Entries from February 2005
Unexpected Consequences
Lebanon’s Liberation Approaches, by Daniel Pipes
The fate of Syria was in good measure determined on January 21, 1994. That’s when, driving at a too-high speed to the Damascus airport for a skiing trip abroad, Basil Al-Assad crashed the Mercedes he was driving, killing himself and his passengers. The accident had [...]
Categories: War and Peace
Stupid Schools
Najma’s reading Oliver Twist. I never read Oliver Twist. She lives in Iraq, for crying out loud, in Mosul, for heavens sake, with bombs and terrorists and American strykers parked at her front door, yet she’s reading Oliver Twist. I don’t know whether to feel guilty and inadequate or mad at my [...]
Categories: People and Current Events
Moron
Engadget - How Paris Hilton got hacked?
We may have an easy answer for how someonw was able to break into Paris Hilton’s Sidekick account and grab her address book and emails. Turns out they didn’t hack into the server or guess her password. Rather, they guessed (correctly) that she wasn’t quite savvy enough [...]
Categories: Entertainment
There’s That Common Law Again
It keeps popping up.
At last, all the threats to our liberty have been twigged, By Stephen Robinson
But what makes Blair Mark 1 seem unrecognisable against the version we see these days is in his talking about the simple common law notion of liberty. I cringe when I hear a government [...]
Categories: Geography and Foreign Affairs
Europe v. Freedom
Required reading:
Freedom? Why Europe’s not bothered, By Janet Daley
I won’t excerpt it, because the whole thing is quotable, and that would be a bit excessive, I think. It makes a good point about 18th century idealism being exported to the Far Abroad where it was protected from Europe and flourished, while in Europe it [...]
Categories: Geography and Foreign Affairs
The Pope’s Book
This made the France2 news last night (Mardi, about 20 minutes in, I think). Even had audio clips from Cardinal Ratzinger. Our news largely ignored it. What can ya do.
BBC - Pope’s book confronts evil, By David Willey
A book by Pope John Paul II has gone on sale in bookshops [...]
Categories: Art and Literature
Peter Recommends XVIII
Still smarting from the $157 “Monorail tax” in his registration renewal (for a monorail we’re unlikely to ever see), Peter finds this:
Autoblog - GM hybrid buses not “hybrid” enough
I remember when Metro bought them, there was a big ad in Wired all about it. Everyone thought, wow, what a sensible solution.
The promised [...]
Categories: Science and Nature
Oh, Those Silly Harvard Women.
(I wonder if the title will get me letters.)
Times Online - Spoken like a man, by Bruce Anderson
Mr Anderson defends Larry Summers in much the same way I would, if I were a better writer. Highlights:
Mr Summers has made a powerful case. After a century of increasing female educational emancipation, women are [...]
Categories: Science and Nature
The Somerville Gates
CDR Salamander has alerted me to this powerful expression of artistic freedom and symbolism.
The Sommerville Gates
My favourite is The Desk Gates.
(Just click. You’ll see.)
Categories: Catblogging
Focus On: Magna Carta
You know, when we whine and moan about the Constitution being trampled, for instance by the Patriot Act (something I’m passionately opposed to getting into), it’s all very offending and we all get very indignant, but when it’s the Magna Carta, it all just seems so much more insulting to history and tradition, or something. [...]
Categories: Geography and Foreign Affairs
Absolutely the Funniest Item of the Day XLVI
Not Just An Old White Guy
I turned on Hugh Hewitt earlier, and he was reading from a new apostolic letter:
THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF THE HOLY FATHER JOHN PAUL II TO THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR COMMUNICATIONS
in which the Pope encourages people to use the internet and modern communication systems to communicate the message, or specfically:
In fact, the Church is not [...]
Categories: People and Current Events
Peter Recommends XVII
My Saudi Sheikh Story
Bubblehead has a rather improbable story about a Saudi hot shot in Bahrain. I guess it could be true, but I doubt the guy would be so indiscreet to an American sailor. I mean, come on.
However, it made me think of my own story:
This French Swiss guy, Alain, spent a few months with [...]
Categories: Geography and Foreign Affairs
Go Pete!
Little man, what now? - America’s fattest man slims down
A strange entry for a blog of that name, surely. The blog, btw, I was alerted to via An Englishman’s Castle.
‘Big Pete’ Loiselle decided that once he’d reached 54.5 stones in weight, it was time for a change. His surgeons were warning him [...]
Categories: People and Current Events
