Not another fucking blog.

I'd like to stand on a fucking pretentious soapbox and tell you how my blog will be unique. Truth is.. this is going to be like every other fucking blog on the planet.

I will give mundane details about my day.
I will complain about how the barista at Starbucks looked at me the wrong way.
I will write bad poetry about how girls fuck with my head and make me cry.
I will bitch about how fucking stupid George W. Bush is.
I will steal content from other blogs and pass it off as my own.

So why do it then? Because I had a little drinky the other day and it calmed my nerves and made me see things clearly. I described it as being "Sober on Rye" and I thought that was a cool concept.

So this blog is just for me to talk about shit in a way that maybe makes me see things a little more clearly. And maybe, just maybe, some fuckwad will read this and pour themselves a drink.

Jews for Justice for Palestinians. Posted April 27, 2004

(NB: This was the last of a series of articles I wrote that got me really frustrated. So much so, I stopped blogging. The neoconservative wars, the bias and double standards really got to me. I'm the kind of person who likes to know what is going on in the world and I really didn't like what I was seeing. Every couple days I would read a new article on the subject but I had to stop myself from posting about it because the blog was turning bitter. It stopped being fun. I reposted a few selected articles I thought best explained my positions on various issues.)

Jews for Justice for Palestinians: "There appears now to be a concerted attempt to destroy the Palestinians as a people."

Why does an organization like this need to exist? Why not just "Justice for Palestinians?" These Jewish people want everyone to know that it's not Jews killing Palestinians, it's Israel killing Palestinians.

Ghost Town. Posted April 27, 2004

GHOST TOWN: "beginning of a story about a town that one can ride through with no stoplights, no police and no danger of hitting any living thing. "

This is a fascinating read. Elena has a camera, a kawasaki ninja, and a government-issued pass to Chernobyl.

Why won't anyone say they are Jewish? Posted April 7, 2004

Please read this carefully.

American neoconservatives are currently one of the most influencial groups in the world. They have directed American foreign policy since 9/11, including the two wars. American foreign policy in the past couple years has been heavily in favour of Israel and has consequently fanned the flame of anti-Americanism around the world. It may not surprise you that the majority of the top neocons are affluent white men. What may surprise you is that 26 of the alleged top (most influencial) 50 neocons are Jewish. In other words, the majority of the most influencial people in the most influencial group who have sent American soldiers into two wars against enemies of Israel are Jewish.

Adbusters took a lot of heat for the article they published on the topic. Kalle Lasn, Adbusters' editor, responded to critics accusing him of anti-Semitism by asking the question, "If half the neocons were Palestinians, would the US have invaded Iraq?"

Reading through readers' responses I particularly liked this one....

First of all, I'm Jewish. I commend you for your courage in raising the question but, unfortunately, no criticism of anything related to Jews is allowed in the United States. The blanket charge of anti-Semitism is a real conversation stopper because it implies that you have an irrational hatred for Jews so your ideas do not need to be discussed. The word terrorism functions the same way. When the foolish few attempted to suggest, after 9/11, that perhaps we were attacked because of our support for Israel, the administration and the molders of public opinion were quick to say, "It has nothing to do with Israel, they hate us for our way of life." End of discussion. It's an act of terrorism = irrational = no need to discuss or understand its motivations. Why? Because any discussion of terrorism leads back to our support for Israel and that cannot be questioned because ... only a an anti-Semite would question it. Go chase your tail.

There is a wonderful line in the movie Exodus, based on the Leon Uris novel about the founding of the State of Israel, where the head of the Haganah (a Jewish terrorist group) says, "Terrorism is the handmaiden of liberty." We don't talk about Jewish terrorism anymore because that would confuse the docile masses. In any event, it is obvious that one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. It was not that long ago that Jerry Adams, the head of the so-called "political wing" of the IRA, openly raised money in the United States and was a guest in the White House. Why? Because the Irish have more political clout than the Arabs.

But back to the case at hand. The Jews and the State of Israel have become untouchable subjects. Not to mention the fact that the US government has been commandeered by a small group of extremists who want to help the State of Israel at all costs. Al-Qaeda hijacked a couple of planes and flew them into the World Trade Center, the neocons hijacked the country and flew it into Iraq. I gotta go.
- Dov Prombaum
Naperville, IL

You said it my brother!

Now I don't think Lasn is suggesting there is a cabalist conspiracy or that the Jewish Illuminati have taken over the United States... I think he was making a controversial statement to shed light on these neocons who have been advocating the same policies since Reagan and who have finally been able to "hijack" the US because of 9/11. Just what are they up to, Jewish or otherwise?

We know Bush and Blair lied and/or were lied to about WMD and connections to al-Qaeda.

We know Israelis - some of whom were allegedly "former" Mossad agents and suspect they were all active agents -- filmed the WTC attacks (hmm, how'd they know to have the camera ready?) from atop their van. They were seen jumping up and down rejoicing at the sight of the towers burning. There is evidence to suggest that Mossad may have tried to set up a fake al Qaeda cell in Palestine. There are also rumours of Mossad agents posing as art students or setting up moving companies in the US... reportedly these cells have been "caught" with blueprints of federal buildings and in other suspicious circumstances.

Now I'll be the first to say there are other likely explanations for the above or that they may be completely false.... but what if....?

Rachel Corrie Murder. Posted April 5, 2004

Warning! The page linked to below contains very graphic photographs of the murder of Rachel Corrie on March 16, 2003. If these are real.... very disturbing.

ei: Photostory: Israeli bulldozer driver murders American peace activist: "The photos below clearly show that Rachel was well marked, had a megaphone which removes any doubt that the activists' presence was somehow invisible to the driver, and she clearly posed no threat to the bulldozer driver."

Makes me sick.

Bush's Popularity: The S Factor. Posted January 8, 2004

The S factor explains Bush's popularity: "Some people -- sometimes through no fault of their own -- are just not very bright."

Whether people are stupid or they just don't care I don't know. I don't agree that results of an intelligence test should determine whether someone can vote or not. How about a general politics test?

Our country was formed in:
a) 1776
b) 1982
c) 1867
d) 1767

Or something similar to the citizenship test.

Our official head of state is:
a) Jean Chretien
b) Adrienne Clarkson
c) Queen Elizabeth II
d) Paul Martin

Canada has ___ provinces and territories.
a) 10
b) 11
c) 12
d) 13

Oh while we're at it, why not identify the bigots.

The principle diety of Islam is:
a) Osama bin Laden
b) Kareem Abdul Jabar
c) Farooq
d) Allah

Muslims can be best described as:
a) Crustaeceans that attach themselves to the bottoms of ships.
b) Followers of Islam.
c) Towel-headed camel jockeys. Assholes.
d) No good satanists who want to blow shit up for no good reason.

On the subject of gay marriage I best identify with the following quote.
a) "Gay marriage should be between a man and a woman." - Ahnold
b) "Can I bum a fag?" - Any Brit
c) "It's a sensitive issue on both sides." - Some guy.
d) "Burn in hell fudge packers." - Another guy.

Now lets have some fun with them.

What hasn't been said about democracy?
a) "Democracy is the rule of special interest groups" - Plato
b) "God wants me to be President of the United States" - GW Bush
c) "It is rediculous that two fools should have more of a say than one wise man" - Adolf Hitler
d) All have been said.

If you get one wrong you don't vote.

Web Search. Posted January 6, 2004

Yahoo! drops Google, Google goes public, and Microsoft has entered the building.

Microsoft's Search Domination Strategy: "What if Microsoft built an XML-based (.NET) indexing service into a future release of IIS, and/or released a .NET indexing service for current releases? "

I'm scared Sarge.

It's a scary thought. Microsoft has been taking a beating in the server market, with IIS dropping to hold only 20 per cent of the server market. But if this guy is right, 20 per cent is more than enough. Imagine a world without Googlebot. Imagine a Web so interconnected a search on it would index up to-the-minute pages. This may be possible soon... at least for Sites on servers running IIS. IIS-hosted sites may be seamlessly integrated with what Microsoft may be coming out with... this would mean 20 per cent (IIS market share) of the internet would be automatically updated in Microsofts search engine. By comparison... Google doesn't even index 10 per cent of sites on the Net.

Go public fast Google. And they seem to be. This is possibly the most anticipated tech IPO since Netscape back in 1995 and may be the key to marking a recovered tech sector. Depending on who is talking, Google may end up valued at anywhere from $4-Billion to $14-Billion. I can't even imagine a billion dollars.

And if anyone cared, Yahoo! will soon be dropping Google as the primary search provider in favour of their own technology (Inktomi, I believe.) Yahoo! can suck a horse's ass for all I care but maybe this will help give their sites some speed and reliability.

If I were to design a search engine... or at least the search interface.. I would allow a user to register and select a number of trusted sites (to be weighed higher) and/or a number of sites to ignore (to be... ignored.) The more people signed up.. we could eventually make some kind of aggregate of trusted sources and allow users to search only on "the most trusted sites."

I need a job where I get paid to come up with ideas all day. I have a crazy idea every day.

Going to the hockey game now. Bye

Where is my gnome? Posted January 6, 2004

This www.whereismygnome.com Web site looks to be a cute little attempt at some cyber campaigning for some Joe Blow to get his garden gnome back. In reality it is part of a $80-million ad campaign for Travelocity, an online travel company. Is everything is an ad these days?
Buy Coke

P2P vs RIAA. Posted December 30, 2003

What a Crappy Present

Site suggesting RIAA-affiliated CDs are bad gifts. This site was done by the people at downhillbattle.org.

P2P and MP3 are here to stay. I've been saying for years that it's up to the major record labels to adapt to the times and only that will stop illegal music swapping. I thought iTunes was a step in the right direction but I was wrong. Musicians only get pennies per song and they may never see it because of money they owe their label. The industry is fucked. Anyway.. the folks at downhillbattle.org make some interesting suggestions on how to fix everything and mostly the suggestion is to get rid of the record labels.

Another suggestion...

musiclink.com, a site helping you pay artists directly after downloading their music.

If you know me, you probably know that the P2P/RIAA issue is important to me. I believe the industry is anachronistic and exists solely to continue its existance. It isn't needed. The internet has made record stores (amung other things) nearly obsolete yet they are still around. The recording industry isn't flocking to the internet because the profit margins just aren't the same as with physical CD sales. A much better system is in reach but the major labels have little to gain so they will put all their resources into lawsuits, ad campaigns, government lobbying, etc. to ensure that their status isn't threatened. I'm not sure what that is but I'm pretty sure it isn't the capitalism that Adam Smith envisioned.

The RIAA and its members are going down and all it will take is for someone to build a better system.

Googlewhack. Posted December 23, 2003

Googlewhacking: The Search for The One True Googlewhack

Go to google.com, type in any two words without quotes. If you get one and only one result you have yourself a Googlewhack! Didn't take me too long to find zingiberaceae crosscheck. Zingiberaceae are perennial herbs mostly with creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes comprising about 47 genera and 1,000 species. Ok, ok... I didn't know that word but turmeric comes from curcuma which is a zingiberaceae. Or something. Er... it's the ginger family.


Roar.

Some more of our gingerbread cookies...

China court awards bio-chemical weapons to 24 year old. Posted December 19, 2003

Online Gamer in China Sues, Wins Over Virtual Theft

In short... some guy spent over $1000 playing an online game but had his account hacked. The hacker stole the guy's video game character's equipment. The guy freaked out, went to the video game company and complained to no avail. So the guy went to court and won. The judge ordered the equipment, including a virtual cache of bio-chemical weapons, returned to its proper owner.

Saddam caught. Posted December 17, 2003

Oh did you hear they captured Saddam?


"Nope, no WMD in here either."

The race is on to see who plays Saddam in the upcoming film.



Anthony Hopkins appears to have a slight lead over Sir Sean Connery.

Trip review. Posted August 5, 2003

Well the bus won the coin tosses by a combined score of 5-1 which meant we were going to the bus station. We got there at about 9:05 p.m. and the next bus - at 10 - was to the Paris of the Americas... Montreal. Here today to help me describe the experience is Vanessa. We'll describe everything in exquisite detail and you'll feel like you were there with us. Here goes...

Bus #1010. (1010 in binary is 10 in decimal.. curious)

Top 4 bus moments:
- the guy who tried to break Tao's legs
- the guy with loud motion sickness
- Trees Lounge
- Getting 100 per cent in the random radio station game

I'll take lodging for 200 Alex.
A: This hotel features a large number of mirrors, care staff that care a bit too much, and concierges that were on to us from the moment we arrived.
Q: What is the Taj Mahal?

Actually we were lucky to have found as cool a hotel as we discovered - by roaming the red light district - that it was Pride weekend. The GAYDAR was on overload... it was great. And we don't mean to suggest the red light district is full of deviants - just that we ended up in the red light district and it was full of deviants.

Kudos for being the only straight people at the Taj. Curiously, it appeared as though all the bibles had been removed from the rooms. We spent a good two minutes looking for ours to no avail.

SLEEP

Our breakfast was better than yours.

Where didn't we walk that day?

During breakfast Vanessa drew us a random map with our route for the afternoon. This was it.



As you can see, we decided to switch gears and write ourselves directions instead.



It took us to the St Lawrence River right across from the amusement park. Not wanting to swim we walked back towards downtown. From there we wandered:
- Vieux Montreal (Old Montreal) made us feel like we were in Europe.
- The really bored girl driving the horse-drawn carriage.
- Visiting two churches. We caught part of the homily at one and figured it made up for being sans-bible.
- Playboy makes shoes?
- Seven deadly sins: Great theme for a mini-mini mall.
- Lots of people on to us.
- Montreal pedestrians are as bad as Montreal drivers.
- Winos with wicked mini bars camped outside St Patrick Basilica.
- And, always, no matter where we went -- men with tight pants and no shirt.

Best described in pictures parte deux... the conversation I had with the hotel receptionist while she was on the phone:



The write down what you want to do for dinner game. Same result -- take out Geisha Sushi.
("It tastes... intriguing." "Intriguing good or intriguing bad?" "Just... intriguing.")

Some things can't be smoothed over.

SLEEP

PCC

Getting revenge on the cleaning staff who tried to break in before checkout time! Right off her cart we took what we thought would be an elaborately embroidered sheet... like we had in our room. Turned out to be just a plain sheet... but still... REVENGE!

We headed off to the bus station to put our stuff in a locker for the day. Of course there were no lockers available but we got a token anyway. A few lockers became available but people were being tricky and stealing them before we could get to them. We put on an innocent face when we did the same thing to some poor old lady. Oh well.. we were there first.

Then breakfast at this sweet cafe on Ste Denis. Cutest server ever... picture Amelie if she were outgoing.

Ste Laurent & Ste Denis
- more guys with tight pants (if any!!!) and no shirt
- specific guy with tight pants and no shirt: (to Tao) "You're really lucky" "How's that?" "Look at this human being beside you." We ran. Once out of earshot I asked "wasn't he gay?"
- Chess & Math store. The clerk was not impressed with much if anything.
- "Mona Lisait" (love the haircut!)
- "Excuse me Mr Straight Man, but if you keep staring at the guy in the leather G string (sans shirt, avec whip,) people will think you're gay."
- Tresors d'Autrefois - scariest store ever. The aisle was three inches wide at the floor. Even had stuff in and old bathroom. I sneezed like a madman and we found the clerks beer. Had to dust ourselves off when we left.

Dinner at the Bombay Restaurant. We sat underneath a staircase outside and ate while watching the rain.
"Did you actually pay him?"
"Do you think I paid him?"
"ummm.... yes?"
"Then I paid him."

Back to the breakfast cafe to pick up dessert for the bus ride. Same server as before. She remembered us and was once again on to us.. but she was real sweet about it.

Bus station match #1 (Tao vs Scary Nazi Security Guard)
SNSG: "blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah!"
Tao shrugged and stuck his arms out thinking he was about to be frisked
SNSG: "Where exactly are you going inside?"
Tao: "... ... ... Ottawa?"
SNSG: "... ... ... ... ... ... ... oh ... ... ... ok."

Bus back
- lucky to find seats together
- listening to couple behind us argue
- not so much eating the cake as smearing it all over the box it came in
- great view (2nd row) for a wicked light show with the storm. (God found out about Pride?)
- Ottawa = miserable

"Great minds dress like jackasses!"

Same page... great trip... copping out... coming clean... c'est ca.

Pre-trip jitters: Posted August 1, 2003

Here's what Vanessa and I are doing:

Sometime today we were independently supposed to flip three coins. Heads is a vote for the bus, tails is a vote for the train... at least that's how I did it. When we get together tonight we're compiling results and hopefully we'll have a decisive winner. What she doesn't know just yet is that I got three heads which means in all probability we're taking the bus. Whenever we're ready tonight we're heading to the bus (it would seem) station and taking the next departing bus. We could be in Toronto, Quebec City or Montreal... maybe Cornwall, Timmins, North Bay, Sudbury, Hamilton or even New York.. you get the idea. We have no idea what we're going to do when we get there... where we're going to stay... etc.. no idea at all and that's what's going to make this the funnest™ trip ever. We aim to be back Monday morning.

Some other stuff... I'll have to double check the details so I can post them here but, astrologically speaking, I'm in a rather unique situation. Something about planets being aligned in a triangle... it's rare and it's very good. Curious!

Saw two horses today on my way home from work.

I also got my early birthday present from my mom! Thanks!!! As if my mom reads my blog...

I feel like I'm living in a novel. I said this yesterday and it was understood. Refreshing.

I'm your father. Posted May 6, 2003, 9:30 p.m.

Still at work. Nothing unusual. Will be better next week. Just went to pick up some dinner at the gas station. An Apple Cinnamon Gatorade Energy Bar and a 20 Oz. Jolt. 1080kj of energy (would that be a gigajoule?) and 198 PPM of caffeine. I'm getting wired just thinking about it.

Last night I had a weird chat with some guy in a Yahoo! Chess room. We started about god(s) and he started freaking out. Apparantly he caught some vibes off me or something. He then started playing the psychic. It started with vague things like being confused that anyone could relate to. Then he said something specific and random that fit pretty well though I think he thought it was more significant than it was. Then he mentioned how I'd lost a girl. Well what guy in a Yahoo! Chess room on a Monday night hasn't? Blond he said. That could have be referring to half a dozen people I told him. Nothing significant that wouldn't also apply to 80% of the population. In true Tao style I was non-commital in my answers and tried to get him to tell me more about this lost girl of mine. My daughter he said. To my protests he insisted that I had a young daughter... LOL... Wouldn't take no for an answer. She's an angel he said and she loves me so I guess that's what matters. So there you have it folks, I'm a proud papa. Cigars all around.


I have a daughter according to
my new psychic friend on Yahoo.
A blond. Sure hope she doesn't
look like this.

An infinite number of monkeys... Posted May 2003

There is an oft quoted theory about monkeys. Take an infinite number of them... give them typewriters... and eventually they will produce the complete works of William Shakespeare. Of course most consider this a mere thought experiment but others look at it a little differently. Researchers at Plymouth University in England even reported on an experiment (intended more as performance art than a scientific study) done at Paignton Zoo in southwest England using six Sulawesi crested macaques. Relatives of course of TSN's Maggie the Monkey who predicted Anaheim's cup run. So yeah, these monkeys smashed their computer and typed quite a few "S"'s. Nothing that could even be remotely compared to Shakespeare. Big deal.

This live experiment, as the thought experiment, is completely foolish. First of all there's the whole matter of infinity. It's just as incomprehensible a notion as a creator. Both require faith and a certain state of mind. If you understand and accept infinity, you'll see that given an infinite amount of time, anything possible can happen. That is the nature of infinity. That something ordered happened to come about shouldn't come as a surprise. All infinity and probability need is one group of particles to come together in a stable manner. Infinity and probability can then exert their influence on this new stable grouping. Probability says this stable grouping may be built upon, destroyed (infinity then says, but it can be made again,) or stay the same. Infinity says all three happen. And so on... and so on... and so on. At least that's how it could have happened. Many questions are left unanswered (as of yet) because we're only human and have a limited understanding to work with. It's quite likely we're even barking up the wrong tree.

A creator tells infinity, probability, and the monkeys where to stick their typewriters. A creator explains everything in a neat little package. If you understand and accept a creator, you don't have to worry what science thinks. Of course there are scientists and academics who believe in a creator. They have a wealth of evidence to justify their beliefs. They write and sell books and make their money like anyone else on the secular side of academia. A theory as complete and simple and all encompassing like this is hard to dispute as the simplest theory is often the correct one.

So which is it?

If it is as cut and dry as both sides claim there wouldn't be two sides right? Richard Dawkin's rant against the "god-meme" in The Selfish Gene was pure anger. It even made me (a huge Trailer Park Boys fan) blush beet red. And how theists managed to put the onus on disproving god is beyond me. It's conveniently impossible to do.

We may never be able to understand how the universe came to be. Scientists, scholars, theologians and academics throughout history have tried to describe the world we live in and failed miserably. The earth is flat. The sun revolves around the earth. All those used to be considered fact. They were, like our "facts" now, based on what we could observe. We've learned a lot since we thought the earth was flat. What we learned expanded our sphere of knowledge. New tools allowed us to see more. Invariably new "facts" replace old "facts." Why does anyone ever think they know enough to make a definitive statement? The answer to that question is faith. It's what you believe.

Where does this leave our beloved monkeys and their literary aspirations?

An infinite number of monkeys have been given an infinite number of typewriters and already have completed the entire works of William Shakespeare. Actually it was all done by one monkey. His name was William Shakespeare... and I'm pretty sure he believed in a creator. The monkeys love the irony of it all.

Last Days? Posted June 4, 2003

Forty per cent of Americans believe that these are the last days before Christ's return. It makes sense. The forty (that number again) jubilees (50 years) of the Sign of Jonah are up in 2027 which means that "every rule and every authority and every religious system of this world is destroyed." There are two popes left on Malachy's list. They are named From the Glory of the Olive and simply Peter the Roman. After that comes the Terrible Judge. Oh-oh spaghetti-o. Can you say "double barreled shitgun?" Isn't it a great time to be alive?

Gay Marriage: Posted June 14, 2003

(NB: This was in response to a post on another blog saying by accepting gay marriage we would open pandora's box and promote deviant behaviour of all kinds. The original post also heavily relied on religious issues which is why God was brought up a number of times in my response below.)

So a man and another man can elope. Good for them. Will this end up normalizing "deviant" behaviours like necro-pedo-beastaphilia? Maybe. Do we have to worry? Apart from a few strange pieces of legislation, probably not. God takes care of what is right and wrong while evolution takes care of what works and what doesn't. Either way we've got it covered. Who cares what the government thinks or if you can get a piece of paper with your name on it.

If nothing else, this whole debate should serve to illustrate the problems with having written laws in the first place. Yeah these laws can mostly be traced back to Judeo-Christian laws but those in turn were basically extensions of the laws of nature -- what had worked for tens or hundreds of thousands of years. How out of touch with reality is humanity? So so-and-so can't "jump" so-and-so because of blah-blah-blah as opposed to well, we'll see what evolution has to say about that. We're so caught up in our own little world we can't see that evolution (or god for that matter) doesn't give a rats ass what our laws say... if it doesn't work we're gone. Poof. We're so far removed from that mentality that we may not even see disaster coming. We break so many laws of nature that the entire ecosystem may collapse. How are two brothers supposed to realize incestuous behaviour is not in their best interests?

Reading the above again, it may sound as though I'm suggesting that homosexuality is deviant behaviour that is against the laws of nature and will therefore lead to our downfall. That's not what I'm saying at all. Homosexuality is deviant behaviour but deviation isn't necessarily bad. Who knows? Not me, not you, not Bob. Only evolution (or god if you swing that way) can tell for sure.

So if two people want to make a commitment to each other, why should the state have a say? Why should the church have a say for that matter? Why should anyone have a say except for those two people and any lucky friends and family they choose to include? Let's make it personal.

Let Randy be.

If the two people want to include the state or the church that is great. If it is their choice, that will make the ceremony that much more meaningful for them. But neither should be required. How can an anarchist wed at city hall? How can an atheist wed in a church? What's an anarchist atheist supposed to do? How can they get married (ie, make the commitment) without cheapening the experience (for them and everyone else) by going through the motions at an institution they don't believe in? Can they not get married then? Is their commitment to their mate not as meaningful they don't deserve to be considered married?

If marriage is personal and can include the state or church, I think that would create a much stronger bond between the couple. They do it their way.

Pedophelia doesn't get a boost in any way as there's a clear distinction between doing something illegal (pedophelia) and not making something legal (not forcing a couple to get married via the state.)