Lauryn Hill

I saw Lauryn Hill on Chappelle's Block Party - I knew she could sing but I didnt realize how absolutely beautiful she is. I couldnt take my eyes off her. Wow.

Saddam's death

I am disgusted with how we portray Saddam Hussein. Are there worse tyrants in the world? Of course. Search the web and learn about the Belgian Congo - talk about a history of violence, exploitation and misery! What about the genocide that happened in Bosnia, Rwanda, and Darfur without the US doing anything to stop it? My problem with Saddam is not with what he did (ruthless cruel evil dictator) but its how our country has behaved. Showing him after his capture to humiliate him was followed by showing him in his underwear - same thing. Then the phoney trial with the verdict: guilty! What a surprise! And then the hanging, captured of course on videotape. What kind of country are we? Are we as barbarous as Saddam? How many innocent people have been killed since our invasion, compared to how many Saddam killed? Can we question whether or not George W. Bush is as big a war criminal as Saddam? Gen. Garner once said that you have to measure your success in war by the following question you ask yourself every night: will I have fewer enemies in the morning? Ok, so we went to sleep friday night, with Saddam's execution pending, as we ask ourselves, will we have fewer enemies in the morning after Saddam has been executed? Of course not. We now have more enemies.

Kanye West: Jesus Walks With Me

I rented Dave Chappelle's Block Party after reading on msnbc that it was one of the top twenty films of 2006 (?) Yes, it is fantastic. The music is over the top. The high stepping marching band of Central State University in Ohio is featured - they are amazing, such beautiful and gifted young men and women. A And then Kanye West comes out and sings a song I couldn't believe. I listened to it 3 times before I could belive my ears - I listened to it a fourth time and concluded it is a masterpiece - a combination of rap and gospel that I have never heard. Here are the lyrics. BTW - George Bush doesn't like black people. If they played music like this in church maybe I would attend more often!

We at war
We at war with terrorism, racism, and most of all we at war with ourselves
(Jesus Walks)
God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walks with me) with me with me with me [fades]

You know what the Midwest is?
Young & Restless
Where restless Niggaz might snatch your necklace
And next these Niggaz might jack your Lexus
Somebody tell these Niggaz who Kanye West is
I walk through the valley of the shadow of death is
Top floor the view alone will leave you breathless Uhhhh!
Try to catch it Uhhhh! It's kinda hard
Getting choked by the detectives yeah yeah now check the method
They be asking us questions, harass and arrest us
Saying "we eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast"
Huh? Yall eat pieces of shit? What's the basis?
We ain't going nowhere but got suits and cases
A trunk full of coke rental car from Avis
My momma used to say only Jesus can save us
Well momma I know I act a fool
But I'll be gone til November I got packs to move I Hope

(Jesus Walks)
God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walks with me)
The only thing that I pray is that me feet don't fail me now
(Jesus Walks)
And I don't think there is nothing I can do now to right my wrongs
(Jesus Walks with me)
I want to talk to God but I'm afraid because we ain't spoke in so long

(Jesus Walks)
God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walks with me)
The only thing that I pray is that me feet don't fail me now
(Jesus Walks)
And I don't think there is nothing I can do now to right my wrongs
(Jesus Walks with me)
I want to talk to God but I'm afraid because we ain't spoke in so long

To the hustlas, killers, murderers, drug dealers even the strippers
To the victims of Welfare for we living in hell here hell yeah
Now hear ye hear ye want to see Thee more clearly
I know he hear me when my feet get weary
Cuz we're the almost nearly extinct
We rappers is role models we rap we don't think
I ain't here to argue about his facial features
Or here to convert atheists into believers
I'm just trying to say the way school need teachers
The way Kathie Lee needed Regis that's the way I need Jesus
So here go my single dog radio needs this
They say you can rap about anything except for Jesus
That means guns, sex, lies, video tapes
But if I talk about God my record won't get played Huh?
Well let this take away from my spins
Which will probably take away from my ends
Then I hope this take away from my sins
And bring the day that I'm dreaming about
Next time I'm in the club everybody screaming out

(Jesus Walks)
God show me the way because the devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walks with me)
The only thing that I pray is that me feet don't fail me now

Eleven year old understands global warming!

I have been attending the unitarian universalist church here in slippery rock the last few weeks. Today an eleven year old girl spoke up during the "sharing" time, and she talked about the video she saw about global warming (An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore I assume). She talked about something that disturbed her: a polar bear who was having trouble hunting and living because the ice was melting. It was the image of the polar bear that she remembered - she has linked global warming with the plight of polar bears. When you think about that - I mean the abstract reasoning that is involved - how we live affects polar bears - absolutely amazing! I loved that moment. I recycle because municipal solid waste (MSW) contributes to global warming - an elementary recyling program can reduce MSW by 1/3 ( my colleague Dr. Sharon Sykora and I did a survey of Pennsylvania boroughs and found that out). When you recycle, you are helping that polar bear. An eleven year old figured that out! So why doesn't President Bush understand that? I am slapping my forehead right now - Duh!

Prancer the best Christmas movie

I know most people think Miracle on 34th Street or It's a Wonderful Life are great Christmas movies, but I think Prancer is the best. First there is the performance of Rebecca Harrell - she was only 8 yrs old when she played the lead. Sam Eliott is good as her depressed, beat down in life dad. Cloris Leachman is great as the grumpy neighborhood. Even Rutyana Alda is in it as the kind Aunt - she starred in Deerhunter (the pregnant bride).

Flying jet man

This guy steps out of a Helio jet prop plane, unfolds his wings, uses altitude to establish air speed, then turns on his two jets. He not only flies, but he obviously has control of himself - he executes turns, climbs, descends, all the basic aeronautical maneuvers of an airplane. When his fuel is expended, he opens his parachute, folds the wings, and lands perfectly. I wouldn't believe it unless I actually saw it. Amazing. This guy is obviously an expert skydiver, and those guys DO NOT take risks - everything is planned out. So he must have been confident that this was safe. BTW, he is flying over the alps!

Cheetah with prosthetic leg

Here is a story about a cheetah who was caught in a trap, had to have her leg cut off. The vet fitted her with a prosthetic leg. She can't be in the wild anymore, but she will have the chance to live. When I lived in Oklahoma, renting a house on a ranch, the rancher allowed one of his old hillbilly friends to "trap" on the ranch. This jerk set traps that captured dogs, deer, crows and finally a lynx. I confronted this guy and he said he wasn't responsible for people allowing their dogs to run free - mind you, this is rural oklahoma, and just about every household had dogs running around. I called the county sheriff and he said the guy couldnt trap on known animal routes, like the deer run. He also said he couldnt trap crows and cut their feet off for bait. But the sheriff also said he didnt have enough help to arrest the guy. I think animal trapping is stupid and cruel. In africa some farmers trap to prevent wild animals from hurting their livestock, or to catch game to eat. But trapping Cheetahs is just plain wrong.

Massacre in Haditha

Here is a bbc report about the alledged murder of 15 civilians in Haditha, after an IED killed one American soldier. These marines I think already suffer from post traumatic stress. Observors said the soldiers went on a "rampage." We put our troops in situations like this, and when they flip out we prosecute them. I know killing civilians is wrong, but put myself in the place of the soldiers, I wonder if i would have acted differently. When does someone just snap? There can be no justice in this case: innocent people were killed, and to prosecute the soldiers won't bring them back. These soldiers need counseling. Of course its a political problem: we can't NOT do anything because that would undermine an already embattled Iraqi government. More sadness and tragedy from Iraq.

Why we Fight? The Israeli model.

In the movie, Why we Fight, ex CIA Chambers Johnson says part of the reason is the volunteer military. He said the attitude of the American people is "screw you guys, you volunteered!" I don't agree with that, but there is very little opposition to troops in Iraq because (and here i agree) they are volunteers. Bring back the draft? The Senate opposes that. The military opposes that. Students oppose that. But can you imagine where the country would be if Pres. Bush had to draft people to serve in Iraq? There would be massive demonstrations. Everyone in Israel must serve in the IDF - men and women. And after there active service they have to serve in the reserve. Many Isrealis felt that the reserve soldiers who were called up for the invasion of southern Lebanon were not equipped well, and not used well. There have been demonstrations. Israelis hold their government responsible for how the military is used and treated. Americans are at a disconnect: we honor our troops, support our troops, but they are volunteers and we don't become angry when they are misused. We agree as a nation that our Iraq policy has failed: so our soldiers who continue to be killed, wounded, crippled, are the victims of a failed policy. Why arent we angry about this? Where are the demonstrations? I firmly believe that we as a nation are absolutely disconnected from our military - we honor them as Legionnaires, but do not connect to their suffering. I think we need a draft: everyone serves. Men serve two years, women one year. Then they serve in reserves until they are 40 yrs old. When we fight wars, we fight with a citizen military. We wouldn't be in Iraq now if we had a draft. People would be in the streets demanding something to be done if we had a draft. The reason why we dont is so the people don't have control of the military - the executive branch controls it. What can we tell our soldiers that they are fighting for? Their profession? They are fighting because its their job? We need to look at the Israeli model of staffing a military.

More troops!

"I'm inclined to believe that we do need to increase our troops — the Army, the Marines," Bush said in the Oval Office session. " I teach an introductory cother american government courses what bud lite is to budwieser. One thing I explain to students is that the war on terror differs from convention war, because there are no mass troops. Could someone please explain that to Pres. Bush?! Even the military generals don't think more troops in Iraq will help. We tried that before: wasn't effective. The only way out is through negotiations with Syria and Iran, and that means admitting that we lost. Almost 3,000 troops lost, 30,000 injured, many severely, and the end result is that Syria and Iran are stronger regional powers. What a complete mess. I still can't get over the big Rumsfeld farewell event: Bush is lost in a bubble. Hezbollah is still in southern Lebanon, Gaza is a mess, Hamas is gaining strength - we screw up in Iraq and we make it even worse for Israel! And this will get worse.

Captain Robert Falcon Scott's HQ in Antartica

Terra Nova was Captain Scott's Antartic lodge. It has been preserved as Antartica's oldest most historic building. The pictures of the interior are amazing! A museum in Antartica!

Currywurst: the recipe

In the movie Walk on Water, when Eyal the Israeli Mossad agent flies to Berlin to visit Axel, Axel buys Eyal some Currywurst from a street vendor. Eyah says, "these hot dogs are really good!" and Axel says, they're not hot dogs they're Currywurst. So here is a currywurst recipe. It says you can substitute ketchup for the currywurst sauce - good grief! NO! You can't do that! Sorry this is not vegetarian.

Mission San Miguel Arcangel

Here is the site of the Mission San Miguel Arcangel in California. Brother Antonion will take you for a tour. Be sure you see the frescos in the chapel. BTW the Chapel is closed to the public due to earthquake damage. There are plans to repair it.

Rumsfeld: Don't let the doorknob hit your ___ on the way out!

I can't get over the big sendoff Donald Rumsfeld received. A four star marine corps general, the Prez, the VP, and a fife and drum parade! This guy should have been fired 3 years ago. Clearly, Bush rewards loyalty, and returns it. This signals that there will be no change in Iraq - Bush thinks Rumsfeld has done a good job. At this point no one knows what will happen in Iraq - it can only get worse. The military personnel over there are not accomplishing anything, other than preventing the entire country from descending into chaos - well, I guess that is something after all. More people are fleeing Iraq - so who stays? The poor, the ones with no marketable skills, the ones with plans for revenge...Iraq is not only in civil war, I think it has become a failed state. A failed state is one with no economy (Iraq has no banking system and high unemployment) civil war (3,000 civilians killed each month) with the elite/educated fleeing (any one with a marketable profession has left). And we hold an honorary ceremony for the blockhead responsible! I am convinced that finally the great Senator from Pennsylvania, James Buchanan, will finally escape the title given by historians as "worst President ever" - that award now goes to George W. Bush. he is in such a bubble that he is clueless. At least Condi Rice goes to the Veterans hospital in VA to visit the wounded! Here is a "poem" by Donald Rumsfeld, created from one of his notorious press conferences.

The Unknown

As we know,
There are known knowns.
There are things we know we know.
We also know
There are known unknowns.
That is to say
We know there are some things
We do not know.
But there are also unknown unknowns,
The ones we don't know
We don't know.

Who's on First?

The old Abbott and Costello routine has been made into a video with Pres. Bush and Condi Rice. Funny!

Charlie Brown Terrorist Christmas

Here is Charlie Brown's Christmas with a jihadist terror twist! Is nothing sacred?! BTW to play this you have to prove to YouTube that you are over 18 and register.

Hitler's home movies: amazing!

Here is a 45 min film about hitler's home movies, and how electronic lip reading now allows to add sound to the movies - Hitler now talks in his home movies. Hitler bought Eva Braun a hand held movie camera. Turns out Hitler sounded different in private - his speeches were staged productions, his voice amplified, and his movements choreographed (by a magician/stage performer who was actually an Austrian jew!).

How to make a hot air balloon from a tea bag

Here is how to create a hot air balloon from a tea bag.

Color picture of US before WWII

Here is a site that shows color pictures of US before WWII. Kodacrome was just invented, cost $5 per roll to develop, had to send it to Rochester NY to Kodak's processing center. Most people made $10 a week wages, so most people still used black and white. But the fed government gave out film to photographers (The WPA - depression era gov agency that "made work" for people) and ther result are these amazing pictures. We were a very poor, racially segregated nation.

James Kim's hike

Terrible tragic story about James Kim, how his family was trapped in car in snowstorm how he tried to hike for help. Here is a map of his hike. I remember a survival team building exercise, how the class is in a plane crash, they are alive but in a snow bound wilderness, and they assemble 10 items. Their task is to arrange in order of importance the 10 items. Almost always a subgroup wants to hike out: It is a death sentence. If you are snowbound in your car, you are not prepared to hike in the snow: you dont have the right clothes, or boots; you dont have water or food; you have no shelter; the snow may cover streams or natural obstacles; you have no first aid supplies; most important, you have no compass (assuming you even know how to use one in hiking)you will die. After hiking 16 miles, he ended up almost back where he started.

Oldest living creature on earth: The Greenland artic shark!

This is a story about the Greenland artic shark grows 1/2 centimeter a year, so a 7 metre shark would be several hundred years old, the oldest non-plant living creature on the planet. It swims as deep as 2,100 meters, or over 1 mile deep. It appears in summer months in shallow waters, which is where this researcher studies them. In winter they live under the ice, but no one knows where they go, how they mate, what they eat.

Terry Tate: Office Linebacker

Here is a funny video about Terry Tate, office linebacker. He "owns" the office, enforces rules, tackles employees who break the rules!

E. Coli, Taco Bell and New Jersey.

From msnbc story: "Yum Brands Inc. Tuesday said the strain of E. coli that is suspected to have sickened the victims is no longer in any of its Taco Bell restaurants.

'The E. coli strain appears to have passed through our system,' Tim Jerzyk, Yum’s vice president of investor relations, said at a meeting with Wall Street analysts on Tuesday." Tim Jerzyk is oblivious to his double entendre - that it has PASSED THROUGH OUR SYSTEM. I laughed out loud at that quote!

Taco Bell uses dehyrated prepared food, and hydrates them (adds water) in big pots. Only the vegetables are "fresh." The deluxe burrito has more calories and fat than a burger king whopper. Even the salads have 8 grams of fat.

When I travel I take vege sandwiches with me in a cooler my son and daughter in law purchased for me. The only exception is eating a vege burger at burger king.

911 Conspiracy and South Park

South Park explains the whole 911 conspiracy! Why do people believe 911 was a conspiracy? "Because 1/4 of the American people are retarded" explains President Bush! I was recently at a College Democrats meeting and someone (an older man, not a student) Pres. Bush and Israel were behind the 911 attacks, that WT towers were brought down with demolition explosions.So I said, "3,000 people are dead and you blame the Jews?!" And he said, "Its no coincidence that the landlord of WT was Jewish, AND he had an insurance policy on the buildings." So I said, "So you have a home owners policy on your house, and if saudi arabian terrorists fly a plane into your house, you must obviously be part of a conspiracy?" And at that point someone interrupted and changed the subject. I think poeple are so full of fear, so overwhelmed by reality, that they have to make up elaborate explanations to reassure themselves that the world is under their control. Add some anti-semitism to it, and 911 conspiracy is created. So watch this video and you'll find out who REALLY is behind 911, and who took a dump in the South Park elementary urinal! Once again, South Park parodies American culture, in their own funny, obscene fashion.

Train Ride in India

Here is an amazing insight into life in the crowded 3rd world. These two guys show you how they got on a train in India. And here is a link to train surfing in Soweto, South Africa.

National Lampoon and Teddy kennedy's driving

Who remembers the National Lampoon magazine? Extremely funny satire, from 1970-1975. One issue included an ad for Volkswagon, a lampoon on Ted Kennedy's accident on Chappaquiddick, pictured here. The real story of the auto accident is that he and Mary Jo Kopeckne left a party to go for a "drive." They were seen by a police officer necking, and the officer noted the car in his diary. They changed seats, with Mary Jo driving, because Ted was afraid that the police car would pull him over, and he would be charged with DUI. They headed for the beach as backup plan for sex in the car. Ted is familiar with that slanted bridge, Mary Jo was not. The car flipped upside down - it was night, the water dark, Ted was disoriented, and he somehow got out. He panicked, swam back to the main island, and contacted his aides. Was she still alive? Not a chance. Mary Jo was a former campaign worker for Bobby, and probably she reminded him of Bobby, so he got drunk (he was very depressed and alcoholic during this period of his life)and he and Mary Jo needed some privacy for what they were planning to do. He made up the story about him driving because otherwise he'd have to reveal the "necking in the car" and him being DUI - so he said he was the driver. He was never charged because the police chief knew about the necking report, knew that Ted was drunk and they switched drivers. But yeah, if they were in a VW they would have both lived: VW's bug were airtight. I remember always opening the window a little before I closed the door, otherwise my ears would feel the compression of the air when the door slammed shut (and you really needed to shut the door firmly).

P-Diddy's Vote or Die from Southpark

Here is the video from Southpark, "Vote or Die!" Very funny.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

I cant believe I havent seen this movie before - absolutely fantastic!!! This might be one of the greatest postmodern political films ever made. Its about the accidental murder of Melquiades (Mel-key-aid-us) Estrada, a Vaquero, or cowboy. It is told in flashbacks. Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones) is a Texas rancher, struggling to run his ranch. Estrada rides up on horseback, an absolutely beautiful horse, and asks if he can have some water. Pete asks him where he is from, why he is here. Estrada waits, answers, he is from Mexico, he is looking for work. What kind of work Pete asks him. I am a cowboy, he answers, a Vaquero. Pete smiles. He recognizes something about Estrada - something traditional, proud - cowboy values. they become friends and Estrada tells Pete about his hometown in Mexico, where the air is fresh, the water clean, he shows Pete a picture of his wife and children. Pete asks how long it has been since Estrada has seen them : five years he replies. Pete almost cries. Estrada asks Pete to "take me home" if anything happens to him. So when Estrada is killed, Pete digs him up, kidnaps a border patrol agent named Mike Norton who shot Estrada (Barry Pepper, the sniper from Saving Private Ryan) and they ride to Mexico. I wont spoil the ending. It is an incredible movie. There is one scene in a diner with Rachel the waitress whore and Lou Ann (Mike Norton's wife), and the diner interior is so sterile, so plain, so empty, and the song in the background is an old Roger Miller song, "You cant roller skate in a buffalo herd..." a song that is meaningless, and you get the feeling the director wanted: these people are empty, their lives have no meaning. Watch for appearances from Levon Helm (drummer from The Band)who plays an old, blind cowboy, and the Sheriff who has erectile dysfunction played by singer Dwight Yoakam. It is a movie about paradise lost, how our world is crazy, and how one man retains his sense of loyalty, friendship and Justice. A must see rental!

Dr. Strangelove Kissinger on Iraq

Henry Kissinger, (the real Dr. Strangelove who brought us the Christmas bombing of North Vietnam and the invasion of Cambodia which resulted in the Khmer Rouge dictatorship and 1/3 of the population dead), has advised Pres Bush to stay the course in Iraq, at least according to Bob Woodward in State of Denial

However, he has now changed his mind, 650,000 dead Iraqis later. Military victory is no longer possible in Iraq, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said in a television interview broadcast Sunday.

Kissinger presented a bleak vision of Iraq, saying the U.S. government must enter into dialogue with Iraq's regional neighbors — including Iran — if progress is to be made in the region.

"If you mean by 'military victory' an Iraqi government that can be established and whose writ runs across the whole country, that gets the civil war under control and sectarian violence under control in a time period that the political processes of the democracies will support, I don't believe that is possible," he told the British Broadcasting Corp.

Thanks for the advice Henry. BTW, don't leave the country, you are wanted for war crimes.

Head Butt now part of French Culture

Yes the head butt is now expected of every French citizen, including beauty queens. Here is Ms. France head butting one of her opponents!

"Bond, James Bond."

English sculptor Chris Gilmour's take on the myth of 007 is—to put it politely—ambivalent. Working exclusively with corrugated cardboard harvested from dumpsters near his home base in Udine, Italy, the artist has created Pussy Galore, an exhibit that contains an exact replica of 007's famous Aston Martin DB5, right down to the (faux) tire-slashers, machine guns, and rocket launchers. "I wanted to take the idea of James Bond as this glamorous, invincible superhero and contrast it with an object made of total rubbish," explains Gilmour, who's asking $30,000 for his cardboard creation and takes care to note that the project wasn't intended as yet another crass product tie-in. "I started working on it long before I knew the film was even coming out, so it's a very happy coincidence."

The DB5 is one of the most beautiful cars ever made.

free viagra in Brazil: mucho gracias!

BRASILIA, Brazil - The mayor of a small Brazilian town has begun handing out free Viagra, spicing up the sex lives of dozens of elderly men and their partners.

“Since we started the free distribution of sexual stimulants, our elderly population changed. They’re much happier,” said Joao de Souza Luz, the mayor of Novo Santo Antonio, a small town in the central state of Mato Grosso.

Souza Luz said 68 men over the age of 60 had already signed up for the program, which was approved by the town’s legislature and has been dubbed “Happy Penis,” or “Pinto Alegre” in Portuguese.

Bush in Vietnam

George W. Bush finally made it to Vietnam - only as a civilian. He is there for trade talks, read that sweat shops. He said that we won't make the mistake in Iraq that we did in Vietnam, "quitting before the job is done." He gets that from henry kissinger, the war crimes guy from the 1970's. Kissinger has told bush that the reason we lost Vietnam was because the public lost support for the war, but we were in fact winning the war when we started to withdraw. The problem is that Bush really believes that - there is no way the Vietnamese would ever stop fighting for independence. Kissinger must have drank the coolaid and served some to Bush - There was no way we could have won that war, except killing all the vietnamese and you know the expression, "let god sort them out." The Pentagon Papers revealed that the CIA knew the war was unwinable - the strength of the Vietcong in the south was overwhelming. Bush gets poor advice from his advisors - he surrounds himself with advisors who have hidden agendas, who revise history and spin history for their own ideological goals. What happened to Kissinger the Realpolitik guy? You know, we have no permanent interests other than what advances our interests? Kissinger is an egomaniac who cannot accept that he was wrong, so he spins the history of the Vietnam war to make himself look like the rejected genius who was right all along.

Cool paper airplane - The Manta

Watch this physics professor show you how to make a great flying paper airplane! He tests it out in a classroom....

What the Democrats will do now that they control Congress!

1. Mandatory homosexuality
2. Drug-filled condoms in schools
3. Introduce the new Destruction of Marriage Act
4. Border fence replaced with free shuttle buses
5. Withdraw from Iraq, apologize, reinstate Hussein
6. English language banned from all Federal buildings
7. All taxes to be tripled
8. Tofurkey to be named official Thanksgiving dish
9. Freeways to be removed, replaced with light rail systems (wait - this is a good idea -this doesn't count)
9. Texas returned to Mexico
10. Carter added to Mount Rushmore

Santorum's son flashes the bird

here is Rick Santorum, giving his concession speech with his family, but his son sums up the real feelings! Back in 1994, when Santorum was elected, someone told John Kerry that the new Senator from Pennsylvania is Rick Santorum. Kerry thought for a moment, then said "Santorum means anal sex in Latin." He is right, and everyone laughed at the irony.

Muslims-Jews Peace House at Rutgers Univ.

Eleven female students, including five Jewish, three Muslim, one Hindu, one Christian and a student who is agnostic, will live and study together this year at Jameson Residence Hall at Douglass College, a female college within Rutgers University. Their goal: to learn about the Middle East and ultimately to improve Jewish-Muslim relations at Rutgers and beyond.

The new Middle East Coexistence House, which opened this month, is part of the Global Village of living-learning communities at Douglass. Designed to train ambassadors of peacemaking and conflict resolution, the house is built on the conviction that women bring special skills to the work of intercultural understanding – that, in fact, peace efforts in the Middle East will fail until women are at the table.

Danielle Josephs, a Douglass College senior, envisioned the house and proposed the idea to Carmen Twillie Ambar, dean of Douglass College.

Prior to this, there were demonstrations both pro Israel and Pro Arab on campus, some of which turned ugly: chants of "death to the Jews." The Univ even cancelled some conferences on the middle east because of tensions among jewish and muslim students. Danielle Josephs, head of the Hillel Center (Jewish student center) on campus came up with this idea her sophomore year. She had to talk to conservative muslim students' families (parents, siblings etc) because devout muslims are very family centered: would this be safe? Would religious rituals be respected?

This is so beautiful - one young woman can transform a campus, maybe even more. Fantastic!

U Penn President Amy Gutmann

President Gutmann of the Univ of Pennsylvania poses with one of her students at her annual Halloween Ball. Needless to say, apologies were made afterward. Can this be any worse? yes, Pres. Gutmann is jewish.

Story of Job: Animated

Here is an outstanding presentation of the story of Job, from the Bible. Funny, accurate, good message.

Ted Haggard comes out of the closet

Here is the link for Ted Haggard, the evangelical christian leader who has close ties to George W. Bush, and who has admitted paying for sex with an male prostitute (who is African American)who also provided him with drugs. He is the head of the National Association of Evangelicals, and pastor of the 14,000 member New Life Church in Colorado Springs. He graduated from Oral Roberts University (an oxymoron - "Oral Roberts University) and has two"honorary" doctor of divinity degrees. Heck, I have a divinity degree too, from the Universal Life Church! So this comes out one week before the elections. I almost (almost) feel sorry for the republicans.

Laura Bush: "Careful what you say..."

Laura Bush has said we should be careful what we say about Iraq, because the enemy is listening. What nerve! If only her incompetent husband would listen to alternatives. The mess in Iraq is clearly his fault, and the fault of Donald Rumsfeld. In the planning of the war, there was no post war planning. As an afterthought, a few weeks before the invasion, Rumsfeld and Bush brought Gen. Ray Garner out of retirement to head up post war Iraq. He only had weeks, but did a good job of finding administrators and coming up with a strategic list (1. Provide clean water, handle sewage 2) resume pumping oil....and so forth). But Rumsfeld didnt like his list of people - too many from State Dept, some were linked with the Clinton administration. So Garner had to go over there with only a minimal staff. Then the looting began: no one had a plan to stop looting, and the Army didnt want to act as police (they shouldnt, they are warriors not police officers). The ministries were looted so bad, Garner had to repair them with tarp and tape. Then he negotiated with the Iraqi army generals and the top Baathist administrators: they would return to work for a one time payment of $20, and promises that within 3 weeks their paychecks would be restored. Thats about $3-5 million for an Iraqi army and bureaucracy - a bargain! Garner wanted to use the Iraqi military to rebuild the country: kinda a military core of construction workers. But Bush picked Paul Bremer and replaced Garner, without first telling Garner. Bremer told Garner the Iraqi army would be disbanded, and no member of the Baathist party could work for the government: overnight Garner figured we made about 300,000 enemies. Garner told Bremer that it would take at least 3 years to build a new army and get the country working again, and during that time, he said "we will be sending teenagers home in body bags." So we should be careful about what we say Ms. Librarian? This is the worst case of "Groupthink" since the Bay of Pigs invasion - the problem with Iraq is the poor planning and execution of post war conditions, something almost completely overlooked by a group of ideological, cool aid drinking incompetents, headed by the Incompetent in Chief, George W. Bush.

Drug Bust!

Funny video from Compfused: news reporter is reporting on a drug bust, and police behind him are taking evidence out of the house, including a giant Dildo - they guy doesnt see it but the audience does. Great!

Sexy Girls's Costumes!!!

Here is an ad from a costume store in Hackensack NJ - the guy has a great accent. There's F**k words in here so its R rated. Really funny!

write your own Bush speech

Here is a site that allows you to pick out phrases, assemble a speech, and then Pres. Bush's voice actually speaks it, complete with applause.

News Anchor and Rape Suspect

This is a picture of a News Anchor announcing that a composite picture has been drawn of a rape suspect......look familiar?!

Borat's movie: deleted scene!

Here's a deleted scene from the upcoming "Borat" movie - he's at a dog shelter, wants to adopt a dog, demonstrates how he "trains" dogs....very funny.

Election Coverage! Senate and House Races

This site has great election coverage, looking at senate and house races. Their polls were very accurate, they called even the close elections. The site now has all the election results.

Korean pennisula at night

Here is a pic from outer space, of Korea at night. It reminds me of when I was on the London-Moscow express and we reached the East German border - border guards with german shepards boarded the train, everyone's passport was inspected, the train was search, they walked on top of the cars, searched underneath the cars, then attached an East German locomotive: STEAM! As we chugged through the night the lights disappeared, I stood between the cars and watched as we passed crossings: horses and carts waited for the train to pass. There were no lights. The same thing with this picture; its says more than a thousand words.

Novel: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Jonathon Safran Foer wrote Everything is Illuminated, while he was still a student at Harvard. It was made into a movie. Absolutely brilliant. A fluke? No. His latest book is Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, a novel about a 9 yr old boy who loses his father in the WTC attacks. He finds a key in a vase in his dad's closet, and he sees the word "Black" written on the back of the envelope it is in. He decides to interview every person named Black in new york city. He meets amazing characters. Its also the story of his grandparents, and their loses during WWII in Dresden. He conveys the pain, the hurt of those who lost relatives on 911 - and how this pain can affect a person's life, how they can recover (never fully). Can a novel be sensible if the POV is that of a 9 yr old? Yes, as long as the author convinces you that he is a 9 yr old. How many of us remember our thoughts, feelings when we were 9? One of the best books I have ever read - its up there with Hemingway and Fitzgerald.

video post of who controls middle east

Here is a stream that shows what empires have controlled the middle east in the time of modern human history. Very fascinating. Its colorful and gives a good visual appreciation for the changes in empires over time.

Iranian woman cosmonaut

Here is the story of Ansari, the Iranian born millionaire who became a cosmonaut and visited the International Space Station (ISS) after "donating" $20 million to Russia. She gives a beautiful message about tolerance and acceptance and peace:

In her native Iran, Ansari has become an inspiration to many women who chafe at the country’s male-dominated rule. Scores of women went to an observatory near Tehran last week to watch the space station streak across the sky at dawn.

In a blog about her space experiences, Ansari suggested that life aboard the crowded space station could be a model for reducing tensions among people and nations on the planet.

“It’s sort of like on Earth, if you think about it,” she wrote. “We are all connected to each other by living on the only habitable planet in the solar system; we have no place else to go, at least not for a while, so if we don’t get along and blow up everything and create a mess of our home, well guess what? We have to live with it.”

contractors in Iraq

In class we are discussing contractors and the iron triangle among congress, defense industry and the military - we discussed how much contractors get paid in Iraq - sometimes $3000 a day for security work. Someone said "Yeah if you live to collect it." Here is an attack on a convoy of contractors. Here's another near miss on a convoy.

Iraq improvised explosive device

Here is a link to a video made by a us soldier, in his humvee, and it gets hit by an IED. They are ok. the timing was off, the main blast missed the humvee. You might need to log in to You Tube to see it - I am not sure if you have to be over 18 or not to see it. You can search for others like it - some of the videos posted are made by terror groups, showing attacks, but some are filmed by us soldiers.

guardian angel - car crashes

here is a link to several movies about race cars crashing and narrowly missing spectators - they must have had a guardian angel watching over them! My son sent it to me email - you can also send it email to someone.

Little Richard is Pres. Bush's interpreter

Here is little richard interpreting bush's 911 speech, just like he does for the car insurance ad. really funny!

$146.50 for everything on McDonald's menu

Here is a clip of an Australian TV host ordering everything on a McDonald's menu, he starts with "a small coke, a medium coke, a large coke, a small diet coke..." He orders everything, and they ask him "do you want the meal?" and he says "what the hell, yeah."

Political Film Fall 2006

Here are the movies I am showing in political film, fall 2006. My favorites are Walk on Water, Clockers, Bon Voyage, Three Seasons and Everything is Illuminated. But they are all really great.



Postmodern Existential Politics
Dark Blue World
August 29

Postmodern Brooklyn
Clockers
Sept 5

Postmodern Israel
Walk on Water
Sept 12

Postmodern American Journey
Motorcycle Diaries
Sept 19

Postmodern Future (First Paper Due)
Blade Runner (Director’s Cut)
Sept 26

Postmodern Golan
Syrian Bride
Oct 3

Postmodern France (Mid Term Exam – Papers handed back)
Bon Voyage
Oct 10

Postmodern Japan
Hana – bi (Fireworks)
Oct 24

Postmodern Vietnam (Second paper due)
Three Seasons
Oct 31

Postmodern Germany
Der Untergang (The Downfall)
Nov 7

Postmodern Ukraine
Everything is Illuminated
Nov 14

Postmodern Palestine
Paradise Now
Nov 21

Postmodern South Africa
Tsotsi
Nov 28

Postmodern American Hero
Taxi Driver
Dec 5

Building a castle in France

Here is a guy building a castle in France, the hard way. He is building the castle with 13th century techniques. He is actually turning a profit on the castle, since it has become a big tourist location. I really admire this guy: I love old buildings and he has found a way of creating the past and making some money in the process.

Virtual New York City!

Here is a link to a site that provides you with maps, walking tours and videos of new york city. The walking tours are great - interactive photo tour. The videos are fun too - my favorite are of the subway rides, skating at Rockefeller place, and Jessica's bat mitzvah. Yes, Jessica filmed her mitzvah - it is so cute. There is so much on this site I only have seen a small portion. The picture shown is from the empire state building walking tour.

Afrobats - street performers in Central Park

Here is a link to the famous Afrobats, street performers in Central Park. amazing!

E = MC2 and WTC collapse

Why did the World Trade Towers seem to explode? Einstein's theory of energy and mass is above, e equals m csquared, or energy and mass can go either way. there is a finite amount of mass (and energy) in the universe. So when mass disintegrates it releases energy. How much mass does one tower of WTC contain? A scientist estimates that with a mass of about 500,000 tons (5 x 108 kilograms), a height of about 1,350 ft. (411 meters), and the acceleration of gravity at 9.8 meters per second 2, the potential energy is 1019 ergs (1012 Joules or 278 Megawatt-hours). "That's about 1 percent of the energy released by a small atomic bomb," the scientist noted.

The M.I.T. professor added that about 30 percent of the collapse energy was expended rupturing the materials of the building, while the rest was converted into the kinetic energy of the falling mass. The huge gray dust clouds that covered lower Manhattan after the collapse were probably formed when the concrete floors were pulverized in the fall and then jetted into the surrounding neighborhood. "Of the kinetic energy impacting the ground, only 0.1 percent was converted to seismic energy," he stated. "Each event created a (modest-sized) magnitude 2 earthquake, as monitored at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Observatory, which is located about 30 kilometers away from New York City." Kausel concluded that the "the largest share of the kinetic energy was converted to heat, material rupture and deformation of the ground below."

mass equals energy. the WTC became energy, and left over mass. That's why some believe in the conspiracy theories behind the WTC collapse: but its all about einsteins formula.

kinky friedman for Governor of Texas!

Here is a recent video of Kinky playing lead guitar, jamming with another group. Here is kinky's campaign web site. Kinky used to have a country - rock group, called Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jew Boys. Their songs were fiercely pro Texas, pro jewish culture, against prejudice and very satirical and very funny. Some of his song titles: Get Your Biscuits In The Oven and Your Buns In Bed; They Don't Make Jews like Jesus anymore; and "Asshole from El Paso" also known as "Lasso from El Paso." Here is Kinky with Dwight Yokum discussing smoking cigars on Yokum's bus if he becomes governor...

Lyrics: They Ain't Makin' Jews Like Jesus Anymore by Kinky Friedman


Well, a redneck nerd in a bowling shirt was a-guzzlin' lone star beer
Talking religion and-uh politics for all the world to hear.
they oughta send you back to russia, boy, or new york city one
You just want to doodle a christian girl and you killed god's only son.

I said, has it occurred to you, you nerd, that that's not very nice,
We jews believe it was santa claus that killed jesus christ.
you know, you don't look jewish,¡± he said, ¡°near as I could figger
I had you lamped for a slightly anemic, well-dressed country nigger.

No, they ain't makin' jews like jesus anymore,
They don't turn the other cheek the way they done before.
He started in to shoutin' and a-spittin' on the floor,
lord, they ain't makin' jews like jesus anymore.

He says, i ain't a racist but aristitle onassis is one greek we don't need
And them niggers, jews and sigma nus, all they ever do is breed.
And wops n micks n slopes n spics n spooks are on my list
And there's one little hebe from the heart of texas is there anyone I missed ?

Well, I hits him with everything I had right square between the eyes.
I says, i'm gonna gitcha, you son of a bitch ya, for spoutin' that pack of lies.
If there's one thing I can't abide, it's an ethnocentric racist;
Now you take back that thing you said bout aristitle onassis.

No, they ain't makin' jews like jesus anymore,
We don't turn the other cheek the way we done before.
You could hear that honky holler as he hit that hardwood floor
lord, they sho' ain't makin' jews like jesus anymore!
All right!

Outkast's "Hey Ya" performed acoustic, live

Here is an amazing take on Hey Ya, performed live by front singer of Tempe AZ group, Obadiah Parker. Gives a whole new feel to the song: sad, tragic. Not upbeat. Wow.

Japanese TV practical joke: Lunatic taxi!!!

Some Japanese TV shows are wild! Here is one that puts an actor into a cab (emergency phone call sets it up) and the driver is actually a stunt performer. They have created a stunt area where the driver does a 180 degree emergency turn, drives on two wheels through a "work" zone, crashes through gates, flys over a ramp, drives through explosions, and finally flips over. The actor in the back seat is horrified, but the TV audience is laughing hysterically! Here is the link.
And here is a previous post of a TV show who puts a girl wearing a seal costume in front of a polar bear at the zoo!

Rep. Katherine Harris

Rep. Katherine Harris
Originally uploaded by recyclingfan.

Yes, its Cruela de Harris, the former Sec of State during the 2000 florida presidiential election. Responsible for stopping the hand recount of the vote, along with the republican Sup Court, she is villified by Democrats, and now also by members of her own party. Turns out, she took an illegal campaign contribution from a defense contractor, who wanted her to lobby for a gov contract for his company - this guy also brided Randy Cunningham, the congressmen who is spending the rest of his life in a federal pennitentiary. Even Gov. Bush of florida (Jeb Bush) has asked her to step down, and the republicans would get another candidate. But no, she refused. She has lent her campaign $10 million of her own money. Now it turns out she has been subpoened by the fed gov, but kept the subpeona a secret from her staff - they found out, five of them resigned. She has no campaign staff, way behind in the polls, the republicans think she may take down the whole Florida election with her campaign. She is from very wealthy family, has a MPA from Harvard, successful in real estate, so she is no dummy. But she is a ruthless politician, and I think voters are sick of ruthless politicians who get caught up in campaign payoffs and bribes. (She looks kinda hot on that horse - notice its not a stallion!)