Random Musings

• What a gorgeous evening in East Tennessee. Pleasant temps, not too humid, partly sunny, with a hint of a rainbow in the clouds. Me and the familial units traipsed to the good ole' IHOP this evening for dinner, looking for some breakfast. I would've liked to have gone out on the back deck to read after the kids went to bed, but the door sticks, curse the luck, and I can't open it or close it without making a big bang that rattles the house....
  
  
• I just finished "The Waste Lands", the third book in Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series. I've already read the current four volumes once, but I'm brushing back up on them in anticipation of #5 being released this fall, with the final two next year.
  
  I find an interesting point, in that the heroes of the story have formed a ka-tet, or in our language something like "blood brothers", or "friends bound by fate". I can't think of a group I've been around in my time that could be thought of as "friends bound by fate," but I do remember groups of people that defined different parts of my life.
  
  I used to be Program Director for the UT Wesley Foundation, the Methodist Student Center on the UT campus. While a student at UT and soon after the Wesley Program Director, my then-girlfriend-now-wife and I became good friends with several other students who were regulars at Wesley. We hung around together, enjoyed each other's company - even played Dungeons & Dragons. I miss that type of easy, college friendships - adult friendships are much more complex and complicated, since they are frequently based on the lives and activities of our children. In the old days, we could gather at Wesley to watch a football game, gather around the piano and sing strange songs, go to dinner, go to the movies - as a group, each member possessing its own dynamic with the others, but so comfortable with each other's company we were like family. I do hope my kids have the fortune to come across groups of friends like these.
  
  My wife and I ran into a couple of these folks the other day - we passed them coming into a restaurant as we were leaving - and it was a bit awkward. There was still the old hand-shaking and back-slapping, but we'd all changed. Children were scrambling around our feet, we were physically different (around the middles, especially, us guys), and the tone of conversation was less flighty and more down-to-earth. Plus there were relationship changes beneath the surface that were not obvious, but apparant after later consideration.
  
  Things change, gunslingers continue their quests, and the world moves on.
  
  It's ka.
  
  
• I'm playing SimCity 3000, and if anyone has any advice for attracting High-Tech Industries, I'd be much obliged ;)
  
  
• My son's playing Zoo Tycoon, and his poor animals keep catching horrible diseases because their zookeepers won't keep their enclosures clean from all the animal poop. The animals don't die - it's a family game - but the sad-looking lions and giraffes mope around and keep flopping on the ground in agony. Good thing there's an off switch - I don't think I can take that kind of suffering.
  
  
• My daughter, GiggleGirl:
  Interjexions - show citement....Halleyula, halleyula, halleyulaaaaaaah, yeaaaaaaaaah..
  
  (pause for effect)
  
  Darn, that's the end!
  
  Gotta love that SchoolHouse Rock DVD - once she learns the Preamble like God intended it to be learned (in song, from a 3-minute ABC cartoon series), I'll be done with her education.

Oops...

I'm about two weeks late and $1.98 short of welcoming the newest Rocky Top Brigade members: Free Speech News and Team Rock. Apologies, and welcome to the club, fellas!

Those tapes....

Purported Saddam tape urges resistance

Another week, another audiotape by a supposedly dead ruler. I have one question - if they have the technology to make an audiotape of Saddam, wouldn't it be fairly easy to make a videotape of him? If his aim is to actually re-moralize his followers, troops, and other Ba'athists - wouldn't it make more sense to shoot a video of himself to assuage all doubts?

These days the gap between audio and video technology is miniscule, even in Iraq to someone with Saddam's connections.

To me, regardless of how sure analysts are of the voice-print, until he releases a videotape there should be no reason to believe he's still alive.

And you can go back and re-substitute Osama for Saddam, and it would be the same thing.

Maybe he's dead, maybe not, but I doubt he's (they're) making the recordings.

More Breaking News - Eiffel Tower on fire

.... What the heck's going on today??

Watch it here live:

http://www.abcparislive.com/eiffel_tower_webcams.htm

UPDATE: Apparently, no big deal...

My Two Sons

Uday and Qusay Found and/or killed???

"A U.S. government official told CNN the Bush administration is "reasonably optimistic" that the two sons have 'met their maker.'"

Hmmm...now, where have I heard that before??? Hm. Well, we'll see.

UPDATE: If this is true, apparantly Qusay's teenage son was killed as well:

"A senior Pentagon official said one of the two other bodies appeared to be that of a teenage boy. U.S. officials noted that Qusay has a teenage son."

I never heard Qusay had a son, much less that he was active in the regime. While it's possible, even likely he was a black-hearted as his father and grandfather, it's still a shame to see children corrupted by the sins of their fathers when they should be playing baseball, or starting to like girls, or learning about the good things in the world. All this kid had seen were likely hate, torture, rape and murder.

Vigilence.

And now, from the "Desparate to Get Some Attention" Department...

'Mr. Ray' Sues Pixar, Says Hurt by 'Finding Nemo'

Taking a lesson from director Spike Lee, children's entertainer Mr. Ray on Tuesday said he was suing Walt Disney Co. and Pixar Animation Studios Inc. because a fishy character in hit movie "Finding Nemo" was destroying his reputation.

...

The Pixar movie "Finding Nemo," distributed by Disney and likely to be the second-biggest-grossing animated movie ever, follows a father fish's search for his lost son and includes a kindly school teacher character, a manta ray named "Mr. Ray."

Use of the "Mr. Ray" name would "obliterate and destroy Plaintiff's reputation" and the market for his products, the Mr. Ray from New Jersey said.

...

Yodlowsky in a statement compared his plight to that of director Spike Lee, who sued and settled with Viacom Inc. over ownership rights to his professional name when the media conglomerate decided to rename its TNN network "Spike TV."

Well, at least he's honest about his dishonesty...

Blah

Blah blah blah Lies blah blah blah blah Allegations blah blah blah Plane Trips blah blah blah nukes blah blah blah Republican weasels blah blah blah Liberal jerks blah blah blah blah blah blah Coulter blah blah blah Robertson blah blah blah Bush blah blah blah Saddam blah blah blah STFU! blah blah blah I'm right, you're wrong blah blah blah No, you're wrong and I'm right!! blah blah blah nothing nothing nothing.

Welcome to the Blogosphere^TM, summer 2003.

Our Long National Nightmare is Over

Looney Tunes to debut on DVD

If any of my family is reading this....do dee do dee doChristmasdoo dee doo dee doo.....

(Hat Tip: Mark Evanier)

Tolkien Quote of the Day

To all administrators, CEO's, and other number-crunchers and bottom-liners out there, a bit of advice (paraphrased from the good right Reverend J.R.R):

"Do not meddle in the affairs of parents - for they are definitely not subtle, and very quick to anger."

Don't mess with our kids.

The End is Nigh

Websense, the auto-website filtering software application that is used to block out all Entertainment, Adult, Music and other "inappropriate" material to cubicle dwellers around the world has done the unthinkable.

The Bleat has been blacklisted.

Apparently, Good Mr. Lileks and his merry band of matchbooks, Jaspars, odd foods and Gnats have been deemed to hot for the office and can no longer be accessed by us foolish mortals....

I'm asking the Blogosphere to do a favor to us poor, downtrodden souls who will now miss their morning fix of wit, wisdom and trips to the Apple store:

Click here to request Websense his site be removed from the "Entertainment" category. This is their online form for such requests. It does require good reasoning or explanations as to why it should be removed from the restricted list, so be creative.

I already used the online form this morning, because they just started filtering the website for The Oakridger, Oak Ridge TN's daily newspaper. Brilliant, folks. I know the news today is more and more entertainment based, but this is ridiculous.

Interestingly enough, none of the Blogger/Blogspot sites are filtered. And Kevin at Lean Left's was filtered, but isn't anymore. So I guess things can change.

As they say, vote early and vote often...

Yo ho, Yo ho, A Pirate's Life for Me...

Run, stagger, sail, swim or just walk along the bottom of the ocean and go see Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

What a flick! Spoilers ahead, so avast, matey!






My favorite parts:

1) The little nods they put in as homage to the Disneyland/Walt Disney World ride, such as the jailed pirates coaxing the dog with the key in his mouth, the grogging/reveling/rumming/wenching by the pirates in the seaside village, the treasure-strewn pirate cave, and several other touches that are obvious if you're a fan of the ride.

2) One of the biggest worries I had was that they would not use the "Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirate's Life For Me" song in the movie, but they did - in fact, the little girl singing it at the beginning are the first words of the film. True, I would've liked to heard a full-blown version (Jack Sparrow, the pirate captain, did promise to teach the song to his crew after all), but alas - unless it played late into the end credits, they didn't sing.

3) Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow - a half-drunk, half-effeminate (never could figure out which half) pirate captain that looked like he was channeling Tim Curry and Steve Tyler of Aerosmith.

4) The pirate ship and the British Navy ship pass alongside about 20 feet apart, firing broadside agin' their timbers and blast each other to smithereens.

5) The plucky heroine looks like Brooke Shields, and wields a mean...um, whatever that big piece of wood she wielded at the end.

6) The music...I've already ordered the soundtrack from Amazon ;)

7) Someone actually used the term "Davy Jone's Locker". I half expected ex-Monkee Davy Jones to make a cameo appearance...

It had a lot of silly parts in it - two of the bad guy pirates and two of the British soldiers are there for comic relief, which is unusual to have two pairs of Timon/Pumba type characters in a movie, but it worked. There was almost too much slapstick humor contrasting with the violent swordplay and sea battles, but it was all tongue-in-cheek.

So go see it, and be prepared to enjoy 2-1/2 hours at the movies.

They're really bad eggs, too ;)

Dude, Where's My Blog?

Ron Rosenbaum and Michael Totten show their entries in the "Dude, Where's My..." literary sweepstakes.

Here are mine:

Movies:
Raiders of the Lost Ark -- Dude, Where's My Box?
Dumb and Dumber -- Dude?
Finding Nemo -- Dude, Where's My Son?
Silence of the Lambs -- Dude, Where's My Lunch?

Books/Literature
Macbeth -- Dude, Where's My Throne?
Alice in Wonderland -- Dude, Where's My Hassenfeffer?

Down the Drain

Oh, crap.

The Bottom Line

Companies have a bottom line to maintain, but it sucks when it's at the expense of their employees.

Our company DayCare is being shut down after 25+ years in business, and now we have to find another place for GiggleGirl. She only had one year left till Kindergarten.

Bookends, Part 2

Somewhere in Georgia halfway between Macon and Atlanta (on the way home to Knoxville) we made a pit-stop at a gas station. Nice little town, nice Texaco or whatever. I stayed in the Windstar (passenger seat) while the rest of the family went inside to, well, whatever.

Another car pulled up ahead of me on the other side of the front door, and two young men got out. Both seemed to be in their early-mid twenties. The first had on a black muscle shirt/T-Shirt-with-sleeves-ripped-out that sported a Confederate flag on the front, plus some other pictures and writing I couldn't make out. The other had on a similar tank shirt plus numerous menacing-looking tattoos.

Oh, and he was bald.

A third chap stayed in the back seat as the first two ambled into the store.

Leaping to Conclusion Time - they're going to rob this convenience store, shoot my family and drive off laughing into the sunset. Well, that didn't make much sense because the guy was in the back seat - hardly get-away-driver position, although my experience in knocking over gas stations is limited. So that theory went nowhere.

There was a bumper sticker stuck to the top of the rear window - a website address, somethingsomething.com, but it was too far away and too small to make out. So I waited, keeping one wary eye on the car and another on the door to the market. A couple of times I almost got out and went in to check, but eventually everyone came back safe and sound. As we drove away the two gentlemen returned to their car - six packs in tow - and got it. I was able to read the bumper sticker as we passed their car: www.panzerfaust.com.

Panzer.

Ok, a German tank in common usage; I'm sure it actually has a German definition. And faust too.

Well, look kids - you've seen your first for-real, in-the-flesh skinhead.

When we got home I looked up panzerfaust.com on the web (I'm not linking to it). It's a "racial pride" record label, with bands sporting dark names that would make MegaDeath look like the Bay City Rollers, and an online store sporting goodies that made Maurice's seem as tame as your neighborhood garage sale.

Nazi flags, Aryan nation paraphernalia. White power. The whole 9 meters.

My wife said the gentlemen behaved themselves in the story - she had no idea who they were at the time - but that the clerk behind the counter was black. She hadn't noticed them acting different toward him, although living in Georgia near Atlanta I'm sure they're forced to make do every day.

What made my skin crawl was suspecting very heavily that I was looking at people who would very likely work a black man over if given the opportunity. Depending on the level of their commitment, maybe even kill him. And only for the crime of being black.

These were probably the real deal - no silly states-rights controversy here, just hate. Now, to be truthful there were no black employees at Maurice's when we stopped there the week prior, and I didn't notice any black customers, but I don't have any real feeling they would be made to feel anything worse than uncomfortable coming in there.

That's mostly play-acting - trumping up a political cause to give oneself the excuse to discriminate. But with the two gentlemen from Georgia, that puts it into perspective. There are evil people in the world, people who would kill to achieve supremacy of the white race. Or Communism, or Fascism, or Islam.

On a cool lovely day in September we saw the threat that exists from the outside, and on a warm humid day in July I remembered that threats exist everywhere.

What's ironic about this is: myself, being white, was more than likely safe from these gentlemen (at least from a hate-type crime). Not being black, they likely wouldn't have thought twice about me as a threat.

Hey, but as a good man once said, "That which you do to the least of them, you also do to me." Racial and religious fanatacism are wrong, and we must feel the pain of those wronged as sharply as if it were done to ourselves.

We are one.

This Just In

Al-Jazeera to Broadcast New Hitler Tape

The al-Jazeera network indicated strongly today that it was preparing to broadcast an audio tape featuring the voice of former German Chancellor and Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. Sources reveal the tape was recorded only weeks ago and delivered to the network in a tank on Saturday. In forceful German, the Feuhrer praised the brave German people, vowing to continue the struggle to defend the Fatherland. He piled curses and accusations on the American infidels and promised to do all in his power to end the destructive conflict facing his people and bring order to the world.

Experts who have analyzed the tape are mixed in their assessment of its authenticity. Voice-print anaylsis would be difficult due to the lack of verifiable recordings made by Hitler since the mid-1940's and the quality of the recording equipment of that time, but the experts believe it's only a matter of time until positive identification is made.

"The vocal inflections, the rhetoric, the accent - all of Hitler's speech characteristics are there on the tape, even the cheering of the crowds in the background are consistent with his oratorical skills, " remarked Hans Panzer, German vocal expert. "In fact, they are very similar in tone and style to the recordings of Hitler speaking to the German people during World War II, down to the "Zieg Heils" from the crowds. I am very convinced this is authentic."

There was no comment on why Jesse Owens was mentioned in one part of the new recording, nor was an explanation given for Hitler's references to the ongoing alliances with Benito Mussolini of Italy and the Emperor of Japan. Italy and Japan have been Western allies for 50 years.

"This new recording should prove once and for all that Hitler is still alive, and did not commit suicide in his bunker in Berlin during the waning days of World War II," Panzer continued. "The struggle against Western oppression continues, and should give great comfort and hope to those opposing US interests in the Middle East."


UPDATE: BREAKING NEWS Sources have revealed the possible presence of a new recording from former French leader Napolean Bonaparte now in the hands of al-Jazeera. More on this story as it develops.

Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Part 2 coming...

Just haven't felt like indepth coverage. More sometime.

Bookends, Part 1

Our trip was fun, yada yada yada and all that, but two experiences right at the beginning and right at the end got me thinking...

Thinking about how much further we still have to go in dealing with bigotry and racism in this country.

Saturday the 28th we drove through South Carolina on the way to Hilton Head and stopped at Maurice's Barbecue. This is a 61-year-old institution in S.C., with several restaurants scattered throughout the state and beyond, probably. My wife had stopped in there on a previous trip and we decided to give it a try.

Maurice Bessinger started the chain many years ago, and his face and influence still play a large part in the place's notoriety. Trouble is, crazy old Maurice is one of those "Southern Heritage" good-old-boys. You know the ones, they proudly fly their Confederate Stars-n-Bars, and insist on the absolute soveriegnty of the states rights over the good of the country. Maurice was instrumental in the fight to keep the Confederate flag part of the S.C. state flag and keep it flying over the capital building in Columbia. He once pulled down the US Flag and raised the Confederate and S.C. state flags in its place to protest the state's interpretation of the 10th amendment.

His restaurant and his website have "Truth Stores", where you can buy his book (only $19.95 plus shipping!) and other gems such as "The South Was Right", and "Myths and Realities of American Slavery", and "Arguing the Case for Southern Secession"...not to mention picking up the latest in Confederate flags, "10th Amendment Heritage Protector" T-Shirts, and CSA Songbooks.

Now, I'm Southern-born, Southern-bred and I'll be Southern till I die - but I'm an American first, Tennesseean second and Southerner third. This kind of anti-patriotism makes me sick, and makes me wonder about what nightmares people like this have at night - nightmares of Federal Policemen coming in the middle of the night to dissolve the state boundaries and chain us up in the yokes of governmental oppression. We've seen here locally what paranoia of what the government might do to you can cause - the traumitization of a high-school girl.

Interestingly, although the website boasts a plethora of statements, fact-sheets, press releases, diatribes and other musings by Maurice and others about the issue regarding state's rights, they never come out and print the 10th Amendment to the US Constitution. I'll do it here, for completeness:

AMENDMENT X

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Now, I'm no Constitutional scholar and don't pretend to understand all the nuances intended by the Founding Fathers or interpreted by the courts since it was written, but it seems to me mostly the amendment says that where there is not a specific federal regulation, the states are free to create their own
statutes.

When the Constitution was written, the 13 colonies were likely more like the European Union is today - different people of different cultural backgrounds, settled by people from different foreign countries and possesing different ideals. It probably made sense back then to keep a lot of power in the hands of the individual states and not the federal government.

But things are much different now. Aside from accents and some customs, things are pretty much the same in Portland, OR as they are in Austin, TX as they are in Knoxville, TN as they are in Hackensack, NJ. People go to work, go to school, jog in the parks, play baseball, go to the movies, see plays, eat at McDonalds pretty much the same way all over.

That's because with our communication and travel abilities being the way they are today, Americans move from place to place very easily. Just in the past month I've been to Clarksville TN, Las Vegas NV and Hilton Head SC. By way of Savannah/Atlanta and whatever little town in SC that had the Maurice's.

America has been shaken to its roots in the last two years. A lot of people have had to do some soul-searching about what it means to be an American. For the first few months after 9/11, we saw US Flags on every car, every house until it became a status symbol. While it eventually became excessive, it did show who we are - how people who'd never visited New York or Washington grieved for the people in the planes and in the buildings as if they were their own family. I know I did.

The 21st Century in America is not the time to worry about the divine right of full state soveriegnty and Confederacy. Keep it in the 19th century where it belongs - a relic of history.


We are one.


Tomorrow I'll post Part 2, about the incident on the return trip.

Air! Lovely Air!

Well, I'm back. BurnedTanned, rested and otherwise none the worse for wear. I'll post a couple of highlights later, after I finish looking through whatever happened while I was gone. One thing - humidity there was really really really bad...

One week - Saturday morning to Saturday night and never touched a keyboard (except to try and connect my wife's laptop to the condo's phone - didn't work). That's a new record.

That's the News, and I Am Outta Here!

We leave Saturday morning for a week at Hilton Head. Don't you all break anything (or each other) while I'm gone!

I may be able to check email down there, but I don't know if I'll be able to blog. I don't have a fancy laptop with WiFi installed - I'll have to make do with Dixie cups, strings, and RAM chips.

See ya later, agitators!

Just Curious

• Ann Coulter
  
• Michael Savage
  
• Rush Limbaugh
  

Can anyone think of three people on the left that match these three Konservatives for their vileness, nastiness, and insulting behaviour against those that don't Think Like They Do?

I'll give you Michael Moore as a head start.

And I'm not talking about liberal idealogy, as whacked out as it can be to the far left - I'm talking about those in the public eye who are as nasty, just bad human beings in their relations with others these are. Someone who would say this:

"My only regret with Osama bin Laden is that he did not manage to kill every member of the Wall Street Journal editorial staff." (link)

"Savage intimated in a broadcast on Disney-owned KSFO-FM, that the possibility of forcible rape was a reason why female high school students might find it exciting to feed homeless people in San Francisco's inner city." (link)

An Unfortunate Prediction

Snicker.

New Comments Section

Added Haloscan comments. Please use them!!!!

The Twilight Zone

It's Friday, 8:35 am....

No new Bleat.

No new Instapundit.

The children wander alone, lost in the wilderness. Alone, bereft, starved for their daily input.

Whatever shall we do...whatever shall we do?

Looks like somebody has to take up the slack!

FRI! Another sunny day in the great historic state of Minnesota. Jasperwood seems lively with just the sound of Gnat running around, saying cute and funny things. She walked up to me earlier and said, "Dadda. Want worl pees!" "Equil rites - all peeples - gooood!". I think we have a budding statesperson in our midst, if she can just stop pulling Jasper's tail.

I watched an obscure 50-year-old black-and-white Sci-Fi film on DVD last night and was stunned by the clarity of it. I also tried to Tivo "E.R" but the connections to my system have gone bad - have to go to Target tomorrow for replacement parts. That Target has everything.

Spent another 3 hours piecing together my home movies on the iPod. We'll be heading over to the Apple store, too, while we're out. Gnat wants to try her hand at hacking into the CIA mainframe from the store.

I hear how downtown Minneapolis is preparing to demolish that old building, the one that was built in the 1920's out of asbestos, sheet rock and bits of string. I'll need to remember to pick up some chains at Target so I can attach myself to the building. It's a one of a kind, and there will never be anymore like it. If I can remember the name, that would make the experience complete.

I've added more matchbooks, more obscure recipes - heck, I've added the entire Google database to the site. Enjoy!

Oh, look - the latest Apple catalog just came in the mail. I think I can get a couple of other parts from the Apple store to permanantly hard-wire my mind to the computer, and Bleat by telepathy! Whoda thunk it...

How cute...Gnat just invented warp drive! That scamp. Combine that with the cure for SARS she came up with last week, and she will surely have a bright future. More tomorrow, after I correct her matter-antimatter imbalance.

Plus....

Thurmond dead at 100

Former Republican Sen. J. Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, the longest-serving member of the upper house of Congress, died Thursday at the age of 100.

Indeed. (posted at 08:37 AM by Glenn Reynolds)

House, Senate Pass Medicare Bill

In a victory for President Bush, both houses of Congress (search) approved sweeping Medicare (search) legislation early Friday to give seniors a prescription drug benefit while creating a broad new role for private insurance in the government-run program.

Heh.

UPDATE: Indeed. (posted at 08:36 AM by Glenn Reynolds)

'Miracle heart pill' for all

Everyone over 55 should take a 'miracle pill' which could cut their risk of having a heart attack or a stroke by 80%, researchers say.
The pill would combine aspirin, a cholesterol lowering drug, three blood pressure lowering drugs and folic acid.

Patients would have to have an initial check-up from a doctor before they were prescribed the pill.

It is estimated one in three people could gain up to 20 years of life without a heart attack or stroke through taking it.

A 'polypill' should never be a licence for people to lead unhealthy lifestyles

Sir Charles George, British Heart Foundation
The pill could cost less than a pound a day, and cause minimal side effects.

As they say, read the whole thing. (posted at 08:35 AM by Glenn Reynolds)

Volunteer Tailgate Party is Online

Be sure to take a look at this stunningly crafted, magnificently compiled artistic example of investigative journalism I've ever seen.

Sorry I missed this one last week - and from my own blogger collective! (posted at 08:34 AM by Glenn Reynolds)

There - isn't that better?

Blogger...fixed?

Is it just me, or has the permalink problem with Blogger been fixed?

There's a new posting interface, and it no longer has an area for reindexing Archives (that I can see), and I've added the previous two articles without disrupting the links.

Interesting.

Comments Down

BlogThis! comments are down, so please send me email at innofthelasthomeinsolace @ yahoo . com.

My Precious....

This is the tot who likes to have....conversations.

Turnabout, Like it or Not

Bill Hobbs makes the usual noise about Dick Gephardt, and adds that there's a silence from lefty bloggers on the issue - unlike the uproar against Trent Lott. Gephart said:

"When I'm president, we'll do executive orders to overcome any wrong thing the Supreme Court does tomorrow or any other day.

Bill, and others around the Right side of the 'sphere, seem to attach great significance to Gephardt's statement as if it were part of his platform or official policy, and as if it were a definite campaign promise. I see it as an offhand comment during a discussion session at a candidates forum with other Democratic candidates and partisans. His comment was of the, "If that guy comes around here again, I'll kill him!" or "Everybody at my office is an idiot!" or "If I don't get this promotion, I'll kill myself" variety. It's bravado, it's hyperbole, it's playing to the audience. Nothing more. People do this all the time - their tongues get the better of them, and they say something they know probably isn't true or that they can't deliver on. But they go on, and we go on, because most people know it's so ridiculous he couldn't actually be serious.

Was it dumb? Sure. Was it ill-advised? Probably, although it likely got a rousing ovation from the crowd. Was it as bad as Trent Lott's pro-discrimination comments regarding Strom Thurmond? Not in the same ballpark.

And since the righty bloggers have all the time in the world to make hey of this...well, you know, it beats reading more about how Hillary is the anti-Christ.

Speaking of..

Bill also criticizes South Knox Bubba's contention that Bush has said some dumb things, too. I agree with Bill that they were mostly in the Popeye "pronunskiation" variety, but then he says this:

"Stopping Bush has become the Left's only organizing principle."

Dare I remind everyone that from 1992-2000, stopping Clinton was the Right's only organizing principle. Period. It had nothing really to do with policy, idealogy, opinions, whatever. It was stop Bill Clinton at all costs because He Is A Threat To Our Power. And it culminated in a politically created and motivated impeachment. I'm not saying what the Left is doing is correct in criticizing Bush, but Republicans have nobody to blame but themselves for any political backlash the president is receiving, has received, or will receive at the hands of liberals. What goes around comes around, and paybacks are hell.

And it continues today, 2 years after after Clinton left office - he's criticized for taking speaking engagements, hosting a talk show with Bob Dole, and daring to show his face in public. And let's not even talk about the hysteria that happens whenever Hillary Clinton's name is mentioned. She has the audacity to write a memoir, and is attacked - not because she wrote a book, but because she dared bring her head above water back into the general public view.

Coalitions? What about 'em?

AlphaPatriot reports on this AP article regarding Senator/Presidential Candidate John Kerry:

Kerry says Bush misled Americans on war

Alpha comments:

"Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry says that President Bush broke his promise to build an international coalition before attacking Iraq. Evidently, a coalition of at least 37 countries is not a coalition without the French.

Today [06/19/03], the NY Times reports that troops from a dozen nations of the non-existent coalition will replace between 20,000 and 30,000 G.I.'s in Iraq.

Now, I don't really have a problem with Alpha's analysis - if that's actually what Kerry said. And he may have indeed actually said something like that, it's just the original AP article doesn't provide any real support to that supposition:

The first paragraph states:

"Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry said Wednesday that President Bush broke his promise to build an international coalition against Iraq's Saddam Hussein and then waged a war based on questionable intelligence."

It then goes on to quote Kerry on several WMD-related grievances which support the second half of the paragraph.

On down in the article, the statement is made:

"But the Massachusetts senator has criticized the president's diplomatic efforts. He that concern Wednesday saying Bush had alienated U.S. allies in the runup to war."

Well, yeah, whatever. Aside from being grammatically suspect, it still doesn't actually give a Kerry quote regarding a lack of coalition consensus.

The article concludes with more of the same old quotes about WMD's.

Why exactly did the author not give any supporting direct quotes from Sen. Kerry to support the assertion he makes in the very first paragraph?

As a matter of fact, take out the first paragraph and it's focused almost entirely on Bush lying/receiving bad intelligence - same stuff we've been hearing for weeks.

As a reader, I'm left wondering what exactly were Kerry's words decrying Bush's coalition-building (or lack thereof)? Can we not judge them on their own merit, or is the author just saying, "Trust me - he said them (or something like that). Just let me sortof paraphrase to support my initial contention - you don't want to read all those messy quotes, anyway. I'll summarize and you can assume that's the official version.

But now, anyone who reads the article and uses it to support an anti-Kerry argument is quite possibly basing a course of action on false pretenses---

Wait - does that sound familiar?

Move Along, Nothing to See Here

I feel so used. And 25,000 shares of stock richer?

Geek News Central

Rocky Top Welcome

Hidey Ho to new Rocky Top Brigade Recruits: Sick of Bush and Democratic Veteran.

Boy, doesn't this proliferation of hard right-wing idealogues just make you sick? :)

Ok, just kidding...

Bredesen Trips on Chance to be Statesman

So far I, as have a number of other Tennessee bloggers, have been impressed with Phil Bredesen's performance as Governor of Tennessee. However, I think he may have slipped up on this one:

Bredesen walked path of least resistance on 'Choose Life' tags (Tom Humphrey, Knoxville News Sentinel, 06/22/03)

"In his comments on the bill, Bredesen basically agreed with the American Civil Liberties Union that the plate effectively gives government support to one side in an intense political debate."

Bredesen had the opportunity to make it clear he was vetoing legislation that did just that - implied government support to a partisan political issue. It wouldn't have mattered what the issue was, as long as it was partisan.

True, he would have angered pro-lifers, but as Humphrey correctly points out:

"[H]is refusal to veto also mildly annoyed some pro-choice people, who were perhaps placated a bit by critical comments Bredesen directed toward the bill.

Folks who base their vote solely on the abortion issue are unlikely to change their stance when Bredesen runs for re-election.

There is a segment of the electorate that does decide how to vote based on abortion - on both sides. But, for a majority of voters, that's only a part of the mix that goes into a decision. Bredesen's nonveto keeps the matter more in the background, which is surely his political preference."

What this says is the people who base their votes solely on one political issue, in this case abortion, are few and far between. Most people either vote party lines, which would or would not vote for Bredesen anyway, or consider a broad range of issues - license plate issues being fairly low on the totem pole.

No I think it's doubtful a veto of the legislation with the special emphasis on keeping the government out of political issues would've hurt Bredesen politically. If there's anything these past 10 years or more have shown us, America needs statesmen. People who are willing to ignore the political winds and speak from their hearts. They're not driven by polls, or parties, or "fatcats", or lobbyists. They're willing to recognize the chaff for what it is, and put it behind them. They're able to lead by example and inspire others to follow them.

Bredesen had the chance to take on a politically charged issue riding on an insignificant matter (specialty license plates), look it square in the eye, and make a decision based on the core of the matter. But he didn't - he decided not to decide.

No wait - he did make one important decision. He decided it wasn't politically expedient to be a statesman.

Man of the Year

Time Magazine has already selected its "Man of the Year", and in this exclusive Last Home scoop, one of my gully dwarves has obtained a pre-release copy of the cover. Remember - you saw it here first!.



Actually, this is my entry in the Photoshop James Lileks contest. James Lileks, if you didn't already know, writes The Bleat - a blog of his life, in living literary color. He's the best in the biz, and the first thing I read every morning.

You can see what other people have done to deface his, er, face, at Michele's and also here.

Flag Day

Rookie Rocky Top Brigade member Celtic Grove offers up some choice history on the Tennessee State Flag.

You can also leave your opinion regarding our state flag in the Rocky Top Brigade Lounge.

Celtic Grove is an interesting site - it's dedicated to recognizing the deep Celtic history that Tennessee has by presenting streaming Celtic music, presenting news about artists plus reviews, gadgets, comics, pictures and other information about our Scotch-Irish heritage.

My ancestry is Scotch-Irish, as you can tell by my longer Index-toe (anyone heard of that?).

Anyway, take a gander at Celtic Grove, there's a lot of good stuff in there.

And remember..."If it ain't Celtic, it's c-r-r-r-r-r-ap!"

License to Plate

Here's some background on Tennessee's Specialty License Plate program:

• Knoxville News Sentinel:
  (06/19/03) Naifeh backs eliminating specialty tags
  (06/18/03) Governor will let 'Choose Life' license plate bill become law
  
  
• The Tennesseean
  (06/18/03) 'Choose Life' tags possible this year
  
  
• Memphis Commercial Appeal
  (06/19/03) Tenn. bill opts to kill specialty plates after 'Choose Life' ruckus
  (06/18/03) 'Choose Life' plate passes
  
  
• Tennessee Department of Safety
  Specialty License Plates
  Categories
  
  • Clubs / Groups : Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Ducks Unlimited, Int'l Association of Firefighters, Kappa Alpha Psi, MADD, Masons, Nat'l Fraternal Order of Police, Omega Psi Phi, Phi Beta Sigma, TN Police Benevolent Assoc. Note: Only members of the specified groups may obtain these tags
    
  • Collegiate: Alabama, APSU, Arkansas, Auburn, Belmont, Bryan College, Carson Newman, Clemson University, Cumberland, ETSU, Florida State University, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kentucky, King College, Lee College, LeMoyne-Owen, Memphis, Mississippi, Mississippi St, MTSU, Penn St., Purdue University, TN Tech, Tennessee Wesleyan, Trevecca Nazarene, TSU, Tusculum College, Union, University of Florida, University of
    the South, UT Chattanooga, UT - Generic, UT Knoxville, UT Martin, UT Memphis, Vanderbilt, Virginia Available to any Tennessee resident
    
  • Disabled Plates: Disabled Person, Hearing Impaired Tennessee residents with respective disabilities only
    
  • General Issue Standard plate with customized identification. For what it's worth, for years mine said WARP 9
    
  • Emergency Management: Amateur Radio, Emergency, Firefighter, Rescue Squad Note: Must be certified emergency personnel or possess FCC license
    
  • Miscellaneous: Agriculture (Department of Agriculture), Animal Friendly (Humane Society), Antique (Antique cars), Automobile/Motor Home, Children First (Department of Childrens Services), Consular (credentials required), Environmental (Tennessee State Parks), Fish and Wildlife Species - Bear (wildlife resources fund), Fish and Wildlife Species – Turkey (wildlife resources fund), Friends of the Smokies, Helping Schools (county’s general school fund), Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center, Personalized, Radnor Lake (state lands acquisition fund, to be used exclusively to implement and carry out the purposes set forth in T.C.A., 67-4-409 (j).), Sportsman (Sportsmen’s Wildlife Foundation), St. Jude (children’s hospitals in Tennessee), TN Arts Commission - Cat, TN Arts Commission - Fish, TN Arts Commission - Rainbow, TN Walking Horse, U.S. Olympic (Tennessee Arts Commission and the United States Olympic Committee), UT Football Championship (UT Academic Scholarships), Lady Vols Championship (UT Academic Scholarships), Watchable Wildlife (Watchable Wildlife Endowment Fund)
    
  
  

It's this kind of hard-hitting, late-breaking and up-to-the-minute coverage you've come to expect from our crack staff of gully dwarf reporters here at the Inn of the Last Home.

UPDATE: There's more on the license plate controversy above in my June 22 post.

The NYTimes is Fishing

A Blogger's Big-Fish Fantasy

The article is interesting, itself, but one passage caught my eye:

""I don't sit in front of my computer all day thinking about what I'm going to do to get more readers," said Elizabeth Thielke, a mother of three in Nashville, who writes The Busy Mom Blog (www.sugar-plum.net/elizabeth). "But at the same time, people who say they don't care whether anyone reads it are probably lying."

Congratulations, recent Rocky Top Brigade recruit Busy Mom for the national press!

Busy Grandmother's in the hospital, by the way, so pay Mom a visit and wish her and her mom well!

Volunteer Tailgate Party - Vol. V: The Rocky Top Underground

Welcome ot the 5th Edition of the Volunteer Tailgate Party, representing the best and brightest of the now legendary Rocky Top Brigade. The Rocky Top Brigade is a collection of bloggers with ties to the great state of Tennessee. Representatives from Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis, Johnson City and all over Tennessee as well as points around the United States and even overseas come together to present their opinions on truth, justice, and the search for a good single malt Scotch whiskey for around $20.

This week we're going to do things a little differently. In the spirit of what seemed to be the main topic of discussion lately around the RTB, I wanted to take you on a nice tour. Just a nice, safe little tour where absolutely nothing could possibly go wrong. Relax...don't worry. All the guns are loaded with blanks, and my gully dwarf agents have been instructed not to harm any of you in any way (except maybe a toe stepped on here and there). Comfy? Got your walking shoes on? Well, here we go.

---

The Rocky Top Underground

Step lively, everyone. We're starting our tour of the Rocky Top Brigade at the home of Sugarfused. Deb serves us some tea as her guest, fellow RTB member Pathetic Earthling, waxes poetic about his covering of the recall effort of the governor of California:

"As one of two California members of the RTB, I've been blogging the Governor Davis recall stuff pretty regularly. I'm an unapologetic Republican -- and I've got no love for the Governor - but I think this stuff spells disaster for the GOP here in California. I don't think the Republican contingent candidate Darrell Issa would be any better at all and, besides, the SOB is a car alarm magnate who sleeps on a bed paid for by my sleeplessness."

SayUncle, who has been wrestling someone for the remote control to switch off "Great Performances" on the TV, rails against the evils of Public Television and Government-controlled media: "All things considered - except the precedent". He sports a nice conservative suit and tie, and a button on his lapel reads "My New Domain - now 30% Bloggier!"

Sugarfused sits at her PC and muses about her online life and the online lives of others in On being connected....

Suddenly, the power zaps her computer, except for an ominous low hum. The lights dim and flicker, and there is the sound of choppers outside with large searchlights moving across the windows.

"They've found us - Quick, this way!" Deb says, ushering myself and the group through a door and downstairs to a dark cellar. As the door closes and locks behind you, you hear scattered gunfire and a scream.

Huddled in the darkness, a naked light bulb is the only illumination. JaNell muses sadly about the art she had just finished the night before, and how she could relate to the ants in the story: Sacrificial Ant Art.

The gunfire soon faded and, our eyes adjusting to the dim illumination, we could make out a small door in the side of the cellar. I lead everyone through it into a tunnel, where we hear some chanting. Hiding behind an outcropping, we see a group of people in a circle around a small lantern. They're speaking...one of them wearing a torn and tattered baseball hat with the letters "MTSU" on it is relating a tale about his son, "Conversations with Max" (scroll down).

Enboldened, I step out of the shadows and relate my own story of a conversation I had with my one daughter, in what seems like the far-away past..."A Round Dog Day". Some people in the circle tell us of the rumors that an evil Anti-Christian corrupt government has taken over...others says it's a dangerous Fundamentalist State, and it's every man and woman for themselves. They do say the tunnel leads to an old bookstore, and we can find shelter there. Not knowing what rumors might be true, we discuss the situation amongst ourselves...

Some of the folks in my group are sobbing, and we press on as best we can.

Another door leads into a dark, forbidding bookstore - long abandoned, it seems to have been called the Damn Diary. Floating behind the counter is a ghostly apparition, who speaks as we huddle in fright: "The Shaming of Skeletor". The spectre warns us, "Beware the ones who would take away that with which you would defend yourself - look what happened to me...". He motions toward an tome on table, written by a person named Les Jones. A young girl in the group picks it up and reads from it a haunting tale: Gun-Fearing Wussies in California.

Our respite is interrupted as the outer door is flung open and armed troops dressed in black and toting AK-47 Assault Rifles (now banned in all 50 states) capture us and herd us outside. One of their leaders, a forbidding person in a dark helmet, binds the hands of the young girl who read the book and tosses her, crying, into the back of a large truck. She screams for help, but is driven away into the night.

The rest of us are led into a bus and transported across barren, deserted streets. The only other occupant of the bus, a lone gentleman with long scraggly hair and the remains of a T-Shirt with the word "Bubba" on it, claims he is from the future and tells us about how things will be in 2007 in "Blog from the Future".

Our bus arrives at its destination, and we are led out together. Ahead of us stands the forbidding headquarters of the evil Anti-Christian fundamentalist pagan Algore corrupters, and their Regional Kommander steps out to confront us. Suddenly, a mob of godless right-wing environmentalist capitalists step out of the shadows and begin hurling accusations, slander, and dogma. Soldiers move in, brandishing weapons and hurling accusatory comments about Weapons of Mass Destruction, Income Tax, Tom Daschle, and Hillary Clinton. The angry mob is joined by an unruly bunch of domestic terrorist academics from Big Left-Wing Media Elite conglomerates, who cry for the older folks who can't get prescription drugs and call out slogans supporting Orrin Hatch and Jessica Lynch (scroll down). The tornado-chasing environmentalists complain about Bill Clinton speaking engagements, the soldiers scream about mobile weapons labs containing monkeypox created by Bill O'Reilly, the Leftist Right-wingers call the Rightist Left-Wingers "Idiots!!!"...The god-fearing communist Rumsfeldesque rebels call the atheist tax-and-spend warmongers, "Asshats!!!" The pacifistic electoral-college-reforming Ashcroftian revisionist historians tell the tree-hugging tax-cutting gun control advocates, "NO BLOOD FOR H-Y-Y-Y-Y-DROGEN!!!"

I immediately jump up on the hood of a dented Humvee, "STOP THE MADNESS!!" I cry. They all calm down and give me their attention. I shake my head sadly and ask if they can afford The Price of Admission by actually thinking through their differences, and keeping an open mind...

The crowd seems to ponder this, when it's revealed....it was only a simulation! It's an educational tool! And, hey, nobody got hurt, so what's the problem?

I trudge off alone, emotionally spent as the others all clap each other on the back and head off to Barley's Tap House for a Blogger Bash. "Was it worth it?" I wonder. "Will they ever work together???" "Can people of different philosophies and idealogies ever find common ground??"

The world may never know.

Carnival of the Vanities

Welcome, readers of Carnival of the Vanities, hosted this week by Shanti of "Real Women Online"! If you're reading this, you might want to come back and visit tomorrow (Thursday) when Inn of the Last Home brings you the Volunteer Tailgate Party, an amalgamation of the wit and wisdom from the members of the Rocky Top Brigade.

Meanwhile, thanks for visiting and enjoy the Inn!

Somehow I Always Suspected...

How Will You Die?

I will be struck down by a meteor!



How will you die? Take the Exotic Cause of Death Test

Hat Tip to Danielle from Missives Anonymous

More Evidence

QU'EST-CE QUE C'EST... LIBERAL AND CONSERVATIVE? (from Roger Simon's blog)

"But it’s worse than that. These terms are actually destructive because they blind us. They are like mesh screens we put in front of our eyes before we confront a situation directly. I am a liberal; therefore I look at it this way. I am a conservative, therefore this… It’s hard enough to understand the world with clear eyes. But no, we persist in lining ourselves up this way with so many preconceptions not even John Milton could save our blindness. (It’s the Mets versus the Phillies with no hot dogs and no beer.)

Well, see - this is what I've been trying to say (except 100x more eloquently than I. Sometimes I wish I could write...).

But She Looks So Young...

It's Sugarfused's 1-Year Blogiversary!!!

Stop by and pin a tail on her, or something...;)

Choosing Sides

Michael Totten has an excellent post about his first-hand experience with a pro-Palestinian rally a day after the "Passover Massacre" last March.

He was waffling back and forth between understanding which side to sympathise with in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, and his essay explains the route he took toward coming to an understanding. He also talks a bit on how factions on both the right and left have embraced Anti-Semitism. Good read.

I Did, But She Wouldn't Let Go Of My Arm, So I Cried and Finally Mommy Saved Me

SayUncle has moved!

His new address is http://www.saysuncle.com. He's added an "s" to his name, and passed the savings on to you.

Stop by and smell the minty freshness!

The Ping-Pong Matches Continue

Bill Hobbs: "Bill Clinton was paid $400,000 to give a speech in Japan. A money-grubbing ex-president cashing in, and all that. More power to him, if he can find suckers willing to pay that much to hear the Blowhard in Chief. So, what did Clinton say that was worth $400,000?"

Barry Bozeman responds: "Of course Bill never knew about Reagans big Japanese payday following his term. In Hobbs America it seems only Republicans are allowed paydays although this one for Clinton involved no US Taxpayer dollars."

Bill Hobbs responds to the response: "Of course I knew about that. It's why I joked about Clinton being a "money-grubbing ex-president cashing in," which was the basic charge the liberal media leveled at Reagan - but aren't going to level at Clinton even though - let's face it - $400,000 for a speech is a rather hefty paycheck. Especially for a speech that, from the description of it, sounds like little more than a pitch from an Amway recruiter."

I sigh: Organizations pay for who you are, not what you're going to say. The more famous, the higher the payday. Talk about the bleeding obvious. And the ping pong matches continue...

The Stick Continues to Shake

Welcome to new Rocky Top Brigadiers: A Little More to the Right, Big Stupid Tommy, Mr. Lawson, and Wandering Hillbilly.

News with a Lude

Every once in a while when every station on the radio I listen to's at commercial, and there's no tapes I'm in the mood for, I'll wander over to our local NPR station. Sometimes All Things Considered is on, or one of their so-called "news" shows.

I know a lot of people consider them liberally-biased - I also know a lot of people hear what they want to hear. The times I've listened to them I've never been able to tell any kind of slant to their stories.

In fact, those ear-bleeding moments I've forced myself to listen to NPR, I've almost nodded off and veered off the road into cattle fields, telephone poles and various rivers.

There must be a special broadcast school for NPR journalists, who are taught that precise monotone style that they use to report the news. I know SNL has parodied them with some success lately, and it's true. I can't figure out for the life of me how people can listen to NPR for more than a few minutes without screaming and tearing the knob off the dial in their haste to change the channel.

Some stations bill themselves as "news with a 'tude". NPR is just "news on ludes".

Yawn. Wonder if Sports Talk is back from commercial yet? Nope, course not...

RockyTop created

Anyone who wishes to create a nation in NationStates, be sure to join the region RockyTop - specially created for the members and guests of the Rocky Top Brigade!

The Third Shoe Drops, Right on Schedule

Actor Hume Cronyn dead at 91

Ok, that's just creepy...

Creating a World

Here's an interesting little game:

NationStates

The Kingdom of LastHome "All's Fair in Love and Dragons" UN Category: Inoffensive Centrist Democracy Civil Rights: Good Economy: Good Political Freedoms: Excellent Location: the Pacific The Kingdom of LastHome is a tiny, pleasant nation, remarkable for its burgeoning dragon population. Its compassionate, hard-working, intelligent population of 5 million have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often. The large government is mainly concerned with Social Welfare, although Healthcare and Education are on the agenda. The average income tax rate is 25%. A healthy private sector is led by the Book Publishing, Retail, and Automobile Manufacturing industries. Crime is relatively low. LastHome's national animal is the dragon and its currency is the krynn.

Click here to see if you can run your own country - maybe if enough RTB'ers sign up, we can form our own region.

I've already had an issue come up: whether to use the surplus dragon population as food...all sides lobby the government heavily, and they have to make a decision............

An idea

I'm formulating an idea regarding a use for the Fountain City Library on Hotel Avenue once their new building is built on Essary Dr. If anyone knows anyone on the Knox County Library Board or County Commission and can find out what the plans are for this old building, please let me know.

Thanks.

New Digs

New Rocky Top Brigadier Up for Anything has moved to http://www.upforanything.net/.

Adjust thy blogrolls with all due haste!

Long Day

I spent most of the day in the car riding to Clarksville, TN and back from Knoxville - 9 hours or so round trip.

Today was my first official meeting as East Tennessee representative to the Tennessee Theatre Association, a group that advocates theatre in Tennessee and holds an annual conference featuring live Community and High School Theatre productions, acting auditions and competitions and numerous workshops.

If you happen to be involved in theatre in East Tennessee (or anywhere in Tennessee for that matter) let me know - this is a going to very interesting :)

Fear

There's a running discussion on SKB's comments about whether Jesus used fear in his teachings. Here are two relevant passages from the New Testament:

"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear him, which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28).

Now "fear" in this context also means to respect, but it's a fear and respect based on the consequences of our actions and inactions - the separation from God. Sound advice.

Also, similarly, from Luke:

"But I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear. Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, fear him." (Luke 12:4,5)

Here's something I found using a Google search:

The Fear of God

"There are those who tell us that fear ought to be banished from religion; we ought, it is said, no more to hold before men's eyes the fear of hell; fear, it is said, is an ignoble thing. Those who speak in this way certainly have no right to appeal to Jesus; for Jesus certainly did employ, and insistently, the motive of fear.

(...)

Even the Christian must fear God. But it is another kind of fear. It is a fear rather of what might have been than of what is; it is a fear of what would come were we not in Christ. Without such fear there can be no true love; for love of the Saviour is proportioned to one's horror of that from which man has been saved. And how strong are the lives that are suffused with such a love! They are lives brave, not because the realities of life have been ignored, but because they have first been faced — lives that are founded upon the solid foundation of God's grace. May such lives be ours!

Sorry to dive out into the religious waters - I don't normally do that, but this is something I felt strongly about. I hope you found it enlightening...

Cowardice or Overload?

Well, the debate rages on regarding the Forest Hill Baptist Church "cult-like event" fiasco. Read SKBubba's account for all the latest commentary.

Interestingly, the page on the Youth Specialties website detailing this "Underground Church" simulation has removed the description page(s) from their website.

Whether this is due to sudden increased interest in the pages by people in this area, or whether they're just afraid of all of us corrupt, Anti-Christian bloggers, I'm not certain.

And speaking of...even though I am a Christian, I am very much in favor of the rights and freedoms of all Americans to follow the religion of their choice, a freedom guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. Apparently, the information on this website that is now unaccessible details the oppression from an "corrupt, Anti-Christian government". Does this just mean that this hypothetical government is corrupt and also Anti-Christian, or does it suggest that all Anti-Christian governments are corrupt by definition? I'd be curious for a explanation of terms.

The Friday Five

Never tried one of these, but here goes:

1. What's one thing you've always wanted to do, but never have?
Well, the one thing I will always want to do but now probably never will is go into space. My life would be fulfilled if that were to happen. Here's hoping.

2. When someone asks your opinion about a new haircut/outfit/etc, are you always honest?
Probably not completely, but that most likely has to do with my ideas of style and what looks good on people. They may be expecting to hear praise, but since some fashions and hairstyles don't mean much to me one way or another my true opinion would probably be taken as negative toward themselves, and not simply the clothes or style.

3. Have you ever found out something about a friend and then wished you hadn't? What happened?
I found out that a problem a friend was having, and had been having for a long time was far, far worse than we ever realized. Sorry, no details.

4. If you could live in any fictional world (from a book/movie/game/etc.) which would it be and why?
I've been a sci-fi/fantasy buff all my life, and there've been many worlds/milieus I've found interesting. I guess nearest and dearest would the Star Trek/Federation worlds. Humanity has survived the 20th/21st century, moved beyond racism and capitalism, etc - but still finding there's much to be learned. It sounds hokey, I suppose, but there you go.

5. What's one talent/skill you don't have but always wanted?
Interestingly, being an actor and singer I've always found it difficult to speak extraneously about something. Giving presentations, making announcements in church, etc has always been difficult for me. I tend to get brain-lock when I lose my train of thought and stand there drooling slightly while I mentally try and find my place. I've always wanted to have the ability to be a powerful speaker - if I had a script in my hand, I'd nail it, but not just notes, and certainly not off the top of my head.

Kids in the News

Boy Finds KKK Tattoo In Gum Wrapper

"A Michigan mother is angered after her 7-year-old son showed her a temporary tattoo of a Ku Klux Klan member that came packaged inside the wrapper of the bubble gum he purchased.... The tattoo apparently shows a hooded figure in a white robe with flames going up around him...'There is a white hood, white robe, flames going up around him ... I mean, you can pretty much tell it's the Klan," [his mother] said....Several other packs of the gum also contain tattoos that are inappropriate for children, including sexually explicit pictures and images depicting violence against animals."

(...)

"[His Mother] said she explained to her son what the tattoo represents and he agreed he did not want to wear it."

Good for you, son. Looks like someone's teaching their kids these days...


Uncle Sam wants Joey Crossman

"First the Marines came calling. Now the Navy wants Joey Crossman. But is Joey ready? After all, he’s only 7. The name of the elementary school student mistakenly landed on military recruitment lists, most likely through a magazine subscription, and the military has been wooing him ever since.

(...)

Joey toured the USS Yorktown during a family trip to South Carolina in April and wasn’t impressed with the hard, impersonal bunks. “The bathrooms they had weren’t working,” Joey said. “I just don’t want to live on a ship.”

My son's seven, also, and while I don't think he subscribes to Soldier of Fortune I should probably check and make sure. We do get National Geographic and if they want him to go on an expedition to the Serengeti, well, by golly I'm going too.

That's the news - goodnight, and have a pleasant tomorrow.

The Revolution Pool

Ok, everyone into the pool. Or poll, as it were.

Which country will collapse in on itself and toss out their leaders first?

Iran?

or North Korea?

or will it be somewhere in here?

Vote in the Comments.

Rocky Top Brigade Update

Update your blogrolls, everyone. We've got company!

Welcome to Up for Anything, Celtic Grove (which my company's firewall has so thoughfully blocked - thanks, guys), and Granny Rant, the latest members of the Rocky Top Brigade.

"One Knows what the Angels Eat"

Mark Twain said it best:

"[It is] chief of the world's luxuries, king by the grace of God over all the fruits of the earth. When one has tasted it, he knows what the angels eat."

Twain was talking, of course, about this.

As for me, I can't get enough of it - bought a half of one the other day, chopped it into slices and put the whole thing in a tupperware container. And just eat out of the bowl ;)

Hey. you can also go to the site above and win a t-shirt!

Over There

Manish at Damn Foreigner checks in with his own harrowing tale of the flight across the Pond.

The Price of Admission

I've finally decided to start charging a fee to view my site. Since a lot of bloggers have put out tip jars to support their habithobby, and some even seem to be fairly profitable at it, I've decided that I'm going to start requiring everyone to pay for the privilege of reading my words.

Determining my subscription fee was difficult - I had to take a number of factors into account. Admittedly I'm not among the most popular bloggers on the 'net, so that factor must be heavily considered. Still, my opinions, my experiences, my views and the time it takes to actually put my words on screen is very valuable.

Therefore, from now on the price I'm asking you to pay to continue reading Inn of the Last Home is -- keeping your minds open everywhere else.

That's it - not much. Certainly understandable when I and countless others reveal ourselves and our thoughts to the world. There are a lot of opinions floating around out there, a lot of perspectives. There's a lot of anger, righteous indignation, "facts" and "nofacts", opinions passing themselves off as news... The Rocky Top Brigade contains the whole spectrum of political and social thought, but sometimes it seems that we're farther apart than ever.

America is passing through a dark time - not just internationally, but here in the country. We're polarized along two distinct and separate planes. Colors, even - Red and Blue, according to the Election Maps on the news. In some people's eyes, nothing the other side believes has any value - it's immoral, it's stupid, it's just Wrong. The Reds are idiots, the Blues are morons.... Well, the time has come for it to stop, and it has to stop now.

How can it stop?

Thinking. Examining, being open with your opinions and ideas. Recognize that you may just not have all the facts. The other guy - your mortal enemy, one of THOSE people - they may just hold the key to explaining and solving it all. Can we afford to ignore that?

We've talked a lot about bigotry - political, racial, idealogical. We've talked about boycotts, and burning CD's, and hanging chads and lies and truths about Weapons of Mass Destruction. Racial profiling, denying tenure, raising taxes, lowering taxes, biased reporting, talk-radio pundits, talking heads.... Somewhere in there lies the answer to what we're looking for, but one side does not have the complete answer. We all do - each of us, in our own way.

The blogosphere has just begun to turn over the rocks on people's opinions - it's affecting the Big Media in ways we never imagined. But what will people see when they peek in - rational debate? Reasoned discourse?

Um, no, not yet. Just more yammering between the damn liberals and damn conservatives. And that isn't helping anyone.

So, please, read - participate, share. But keep your mind open and be ready to accept the possibility that you might be wrong. It's tough, I know. We're hard-wired to be proud of our opinions and the route we took to get there. It can hurt like hell to admit you might be wrong, and can cause you to lose face. But it's going to be necessary down the line, because we can't stay like this.

Red and the Blue? Add the White. That's the Price of Admission.

Peace.

UPDATE: I realize upon further review that, of course, there are many different shades of political idealogy within both liberalism and conservatism - plus libertarians, Greens, Whigs, and I believe the Tal Shi'ar, the Obsidian Order and Section 31. Anyway, the above maybe a bit oversimplified when it comes to identifying the sides, but I think the basic idea it still there.

Waiting for Captain Trips

First there was anthrax.

Then smallpox.

A brief flirtation with botulism.

Then, of course, SARS.

Look fast! Mad Cow Disease!

West Nile Virus rears its ugly head, again.

Now it's monkeypox.

Gettin' so a fella can't get cough without trying to remember if his will's in order...

What next? Superflu?

Rocky Top Brigade Update

The Rocky Top Brigade continues its quest to obtain U.S. protectorate status with the addition of two new members: Secret City Scene (great name!) and Newsrack Blog.

Secret City Scene covers the Oak Ridge, TN beat and Newsrack used to live in Oak Ridge and now reports from Washington D.C.

Welcome!

Cool - I'm in the paper

The Knoxville News Sentinel included part of my "Round Dog Day" post in today's (Sunday's) edition, in the Perspective Section "Knoxville Calling" - the bit about my daughter believing the road crew were drilling potholes. Neat :)

Danger, Will Robinson...Danger

Rich of Shots Across the Bow has a harrowing story about his encounter with a wild animal. One of which his son might have another opinion...

A Round Dog Day

Random excerpts from driving my 3-year-old daughter to day care

GiggleGirl^TM: Daddy?

Me: Yes.

Simba had a Round Dog Day.

A what?

A Round Dog Day.

What do you mean a "round dog day"?

You know...(sings) "Free to run a round dog day..."

Oh...you mean "Free to run around all day..." (From The Lion King CD: "Just Can't Wait to be King")

No...a Round Dog Day!!! (sigh) Daddy...

...

(Passing a road construction truck, drilling a hole in the ground at the corner of an intersection)

Look, honey - look at the cool big drill.

Wow. They're making potholes!

(I wouldn't be surprised, kiddo)

...

(Driving by a tank farm)

Daddy?

Yes.

What are those?

Those are the big tanks where they store gasoline. The trucks get gasoline from there and take it to the gas stations where we put it in our cars.

(driving up behind a tanker truck)

See, sweety - there's one of the tanker trucks I was talking about. There's gasoline in that big tank on its back.

No, daddy, it isn't gasoline.

It's not? What's in there?

Milk.

Milk?

Milk for the cows.

You mean milk from the cows?

No, for the cows. Milk for the cows to drink. They pour it in big round glasses and the cows drink it.

So cows drink milk? Is it the white cows that give white milk?

Yes.

What kind of cows give chocolate milk?

Brown cows. (duh...)

Ok, what kind of cows give strawberry milk?

(silence)

(think I got her on that one)

What do cows eat?

I dunno.

Do they eat...fruit?

No.

Do they eat....pizza?

No.

Do they eat...Pop Tarts?

Yes.

Do they eat...vegetables?

(frustrated) No, Daddy, they eat Pop Tarts!

Do they eat hay?

No.

What do horses eat?

Hay.

You know they also eat oats.

(silence)

Mares eat oats, too. And does eat oats. And little lambs eat ivy.
A kid'll eat ivy too...........wouldn't you???

(silence)

You're funny, Daddy.

Taste the Rainbow

Ridge: Color-Coded Alerts Have Drawbacks

"State and local government officials chafe at the cost of paying police and emergency personnel so much overtime, particularly in parts of the country where terrorist attacks don't seem likely."

If an overtime issue costs lives in a terrorist attack, I'll personally go down wherever it is and bust some heads. Overtime, geez. Not to mention that any place with a human population nearby is fair game. Except for the middle of the desert, nowhere in America are we truly "unlikely" in this context. Less likely? Yes. Not likely? No, unfortunately. And it's those less likely places that are more lightly guarded. While a dirty bomb in Seatlle gets more press, a dirty bomb in Billings, Montana or Dubuque, Iowa or Brownsville, Texas or Dyersburg, Tennessee would be just as devastating to the American psyche and morale.

"Others note that during the four orange alerts, no attacks have been attempted, leading them to question whether the intelligence used to guide them is reliable.

While it would be of comfort to me to be confident that no attacks were attempted during these orange alerts, I have to be skeptical. First of all, there may be things that Intelligence is not going to admit - a plane diverted here, a bomb-in-a-bag defused quietly there, these stories may be being contained and not released to the public. Secondly, and more importantly to say that since no attacks were attempted, the intelligence recommending the alert raising was unreliable does not take into account attacks that might have been thwarted simply by the increased security and vigilence. Who's to say a guy planning to walk into a mall the next day strapped with dynamite decides not to due to an increased security presence. While we complain about the anxiety level (and I do), the very presence of increased security and awareness may be an invisible deterrant that has saved lives.

(Hat Tip: SKBubba)

Volunteer Tailgate Party - Vol. IV

Rich at Shots Across the Bow has the 4th Volunteer Tailgate Party, a bi-weekly compilation of the best and brightest blatherings of the Rocky Top Brigade.

Rich has outdone himself, compiling a veritable cornucopia of thoughts and ideas from the best blogger consortium on Earth. All of the authors have a connection to Tennessee, and cover the entire political and social spectrum.

Start Reading!

Not Quite Serendipity

Here's a simple question for those of you still concerned the war in Iraq was unjustified because no WMD's have been found yet.

If a hypothetical researcher had been given a research grant to find a treatment for SARS, and in the course of the research instead found the cure for all kinds of cancer...would you be upset that all that money had been wasted on SARS research?

Just hypothetically speaking, of course.

And to forestall The Inevitable Question:

• What if they lied to us about using the money for SARS research in the first place? Which has the greater benefit to mankind in the long run, finding a cure for SARS which has killed less than 1000 people, or curing cancer which has killed millions? In addition, these medical advances will likely benefit medical research in the future that will help to treat or cure SARS, too. Understandably, the ends don't justify the means, but when the ends are so beneficial, be thankful.

Israel, Palestine, and Repatriation

I don't normally get into this controversy, but with all the concessions, counter-concessions and agreements floating around today, I'm reminded of a couple of long-standing questions I've always had about this conflict.

As far as I can remember the actual history of this subject was never taught in my schools, nor did I have any classes that touched on it in college. While I'm sure there are tons of research material available...hey, this is the 2000's and I want it in nice, neat digestible chunks, so here we go:

• After the end of World War II, it's obvious a lot of Jewish people had lost their homes and ways of life from Nazi rule. I'm assuming from memory that the Allies decided to resettle a lot of these people in what is now Israel. I'm also assuming there were a number of Palestinians living there at the time, and they were removed to allow the Jewish refugees to settle there. Under whose control was Israel at that time, and under what authority (moral or legal) did they use to remove one group of people to settle another?
  
  
• Why exactly is it imperative to the Jewish people that there be a "Jewish State"? I don't usually hear calls for a "Christian State" or "Muslim State". I understand the desire to live in their ancestral homes and control the Holy Land, but what is the basis for the need to maintain a state that is primarily and legally Jewish?
  

Well, I apologize for my profound ignorance of World History on this subject - it's one I'd like to rectify and if there are any good texts someone could recommend I'd appreciate it.

By the way, Donald Sensing has a good analysis of the day's proceedings, and how the Palestinian population problem threatens Israel's existance through sheer numbers.

Blogshares - Investing without Risk!

Invest in Inn of the Last Home!

Blogshares is an online stock-market game based on weblogs. Myself, Deb at Sugarfused, SouthKnoxBubba and several others are playing - take a minute to register your blog (if you haven't already) and "buy" shares in the Inn of the Last Home (or any other you want). The more people that buy shares, the higher the value grows and the more virtual money you can make. It's fun, and insider trading is legal :)

Power Bloggers, Unite?

Hugh Hewitt, a radio guy I've never heard but who is apparently known around the country has some opinions about blogger alliances - formal and informal. Rocky Top Brigadiers, send him an email and let him know about the discussions we have, and how we've hopefully raised the awareness and tolerance level at least a little bit.

The Parental Panic

Our Good and Dear Friend (you have to say that with an Ambassador Londo Mollari accent or it just doesn't work) James Lileks opines about how he feels when his family is not exactly where they said they would be at the exact moment they said they would be - mainly, home. As if you haven't read it already today, read it again.

BrainyBoy^TM is at camp all day, and I can't help wondering....is he ok? Is he enjoying himself? Is he lonely? bored? constipated? Can't wait to see him at home and find out how it went.

We saw Finding Nemo Saturday evening, and it was as delightful as everyone has said it was. I sat next to BrainyBoy^TM and hugged him in the scary parts and the happy parts. It's about a daddy fish who'll do anything to find his lost son, and the son who'll do anything to find his dad.

*sniff*

Oh, enough of that. Read the article and see the flick.

Pardon my French

If you're going to make fun of the French, don't mangle the language...


Day by Day, by Chris Muir (06/01/2003)

The plural of mon ami (my friend) is mes amis, not mon amis.

But it's still pretty funny, and a great strip.

In the Blood

My son started Theatre Camp this week - hmm... He's a ham. Sounds like someone else my wife could mention...