Timmy's Blog: Esc

No Memories

2007-06-18T21:49:00.000-04:00

Rain on the window
Tears in my eyes
Everywhere this feeling
Yes it came as a surprise
No help at all
With that thorn in your side
Not waking up
Where were you Christ?

Lay there, so peacefully
In your forever bed
"Right here," Do you feel me
Stroking your head?
You would always be here
Yes, that's what you said
Now just lay there, so peacefully
In your forever bed

See the rain on my window
Cracked through and through
Needs you to come sew it
And make it brand new
You would always be here
With your needle and thread
Ready to come fix me
Yes, that's what you said

No Memories
They were here, now they're gone
No Memories. Anymore.

Ever so slowly, your image, it fades
And it's getting harder and harder
To make it stay
No, don't go away

Now this day has come
Too early in your life
There's just one last question
But why ask why?
There was no help at all
With that thorn in your side
Oh yes, this day has come
Too early in your life

Yes there's rain on the window
And tears in my eyes
You're everywhere, this feeling
I didn't want this surprise
And there was no help at all
With this thorn in your side
No more waking up
Where were you Christ?

My pen glides this paper
In memory of you
Oh joyous life
And of everything you knew

And all of these people
That you left behind
Will try to save your picture
As it withers from my mind

Ever so slowly, your image, it fades
Leaving me empty and broken
With no memories
No, don't go away

Still rain on the window
And tears in my eyes
Everywhere. This feeling
Yes it came as a surprise
And with no help at all
With that thorn in your side
Not waking up that day
Where were you Christ?

Thomas Aquinas is dumber than a 1980s sitcom star, or Kirk Cameron is at it again ...

2007-05-11T16:37:00.000-04:00

I guess technically, for me, it's really a wash.

You may recall this: Kirk Cameron waxing biblical for 30 minutes about why the banana is proof of creationism.

Well, our dear Mike Seaver is at it again, having appeared recently on Nightline to help kick off what they are endearingly referring to as "Nightline Face-Off" (It is such a clever title, I'll let you guess what the segment is like). Apparently he came with something that "no theologian, philosopher, or sitcom star in recorded history" had ever had: not one, but three (3) unequivocal proofs for the existence of "God." In a nutshell, here's his 3 proofs:

All things have makers
the human conscience is evidence of a higher moral power
if you read the Gospel, then Christ will be revealed to you

My dear, dear, antiquated and washed up actor nutjob friend -- open your god-damned eyes (seemed appropriate?) please. I'm not going to go off and attack these ridiculous (and old) arguments for the existence of a higher power. To quote the linked Slate article, "for reasons too stupid to type, this was not an airtight case." You really only need to pick up any number of books to see exactly why these "proofs" are asinine -- The God Delusion, however cliche at this point, blows the first two out of the water, and, Christ, every atheist on the planet (myself included) who have read the "Good News" are counter-examples to the third.

Check out the article, linked below, for a more in-depth report of the shenanigans.

Venom finally shows his ugly face

2007-04-09T22:57:00.000-04:00

After months and months of wondering what the movie version of Spider-man's venomous nemisis (how's that for alliteration?) would look like, Yahoo! Movies has finally got the scoop. They released a new version of the coveted "Final" Spider-man 3 trailer in which there is a 1 second clip of Venom lunging at the screen, mouth open wide. Overall, I like it a lot. I wish he was a bit tongue-ier though.

Yes, tongue-ier is a word. Obviously

[UPDATE 4/22] Comingsoon.net has discovered the first studio produced image of Venom. He looks pretty darn tonguey.

hmm. Hope?

2007-04-02T23:56:00.000-04:00

Just heard on Bill Mahr that nearly 1 out of every 5 US Citizens age 19-30 are either agnostic or atheist. Wanted to write that down before I forgot it.

Maybe there is some hope for the future of our country after all.

RIAA Lawsuit Decision Matrix

2007-03-30T09:52:00.000-04:00

Click to see it bigger (and legible).

Peanut Butter is not "primordial soup"

2007-03-29T23:46:00.000-04:00

Consider this a follow-on to Kirk Cameron's previously documented madness. I find it humorous whenever a Creationist or an Intelligent-Design-believer opens his or her mouth because, quite frankly, an astronomical percentage of them are just so blatantly science-ignorant. Isn't the first rule of war to "know thy enemy"? Apparently these people didn't get that particular memorandum.

I've read the Bible (more than I can say for most Christians!); some parts even more than once! I've read Augustine AND Aquinas. How many Christians even recognized two of their most prolific writers? I read this stuff because it astounds me that people believe in it, and I am genuinely curious about it.

So why is it that "Bible-thumpers" refuse to pick up Darwin, or Dawkins, or Harris, or Hawkins, or Einstein, or Jefferson, or any other writer in history from whom they may actually learn something. Why don't they look at me and wonder how I can not believe? They don't have to believe what they read or regard it as true, but it sure would help your case if you were at least quasi-familiar with the material you are speaking about.

And that is a rant I was not panning on writing. I'm out.

Classic George Carlin

2007-03-27T09:56:00.000-04:00

In the bullshit department, a businessman can't hold a candle to a clergyman.

How I Met Your Mother: Slap Bet Montage

2007-03-21T23:54:00.000-04:00

This is why I love this show. I really think it could be Friends for a new generation.

I am so READY

2007-03-13T16:43:00.000-04:00

Don't forget to say "RRRRRR"

2007-03-09T10:31:00.000-05:00

<3 it

[Via Boing Boing]

Crazy Christians Create Their Own Wikipedia

2007-03-08T22:47:00.000-05:00

Apparently there are some in the Christian community who think our dear Wikipedia is too "biased" for their liking. These are basically the nutty Creationists and Intelligent Design people. So if you are a Christian, don't think I'm calling you names -- unless, of course, you happen to believe the Earth is 6,000 years old or don't believe in Evolution. In that case...well, to each his own I guess.

So these people have gone and created their own Wiki Encyclopedia and called it Conservapedia. (They are using the guise of Conservatism since most of these crazy peeps are aligned with our country's conservative party).

Instead of having a set of rules, Conservapedia has Commandments. Hmm, wonder where that idea came from. Lets investigate (highlighted for your pleasure):

Everything you post must be true and verifiable.
Always cite and give credit to your sources, even if in the public domain.
Edits/new pages must be family-friendly, clean, concise, and without gossip or foul language.
When referencing dates based on the approximate birth of Jesus, give appropriate credit for the basis of the date (B.C. or A.D.). "BCE" and "CE" are unacceptable substitutes because they deny the historical basis. See CE.
As much as is possible, American spelling of words must be used.[1]
Do not post personal opinion on an encyclopedia entry.

The sheer hilarity of these "commandments" is off the charts. First of all, 1 and 6 are redundant. Personal opinion is, by definition mind you, decidedly not true and verifiable: opinion and fact are mutually exclusive.

Number 5 is amusing because, really, what the hell is wrong with the British spelling of words? Maybe I like an Encyclopaedia with an ae. Or colours. Or maybe I can't stand the letter z (pronounced 'Zed'), so I'd prefer it organise and not organize. I guess these people think that because it is not American it is unpatriotic and wrong. Wasn't it their language first after all?

The real kicker here is the snippet on BC/AD vs. BCE/CE. I still can't believe the flagrant violation of the two redundant commandments here; they even try to hide their opinions by claiming it is based on the "historical basis"of the term. I defy them to provide me with verifiable truth that Jesus was born on December 25th, 1. Sure there is a "historical basis" for the term, but even that historical basis is not based on the supposed truth they hold so dear. We use the terms BCE and CE because we do know when January 1, 1 occurred on the Gregorian Calendar; that is verifiable and true. By most indications, if Jesus existed, he could have been born as early as 8 B.C.

Peruse the insanity. Entries on CE, Slavery, Abortion, Creationism, Evolution, etc, just drip with opinion, and bias, and misnomers, and falsities (oh man, especially Evolution). Don't spend too much time there or you will come out a little dumber; that much should be guaranteed on their front page.

I really, really want to go on and on about how bad this site is, and how scary the idea of people using it as a resource is, but I don't want to give it anymore thought. It is making me want to cry for our country and planet.

Last time I checked, Wikipedia did a pretty good job providing both sides to every story.

Testicals, Specticals, Wallet and Watch?

2007-03-06T17:21:00.000-05:00

Have you checked yourself for Testicular Cancer today?

Damn Brits are hot.

Rectal Politics

2007-03-06T17:15:00.000-05:00

I heard the following on the much missed Penn Radio Show. It's funny :)

Republican:	"Don't put anything in your butt"
Democrat:	"You can put anything in your butt, as long as it is approved, regulated and taxed by a federal agency"
Libertarian:	"Put whatever you want up your butt, but don't call me when it gets stuck"

A Libertarian Majority?

2007-02-27T14:37:00.000-05:00

For a little over a year I have considered myself a "Libertarian." Or rather, a little over a year ago, I learned the word Libertarian and decided that it was a perfect description of the way I have felt for my entire life.

I also figured I was somewhat alone on this one.

How could I not? We live in a broken two party system. There are campaign financing laws in place that prevent independents and the like from getting a loud enough voice. When elections come around, you have only ever heard of the Democrat or GOP options.

Whenever I tell people that know anything about politics that I am a libertarian, they generally look on me as if I had just told them that I don't believe in god. To them, I was the annoying kid in the sandbox that was messing up their play time with my ideals.

I have, however, always intuited that there are a lot more libertarian minded people out there, like I used to be, who are equally frustrated at not fitting into the two party scheme.

Well, according to a recent report on the Official Website of the Libertarian Party, my intuition may be correct. After wading through an overabundance of Prom metaphor, you get to the following blurb:

Let's take a look at some of the numerical potential Libertarians have, though. In a recent Cato Institute Study, David Boaz and David Kirby found that 13 percent of the voting age population and 15 percent of actual voters are libertarian. While not enough to win an election outright, in the words of Boaz and Kirby, this amounts to "about the same share of the electorate as the 'religious right,' and a larger share than the fabled 'soccer moms' and 'NASCAR dads.'"

Everyone doesn’t have to be a "perfect libertarian" (whatever that is) in order to pull the Libertarian lever, though. Expanding on the 13 to 15 percent number that Boaz and Kirby used, last year the Gallup Organization (once again) found that 20 percent of Americans are libertarian, while 27 percent are conservative and 24 percent are liberal.

Well, that's pretty equal. But it gets even better...

In another survey, Boaz and Kirby used the widest brush possible to define libertarians in the American public. While the survey results were overly broad in scope, they do indicate that the numbers potentially exist for Libertarians to win elections around the country.

"We also asked a new question. We asked half the sample, 'Would you describe yourself as fiscally conservative and socially liberal?' We asked the other half of the respondents, 'Would you describe yourself as fiscally conservative and socially liberal, also known as libertarian?'

"The results surprised us. Fully 59 percent of the respondents said 'yes' to the first question. That is, by 59 to 27 percent, poll respondents said they would describe themselves as 'fiscally conservative and socially liberal.'

"The addition of the word 'libertarian' clearly made the question more challenging. What surprised us was how low the drop-off was. A robust 44 percent of respondents answered 'yes' to that question, accepting a self-description as 'libertarian.'"

The last time I checked, 44 percent represents significantly more votes than are required to win a three-way political contest.

This goes to show you that 59% of Americans share many of my sandbox disrupting ideals (granted, even if you are skeptical of the number itself, the very idea that about half of the country are would-be libertarians is astounding). Furthermore, the 44% shown by the other sample explains that perhaps people aren't as afraid of the moniker as once thought.

So, perhaps, if the party can get itself together, maybe we can start fixing the political mess this country finds itself in.

This begs the question: Would you describe yourself as fiscally conservative and socially liberal, also known as libertarian?

"Humanity Lobotomy" - Net Neutrality Explained

2007-02-26T11:17:00.000-05:00

Net Neutrality is one of the few issues where I support government regulation. After watching the above video, I hope you can see why.

Spoon bending using telekenesis - what a nutbar!

2007-02-23T14:07:00.000-05:00

How people believe this insanity is beyond me. It is amazing in what people can believe.

In any case, if you ever wanted to know how to bend spoons with your mind...

Go in your drawer and pick out 10 or so spoons. And lay them out on the table. Use your feeling and let them tell you which spoon will bend. (I know it sounds funny but this is what I did the first time).
When you feel you have the right spoon and mind you pick one that is fairly thin to start out with.
Hold the spoon vertical and look at it and ask it to bend. Or say you will bend for me. Really believe it.

Larry Lessig Strikes Again: "Orphan Works Reform"

2007-02-22T23:24:00.000-05:00

This guy is just a genius. Nuff said. You may recall my recent post of another one of his talks here. One of the best speakers I've ever seen. I'd love to see him live.

Here's his original blog post where this video originated from.

I have another post in the works on the separation of church and state. And by "in the works" I mean "I totally want to write one and have for a while". It'll basically just be a rant, but it's about something that really bugs me.

Michael Caine thinks Baltimore is lame

2007-01-10T08:58:00.000-05:00

So, apparently, Michael Caine (Alfred from Batman Begins) is not too keen on shooting scenes from the upcoming Bat-sequel in my home town of Baltimore.

In related news, the sequel to Batman Begins entitled The Dark Knight will be filming in Baltimore.

From Superherohype:

Veteran entertainment journalist Army Archerd recently talked to actor Michael Caine, who revealed that the upcoming Batman Begins sequel The Dark Knight will be shooting in Hong Kong, London, L.A. and of all places, Baltimore.

"Baltimore!" Caine exclaims in the interview. "What will happen in Baltimore?"

[UPDATE: Turns out that Michael Caine was talking about a different Baltimore somewhere in the UK. I'm not the only one who got this wrong. Lots of other traditional news outlets thought he meant Maryland as well]

Ask A Ninja: Ninja Omnideuce

2007-01-05T11:29:00.000-05:00

There's a new episode of Ask a Ninja out today. It is such rapid fire hilarity you barely have time to finish laughing before the next moment of comedic genius glides into you with two swords drawn.

Lawrence Lessig - The Differences between Culture and Code

2007-01-04T15:30:00.001-05:00

Lawrence Lessig at the 23C3 Conference - On Free, and the Differences between Culture and Code.

Larry Lessig's entry at Wikipedia:

He is currently professor of law at Stanford Law School and founder of its Center for Internet and Society. He is best known as a proponent of reduced legal restrictions on copyright, trademark and radio frequency spectrum, particularly in technology applications.

...

In 2002, Lessig was awarded the FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software from the Free Software Foundation (FSF), and on March 28, 2004 he was elected to the FSF's Board of Directors[2]. In 2006, Lessig was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences[3]. Lessig is also a well-known critic of copyright term extensions.

He proposed the concept of "Free Culture"[4]. He also supports free software and open spectrum[5]. He is founder and CEO of the Creative Commons and a board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. At his "Free culture" keynote at OSCON 2002, half of his speech was also about software patents, which he views as a rising threat to both free/open source software and innovation. Lessig is on the board of directors of Software Freedom Law Center, launched in February 2005.

Movies, Movies, Movies

2006-10-27T13:11:00.000-04:00

My, my. It's getting to be that time of year again. The antithesis of the summer-blockbuster season -- the winter-blockbuster season -- is readily upon us. Shall we start with some simple (mini) reviews of movies seen lately and then meander onto what I'm currently frothing at the mouth to see?

Employee of the Month: Dane Cook and Jessica Simpson star in this Costco romantic comedy. Cook is funny but not at his best, and Simpson sports some really big ... ears. Not even joking about that one. Rental only (You probably will have trouble finding it in theaters anyway, at this point).

The Departed: Scorsese has returned to his former glory with this film that is endearingly being referred to as Irish-fellas. If you don't get that joke, you may not want to see it. The cast is too great and too large to list, but Jack Nicholson does some of his best work, I think, since Batman -- the man is a genius anyway. Matt Damon's (authentic) Boston accent makes me want to stick scissors in my ears, however. The movie is a little graphic with the language and the visuals -- you have been warned. See it in theaters and buy it on DVD.

The Prestige: Wolverine joins the cast and crew of Batman Begins in this magician extravaganza. This film is beautiful to watch and listen to, Michael Caine is a gem of modern film-making, and you will now doubt leave the theater with plenty to discuss. See it in theaters and buy it on DVD.

Thank You For Smoking: A well done, intelligent satirical comedy that will leave you laughing and thinking. On DVD now - rent, perhaps purchase.

And now -- what can't I wait to see over the next month and a half?

Casino Royale: If you've followed my blog at all, you know that I'm dying to see this movie. Just over a year ago, Daniel Craig was announced as the man-who-would-be-Bond, and my initial reaction was a bit hesitant. But every day since, I have found myself getting more and more excited. The advertising campaign is romping up, and we have exactly three (3) weeks to go!

I want to make this bet right now: I think one of the (if not the) last lines in the film is going to be the iconic "Bond. James Bond" line, quickly followed by the first notes of the Barry's James Bond theme. And, I also think that Craig will not utter its smooth cadence until such time.

Also, the new Spider-man 3 trailer will be attached, showcasing the world's first glimpse (I hope and assume) at Spidey's arch-nemesis, Venom.

I. Can. Not. Wait.

Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny: Gotta love Jack Black doing what he knows best: Rocking out hardcore. I was a bit worried about this movie based upon the less-than-stellar trailers that have been up, but Harry over at AIC news is still gushing about it, and he knows his stuff fairly well. I'm assuming it will bleed Rock and Roll and make my brain melt. Anything less will be a disappointment!

Eragon: This looks like Lord of the Rings with lots and lots of dragons. From what I understand, it is based on the first of a trilogy of books, which my wonderful girlfriend tells me are some of the best books ever. I hope this movie lives up to her expectations (assuming I can get her to see it with me). It looks pretty fantastic from what I've seen. New trailer at Apple here.

Stranger Than Fiction: I've wanted to see this odd movie about a man whose life is being written by a real-life writer since the first time I saw the trailer. I have, however, seen this trailer about 800 times more since that initial offering, and fear that if I see it again, I will never want to hear Emma Thompson speak again.

Other honorable mentions and movies coming out farther along the road: Flushed Away, Happy Feet, Charlotte's Web, Pan's Labyrinth, The Good Shepard, and Bridge to Terabithia.

And now, I'll leave you with a GREAT YouTube Video by Jack Black, reminding you that stealing movies is wrong :D

Trailer: 300

2006-10-09T14:45:00.000-04:00

Frank Miller has done it again. You may remember the name from a little known blockbuster, Frank Miller's Sin City.

Well Frank has a new movie on the docket, 300, that is an adaptation of his graphic novel of the same name which tells the story of the ancient Battle of Thermopylae. Here is the synopsis snipped from the official website:

Based on the epic graphic novel by Frank Miller, 300 is a ferocious retelling of the ancient Battle of Thermopylae in which King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and 300 Spartans fought to the death against Xerxes and his massive Persian army. Facing insurmountable odds, their valor and sacrifice inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy, drawing a line in the sand for democracy. The film brings Miller’s (Sin City) acclaimed graphic novel to life by combining live action with virtual backgrounds that capture his distinct vision of this ancient historic tale.

The trailer, which looks gorgeous, can be found living here at Apple.

Also, here is a neat side-by-side graphic novel versus movie comparison. You will find, much like Sin City prior, this will be a very faithful adaptation of Miller's work.

I'm really looking forward to seeing this movie when it hits in 2007.

Impressive Card Trick

2006-10-04T13:06:00.000-04:00

<3 Magic

On Foot Shooting, a Programmer's Guide

2006-10-04T12:45:00.000-04:00

Here is some quality humor for you coder's out there. It is an extensive, multilingual guide to shooting yourself in the foot. Never forget that there are only 10 types of people in the world ...

Some of my favs are:

C
You shoot yourself in the foot.

C++
You accidentally create a dozen clones of yourself and shoot them all in the foot. Providing emergency medical assistance is impossible since you can’t tell which are bitwise copies and which are just pointing at others and saying, “That’s me, over there.”

JAVA
After importing java.awt.right.foot.* and java.awt.gun.right.hand.*, and writing the classes and methods of those classes needed, you’ve forgotten what the hell you’re doing.

But my personal favorite is

Unix
% ls
foot.c foot.h foot.o toe.c toe.o
% rm * .o
rm: .o: No such file or directory
% ls
%

See the link for more fun :)

[UPDATE: Link now included. Thanks to Rhazes for pointing out that I forgot]

The Glory of Music

2006-10-03T09:44:00.000-04:00

This made me fairly speechless when I first saw it. I was inspired yesterday to look it up, so here it is for your enjoyment.

The PERFORM Act by Feinstein

2006-09-29T09:51:00.001-04:00

Few power plays are as blatant and harmful as the PERFORM Act (S. 2644) from northern California's own Dianne Feinstein. Simply put, PEFORM revokes your right to tape radio shows while imposing draconian DRM on all internet radio.

The Audio Home Recording Act (AHRA) explicitly allows a person to record radio programs for their own personal use. In exchange, we all pay a Hollywood Cartel tax on some blank CDs and tapes. It's a bill that has served us well for over a decade, but now with advanced satellite radio receivers that allow paying subscribers to time shift their favorite programs the Hollywood Cartels are asking for 'backsies' on the AHRA. Always eager to please her real constituents in Hollywood, Dianne Feinstein
stepped up to the plate and introduced PERFORM.

But, if overturning the AHRA wasn't enough, Feinstein slipped in a provision that changes the Copyright Act to force Internet radio stations to impose the most severe and draconian DRM possible. All of the Internet radio stations that you know and love will be forced to abandon MP3 streams. Innovative companies like Pandora are already heavily burdened and taxed by the DMCA, forcing them to spends additional money to license DRM is an undue burden.

Who does Dianne Feinstein represent? Is it Northern California, the economic engine for the entire state and the nation? Or is it Southern California, the repressive monopolists that seek to limit expression and technology?

You can find out how you can stop Senator Feinstein's PERFORM Act at http://ipaction.org/action/perform

Orioles: Free The Birds

2006-09-25T09:38:00.000-04:00

A truer sentiment may have never been related.

S1RA is Back; Call to Action

2006-09-22T13:42:00.000-04:00

In June we brought attention to S1RA (The Section 115 Reform Act), which has the laudable goal of bringing mechanical licensing into the 21st Century. However, buried deep within the legislation was a provision that required all incidental copies of a song to have their own separate license. In other words, a copyright holder could charge you for every copy that exists in a caching server, your ISP's own cache, or even the buffer on your computer. It's double dipping, redefining fair use, and now it's back and worse than ever. S1RA lives on under the title of the Copyright Modernization Act of 2006. Sounds ominous enough. It still includes all the terrible provisions of S1RA by taking aim at Internet radio and satellite radio by gutting the Audio Home Recording Act, which explicitly allows devices to time-shift radio.

CMA is trying to elbow itself into law by wrapping itself in a good bill: the Orphan Works Act of 2006. This bill is an important piece of legislation that removes significant hurdles that artists have to jump to create their art. Right now, with our over-reaching copyright regime, if a documentary film makers wants to include an image, film clip, or song in their work, but no copyright holder can be found, the film maker is out of luck. OWA allows the artist to include the work, assuming they employed due diligence to track down the copyright holder, and would severely limit any damages stemming from an infringement suit if the owner suddenly reappeared.

However good the Orphan Works Act is, S1RA is worse and negates the benefits that come from OWA. We cannot sacrifice our technological future by imposing an innovation tax on internet and satellite radio."

Becoming Link on the new Nintendo

2006-09-15T10:40:00.000-04:00

Baseball Hall of Fame expecting a deluge next summer

2006-09-06T00:32:00.000-04:00

Cooperstown readies for '07 rush

This is unequivocally going to be a momentous occassion in baseball history. I've already got my room reserved - how about you?

Anyone planning to attend the 2007 Hall of Fame induction ceremonies better make reservations, well, yesterday. The lucky ones just might find a place to stay within 100 miles of Cooperstown, the central New York State village that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors annually but has insufficient housing to accommodate all the pilgrims who come for an induction on one weekend .

Although the names on the ballot used by the Baseball Writers' Association of America for next year's election won't be announced until late November, fans are well aware right now who some new candidates will be. With the ballot to include 3,000-hit Club members Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn, Cooperstown and Hall officials are already bracing themselves for what they believe may be the largest induction turnout in history.

Ripken, whose remarkable career was enhanced by his playing in 2,632 consecutive games, and Gwynn, an eight-time National League batting champion, have the credentials to be first-ballot Hall of Famers. Although there is a debate among voting writers about the qualifications of the man who broke Roger Maris' 37-year-old single-season home run record, Mark McGwire presents the possibility that the 2007 ballot could produce three first-year inductees.

Only one time since the original class of five players (Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, Christy Mathewson, Walter Johnson) was elected in 1936 have as many as three first-year candidates been elected. That was in 1999, when Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount made the grade. Their induction attracted a crowd estimated at 50,000, which is believed to be the largest attendance for a ceremony. Tickets are not sold for the induction, so the Hall has to approximate the amount of people who find a place on the hills beyond the Clark Sports Center.

My personal jury is still out on McGwire. He was a childhood hero of mine, broke a pretty impressive record and definitely had a HoF career. Granted, it is said he used some performance enhancing drugs -- which no doubt taints the above points -- but I believe it was determined that they were not against the rules at the time of his use.

I'm positive many of you out there do not share my iffy stance, but the child in me just finds it tough to imagine him not there. Either way, I can't wait to see Cal and Tony. Next year will be amazing.

Band Name Origins

2006-09-05T15:19:00.000-04:00

Ever wonder where your favorite band got their name? Well look no further then this website. They have a great list of bands with explanations or rumored explanations of their names. Here's a classic one:

LED ZEPPELIN - Jimmy Page was drinking with Moon and Entwhistle, who were bitching about their band mates Daltrey and Townshend. They joked about the two of them starting a band with Jimmy, and one of them said "Yeah, that will go over like a lead balloon". When Jimmy formed his own band, he remembered this and thought "Lead Zeppelin" would be good, both from that conversation and the heavy/light contradiction similar to the band named IRON BUTTERFLY. They decided to drop the "a" so Americans wouldn't mispronounce it.

R.I.P. Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter. You will be missed.

2006-09-04T05:06:00.000-04:00

This is horribly, horribly sad :-(

CNN.com - Stingray kills 'Crocodile Hunter' - Sep 4, 2006:

Steve Irwin, the Australian TV presenter known as the 'Crocodile Hunter,' has died after being stung in a marine accident off Australia's north coast.

Australian media reports say Irwin was diving in waters off Port Douglas, north of Cairns, when the incident happened on Monday morning.

Irwin, 44 was killed by a stingray barb that went through his chest, according to Cairns police sources. Irwin was filming an underwater documentary at the time."

Tripod on the Water

2006-09-03T17:40:00.000-04:00

Tripod on the Water

I just uploaded a ton of new pics to Flickr. Check it out :)

Stupid Human Teaching Dog New Trick. Fails Miserably.

2006-08-30T11:09:00.000-04:00

Wow. Just wow. I have always been under the impression that dogs should not drive. I believe that this is conclusive evidence to support this claim.

Chinese state media says a Chinese woman’s attempt to teach her dog how to drive proved a costly error, as her car crashed into an oncoming vehicle.

Xinhua news agency reports no one - including the dog - was injured, but both vehicles were slightly damaged.

Xinhua says the accident happened recently in the city of Hohhot, capital of north China’s Inner Mongolia region.

The woman, surnamed Li, had noticed how fond the dog was of crouching on the wheel, and thought it should have a go at steering the car.

She herself operated the accelerator and the brake.

[Via Dvorak Uncensored]

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

2006-08-26T18:07:00.000-04:00

Dearest readers, may I direct your attention to the right sidebar to the section titled Headlines. These are the headlines of various news items which struck my fancy during my perusal of the vast Interweb. Since I am perpetually encased in technology and information, this list is in a constant state of change.

I know that, of late, I have not had as much time to dedicate to posts for this repository of web-nooks and and techno-crannies, but Fear Not! for the stream of information that I tend provide is neverending and something new can always be found in the Headlines.

You can also subscribe to it via RSS, here.

So if you find yourself in need of something to read, and I am not living up to my end of our contract, there is always something to read there.

Enjoy!

Bye, Bye Pluto

2006-08-24T12:20:00.000-04:00

So it appears our solar system only really ever had eight planets. Just think of how much money is going to be necessary to update all the 3rd grade science textbooks.

Leading astronomers declared Thursday that Pluto is no longer a planet under historic new guidelines that downsize the solar system from nine planets to eight.

After a tumultuous week of clashing over the essence of the cosmos, the International Astronomical Union stripped Pluto of the planetary status it has held since its discovery in 1930. The new definition of what is — and isn’t — a planet fills a centuries-old black hole for scientists who have labored since Copernicus without one.

[Via Dvorak Uncensored]

I am SO better than this guy

2006-08-17T16:22:00.000-04:00

TechTV == UndoTV

2006-08-17T12:35:00.000-04:00

My, my, it certainly has been a while since I actually wrote anything in here. Personally, I blame it on YouTube and its insanely easy way of posting random movies.

Or, it could just be that I'm currently engaged in a battle of wits on my western front while my eastern front is already in shambles. (Exactly one [1] of you will understand what I'm talking about).

This post is about some very happy news. It's exhilirating really. It seems that my often lamented geek television station TechTV will be making a return - sort of.

For those who do not recall the television station of tech, it was a niche TV station with tons of shows dedicated to gadgets, computers, games, etc. It ran for about 6-7 years before Comcast purchased it, merged it with their horrible 24/7 Game Channel G4, and dismantled it of all personality and creativity over the course of six months. This deformed, uninspired and lame wad of suck is still not catching viewers to this day. I dare you to watch it for more than half an hour. Joystiq monitored one man's attempt at watching it for 24 hours. I believe he made it 21 hours, but after the first 5 he started to have hallucinations, and may have even swallowed his own tongue.

You can still find remnents of this once great network on YouTube, and in Canada.

So, the happy news...

TechTV verterans and internet media moguls, Chris Pirillo and Leo Laporte are setting out to create a place, called UndoTV, where TechTV alumni can go and post their work. Although they are involved in different projects, this site will act as a portal of sorts to all of their work.

Says Pirillo on the project:

Leo and I have discussed a few core values this impending structure must support, the most revolutionary of which is content producers owning 100% of their contributions. We want to enable former TechTV talent to upload new and existing content, and we want to bring new talent into the fold as well. Sales will also be an important part of this process, so we’d also like to help match sponsorship with these personalities."

He also goes on to provide the reasoning behind the name UndoTV.

This is all very exciting. TechTV was a very large part of my daily viewing habbits for the majority of my teens. Now in my twenties, the media produced by the various personalities (podcasts, vidcasts, etc) are also very important to me. Leo Laporte, Patrick Norton, Kevin Rose, etc, have long since been heroes of mine, and I am looking forward to seeing them do this all again. On their own terms.

Oh, also of note, Leo's TWiT.tv media network gets about 5x more listeners/viewers then G4's highest rated shows. How's bout dem apples.

Hello. I'm a Wii!

2006-08-13T01:15:00.000-04:00

Nintendo Wii: Very very fun

Johnny can see through walls

2006-08-10T13:25:00.000-04:00

So a coworker pointed me to this link. Apparently the Swiss are really up on contemporary design, but this is a bit horrifying.

Essentially, the toilet is a see through mirror. From the outside it looks like a mirror box, but from the inside you can see, uh, everything and everyone walking by.

Gives a whole new meaning to cock shy.

In reading the comments on the page, one commenter pointed out its amazing capacity for people to live out sex-in-public fantasies. I certainly don't know about all that, I can't even imagine taking a pee in there.

Enjoy!

Happy Birthday World Wide Web!

2006-08-07T13:16:00.000-04:00

15 years ago yesterday, Tim Berners-Lee publicly released his WWW project onto the Internet.

Can anyone out there remember a time without the internet? How did work get done? How did people talk to one another? How did you buy groceries!?


I had to post this. With spokespersons like these two, one doesn't need enemies. Seriously, Kirk Cameron is a little buck nutty now.

Timmy's Blog: Esc

No Memories

Thomas Aquinas is dumber than a 1980s sitcom star, or Kirk Cameron is at it again ...

Venom finally shows his ugly face

hmm. Hope?

RIAA Lawsuit Decision Matrix

Peanut Butter is not "primordial soup"

Classic George Carlin

How I Met Your Mother: Slap Bet Montage

I am so READY

Don't forget to say "RRRRRR"

Crazy Christians Create Their Own Wikipedia

Testicals, Specticals, Wallet and Watch?

Rectal Politics

A Libertarian Majority?

"Humanity Lobotomy" - Net Neutrality Explained

Spoon bending using telekenesis - what a nutbar!

Larry Lessig Strikes Again: "Orphan Works Reform"

Michael Caine thinks Baltimore is lame

Ask A Ninja: Ninja Omnideuce

Lawrence Lessig - The Differences between Culture and Code

Movies, Movies, Movies

Trailer: 300

Impressive Card Trick

On Foot Shooting, a Programmer's Guide

The Glory of Music

The PERFORM Act by Feinstein

Orioles: Free The Birds

S1RA is Back; Call to Action

Becoming Link on the new Nintendo

Baseball Hall of Fame expecting a deluge next summer

Band Name Origins

R.I.P. Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter. You will be missed.

Tripod on the Water

Stupid Human Teaching Dog New Trick. Fails Miserably.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

Bye, Bye Pluto

I am SO better than this guy

TechTV == UndoTV

Hello. I'm a Wii!

Johnny can see through walls

Happy Birthday World Wide Web!

Batman Begins sequel Title and Casting confirmed

Tampon Gun

"Greatest Hits" coming to PSP

Just doing my part to save Humanity ...

Topher Grace is Venom

TMNT Trailer hits

Lack of Posts, and The Washington Post

Solve Sudoku (Without even thinking!)

Nielsen to discover that no one watches commercials

Jon Stewart on Net Neutrality

Embarrassing questions for the entertainment industry

Brits set to invade The Office!

Spider-man Can Count

Senator Stevens Speaks on Net Neutrality | Public Knowledge

Friendster Wins Patent for Social Networking. What will become of the MySpace cult?

Why the "loudness wars" are killing today's music

The Daily Show gets the Bananas

Independence Day 2006

TRANSFORMERS Announcement Trailer

Spiderman 3 Teaser Trailer

Better Together? Amazon's recommendations at work.

Rocketboom's Take on Net Neutrality

Watch: Nobody's Watching

R.I.P. Harriet the Tortoise - Charles Darwin's tortoise dies

Jon Stewart for President - Daily Show on Congressional Videogame Ignorance

WSJ Hosts DRM Debate

MICROSOFT Anti-Piracy Campaign

The Real 'Larry the Cable Guy' Exposed

Developers ditching PS3 in favor of Wii, LucasArts jumps onboard

Creating X360 playlists from your iTunes playlists

South Carolina About to Ban Evolution (Again); New Buzzterm Emerges!

Leader of crazy church gets pWn3d on Fox News

Grateful Dead songwriter tells MPAA to "quit trying to stop progress"

How NOT to steal a Sidekick

I shoot people in the face. How about you?

Great tornado photos

10 flagrant grammar mistakes that make you look stupid

I want a Freeware Utility to ... 450+ common problems solved.