brilliant analysis! “Quiet, I’m thinking,” he says. “Sorry,” I intone. “So, now there are a set of facts clearly established on the table. Obama is in it for the long haul. He has a very real chance of getting the nomination. That gives him at the very least lifelong name recognition. He will be the face of a new generation financed on the presidential campaign fund. There is no way he is getting out. That ties up the dems through August. So I have to free up the pubs. Use WT’s own logic against her.”

Stunningly brilliant! In a twist to the old adage, instead of getting out of his opponent’s way – and be clear that the dems are the opponents – he took a quick side step, and then pushed her over the edge.

Pub VP? Thompson. Better be. Right now, if it is McCain v. Obama, I stay home. If it is McCain v. WT PIAPS, I vote. Only the pub VP will get me out in an Obama run. Ever see that jaw of McCain’s? What is that? He better have that looked at. Might be cancerous.

the doctor is in ... feb 08

(I am back from a well-deserved doctor’s respite at … well, nowhere. Just been busy with my day job. We have a new case – Red and Swollen Eye in a 61-Year-Old Man. Not sure what to make of it. Let’s start with the pic.)


(Oh, my! Somebody done poked that dude in the eye with a stick or something! Must’ve hurt. What’dya think it could be? Something about this guy looks dirty to me. Let’s get some data …)

BACKGROUND
A 61-year-old man presents to the emergency department (ED) with a 5-day history of pain with associated redness and swelling in his right eye. (“Five days,” you say. Uhunh … scribble scribble … ok.)

The patient had been diagnosed with herpes zoster (is that like Herpes Complex Z? Z?!? Z is like towards the end of the alphabet. That can’t be good) a few days before this presentation; he was discharged to home with a prescription for acyclovir and hydrocodone. (AAH—AAK—PSYCH—AAHPSYCH—LOVER. Acyclovir … got it here somewhere. OK, “first-time or repeat outbreaks of genital herpes.” This boy got sexed in his eyeball. That’s disgusting.)

Since he started taking acyclovir, the pain and swelling in his eye has increased. (Good. Done go have sex involving your eyeball it oughta hurt. At least now we know it weren’t no stick that got stuck there. Damn boy, whatchu thinking? You on the other side of some sleazebag glory hole?) He also reports binocular diplopia and decreased visual acuity. (BI-nocular? He got one eye shut from a getting a dick jammed in it. The only “bi” thing around here is his sexual orientation.)

On the day of presentation, he is nauseous and vomiting (yeah, after you woke up, saw the glory hole, the line of satisfied customers … I am quite sure you were puking), and he cannot open the affected eye (stick, stick, stick, poke, poke, poke. Of course he can’t open it! Hell, he probably passed out from getting clubbed by somebody’s ankle spanker), which demonstrates ptosis (p-p-pu-TOE-s-s-s-sis) of the upper eyelid, generalized proptosis, and mild periorbital erythema with associated edema.

The right pupil is 8 mm in diameter and nonreactive to direct and indirect light. (Still trying to get the license plate off that man club that hit him.) Intraocular pressure in both eyes is normal at 12 mm Hg.

What is the diagnosis? (He got a little excited about his first gay experience, went to a bar, and became a bit too intrigued about what was on the other side of those holes in the wall. Poor guy. Still puking his guts out. He got love clubbed …)

DIAGNOSIS: (See above.) Cerebro-rhino-orbital phycomycosis (CROP)/mucormycosis. (Yeah, the only “crop” he saw was the riding kind when he had the bit in mouth up on stage. Poor dude – the first time can be so humiliating.)

(Alright, alright, we’ll let the fake docs have their say … fine. Be that way. I know how it is with people like you. You know, just a side note – I kinda HAVE to leave this other stuff in. You should see my page rankings for just god-awful diseases. I do have some fraction of a conscious, somewhere, I am sure I do. Well, maybe not, but I read a lot and I know what one looks like. So read on – just remember – they are WRONG. The guy just had a very rough first outing at the club. That’s all.) CROP is an aggressive, invasive infection that is caused by broad, nonseptate fungi with irregularly shaped hyphae from the class Phycomycetes. The genera that typically cause infection are Rhizopus, Rhizomucor, Absidia, and Basidiobolus. The spores of these fungi are ubiquitous and gain entrance to the human body through the mouth and the nose. Individuals who are immunocompetent will phagocytize these spores; therefore, they do not develop the disease.

Infection is most common in immunosuppressed persons, specifically in patients with poorly controlled diabetes mellitus (often in the setting of metabolic acidosis), and in patients receiving the iron-chelating drug deferoxamine. Unlike immunocompetent individuals, whose bodies phagocytize the spores, immunocompromised patients have massive spore proliferation. Mucormycosis is described almost exclusively in patients with compromised immune systems or metabolic abnormalities. The spores attach to the nasal or oral mucosa, where massive germination and hyphae formation occur, allowing the fungus to directly invade the blood vessels. Areas of ischemic infarction and necrosis are seen in the infected tissue. The fungi invade the blood vessel lumina and cause thrombosis through inflammatory occlusion. Infection usually begins in the nasal cavity and the maxillary sinuses, followed by direct invasion of contiguous structures, such as the palate, the orbits, the ethmoid sinuses, and the brain. Orbital involvement occurs when the ethmoid sinuses are affected. Intracranial spread can occur through the ophthalmic artery, superior fissure, or cribriform plate.

Rhinocerebral infections are usually fulminant and have high morbidity and mortality rates, despite improved diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. Mortality rates of 30-70% are quoted in the literature, with higher mortality rates seen in older series. The mortality rate in diabetic patients appears to be lower than it is in nondiabetic patients and in patients with intracerebral involvement. Death may occur within 2 weeks if CROP is left untreated or is unsuccessfully treated. Additionally, until the 1950s, this disease was almost always fatal. Even with recovery, permanent residual effects, such as blindness and cranial nerve defects, occur in up to 70% of cases.

The clinical manifestations of CROP may include orbital and facial pain, fever, periorbital and orbital cellulitis, proptosis, purulent nasal discharge, and mucosal necrosis that appears as black eschars in the nasopharynx, the oropharynx, and the tissues surrounding the orbits and sinuses. These clinical features are not universally seen; therefore, a high index of suspicion is required. Ocular involvement leads to afferent papillary defects and loss of visual acuity. Progressive extension of necrosis into the brain can lead to cavernous sinus thrombosis and abscess formation. The patient may demonstrate an altered mental status, convulsions, aphasia, or hemiplegia.

Patients with diabetic ketoacidosis are most often affected, but opportunistic infections may also develop in association with renal deferoxamine therapy (eg, in patients with chronic renal disease) or with immunosuppression (particularly in patients with neutropenia or those receiving high-dose corticosteroid therapy).

The diagnostic study of choice is computed tomography (CT) scanning of the orbits and sinuses. In affected patients, CT scans demonstrate soft-tissue swelling, sinus mucosal thickening, and bone erosion. Intracranial and cavernous sinus involvement may also be present. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), if available, can show extension of the infection into the surrounding blood vessels, orbital fat, and intracranial areas. Urgent biopsy is usually indicated. Necrotic and edematous tissue with neutrophilic infiltrate is frequently seen with fungal elements (which are broad, nonseptate hyphae with branching at 90°).

The cornerstone of medical treatment for CROP is the administration of systemic amphotericin B at the highest patient-tolerable dose. Local packing of the involved mucosal membranes with an amphotericin B solution is effective for minimizing local disfigurement. When on the medication, the patient should be assessed for nephrotoxicity, as well as other systemic symptoms of toxicity, including fever, nausea and vomiting, phlebitis, anemia, and electrolyte abnormalities. Liposomal amphotericin B may be more efficacious; it is less toxic, thus allowing higher doses of the medication to be given. Additionally, local irrigation and packing of the areas to aid delivery of amphotericin to necrotic and poorly perfused tissues is recommended, because poor vascular supply may prevent systemic therapy from reaching the fungus and because local irrigation of infected tissue has been reported to be an important adjunct to treatment that may even help prevent disfiguring surgery. Treatment of the underlying disease (eg, hypoxia, acidosis, hyperglycemia, electrolyte abnormalities) and discontinuation of any immunosuppressants are also important. The physician should evaluate any steroid medication, antimetabolites, or immunosuppressants that the patient is taking, and such agents should be discontinued if appropriate. It is encouraged that the advice of an infectious disease specialist be obtained.

Aggressive, emergency surgical debridement of all necrotic tissue is necessary; sometimes, multiple procedures are needed to clear all necrotic tissue. The vaso-occlusive effect of mucormycosis leads to infrequent bleeding of the involved tissue; therefore, debridement of affected tissue until normal, well-perfused, bleeding tissue is encountered is ideal. Intraorbital irrigation of amphotericin B may be considered as an adjunct treatment. Surgery may often be disfiguring. Orbital exenteration, as well as removal of the sinuses, may be necessary. Some authors have suggested hyperbaric oxygen as an adjunctive treatment. Reconstructive surgery after complete resolution of infection should be considered.

Indeed, a multidisciplinary approach is best for the treatment of this condition. An ophthalmologist is required to evaluate for ophthalmoplegia and optic neuropathy. An oculoplastic surgeon can provide an orbital evaluation, as well as perform debridement and reconstruction. An otolaryngologist is required for biopsy or debridement of the nasal and sinus cavities. An infectious disease specialist can provide guidance for appropriate medical treatment with antifungal agents. Internal medicine specialists and endocrinologists are useful for the medical management of underlying systemic etiologies. Neurosurgery may be necessary if intracranial involvement is present. Finally, a pharmacotherapy specialist can assist with dosing of amphotericin B.

The complications of CROP include intracranial invasion, cavernous sinus thrombosis, blindness, occlusion of the central retinal artery, and airway obstruction caused by infections of the head and neck (with spread to the carotid sheath or the mediastinum through the fascial planes). The prognosis of CROP is guarded, with reported mortality rates of 30-70% (as stated earlier).

In this patient, treatment with amphotericin B was promptly initiated. CT scans of the orbits and sinuses demonstrated an air-fluid level in the right maxillary sinus, mucosal thickening of the right anterior ethmoid sinus, and preseptal cellulitis. An MRI of the head showed enhancement of the intraconal fat and rectus muscles of the right eye. The patient received emergency sinus debridement, and a biopsy was performed. Pathology demonstrated fungal angiitis and orbital inflammation that was consistent with mucormycosis. The patient underwent 3 additional operations, including exenteration of the right eye, and received hyperbaric oxygen treatments. After hospitalization for 3 weeks, he was discharged to home in good condition.

eat till you die

Does work block certain websites? Use this link to override the blocks. But then again, maybe they blocked them for a reason? Like decreased productivity? Just a thought.

Here’s a hit-and-miss set of laws, with more categories on the left. The laws for tech include, Logic is a systematic method of coming to the wrong conclusion with confidence.

This is a well-done post of pics from around the world of families and the food they consume during one week. Notice how both the food bill and the shit increases as the locale comes to America.

I’m getting a little pissed off at all the mentions of fractals I see on the net. I haven’t a clue what a fractal is. Looks like a creative Spirograph thing. I prefer the gear-shaped wheels and colored pencils. Maybe that’s because I am simple. If you like fractals, here’s some free source code. Have fun, whatever the hell you are doing.

So Obama and Tubby Thighs. Think it isn’t over? They split the vote damn near even. The delegates are about even. But think about the broader structure. She had such a large lead – now they are even. That means that she is tanking and he is rising. Also, he brought in twice what she did in cash last month and is on pace to do another $30 million this month. She had to lend her campaign $5 million, presumably out of her futures trading account. His polls are rising as well as his bank account. The next 5 or 6 states are his territory – more good press. She’s not OK until late March and April with states that lean her way. Too long to kill the burden of the press on her bank account. She had to can Bubba after the South Carolina fiasco - openly negative politics won't work, and there'll be a helluva price to pay if behind-the-scenes bullshit surfaces. She pulled the fucking tears thing again? If they are real, good lord, what will happen if she were in office? Her voice is going. Not made for the long haul. She’s toast. I love it when bad things happen to bad people.

You just have to love passive-aggressive people. You have to. So full of anger, moxey, vermin, but utterly lacking the balls to say it to your face. And when they do, it is always in this closed sense like a canned speech thought out from beginning to end – they can’t thrust and parry in real time! How depressing! I love a good fight. I especially love changing positions in a fight. Confuse the enemy. It has nothing to do with what is right or wrong, it is the thrill of the argument. Then the climax arrives and you can see they have built themselves to either spontaneous combustion or actually scoring a good verbal point. What to do? Turn your head slightly away – just the effect of dismissal, but not to obscure your lowered voice, and grovel out, “You’re a fucking idiot. And you wonder sometimes. Amazing.” Then walk away. Yes! Be sure to know your opponent though – that is the perfect set up to get something large tossed at your head. This site has some nice P-A stuff on it, but is broader and a fun read – he posts pics of things he finds.

Not sure what to make of this video. Couple of yahoos shooting a tennis ball at unfortunately speeds.



These people have too much time on their hands. Kinda pisses me off. But they did create a pretty cool spice rack. Look at the pics, and read only if you feel swarmy. Yeah, OK, they seem like nice people. Fine. I am sure they are. Shall we have a flight of Chards at the dinner party tonight? I’ll put little oak barrels on the table. Oh, we could plank the salmon! Let me think … something fresh and open tasting to start with, to balance the smokey main course … help me, Pookey, what do you think?

So Albert Einstein has a website, and I thought it would be cool to read some of his hand-written papers. Took me 5 or 6 layers to see an actual doc – very poor design. Cute programming, but utterly lacks flatness. It’s like roaming hallways. Anyway, so I finally get to one, and it’s in German! Man, that guy was smart! Reminded me of something my dad said once. He had a house in Mexico. The locals were typical poor rural Mexican. A local has a dog, and the guy says something to it. The dog responds. Whatever “sit” or “get me a beer” or “scratch my balls” is in Mexican. Anyway, my dad says, “that’s amazing. I have a hard enough time getting my dog to learn simple things like ‘stay’ and here your dog has learned a second language! That’s one smart dog.” The guy just looked at my dad like he had a third eye. My dad never explained himself in such situations. Would have taken away the charm.

In case you were wondering where you are going after you die, here’s a map. Click on it to see it bigger. More charts here.



Bye …

going somewhere?

your moment of zen ...

killing time

Want something completely and utterly mindless, but might keep you occupied for a few moments? Here you are. Yeah, you’re welcome. Try snycing it to the music in your head.

About time – streamlined google hacks.

There’s some local band up in Canada called Divided Highway. Just a small group of guys playing locally somewhere up north. Decent enough website. Here’s the backdoor to their set lists, song sheets, and mp3 collection. Welcome. C’mon – they play some Bee Gees music! They deserve to get hacked …

This game’ll piss you off. Just move your mouse over some apples and watch the computer, the process becomes obvious.

How does something like this happen? The website pen island dot net looks like penis land dot net. Nice job marketing! The Methodists have the weirdest races. The Cumming First Methodist Church is, yep, cumming first dot com. Is that a tumor on your ass or just a speedo fart brought to you by speed of art dot com?

Here’s a remarkable story: Convicted forger A. Schiller was serving his time in Sing Sing prison in the late 1800s when guards found him dead in his cell. On his body they found seven regular straight pins whose heads measured the typical 47/1000ths of an inch or 1.17 millimeters in diameter. Under 500-times magnification it was found that the tiny etchings seen on the heads of the pins were the words to The Lord's Prayer, which is 65 words and 254 letters long. Of the seven pins, six were silver and one was gold - the gold pin's prayer was flawless and a true masterpiece. Schiller had spent the last 25 years of his life creating the pins, using a tool too small to be seen by the naked eye. It is estimated that it took 1,863 separate carving strokes to make it. Schiller went blind because of his artwork. This link begins with an amazing pencil carving.

This website gets my vote for coolest design.

Click on the glasses for hundreds of beer recipes. I don’t drink much at all anymore. Makes me thirsty.

Enough browsing the net.

Me? Going to the Philadelphia International Auto Show tomorrow. Never been to one before. Should be interesting. Beyond that, have a light travel schedule for a couple of weeks, but heavy production schedule. Lots of docs going out.

Yawning ...