Liberal Media and Civil Rights

I was watching the Lehrer News Hour the other night. A conservative hetero perverter was censuring PBS and the liberal media. Apparently, Bill Moyer and a homophile rabbit essentially represent PBS. This bereft analysis left me wondering what the liberal media is. Usually, I read the sports and business sections of the Star Tribune, but now I have started to look at the opinion page and record the topics. Next week I will begin reporting on my vigilance for liberal media.

I read my first Katherine Kersten column the other day. I was surprised Cleaver Peasantry did not comment on the article.

Hair-braiding restrictions needed untangling

* Area woman wants to open hair-braiding salon
* She is trammeled by a requirement to obtain a state-issued cosmetology license
* The license requires 10 months of training and costs up to $14,500
* The Institute for Justice helped change the law
* Individual liberties are restored

Then the article gets interesting...

quote

What's next for the Minnesota chapter of the Institute for Justice? McGrath said it emphasizes economic liberty, school choice, private property rights and free speech.

Of these, economic liberty and school choice may be the most important for Americans striving to enter the middle class. That's because, to do so, it's essential to have both a good job and a good education.

Yet today, millions of poor children are trapped in failing public schools. So long as publicly financed education remains a government monopoly, that's where they'll stay.

Nationally, the Institute for Justice is known for its defense of Milwaukee's ground-breaking school choice program, which lets low-income students choose a private or parochial school if that's where they can get the best education.

For now, Anderson and McGrath not only have opened the door of opportunity for African hair-braiders, they've also revealed the true meaning of "civil rights."

Too often, we believe we can adequately address the plight of the less fortunate by doling out ever larger sums for government benefit programs, government schools and a host of other "we'll take care of you" efforts.

But Anderson and McGrath know that real civil rights are a product of economic and educational freedom -- the freedoms that unleash the creative power of the human spirit.

unquote

* Economic Liberty
* School Choice
* Private Property Rights
* Free Speech

Who knew problem solving could be so easy.

A Defeat for Private Property Rights

Justices, 5-4, Back Seizure of Property for Development
The Supreme Court today ruled that local governments may seize people's homes and businesses - even against their will - for private economic development.

Case Background
Susette Kelo, et al. v. City of New London, Connecticut, et al.
No. 04-108

Opinion, with links to concurrence and dissents.

Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
... nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

National Security Threat

I read this news in the business section this morning. Here's the article from the NY Times:

Chinese Oil Giant in Takeover Bid for U.S. Corporation

Chevron was going to by Unocal for $16.4 billion. Then the China National Offshore Oil Corporation made an unsolicited offer of $18.5 billion.

Minnesota Taxpayers

Federal Budget (2004 Estimate)
Health and Human Services - 24.2% (mostly Medicare and Medicaid)
Social Security - 23.8%
National Debt - 17.5%
Defense - 16.0%

Those four items total 81.5%.

Minnesota State Budget (04-05 Biennium)
Education - 41.1% (E-12 and higher)
Health and Human Services - 28.1%
Transportation - 11.1%

Those three items total 80.3%.

An Overview of State Government Spending
Minnesota Department of Finance
October 2004

Excellent general information and summary of a biennium budget:
MN State Budget Summary (02-03 Biennium)

Great link to all funding categories:
MN Governor's Operating Budget Recommendations (06-07 Biennium)

Do you ever wonder where your money goes, how much goes where, and what the programs are?

MN Department of Education

MN Department of Human Services

Polygamy

On Monday evening, Klinker, Chanda, Ziyad, and Jenny joined us for dinner. I grilled artichoke heart stuffed chicken breasts. Ziyad brought back some beers from Salt Lake City, Utah. Polygamy Porter, to be exact. Why have just one? Bring some home for the wives. Fellow patriot Dr. Klinker brought me a t-shirt that read "I Love America." God bless you.

Nothing Much

I borrowed four CDs from the Merriam Park library.

music by:
Wynton Marsalis
Muddy Waters
Atmosphere
Gustav Mahler

I am currently reading Faster by James Gleick.

Cyclist Tests Positive for Bear Claw

My parents visited me last weekend. We walked to Izzy's on Friday night after a pasta dinner. I ate a Mini B, a miniature banana split. My Mini B had chocolate, sour grapefruit, and maple butter nut scoops; chocolate, caramel, and raspberry sauce; whip cream, crushed M&Ms, and two miniature bananas. It was disgusting. On Saturday we drove down to Wabasha to visit my Grandma. On Sunday we helped Laura prepare for the opening of her flower/plants/landscaping business in Wayzata by painting the inside.

In other news, I set a new land speed record on the way home from work yesterday.
5.74 miles
17 minutes 27 seconds
19.7 mph

How did I do it? Simple. I ate a bear claw earlier in the day.

After the bike ride home, I ran along the river, crossed the Franklin bridge, ran up to the witch's hat in Prospect Park, and then cruised back home. I'm training for the 1st Annual Mustache Duathlon, which will be held sometime this summer. Competitors will grow a mustache starting at least one week before the event. The race will commence at my house, from which point we will bike to Crosby, run through the woods and around the lake, and return to my house. Upon completion of the duathlon, participants will have there picture taken and relax in the backyard while drinking Premium.

Words worth investigating the etymology:

Jingoism

we don't want to fight, yet by jingo if we do
we've got the ships, we've got the men
we've got the money too!

Jingo is a euphemism for Jesus. Funny.

Fusty - this wine tastes like cask.

Desultory - a desultor was a circus performer who jumped from horse to horse.

Brummagem - goods produced in the English city of Birmingham were often counterfeit and tawdry.

Billingsgate - a fish market in England notorious for the vulgar language in the air.

Rathskeller - council cellar: a tavern in the basement of a town hall.

Capricious - hedgehog head. Really.

Amish

We lost electricity at 4am Wednesday morning.
We took our one and only car to the garage Wednesday evening.

We picked up our car after work on Thursday and went home to find electricity restored. I appreciate electricity.

Back in 2002 I decided we should have an annual "No Energy Day" during the winter. That means no flipping the switch for lights, no stove, no oven, no microwave, no toaster, no hot water in the shower, no television, no phone, no internet, no computer, no stereo, no radio. Just candles, cold cuts, and sweet love.

However, we did not turn off the heat or the refrigerator.

People who romanticize the simplicity of the primitive past are full of shit.

Uber Ultra

Jude, you’ll enjoy this post.

Kurt Decker of the Runner’s Edge on Grand Avenue recently competed in a 24-hour race around Lake Nokomis. Kurt set the Minnesota 100-mile record. Congratulations Kurt.

Three emails recounting the race are below.

For those who haven't heard, Kurt got the state 100-mile record, previously held by Brian McCollor, a little after midnight on Sunday morning. I don't have all the details, but imagine averaging 6 and a quarter miles for 16 hours. That's amazing. I went down and ran with him for a couple of the 2.5 mile laps on Saturday afternoon. He had already run over 50 miles by the time I saw him at 8 or 9 hours into it. To think that he kept up that pace for another 8 hours is mind-boggling. He never took any real breaks aside from a quick stop at his tent to grab some food. The hour before I saw him, he had taken a mandatory weigh-in and was a bit down on his weight. So his brother Kevin got him a DQ hot dog and a vanilla shake (or two) and he downed them along with a Nut Roll on the run. Needless to say, when I saw him, none of the other energy foods looked good to him.

I was struck by how Kurt could maintain his game face for so long. I must admit, I jumped in thinking I was just joining Decker on one of his long runs. Not so. This was truly a race. He was very methodical, running at about 8 minute pace and breaking the loop up with 3 short, quick walks. He kept up this same regime for every loop for over 16 hours. It is no wonder he was able to break the 100-mile record. Sean was with him when he broke it. When they found out how close he was to breaking it, they picked up the pace considerably. It sounds like they went to a sub-7 minute pace for a couple miles as Kurt broke the record by only a minute.

Not long after that, Kurt's legs began to loose strength. (Go figure.) He was able to conquer an additional 10 miles or so in the next few hours, but despite the fact that he was probably still leading the race after 19 hours, he called it quits. The winner, Scott Eppleman, ran 129 miles.

I always thought it was pretty incredible what ultra-marathoners could do, but I have a newfound respect for this end of our sport which requires more mental toughness and more race tactics than I ever imagined.

That was a heroic effort, Decker. Way to go.

-Matthew Waite

*********************************

Matt pretty much hit the nail on the head, but for those of you who couldn't be there here's my story of what Kurt did.

So I jumped in with Kurt when he had just under "four" laps to go to 100. He was 19 minutes or so ahead of pace. Or so we thought. Kurt was clipping off his 8-minute miles and walking at his designated spots. Each lap got a little bit quicker.

With "three" laps to go, it was in the bag. But Kurt continued to pick it up ever so slightly. His "39th" lap was in 22 minutes, a minute quicker than the lap before. As we approached the secondary checkpoint on the SE corner of the lake, the spot where the runner officially crosses 100 miles during their 41st lap, I announced proudly to the checkpoint personnel that Number 17 was coming and he had "one" lap to 100 miles.

The reply back was startling, befuddling -- "No he's got two laps to go," the timer said. "How could that be?" I thought. We continued on, but I was sure the timer was wrong, but we continued to pick up the pace, just in case.

We crossed the main checkpoint and they confirmed that Kurt had just under two laps to go and only 30 minutes to do it. It was time to see how hard Kurt could push. Sean Mulheron and I were running shoulder to shoulder ever so slightly picking up the pace. We hit one of Kurt's designated walking areas and I told Kurt we need to keep moving, it's only another lap and a half. Words coming from someone who wasn't at their 96th mile.

By now we were clipping along at 6:15 to 6:05 pace. We hit the secondary checkpoint. This time he did really have one lap to go. I shouted to the timer, "How much time do we have?" The reply "I don't think he's going to make it." I'm sure Kurt didn't hear it, but Sean and I did and it wasn't going to happen on our watch. Kurt had worked too hard for this and he sure as hell wasn't going to miss it by mere seconds.

It was time to throw the hammer down. Sean and I kept gradually increasing the pace. Jacob Hallen was running next to Kurt, helping him increase his stride. Sean and I were the tow cables. We got to the main checkpoint, with just under 10 minutes to go. We were flying.

"Weight Check!!" Shouted one of the race personnel. "You gotta be kidding me!!" I thought. Kurt flew on and off the scale. "Weight's good, let's go!!" We had no time to spare, let alone time for a weight check. Kurt caught up to Sean and I, Jacob at his side. We whisked by the Crew tent, we knew time was tight. We continued to accelerate on the backstretch. Time was running out.

"Come on Kurt!!" We shouted to him. "Let's go." We got to the south side of the lake, legs in overdrive, 400 meters, 300 meters. We rounded the bend and could see the checkpoint lights. Kurt's breathing was strained. He was running probably the fastest ever 100th mile. This was it!! This was to be his moment. I could see the eyes of the checkpoint personnel as we steamed into the line. They look bewildered, I yelled to them "What's our time???"

"16 hours . . ."

"Yes!!??!" I shouted.

"16 hours, 8 minutes."

"WOOOO . . . HOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!"

It was unbelievable. Simply unbelievable. Kurt literally ran his last mile at sub-6:00 pace. It was probably 5:45-5:50, maybe even faster. But without a doubt, THE toughest mile I've ever seen anyone run. He beat the record by 50 or so seconds. I think the timers are still wondering, "How the hell did he do that??" Everyone there was wondering, "How the hell did he do that??"

Hell, I even quietly wondered, "How the hell did he do that?" This is by far the toughest I've ever seen Kurt run. I was there when Kurt first subbed the 5:00 mile. I was there for his first marathon. I was there for his Marathon P.R. I was with him at his first 100 miler and Western States. Nothing compares to what he did this Saturday.

And it was an absolute privilege to be part of it. WAY TO GO Kurt!!
Congratulations and may that record last a long, long time!!

-Steve Hibbs

*********************************

Well what can I say huh. It was a very strange but so so wonderful day. As many of you know I have been training very well all winter and spring. I guess when you feel like you are in a good place in your life that can happen. Let me start by saying thanks so much to everyone who sent e-mails, called my phone for race day updates or all the people who came out to watch and or run with me on race day.

As for the race I can say without a doubt that was one of the best days I have ever had running wise. I felt great from the gun. I new what I had to do per lap to have a chance at the 100 mile state record and the 24 hour record. I thought well let's get close to the 100 and go from there after I saw how I felt. I figured I would run like 24-25 min laps. I was running 23-24 min laps and feeling very good. I had so many people out there running with me and cheering from the tent. It was great. Then came the d-day decision where to go after the 100 mile record. Well let's just say we miss counted a lap and I thought hell I am going to crush it. That was not the case. With just two laps ( 5 miles ) to go I need to haul ass to get it. Well with the help of Steve Hibbs, Sean Mulheron and Jacob Hallen we started running 6 min pace then with a huge 5:45 like last mile we dipped under the record. I could not have pushed that hard without them. Thanks guys !!! After that I new that I put my body in a bad place. I was able to walk like 10 more miles but then at 18 hours in said let's call it a day. No need to hurt myself. Maybe I could have kept walking and still won the race but maybe not. I know I did the right thing and know I can go back and get that state record of 136 miles. Plus heck I got to do my last walking lap with Sonya, my bro Kevin and my good friend Paul.

Now I have no idea how I was able to run that pace after running 95 miles before that. But I learned something that day. Sometimes you need to just turn your head off and just believe with all your body in what you can do. We all say that but myself included do not always do it. We humans and amazing and can push ourselves in many parts of our life to place we thought are not there. Thanks for believing in me and do not ever stop believing in yourselves !!!

-Kurt Decker

Tits

'Lactivists' Taking Their Cause, and Their Babies, to the Streets
Bar-bar Walters said on The View that she felt uncomfortable when she was sitting on a plane next to a mother who was breast feeding her baby. Women took to the streets with their babies to protest. That makes for a good news story. Actually, it is a good news story. A few states have passed laws allowing women to breast feed wherever they roam. Many people are freaked out by a woman publicly bearing a highly sexualized object to participate in the natural feeding of her innocent child.

Bolivian President Offers to Resign
Same story from the BBC, but with links to additional resources.

Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada was elected president in June 2002 with only 22.5% of the vote. Rabble rouser Evo Morales was second with 20.9%, Reyes Villa was third with 20.9%, and Paz Zamora was fourth with 16.3%. And here's a good read about the elections. Goni resigned in October 2003. Carlos Mesa took over. Now it appears he will resign.

Class and Culture Series
This is a series from the New York Times. It's not very good.

two thousand zero zero

... we relaxed at Tim's house while John napped. Then we met the ladies at Sweeney's for food and drinks. Then we drove to Macalester for our class dinner. Father Rock O'Connor and former St. Paul Mayor George Latimer were the speakers. We sat next to the unattended (self-serve?) wine table. Dinner, served by Bon Appetite, was actually quite good. After dinner, I urinated in a Prestige port-a-pot. The luxurious portable shitter was adorned with silk flowers and furnished with temperature control, a sink and mirror, and carpet. Holly streaked Olin-Rice with the class of ’55. Old balls. We talked to economics professor Vasant Sukhatme. Then we walked over to a big tent where I consumed many Premiums. Then I received a message to meet Tim Pavlish under the bell. When I arrived, Tim was holding a can of beer and a Dutch Masters cigar in one hand. Nice. Then we walked to the courtyard behind Janet Wallace. The DJ didn't show, so John plugged his iPod into a system provided by Media Services. Let's get this party started quickly. Two Mac students showed up with a computer and took over the DJ duties. Nick Balster, rugby player among other things, provided the performance of the night when he dipped two balls (which were attached to cords which were attached to handles) into kerosene, lit them, and began a stunning nighttime dance. Fire balls, circular, up and down, around, all good things. Then we went streaking again. Klinker graced us with dynamic stretching. Tim jumped into the warm and murky steeplechase pit. Then we danced. Then I became very inebriated. Kevin fell off a cart and banged his head. The night progressed. Et cetera.

On Sunday we walked Grand Old Days. We watched part of the first annual strong man competition. In the first event we watched, which was a timed event, participants had to flip a 1200-pound tire over twice, stand up and push over an enormous iron pipe, and then drag an oil supertanker anchor chain over a certain distance. The next event was the axle dead lift, 500 pounds for lightweights and 550 pounds for heavyweights. No lightweight could lift the bar off the ground. Then a severely beastly man did seven reps. Huge.

Later that afternoon we grilled at Tim's house. Brandon showed us pictures from his summer in Pakistan last year. Steve and Yarrow were there.

Updates

Brandon is earning his PhD in epidemiology at the University of Washington. This coming fall Kevin will start pursuing a Masters degree at the Berkeley Planning and Development Department. In addition, Mr. Shively is competing in an Olympic distance triathlon in July and plans to run the Seattle marathon in November. Resident John Anderson wants to buy a really big and really awesome television. Gordon is attending law school at the University of Minnesota.

Class of 2000 Reunion

After departing on the red eye from San Francisco, Kevin Shively arrived at our house Friday morning at 6:45, just as I was leaving for work. Holly Harris took the red eye from Los Angeles. Kyla Hayford arrived later that morning from DC. Brandon arrived from Seattle around noon. As of the end of May, Dr. John Anderson has been a Minnesota resident. Other Minnesota residents attending the reunion included Tim “The Tool Man” Pavlish, Gordon “This Water Tastes Like Hose” Hague, Andrea Sternberg, Liz Connors, and Megan Kelly.

After work, I traveled to the campus center to pay homage to the class of 2000 with gifts of gold, frankincense, and beer - two twelve packs of local beer, Summit Grand and Summit EPA.
After exchanging brief histories, we progressed to Olin-Rice for appetizers, margaritas, and mariachi music. We supplemented the food and drink with Taste of Thai and some beers. As it does, the sun went down. As it happened, the clothes came off.

Naked 400.

The pace started slow, like a championship race. Brandon opened the throttle with 150 to go and reigning naked 400 champion John Anderson remained complacent until 80 meters, when he displayed an awesome burst of speed. However, the kick came too late, and Brandon barely escaped the strong close.

Saturday started with a long run at 10am. Let’s mosey. Brandon had to band-aid his toes, which were torn on the track the previous night. While we were sauntering five miles, Marye made pancakes and fruit salad. There was also sausage and doughnuts aplenty.

Later we met outside Weyerhaeuser to go on a Summit Brewery tour. However, we missed the tour because of a schedule misprint. But Colin Mothupi came to the rescue with two cases of warm Miller High Life from his trunk. I love warm beer. We started drinking and it started raining. Some peoples went to drink under the chapel. We went to the porch of 63 Mac. I noticed an unlocked window, so I looked around. Memories. After one warm High Life, I was ready to drink my own urine, so we left and I took peeps on a driving tour of the development boom riverside in downtown Minneapolis and then along the river near downtown St. Paul. John slept through the tour, but after two High Life’s and a doughnut coup de grace, who can find fault.

To be continued…

this beef tastes like fumigant

The EPA is proposing to add the Garvey Elevator Site in Hastings, Nebraska, to the National Priorities List, or NPL. The NPL is a published list of hazardous waste sites that are eligible for clean-up action under the Superfund Program. Grain has been stored and processed at the Garvey Elevator since 1959. Carbon tetrachloride, a common grain fumigant, was used at the facility until the mid-1980s. Past releases of carbon tetrachloride from the facility have contaminated ground water near the facility. That ground water is used as a source of drinking water.

References:
Fact Sheet for Garvey Elevator
NPL Site Narrative for Garvey Elevator

My Dad hauls corn to Garvey.
I have a red Garvey hat.

Fumigant on corn.
Corn in cow.
Cow in human.

I advocate grass-fed buffalo, or Kobe beef if you can afford it.

United States of Europe

Dutch vote on Europe constitution

The EU constitution must be ratified by all EU members in order to be implemented. France said non and now 60% of Dutch voters are expected to say nee. However, in the Netherlands, any rejection of the constitution is unlikely to have the same impact because the Dutch vote is non-binding.

Already ratified treaty:
* Austria
* Germany
* Greece
* Hungary
* Italy
* Lithuania
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain

What the EU constitution says

Constitution full text (1MB, 325 pages)

In other news:
N Korea ridicules Rice, Rumsfeld
In what media watchers are calling a first for North Korea, state radio in Pyongyang has turned to the medium of the comic sketch to mock two of the leading figures in the US administration.

Weekend Update

To start the weekend, I whistled for my trusty bicycle and set a land-speed record on the way home from work, despite the fact that I have triceps where most people have quadriceps.

Later, I enjoyed an Italian Combo hoagie and Summit EPA at Pizza Luce. Then we progressed to the live music scene at the Turf Club, near the intersection of Snelling and University. We were listening to the first band when somebody in the audience yelled out.

"Cock fight!!"

I was highly enthused. However, seeing no agitated gamecocks or people affixed with metal spurs, my enthusiasm declined to amusement of a random outburst. Then it was revealed to me that the band's name was Cockfight.

On Saturday, we visited Goodwill and then Everyday People, a thrift store where I found a stylish brown sports jacket for 13 USD. Then I played basketball in my sports jacket. Actually, I didn't. Sports jacket?

After months of failure, I progressed in achieving my New Year's resolution to watch more movies. Over the weekend, we watched Team America and Meet the Fockers. We also recently watched Crash.

On Sunday, we feasted at the home of the gracious Ziyad Al-Rashid. Good times.

On Monday, we landscaped. It looks good. I also fixed the outdoor faucet; it had a cracked stem valve seal.

In other news, I escalated the war of man versus beast. A rapacious raccoon had been plundering my compost bin by digging down and under the bin. I fortified the bin by burying plastic floor tiles down the sides and placing bricks around the base. Should the raccoon continue to display a brazen disregard for private property rights, I may be forced to shock and awe.

Track

The Division III National Track and Field Championship is currently underway in Waverly, Iowa. Josh Moen of Wartburg won the 10K last night with a time of 30:31. Jeff Metzdorff of Hamline was 7th in 30:51, six seconds away from second place, and Malcolm Richard of St. Olaf finished 13th, posting a 31:15. The woman who won the 10K ran a 34 flat. Wow.

In Nebraska high school track and field news, Kearney finished second by three points to Fremont, thus failing to win the team title for the first time since I was a freshman, one decade and one year ago.

About Nebraska

Largest cities
Omaha: 390,007
Lincoln: 225,581
Bellevue: 44,382
Grand Island: 42,940
Kearney: 27,431
Fremont: 25,174
Hastings: 24,064
North Platte: 23,878
Norfolk: 23,516
Columbus: 20,971
Papillion: 16,363
Scottsbluff: 14,732

Memorial Stadium has a capacity of about 74,000.

Bellevue and Papillion are basically part of the great expanse that is Omaha.

Out With The Old

From the nytimes:
U.S. 'Thumbs Its Nose' at Rights, Amnesty Says

Who thumbs their nose these days?
That saying is old.

How about these:
U.S. Yells at Rights and Grabs Crotch / Gestures Toward Nuts / Cups Ball Sack, Amnesty Says

Or this
U.S. Displays Shocker Sign at Rights, Amnesty Says

Material from Nate

R.I.P.
Nebraskan Thurl Ravenscroft died on Sunday. He was best known as the voice of Tony the Tiger in Kellogg's Frosted Flakes television commercials and as the singer of the song "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" in the Christmas TV special based on the Dr. Seuss classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Down the Road with the Filibuster
I watched the Lehrer “Real” News Hour last night until I had the urge to vomit. Gwen Ifill was interviewing nauseating Senators Nelson, Chafee, Sessions, and Schumer about the Memorandum of Understanding, signed as an expression of trust between Republicans and Democrats, which vows to use the filibuster only under exceptional circumstances, allow a vote on an agreed number of judicial nominees, and refrain from changing the rules to quench dilatory tactics.

Gwen: How does the MOU resolve the conflict between Democrats who want to filibuster judicial nominees and Republicans who want to change the rules to force a vote?

Senators: Bar, bar, bar.

Gwen: Hmmm. Although I don't suspect it, perhaps my question needs refining. Considering the disparate opinions between Democrats and Republicans regarding the merit of judicial nominees, what happens next when Democrats want to filibuster and Republicans want to force a vote?

Nelson and Chafee: Bar, bar, bar.

Schumer: Bar, bar, bar. Now the rules cannot be changed. Bar, bar, bar. But Democrats can filibuster.

Sessions: Gwen, let’s get one thing straight: Democrats are huge pussies. If necessary, Republicans will change the rules to force a vote on judicial nominees.

US flips its lid over 'middle finger' tag

PepsiCo president Indra Nooyi gave a graduation speech at Columbia Business School in which she compared the United States to the middle finger. There’s no need to read the transcript of the speech or engage in reasonable cogitation. Please form an opinion based on this blog, and my message to you: Indra Nooyi is unpatriotic. Coke is better.

State and Local Taxes

When arguing for no new taxes, Minnesota Governor Tim "Fees and Gimmicks" Pawlenty is wont to cite a study by the unbiased Census Bureau that ranks Minnesota as the state with the 4th highest taxes. I looked at the study. Minnesota is 4th in the nation in state revenue per capita.

I recommend perusing the data on this site:
States IN Profile
Select a state.
Click on Income & Taxes.
Enjoy.

States without state income tax:
Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming.

Jesse Ventura

On Saturday afternoon, Klinker and I were sitting outside my house enjoying Summit IPA and Lake Superior Oatmeal Stout, talking about piercings, wetsuits, and trucks, when a purple Porsche drove by slowly, with the woman in the passenger seat staring at us.

We resumed our conversation until we saw the nose of the purple Porsche pull into view on the wrong side of the street, facing the nose of my Ford Escort. The man I saw walk into view from around the corner of my house was a man of incredible girth with black beard hair woven into braids, carrying a large well-chewed cigar.

I'm Jesse Ventura. This is my wife Terry.
I used to live here. My parents lived here from 1949 to 1969.

I invited Mr. Ventura inside to have a look around.

“It's so cute,” said Terry.
Thanks.

Jesse talked about the kitchen. His father and grandfather tore down the wall that separated the kitchen from the dining room. Having a counter in lieu of the wall opened the house from front to back and distinguishes it from traditional craftsman bungalow homes. George Janos built all the cupboards and drawers in the kitchen. He installed a unique clock above the kitchen sink too. I showed Jesse that his dad had stenciled George Janos on the inside of one of the drawers. It was a hemotional moment.

Then Klinker led the way toward the porch, where the plaque commemorating the unofficial historic site hangs. “Childhood home of Jesse Ventura, beloved governor and kick-ass WWF wrestler.”

Jesse said his dad occasionally slept on the porch during the summer.

The intersection out front used to be dangerous, car accidents all the time. His dad was concerned that the kids might get hit with a car while they were playing in the front yard.

The Janos family had a disciplined English bulldog named Bozo. An animal control officer came by one day to take the dog away because it wasn’t on a leash. Jesse’s dad said “if you can make the dog leave the yard, you can take it away.” The animal control officer tried for 15 minutes to goad Bozo into leaving the yard, but to no avail.

The sandbar down by the river was a popular play spot.

There were a lot of families and kids in the neighborhood back in the day. Jesse had a lot of friends nearby, so nearby that he could make prank calls summoning a taxi for his friend’s dad. Jesse and his fellow conspirators would sit by the window and watch with glee as the patient taxicab driver turned disgruntled and drove off. That was in fourth grade.

Jesse recalled that the Minnehaha Academy field catercorner from the house used to host football games. The field was bordered with a big wooden fence, which Jesse and his friends had lifted just enough so that they could squeeze under and watch the games. Their secret entry to the field was directly behind the players’ sideline. One night, Jesse decided he couldn’t see well enough, and what provided a better view than endzone seating. I’m sure it was good while it lasted. The referee took his hand and escorted him away.

Jesse lived upstairs (1/2 story) with his brother. That’s hard to imagine, especially when the hulking Jesse Ventura is walking around and says “it seems so much smaller now.” His dad built the knotty pine ceiling and walls and the built-in bookshelves. Jesse pointed out where his desk used to be. He also alluded to locking his mom in the attic.

Outside, Jesse talked about his former neighbors. The Carlsons lived there… the fat kid lived three houses down.

Jesse talked about the neighborhood and how nice it was, and is. He went to Cooper elementary school one block away. Cooper is closing down because of decreased enrollment. Thirty-second street used to be the dividing line between those students who attended South high school and those who attended Roosevelt high school. “I know you probably hear this all the time,” but I walked to Roosevelt – that was a long walk.

Jesse commented about his fondness for Minneapolis. Then he went on to mention the incident on Dave (Letterman) where he lauded the logic of the Minneapolis street grid and joked about the Irish (glug, glug) designing St. Paul streets.

Overall, the experience was an emotional one between Jesse and Terry, where a nostalgic Jesse was excited to give his wife a more vivid glimpse into his childhood. Jesse was polite, personable, and gracious, and Terry was very amiable too.

Anyway, that’s basically what happened. Unfortunately, I don’t remember everything because my memory is interspersed and overwritten with this: “Holy shit, this is Jesse Ventura.”

Dr. Klinker, feel free to fill in the story.

Go Johnnies

While coasting to victory over the final ten meters of the 200 meter dash, Carson Glad of St. Thomas twisted his upper body toward the stadium crowd and extended his arm upward, showcasing the exclamation of his index finger. Carson Glad continued his smug celebration by running through the finish line and around the curve, presumably looking for an American flag to wave. After failing to find any further means of expression, such as sportsmanship, Carson Glad walked the straightaway back to the starting line, leaving the other runners at the finish to exchange congratulations.

It gets better.

The Thommies got second.

For only the third time since 1983, the Thommies failed to win the outdoor track and field conference championship. The Johnnies won in 1997, 1999, and 2005.

1 Saint John's 172.5
2 St. Thomas 165.0

A field judge (Macalester '01) bearing an animus toward St. Thomas DQ-ed a St. Thomas 400 meter hurdler in the final. The hurdler ran the fourth fastest qualifying time.

Consider this:
In the absence of the DQ, St. Thomas would have gained five points with a fourth-place finish and St. John's, having a hurdler bumped down a place, would have lost one point. Without the DQ, the final meet score would have been:

St. John's 171.5
St. Thomas 170.0

Now consider this:
St. John's edged St. Thomas by one one-hundredth of a second in the last event of the day, the 4x400 relay. Without the DQ, the meet winner was determined in this race. Johnnies win.

Just for the record, the DQ was fair.

Congratulations Mac Pack

MIAC Results

4x800 relay
3 Macalester 7:54.63
(Bo Rydze, Will Kennedy, Nate Crider, Matt Wegmann)

800 meters
8 Josh Springer, Fr, Macalester 1:57.01

1500 meters
5 Nate Crider, 1, Macalester 4:01.93
9 Derek Loudermilk, 4, Macalester 4:05.96

Steeplechase
4 Bo Rydze, Sr, Macalester 9:38.95
10 Eric Olson, Sr, Macalester 10:02.00
15 Matt Wegmann, Fr, Macalester 10:15.87

5k
3 Dylan Keith, So, Macalester 15:18.67
18 Bo Rydze, Sr, Macalester 15:50.24
28 Tim Stendahl, Jr, Macalester 16:14.97
31 Kyle Braam, Fr, Macalester 16:32.48

10k
15 Tom Hammer, So, Macalester 33:10.80
19 Kyle Braam, Fr, Macalester 33:28.18

Goodbye Pete

This coming Thursday Pete Dillon will leave Minnesota. He will be traveling via greyhound to Albuquerque, where he will begin his bicycle journey to the Grand Canyon, to Utah and on to Oregon, then to Mazama, Washington, for Steve and Yarrow’s wedding, and eventually to the Berkeley campus to become a doctor of philosophy. Pete is leaving Minnesota for the West. During times like these, I find it helpful to remember the words of Pete Dillon:

“Fossil fuels are a finite resource, but you can tap love forever.”

You're Trashy

How Do Japanese Dump Trash? Let Us Count the Myriad Ways
I enjoyed this article. In an effort to make conscious humans faithfully follow the three Rs (reduce, recycle, reuse), the Japanese are required to sort their trash into anywhere from 10 to 44 categories. 3R-ing decreases the costs of incineration. Eighty percent of trash generated in Japan is incinerated, whereas eighty percent of trash generated in the U.S. is landfilled. When news of Japanese environmental standards was presented to an American, he responded by saying “Stewardship is a cock in the ass.” But sir, why do you hate personal responsibility.

Hastings pummeled by storms
My hometown in Nebraska was pounded by golf ball to baseball size hail last evening. Streetlights, building windows, and car windows were shattered. Structures were battered and cars were dented. Thank goodness the crops weren’t up yet.

Bengo Mrema was honored by being named Big Brother of the year by Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities.

For Gay Men, an Attraction to a Different Kind of Scent
Maybe people don’t choose to be gay; however, they still remain the biggest threat to national security and quality of life.

“Legislators can see consequences that individual citizens sometimes overlook.” Who would say such a thing.

Church Split in Dispute Over Bush
A reverend endorsed Bush from the pulpit and claimed those voting for Kerry need to repent or resign from the church. The reverend continued his crusade after the election, eventually ousting nine members. Issue numero uno, abortion.

Here is a precious quote from one of the church members:

“I don't believe he preached politics. I don't believe anyone should tell a preacher not to preach what's in the Bible.”

Awesome.

Bungalow History

We received documentation of our house's entire title history.

The Janos family lived in our house from 1949 to 1969.

James Janos was born in 1951.

Later, James Janos became Jesse Ventura.

And of course, Jesse Ventura became Governor Ventura.

He was a good governor.

I am a mucus membrane ready to burst

So, I wrote a letter alerting Pamida I was disconcerted by the fact a Pamida pharmacist in Glencoe, Minnesota, denied a birth control prescription to a woman.

Here is Pamida's response:

"Dear Ben,

We appreciate your concern and opinion regarding the Pamida pharmacy in Glencoe, MN. You should know that our overriding concern is that our customer’s health needs are taken care of. We feel that situations like the one described are rare and if they do occur, we expect our pharmacists to make certain that provisions to have the prescription filled at our pharmacy or another convenient pharmacy of the patients choosing are followed.

Thank you for your letter.

Mike Bettiga
Sr. Vice President of Retail Health Operations
ShopKo Stores, Inc."

Here is my response response:

Dear Mr. Bettiga,

I appreciate your ambiguous response to my letter.

I feel that homicides are rare and if they do occur, I expect the murderer to make certain that provisions not to murder are followed.

Hyperbole is amusing, but it may not convey my point.

Is birth control a health need?
Who enforces the action of the pharmacist?
What are the consequences for the pharmacist’s action?

Assuming the Pamida pharmacist in Glencoe, Minnesota, had referred the woman requesting a birth control prescription to another convenient pharmacy where the woman could have the prescription filled, do you believe the following statement absolves the pharmacist?

“We expect our pharmacists to make certain that provisions to have the prescription filled at another convenient pharmacy of the patients choosing are followed.”

Thank you for your vacuous flatulence. I deprecate -- I mean I appreciate it.

Double Fist Pump for Soren

Dr. Skills Anderson will be joining the Bush Council of Economic Advisors as a Junior Staff Economist.

Here's a little about the structure of the CEA:

From the "Employment Act of 1946":

"There is hereby created in the Executive Office of the President a Council of Economic Advisers (hereinafter called the "Council"). The Council shall be composed of three members who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and each of whom shall be a person who, as a result of his training, experience, and attainments, is exceptionally qualified to analyze and interpret economic developments, to appraise programs and activities of the Government in the light of the policy declared in section 2, and to formulate and recommend national economic policy to promote employment, production, and purchasing power under free competitive enterprise. The President shall designate one of the members of the Council as Chairman.

It shall be the duty and function of the Council--

1. to assist and advise the President in the preparation of the Economic Report;

2. to gather timely and authoritative information concerning economic developments and economic trends, both current and prospective, to analyze and interpret such information in the light of the policy declared in section 2 for the purpose of determining whether such developments and trends are interfering, or are likely to interfere, with the achievement of such policy, and to compile and submit to the President studies relating to such developments and trends;

3. to appraise the various programs and activities of the Federal Government in the light of the policy declared in section 2 for the purpose of determining the extent to which such programs and activities are contributing, and the extent to which they are not contributing, to the achievement of such policy, and to make recommendations to the President with respect thereto;

4. to develop and recommend to the President national economic policies to foster and promote free competitive enterprise, to avoid economic fluctuations or to diminish the effects thereof, and to maintain employment, production, and purchasing power;

5. to make and furnish such studies, reports thereon, and recommendations with respect to matters of Federal economic policy and legislation as the President may request.

No Damn Cat, No Damn Cradle

In Kansas, Darwinism Goes on Trial Once More

On a related note, Massachusetts’s public schools are requiring science classes to teach Bokononism. Fucking liberals. Anyway, all the excitement has persuaded me to change my name to Ben Scopes, change my vocation, and begin teaching kids the truth: life was shot coitus interruptus out of a chimera’s cock during an orgy of the gods, seeding nothingness with being. Required science reading will include The Silmarillion. And I will not stop until every child has been inculcated with the concepts of Ptolemy’s geocentric solar system. Lastly, since my curriculum is fair and balanced, I will include a dose of deism.

Earth Has Become Brighter, but No One Is Sure Why
The earth’s surface is receiving more sunlight.

Chimeras on the Horizon, but Don't Expect Centaurs
The lines have long been blurred.

Standard & Poor's cuts G.M and Ford debt rating to junk status. These companies are numbers 3 and 4 of America's Fortune 500. The Ford plant in St. Paul, home of the Ranger, makes the news on a daily basis announcing additional furloughs.

Treasury Says 30-Year Bond May Be Revived
Big-government Republicans have to do something to sponsor their prodigal spending.

Sex in the air in China
Not that interesting, but I thought of Alf in the air in China.

Balls

I drove a Ford F250 XL Super Duty over the the capitol today. The F250 has command seating. Is that a Land Rover down there, I can't tell, it's so small. I parked it on the stone stairs in front of the State Office Building. The security guard didn't demur; in fact, he addressed me as Balls Knudson.

CostCo pays $16/hour, 65% more than the average wage at Wal-Mart stores and 33% more than the $12 average at Sam's Club. At CostCo, 82% of the workers are covered by company health insurance, compared with 48% at Wal-Mart.

I'll tell you what I like to do. I like to shop at Wal-Mart. Then I like to lament the plight of low-wage workers. I like to vote Democrat to atone for my purchasing sins. When it's my money, I will discount shop. When it's the government's money, I spare no expense.

In other news, several pharmacists in Minnesota have refused to fill birth control prescriptions.

Rage building up, anger taking over, blood boiling.

Snyder drug store is one of the culprits. I encourage you to write a letter to Snyder and boycott the store.

Leave no egg behind.

"One of the greatest tragedies of life is that so many sperm are wasted. If only we could staunch this horrendous loss of life." -God

What do Kingpin's Roy Munson and President Bush have in common?

First Lady Laura Bush spoke at a White House Correspondence dinner

Quotes from Cleaver Peasantry and the LA Times:

"George always says he's delighted to come to these press dinners. Baloney. He's usually in bed by now," she said to laughter. "I said to him the other day, 'George, if you really want to end tyranny in the world, you're going to have to stay up later.' "

A typical White House evening goes like this, she went on: "Nine o'clock, Mr. Excitement here is sound asleep, and I'm watching 'Desperate Housewives' — with Lynne Cheney. Ladies and gentlemen, I am a desperate housewife. I mean if those women on that show think they're desperate, they ought to be with George. One night after George went to bed, Lynne Cheney, Condi Rice, Karen Hughes and I went to Chippendales....I won't tell you what happened, but Lynne's Secret Service code name is now Dollar Bill."

She noted that she and her husband were "complete opposites — I'm quiet, he's talkative; I'm introverted, he's extroverted; I can pronounce 'nuclear.' "

"The amazing thing is that George and I were just meant to be. I was a librarian who spent 12 hours a day in the library, yet somehow I met George."

She discussed the family she married into, saying of Barbara Bush: "People often wonder what my mother-in-law's really like. People think she's a sweet, grandmotherly, Aunt Bea type. She's actually more like, mmm, Don Corleone."

And the native of the Lone Star State poked fun at her husband's patrician upbringing: "George didn't know much about ranches when we bought the place" near Crawford. "Andover and Yale don't have a real strong ranching program.

"But I'm proud of George. He's learned a lot about ranching since that first year when he tried to milk the horse." She paused. "What's worse, it was a male horse."

From Kingpin:

Munson: Hope you don't mind, I got up a little early so I took the liberty of milking your cow for ya. Took a little while to get her warmed up, she sure is a stubborn one.

Amish Guy: We don't have a cow, we have a bull.

Munson: I'll brush my teeth.

Do You Compost

Time for more of my staccato posting.

It is of greatest importance to look at Klinker’s comment on Friday’s post.

The City Pages “Best Of” addition is out.

It snowed (flurried) here yesterday. All you need to know is this: peeps in Yakutsk are currently enjoying a milder May than we are here.

We watched the runners of the Get in Gear race run by. Carleton alum Matt Hooley ran a good race.

I volunteered at the Living Green Expo on Saturday. There were Jainists everywhere. Not really, but people were interested in sustainable living. The highlight of the expo came late in the afternoon when I saw a young man with a neck beard – awesome! I bought a four-foot-high two-foot-wide black plastic compost bin at the expo. Now I can reduce food waste in the garbage and create a soil to rival mollisols.

I gave myself a hairscut yesterday, the potential mullet is gone.

We went to the Dakota on Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis last night, compliments of Andrea. Jazz artist Karrin Allyson was performing.

Local News

Coming up at 10 on WCCO channel four news...

* cosmetic beauty tips
* how to keep mosquitos away
* Tom Cruse's new, extremely young girlfriend
* tiger mauls human
* People magazine's 50 most beautiful people

My evaluation:
beauty = good
mosquitos = bad
Tom Cruse = short
young girlfriend = hot
tiger mauls human = cool
beautiful people = good
local news = bad

Also, we had a few snow flurries here on Wednesday.
Later.

Dim Sum, Fusion, Militarism, Sea Bass

Dim Sum Under Assault, and Devotees Say 'Hands Off'
Alf, did dim sum drive you onto a treadmill at your yuppie health club.

Itty-Bitty and Shrinking, Fusion Device Has Big Ideas
Scientists have produced nuclear fusion in a footlong cylinder five inches in diameter.

Henry Liu is a force.
Series: World Order, Failed States and Terrorism
Article: Militarism and failed states
Militarism is the doctrine that military might is the basic source of all security. The doctrine leads inevitably to the militarization of peace as a form of permanent preparation for war. Militarism is not exclusive to dictatorships or authoritarian states - liberal democracies are frequently proponents and willing victims of militarism. - Henry C K Liu

Sea Bass Update

This summer Sebas will be interning at the Inter-American Dialogue in DC. Claudio Loser is a visiting senior fellow there. If I knew enough Spanish, I would read a book Sebas told me about.
Enemigos: la Argentina y el Fundo Monetario International. Also, Sebas is studying in Brazil for a semester starting in August.

The Right to Bare Arms is All I Need

Florida Expands Right to Use Deadly Force in Self-Defense
Formerly, Floridians had the right to defend themselves against home intruders, the castle doctrine. Now, Floridians have the right to defend themselves in public places without first trying to escape, the right to stand your ground.

This leads me to believe that people either have an inordinate faith in their reaction time or they have the conception that criminals will announce their intentions well in advance. What is an announcement of criminality? Skin color. Is it legal to pull the trigger before determining criminal intent beyond a reasonable doubt? Is preemptive force legal? Do prejudice and fear affect threat assessment?

And on a related note, why can I not buy a shoulder-to-air missile launcher to protect myself against the government?

Why does the United States show so much concern over proliferation in other countries? I guess we consider certain nations as felons.

Minnesota experienced a nation-leading 13.2% increase in its inmate population last year. The only other state with double-digit growth was Montana.

Despite rising interest rates, home sales grew 12.2% in March to a record high. Housing bubble, where are you?

On the heels of a big deal with Air Canada, Boeing agreed to a $6.9 billion deal with Air India. Airbus better recognize.

Doctors’ prescriptions are influenced by drug commercials.

The Hubble is celebrating 15 years of discovery.

Tiny, Plentiful and Really Hard to Catch
There is a giant neutrino observatory an hour north of Duluth.

Hesse, JC, and Ted

There is a lot to talk about today.

I bought three books at half price books on Saturday. Two were written by Herman Hesse. I have read Siddhartha and Steppenwolf already but I bought Siddhartha regardless. I also bought Narcissus and Goldmun. I plan to read The Glass Bead Game too. The other book I bought was Nostromo by JC, Joseph Conrad. I have read Heart of Darkness, Lord Jim, and The Secret Agent. JC is a masterful writer. He has deft diction and superb syntax. JC was born in the Ukraine and thereafter lived in Russian-occupied Poland. The man didn't learn English until he was twenty years old. Wow.

So, I was doing a little reading on Wikipedia about JC and I clicked on the link to The Secret Agent, which had only a sentence for an entry: Theodore Kaczynski read this book over a dozen times. Interesting. We know him better as Ted, the Unabomber (university and airline bomber). Ted is a brilliantly smart mathematician. He graduated early from high school, received a BS from Harvard, and received a PhD in mathematics from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Ted was hired as an assistant professor at Berkeley. Then he quit and moved to Montana. Then he killed three people and injured 29. Ted claimed he would end his terrorism if newspapers printed his manifesto, Industrial Society and Its Future. The liberal bastions of the New York Times and the Washington Post obliged. The Unabomber Manifesto views technological progress negative. Let's go back to those simpler, happier days. Primitavist. Anyway, an English professor read Ted's manifesto and noticed similarities between Ted and Verloc, the novel's protagonist. I haven’t read Ted’s manifesto, but I identify him with the professor in The Secret Agent, not Verloc. Ted Kaczynski was an anarchist. Propaganda of the deed.

Sports

A new proposal for a Twins stadium was unveiled yesterday. Hennepin County will finance the stadium with tax-exempt 30-year bonds, which will be repaid with a sales tax of three cents on every twenty dollars (.15%). The bonds obtain tax-exempt status because the sales tax will be used to repay the bond. Tax-exempt bonds have a lower interest rate and cost the county less money. Coors Field in Denver was financed using 20-year tax-exempt bonds repaid with a .1% sales tax; the debt was paid off in ten years.

And where will the stadium be located. Go to Map Quest and search for a map of 417 N 5th Street in Minneapolis, zip code 55401. The stadium will be located on the rectangular plot directly south of the red star. I work in the red star. The proposed Northstar commuter rail will arrive from the northeast and terminate at the red star. The light rail will be extended down 5th Street. The waste-to-energy facility known as HERC is located directly west of the red star. Trash is burned to create energy. Burning trash smells. The stadium will be an open-air stadium, unless the state wants to provide an additional $100 million for a retractable roof.

In other news, the NFL draft was last weekend. The Vikings picked speedster WR Williamson, DE James, and RB Fason, among others. I now feel compelled to watch the Vikings again.

Clips

From the New York Times

At CSI: Wendy's, Tracking a Gruesome Discovery

China Looms as the World's Next Leading Auto Exporter

Report Backs Plan to Reduce Mercury Waste

From the Asian Times Online

Double trouble for Halliburton
Giant US corporation Halliburton is accused by the US State Department of "poor performance" in its US$1.2 billion contract to repair Iraq's southern oilfields. At the same time, Defense Department audits apparently show additional overcharges totaling $212 million were concealed from UN monitors by the Bush administration.

THE ROVING EYE
It's terror when we say so
Last year in its annual report, the US National Counterterrorism Center listed 175 "significant" terrorist attacks in 2003. This year, the report found a sharp increase to 624 such attacks for 2004. However, this figure will not be included when the report is officially released at the end of the month. Why? Ask Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. - Pepe Escobar

THE NEW AMERICAN MILITARISM
The normalization of war
In the first of two excerpts from his new book The New American Militarism, Andrew J Bacevich, a Vietnam veteran and self-described conservative, shows how the US view of war has evolved from that of a bloody, horrifying failure of diplomacy to something that is a good, glorious, necessary part of imposing and maintaining a morally superior world order.

Woe is the future

Maryland passed a bill that requires organizations with more than 10,000 employees to spend at least 8 percent of their payroll on health benefits - or put the money directly into the state's health program for the poor. Coincidentally, Wal-Mart is the only firm with more than 10,000 employees.

Md. Passes Rules on Wal-Mart Insurance

Americans continue to spend money on important things, such as the future...

Who Pays $600 for Jeans?

I don’t know anything about education, but I do know that No Child Left Behind is a great name.
Districts and Teachers' Union Sue Over Bush Law

GM and Ford are in trouble. Rover is dead.

Oil Companies Lose Effort to End Suits Over Contaminated Water
Re: methyl tertiary-butyl ether (the gasoline additive MTBE)

Alf is a pirate, but he has not been arrested

On the record, Alf was not arrested on piracy charges.

Although, with my imagination and the possibility of Alf's use of Mr. Thrash as a pseudonym, you make the call.

In Briefs

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi resigned.

In other news, Alf Hickey was arrested for piracy.
2 Americans Sentenced in DVD Piracy in China

Also, water from a whirligig.
Why pumping water is child's play

From the Onion:

* In the interim between Pope John Paul II's death and the election of his replacement, unsupervised Catholics seized the opportunity to sin without fear of reprisal, sources confirmed Tuesday.

* Dreamcatcher on rearview mirror protects sleeping driver.

JC Incarnate and Eggs Benedict

If I am the truth, the way, and the light, am I wrong?
Psst... Justice Scalia... You Know, You're an Activist Judge, Too

Cardinal Ratzinger is now Pope Benedict XVI. I don't know much about original Saint Benedict, but I know his first name was Eggs. I also know that I have the Benedictine Eucharist about once a month at a restaurant. Am I now eating the pope, am I receiving the pope in a spiritual manner, is it merely symbolic, or is it an act beyond human comprehension. Transubstantiation, spiritual presence, symbolism, or pious silence. The hollandaise is telling me pious silence.

And

In other news, Sylvester Stallone and Sugar Ray Leonard will be hosting a show designed to pick the next pope.

I forgot to mention to non-MN peoples that a casino has been proposed for the Mall of America.

Democracy prevailed as Amy Blenker won election to represent Ward 1 on the Rochester City Council.

Minneapolis

Previously, I talked about development in St. Paul. The Riverfront Corporation website and the St. Paul Department of Economic Development website are good references, especially the former. Also, a new project proposal has been unveiled for a site east of the Robert Street bridge.

Now it is time to talk about development in Minneapolis. Let’s start close to my house. There used to be an abandoned gas station on the corner of river road and Lake Street. Leaks from a former gas station at this site contaminated the soil and ground water. An Environmental Response Fund grant from the Hennepin County Department of Environmental Services was used to remove the contaminated soil and provide a vapor barrier for a multi-story mixed-used (commercial/residential) building called West River Commons, which provides space for the Longfellow Grill, Dunn Brothers coffee, a dry cleaner, Papa Murphy's take-and-bake pizza, and buena vista housing.

From here let’s continue northwest on river road toward downtown Minneapolis. Remember the railroad bridge that crosses the river between Lake Street and Franklin? Phase III of the Midtown Greenway construction will complete the conversion of rails to trails, leaving a continuous bike path from river road to Lake Calhoun and beyond. Marye and I biked the completed portion of the Midtown Greenway, which commences at Hiawatha and Lake Street (by the Green Institute).

While you are biking the Midtown Greenway, you will pass the second largest building in Minnesota, the old Sears building. Allina agreed to move into the abandoned monolith, sparking redevelopment in a project known as the Midtown Exchange. With Allina as the keystone, the site will feature office space, retail, loft-style condominiums, townhomes, rental apartments, and a hotel.

Anyway, let’s go back to the river road heading northwest into downtown. The riverfront has been developed north of the Washington bridge. A railroad track crossing the river has been converted to pedestrian bridge. Then we crest the hill and behold not the skyline, but all the development along the river by the stone arch bridge. Holy shit.

The new Guthrie Theater is looming in blue, featuring a bridge to nowhere, which juts out of the building and over the river road. It’s impressive. Next door we find the Mill City Museum topped by the Gold Medal Flour sign. Part of the mill was also converted to luxurious loft-style condominiums. The old Milwaukee Depot was renovated into an ice skating rink and hotel. There are a lot of nice lofts and apartment buildings too. If we continue further northwest along the river, we find ourselves in the warehouse district, which consists of lofts, lofts, lofts, apartments, lofts, and apartments. Wow, it’s nice.

There is still a good sense of history: Pillsbury, Grainbelt, Advance Thresher Co., Emerson-Newton Implements, Co., the Lumber Exchange, and the Vu.

The architecturally stunning downtown Minneapolis public library is under construction. Block E by the Target center is a nice mix of restaurants, retail, and entertainment. Target Corporation built a corporate high-rise and a store on Nicolet. Two grocery stores are planned for downtown. There is a lot of development scheduled to break ground by the convention center. The renewed Walker (by the sculpture garden) opened last weekend. There is an enormous Menards on University. And of course, the University of Minnesota keeps changing and building.

The Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development Department is a good reference.

Snap

I need to make this blog more personal. That means more talk about me. Me. Me. Me.
I am preparing for summer basketball with my intimate male partner - el Klinker. Yesterday I grabbed my basketball, mounted my road bike, and cycled over to the playground on 35th and 42nd. I was snapping the nylon, so much so that a weathered eyelet snapped off the rim. I pity you, eyelet. I think my deft touch is forever programmed into my neurons. Other things, however, are not so permanent. Take the vertical leap for example. During the fall of my junior year my vertical leap was measured at 29 and one half inches. Then I started running seriously. The spring of my senior year my vertical leap was a dismal 23 inches. Then I really started to run. Now my vertical leap is abysmal. So, I thought I should jump rope. I did. Then I did pull-ups on the tree. Three sets of eight. My goal is to be able to do twenty pull ups by September. Now is a good time to give encomium to monkeys. Monkeys, you impress me; I can't hang by one arm for more than fifteen seconds.

In the News This Morning

Minnesota state Senator Koering from Fort Ripley (near Brainerd) publicly announced that he has chosen to be gay, and has done so since high school.

Also in the news...

Television, unfortunately, is humanizing gays through parasocial contact.

The bare-chested Mac Pack graced the cover of the Villager.

Naked Suspects: No Laughing Matter

I received the following in an email from one of my previous coworkers. The article found its home in an official law enforcement publication. On a related note, tonight I will be running around St. Thomas with my willy hanging out...

II. NAKED SUSPECTS: NO LAUGHING MATTER

When you're dispatched to a call of a naked person out in public you'd
be like a lot of officers if you thought the matter was amusing.

But you'd probably be wrong-and in the worst of circumstances, dead wrong.

Dr. Bill Lewinski, executive director of the Force Science Research
Center at Minnesota State University-Mankato, has been tracking
encounters between officers and naked adults for more than 20 years.

"Every year or two, an officer is killed by a naked person," he says.
"If someone is naked in public and is not drunk, not making a radical
political or social protest, or not a paid professional like a
stripper, the chances are overwhelming that they're in the midst of a
full-blown psychotic episode. In the vernacular, they're really,
really crazy...and potentially very dangerous.

"The vast majority of police contacts with mentally ill subjects, of
course, are nonviolent. But naked people are among those categories
that are particularly difficult."

Lewinski, a behavioral scientist with a strong interest in mental
illness, became intrigued by this category of offender in the early
1980s after reading about an officer who was called to deal with a
naked man singing from atop a street sign. "Flip remarks that the
officer made back to his dispatcher indicated that he took the
incident as a joke," Lewinski recalls. "A lot of officers would
consider it humorous."

In a matter of moments, the subject was down off the sign and the
officer was in a fight for his life. His attempts at empty-hand
control were ineffective. When he drew his impact weapon, the suspect
grabbed it away and beat him with it. When he ran toward his patrol
car, the naked man pursued him, disarmed him of his gun and killed
him. "Things weren't so funny any more," Lewinski notes.

"Some of the most dangerous people cops run into are naked offenders.
They're usually beyond your ability to influence verbally. They have a
heightened capacity to resist OC, impact weapons, even a Taser.
Indeed, where Tasers have failed it is most often in circumstances
where the subject is severely emotionally disturbed and/or chemically
altered.

"If you don't acknowledge nakedness as a danger cue and approach the
situation with a strong officer-safety component, you are placing
yourself at great risk. More likely than not, these people are in a
delusional state and may perceive you as a threat to themselves."

Lewinski recommends a strong show of force at the outset by having
multiple officers respond. "The more officers you have present, the
safer the subject and the officers are likely to be. More officers
equal fewer injuries," assuming, of course, the cops are tactically
astute. If your agency has a mental health communications team, a
member of that unit ideally should be among the first to arrive.

"Stay away from the subject initially," Lewinski stresses. "Cops tend
to want to close distance, but people in the midst of a paranoid or
schizophrenic episode need greater space. Moving close puts you at
greater risk because it heightens their agitation and fear.

"Get some object or barrier between you and subject which can slow him
down and buy you time if an assault against you erupts."

Unless there is immediate danger, you'll want to attempt dialog,
although you will probably need an unconventional "intervention
strategy" in order to break through the subject's psychosis to a
better level of rationality.

"One of the simplest and most effective techniques was worked out at a
mental health facility in Michigan," Lewinski says. "If you're the
primary contact officer you let out a sudden, loud scream while
dramatically clapping your hands, creating a loud burst that causes
the naked person to focus on you. This may momentarily distract him
from his psychosis and snap him back to reality. You may then be able
to engage him in conversation, build rapport and coax him into
cooperation and compliance.

"The only chance this has of working, however, is if you can present a
calm face and gentle demeanor by the time the suspect focuses on you.
This change has to be immediate, so that by the time he looks at you
you appear placid and nonthreatening.

"This may not work. There are no guarantees. At best, it will open a
brief door for intervention, which may close again without warning."

Ultimately a use of force may be necessary. Gary Klugiewicz, a popular
DT trainer and a member of FSRC's National Advisory Board, teaches an
empty-hand control method called the Star Technique for controlling
EDPs. But this requires training, teamwork and practice and is not
currently available in most departments.

Given the high risk of injury with unpracticed group hands-on methods,
the unpredictability of aerosol and electronic weapons, the incapacity
for meaningful dialog characteristic of psychotics, and their known
capability for explosive violence, realize that deadly force may end
up being necessary.

"Although a happier outcome is hoped for," Lewinski says, "the mental
and physical preparation to use lethal force should be present in
these circumstances from the beginning."

(For a gripping account of how 2 officers dealt with a naked father
and his 3 naked children on a major thoroughfare in Kenosha, WI, one
morning last week, go to www.PoliceOne.com and click on the article,"
Officers Share Dramatic Details of Deadly Encounter With 300-lb. Naked
Ex-Con" in Chuck Remsberg's column area listed on the right side of
the front page. This report, based on an exclusive interview with one
of the officers involved, vividly illustrates the dangerousness and
unpredictability that Lewinski describes. It was written by Charles
Remsberg, a member of FSRC's National Advisory Board.)

The Man Date

Klinker, I also read the man date article yesterday. I was going to post about it, but I didn't have much time. And I don't right now either. So here's the best I have:

The Man Date

man date = rendezvous between two straight men

It's the male version of girls getting together for girly one-on-one talks.
It's beyond male bonding, it's male intimacy - or as some like to say, homoerotic.

Man Date Criteria
* No bars
* No televisions
* No sports
* No beer
* No physical activity, such as running, golfing, etc.
* No simply prepared animal meat
* No sitting apart at the movies
* No mention of the Huskers

So what can you do.
Stroll, emote, talk about feelings, discuss art.
Go to a restaurant featuring: wine, cheese, candles, string quartets.

I'm sure each list can be extended.

I just want to be myself, and I am incredibly manly.

Trivia

It's time for a game I call: Who Introduced This Minnesota Bill

SF2184

Search for it

A bill for an act relating to health...

Author's home: placid H2O

Any guesses?

The Treasury

Recently, I was imagining a Venn diagram of freedom, justice, and democracy.

In other news, I found a great read, the Report on Foreign Portfolio Holdings of U.S. Securities as of June 30, 2003, published August 2004.

From the report... Foreign Holdings by Country

Japan: 771
United Kingdom: 390
Luxembourg: 297
Canada: 260
China, P.R.C.: 255
Belgium: 242
Cayman Islands: 242
Switzerland: 180
Netherlands: 163
Germany: 154
Country unknown: 388
Rest of world: 1,637

Before you write a letter to Mr. President expressing your desire to invade the rogue states and nuclear outlaws such as Luxembourg, consider that England, Luxembourg, Belgium, Switzerland, and the Cayman Islands are financial centers in which substantial amounts of securities owned by residents of other countries are held in custody.

I have been shopping at Whole Foods since the middle of 2002, and by shopping I mean buying viands, not stocks.

Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFMI)
Beginning of 2000 - <$20
July 2003 - $46
April 2005 - $100

Wow. Overpriced? You would think.

Now it's time for a boring read about U.S. Treasury products. Most foreign central banks buy treasury notes.

Treasury Products
1. Treasury Bills
2. Treasury Notes
3. TIPS
4. Treasury Bonds
5. I Bonds
6. EE/E Bonds
7. HH/H Bonds

1. Treasury bills, or T-Bills, are short-term securities, usually 13 or 26 weeks.

2. Treasury notes, sometimes called T-Notes, earn and pay a fixed rate of interest every six months until maturity. Fixed-principal notes are issued in terms of 2, 3, 5, and 10 years.

3. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS, guard your savings from inflation. TIPS pay a fixed rate of interest. The value of the principal of a TIPS is adjusted semiannually, based on changes in the Consumer Price Index. The interest rate is applied to the inflation-adjusted principal, not the original face value. So, if inflation occurs throughout the life of your security, every interest payment will be greater than the one before it. The converse is true however, in the event of deflation. Upon maturity, Treasury will pay the greater of either the inflation-adjusted principal or the original face value. TIPS are issued in terms of 5, 10, and 20 years.

4. The Treasury Department stopped issuing fixed-principal Treasury bonds, sometimes called T-Bonds, in October 2001. Nonetheless, many are still unredeemed and earning interest, with a significant number of years remaining until maturity. Treasury bonds earn and pay a fixed rate of interest every six months until they mature. Bonds are a long-term investment, maturing in up to 30 years.

5. I Bonds are a low-risk, liquid savings product. While you own them they earn interest and protect you from inflation.

6. Series EE savings bonds are safe, low-risk savings products that pay interest based on current market rates for up to 30 years - series EE bonds purchased May 2005 and after will earn a fixed rate of return.

7. Unlike EE bonds, HH bonds are current-income securities. You paid face value, and receive interest payments by direct deposit to your checking or savings account every 6 months until maturity or redemption.

Senator Cornyn Made Me Do It

First, I read an editorial in the New York Times.

The Judges Made Them Do It
Senator Cornyn (who puts the sin in insinuate) made remarks insinuating recent courthouse violence is linked to frustration with decisions by activist judges. You reap what you sow, beeatch.

Then, I wondered what Senator Cornyn really said. At Thomas, you can browse the congressional record and read transcripts from speeches given on the floor.

You can find the tour de force here. Insinuating, paraphrasing, and tantamounting – all are important to tub-thumping, rhetorical, demagoguery. Seriously, this is impressive.
Now, I will paraphrase.

Senator Cornyn Says

Good
* Executing the mentally retarded
* Executing juveniles
* Murdering activist judges
* Judicial interpretation and application of the law, as opposed to creating law
* American people

Bad
* Sodomy
* Evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society
* European human rights laws
* Outsourcing American law – the disconcerting tendency to rely on the laws of foreign governments and treaties in the application and enforcement of U.S. law

I thought of two more categories:

Very Good
* Capital punishment

Very, Very Bad
* Sodomy

More paraphrasing…

America is rapidly approaching a day when foreign governments make decisions about our economic policy, foreign policy, and domestic security. Activist judges are undermining the sovereignty of the United States of America by attempting to further a liberal political and ideological agenda. Did we not fight a War of Independence to free ourselves from subjugation to foreign governments. Do we not still value a democracy of the people, by the people, and for the people. I’m afraid of what I see in Federal courts. I see radical legal elites who disrespect our constitutional democracy, disrespect the American people, and disrespect of America itself.

Senator Cornyn goes on to say he respects judges. He even respects international law when treaties are ratified by Congress, the great treaty ratifier.

The following day after Senator Cornyn spoke so contemptuously, he felt a need to quench any criticism and insinuations about his insinuations.

Bullet points from his follow-up speech:

* There is no possible justification for courthouse violence

* There is no evidence linking recent acts of courthouse violence to the various controversial rulings

* The judicial confirmation process is broken

* Rhetoric about the judiciary and about judicial nominees must be toned down.

Hmmm.

Democracy Hates Freedom

It's time for a little segment I like to call "Democracy in Action."

Minnesota State Constitutional Amendments Considered
1865 - Amendment to authorize Negroes to vote - Rejected
1867 - Amendment to authorize Negroes to vote - Rejected
1868 - Amendment to authorize Negroes to vote - Accepted

What can we learn from this?
a) Democracy wins out in the end.
b) Freedom wins out in the end.
c) The bible was amended between 1867 and 1868.

A. Democracy did not win in the end, democracy won every single time.

B. Freedom won, but it also lost. That leaves freedom at .500. African Americans gained the right to vote, which is freedom. However, bigots lost the freedom to oppress African Americans, a resounding loss of freedom.

C. Ephesians 6: 5-8 still says "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free." And that's in the New Testament.

So, what have we learned. Personally, I have learned that it is a good idea to let the hoi polloi vote on minority rights.

Illegal Immigrants Are Bolstering Social Security With Billions
I don't believe it. Illegal immigrants are evil. Sometimes, I don't know who to blame more, illegal immigrants or gays… actually, I do know who to blame: illegal gay immigrants. If I were a lawmaker, then I would hold business liable for hiring illegal immigrants by allowing any third party in the United States to sue those businesses for damages, which would be summed using my red, white, and blue calculator.

Satellite Radio Takes Off, Altering the Airwaves
XM and Sirius are the two big satellite radio companies. Comedy (Chris Rock) is very popular. Howard Stern will be heard. XM radio will broadcast every Major League Baseball game. Traditional radio, Clear Channel and Infinity, are taking notice, reducing commercials, increasing variety, crying.

Google Feature Incorporates Satellite Maps
Not impressive compared to GIS images. The county has color aerial photos with six inch resolution. And they took the photos when there were not leaves on the trees or snow on the ground.

I had looked at TerraServer-USA before. Images are in black and white.

Smoking, April Fools, Trade Deficit

Minnesota News

Yesterday, smoking bans went “into effect in several cities and counties in the Twin Cities area, namely: Ramsey County (including the City of St. Paul), Hennepin County, the City of Minneapolis, the City of Bloomington and the City of Golden Valley. Each ordinance differs in the range of facilities required to be smoke-free. However, they all have provisions for smoke-free restaurants, some bars, and in some cases cover outdoor smoking as well.”

On the record, I am against the smoking ban.

In other news, the SuperAmerica by our house is selling gas for $2.19/gallon.

Funny

An Old Baseball April Fools' Hoax
Sidd Finch, almost the greatest pitcher ever.

Very Interesting

Trade war: US vs the rest of the world

The article from the Asian Times Online refers to the 2004 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers from the Office of the United States Trade Representative.

“The 2004 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (NTE) is the nineteenth in an annual series that surveys significant foreign barriers to U.S. exports. The report provides, where feasible, quantitative estimates of the impact of these foreign practices on the value of U.S. exports. Information is also included on actions taken to eliminate barriers.”

The report is fascinating. It has a pdf report on every with whom we have beef, including Bolivia, China, European Union, Ghana, Japan, Norway, and Peru. I should try to find similar reports about United States trade barriers.

If you don’t have time to read all these reports, let me summarize: gays are responsible for the colossal U.S. trade deficit.

Discursive Post

In the Competition for DVD Rentals by Mail, Two Empire Strike Back

Netflix is the original gangsta. Currently, Netflix has 30 distribution centers, 3 million members, 40,000 movie titles, and a price tag of $18. A forceful Blockbuster and lagging Wal-Mart have entered the foray. Blockbuster can offer rental coupons to Blockbuster stores and turn stores into distribution centers.

Wal-Mart kicks ass. Wal-Mart sells groceries and gas. Wal-Mart also cashes payroll checks, wires money, prints money orders, and pays utility bills – all for around 80% less than banks. What will Wal-Mart do next? Wal-Mart should sell cars. Some involvement in human trafficking would be sweet too.

I read in the Longfellow Messenger that the construction of a parking garage costs about $10,000 per parking space.

The city of Minneapolis is separating the stormwater fee from the sewer, water, and solid waste bill. The stormwater fee will be reevaluated as a function of impermeable surface on your property. One business owner's costs rose from $80/month to $740/month. Wow, that's a lot of money, but do you expect me to subsidize your parking lot and its impact on the environment. Are you a communist. How about a little personal responsibility.

The president of the University of Minnesota is proposing changes to the institution. I don't feel like talking about the proposals and I don't have a link.

The budget for the University of Minnesota is $2.5 billion.

U of M Revenue Sources
26% state of Minnesota
20% sponsored research
19% tuition and fees
the rest comes from various sources

Oil for food: A hell of a scandal
By the time the final Volcker report is released, the US will be implicated.

Europe has endorsed the nomination of Paul Wolfowitz for the post of World Bank president.

Also, I think I forgot to mention Bolivian lawmakers rejected the resignation of President Carlos Mesa.

Visual of the day, from Nate:
Terri Schiavo is (was) an adult-sized fetus.

Boy Scouts, Child Pornography, and Gaia

Boy Scouts Executive Surrenders in Fort Worth on a Child Pornography Charge

Doug Smith is expected to plead guilty to a federal charge of receiving and distributing child pornography on the internet. "The investigation [which caught Mr. Smith] had been carried out under Operation Predator, an initiative announced in 2003 by the Department of Homeland Security 'to protect children from pornographers, child prostitution rings, Internet predators, alien smugglers, human traffickers and other criminals.'" Mr. Smith's lawyer said "[Mr. Smith] is not taking this well. I've got to tell you, this is a good man and I would hate to see the entirety of his life and the good things he's done defined by one incident."

Hmmm, Mr. Smith is a good man. Mr. Smith’s actions are contrary to my expectations of a good man. Therefore, in my eyes Mr. Smith is also a bad man. So, Mr. Smith is a good-bad man. I should probably find that unsettling and my binary brain should start smoking and resign nonplussed. I have always been fascinated with people's conceptions of good and evil, right and wrong, just and unjust, moral and amoral. In addition, I have been fascinated with people's inability or unwillingness to accept or reconcile contradiction, paradox, the Steppenwolf. Jude, help me out.

Study highlights global decline

What will happen when China per capita consumes as much as the United States?
What will happen when India per capita consumes as much as the United States?

I think I will be alive to see humanity grow old and ugly.

It's possible that sustainability is the most important issue to me. I realize sustainability is a broad category, encompassing issues such as overpopulation, aka the cancer of fecundity. Human rights is second. But who cares about human rights when commodities are scarce.

Analyze This

I was talking to my parents yesterday and my Mom informed me that she did a search for me on the internet to see what she could find. She found a lot of race results, of course. She also found the blogs of Alf and Aaron. There was no mention of finding a link to my blog, which is good, because depending on who you are, you could view my blog as scatologic and perhaps even pornographic impropriety.

Somewhere in Nebraska 267 acres were sold for $2900 an acre.

About Acres

“An acre is a measure of land area in Imperial units or U.S. customary units. It is equal to 43,560 square feet, or 4,840 square yards. The precise meaning of this depends on the exact definition adopted for a foot: the international acre is 4,046.856 433 4 m² (for the UK, see [1] (http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1995/Uksi_19951804_en_2.htm)). For measurements based specifically on the US survey foot the US survey acre is ca. 4,046.872 610 m².

An area of land one furlong (220 yards) long and one chain (22 yards) wide or a square with about 208¾ feet on each side has an area of one acre. A square mile has 640 acres, and a square parcel of land ¼ mile wide has 40 acres. A square parcel of land ½ mile on a side (¼ square mile) is 160 acres, the usual land tract under the Homestead Act in the United States. This results in common field lengths of ½ mile, with every rod in width equal to one acre.

In metric units, an acre is approximately 0.4047 hectare; to a good enough approximation for many purposes, it can be taken as 0.40 hectare or 4.0 km²/1000 acres. Conversely, a hectare is about 2.5 acres (2.471 acres).

The acre was selected as approximately the amount of land tillable by one man behind an ox in one day. This explains its definition in terms of the non-square one-chain by one-furlong parcel of land; a long narrow strip of land is more efficient to plough than a square plot, since the plough does not have to be turned so often.

An acre-foot is a measure of volume used to measure large volumes of water, an acre-foot being the volume necessary to cover one acre to a depth of one foot, 43,560 cubic feet (1233.5 cubic meters or 325 850 U.S. gallons). The volume of a reservoir may be measured in acre feet, for example. The acre-inch (102.79 m³, 27 154 U.S. gal) is also used.”