Non-Prophet

Jesus Is My Friend

The Mohawk turtle has been topped! Big time!

Punk Turtle Sports Mohawk

This has to be the greatest great ever. This Mary River Turtle is such a non-conformist that he breathes through his tail. Really.

DailyMail

Man Flies Across English Channel Using Jet-Pack

Okay, great. Jet-packs have finally arrived. When do we get a chance to get our hands on the commuter version?

bbcnews.com:

A Swiss man has become the first person to fly solo across the English Channel using a single jet-propelled wing.

Yves Rossy landed safely after the 22-mile (35.4 km) flight from Calais to Dover, which had been twice postponed this week because of bad weather.

The former military pilot took less than 10 minutes to complete the crossing and parachute to the ground.

The 49-year-old flew on a plane to more than 8,200ft (2,500m), ignited jets on a wing on his back, and jumped out.

Low Ranking Monkey

Here is the best take I've read regarding John McCain's performance last night. Hilarious.

From Taking Points Memo commenter TB:

I think people really are missing the point about McCain's failure to look at Obama. McCain was afraid of Obama. It was really clear--look at how much McCain blinked in the first half hour. I study monkey behavior--low ranking monkeys don't look at high ranking monkeys. In a physical, instinctive sense, Obama owned McCain tonight and I think the instant polling reflects that.

The Debate!

Obama owned. I'm watching the post on CNN and after a few years of not watching cable news (no service in our house, I'm streaming) I'm horrified. What a bunch of crap from these folks. McCain was old, depressing and nervous. A big blinker and lip licker. He seemed to me to be obviously the wrong choice. Obama owned. Anything else is media bullshit.

Sarah Palin: Safe from Witchcraft

Photons: Caught in the Act

SwissMiss sent me a link to this cool article on an experiment that has been studying the loss of coherence in quantum photons. Reality, when looked at with a really good magnifying glass, is weirder than man could imagine.

Science News

Physicists have made the first “movie” of a microwave pulse transitioning from the quantum-physics world to the classical-physics world.

Reporting in the Sept. 25 Nature, the researchers say that their method may help in understanding at what point in nature quantum physics ends and classical physics begins. It could also shed light on how to keep information inside future computers that would take advantage of quantum physics.

Quantum objects — generally, anything that’s small enough to be ruled by quantum physics — can exist in multiple forms at the same time. An atom, for example, can be in two places at the same time, as can the crests and troughs of electromagnetic waves, such as in a microwave pulse.

Letterman on McCain

Letter to a Fundie Palin Fan

An evangelical Christian friend of mine, who attends New Life Church in Colorado Springs, wrote me an email today regarding why he is planning on voting for John McCain. We had a bit of a spat earlier today when I tried to discuss what my frustrations with the process were to him. He seemed to just repeat the talking points. I got upset, snapped back, apologized, tried to reason, and found myself trying to explain something to someone that has such a different view of American politics than I do that it was like I was speaking a different language. I don't think that my perspective is holy by any means, but I'm amazed by how differently two people can view the same rock. He said, "Well, she has more executive experience than Barak Obama!" and I screamed.

Here's his email:

FYI in case you think I have bought into EVERYTHING the conservative right has said about the candidates, here is what I like and don't like about both of them. I'm sure you have many other things you dislike about McCain in addition to my list. pg

Things I like about Obama being president
- He is able to give inspiring speeches and may be able to rally the country to good causes
- he is black and I think that would generally be great for the country
- he would probably smooth out foreign relations and other countries would view his presidency
as more of a change from the past than McCain.
- willingness to tax the rich more, although I don't ultimately know whose economic plan would
result in greater prosperity for the country.

Don't like about Obama
- he has a record in the Illinois senate of voting present 90 times and seems to not be
willing to take a stand on tough issues. He seems to want to pacify everyone.
- He has voted for many tax increases in the House and never voted for a tax break.
- He has no executive experience.
- He has never authored a bill.
- All of these combined shows me that he is largely untested, inexperienced and may not be qualified
or ready to be president.
- He seems like he would be soft on terror
- he is pro-choice
- he wants a timetable for Iraq troop withdrawal
- he is against more offshore drilling
- I liked his answers less and resonated less with him in the Saddleback interview. He gave
less definitive answers and seemed to want to be all things to all people.

Like about McCain
- record in the Senate of not requesting earmarks for his state
- record of going against his party when he believes the right thing for the American people is different
- commitment to veto bills with pork
- commitment to pro-life
- incredible character he showed in 'Nam prison to not take early release
- humility and brokenness he learned in prison
- willingness to admit fault, as in his first failed marriage
- he has not wanted a timetable for Iraq troop withdrawal
- he is for more offshore drilling
- love for his country and true willingness to serve the peoples best interest
- I liked his answers better and resonated more with him in the Saddleback interview

Don't like about McCain
- history of insubordination during his time at the Naval Academy
- finished 2nd to last in his class at the academy
- runs political adds that either stretch the truth or are deceptive
- history of being a hot head
- is not able to give as inspiring of speeches as I would like, thus he may be less able to rally
the country to a cause.
- opposes windfall taxes on oil companies
- morally questionable history with women
- is very old for assuming the presidency and would be the oldest to ever do it.

My response which is more regarding our earlier discussion than his email:

Although I'm sure we have a lot of differences, I appreciate your showing me your reasons for choosing McCain. Let me explain where some of my frustration with the whole process originates.

I don't actually think that Obama is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Far from it. I actually think that the Republicans and the Democrats are easily 95% the same candidate, and that the real differences are largely paraded in terms of fringe issues for most folks, like gay rights, abortion, immigration etc. Even in these areas the actual change that would be affected on the normal persons life is fairly minimal over the course of four years. Both parties have nearly the same financial backers, both run shop in practicaly the same way. There is something of a power stuggle between the sides, but it isn't so much over ideology as it is over power.

More and more the media has removed itself from covering actual news that is important to actual people. There are serious problems in the world (such as civil war in Darfur) that few people even know about. The broadcast media has become another source of entertainment. It's like listening to Rush or Al Franken. There are some facts and some smart guys saying things in the mix, but it isn't actual journalism, its entertainment.

I've been horrified during this Presidential campaign as to the level in which it has gotten out of hand. Neither candidate is actually accountable for anything on their record, nor are they accountable for what they've said or done in the past. The news is all about sound-bites in an attempt to garner ratings. "Liptick on a pig!!" "Hockey Mom!!!" "Sexism!" "Rock Star!" It's all a total bunch of fucking bullshit. We're in a big reality television show called American Presidential Idol and there is no straight talk. It's a contest of personas. Nothing more.

So I think we've basically lost America to crappy corporate media at this point. It's a sad day. Neither candidate is going to remove the corporate lobby from Washington. We don't have a congress that works for the public. There are no viable alternatives to the system as we have it today.

My outrage over McCain really revolves around how he's taken the low road to the White House in this campaign. As far as pandering to the inept media goes, he's way worse than Obama. McCain has flipped on nearly every stance he held (environmentalism, Reganomics, etc...) and we now have two Democrats running for President, other than he's done another horrible thing which is fanning the flames of the culture war. It seems as though he's decided he'll do anything to win. Lie! Pick unqualified "hot chick" to run with him. (Don't try to convince me that she's a good VP pick, I won't go for it. This was his move that showed that when he says Country First he means McCain first.)

On top of it all McCain is running a campaign in which there is basically zero media access to the candidates. This is insane. He's relegated all of the fow of information to pre-written press releases in an attempt to preserve the scripted and false nature of the discussion in this campaign. It's crazy. How can you fly with a plane and a half full of press and not ever talk to them? This is unprecedented. Obama may be far from the perfect candidate, but McCain is intentionally lowering the bar on this Presidental run and I really fear that any real Democracy in America is now a farce. The game is "polarize" "deceit" "create faux-issues" "propagandize"...

In the face of any real statement on issue, McCain has recently and repeatedly shown himself to not really be "all there." The choice of Palin -- in my mind -- roots him squarely in the Machiovellian game of win by deception. Is she qualified? Can you even compare her to Obama or anyone else who was on the short list? Hell no. And the more that we learn about her the more it becomes clear that she's like a more impulsive and more dangerous George Bush. She's left a trail of questionable decisions in her wake.

So Peep's, to me it's all propaganda at this point. McCain isn't runnig as McCain, he's totally reversed everything he's stood for over the last 15 years, he's gone to bed with the fundies who were until Palin his arch enemies, he's thrown away his decades of supporting reganomics and put on a new face. Obama to me is not that different from the standpoint of a platform than McCain ("Drill now" is plenty dumb and deceptive, but we're not getting off of oil in 10 years either) , but Obama doesn't seem to me to be playing the scum-bag card nearly as much. He left Palin alone, although that whole move is an insult to any intelligent woman in this country, and he just doesn't seem to be on the same level.

McCain to me, represents everything I truly hate about what American politics has become. The campaign is no longer about issues, you can't even interview the candidates. It's all scripted bullshit, and if McCain wins nobody will ever run a fair campaign ever again. The Rovian maneuvers of the Bush campaigns set the tone for what has truly removed logic and rationality from the debate as to who should lead. THEY'RE A BUNCH OF ACTORS READING LINES THEY DIDN'T WRITE.

Which one do you like better? It's like we live in some science fiction film.

Anyway, that's the rant. Thanks for listening.

Who is the Elitist Again?

Via Daily Kos: