Smoker's Cough

NFL Draft Wrapup

2010-04-27T11:07:00.000-07:00

Lets look back at my predictions and see how they turned out:

Three of the first 10 picks of the second round will be traded. - 2 of the top 10 were traded and 3 of the top 15. Close but not quite.
Terrance Cody will be taken in those first 10 picks, as will Jimmy Clausen - Blew this one fairly badly. Clausen slipped to 48th and Mt. Cody all the way to 57th. However, I do think both of these players found one of the very few teams that they can immediately contribute to.
Sergio Kindle is falling for a reason and that freefall will continue. Rumor is it is a medical condition. I look for him in the 45-55 range now. - Wrong again, he went 43. What a fall from grace for a player that had been talked about as a top 10 prospect as early as 2 weeks before the draft. Although I guess the fall of Everson Griffen was more spectacular.
All of the top tier corner backs were taken off the board in the first round. The second round will not see more than 1 corner (Chris Cook?) Almost nailed this one. Chris Cook went 34 to the Vikings and Javier Arenas went 50 to the chiefs. The corollary of this prediction was a glut of CBs taken in the third, which also happened.
Taylor Mays will continue to slide. Hes an amazing athlete but an average football player All the way to the 49ers at 49. Even his head coach in college passed on him 3 times!
Jacksonville will have the chance to draft a solid player (like Sean Lee) that makes a lot of sense, but will instead bewilder everyone and go for Donald Butler, for no particular reason. Jacksonville traded their pick, prediction null.
The Undead from the Raiders will draft Bruce Campbell and consider it the steal of the draft. Oh how I nailed this one. Expect I thought it would be in the second round, not the fourth!!! I honestly think teams shied away from Campbell BECAUSE the Raiders were so interested. If the Raiders like him, he must be terrible.

As far as the saints draft goes, I was extremely pleased.

1 (32) - Patrick Robinson CB - A surprise pick by the Saints, but it was good value and with Jerry Hughes being picked just before them I think he qualifies as B(Defensive)PA. There are 2 positions in the NFL that you can never have enough talent at, those are LT and CB.

2 (64) - Charlie Brown LT - Speaking of stockpiling talent at a key position, Charlie Brown slips to the Saints. I could not be more pleased with this pick. Brown is a known finesse pass blocker that likes to get outside on screens and is very mobile. He is an absolute perfect fit for the Saints and is a steal. It also spells the end of Jammal Brown, which was necessary. Overpaying for 29 year old players is not how to build a franchise, trading them away to desperate teams for solid draft picks though isn't too bad.

3 (95) - Jimmy Graham TE - My favourite pick of the draft, bar none. An absolute physical specimen, Graham has all the tools to be the most dominate TE in the NFL. Super high praise that he probably won't live up to, but I'm going to enjoy watching him try. Read this piece for a little perspective: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=jc-grahamtoughness040810 . I could very well be in the market for a Graham 80 Jersey next time I'm feeling particularly rich.

4 (123) - Al Woods DT - A very pedestrian college career that I'd like to attribute to terrible coaches and a lazy system. Al Woods now has Bill Johnson and Greg Williams to show him hows its done and he may very well blossom under their tutelage. At the very least, those two know what they're doing and wouldn't take him (little less trade up) unless they saw a future for him.

5 (158) - Matt Tennant C - The Saints desperately needed interior offensive line help, they have pro-bowlers in all three positions but no depth, Tennant is that depth for the next season or two and then he is the replacement for Goodwin. An interior line of Nicks - Tennant - Evans projects as one of the best in the NFL. With Stitch on the right side at a very affordable long term contract and Charlie Brown and Bushrod fighting for playing time on the left, the offensive line looks all pro.

7 (239) - Sean Canfield QB - Sean Payton has been itching for QB to develop and he finally feels rich enough to spend a pick on one. Good for him, he deserves it. Plus, players that the Saints might have targetted here (Gaellete, Colemon) signed with the SB champions anyways as UDFA.

Overall, this draft was clearly that of a rich team looking to get richer. They stuck to their BPA philosophy, drafted potential and probably got 4 long term starters out of it. This is how drafting is suppose to be done.

Round 2/3 Predictions

2010-04-23T11:12:00.001-07:00

After an extremely exciting first round I offer the following predictions for the second and third:

Three of the first 10 picks of the second round will be traded.
Terrance Cody will be taken in those first 10 picks, as will Jimmy Clausen
Sergio Kindle is falling for a reason and that freefall will continue. Rumor is it is a medical condition. I look for him in the 45-55 range now.
All of the top tier corner backs were taken off the board in the first round. The second round will not see more than 1 corner (Chris Cook?)
Taylor Mays will continue to slide. Hes an amazing athlete but an average football player
Jacksonville will have the chance to draft a solid player (like Sean Lee) that makes a lot of sense, but will instead bewilder everyone and go for Donald Butler, for no particular reason.
The Undead from the Raiders will draft Bruce Campbell and consider it the steal of the draft.

Round One of the NFL Draft

2010-04-22T20:53:00.001-07:00

I would be completely amiss if the first mention doesn't go the the Denver Broncos who may have pulled a coup tonight or crippled their franchise for a half decade. Maneuvering through a myriad of trades they ultimated snagged D. Thomas WR and T. Tebow QB. In doing so they get a guy who is untimed in the 40 and position drills and a QB who many feel that belonged 1-3 rounds lower. Controversial for sure, but also extremely ballsy, they are placing the fate of their franchise on these two young men and if it works out for them, the potential is there for one of the most dominate QB-WR combinations in the NFL.

Next let me mock Jacksonville. This franchise will be moved within 3 years, tonight confirms they are too incompetent to own a team down there.

Most importantly the Saints. Patrick Robinson is a fast, physical, instinctive corner, he may even line up opposite Jabari Greer and push Porter inside, where he fits more naturally as a nickel. The pick isn't a terrible one but at first look its not at a position of need. With Kindle there I am surprised they didn't opt for an SLB and above average pass rusher.

What Robinson does give is the flexibility to push Jenkins to safety to replace sharper and a quality returner. This likely means that Roby will be out of a job next season.

Overall, I like the BPA approach and the defensive pick, but they absolutely must upgrade their front seven tomorrow or this draft will be a disappointment.

The Cost of Crime

2010-04-21T19:09:00.001-07:00

Crime is typically punished in our society in one of two ways. For small crimes there is typically a fine, probation on the outside. As the severity of the crime escalates, prison sentences are introduced and escalated. There is occasional overlap between the two by typically they are well separated.

The cost of this is having an active police force, a detective squad, district attorneys, correction officers and the necessary related infrastructure: police stations, court houses and prisons. This is all very expensive and should be at least partially paid by the persecutors instead of the victims (read: tax payers).

For this reason alone, we should levy massive fines against the guilty.

But those reasons are not alone. The cost of crime is inexorable much greater. Any bodily harm caused (which I dare say is frequently, and one of the major reasons we have laws) has a large cost on the healthcare system. Surgery is expensive, care is expensive, medication is expensive and the government (erm, victims) pay for all of it. Half way homes are expensive, parole officers are expensive, security systems are expensive.

Lets stop charging the victims for the cost of crime committed against them.

Photographs I wish I Took

2010-04-19T08:17:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of them, but right now that list is topped by:

http://www.swisseduc.ch/stromboli/perm/iceland/eyafallajokull_20100416-en.html

Truly fantastic work.

Rush Limbaugh - The Embodiment of Bigotry

2010-04-19T07:15:00.001-07:00

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/04/17/limbaugh-volcano/

A man with 15 million daily listeners suggests that the volcanic eruptions in Iceland are a sign from God that he is displeased with American health care reform... Let that sink in. http://i.imgur.com/U7UY1.jpg

In geological times, volcanic eruptions on Iceland are frequent and expected. I would think that the beginning of the apocalypse or a direct sign of anger from God would be more, erm, direct and dramatic? Hell, He might have even caused a natural disaster in the offending country, not a peaceful nation several thousand kilometers away, with a fallout that is effecting Europe not America. How obscenely vain is it to believe that a natural disaster on the other side of the globe is God caring about your political climate. If he truly sent signs in that manner, I would expect them to be reserved for truly special occasions; like acts of slavery and genocide.

Despite the logical in fallacies, the most amazing aspect of this is that he actually thinks health care reform is a bad thing. That God would be AGAINST providing basic care and services to the poor and needy. After all, his only son only hang out with the rich cool dudes and stepped on the fingers of the poor any chance he got; Charity was not his way.

My rational mind cannot comprehend thinking of Mr. Limbaugh as a source of authority or guidance on anything. It is my sincere hope that his viewers tune in as if his is a comedy or freak show, for that is the only merit I believe it has.

How much Damage can the Church Sustain?

2010-04-04T06:53:00.000-07:00

I could go on a terrific rant about what has transpired in the last couple of years, but I feel it would be a waste of time. Unless you purposefully hide from the news you know what it going on. Unless you're morally bankrupt you know whats wrong with it.

The real question is, in this digital age, how much damage will the catholic church take, how much credibility will it lose with the masses? The devote will never abandon faith for systemic child molestation, but they can certainly change allegiances.

Your life as a Control Chart

2010-03-30T06:23:00.000-07:00

A control chart is typically used in a manufacturing or chemical process facility to detect if operation is as normal. There are a variety of rules to detect abnormal operation but the bases is essentially that if your state variable falls out of accepted range, something has happened and you need to investigate.

Lets apply the same concept to your life. If you assume that your brain works on 3 second intervals and can record a memory from any 3 seconds then you have 838656000 possible memories in an 80 year life. How many of those can we actually recall? Not being 80, or able to count that high prevents me from putting a number on it, but our memory certainly records far less than what we observe.

If you take all of those 3 second chunks and plot them on a chart, similar to a control chart you see the following (just not with 3 second chunks in the example, just to make a point).

The majority of your normal everyday happenings fall in the middle and are relatively inconsequential. It is the important events, that fall out of control, that we retain memories from and that define our experience.

Think of the control chart when you're living life. Keep everything between the gutters when you can, and remember the small blips (either up or down)are just everyday noise and won't even show up later. But always aim for peeks, above the upper control, for those will latter be your fondest memories.

A Giant Leap for Human Rights and Democracy

2010-03-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Today Google officially stop censoring results in China [1]. This is undoubtedly one of the most important steps towards the ongoing movement toward mandatory human rights and democracy in the world's most populace country.

I sincerely hope that the Chinese government doesn't respond by blocking google all together.

[1] - http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/new-approach-to-china-update.html

Where is it all coming from.

2010-03-22T13:57:00.000-07:00

A legitimate question, the United States, Canada[1], China[2] and the EU[3] are all experiencing trade deficits. Let me repeat that for you: Canada one of the most notorious abusers and exporters of natural resources and China the stereotypical hotbed of manufacturing are experiencing trade deficits.

If we're all buying things faster than we're selling them (on an international stage) who is doing the opposite?

Well the answer is three fold but never the less fairly simply. Oil, consumer electronics and cars have been, are, and continue to be the driving forces behind trade. The United States imports all three, China imports oil and cars, Canada imports Cars and consumer electronics and the EU imports oil and consumer electronics.

Meanwhile Japan, Saudi, Russia, UAE Singapore and others are happy enough to supply. You are seeing an extradition of wealth from first world (and soon to be first world) countries on an unprecedented level. The results of which will ultimately boil down to two things:

A more equal distribution of wealth and greater international fiscal equality.
A ceaseless flood of money from the first world will finance extremism and terrorism in unstable countries around the world. Ultimately fueling a 'war' targeted at its very financiers.

[1]-http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2009/02/11/tradedeficit.html

[2]-http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2010-03/22/content_9619515.htm

[3]-http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/6-18032010-AP/EN/6-18032010-AP-EN.PDF

Why I care about the Draft

2010-03-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

I care about the draft for two very simple reasons:

A) It is a brilliant social instrument in which individuals are able to achieve their dreams. As a stereotype, many of the players who will be drafted come from high risk backgrounds. Their opportunities in life were limited to the ones that they made for themselves and the alternative often bleak. The draft is a symbol of triumph over long odds, a celebration of hard work and opportunity for those individuals to do better for themselves and their families. Hard work is rewarded and dreams are fulfilled.

B) I like sports. The Draft is how the next generation of stars begins and how the game is constantly renewed. Without the constant influx of fresh talent, sports would suck.

NFL 2010 Mock Draft

2010-03-21T11:31:00.000-07:00

My first NFL mock draft. It will not be updated and should be forgotten. Unless of course the draft rolls around and turns out like this in which you will probably hear a lot about it... despite not caring.

1. St Louis Rams: Sam Bradford, QB Oklahoma – The rams need everything and could easily justify any of a half dozen players but at the end of the day the decision to pick QB is purely economics. They simply can’t justify that the investment on a position of lesser value.
2. Detroit Lions: Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska – The offensive is in reasonable condition and likely to get better as Stafford matures. The temptation here is to pick an offensive tackle here, namely Okung, but I think it’s more likely that they fill that need in the second round and upgrade their defence.
3. Tamp Bay Buccaneers: Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma – Easy pick. I’m not even going to justify it.
4. Washington Redskins: Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State – The pick here is Clausen or Okung, it’s that simple. I don’t think Shannahan is sold on the young Notre Dame diva and will opt to secure his left side for a decade. Who knows, maybe Campbell can salvage his once promising career with a decent system and protection
5. Kansas City Chiefs: Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa – Let’s face it, Cassel isn’t a franchise QB, but he’s paid like it and now he should be protected like it. Berry is a possibility but frankly, its position value again and a great LT > Excellent Safety.
6. Seattle Seahawks: Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame – Seattle’s needed a QB for a while and they’ll finally address that need.
7. Cleveland Browns: Eric Berry, S, Tennessee – While the value of OTs has kept Berry available, Cleveland has one of the best in the league already. With Clausen and Bradford off the board there are no excuses to take my favourite player in the draft.
8. Oakland Raiders: Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida – The Undead will pick the best athlete regardless of if it makes sense. That’s what happens here.
9. Buffalo Bills: Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State – This team needs someone that can take the ball to the end zone and make plays. Dez Bryant is the best in the draft at that and should help them score some points.
10. Jacksonville Jaguars: Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama – Jacksonville needs to put butts in seats and I think they do so by getting the captain of their defence and the captain of their offence in the same draft. Yup, they’re taking Tebow at pick 42, you can bank on that.
11. Denver Broncos: Dan Williams, NT, Tennessee – Big men this good are too hard to come by so despite signing another Williams they’re still going to take Dan for the future.
12. Miami Dolphins: Sergio Kindle, OLB, Texas – The thing about 3-4 teams is you can never have enough NT or linebackers that can get after the QB. Kindle is the latter, and he is very, very good at it.
13. San Francisco 49ers: Joe Haden, CB, Florida – I see Haden as this year’s Malcolm Jenkins. Quick but not fast, excellent tape, long arms and physical. I see them drafted at about the same spot too.
14. Seattle Seahawks: Anthony Davis, OT Rutgers – Easily a top 10 talents slips a little bit. Seattle walks away from this draft with the basis of their offense for the next decade.
15. New York Giants: Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia – It’s the Giants and it’s an excellent 4-3 DE that just happens to also be BPA. Perfect.
16. Tennessee Titans: Kyle Wilson, CB, Boise State – A bit of a reach, but when Manning beats you like a drum twice a year, you have no choice but to reach on defense.
17. San Francisco 49ers: Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma – Singletary can’t believe his luck. He believes in the trenches and Williams certainly offers that.
18. Pittsburgh Steelers: Mike Iupati, G, Idaho – With their first choices of Dan Williams and Sergio Kindle long gone, they pick up a road grater, one of the safest picks in the draft, just poor positional value.
19. Atlanta Falcons: Brandon Graham, DE, Michigan – Although Weatherspoon was the plan, if Graham falls to them, they take him. He’ll look great opposite Abraham, and latter replacing him.
20. Houston Texans: Earl Thomas, FS, Texas – Houston has needed a Safety forever, this is finally taken care of with a great value pick.
21. Cincinnati Bengals: CJ Spiller, RB, Clemson – Adds a valuable dimension to their offense and is frankly too good to pass up.
22. New England Patriots: Jared Odrick, DT, Penn State – An athletic warrior, look for him to be moved around a lot and even replace the great DL of old.
23. Green Bay Packers: Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland – He doesn’t need to start right away, which is good as he shouldn’t start, but he is clearly the most athletic tackle in the draft and the potential is too good to pass up. Green Bay is comfortable drafting a player that won’t immediately start because their defence was surprisingly good in its first year at 3-4 and the key components of their offense are set.
24. Philadelphia Eagles: Ryan Mathews, RB, Fresno State – Although CJ Spiller is a better fit to replace Westbrook, Mathews is more than capable and will bring a little more attitude.
25. Baltimore Ravens: Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma – Baltimore is finally giving Flacco a weapon other than Ray Rice.
26. Arizona Cardinals: Sean Weatherspoon, OLB, Missouri - After the worst offseason in team history they desperately need a good draft. Weatherspoon is excellent value here and can try to replace Dansby.
27. Dallas Cowboys: Taylor Mays, S, USC – Jerry Jones is Al Davis with Dan Snyders money.
28. San Diego Chargers: Terrance Cody, NT, Alabama – With Williams gone the chargers have no legitimate replacements for the middle of their 3-4. Sure they could try the kid from Western but instead they decide to reach on the mountain. It will probably pay off.
29. New York Jets: Demaryius Thomas, WR, Georgia Tech – Braylon Edwards isn’t the answer. The Jets get to choose between Thomas and Golden Tate, both of which would be great but Thomas has better tape and Big Rex doesn’t get distracted by 40s.
30. Minnesota Vikings: Devin McCourty, CB, Rutgers – The Rutgers corner is purely an insurance policy.
31. Indianapolis Colts: Maurkice Pouncey, C, Florida – While Manning calls the offense, Saturday calls the protection and that is an invaluable part of the audible offense. Indy needs to make sure they have a well trained replacement when the time comes and until it does Pouncey is versatile enough to play all three interior OL positions and maybe even RT.
32. New Orleans Saints: Carlos Dunlap, DE, Florida – Charles Grant’s replacements. If anyone of Dunlap, Graham, Weatherspoon, Mays or Earl Thomas last until the last pick, they’ll run to the podium.

Influences.

2010-03-18T16:26:00.000-07:00

In the same way that musicians list their influences, I list mine here in the fields of debate, speech, rational thought, intellectual fortitude and discipline:

Christopher Hitchen is perhaps one of the most skilled debaters of his generation, and a personal favourite. It has nothing to do with his appearance, his constant fidgeting or his excessive sweating; rather his arguments are extremely engaging and so cleverly woven that the trap closes before his debate opponent realises it was even being made. His mastery of words is only surpassed but his unrivalled cleverness and complete devotion to a rational debate on irrational subjects. It is these three attributes that I admire and draw from.

Glenn Beck is a truly remarkably stupid man with few if any valuable ideas. Listening to what he has to say revolts my most basic sensibilities and contradicts the concept of universal logic. However, he is a uniquely skilled individual, able to captivate hundreds of thousands of sheep with utter garbage and convince them that his ideas are their own. His ability to brainwash the masses with blatant hate mongering and stupidity is near Hitler-esk and I am simultaneously in awe and terrified of him.

Stephen Hawking has come up with some of the most brilliant ideas of our generation, wrote about theoretical physics in a palatable form, plans to write a children’s book and is a main stay in modern culture as the most intelligent man alive. He did most of this with a single finger to communicate. A brain so uniquely brilliant that it can both achieve to his level and simultaneously have the patience to communicate them one letter at a time is truly one in a generation, if not once in a species. I admire this scientist for above all his patience, but also his clarity and surpassing intellectual prowess.

Friedrich Nietzsche was a persuasive idealist who cared little if any for what the opposition thought of his ideas. He wrote what he believed was right and made no apologies for it. While not particularly persuasive in his era, it didn’t take long for the most influential figure of the 20^th century to pick up his work and corrupt it, forever giving this honest philosopher a bad name. At the core of Nietzsche teachings are morality outside of religion and the will to power and success as the driving forces of man; ideas that I consider both important in their own right, and the basis of a whole new line of thought. Just ignore the fact that he went stark raving mad.

I Hate St. Patrick's Day

2010-03-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

Its not because I'm against drinking, partying or fun. Nor do I have anything against a bunch of non-Irish people dressing up in green and celebrating a holiday that they have nothing to do with. Its not even that I don't support gratuitous livercide on a Wednesday night.

No the reason that I hate St. Patties is because I'm now home and I hear sirens go past every 10 minutes or so. I hope that its just drunk kids pulling fire alarms, but I know it could just as easily be some kid with alcohol poisoning, or cut on broken glass, or hit by a car. Whether that kid is one of the friends I left just a few hours ago, or a random stranger, their life could be forever altered, damaged, from an time they weren't in control, from an event they won't remember.

So its not the party that I hate, but its the fallout and the consequences, the fear that a friend of mine could wake up cut, with broken limbs, or paralyzed. Or that they might not wake up at all.

When you go out, by all means have fun, drink beers, get drunk. But when it gets to point where you don't know to stay off the road, can't recognize glass as dangerous and vomit uncontrollably, for your own sake stop. Go home. Sleep it off.

He Divides By Zero.

2010-03-15T19:27:00.001-07:00

The Legend of Hyde grows.

The 'Iggy' heard around the world.

2010-03-13T06:53:00.000-08:00

The gold medal winning goal call from broadcasters around the world. I personally think the French do it best.

Eighty Thousand Dollars and 4 Years but not Friday Night?

2010-03-09T18:17:00.001-08:00

I don’t understand kids who are willing to shell out eighty thousand ++ dollars and spend at least four years of their life at university but are unwilling to put in the work necessary to do well. The relative reward/effort ratio will never be higher. Effort today translates directly into grades and a positive impression on professors. These grades and recommendations can be traded directly for three things: a high paying summer job and/or a new graduate position at a good company and/or a position in a good graduate school. The benefits of skipping your favourite TV show or not drinking on the weekend are astounding and could easily change the course that your life takes.

So why are there so many people that refuse to put this effort it? I think the problem is concentrated on those that are here on their parent’s dime. Those individuals are not really spending eighty thousand dollars; they are having eighty thousand given to them, and therefore have no motivation to make that money work for them, to maximize their utility. Just as they don’t appreciate the value of having their tuition, rent, books, food, entertainment paid for them now, they don’t consider a life in which their own efforts dictate their consumption. These individuals are cognitively trained to rely on their parent’s cheque books to satisfy their wants. 200 bucks a week for food and beer? Check! A new TV? Check! Steak or Salmon for dinner every night? Check! They have everything they want, why work for more?

I argue that if these individuals had to pay for at least a few of their own expenses they would be more motivated in their studies so they could realise perks that make their life comfortable. Individuals that are incapable of developing their own work ethic and discipline must be shown that there is a correlation between effort and consumption if they are ever to truly be motivated. Otherwise, they will continue to waste the gift that was given to them and spit in the face of those kids that would work 16 hours a day, 7 days a week but cannot afford to be here.

God(s) Should be Feared Above All

2010-03-08T18:01:00.001-08:00

I fear the concept of Gods (as discussed earlier) above all else. This is not because I’m particularly worried about the apocalypse, a flood, spontaneous targeted lightning, locus, the Angel of Death or any other Divine punishment. No, I fear God because of what people are willing to do in his name.

The most prominent modern example of heinous acts done in the name of God are the horrific suicide bombings that have become seemingly commonplace since September 11^th, 2001. In the granddaddy of all jihadist suicide bombings, 16 devoted men sacrificed themselves with the understanding that they would be rewarded with eternal paradise and never ending sex with 70 virgin women. Their martyrdom and those of the countless others in Iraq, Afghanistan and Israel would never have happened without the divine reward. These actions, carried out to forward an ideology, are solely to blame on the deluded concept that killing civilians can earn God’s favour and heaven.

In American schools it is a daily battle for the right to teach evolution. In the name of God, there is a legitimate movement to eradicate real science in the science classroom and replace it with what can only be called a myth. While the story of Genesis has undoubted power, and religious meaning to many people, it has absolutely no scientific meaning. The blind devotion of a few are trying to limit the capacity for education in the world’s most developed country.

I believe today that my conduct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator.

- Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, Vol. 1 Chapter 2

While I am by no means saying that what Hitler done was accepted or supported by your God of choice, it is an undeniable fact that history’s greatest mass murderer thought he was. The Second World War and the Holocaust would not have happened without this belief.

A personal favourite example of mine is slavery. African slavery was thought to be acceptable because the bible implied that black people weren’t as good as white people. Without this incredible arrogance, with which those at the time thought was divinely given, slavery would likely have never happened.

The list of absolute horrors that have occurred through history because people thought “This is God’s work” or excused their crimes in the name of God is horrendously long and impossible to summarise. However, I have compiled the greatest hits as they occur to me:

The Crusades (all 9 of them)
Anything that begins in Inquisition
The spread of Aids, due to the Catholic Church preaching the evils of condoms
Booming population is developing countries that can ill afford to feed or educate more citizens, for the same reason as above
Genocide in Rwanda: Catholic Priests called for mass murder from the pulpits, inspiring horrendous acts that most thought were the work of God
The Dark Ages: the repression of science is largely attributable to the power of organized religion and their active anti-science pursuits (see the Roman Inquisition and Galilei, Galileo)
The crimes of the Ku Klux Klan
The sexual exploitation and abuse of countless young buys
Oppression of women throughout Muslim countries, and stoning of women who were raped for being unclean
Mountain Meadows Massacre
The cruel and unusual punishment of Alan Turing, leading to his eventual suicide
The crimes of Nadal Malik Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter

A simple google search could expand on this list 10 fold, but this represents those that I immediately remember and are important to me. While your God may not condone the above in any way, it isn’t debatable that the individuals involved believe(d) to be working under divine guidance. The concept of God and what it has motivated and will continue to motivate is truly terrifying.

EDIT: This belongs on the above list: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748704869304575109962258328770.html

The Ice Melts at Sunset

2010-03-07T16:16:00.000-08:00

The ice on Lake Ontario finally melting and broke into ice shards. By tomorrow even those will probably be melted.

God is Real.

2010-03-06T15:25:00.001-08:00

God is real. Allah is real. Yahweh is real. So are Rama and Krishna. You can add Waheguru, Melek Tawus, Khawandagar and Haneullim to the list as well. These deities are all real and they, as well as their followers, must be treated with understanding, respect and yes, even a degree of reverence. Indeed, countless examples of history prove there is nothing so powerful or motivating to humanity as a divine, omnipotent power. As long as a single individual believes in any of the above, they are for all tangible and measurable purposes real.

Let us be clear though, I am not suggesting the presence of these God’s (and I use this word only for the convenience of the English language, but with the intention of including all divine beings) nor any others. In fact, I abstain from passing judgement on their existence all together, since from my perspective it simply does not matter. I understand that it is impossible to convince anyone of anything they are not willing to accept, and chief among those topics is religion. Nor do I wish to, it is an individual’s right to believe in what they wish. What I am saying is that to people on this earth, these God’s are real and they follow their teachings every day; placing everything from their families’ well being to their eternal souls in those figurative hands. That level of belief and trust is not to be mocked, belittled or disbelieved, regardless of one’s personal views. Rather it should be admired, cherished and respected for what it means to the believer.

Your weekly link spam

2010-03-05T07:08:00.000-08:00

I've found myself frequently coming across articles on the internet that I would like to comment on, but that do not deserve a post of their own. As such I'll group these interesting links here for your reading pleasure, if you so choose, and offer a quick thought or two on each.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/02/26/liberals.atheists.sex.intelligence/index.html?hpt=C2

This article is about a study that comes to the 'revolutionary' conclusion that there is a correlation between intelligence and values. I hope that this does not surprise anyone, but is never the less interesting. I am intrigued by the possibilities of analyzing massive sets of data to look for similar correlations using modern software. Its not particularly unreasonable to map all kinds of trends and relationships with very little effort, and likely much more accurately than isolated studies.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-01/chilean-quake-likely-shifted-earth-s-axis-nasa-scientist-says.html

As any reasonably educated person knows, earthquakes are caused by shifts of the earth along fault lines and are relatively common. However, the event in Chile was anything but common, reaching an 8.8 on the Richter scale and ranking as the 5th most powerful earthquake in a century. An event with so much power and energy managed to literally speed up the earth and change its axis of rotation.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=polar-bear-genome-climate

The polar bear has been the iconic species of the climate change movement ever since Al Gore showed an adorable animation of one drowning. This article discusses the possibility that the polar bear became a species due to drastic climate change, a fairly poignant irony. It also touches on my long held belief that while CO2 emissions are unequivocally bad, and should be avoid; evolution will go on and life on earth will continue, just perhaps with fewer of its most advanced species...

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/03/04/india.temple.deaths.uttarpradesh/index.html?hpt=T2

Is it truly possible for a place in this world to be so poor that people will trample each other to death for food and utensils? To me this is a product of the astronomical wealth disparities in the world today.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/04/roy-ashburn-arrested-anti_n_485419.html

One of California's strongest Anti-Gay crusaders was arrested for drunk driving! Clearly his moral fiber should be called into question, but wait theres more! He was leaving a gay bar and had a male companion with him in the car at the time of his arrest. What disgusting hypocrisy.

Footprints in the Ice

2010-03-04T18:21:00.000-08:00

I am legitimately curious as to how footprints are made in ice over open water. I hypothesis that during the big snow/melt a sufficient amount of slush was made that froze back into ice. But if there was enough slush to make footprints that deep then it would have been impossible to tell if the ice was any good and the person responsible for these was just asking to join the video posted earlier.

On a lighter note...

2010-03-04T18:12:00.001-08:00

Do no watch the following video if: watching (most commonly) self inflicted pain disturbs you, you have a heart condition or are pregnant. In all honesty, some of the events depicted are fairly brutal and likely to have caused serious injury, be forewarned.

Best Fails of 2009 - watch more funny videos

I have two things to say on this video:

A) How are people this stupid?

B) Thank you Japan for equipping every idiots friend with a cell phone that can take video.

Full finders credit is awarded to Neil.

Switzerland at War!

2010-03-03T09:05:00.000-08:00

An astounding situation for a country that has stayed neutral through both The Great War and the Taming of Hitler; A country that has not even joined the European Union and does not belong to any military alliances. Nevertheless, the Swiss have managed to irritate Libya’s Gaddafi to the point that he has called for Holy Jihad against them.

Granted they did vote to ban the construction of Minarets, which is roughly the equivalent of voting to ban crosses on churches. Expect for the obnoxious call to prayers (sorry Muslims, but its horribly annoying to those not of faith). An unnecessary move, but one that warrants a call for suicide bombers and civilian attacks? Certainly not.

The Swiss response? To ignore it. The Swiss-Muslim response? To rise above the issue, stay neutral and poke the blubbering idiot back.

“it did not shock us, as he often says such nonsense.” - Yasar Ozdemir, member of the Zurich-based Swiss Federation of Muslim Associations

[1] - http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/27/world/europe/27swiss.html

Looting in Chile and Haiti prove that Hobbes was Right

2010-03-02T13:47:00.000-08:00

The looting seen in Haiti and more recently, Chile,[1] are astounding, horrifying and predicted long ago by none other than Thomas Hobbes, whom I’m sure most of you are unfamiliar with. However, his works are just as important as Voltaire, Montesquieu and Locke. Oh, you don’t know those either? Well they came up with Freedom of Speech, Separation of Power in Government and Liberalism, respectively. Lofty company to say the least.

Hobbes’ claim it fame is no less impressive, he wrote passionately in Leviathan about a social contract between government and its people which is a powerful democratic concept day. In constructing his argument for the need for government he said that if left uncheck the lives of men are “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”. He viewed man as inherently prone to violence and disorder and that it required a strong government to keep them in check, and ensure a prosperous society.

He would have told you that if a catastrophic event occurs, and the foundation of government is shaken, people will react by entering a free for all frenzy. That is exactly what has happened. Instead of respecting the rule of law, trusting their government to uphold order for just a few days and acting in a civilized manner for when the first time in their lives society and the police weren’t mandating it, they acted nasty and brutish. Their actions shortened many more lives.

Until such a time as looting isn’t a concern in the wake of a disaster, but rather delivering aid and rebuilding are the priorities we cannot call ourselves, as individuals and a species civilized but rather held to a level of respectability by the threat of imprisonment. It is a goal that our species must prove it can obtain to truly be considered humane and advanced.

[1] - http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/03/02/chile.earthquake/index.html?hpt=T2