Speaking of I ran

So I ran the inaugural ING Georgia (half) Marathon last Sunday. Athena thinks it was some sort of existential rebellion/middle age thing that compelled me to do it. It was more of a desire to get in shape with a target to orient myself towards, plus the ability test myself. Running the hills literally was another way of climbing the hills figuratively. Gotta keep testing that hypothesis that the only limitations are the ones you bring with you.

The race itself wasn’t too bad. About mile 10 I got tired of running. Not physically tired, but annoyed. I got worried at about 11 ½ because I stopped sweating. Not a good sign. I slowed down a bit and made sure to get water at the next station. As soon as the water was on board I started to sweat again. When I crossed the finish line my head looked like a margarita glass crusted with salt. A universal complaint that I heard from everyone was that there weren’t nearly enough water stations and no Gatorade/Powerade stations. It ain’t just a marketing ploy: When you’re running that much you actually need Gatorade. After the race I started to feel a little nauseated. Once I got home and downed a quart of Gatorade I immediately started to feel better.

Overall it’s a great race. The course is well thought out and a great tour of Atlanta’s nicer points. It might even leave those from out of town with a decent impression of this city. I turned in a modest 2:28, which was right in line with where my training runs were. I’d like to get that closer to 2 hours if I chose to do another one. The word around the camp fire I heard is that you should count on about a week to recover. I was at 90% within three days, so I feel pretty good in that respect. An associate that’s a rabid athlete said your first marathon/half marathon is simply about surviving. That’s about how it felt.

Ares

Sweet Chocolate Christ!

No, literally. I’m starting a deathwatch here at A&A to monitor how many people are killed from the resulting riots over the confection Christ. I mean, if people are demanding blood for an artists rendering of one profit surely there should be mass sectarian violence over a life-sized statue in coca of another. I think the thing most Christians are gonna have a problem with is that the artist gave Christ a penis. I mean, it is chocolate, which means somebody’s eventually going to get around to gnawing on it a bit. I’m not really sure this whole thing is any worse than offering chocolate bunnies to commemorate the Resurrection.

Ares

And Iran, Iran So Far Away

A little perspective is in order. Unfortunately, I have yet to find a media outlet or talking head that’s hocking any. 15 British sailors and marines have been held for a little over a week for what is essentially a territorial incursion dispute. Okay, that’s a breech of diplomacy, not casus belli. In January of 1968 the USS Pueblo and its crew were seized in international waters by North Korea. The Pueblo’s charter was intelligence collection, a most ungentlemanly undertaking. Yet somehow the guys in suits were able to jaw jaw jaw instead of war war war.

Six months prior to that the Israelis attacked the USS Liberty, an intelligence collection sister of the Pueblo. Though it’s been hotly contested there are strong indicators that the attack was intentional. In April of 2001 an intelligence gathering aircraft was forced down by China and the crew captured. Somehow we were able to avoid rabid international conflict. The prior three examples are units engaged in intelligence collection; the diplomatic equivalent catching a Peeping Tom watching your wife shower.

The media would love nothing more than a shooting war with Iran. A whole new dimension of strife to highlight and accusatory fingers to subtly point. Oil speculators are enjoying it because its grants license to further play with the price of crude. (Most financial analysts that specialize in the energy will allow that there is a $10 to $15 per barrel mark up on prices due to ‘terrorism concerns’ and ‘diplomatic uncertainty’.) Realistically, Iran is three times the size of Iraq in land and population. The most optimistic of military planners and plans would come up short of anything that could be called a win or even a success. Their leadership boils down to an apocalyptic theocracy. Raining high explosives within their borders would simply fulfill their deepest fantasies. It would also grant them instant hero status in the Muslim world, which currently views itself as locked in a righteous struggle with anyone that doesn’t think like them. Everybody needs to take a few deep breaths and remember that time is on our side. The longer this goes on the dumber Iran looks.

Ares

Lemon Powdered World

Springtime in Atlanta. The good news is you get scenes like this. The bad news is it rains yellow for two months. I think today’s pollen count had to be measured in scientific notation.

Ares

This Little Piggy

Apologies for what is to follow. Simply have to spew forth vitriol. After reading this little informative gem about miscellaneous crap that was tacked onto the supplemental spending bill for the war my head spun completely around. Let’s skip the minutiae and hit a juicy clump manure. For over four years we’ve been bludgeoned with stories of wounded veterans not getting the care they need. This was especially bad for Reservists and National Guard soldiers. The ball has been thoroughly dropped when it comes to PTSD treatment. With that in mind a grand total of $1.38 billion was allocated for the VA. Of that $100 million is to go to contract mental health care for veterans when wait times exceed 30 days. WTF! If you’re having suicidal tendencies due to PTSD and the wait time is only 29 days you have to take a number. Bear in mind that $1.38 billion when you consider that $1.48 billion went to livestock farmers. What the fuck! (Sorry dad, got pushed off that expressive cliff again.)

Let’s drop another reel in the View-Master, shall we? $56 million for prosthetics, which we need a lot of. $74 million for something entitled “to ensure proper storage for peanuts”. I need a reality check on something. It appears to me that it would almost have to be cheaper to pay for a Kaiser or Blue Cross policy for veterans than keep playing hide-the-weenie with supplementals that wrap gauze around a broken system. Get me the GAO on the phone, we need a study.

The really annoying aspect of this festering chunk of legislation is yet another timeline for ending the war. As I’ve said before, this is merely a chickenshit attempt at politics as a continuation of war. All of the introduced timelines are before Election Day, 2008. The Democratic party wants the issue of Iraq to be removed from the program before the election. If they were really serious about ending the war they would simply invoke the War Powers Act and be done with it. They’d rather have a club named Iraq to beat the president with for about a year, then quietly put it away. Right war or wrong war, all this posturing and pimping just gets us farther away from anywhere we want to be. Congress: An 18^th century legislative body, using 20^th century methodology to fight a 21^st century war.

Ares

Bloom's Brain

Winding down my read of Global Brain. What an excellent piece of writing. Even though it got long at times it’s still worth it. I would try to force it on Athena but she still hasn’t touched my copy of The World is Flat. Chapter 19, The Kidnap of Mass Mind: Fundamentalism, Spartanism, and the Games Subcultures Play 1932 to 2030, alone make the book worthwhile. I found this little nugget in the above mentioned chapter.

Postmodern fundamentalists are masters at the craft of enemy creation and the manufacture of a siege mentality. Their world abounds in villains – one-worlders with black helicopters, Satanic secular humanists, Beelzububian New Agers, homosexual conspirators, Zionist bankers, Illuminati, Trilateral commissioners, Great Satans, real estate developers, mink farmers, abortionists, and genetic engineers. Bringing the sense of battle to a fever pitch is the myth that we are on the brink of the mother of all subculture wars, that of the final days in which an avenging Nature, Allah, or Jehovah will wipe this old, iniquitous world away. The impure and unbelieving (that means you and me) will die in manners horrible to contemplate. When all is stripped and cleansed through nuclear flame, greenhouse flood, or the bloodbath of the scimitar, the righteous will finally take their place at the right hand of God, of Nature, or of racial destiny.”

One of the interesting things about the book is that it was published in 2000; well before our national venture into international conflict and its resulting attendant dysfunctionality. Bloom illustrates how an ancient concept like vilification is getting a facelift to keep pace with our changing culture, but the underlying bone structure remains the same. The book is much more wide-ranging than the above quote. Well worth the time if you feel like doing some intellectual fine dining.

Ares

Bless you, Mr. Bill

Further evidence of my theory that Bill Richardson should be president. He's about to sign into law a bill that would legalize medical marijuana. Pretty ballsy for a guy running for president. Mind you, New Mexico would be the 12th state to legalize for medical purposes. But the rule of the jungle is normally that you don't throw ammo towards your opponents. The following quote simply confirms his status as a mensch. "So what if it's risky? Its the right thing to do....What we're talking about is 160 people in deep pain. It only effects them". That, my friends, is a guy that gets it. God bless you Bill.

Ares

Sorry, Gotta Go There

Here at Ares and Athena we've tried to stay away from that whole war in Iraq thingy. Not because we feel one way or the other, but because the issue gets waaay too much play. You can't swing a dead cat without getting smacked upside the head with somebody's two cents. Anymore it feels like Clauswitz has been stood on his head: Politics has become a continuation of war. Having said all that, I came across this clip the other day and thought it was worthwhile. Pamela Hess is a corresponded for UPI. She's talking about her recent trip to Iraq. Nice to see her show some humanity and not give some Joe Friday just-the-facts-ma'am recitation.

Ares

A Terrifying Message from Al Gore

Thought this was funny enough to repost. If nothing else Al's got a sense of humor.

What Would Mohammed Do?

Oh boy. In a stunningly anti-climactic move CAIR announced it was suing US Airways over the Flying Imams incident of late last year. Now I really want to fly somewhere, just to throw some money at US Air. This is going to be one hell of a show. I absolutely can not wait until they put them on the stand. One of the aggrieved waxed at length in the press conference about how people were jailed in his native country for their religious differences and it made him sad to see it here in America. Point of dissention Mohammed: You weren’t jailed. You were denied a mode of conveyance because you couldn’t offer up a rational explanation of your behavior. By the way, this press conference was not witnessed by the Washington Times or the Christian Broadcasting Network. CAIR wouldn’t start until they were removed from the room.

“It’s discrimination” said Omar Shahin. Absolfuckinglutely. My tolerance isn’t unconditional. Until somebody grabs the mike and starts denouncing things like child rape and wife beating you’re going to get the greasy eyeball. Because no one on Omar’s end has bothered to place that pause in our thinking. I think we can all agree that after 9/11 this country went out of its way to check itself before resorting to the lowest common denominator. Five years on Islam is by and large rubbing it back in our faces. This isn’t multiculturalism, this is myculturalism.

I’ve got a few talking points for Omar and his myrmidons. Before this country ever got around to writing a constitution it wrote a few lines that go something like “all men are created equal”. It took us a few centuries to work out the kinks, but we’ve taken the idea that those lines mean everybody to heart. That includes the women you beat, the children you rape, and the people you slaughter because they pray to a different god. Okay, you don’t participate in those activities. But your co-religionists do and you have yet to utter a peep in denouncement. That, and not your praying five times a day, is why you are not given the benefit of the doubt. One more thought: Freedom of religion does not equate to freedom to be a jackass.

Ares

I'm an Idiot

So with the weather getting nicer I’ve started working out outdoors more. Today was a typical example: Partly cloudy with temperatures in the high 70’s. (Sorry dad.) Having an entire day off to play with I decided to ride the bike for a couple of hours. Problem is, I live in a built up area and riding can be a bit hazardous. I decided to patronize the outstanding Silver Comet Trail. The Silver Comet is about 20 miles from home. Half way there, sitting in traffic on the freeway, it dawned on me that I’m driving 40 miles on the freeway so I can ride my bike somewhere safer. It’s a good thing I barely passed statistics in college; otherwise I would feel really stupid about my risk-avoidance choices. I’m such a moron. Have I mentioned that I hate this town?

Ares

Don't Be Alarmed, It's Just the Future

Found this little nugget on the always insightful Common Sense Technology, a site that's always worth the time. This is six minutes that's actually worth the time. Ares

Dred Scott

I missed an anniversary of sorts last week. March 6^th was the 150^th anniversary of the Dred Scott ruling by the Supreme Court. Probably the most shameful chapter in American judicial history. I can’t help but believe the ruling had an effect on the abolitionist movement. If any bright side can be found it’s that the issue of slavery was settled once and for all a few years later, even if at a terrible price. Two ideas come to mind when I consider this ruling. The first is one of my favorite sayings: Antiquity does not bequeath virtue. Second, the nine folks in black robes that embody the judicial branch of our government aren’t always right. Miranda v Arizona comes to mind as further evidence of that, in my very biased opinion.

Still, it’s impressive when you view it from the reverse. Scott was returned to Dr. Emerson’s widow. She had remarried and her new husband was opposed to slavery. He released Scott to the family that originally owned him, who in turn granted him his freedom. Moral of that story? A couple of somewhat average citizens understood what the greatest constitutional scholars of the time didn’t. That we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. A man effectively lynched at the hands of the US Government died a free man at the hands of his fellow man.

Ares

Brrr

I just wanted to give a shout out to the hardy folks of Madawaska, Maine. No, I've never been there but the internet whore in me likes to surf the National Weather Service's website. Madawaska is at the northernmost tip of Maine. As of 3:53 pm the temperate there is -4 with a wind chill of -29. I offer my weather condolences as I sit on my deck in short sleeves, sipping a beer and reading a book. Tomorrow the high is supposed to be 3, Thursday it's supposed to be -1. Dude, I think it's time to move. Pack up the minivan and give the land back to the Nunavut or the Iroquois or Mohawk or whoever had it first.

Ares

Today's Chuck Quote

Becuase who hasn't had a day like this?

"I felt like putting a bullet between the eyes of every Panda that wouldn't screw to save its species. I wanted to open the dump valves on oil tankers and smother all those French beaches I'd never see. I wanted to breathe smoke. I wanted to destroy something beautiful."

Economist

Have I mentioned how much I love the Economist? I’ve taken media refuge in that thin little glossy over the past few years. As a gesture of mercy Mrs. Ares renews my subscription every year. In a world of media retardation and feeble intellects the Economist refuses to go low-brow. Case in point: Not once, ever, has the name Anna Nicole Smith appeared in their pages. When politics does feature in their forum its thought out, rational analysis. Not the tabloid, Wolf I-haven’t-come-up-for-air-since-the-Gulf-War Blitzer drive-by punditry. As their contents page states: Its “goal is to take part in a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.” Another excellent aspect of the publication is their annual Big Mac Index, which uses the price of a Big Mac in different areas of the world to measure purchasing power parity. The really sad part, though, is that US circulation of the Economist is just over half a million. Circulation for People is 3.7 million.

Ares

Algore's Dim Bulb

Thanks Al for inventing the Internet. Now millions of common folk have a venue to make fun of you. Talk about your unintended consequences. I'm really digging that Inconvenient Truth. Not the movie but the part about his house using more power in a month than most use in a year. I'd say right about now his carbon footprint is in his mouth. The Department of Irony called the Gore campaign to see about a celebrity endorsement. Or was that the Department of Hypocrisy? Schadenfreudelicous.

Ares

Gloating

Just wanted to give a shout out to all our peeps that are freezing their junk off up north. It was 69 degrees here yesterday and sunny with a nice breeze. There was much outside cavorting done by all.

Ares

Big Brained

I’m currently plowing my way through Global Brain by Howard Bloom. It’s a good, if chunky, read about the history of collective consciousness and group thinking. Sort of reinforces Scott Adams’ proposition that we’re all just “moist robots”. One passage in particular caught my attention. Bloom is outlining how visual perception takes place.

“…Cells in the retina scrap 75 percent of the light which pours in through the lens of the eye. They diddle mercilessly with what’s left, transmogrifying the photons of which light is made into pulses of electrons and bursts of unpronounceable chemicals like lumirhodopsin. They fiddle with the contrast, tamper with the sense of space, and report not the location of what we’re watching, but where the retinal cells calculate it soon will be…… Adding insult to injury, the eye crushes the information it’s already fuddled, compacting the landslide of data from 125 million neurons down to a code able to squeeze through a cable – the optic nerve – a mere 1 million neurons in size. On the way to the brain, the constricted stream stops briefly in the thalamus, where it is mixed, matched, and modified with flows of input from ears, muscles, fingertips, and even sensors indicating the tilt and trajectory of the head, hands, legs, and torso. The rearranged gumbo is sent off to the visual cortex, where it is divvied up again….. Finally, a council of representatives from the superior colliculus, the thalamus, the locus coeruleus, the hypothalamus, and the occipital cortex poll their squabble of conclusions and cast a vote on what the twinges of light impinging on the retina might be. Not until they’ve agreed on an image do they send it to the left cerebral hemisphere, presenting it to the conscious mind as a paranormal accompli. What we see is no the product of direct perception, but a reconstruction bordering on collage artistry.”

Or as the haggard old detective once told me: “Eye witnesses suck”. Even more succinctly told to me by a crusty, tattooed Master Chief when I was 16: “Believe none of what you hear and only half of what you see”. An excellent read thus far. Along the same lines as Bill Bryson’s *A Short History of Nearly Everything. Wish there had been science books like this when I was growing up.

Ares

Blood Sport

Went for my daily dose of Tom Barnett today. As usual he’s dead on, this time about the ill wind that’s blowing through the body politic these days. The blood sport, it’s-about-power-not-governance, all or nothing mindset that has been creeping in from the flanks of the respective parties for a few years is reaching a higher pitch. We don’t merely disagree with the other side anymore. Now they have to be demagogued into being evil and a threat to your very existence. It’s the politics of intolerance brought to an exquisite point.

This is a strange, dark new world we’re entering. And we’re entering it faster than anyone is comfortable with. (Friedman talks about this some in The World is Flat. The book is well worth the time, can’t recommend it enough.) When a Democratic candidate for president declares publicly that Israel is the greatest threat to world peace we all need to consult our collective compass. When the leading Republican candidate will most likely be kicked off the dais by his own party for because he doesn’t oppose same-sex marriage we have to ask exactly whom that party is representing. Of course, the mere fact that we’re doing this two years before Inauguration Day should offer clues about the health of the machine Aaron Sorkin once wrote that politicians win elections by doing two things: making you afraid and telling you whose to blame for it. That seems to be all we’re doing anymore.

One last thing while we’re in this neighborhood. I finally realized what bothers me about Hillary’s run. I think only having two names on the mailbox at 1600 Pennsylvania for the past 20 years in enough. It’s come down to the electoral equivalent of Coke versus Pepsi.

Ares