There's a facetious suggestion going around the blogosphere (I've seen it in several places, so I don't really know who deserves the credit (?)) that foods such as French fries and French toast be renamed "victory fries" and "victory toast". While I'm not exactly flying the tricolor and singing La Marseillaise at the drop of a hat, for me "victory" this or that has too many associations with Eric Blair's happy-go-lucky tale of life on Airstrip One. Sorry.

I could get behind "surrender-monkey fries", maybe.

I do think another suggestion, that it's time for our war dead to come home from France, bears some serious consideration. Especially after seeing a French lout on CNN today, blathering about how the U.S. only liberated France due to its own interests.


Current reading: Java API for XML parsing
Current listening: Johann Sebastian Bach, Sheep May Safely Graze, Virgil Fox, organist

To quote the sentiment expressed on a card brought home from grade school by my sister many years ago, and proudly presented to my mother: I hope everyone had a "Happy VD".

Peeve of the day: Idiots who think that the Greek capital letter sigma is the same as the Roman letter E. Lately I've been seeing this asshattery on the DVD ads for some piece of Hollywood shite called "My Big Fat Gr(sigma)(sigma)k Wedding". Grssk? Did these fucktards actually get PAID for this public display of illiteracy ? Is this some sort of variant on the old-time carnival geek that I just don't understand?

Be sure to get your Total Information Awareness merchandise now! I haven't been listening to Art Bell much lately, but something tells me this logo has been a heavy topic of conversation among the mutants who call his show. Or wait... maybe that's just what they WANT you to think. Maybe this is just a clumsy attempt to deflect suspicion from the REAL Orwellian government organization: the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. You think that so-called "Food Pyramid" is really about nutrition? Then why is "oil" right up at the top, huh?

I'm going to take my Haldol now.

(Via Gary Farber)

Current reading: Glory Road, Robert A. Heinlein

Curent listening: Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols

Religious and trade schools will soon be eligible to use the .edu Top Level Domain.

Even though the Educause website makes it clear that this will be limited to schools accredited by organizations recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, that hasn't stopped elitist fucks (such as the former administrator from Prickton...er...Princeton, quoted in the CNN article ) from bloviating about this supposed tragedy.

Education is education. Perhaps Mr. Prickton can lobby for a .overpricedpseudoeducation TLD so he won't have to worry about his school being confused with schools that teach people useful things at a reasonable price.


Current reading: The Nibelungenlied, D. G. Mowatt translation
Current listening: The Best of Aretha Franklin

To all the fools who think they're being "clever" when they make "original" comments like 'Why aren't we attacking North Korea instead of poor, pitiful Saddam, blah-de-motherfucking-blah, yakkety-motherfucking-schmakety":

You know damned well that when (not if) we do something about the Butcher of Pyongyang you'll be whining about it at 120 decibels, just as you are now about Iraq.

You don't even believe your own bullshit. Don't expect the rest of us to believe it.

Just a quick observation for the "it's about the OOOIIILLL" freaks in the viewing audience: So?

It isn't, but so what if it is? Oil is vital. If the oil supply got cut off tomorrow, YOU WOULD FUCKING DIE. Everybody you know WOULD FUCKING DIE. Spouting pious moronities about SUVs or buying your morning latte from the shop that uses cups made from recycled sanitary napkin fibers won't change that nasty little fact in the slightest.

You're invited to prove me wrong by turning off the heat in your house and ceasing to eat any food that was transported on an oil-burning vehicle.

You may argue that our current dependence on an ininterrupted supply of imported oil is foolish. I agree. So when are you going to stop opposing the development of domestic oil fields and WORKABLE alternative energy sources (read: nuclear power)?

Update on the Sun issue: It looks like the protesters were denied a permit to march, but not necessarily one to assemble. Doesn't change the fact that the New York Sun is run by fascist assclowns.