In Memoriam: Jordan R. (1981-2007)

It's been 24 days since the fateful "asdfasdf, part II" post on Jordan's blog and we can only assume the worst. While authorities are still searching for any sign of a new post, many have come to grips with the reality that Jordan has gone to a better place.

"He was a great friend," said Erik Tisthammer, one of his blog readers and former roommates. "TF3S has lost a vigilant ally in the War on Terror, as well as a good friend."

Another friend of his, Mike Mellema, exclaimed in a funny sounding accent through tears, "I cannots believes its! Ize missed him so mooch!" Mellema says his only way of coping right now is through video games.

Others joined in the mourning over the weekend, as President Bush gave a final eulogy. In it, he remarked:

"While no one knows for sure the fate of Jordan, we do know one thing: he hasn't posted on his blog for 24 days. Although we have hope - and, indeed, we hope for hope - I think we must accept the conclusion the free world has dreaded for years. We must move on, honoring his name, by fighting the forces of terror and injustice who seek to take that which Jordan himself has fought for for so many years: truth, justice, and the American Way."

So to my friend, Jordan, may you rest in peace.

Note: Due to this being the very first link on Google when searching Jordan's name, and since he works (and will be working) in an ivory tower, where people search each others' names on Google in order to get more information about them instead of talking to them, I have removed his last name from the entry.

Evil Bible, Good Puppy, New Airline, New Planet, Mexico City Legalizes Abortion, Captain America, and Superman's Weakness Found!

This:

Evil Bible

is an interesting site. It's apparently a manifesto, of sorts, documenting why the bible is evil and contradictory, and how God himself is evil (which doesn't make sense - they seem very angry). The writer(s), however, have done very poor research into Christian theology, as is shown by the ignorance of their arguments.

Any thoughts?

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So we got a new puppy. Yes. That's right. We did. We ended up naming her Bree (really "Breeds" but we call her Bree), after Breed's Hill. Our other dog is named Bunker, since Bunker Hill is the site of a famous Revolutionary War battle. The thing about the hill, however, is that the battle was really fought on Breed's Hill, since there was a little confusion as to which was which (I believe an American commander was to hold Bunker Hill, but he confused the two and ended up holding Breed's). Thanks to Lindsay, my brother's girlfriend, for the suggestion, and to those on Facebook who helped up decide!

What happened is that I got sick this last weekend. As a result, we were really late for church. When we got there, we opened our doors and were talking in our car when Katie all of sudden saw this little puppy running around the parking lot. We went over and found it sitting underneath a parked car that was running (there was a guy in it - he didn't know anything about the dog). She could have very easily been run over. She gave one bark at us, then pranced right up to Katie and jumped in her arms. She was just the sweetest and cutest dog we'd ever seen!

We went to a few houses by the church and no one knew anything about her (she didn't have any identification or collar on her), so we left our number with a lady and decided to take her home to try to find the owner(s) online or by calling shelters. Besides, Bunker needed a friend and we had talked about getting another dog (although we were careful not to get our hopes up... it was hard not to fall in love with her).

The next day, Monday, Katie took her to the vet to see if she was microchipped. She wasn't, and there were no calls to any local shelters, or any mention of her online. I posted her info online, but we haven't received any contact as of yet (I initially had a picture up, but took it down and just left the info since she's so adorable and I didn't want someone just saying she was their dog - if someone wants her back, they'll find our contact info pretty easily). She was hungry and dehydrated when we found her, so if someone was looking, we would have crossed paths by now. The lady at the vet said whoever owned her probably abandoned her at the parking lot, hoping someone would take her in. I guess that became us!

After 2 weeks, we become the legal caregivers. So please pray that no one did own her or want her (they probably would have contacted us by now anyway, but we've fallen in love with her, so pray anyway). She is such a wonderful, loving, sweet, friendly dog - always wanting to jump in your arms, be held, and play. We feel so blessed by God for this unsuspected surprise! She'll be a great companion for Bunker, who is a little jealous right now, when she gets bigger (she's about 10 weeks right now). Two dogs will eventually make our lives easier. Right now, though, she pees on the floor.

There are some more pictures on Facebook.
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And on to some news... So I was browsing some websites (since the Navy's computer system here blocked me from doing my computer classes - I was sick, so I guess being sick means you can't study... anyway...), and ended up going to Fox News to see what's going on in the world. I was amazed at how many stories were fascinating. So here we go:

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A new airline is offering tickets starting at $10/person (going up to $330 for last minute flights). Their plan? They'll be advertising on the flight.

I think this is absolutely brilliant! In fact, my brothers and I had this idea years ago. I'm sure others did, too, but it just took years to implement. American airlines cannot compete effectively with foreign carriers because of their government subsidies. As such, Americans expect an artificially low price - artificial, because the airlines should be charging more. That's why you have to pay $2 for some pretzels, or a pillow...

The problems got even worse when the US government started subsidizing (but not to the point that foreign countries do, which would cost a great deal of money - just enough to keep a failing company from going out of business) US airlines in order to keep them from going out of business. While this seemed good in the short term, it ended up promoting bad business practices and poor management in the long term. Thus, we end up with airlines that have to compete, but are caught in the bureaucracy only government can provide, making them both dependent on bureaucratic resources and extremely inefficient. I think this new airline is long overdue, and I really hope they succeed. They're truly going the capitalist route - one that could have fixed US airlines years ago.

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A new planet was found about 20 light years away from earth that possibly could sustain life as we know it. I'd be interested to hear more about this, especially from a more scientific point of view (the article says things like the planet probably doesn't rotate so one side is always day... this is technically wrong - the planet rotates at the same rate that it rotates about its sun, just like our moon).

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On the issue of international spiritual warfare (as Erik pointed out), despite our Supreme Court upholding the partial-birth abortion ban, Mexico City decided to legalize 1st Trimester Abortions. I didn't know they were illegal. Mexico has many, many problems, but I give them credit for having laws against abortion. It's sad that they're also going the way of our socialist neighbors to the north, though.

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Captain America. Funny/weird story. This guy was a doctor, too? Read it.

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Kryptonite has been found.

Race

Erik Tisthammer wrote this to me on Facebook. I edited it a little to make it a blog post. Sorry, Erik, I didn't post this earlier. I leave it as it is, and allow for any discussion as desired. Here it is:

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I know we joke and talk a lot about race, but I was wondering if you would post a column on your blog just talking about what progress, or lack of progress has been made in the last forty years. The only thing that really spurred me in asking you to do this was considering I'm engaged to a 'minority', I laugh when i say that, and this article that i just read this afternoon:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18090277/from/ET/
or
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18090277/

It's kind of long but a good read. I have a lot of comments myself relating to this but it's your blog so you might as well start us off.

Or maybe I can be a guest columnist?

Oh yeah, the big reason this is happening now is b/c this weekend baseball is celebrating the 40th anniversary of Robinson breaking the color barrier for MLB [again sorry, Erik, for not getting this out earlier].

- Erik

Spiritual Warfare

Updated due to more events this week (Friday, April 20).

In the same week that a partial birth abortion ban was upheld by the US Supreme Court, there was the largest massacre in US history at Virginia Tech, a massive flood in New Jersey, a holdup and a murder-suicide at the Johnson Space Center, a Maryland mine that collapsed on some workers, and a shooting rampage in New York. The bible is clear that God judges nations, and that demonic forces work with and within them to bring about evil. Is this spiritual warfare on a national level? I wonder.

Virginia Tech School Shooting

As a disclaimer, I know very, very little about this shooting. I just wanted to ask that you PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE not use this for gun control propaganda. Before knowing anything, I can almost guarantee a few things:

1. The gun the student used was illegal and/or illegally purchased.
2. The gun was illegally brought on campus (i.e., Virginia Tech already has laws against bringing firearms on campus).
3. None of the students shot, and no one but police, were armed with firearms.

I don't know if any of these things are true, but I'm already quite sure I'm right. And before the Left uses this for their own politics (they probably already have, I really haven't been following it), I'll use it for mine: if the students had been armed, this would not have happened.

P.S. Feel free to keep commenting on the last few posts... I've been putting a lot up recently.

Carbon Offsets

I'm going to start selling carbon offsets. For every $1 you give me, I will NOT drive an SUV 1 mile this year. So, if you give me $100 dollars, I will cut my SUV driving by 100 miles this year. Just to make it fair, since I'm already enviro-conscious, we'll start with 10,000 miles and subtract from that.

Also, I will NOT produce livestock, which creates methane gas, at a rate of 1 cow per $100. So, if you give me $1000, I will produce 10 cows fewer than I would have otherwise.

Of course, with all of this, based on the money I receive, my carbon usage will eventually go to zero. If that is the case, I will still accept money, and just apply it to the next year (i.e., If I am paid for 3 cows more than I don't produce, I will not produce 3 cows the next year).

In addition, I will accept payments for other things, such as:
- NOT building a coal power plant
- NOT holding hair spray bottles up in the air and pushing the button until all of it is gone just for fun
- NOT artificially creating carbon monoxide in my backyard for the sole purpose of increasing greenhouse gases

Contact me and we will work out some payment plan.

And as I tell everyone, I don't do this for personal gain. I'm not greedy. Greed would be paying for the resources you use, like the above cartoon told me. Greed certainly wouldn't be using your large amount of wealth in order to make yourself feel better by paying others to change their lifestyle while you don't. I do this so that you can feel good about yourself - like you're actually doing something to help the environment. You, the rich hypocritical environmentalist, can feel like you're fighting evil. And whether or not you really are (cause you're not), feelings are what matter.

So go ahead and give me you're money so you don't have to change your lifestyle. It will make both of us happier.

How's It Going?

So... uh... yeah... I don't really have anything to write about - at least not anything I care to take the time for, at the moment. So, what are you feeling right now? Anything making you happy or pissing you off?

Thanks.

Jon Stewart is an Idiot

This guy:
is an idiot. He used to be funny - sometimes still is - but has combined a potentially hilarious format and demeanor with politics in a way that is nothing but bitter propaganda wrapped in a sweet tortilla shell of comedy.

The problem is not primarily that he rips on conservatives and conservative ideas. His bias is quite clear. The problem is that he does it in a way that isn't funny. Here are some examples I found on a discussion board, although every episode has plenty of them:

"Hurricane Katrina is George Bush's Monica Lewinsky. One difference, and I'll say this, the only difference is this: That tens of thousands of people weren't stranded in Monica Lewinsky's vagina. That is the only difference."

"George W. Bush is going to build a new dam in Iraq..so that we can fight the water over there..instead of over here."

Not funny. His "humor" is "funny" for his audience because it is cynical mocking of conservatives, and that's the problem. As a contrast, Stephen Colbert, who is on right after him, is immensely funny, even though a lot of his humor is directed at conservatives. Humor is not Stewart's first priority; attacking conservatives and Republicans is.

Stewart also intentionally takes quotes out of contrast to make public figures look like idiots. He tries to appear to be objective by doing it to liberals too, but "mocks" them by merely making them sound funny, not moronic. Despite the unbalanced attacks, his "funny" quotes would still be fine if he did it right (in a way where it is clear they are out of context), but he doesn't. The sole purpose is mockery, and in a way that isn't even fair. This reveals a principal many on the Left live by: the truth doesn't matter, only the point that is being made.

Essentially, Jon Stewart is a propagandist, who has little concern for either accuracy or true comedy. That is why Jon Stewart is an idiot.