Mixed Reaction Indeed

Bush’s speech is just more of the same: We have no plan, 9-11, there is no set criteria for withdrawal, 9-11, we are protecting ourselves, 9-11, we’re winning, 9-11, we’re bringing stability, 9-11, bin Laden, etc…

His speechwriters are masterful, to keep weaving 9-11 into the war in Iraq (Remember those WMD we went to war over?) in order to trigger the fear knee-jerk reaction in the American public to this single all encompassing boogeyman of “people who hate us”, when the truth is far more complex and harder to deal with than the invasion of a single country. The thing is, the Neo-Con Right has used it so much, that people aren’t buying it anymore. Most people know that Saddam Hussien and the Iraqi insurgents had nothing to do with 9-11 and that it is our presence in Iraq that has made it a hotbed of terrorism. They support the troops, but the people know they have been lied to.

The Iraquis aren't buying it either.

So when are we leaving? The truth is even if all the Neo-cons dreams come true and Iraq becomes a garden of democratic freedom that simply adores the U.S., terrorism and the “terrorist ideologies” that the President is talking about will still survive. That’s the point of terrorism see; small groups of highly mobile people that are not tied down onto a single country or government, making the use of large scale military force ineffectual. You don’t use a club to excise a tumor, you use a scalpel. Far more terrorists have been caught using intelligence and police methodologies around the world than have been caught in this invasion.

Interesting point someone on FARK brought up.

George W. Bush on U.S. Troop presence in Kosovo, 4/9/99~ "Victory means exit strategy, and its important for the president to explain to us what the exit strategy is.”

George W. Bush on same topic 6/5/99 ~ “I think it’s also important for the president to lay out a timetable as to how long they will be involved and when they will be withdrawn.”

I do hope in the new dictionary’s when they put Georgie’s picture under “Hypocrite” they use a nice one…

While I agree that setting a date for leaving would be foolish, not having some sort of set criteria for withdrawal is more foolish. Unless those 14 bases we’re building means that Bush has no intention of leaving the 3rd largest oil reserves in the world tended by the Iraqi people. Then it’s just evil.

What is Civilization?

Truth be told, most socio-political academic theories and definitions are far too broad to be applicable in the real world were exception is usually the rule. However, they are useful in getting one to view a subject in a different way. I am currently working my way through Civilizations: Culture, Ambition and The Transformation of Nature by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto.

When most people think of the word “Civilization” we think cities, literacy, laws, art, etc. In short, what is like us here in the “west” of Europe and America. Armesto proposes that we remove that blinders that keep us from viewing other societies unlike our own as “uncivilized”. Aremsto’s theory is a civilization is a society that transforms it’s environment and follows through to categorize “civilizations” by the similarities in them brought out by the similarities in their environment. Desert civilizations, Artic civilizations. Jungle civilizations, etc. He admits that he is throwing this out there, not fully satisfied with his theory, but he does prompt one to look at what is “civilized” in a whole new light.

It’s a dense tome, one that I have had a while but not had the mental energy to tackle fully until now. It’s a bit of a plow at points, but I’m definitely enjoying the perspective.

Why I Will Never Fit Into The NASCAR World.

While Discussing Dale Jr. & Dale Sr.:

The Earnhardt Connection board member “He's (Dale Jr.) still trying to please his father to this day.”

Kip’s first thought: “I hope not. It’s a little hard for Dale Sr. to give positive feedback right now.”

One please, straight down.

I didn’t say it because most Southerners don’t seem to get black humor and Intimidator fans would not find it amusing. Then again, unless it involves Jeffie Pop looking like a fool/homosexual they don’t seem to find much of anything amusing. I meant no disrespect to either party under discussion and did respect what the board member was getting at, but it was just one of those one liners that begged to be said.

*sigh* I can see there’s going to be a lot of chew marks on my tongue in the future. I either wish I was a nicer person or wish I truly didn't give a rats ass what anyone thinks.

Not sure which. *chuckle*

What – A – Day.

You all will excuse me, I’ve had a really, really stressful day at work and so am going to go look at pictures of handsome men.

What, did you think only guy did that sort of thing?

“Beauty is an experience, nothing else. It is not a fixed pattern or an arrangement of features. It is something felt, a glow or a communicated sense of fineness. What ails us is that our sense of beauty is so bruised and blunted, we miss all the best..” ~ D.H.Lawrence.

Always one of my favorites. :)

Well, Someone Has Been Busy…

The Supreme Court has been very busy this last week passing judgment on a slew of cases that have a large effect on governance, clearing off the bench before the end of the term.

I covered their ruling that that state and local government can seize homes for privately owned business development last week :( , but this week:

Supreme Court Declares Displays of the 10 Commandment in Government Buildings to be a Violation of the Separation of Church and State.

Good. ‘bout time. Some Christian wack jobs may get all up in arms, but I’ve dicussed this before. Only in the sense that Western Society is largely influenced by Christianity are the values and taboos of American law based on it. The truth is the founding fathers wanted religion and the government to have nothing to do with one another in order to allow both institutions to act freely. This isn’t a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup, you keep your state out of my religion and I’ll keep my religion out of your state. Simple.

Supreme Court Rules Against File Sharing Sites.

While yes, it sucks and yes, they and their artists do have a ton of cash anyway, I think the record and other media companies have a right to be mad here. This is licensed material and there are legal options now for downloading individual songs as opposed to going out and buying an entire 20$ album for one song. Besides, if the Supreme Court didn’t rule this way, what recourse would media companies have against other types of privacy? It’s a slippery slope, but not taking action against file sharing it a pretty good shove down that slope. At least this beats going after 12 year olds.

Then again, when internet people want something, they are going to figure out a way to get it…

Supreme Courts Rules the Law Enforcement Agencies Cannot be Sued for Failig to Enforce Restraining Orders.

Well that’s Bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit. This basically means that a restraining order is now a worthless piece of paper. Look for more domestic violence, more spousal/partner murder, more child kidnapping and murder.

Good job Scalia, nice neo-conservative family values!

I know the police departments in most major cities are overburdened, but what the hell were they thinking?

Supreme Courts Rules the Cable Companies Do Not Have to Open Up Their Networks to Broadband.

I won’t lie, I’m not technologically savy enough to understand the full implications of a ruling like this. Phone Companies are, technically, a private company (kinda like the Post Office.), so why can the FCC make the phone companies open their networks, but not the Cable companies?

Sounds like some rocky time ahead for internet users.

Also Busy: Animals.

So two shark attacks in Florida and a Grizzly attack in Alberta.

It is a tragedy for all three families involved. But sometimes, we need to be reminded that once we leave the concrete jungle, we are not at the top of the food chain. With out those wonderful primate tools we invented with our nifty opposable thumbs, we are soft and squishy. Quite frankly the flouting of forestry warnings by the group involved in the bear attack sounds like a perfect case of Darwinian Theory in action to me.

As a diver sharks do not bother me so much. I know that as one diver put it, “There is no such thing as a small shark when you are in the same water with it…” due to even 3 to 6 foot shark’s capacity for damage due to the speed and strength. But with sharks, respect is usually the best case. Respect meaning stay away from. Usually you give them space and they will give you space, just don’t sound like a wounded fish (ie. trashing around). The experts in the article surmise that the rash of attacks in Florida this last week are hunger driven, even then the sharks probably mistook the splashing swimmers for wounded fish. In CA, most of the shark attacks that take place are surfers because from underneath, someone paddling a surfboard looks remarkably like a seal, sharks favorite dining experience. Usually once the shark realizes it’s mistake it lets go, though sadly, it may not let go of all them.

And besides, you have to have some respect for an animal that is so perfectly designed that 25 million years ago Mother Nature just said *kisses fingertips* “Perfect.” and hasn’t touched it since.

Add to that the fact that since they are not cute and fuzzy, no one cares about the shark species that are going extinct. Pollution and over fishing of their food sources is a large problem, but one look at the disgusting practice of “shark finning” will make anyone angry, not to mention hurl if you are watching video. (though as this page points out that due to rising mercury levels, the aphrodisiac Shark Fin Soup may actually render men sterile. Never say that Mother Nature doesn’t have a sense of humor.) Australia has actually started to try farming smaller species of shark to provide the leather, liver, cartilage and steaks needed by various industries, but the Chinese still whack away.

Fuckers.

Though, I will admit to keeping to kelp beds when there are possibilities of sharks in the area, especially since we get Great Whites in the channel. As this little essay points out: It’s an Ocean, Not a Swimming Pool.

Or as I like to say when someone’s Pomeranian has been eaten by Mountain Lion, “If you want to get back in touch with nature, nature is going to get back in touch with you.”

I’m environmentally conscious, not stupid. :D

My personal favorite: Wobbegongs

Of Sails and Asphalt

So as you can tell…

Dale Jr. did not have a good day yesterday. Getting caught up in some hard racing didn’t add to the fact that he had lost his first two gears on the first lap of the race (and on a raod course, that matters), but he wasn’t alone. Transmission problems abounded at the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma yesterday. Calling into question, yet again, this new “gear rule”. Even the winner of the race Tony Stewart (NOT A ROUSH OR HENDRICKS DRIVER, THANK YOU GAWD!) ended the race taking the corners one handed because he had to keep the gear shift jammed into place (and making a sweet pass on Ricky Rudd as well.)

Just what was so bad about engines pumping out 9,000+ rpms, anyway?

Elliott did his usual pattern of fade and gain, dropping as low as 40th at the start of the race to come all the way back to 6th place finish (right behind his team mate and mentor Dale Jarrett), consistency maintaining his 3rd place in the standings. I’m not sure what troubles dropped Mark Martin out of the top ten to finish 15th, but he’s still securely in the top ten.

Best moment of the race: P.J. Jones doing a spin out on Carl Edward’s hood.

And who said road course races were boring?

Kip on Speed.

My Robbie Gordon fan friend invited me to a gathering at a Pizza joint with her pals to watch the race. As Robbie is an open-wheeler and started out in NASCAR as a “road course ringer” (a driver brought in specifically for the two road courses on the tack: Infineon and Watkins Glen), the RG fan base gets excited when it’s time for Robbie to...well, not go back to his roots, but do something he is quite good at. Though, mind, it’s a very cynical fandom at this stage in the game. “Oh yeah, he’ll do well, if he can finish….” I suppose being with a bunch of Robbie Gordon fans, it did give me some perspective on the season as a Dale Jr. fan. Hopes were running pretty high at the beginning and at the end of the race, but his fuel ran out just before the finish line to drop him from 12th to 16th place.

After that, a small group of us decided to go Go-Karting at Dromo One in Orange County. It was the first time I have ever tried it, but that was a hell of a lot of fun! Thank Gawd it’s all the way down in behind the Orange Curtin or they would be taking a hell of a lot of my money. Those little 9hp engines get the kart up to 40 mph easy, and the track had a lot of straight-aways that really taught a newbie like me how to take a turn. I’ve got nothing to brag about, I finished next to last in my first heat and *ahem* the second kart I got “was just evil” (I so feel like a driver now. *chuckle*) and was loose as hell coming out of the turns, so I finished last. Man, I was getting pissed, which also taught me how you cannot get too pissed at high speeds and retain control.

I’m usually fairly laid back person, go with the flow, but I can get very competitive when challenged. >:)

Afterwards we went for margaritas and Mexican food and I chatted with and learned a bit from one of the RG fans who races his own trophy trucks as well a teaching at a racing school. (Late apexes, I understand, are the thing.) He made the observation that racing karts if actually harder for him than racing a full size car because it was much more technical. “If I screw up going into a turn, I have 500 hp that I can power out with but with karts you have to hit your marks exactly.”

Sailing actually has a similar “fudge factor” with larger size. Small boats, the little 9 to 14 footers you see along shore and on lakes, etc., are much more subject to wind and current, meaning you really have to be on top of what is happening and know how to adapt to it or *kersploosh*, you’re trying to keep your mast from sticking in the mud on the bottom of the bay. With a larger boat, it more stable and not as subject to the environment, so you have more of a fudge factor. That why Olympic sail competitions are on the smaller classes of boats. It’s actually a more honest display of who is the better sailor.

(Though, with larger boats/ships you have navigation challenges that you wouldn’t in smaller craft.)

I guess Go-Karts are the same way, demanding more precise control to get that little, easily spun 250 lb Kart around a tight track.

KEEEWL!

Sonoma

Most everyone goes through rough times, and for many, it may feel like life itself has some kind of axe to grind. The trials thrown our way may seem unrelenting and unfair. But if one can be still for a moment, there is a purpose to such hard times, not simply to overcome them, but to learn from them. The goal not just to win, but to become a better person. It may be something we are doing or something we are not. It may simply be to appreciate what we have, or it may be time to look at the patterns we ourselves create and change them for the better. Maybe a slight tweaking, or it may be time to seriously sort out the bullshit, both within and without. Everyone’s path is different as every person is unique.

Dale Jr. has been through time much more grave than this, but this has been a hard year for him professionally. I’m not going to try and give advice what should or should not be done. I’m not in the thick of it and so don’t know enough and, quite frankly, there are enough media and fans pontificating on what the 8 Team “needs”. I doubt Dale could stand another uninformed opinion on the matter.

But if there is one thing I do know about Dale, it is that he is smarter and stronger than most people, probably even himself, realize. He’ll figure it out.

On a related note, I joined my Robby Gordon fan friend and Co. for a pizza party for the race at Sonoma yesterday and after that: Go Karting! Man that was a blast! Details to follow. :)

Homes....

Dust Covered Glory.

Because my Dad was an amateur American Civil War historian (He could claim the title “Civil War Historian” if he would finish his book! *nudge*), my siblings and I grew up pretty well steeped in Civil War history (among others, my Mom is an amateur historian as well.) My sister and I are the only people I know who put in the Ken Burns Civil War series because for some reason, we find the documentary of out nations bloodiest conflict….comforting.

In short, we’re weird.

It’s hard for people to look at this conflict objectively. Not that slavery wasn’t the greatest blight on the American liberty and honor, it most certainly was. But to find respect for the military, the men and their leaders, on both sides of the conflict is still a difficult thing. Go to any message board where it is under discussion and you find extremists still at work, even now 140 years later. Yet the article What Price Glory by Fergus Bordewich in the most recent Smithsonian Magazine manages to convey the greatest sacrifices and honor from both the men in blue and the men in grey.

The Battle for Ft. Wagner, as immortalized by the film Glory , is famous for being the place where the 54th Massachusetts, America first black regiment, took the pivotal role of the vanguard in the attack on the Fort which protected Charleston Harbor, disproving the doubts of most of America held about black courage, discipline and honor. While the attack did not change the course of the war, it did change the course of American culture by respecting the right of the disenfranchised to fight for themselves, which allowed them a self respect that helped them finally defeat Jim Crow in the 1950’s and 60’s.

(On an interesting note that the film didn’t relate, and I never realized, was that two of Fredrick Douglass’ sons, Charles and Lewis, were members of the 54th.)

But the battle is remarkable for another reason. For 58 days a force of 1,000 Confederate soldiers held off a besieging Union force of 11,000 troops, artillery and the Union navy, preventing them from taking the Island, and thereby allowing Charleston time to fortify. Had Charleston, the South’s biggest shipping port and birthplace of the Secession, fell it’s would have both a huge material and spiritual loss. The troops held out through overwhelming odds and brutal conditions. “I ain’t afeared of hell no more. It can’t touch Wagner” one Confederate defender was heard to say. But their stubbornness, and by consequence Charleston’s strength, is what kept the Confederacy going as long as it did.

It’s refreshing to read an article that gives just due to the men on both sides of the conflict.

Many of the tactic and technologies; trenches, long-range artillery, searchlights, etc. used in the siege of Ft. Wagner were precursors to the type of warfare predominant in WWI.

This article also highlights a crisis hitting many Civil War battlefields: Development. A company wants to build 20 luxury homes on Morris Island, the site of Ft. Wagner, one of which is planned over a Confederate encampment.

As a historian, I would love to see all historical sites protected, especially when they have as much cultural impact as Ft. Wagner does. But one must also be realistic, the human population, whether we want it to or not, is steadily growing by leaps and bounds and space must be developed for us to live in. However, I certainly don’t believe “Luxury” homes, which are simply a money makers and not for the good of the people, is the way to go on this. I would like to see the space we currently occupy develop more efficiently before we move out to develop wildness areas and historical parks. In fact, I think this is imperative given the pressure we put on the environment when we destroy habits and ranges, as well as the historical importance of some places.

But this is a problem that Europe has been dealing with the centuries. Human’s have been in residence in Europe for so long that it’s impossible to building anything in the major cities of Europe without disturbing some archeological site. Heck, even when new graves are dug, they usually must remove the bones of those that were buried there up to hundreds of years before. Usually when the construction encounters the inevitable, the city sends in a team of archeologists to fully excavate the site before construction continues. It’s a reasonable compromise and it happens all the time.

However, as the story of the Rose (here's a little history), the theatre that many Shakespeare’s plays first appeared on, shows; sometimes History takes precedence over human development. I believe that Ft. Wagner is just such a case. It’s impact on American history and culture is enormous. If it is razed for humongous track homes with microwaves and satellite dishes, how will the American living in them understand and appreciate where their nation came from, thereby knowing how to live their lives forward as Americans?

On a related note….

This Time The Left Screws Up.

Supreme Court Rules Cities May Seize Homes

Now, my understanding is that the displaces residents are given “fair market value” for their condemned property, but please tell how an upscale riverfront hotel, a health club and privately owned office buildings are “for public use”, as stipulated in the 5th Amendment?

Why does this sound like the beginning of a bad 80’s vigilante movie?

I don’t think I have to outline how many ways this ruling can be abused. I don’t have to tell you how the Left leaning Supreme Court Justices just played into the neo-conservatives hands…

Fuck. >:(

On a better note...

U.S. Acknowleges Torture at Guantanamo Bay and Iraq, Afghanistan: U.N. Source

I love my country. I love my country because I belive that America was founded on the highest principles of liberty and honor, I love America because I belive that Americans stand for what it right and just, and I think the accursed assholes who commited these acts and the twice accursed assholes that ordered them done should be stripped naked and shoved out a helicopter 30 feet over the streets of Mosul.

Not only was it fundamentally wrong, it was utterly useless. Remember that Osama bin Laden guy, whatever happened to him anyway?

Now if the U.N. will just have the balls to do something about it.

Left and Right. Robbie Gordon Fans Rejoice!

NASCAR goes to Sonoma this weekend for the years first road course race. Best of luck to the 8, 6 and 38 teams and have a safe race!

YES!!

History of Modern Civilization - B

I wrap up my AA with a GPA of 3.35.

(That's not counting the A and B from the suuplmental classes.)

Happy Summer Solstice to All!

I walk without flinching through the burning cathedral of the summer. My bank of wild grass is majestic and full of music. It is a fire that solitude presses against my lips. ~ Violette Leduc, Mad in Pursuit

The summer night is like a perfection of thought. ~ Wallace Stevens (1879 - 1955)

Three Bleahs and a Yeah!

Bleah!

Veterinary specialists are killers to ones bank account! At least the R-Dawg is holding steady. :)

Double Bleah.

Gawddamn Ticket Master!

Triple Bleah.

Race at Michigan. Glad to see Tony Stewart out there, was really cheering for him to win. If just to see someone other than a Roush or Hendricks (the 5 car teams) win. Glad to see Mark Martin in contention *Yea!* TS and MM would make for one hell of a race. Elliott did well too, but they are right through, what’s with the fade when the race starts?

And one hell of a save by Sterling Marlin: turning his car sideways at 100+ mph to put his own car fire out. Dayum. I can’t even imagine to kind of knowledge and car control take to do something like that instinctively. I don’t think he’ll have any trouble finding a ride next year.

Dale was *herm* well.

I don’t know what kind of karmic lessons he needs to learn that all this is happening, but I hope he can come out of this year with some positive growth, understanding and true strength. I’m not saying that he still can’t make the Chase, but for my own sanity, I’m just backing off on my fandom and “giving Dale and DEI space”, if you will, to figure it all out.

Hell’s Kitchen? They’re All Hell

Having worked in a 4-Star called St. Estephe as a Pantry Chef out of High School, I watched this show last night out of curiosity.

As far as Master Chefs go, Ramsey isn’t *that* bad. He’s just loud. At least he actually gives encouragement, which is pretty rare in that world. It’s not like he’s the Genghis Khan of the Kitchen. All Master Chefs are perfectionist assholes. That’s just the job. That’s just the business. When those contestants leave, most of the places they go in the upper echelons of the “Food World” will be that kind of environment. It’s not like it’s going to get better.

P.S. People wonder why I swear so much, it’s because I spent 14 months in that kind of environment at an impressionable age. ;) I think about the only groups more foul mouthed than food people are military and merchant marines.

Reading

I finished the Flying Cloud over the weekend and enjoyed it quite a bit. Given that none of the personages involved were considered “worthy of note”, the author did not devote too much time to them and what he did you can tell he stretched what little information was to be had for all he could get out of it. But it is very instructional as to how sailing, especially navigating, was done during what many consider to be Sail’s zenith as well as being illustrative of the many deadly hazards faced at sea.

It’s now winging it’s way to AZ as part of the family book club.

Now I’m reading George Fletcher Bass’ Archeology Beneath the Sea, which is an out of print book published in 1975 about well, the dawn of true underwater archeology.

Before this time, most attempts at shipwrecks, whether from hard hat or SCUBA divers, were less excavation and more salvage. Bass was part of the group, if not spearheading it, leading the way on actually trying to conduct a true archeological excavation of a wreck site, rather than just digging stuff out willy-nilly.

Shipwrecks are near perfect time capsules, capturing not only the culture of a particular people, but what other cultures those people were in contact with and the influences they may have had on each other. If excavated properly, archeologist can tell what goods were being carried from where, what time of year the ship sailed, country (hopefully port) of origin, the route taken, the culture of the crew and even, if lucky, some personal details. Not to mention the construction of the ship, which not only reveals a culture technological development, but by the type of vessel and quality of construction, we can determine the culture’s potential range for contact and influence.

But that’s if they are excavated properly, their contents mapped out, the artifacts studied in situ before removal and then made available to the academic community, and care taken to preserve the delicate timbers of the ship on which the artifacts lie. In previous year, wreckers have had no compunction about going in and just ripping artifacts out. The rotting timber and surrounding material complete destroyed by a propeller backwash in order to shift out a few gold coins or necklaces or statuary. But thing have gotten better, pressure from the diving community has made wrecker/Search and Salvage go much more high class and as evidenced by excavations such as the Titanic and the Republic. Most of the non-academic sanctioned archeological expeditions do make an effort now to be scientific in the removal of artifacts, cataloguing where they were found in the site. The larger ones, the good ones, even include and archeologist or two. The photographic and video evidence they usually collect is invaluable to an under funded community of archeologists who will never be able to visit the sites themselves.

Not that there isn’t a great deal of animosity between the two groups even still. The two teams racing for the Endurance are particularly demonstrative of the rift. The Academic community views the Salvage groups as no better than prop washing wreckers. Profit driven hacks that will destroy archeological information in order to gain valuable artifacts. The Salvage groups resent the judgment. The rift is further exacerbated by the large amount of money Salvage groups are able to tap into as opposed to the academic community. Let face it, truly philanthropic dollars are hard to come by and people are much more ready to invest in an operation that will net artifacts that will be sold on the antiquities market, thereby netting then a return, as opposed to just given to a museum or academic institution for study.

Quite frankly, I don’t know what to think. The Salvage operation get the money, hence they get the dives the academic community can’t afford, yet corners are cut and valuable informaiton is ignored or lost. The academic community has got to find a way to get off their high horse and nurse these people into actually making a serous go of excavating and studying wrecks rather than saying they have to right to.

Anyway, the book (yeah, remember the book?) really good, a narrative of his earliest excavations and experiences developing techniques for underwater archeology, including the Yassi Ada wreck, for which I also have the monograph. (Thanks Mom!)

But a *YEAH!*

I got my grades back from one of the community colleges I was attending:

History of Religion – A
History of the Middle East – A

YES!

I’m just awaiting the Final Grade at my principal college for History of Modern Civilization. That one is a nail biter.

Growl, growl, growl....

More Proof That This Generation Of Bushes Are A Bunch Of Jackasses.

Jeb Bush calls for probe into Shiavo 911 call….15 years ago!

Of for Gawd sake! It ‘s over! You all were as wrong as a 450 lb man in a thong. Wrong! There’s no evidence to convict him with anyway. Don’t waste anymore taxpayer money and time on this moot subject!

Dear Republican Party,

It is my formal recommendation that you permanently sterilize the Bush family in hopes of preventing an entire new crop of idiots that will further embarrass your party. Do it now.

Then send the Bush twins to Iraq. It might help your little recruiting problem.

Sincerely,
Jane Q. Public.

Actually, the more extremists like Jeb Bush and Frist embarrass themselves, the more of a shot McCain has of getting the Republican Nom.

Given that the Democratic choices are…pretty much nothing at this point, and the fact that while I do not agree with all of McCain policies, at least from what I know of the man, I respect him and know he has respect for the American nation, it’s citizenry and it’s military.

RANT: So I Was Channel Flipping…

Waiting for CSI when I caught the new Tommy Hilfiger reality show called “The Cut”. Since they were tricking out cars, I watched. Two members of each team met with their client, the rapper “Fabulous”, at a club to determine what he wanted out of SUV. One team sent two girls, the other sent two guys.

This was embarrassing. The two girls basically acted like groupies, fawning over him and flirting with him. The only time they talked about the car was to say things like… “Oh, you want a car to have Princess (the girls actual name) to sit in? Well, we’d better make you a nice car then!”

The guys on the other hand, took the client aside and determined what he did actually want. The only thing the girls came back with was his favorite color and the fact he liked Vienna Fingers.

You can guess who won the competition, hands down.

To add insult to injury, the blonde basically was sitting around slacking while the rest of the team was busting their asses.

Now, these two bimbos were not the only girls in the competition, both teams also had chicks who got their hands dirty and intelligently and materially contributed to the projects as much as their male counterparts. But folks, the fact that two women in their late twenties would even think that way in a competition based on work performance is sadly indicative with what is happening in American society.

It’s not reverse sexism, that would be where men are being objectified they way women used to back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. It’s self-sexism, where women are objectifying themselves. For the last five or eight years, women in media and little girls have been sexualized to the point that that is the most important thing in their lives and what they think they can rely on that to get them through the big bad world.

First of all, I have no issues with beauty. Tyra Banks and Nicole Kidman, are two of the most stunningly beautiful women on the planet, but they are also very business astute (the former) and very talented (the latter). I admire both of them. There’s much more than just a pretty face those ladies and that’s why they achieve the levels of long term success that women like Iman and Jessica Alba haven’t (and at the rate Jessica is going, probably won’t). The harsh facts are that we live in a world of the two-income household and there are simply are not enough millionares in midlife-crisis to cover the rather large crop of female twits America is churning out, not to mention we won't look like that forever. Looks are great, but they are not going take care of you.

Yet the images placed in the media in the last few years keep telling women that being “hawt” is all that really matters. Male hip-hop stars having videos objectifying women are bad enough, but female stars seem to be doing it to themselves under the guise of “sexual liberation”. Men’s video strip women down, yet instead of the women’s videos stripping men down, they strip themselves and other women down. Three of the biggest ex-mousekteers: Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Christina Aguilera all present themselves as sex objects. (Christina’s saving grace is that she is so “out there” that she intimidates most men, not to mention actually having a voice.) As does Paris Hilton, most famous for...being famous, flagging career occasionally propped up by...er "accidentally relased" sex tapes. Britney’s latest media offering, “Chaotic”, (No, I did not actually watch it. I have something against making my eyes bleed. I read the reviews and feedback on the radio. KROQ’s Laquicia is very good about these things.) sets the undesirable example that if you are a complete twit with a lot of money, you too can marry a talentless, lazy hanger-on and live in a mansion and have lots of clothes. The truth of the matter is most girls relying on their looks as much as Britney does to get by in the world that marry someone like Cleutus Federline end up living in a trailer park ducking the landlord.

And yet, there they all were, little 12 year old girls in mini-skirts or low rider jeans and kerchief tops and undersize T-Shirts with sexually suggestive, if not blatant, labels on them, just lining up to try and walk in Britney’s footsteps. (And then we all gasp in shock when we find out kids are running around having sex at age 12 and 13? HELL-LO! DUH!) These girls are coming up thinking that that is their primary asset: Their looks and their sexuality (before they even realize what that really means). I’ve run into these kids; thinking that Jessica Simpson is really smart and a role model to aspire to(!). That through their looks and sex they might gain fame and money and through fame and money they might find love. (Or worse, they might find “love” with someone who will provide them with fame and money.) I’ve seen oil stains with more depth and LSD hallucinations more realistic. Do not encourage children to believe that they are so beautiful that someone is just waiting to “fall in love with them and make them famous”. Do not teach them that some man is going to come along and take care of them if they are pretty enough. Pride in one’s appearance is good and necessary, but wholly relying on it only leads to misery and not only in her long term material well-being. The United States has the highest rate of cases of Anorexia Nervosa.

If a kid has dreams to be an artist of some kind, great. Encourage that, give them a guitar, send ‘em to acting school, go to their concerts, give them a sketch pad, praise their efforts. If your little girl is good looking, great. Tell her, but tell her also that that beauty is skin deep and is not going to get her through the world. Is she wants to get into the fashion world, fantastic! Tell her she had better have something like design or fashion marketing under her belt in case things on the runway don’t pan out. Tell all girls that they had better have skills, knowledge, work ethic, and desire to achieve career goals. (Having career goals other than “I want to have J-Lo’s wardrobe.” would be a nice start.) Lest they end up like that silly, lazy blonde on The Cut last night: Losing.

Be beautiful, be sexy, but back it up with something real. Like these chicks…

Salma Hayek
Danica Patrick
Angelina Jolie
Amanda Beard
Marion Jones
Dido
Shania Twain
Faith Hill

Many, many others!

You Know You’ve Become A Cultural Institution When…

*chuckle*

Hits Just Keep On Comin’…

6.6 earthquake rocks ocean off Northern California

So that’s 6 in five days.

Best of luck this weekend!

Keeping my fingers crossed that Dale and the 8 crew can find the set up. Best of luck and a safe race to the 8, 6 and 38 teams!

EDIT: Heard Dale was under the weather. Hope he gets well soon!

Mom, Dad, Can I move Into Your Beach House in AZ?

And the Pacific Rim Continues to Rock n' Roll...

5.3 near Yukaipa.
Here at work is was just a shaker, felt like a 3.5 to 4.0. But it lasted a while.

Proof! Yes Scriptural Proof! That God Hates...

Figs.

Actually, If You Want to Follow Bush's Hypocrisy Another Step Further...

Not only did the neo-conservative politician who stood on Terri Shiavo's "right to life" as part of the "culture of life" execute 152 prisoners as governor of Texas, he also signed a bill into law that allows the state to decide to remove patients in a vegetative state from life support if the family cannot pay for their treatment and there is no hope of recovery.

In short, Bush doesn't give a damn about peoples lives. He's just lying to the Christian Right to gain their support. Why they cannot see they are being lied to and manipulated by now, I do not know.

But on the Mr. BrightSide...

The Downing Street Memo is gathering steam and getting attention over the web and through MoveOn.org

Turning saints into the sea
Swimming through sick lullabys
Choking on your alibis
But it's just the price I pay
Destiny is calling me
Open up my eager eyes
I'm Mr. Brightside

First of All...

Jade rules.

“A true judge is how adversity is handled. Anyone can be a hero when they're winning. But, I'm not convinced the nay-sayers are completely correct when they insist the conditions are critical for the Bud team. Racing is a tough business, and it's cyclical. (Just ask Ferrari right now.) Those who keep at it will prevail again.

What's the worst that would happen if Junior reaches race #27 in 11th place?

You want critical? You want serious?

Try losing your father in front of the world, then have your every move, your every word watched, scrutinized, recorded.

Try climbing back into a racecar five days after suffering searing, painful burns in a sports car crash that was shown countless times all around the world.

Try climbing into a racecar at Darlington after being at the hospital the day before with your teammate Steve Park, who had been seriously injured in a freak, scary crash.

Hell, forget racing analogies. Try being one of our soldiers on the ground in Iraq. Try being a family member of someone on the ground in Iraq. Try being an ordinary citizen on the ground in Iraq.

And, when all else fails, try humor.”

Absolutely right.

Touche’ I consider myself chastised.

The Continuing Saaaaga of an Ass That Was Made Into a Toad.*

No, No, No! I liked McCain! Is it so bad to want allegations of misconduct, impropriety and abuse of power to be cleared before an appointment?

Check out to Poll on the same page. When I clicked it only 28% of American's supported his nomination.

Why can’t the Bush administration give up and withdraw the nomination, present another candidate? What is sooooo special about Mr. Bolton? I’m sure there are plenty of other candidates within the administration or the U.S. Diplomatic corp who can protect the U.S.’ interests and fight for reform within the U.N.

Movin’ and Shakin’

The Pacific and North American plates gettin’ busy again. The Tsunami alert was cancelled by around 10 pm. Oddly, this is not the first time we’ve had them, but we sure as hell are taking them more seriously now.

So actually it’s four quakes since Sunday morning:
Azusa – 5.6
Chile – 7.0
Crescent City – 7.9
Aleutians – 6.8

Now, a lot of areas along the Pacific rim, like Los Angeles, sit on very active faults and so experience hundreds, if not thousands, of tiny earthquakes every day, but this a lot of moderate to major ones in a short time frame. I wonder just how much slippage we’ve had in the last couple days? The comfort is these moderate to major quakes relive pressure between the two plates, staving off a truly catastrophic shift/earthquake.

Some more info on earthquakes.

Hey, for those of you on the East Coast, these are our Hurricanes and Tornados. Every region of the country seems to be susceptible to some natural disaster: You have storms, we have earthquakes. :)

YEA!

The RoadMap seems to be working!

Israel to Turn Over Control of Volatile West Bank Town to Palestine.

As much as I can’t stand President Bush or his administration, I must give him credit for sticking to the plan and insisting that both parties do the same. This, more than anything we are doing in Iraq or are planning to do with Iran, will help achieve peace in the Middle East.

Where Did You Go To Medical School?

“Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), a renowned heart surgeon before becoming Senate majority leader, went to the floor late Thursday night for the second time in 12 hours to argue that Florida doctors had erred in saying Terri Schiavo is in a "persistent vegetative state."

"I question it based on a review of the video footage which I spent an hour or so looking at last night in my office," he said in a lengthy speech in which he quoted medical texts and standards. "She certainly seems to respond to visual stimuli."

And the newly released Autopsy shows that Shiavo’s brain was not only half it’s normal size, she was blind.

So not only was he, all the neoconservatives in the government and their pet doctors wrong, but isn’t it *slightly* unethical to pronounce diagnosis from a videotape? Especially when your specialty isn’t neurology?

I highly doubt we will hear apologies from the Shiavo’s parents for putting the her, her husband and the nation through this, and I highly doubt we will hear anything apologetic from the Bush administration for wasting valuable congressional time and taxpayer dollars, not to mention the attempted infrigment on personal rights, but please dear Gawd don’t tell me they’re putting up this idiot Frist as a presidential nominee.

More proof Mr. Freedom Fries Frist is an idiot.

EDIT: What did I tell you? This of course from the Governor of Texas who excuted 152 prisoners, including some of whom were mentally retarded.

(Not that I am anti-death penalty. I'm for its judicious use in cases of extreme violence and depravity such as serial killers. It's just my beliefs are consistant in believing that the individual has the right to choose to die as much as the State has a right to chose that someone else dies.)

Oh, and the parents are still insisting she was concious. *insert rolling of eyes here*

I Have A Confession...

I, miss Precedent-Precedence, got my definitions mixed up last week. I mixed up Impetus and Onus. Mea Culpa. Come-uppance is a bitch. May the gods of vocabulary and Dale Jr. have mercy on my soul. *red face* ;)

*Rowlf rules!

Well...hrm.

Pocono

I won’t lie. Things are not pleasant within the “Jr. Nation”. The PitStop has begun the “If Dale Jr. Doesn’t Make the Chase” discussions and the carping on the TEC has become very tedious.

Note: Being cable bereft, I missed out on the ESPN interview completely, perhaps the following rant was addressed.

Rant commencing: I’ve been philosophical about everyone having bad years and it's true, everyone does, but it's still fustrating as hell for the fans. I also fully acknowlge as fustrating as it is for us, it is probably ten times more so for Dale. But...Dale Jr. has spoken of “not looking at things race to race, but rather making decisions for the long term well being of the team” but from the fan's perspective, we’re really wishing someone could let us in on those decisions and goals because we’re a little mystified as to how this latest change is helping. The set ups are still bad. Before those tires got cut, Dale was still mired in the back. How is this helping? Why couldn’t Steve Hmiel made Tony Jr. talk with Pete? Why not at the beginning of the year? Why did he have to take over himself while DEI looked for another crew chief, rather than just keep Pete on until they found someone? Are they looking for someone? Who? What are the folks behind the scenes at DEI seeing that the fans are not because we are… well, we feel more than little lost in the dark here and it’s frustrating because we know Dale is a kick ass driver and we hate seeing him get stuck with lousy equipment. I am still hopeful that the Bud Crew can somehow turn this around and make the Chase, but to outsiders, DEI/The 8 Team looks and sounds pretty lost right now and that doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in a fan base. I still buy race tickets, I still wear my Dale Jr. hat and jersey with (somewhat dented) pride and will continue to do so Chase or not, but WTF is going on over there?

Not, I suppose, what one wants to hear from the fan base, but it’s honest: We believe in you, we like you, we're still pulling for you to win, but we just don’t understand WTH you are doing.

But Dear Dale...Punkin'? Sweetie?

If you insist on having “Rusty Wallace moments”, could you at least have un-blonde ones?

Dear Fox,

Please excuse Dale Jr. from 0 through 3rd period interviews. He’s a zombie before 11 am and it shows. “Cheeseburger”? Then again, this may have been more revealing of Dale’s true nature than any interview we’ve seen in the last year. *chuckle*

Dear Goodyear:

Your tires still suck! While I do not fully understand NASCAR’s reasoning behind the “softer tire” nonsense (unless they are playing completely into PrimerGrey’s theory that the shorter spoiler/softer tire is to create more cautions which means more advertising space to sell), I understand even less why the tire sidewalls have to blow. Literally.

And the “they're running set-ups that are too aggressive!” whining? STFU! It’s racing morons, what the hell did you expect? Grampa’s golf cart?

E-NOUGH. Goodyear wasn’t all that hot last year either. Monopoly breeds complacency. It’s time to give them some competition, bring another manufacturer in for teams to choose from.

Frustrating day for Elliott. To fall back, claw his way to the front and then get nailed for speeding on pit road? It indeed sucked to be him. Maybe it time to put speedometers back in the cars? Mark did well though, but what the heck happened in the final lap? I was so looking forward to putting at least one of the Brat Pack down. Glad that caution was called before lost too many spots.

Other Than That…

There’s been a bit of family stuff going on this week, and I am determinedly in post-final brain rot. :D

We had an earthquake Sunday morning, a “roller” (rollers are quakes that feel like your on ship, a smooth roll) but nothing major, a 5.6. Stuff got knocked of shelves over the epicenter and I felt is a bit up at my place. But then there was the big 7.4 in Chile today.

Sounds kinda freaky for the Ring of Fire (no, not the Johnny Cash song) folks. Prayers to the families who lost loved ones in Chile.

So…

The Jackson trial is over…what is the media going to use to distract us from real topics now?

YAY ME!

Well, that’s it. It’s over. I had my final final last night and spent the rest of the evening angst-ing over the fact that I had gone into so much detail I ran out of time. But there it is, everything I can do I have done and there it is.

I’m not marching this time, saving it all up for my bachelors, but still…IT’S OVER!!!! I is a college graduate! An Associates degree in History. WAH-HOO!

Truly I feel a little at a loss not having a semester to look forward to or something hanging over my head, but damn! I’ll get used to it. :D

I’d like to take a quick moment to say thank you to everyone, especially my family, who have helped encourage and support me through the last…well 6 years of school and helped me to get through a major step in getting where I want to be. I couldn’t have done it without you guys and I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate you all! You RULE!

Warriors of God

In the last few weeks, I have pulled back from most of my recreational pastimes: Movies and Books especially, but when I got sick of OPEC or 19th century revolutionary movements in Latin America, I picked up Warriors of God by James Reston and read it in short bursts. It’s a historical account of the Third Crusade in which Richard the Lionheart went to take back Jerusalem from Salah al-Din (or Saladin, as we know him), the man who is popularly considered the greatest leader the Islamic world has ever seen. In the mode of “readable history” that is popular today, the book is a very enjoyable and accurate. Perhaps not as personal as some people might like, but a great storytelling of the clash of Europe’s and the Middle East greatest leaders and biggest characters. If one is interested in the Middle Ages and the Crusades, this is required reading.

BTW-Did anyone realize Saladin was Kurdish? No wonder they have such “national” pride. Real class act that guy.

Now Reading:

Flying Cloud: The True Story of America's Most Famous Clipper Ship and the Woman Who Guided Her By David Shaw.

While the biographical story aspects are rather slim, this book is enjoyable and educational for the reason that underwater archeology is: It a slice of life. A snapshot of a time in America and a time in shipbuilding and sailing that left an indelible imprint on the American character.

I’m also going to go see Star Wars finally.

Interesting facts you stumble across when researching...

Did anyone other than my Dad realize WWII technically never ended? Since Russia and Japan never signed a peace treaty, the war could technically be considered ongoing.

Why a U.N. Ambassadorship Matters:

Beyond Bolton

What the idiot that wrote this editorial fails to realize is the belligerence of the Bush administrations foreign policy so clearly reflected in Mr. Bolton and his nomination. That the United Nations is in need of reform is without question. That a hegemon that feels it’s place is to dictate rules to the world while no rules apply to them be the one who make those changes is completely out of the question. Mr. Bolton is not only belligerent and rigid, he is incompetent and his egotism and myopic world view cannot adapt to changes and challenges in intelligence required of this position. His nomination is representative of Bush doctrine’s policy of “To hell with your sovereignty. To hell with what is morally right. To hell with what is even the intelligent thing to do. My way or the highway.” Stopping this nomination shows the world that the Bush administration's aggressive and alienating foreign policy is *not* shared by the majority of the American public.

We need someone in the U.N. who will push for change and reform, someone who will make strong stands against ALL nations that disregard Resolutions, but not one who is so blinded by his ego and the greed and power madness of a few powerful people that he forgets who he is there to serve and how to do that. We need someone who will act in the interests of the American people, not the Bush administration.

“Making Amends”

Heard about the NASCAR Scene article. >:( I really hate being right sometimes.

Dale Jr. said they were working on “long-term" goals, which is pretty smart IMO. I hope to hell they pan out. Glad to see they were getting some testing in too. :)

That being said, I hope the 8 Team can find something to smile about at last this weekend. Best of luck to Dale and Bud Crew, as well as Elliott and the Chocolate Thunder (that sounds vaguely rude, doesn’t it?) and Mark and the Viagra Team at Pocono this weekend. Good luck, be safe and have some fun!

Discovery Channel's Greatest American Vote

I don't think amassing fortunes (Winfrey, Gates, Disney) realy makes one "great". If that were the case the barons of the Gilded Age; Rockefeller, Morgan, Getty, etc. have outstripped them with ease. (Well, maybe not Gates, Gates would fit right in with that club.) I think what the person actually contriubted to American society as a whole is what matters. Ben Franklin is the obvious quick choice, but personal feelings have me leaning towards Lincoln or Jefferson. FDR was pretty kick ass too.

EDIT: Though thinking now that Jefferson's ownership of slaves and refusal to address the issue of slavery (He didn't like it but politically it would have been suicide to suggest something like the 14th amendment at that time. Not an excuse, just a reason.) and FDR's internment of Japanese Americans would take them both out of the running for "Greatest American".

Word O' The Day:

Satellite o' Love.

Why?

Because I feel like it.

Another Thought:

I still think Dale Jr. can make the chase.

Dover

Whoa Nelly.

Well, it was interesting. Glad to ee Robby Gordon out there leading some laps, keeping his sponsors happy. Even more glad to see Elliott up there so dominant during the first half of the race (*yay!*) while playing it smart, but what the hell did they do to his car? :( (P.S. Nice cap for the golf match El. You actually pulled it off and looked rather snappy.) Great finish for Mark Martin. (*yay!*) And nice to see a little o’ the old Tony Stewart back: “Move or I’ll move you”. Well, maybe not nice, entertaining certainly, but perhaps “nice” isn’t the word to apply. Congrats to Biffle for running away from the field. Again.

It’s beats Mini-me running away from the field. Again.

BTW-Mark Martin has more class than the Ivy league college.

Now, as the various message boards call for various people’s heads at DEI, I should like to inject some perspective:

Every team has rough years. Dale’s only been in the big fishbowl of Cup racing for 5 years and three of those he has finished in the top ten in point standings. That’s not freakin’ bad. Year 6 here may be a rough one, but it’s a learning experience and “that which does not kill you makes you stronger…or gets you on daytime talk shows” and all that jazz. It happens.

I am currently wrapping up the final semester of my associates degree after 7 years of night college (all while working full time). In this one semester: my dog died, I got mono, my car was almost a week in the shop and I had empty my pockets completely to get it fixed, one of my professors is a vindictive grader who is easily threatened by questions she can’t answer, and one of my cats was just diagnosed with a long term illness. Nothing major (except Gerry passing), but a whole slew of small stuff. In the middle of all this I have not been blameless, as I have let some of my studying slip. Am I going to have a straight “A” this time around? No. But I sure as hell am not rolling over and slinking away with my tail between my legs. It’s not going to be my best showing, but I will have finished and done the best I can. There have been semesters that have been easier and semesters that have been harder and as long as I am satisfied with what I have done, that’s all that matters. That’s all that matters.

If, jesu forend, Dale Jr. never wins a championship, it neither breaks my leg nor picks my pocket (if I may profane the phrase), nor does it any fans. Dale is doing this (I hope) for himself. If he decides to go back to being “the fastest oil change man” in Moorseville who spends all days off on the computer or watching TV, that is completely within his prerogative. If he is committed to winning a championship for DEI that is his prerogative. If he is committed to winning a Championship for himself, that is his prerogative. The only person’s expectations Dale has to live up to are his own. That’s all that matters.

Any criticism I lay out here stems from a frustration of knowing how good a wheelman he is versus how good his finishes end up being. The frustration of not hearing him talk about having fun anymore. The frustration of seeing his unhappiness with things. Yesterday was very frustrating, from the moment I saw Dale’s obvious hopelessness in the pre-race to his slipping back from 15th. If this is what Dale Jr. wants, if this is what satisfies his soul, then some things have got to change, within the organization and within himself. Nobody is perfect, everyone makes mistakes and everyone can grow, learn and become better. A better person and a better professional. So while the fan base squabbles on, and before they move up to three teams, I think it’s time for Dale and DEI to take a long hard look at what they are doing and how they are approaching things. Introspect for a while on both what they are doing as individuals and what they are doing as a organization, really look at what is going on, each person first tackle their individual issues and then the organizational problems. Then Figure out a definite direction and go for it. Stop being reactive and get proactive. I don’t know enough about what is going on behind the scenes there beyond the confused flailing that the rest of the world sees to say what needs to be done beyond such generalizations, but DEI is not going to maintain it’s standing this way. The way they are working now, adding another team will just mean one more team taking up shop space. They will drop into the obscurity of Morgan McClure and the Wood Brothers if something in the DEI system doesn’t change.

And quite frankly, I really don’t want to see Dale Jr. cruising for ulcers anymore (even/espcially the ones that stem from problems he himself creates). That really bothers me. I really hope everyone in Moorseville can figure something out. They're all big kids, they should be able to.

BTW-I heard that RCR, RYR and DEI all used to have some sort of R&D deal going on? What happened with that? Given the sucess of these big 5 car teams, might it make sense for some of these smaller teams to start banding together? Just a thought.

Last two finals this week, wish me luck.

One Down

Two to go.

But I have stumbled upon the magick “Final Formula”:

Gobs of Rice Krispy Treats and Vitamin B.

All Hail the Mighty Kellogs and Trader Joes!

Kansas...Again?

Jade, WTF is up with your state?

First its “Greyhound’s are not dogs”

Then it’s the “Un-natural sciences”

And now….

*drumroll please*

A female senator who opposes women suffrage.

Owie! My brain hurts!

Truthfully I don’t know what to say. When one encounters such gross hypocritical imbecility, what can one say? “If you want to retire, retire, but don’t blame the rest of us for having the wherewithall to take a hand in our own destiny and be responsible for the world we live in!”?

Lazy-ass bitch.

Tut-Tut, It’s the Smith.

Yes, I know. Bun pun! Bad pun! No biscuit.

I can see the media is trying to drum up the same rabid fandom that King Tutankhamen enjoyed during his last visit in the 1970’s and the Egyptians are always fun, but I swear if I see that funereal mask on another magazine cover I will simply scream.

Though this show promises to be even more interesting than the last because of the various scientific discoveries (they’ve cat scanned his mummy) and they are also focusing on his very interesting (in a Chinese curse kind of way) ancestors.

But this issues is also interesting because this year is the 100th anniversary of the major discoveries of Albert Einstein. Some of his theories have stood the test of time and some of them haven’t, what matters the most if a ground he broke. He literally revolutionized the way man looks at space and time at a point most physicists agree was 50 years ahead of its time”. Though it does touch on some of the tragedies in his life, the article is a mostly professional biography than anything. However, it does address how the mythos that has come to surround Einstein in Western Culture occurred, as well as giving one of the clearest explanations for the Relativity Theory this non-mathematical person has ever heard.

It also has articles on the cultural impact of immigration on both sides of the border, an overview of one of the sillier moments in American history: The Pig (Yes, Pig) War, a discussion on air pollution on our national parks, and some of Gregory Colbert’s stunning photographs.

As always, the Smithsonian Magazine rules.