"I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war, and I don't think any oil shipments will stop. But this man is a terrific danger, and this is in our sphere of influence, so we can't let this happen. We have the Monroe Doctrine, and we have other doctrines that we have announced, and without question, this is a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil that could hurt us very badly. We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another 200-billion-dollar war to get rid of one strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."
--Pat Robertson
I did not want to talk about politics on this blog, but Pat Robertson's latest statement cannot be ignored. This is a man who is not qualified to herd goats, much less people.
What I find the most disturbing about Robertson's statement is how clearly is points to the underlying streak of meanness that runs through religious conservatives of all dominations. There are far too many of them running around who lack the very basic sense of mercy and compassion for the flaws and failings of other humans. For a self-proclaimed "Minister" (a Master's of Divinity alone does NOT make you a man of God) to espouse the deliberate destruction of another's body is reprehensible. That Robertson's ilk have weaseled out of condemning him by declaring him to be a bit cuckoo is equally disturbing, but unsurprising.
Let us not split hairs either. To advocate the destruction of another human being, whether it be their body or their soul, is immoral. "Thou shall not murder" may have applied to the physical body when Moses brought those commandments down the mountain, but the teachings of Christ, who the above congregation profess to follow, clearly extended that commandment to a person's spirit. If you destroy a person's soul, you have committed murder, even if the body remains.
Unfortunately the Pat Robertson's of the world do not see it that way.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Axel
Introducing one of the world's more interesting creatures.Axel.
Axel is our disabled cat. He was born with deformed back legs (one veterinarian described them as "put on backwards"). In spite of the fact that he is a biped, he can climb stairs and furniture, run and is an excellent mouser.
He is also one of the most intuitive animals we have ever had. He does not like to be alone, stresses out when he sense tension in the house and would spend all day, every day outside if he were able.
He can charm anybody, including cat-haters. Faced with his killer purr and engaging manner, all melt before him.
We love him dearly.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Boules
This photograph was taken in Les Halles, the former central marketplace in Paris. The area is now a massive park and underground mall.
As we walked the grounds, we noticed a group of men playing boules. After some discussion it was decided that I was a better choice to sneak some photos in, as I am the "cuter" of the two of us.
I did not want to get too close and ruin the men's play.
Other misadventures in Les Halles included several very uncomfortable moments with a madwoman. Apparently we were sitting on "her" bench and she did not approve. She did not sit down after we moved, just nodded in a satisfied manner and wandered off into the park.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Determining What is Right from What is Easy
I've thought a lot about how I wanted to frame this next entry. I've told this story to close friends and their reactions have always been of the "oh my God, how awful" variety.
As a sophomore in college I was put in the difficult position of having to file a complaint against one of my professors. What made the situation more painful was that Professor "G" was a brilliant, animated teacher who lectured from memory. I had enjoyed my first class with him so much that I decided to take a second one to fufill an elective.
I was poorer than usual that term and buying my books piecemeal with the proceeds of my work study checks. I put off purchasing Professor G's last book (of seven on the required reading list) until shortly before the term ended.
Only to discover that the bookstore had sent all the copies back.
Frantic, the only option I saw was hunt Professor G down and find out what my alternatives were. I was not the only poor student in the class and was aware that the majority of my classmates had not purchased the book either.
When I told Professor G that the book had been sent back, he reacted in a fashion that was completely in character with his personality. He started advancing on me, speaking loudly. In my attempt to put some distance between us I backed right into a wall. He had me cornered and grabbed the sides of my unzipped jacket. I could not say anything at that moment. All I knew was that something had gone terribly wrong and I was afraid.
He let go of me when one of the other professors came out of his office to see what was happening. With a casual "Is everything alright here?" Professor G came to his senses and backed off. I collected my wits and fled without another word.
I don't wrestle with whether I did the right thing. Had I known what was to come in the next month, that friendships would be irretrievably broken, that the Director of Housing would treat me like a criminal, that the administration would attempt to slap the label of sexual harassment on the situation because they could not find another label to fit, I still would have reported him.
I admit, I did not make it easy for the school. For one, I turned down the option of dropping Professor G's class. I am pretty certain that I could have walked away with whatever grade I currently had (which turned out to be an A), but I could not do that. If I had, I would have been afraid of him, and I did not want to be afraid.
For another, I rebuffed every single attempt that the administration made to turn it into sexual harassment. Professor G may have suffered a lapse in judgment, but he never acted in a sexually inappropriate manner towards myself and I never observed him act in such a manner towards other women. He would have acted exactly the same if I had been a male instead of a female. While a male student may have brushed the incident off, I could not. Male or female, the second he laid a hand on a student, he crossed the line.
In the end, Professor G was not granted tenure and moved on to teach at several other colleges. As far as I know, he is still teaching.
As for myself, I understand firsthand the difference between what is right and what is easy.
As a sophomore in college I was put in the difficult position of having to file a complaint against one of my professors. What made the situation more painful was that Professor "G" was a brilliant, animated teacher who lectured from memory. I had enjoyed my first class with him so much that I decided to take a second one to fufill an elective.
I was poorer than usual that term and buying my books piecemeal with the proceeds of my work study checks. I put off purchasing Professor G's last book (of seven on the required reading list) until shortly before the term ended.
Only to discover that the bookstore had sent all the copies back.
Frantic, the only option I saw was hunt Professor G down and find out what my alternatives were. I was not the only poor student in the class and was aware that the majority of my classmates had not purchased the book either.
When I told Professor G that the book had been sent back, he reacted in a fashion that was completely in character with his personality. He started advancing on me, speaking loudly. In my attempt to put some distance between us I backed right into a wall. He had me cornered and grabbed the sides of my unzipped jacket. I could not say anything at that moment. All I knew was that something had gone terribly wrong and I was afraid.
He let go of me when one of the other professors came out of his office to see what was happening. With a casual "Is everything alright here?" Professor G came to his senses and backed off. I collected my wits and fled without another word.
I don't wrestle with whether I did the right thing. Had I known what was to come in the next month, that friendships would be irretrievably broken, that the Director of Housing would treat me like a criminal, that the administration would attempt to slap the label of sexual harassment on the situation because they could not find another label to fit, I still would have reported him.
I admit, I did not make it easy for the school. For one, I turned down the option of dropping Professor G's class. I am pretty certain that I could have walked away with whatever grade I currently had (which turned out to be an A), but I could not do that. If I had, I would have been afraid of him, and I did not want to be afraid.
For another, I rebuffed every single attempt that the administration made to turn it into sexual harassment. Professor G may have suffered a lapse in judgment, but he never acted in a sexually inappropriate manner towards myself and I never observed him act in such a manner towards other women. He would have acted exactly the same if I had been a male instead of a female. While a male student may have brushed the incident off, I could not. Male or female, the second he laid a hand on a student, he crossed the line.
In the end, Professor G was not granted tenure and moved on to teach at several other colleges. As far as I know, he is still teaching.
As for myself, I understand firsthand the difference between what is right and what is easy.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Get Out of My Lane!
I changed my workout schedule to mornings three weeks ago to get myself out of a rut. It has been a long three weeks adjusting to the new time schedule and I hope it will pay off in the long run. The upside of working out early (as I do not have to BE at work until 9am) is that I get to lift and swim. The downside is that I go to work tired (temporary) and very hungry.
I have one thing to say to three people who enter the pool area, usually after I have been doing laps for 15 minutes.
GET OUT OF MY LANE.
Seriously. Get out. I don't understand why you find it necessary to push me out of my lane every single damn time I'm in the pool. Is it because I look younger than anyone else there, so you think I'm an easy target? I'm really sorry that you suffer from anxiety when separated from your best friend and pool buddy, but you are a grownup. I'm not talking about when the pool is crowded either. I'm talking about stealing my lane while I am swimming when half of the lanes are open and just happen to be the ones you don't like. If you want your favorite lap location get up earlier. Did not your mother teach you any manners at all?
I have one thing to say to three people who enter the pool area, usually after I have been doing laps for 15 minutes.
GET OUT OF MY LANE.
Seriously. Get out. I don't understand why you find it necessary to push me out of my lane every single damn time I'm in the pool. Is it because I look younger than anyone else there, so you think I'm an easy target? I'm really sorry that you suffer from anxiety when separated from your best friend and pool buddy, but you are a grownup. I'm not talking about when the pool is crowded either. I'm talking about stealing my lane while I am swimming when half of the lanes are open and just happen to be the ones you don't like. If you want your favorite lap location get up earlier. Did not your mother teach you any manners at all?
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Changes
I ordered my new laptop yesterday.
I ordered a 14" iBook G4/1.42GHz, 1GB memory/100GB hard drive, OS Tiger 10.4. I could not purchase it at the Apple store (More on that experience in a minute) because of the larger hard drive.
Because of the nature of my employment I have used Macintosh computers more frequently over the past two years. I have come to respect the design and function of Apple's machines enough that I have been lusting after one for over a year.
What I was not impressed by was my experience at the Apple Store. I blame 85% of the negative experience on a group of men who somehow managed to take up 3 of the 5 members of the floor staff, even though only 1 of them was actually purchasing a computer. I blame the other 15% on poor training and scheduling, as the ability to extricate oneself from a mob is a necessity and proper scheduling is a must when working in sales. It took an hour to corner a harried, but cultishly friendly salesperson, and discover that they could not put a new hard drive in at the store. More memory? Yes. Larger hard drive? No?
Home we went. The next morning I took a deep breath and placed my order. My current machine, a trusty and highly functioning IBM Thinkpad A31 will be cleared of it's 20GB of music and turned over to my husband. Although I am reserving the right to claim it back occasionally to play "The Sims" until I get a Windows emulator set up on the new machine.
Now I wait. A week seems like a long time right now.
I ordered a 14" iBook G4/1.42GHz, 1GB memory/100GB hard drive, OS Tiger 10.4. I could not purchase it at the Apple store (More on that experience in a minute) because of the larger hard drive.
Because of the nature of my employment I have used Macintosh computers more frequently over the past two years. I have come to respect the design and function of Apple's machines enough that I have been lusting after one for over a year.
What I was not impressed by was my experience at the Apple Store. I blame 85% of the negative experience on a group of men who somehow managed to take up 3 of the 5 members of the floor staff, even though only 1 of them was actually purchasing a computer. I blame the other 15% on poor training and scheduling, as the ability to extricate oneself from a mob is a necessity and proper scheduling is a must when working in sales. It took an hour to corner a harried, but cultishly friendly salesperson, and discover that they could not put a new hard drive in at the store. More memory? Yes. Larger hard drive? No?
Home we went. The next morning I took a deep breath and placed my order. My current machine, a trusty and highly functioning IBM Thinkpad A31 will be cleared of it's 20GB of music and turned over to my husband. Although I am reserving the right to claim it back occasionally to play "The Sims" until I get a Windows emulator set up on the new machine.
Now I wait. A week seems like a long time right now.
Monday, August 01, 2005
Training
I have been training for our (still theoretical) trip to Argentina next summer.
Unfortunately, it has not been going well.
I am not athletic. To be athletic implies that a person has adequate amounts of grace and co-ordination needed to run and kick, dribble, throw or hit a ball. Since I can do none of the above and can break bones by standing on a low bench, my options for exercise are limited to walking and swimming.
In addition to my lack of co-ordination I have one bad knee, and chronic inflammation of the sciatic nerve on my right side.
Sciatica is one of those weird ailments that you think strike only the elderly until you wake up one day with pain so bad that it takes 15 minutes to get out of bed. One night, I went to bed feeling fine and woke up unable to walk. I did not have insurance, so the best I could hope for was that the pain went away. Eventually it did.
Once I had insurance, I saw a physician. X-rays were taken and discussions were held. In the end I was handed a diagnosis (Sciatica) and told to keep doing what I was already doing - swimming, free weights, yoga and walking. Apparently, while the condition is recurring, the best therapy is regular exercise and two ibuprofen.
So training moves slowly.
Unfortunately, it has not been going well.
I am not athletic. To be athletic implies that a person has adequate amounts of grace and co-ordination needed to run and kick, dribble, throw or hit a ball. Since I can do none of the above and can break bones by standing on a low bench, my options for exercise are limited to walking and swimming.
In addition to my lack of co-ordination I have one bad knee, and chronic inflammation of the sciatic nerve on my right side.
Sciatica is one of those weird ailments that you think strike only the elderly until you wake up one day with pain so bad that it takes 15 minutes to get out of bed. One night, I went to bed feeling fine and woke up unable to walk. I did not have insurance, so the best I could hope for was that the pain went away. Eventually it did.
Once I had insurance, I saw a physician. X-rays were taken and discussions were held. In the end I was handed a diagnosis (Sciatica) and told to keep doing what I was already doing - swimming, free weights, yoga and walking. Apparently, while the condition is recurring, the best therapy is regular exercise and two ibuprofen.
So training moves slowly.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)