2004 History

Last Cat Blogging Of 2004

Fri, 31 Dec 2004 09:05:16 PST - Link

What If...

smartwithheart steps into the quicksand while holding firmly to the third rail: Challenging the Historicity of Jesus

I went to Catholic school from 1st through 6th grades. Needless to say this sort of thing never came up in Cathechism class. I'd never really given much thought to the subject before, because that issue wasn't central to the philosophy (which I endevor to follow). I'd been much more troubled that in the last 200 years the message of Christ had been subverted and distorted beyond recognition of his contemporaries. This is an eye-opening evaluation of the historical evidence.

Fri, 31 Dec 2004 11:06:03 PST - Link

Peak Oil Countdown

To quote my energy editor Dale Allen Pfeiffer, a geologist: it appears that the year 2007 will be important. A new study published in Petroleum Review suggests that production might not be able to keep up with demand by 2007. The study is a survey of mega projects (those with reserves of over 500 million barrels and the potential to produce over 100,000 barrels per day of oil). Mega projects are important not only because they provide the bulk of world oil production, but also because they have a better net energy profile than smaller projects, and they provide a more substantial profit than smaller projects.

Bear in mind that the planet consumes a billion barrels of oil (or two mega fields) every 11-1/2days.

The discovery rate for mega projects has dwindled to almost nothing. This can be seen in the data for the last few years. In 2000, there were 16 discoveries; in 2001 there were 8, and in 2002, only 3. From discovery to first production generally takes about 6 years. If a new project can make use of existing infrastructure, then the start-up time might be cut to 4 years.

...

But there is another factor to this oil calculus. We hear complaints that a major part of the problem with current oil prices has to do with a lack of refineries. Why are no more refineries being built? The answer is simple and an irrefutable confirmation of peak oil. The refineries are not being built and massive expensive exploration projects are not being undertaken because the oil companies understand that there is very little oil left to find.

Michael C. Ruppert in an August 31 Speech to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco

Fri, 31 Dec 2004 11:17:51 PST - Link

Tsunami Information

Ceej pointed out that the Wikkipedia is the best source of information on the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.

24 minutes spent reading the wikkipedia will leave you more informed than 24 hours of CNN.

When you're done, join me in bending some plastic at The Red Cross and at Doctors Without Borders

Tue, 28 Dec 2004 21:49:30 PST - Link

Again, Strange Dreams

I'm never sure what causes these mysterious mash-up dreams, but cute rodents and object-oriented programming appeared in the same place, at the same time in my dreams the other night, and it all became perfectly clear:

* Squirrels are objects that provide squirrel services. *

Right. Too much turkey before sleep will do that to you.

Tue, 28 Dec 2004 14:22:25 PST - Link

Friday Cat Blogging - Tory, Miko and T-chan

Tory: Purry holidays, everyone!

Miko: Here's wishing you the joys of family, and a warm place to rest your chin.

T-Chan: Meowy Christmas. ZzzzZzzzZzzz.

Fri, 24 Dec 2004 11:21:57 PST - Link

Bloggercon Audio

Oh Yeah, did I mention that all of the recorded sessions of Bloggercon have been converted to .mp3 and are available at IT Conversations? Well, they have. I higly recomend Law moderated by Lawrence Lessig, Core Values moderated by Mary Hodder and Newbies moderated by Rebecca MacKinnon.

I've listened to the entire schedule, and all are worth a listen. (And yes, I dropped a tip in the tip jar, too)

If you listen closely, you can hear me adding my $0.02 from time to time.

I've been told I have the perfect voice to become a great mime.

Woot! there's a new interview with David Brin. I went to a session with Brin at Worldcon San Jose, I thought it was most rewarding.

Thu, 23 Dec 2004 19:09:46 PST - Link

Friday Cat Blogging - Miko

Yes, I'm joining the Friday Cat Blogging bandwagon.

We think Miko is half ragdoll and half squirrel. He's skittish, but very affectionate, and is the only one of our three who likes to be picked up and held. He loves to lay on my warm monitor when I'm in my den, and thinks LCDs are are for the birds.

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 22:38:25 PST - Link

What's That Cracking Noise?

Yet, aside from giving the Cato Institute and other organizations promoting Social Security privatization the space to present upbeat tales from Chile, the U.S. news media have provided their readers and viewers with little information about international experience. In particular, the public hasn't been let in on two open secrets:

Privatization dissipates a large fraction of workers' contributions on fees to investment companies.

It leaves many retirees in poverty.

Paul Krugman

Oh, what's the point. I can tell you all a thousand times (And probably will) that whatever infirmity Social Security has, bleeding the patient will be of no help. But it doesn't matter. Dubya has about half the country following him, thinking he's walking on water, but it's only thin ice.

When Dubya leaves office he'll be safe in the arms of the Saudi Royal Family, and Richard Mellon Scaife, and Rupert Murdoch, and Sun Yung Moon. The rest of us will not be so lucky.

Fri, 17 Dec 2004 08:49:05 PST - Link

More Ranma Stuff

apnea is a Ranma * Akane Only site. Great artwork and the links page is a great resource for further Japanese fansite surfing.

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 22:38:25 PST - Link

Windows XP = Extremely Persnickety

I'd been wondering about why it was that when I used my laptop at work I'd get a complete set of icons on my taskbar, but when I used it at home I'd get an abbriviated set. This happened several days in a row, regular as clockwork. At work, I'd find a full icon set, at home, I'd find that several were missing.

Tonight I did an experiment here at home. I waited a couple of minutes* between power up and actually logging in. All of the Icons showed up.

* About the same amount of time it takes to pick up my Ruri-Ruri coffee cup, and making a quick round trip the the other corner of the building for my first cup before logging in.

Oh by the way, I discovered that the firewall software that comes installed by Sony was blocking Windows Workgroup Networking. There were no hints about that in the help system. Sigh.

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 21:21:05 PST - Link

A Red Warning Light On The Dashboard Of Democracy

Rev. Jesse Jackson told the congressmen that over the weekend he had spoken to John Kerry, who has since sent a letter to each of the state’s 88 county election boards, saying he supported three areas of inquiry in the recount. Jackson said Kerry wanted “forensic computer experts” to examine voting machines, especially those using optical scan technology, because in other states, notably New Mexico, Bush had won all the precincts with that voting system in place. Kerry also wanted to examine 92,000 ballots that recorded no vote for president, and 155,000 provisional ballots that were rejected. [Ephasis Added - J.]

The Free Press

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 08:52:22 PST - Link

A Dare

Kyburg issued me a dare, I responed with eight haiku.

It's clearly not by best work, but it somehow unstuck me. Thanks, K.

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 21:47:24 PST - Link

If It Ain't Broke, Don't Break It.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, using a more realistic model, the trust fund will run out in 2052, and even then it will cover 81 percent of the promised benefits. To fully fund this shortfall would require additional revenue of 0.54 percent of GDP, less than we are currently spending in Iraq. Or, as Paul Krugman noted in The New York Times, about one quarter of the revenue lost each year by President Bush's tax cuts, "roughly equal to the fraction of those cuts that goes to people with incomes of $500,000 a year."

Molly Ivins

I'm personally ambivalent about Social Security, I don't plan to need it in retirement, and I'm expecting that it will be means tested by the time I reach that age. That doesn't mean I want it to go away. After all, my savings are "in the market" now, and between the falling dollar and the duldrums of the economy I might well find myself needing it.

I'm treating it like insurance for now; I'll pay today so that should I need it I can call on it later.

The real crisis is on medicare, not Social Security.

I feel powerless to prevent this however, it seems my swords of fact and reason make no mark on the sheild of willfull ignorance. Truth has been voted off the island.

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 13:21:09 PST - Link

Cajone Pass Under Tumbling Skys

Nikon E990 2004.11.21

Here is the view coming down from Cajone pass on Highway 15 on the way to Las Vegas. The snow in the pass had backed up traffic in the other lanes for twenty miles. This part of the road is such a long, even grade that it tricked the eye into believeing that we were traveling on the flat, and that up ahead there was a bend upwards in the world.

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 12:34:51 PST - Link

Windows Networking Gripes

You know, I have no trouble setting up Linux, and I've been able to get every machine I've ever known on the inturwebs, including aged macs and my museum piece Bebox, but for some reason Windows workgroup networking just never seems to work for me.

I have a nice solid Windows 2000 Machine upstairs with a bunch of data on it I'd like to copy to my XP laptop, and altough I have no trouble reaching Antacrtica over the inturwebs, I simply can't seem to get to my machine a few feet away.

I am about this close to installing a linux machine just so that it can translate.

Heck, the Win2K machine can see my laptop, but altough I have folders shared it says: The Network path is not found. My new laptop can't see the win2k machine.

And don't get me started about the help system. Oh, and for some unknown reason my battery indicator has dissapeared from the taskbar. What's up with that? Come ON. It's almost 2005. Toyota would be out of business if the gas gauge just disappeared randomly.

Tue, 14 Dec 2004 22:17:42 PST - Link

Objects In Fear Are Further Than They Appear

Did you know that 10 years ago, Social Security was just 35 short years from running a deficit, and now we project it will take only 38 more years?

Washington Monthly has the scoop.

Mon, 13 Dec 2004 21:21:32 PST - Link

Onionated

The Onion takes a look at roll-backs at Wal-Mart.

Mon, 13 Dec 2004 12:39:50 PST - Link

Been There, Done That.

You know, privatizing social security is such an appealing idea that It's been tried before:

In Chile:

The World Bank found that half of the pension contributions of the average Chilean worker who retired in 2000 went to management fees. The brokerage firm CB Capitales...found that the average worker would have done better simply by placing their pension fund contributions in a passbook savings account.

And Sweden

....Everyone in the new system is forced to speculate in mutual funds and results in the first years have been disastrous. From March 2000 until March 2003, the Swedish stock market declined by 68%. As of 31st January 2004, 84% of all accounts had lost money, despite the upturn in the market since March 2003.

Read all about it at Washington Monthly

Fri, 10 Dec 2004 13:47:40 PST - Link

Social Insecurity

Krugman unravels the plan.

I'm thinking it's Enron writ big—a shell game where the Wall Street firms stand to skim a nice guaranteed profit from the part of the population they’ve never had though the front door before.

Dubya wants to return this country to what it once was: a land of indentured servants, belching smokestacks, and robber barons.

Fri, 10 Dec 2004 08:57:48 PST - Link

Waiting

2004.12.08 Kansai Airport Nikon N990

Thu, 09 Dec 2004 14:49:53 PST - Link

Fanfiction

Fiendling has some observations on Ranma Fanfiction. (Darn right, it's Ranma + Akane!)

Thu, 09 Dec 2004 14:58:10 PST - Link

Dollars and Sense.

The dollar is not what it used to be. Over the past three years it has fallen by 35% against the euro and by 24% against the yen. But its latest slide is merely a symptom of a worse malaise: the global financial system is under great strain. America has habits that are inappropriate, to say the least, for the guardian of the world's main reserve currency: rampant government borrowing, furious consumer spending and a current-account deficit big enough to have bankrupted any other country some time ago. This makes a dollar devaluation inevitable, not least because it becomes a seemingly attractive option for the leaders of a heavily indebted America. Policymakers now seem to be talking the dollar down. Yet this is a dangerous game. Why would anybody want to invest in a currency that will almost certainly depreciate?

The Economist

Tue, 07 Dec 2004 12:46:10 PST - Link

The New Explorers

IT conversations is reaching outside the tech world to present some audio interviews of more general interest. Ben Saunders crossed from Siberia to the North Pole, but had to give up the second leg of his trip, North Pole to Canada, because the ice sheet now has large areas of open water. At the present rate, the ice will dissapear before the end of the century.

Tue, 07 Dec 2004 12:46:10 PST - Link

New Toy

Say hello to my new Sony S260P. I had been limping along at 300 MHz with Win98, an 800x600 screen, and (gasp!) 32MB of RAM.

She's a good machine, and she stays nice and quiet if all I'm doing is browsing the web.

Fri, 03 Dec 2004 13:27:40 PST - Link

Tosca

We saw Opera San Jose's production of Tosca at the California theater last night. The California theater hosts a fine organ, and it was used to subtle and haunting effect at the end of the first act, where the church of St. Andrea was filled with the procession of the cardinal while Scarpia (Joseph Wright) planed his seduction of Tosca. It gave me shivers.

The California seems like an old friend already, and it seems that the reeds have been brought up out from under the lip of the stage, the mix sounded more balanced that the last production. I think it's going to be a great venue!

One of the things I like about Opera San Jose is that the audience dresses more casually than at the War Memorial in San Francisco, and the smaller room can be comfortable filled by any of the cast's voices. The War Memorial was so huge that only the strongest voices seemed to carry, and the others were lost. Where it comes to Opera, I prefer quality to volume.

Thu, 02 Dec 2004 19:57:24 PST - Link

Post Election Blues

The election may be over, but the battle over Social Secruity is just beginning. The Angry Bear is keeping an eye on things, today's post is a great place to get your feet wet. (Warning! Contains large numbers!)

Thu, 02 Dec 2004 08:34:49 PST - Link

Twisted Catbloging

Life has gotten very busy for me over the last couple of weeks. Sorry about the lack of bloggage.

To make up for it, here's a photo of Tory James. Yes, he sometimes sleeps with his front legs one way, and his back the other. Other than that he's a very sweet kitty.

Wed, 01 Dec 2004 17:05:58 PST - Link

Oh, No. Not Again.

This morning CNN is running the Iran's Nuclear Threat headline. Dubya's second term hasn't even started and the sabers are rattling again. God help us all if this is the new bee in Dubya's bonnet. He has a proven genius for getting his way. Someone better tell the Iranians he's crazy enough to do it. We have proof of that.

But it beggs the question; You and who's army? Ours is kind of bogged down next door, remember?

Oh wait, I get it. Dubya's Iraq exit srategy is through Iran.

Fri, 19 Nov 2004 08:25:10 PST - Link

Florida Again

"We began to compare the special printouts given to us with the signed polling tapes from election night. Lo and behold, some were missing. We also found some that didn't match. In fact, in one location, precinct 215, an African-American precinct, the votes were off by hundreds, in favor of George W. Bush and other Republicans. Hmm. Which was right? Our polling tape, specially printed on Nov. 15, without signatures, or theirs, printed on Nov. 2, with up to 8 signatures per tape?"

Daily Kos

Here we go again.

Tue, 16 Nov 2004 22:48:00 PST - Link

Nine Years Of Autumn

Today is the ninth anniversary of the release of my best-known fanfiction, Autumn which was selected via online voting as the Best Of Ranma Fanfiction for 1995. (Spring and Summer were also in the top ten!)

As I recall, there was an issue about Autumn having made the deadline for entry into the contest, because although I posted it a day ahead of time, the rules required that it be moderated into the newsgroup before it could be called an valid entry. The moderator was apparently out of town, but did get around to posting it that night, but after midnight by my news server.

I was quite bummed, as I'd really made an effort to make the deadline, and it looked like altough I'd posted it a full 24 hours earlier, I'd missed the deadline by 20 minutes.

The next day I saw the post on on anther news server, and it was marked as posted before midnight. It had been moderated before midnight Pacific time, but my news server dated it received on Eastern time.

Enough of that, just go read the story. It's the last of the series, so if you are totaly new to the seasons stories, they should be read in this order: Winter - Spring - Summer - Autumn

Taleswapper reviewed Autumn in "My Favorite Ranma Fanfics of FY 1996"

Tue, 16 Nov 2004 16:36:56 PST - Link

Pretty Cars

Car Design News is just chock-full of cool looking designs. Cars can look really cool if you don't have to leave room for all of the moving parts.

Tue, 16 Nov 2004 13:10:56 PST - Link

Guitars And Rants

Ed Roman has a huge guitar shop in Las Vegas. I'm not in the market for a new axe right now, but the rants section of his website is certainly worth a read.

Tue, 16 Nov 2004 08:39:23 PST - Link

Does Anybody Really Know The Real Time?

No big deal, I just tweaked my backend code to support the Pacific time zone, and I need to enter this item to test the code.

At the tone, the time will be...

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 21:45:48 PST - Link

Page Design

A while back I read on Scripting News an item on the ideal length of a line of text could be found by typing the alphabet. I couldn't remember if you typed it once or twice, or somewhere inbetween, but a google search finds mention of the alphabet-and-a-half rule.

I'm not sure if thats all small characters:

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzabcdefghijklm

or all caps:

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZABCDEFGHI JKLM

or broken up into words:

Abcd efgh ijkl mnop qrst uvwx yz abcd efgh ijkl m

I was later unable to locate that particular item, but Usability News has some research on the subject. It looks like reading speed is not significanly affected by longer lines, but adult readers perfer shorter lines.

They mention:

the Narrow-length was perceived as promoting easier concentration than both the Medium- and Full-length conditions

I wonder if that effect works both ways; text published in a narrower format will be read with more concentration.

Human Factors suggests the historical origin of 4 inches.

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 16:41:08 EDT - Link

Rats.

I smell a rat. It has that distinctive and all-too-familiar odor of the species Republicanus floridius. We got a nasty bite from this pest four years ago and never quite recovered. Symptoms of a long-term infection are becoming distressingly apparent.

Colin Shea at Zogby International

Update: That URL is no longer working, but Kos has the whole text.

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 11:59:26 EDT - Link

Recount Ohio Close

Green Party has raised more than $144,000 towards estimated $150,000 Ohio recount — Blue Lemur

It looks like they got out their spreadsheets and decided that a little more cash might be reqired to make this happen. They are just $6000 away from the target.

I don't really expect that the election will be overturned, but I think this sort of audit will help prevent fraud in the future.

It's all well and good the the mainstream press is falling over themselves to say; "It's all okay, have faith", but we're talking about ballots here, not Angels. Us members of the reality-based community are willing to pay real money for a realty-based recount. Leave faith for the mysteries we cannot count.

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 11:41:41 EDT - Link

Peak Oil

First comes a Fictional Radio Interview with some terrific links to articles on Peak Oil. The interview is quite inflamitory, but there is a thread of truth in the narrative about how the commercial press works.

Second comes a fine exploration of the "Abiotic Oil" Controversy.

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 11:29:31 EDT - Link

I Never Should Have Quit The Ice Rodeo

I've been asking somebody to write a program, because I use Apple's iCal program, and I've got a Sidekick, which is the Mac version of the BlackBerry, and I keep my calendar and all the contact data on the computer.

— Rush Yes, that Rush.

Rush has a Sidekick. And a Mac. And compares the first to the second.

I wonder if my skates still fit. The Ice Rodeo always has openings for clowns.

Fri, 12 Nov 2004 16:04:15 EDT - Link

Trust But Verify

The Green Party in concert with the Libertarian Party has raised more than $40,000 towards an estimated $113,000 filing fee for a recount of Ohio ballots in the presidential election as of 1 p.m. Friday afternoon, RAW STORY has learned.

The Blue Lemur In association with The Raw Story

I just dropped $25 into the hat.

Fri, 12 Nov 2004 14:25:53 EDT - Link

Bloggercon Webcasts - Podcasting

The first of the Bloggercon sessions had been podcastorized (Hey, did I just invent a new word?) and is up at IT Conversations

I met Doug Kaye (of IT Conversations) during lunch out on the grass at the con. He comes through as thoughtfull and pleaseant in the webcasts, he's even more so in person.

There was an Apple engineer there too, (I'm sorry, I'm hopeless with names) it never ceases to amaze me when I mention that I was on the Quadra 660AV team and the person I'm talking to says "Oh, I had 5 of those."

I didn't take notes during the con, because I knew these podcasts were in the works.

I didn't find what I was seeking at the con, but that really has more to do with me than the con. I was coming off the emotional roller coaster that was Tuesdays election, feeling that the effort I'd placed into blogging in an effort to sway the country, or even one voter to vote for Kerry was for naught, and feeling that I was more of a stranger in my own country on Wednesday than I was on Monday.

Perhaps I was looking for a new story to tell, a new reason to bang out a few words, publish some images, or make some sounds. Those reasons are not to be found at a Con.

I'd made myself a promise that I would jump back into Yellow, and finish it before Christmas if Kerry won the election. (If I've just totally confused you, Yellow is a romantic Ranma 1/2 Fanfiction which has been causing me writers block since December 10, 2002. See the link to Fanfictions on my home page.)

As I write this CNN is showing footage (Megabyteage?) of the fighting in Fallujah. I'm having a hard time placing my heart back in Ranma and Akane's Nerima, a place where there is no 9-11, no Iraq war, and no vote count irregularities.

I refuse to bring the darkness of this world into theirs.

I haven't given up on Yellow.

I will find my way back.

It make take some time.

Wish me luck.

Tue, 09 Nov 2004 11:28:32 EDT - Link

Catching Up

Saturday started with a drop-off at the airport, (The alarm went off at 5:00 AM) and ended in a traffic jam on I 280 at 11:30PM, so Sunday rolled around and when all the chores were done the spirit (Johnny Walker Red) was willing, but the blogging was weak. Strange, that since I spent Saturday participating at Bloggercon. I might have something to say about it after the event soaks in a bit. I really want to listen to the podcasts of the sessions I missed. (I'll post the URLs as soon as I locate them.)

I met a lot of interesting folks, and it's really great to put faces on the bloggs and podcasts. The strangest effect I noticed was that Adam Curry somehow makes a better connection through his podcasts than he did in front of a room of 200.

I'm going to need to try one of these podcast things for myself one day.

Mon, 08 Nov 2004 16:19:53 EDT - Link

Bent Maps

Michael Gastner, Cosma Shalizi, and Mark Newman at the University of Michigan have produced a series of electoral maps including cartograms which distort the shape and size of the states to take into account population. (Image used under Creative Commons License)

Mon, 08 Nov 2004 16:17:10 EDT - Link

There's Not Enough Tin Foil In Ohio

A Recount is not out of the question.

Fri, 05 Nov 2004 12:09:51 EDT - Link

French Frustration

The President is right in saying that the war on terrorism is a new war. However let’s look at history. Polish cavalry did not stand a chance against Germany’s mechanized cavalry. France did not recognize the threat Germany was at the eave of WWII. It thought anyway that the battle would resume as it was left at the end of WWI, in trenches. Many countries did not understand that Germany had changed the rules of war, by using modern warfare techniques. And this was not the first episode of this time in humankind history: bronze shattered on steal a long time ago. So the rules of war have changed again, and we have to recognize that a new war has started, the President is right at that.

But sending tanks and bombers (in the wrong country) won’t do much good here, and the President did not get that. Not at all. This war is possible thanks to the media. A terrorist does not exist without the media. Yet the President sent poor kids to Iraq, in their tanks and hummers... without having realized that the battle was not happening on the ground, but on the air. He sent terrorism something to feed on. The President had (and by far) the upper hand after the WTC tragedy. He managed to reverse the situation, and now Al Jazeera and others are feeding the hatred towards the States in that region. This country is fighting combatants gathering from around the globe toward Iraq. Not many of them, but still enough to pin us to the ground there. And it is doing so without international support (did I forget Poland, Mr. President?). So Mr. Bush plunged in what could be described as... a world war? And with a very limited set of key allies. Forget France, Germany and now Spain if you will, let’s not realize that Europe is becoming a super-power of its own. But no support from Russia, no agreement from China... That’s a lot of people right there!

An except of Mad by William;

I am a French guy who lived for years in the States. I love the American culture: I love the work place culture, I love the fact that you can re-start your life at any time, I love the judicial system which, despite a few stupid lawsuits here and there, still manages to bring progress and act as a real counter power to the executive. And I love the fact that as a whole, American people like "nice" people, and would like for themselves to simply be good persons (don't laugh, but it is not true all around the world: the French for instance have some kind of admiration for nasty and twisted characters... but still love their children, we'll come back to that later).

Fri, 05 Nov 2004 11:01:29 EDT - Link

Curiouser and Curiouser

Broward County corrected a computer glitch Thursday that had miscounted thousands of absentee votes, instantly turning a slot-machine measure from loser to winner and reinforcing concerns about the accuracy of electronic election returns.

The bug, discovered two years ago but never fixed, began subtracting votes after the absentee tally hit 32,500 — a ceiling put in place by the software makers.

Okay, so in Broward county they use touch screens on the day of the election, but of course absentee paper ballots must be counted separately.

Who came up with this idea to start counting back down? Jeez. The right way to do that is either stop the count and throw an error, or add like ten billion to make the error stick out like a sore thumb.

Miami Herald

Fri, 05 Nov 2004 11:01:29 EDT - Link

That's Strange...

You know, maybe those Touchscreen machines aren't so bad after all.

Kathy Dopp at US Together.org has been running the numbers.

In the counties with touchscreen machines, numbers bounce around some when comparing the actual vote to an estimate based on party registration and turnout.

I had to puzzle on it a bit, but the reason that that the expected votes columns are smaller than the actual results is that only the Republican and Democrats are listed. (For example, Hillsborough county is 35.1% Republican, 41.7% Democratic, which leaves 23.2% others.)

Republicans did great in that county, 241,630 vs 210,892, so clearly they got some inde voters, and probably more cross-over votes than did the Democrats.

The spreadsheet calls those 241,630 votes a 51.2% percent change over the 159,843 predicted Republican votes.

The Democrats did similarly well in Martin County, pulling 51.5% over the predicted tally.

Now look at Calhoun County, using those optically scanned, recountable paper ballots. Republicans pulled 433.2% over the prediction, AND Democrats pulled -56.9%.

Liberty county was even stranger: 712.3% vs -59.9%.

Oh, did I need to tell you this was Florida?

Fri, 05 Nov 2004 02:06:56 EDT - Link

Election Reflection

Kerry did the right thing this morning. He looked at the evidence, and made a descision, a reality-based based descision, on that evidence. I cannot fault him for that. I was really looking forward to that sort of thinking in the administration.

The sting of electoral collage defeat was bad, but the popular vote has just plain weirded me out. Somehow a majority of voters voted to place a singularly unreflective man back into a position where he has by all measurments been a miserable failure. It's as if the country said, "Yeah, sure, he drove us into the ditch, and and he's about to wrap us around a pole, but we'll let him drive a while longer." It looks like a critical factor in the turnout for Dubya was that anti-gay marriage measures were on the ballots in many states, including Ohio. Were these folks really more afraid that gays might commit to marriage than they were about sending thier kids to Iraq? (And then on to Afganistan, and then Iran, and then Syria and then all the way to North Korea, eeeeeeEEEEEEEAAAAAAaaaah!) — [Sorry, Dr Dean.]

It was one thing, back in 2000, when Clinton made running the country look so deceptively easy, to pick a down-home dumbed-down candidate based on how much you are just like him. My freinds from Europe say although they detested Dubya, that they could forgive the American public that mistake once — we just didn't know any better. But that they would not forgive a second term. The Eurozone is already a larger economy than the USA, watch for pressure for oil and other comodities to begin trading in Euros.

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 20:44:07 EDT - Link

The Rest Of Our Lives

Setting aside my general political leanings, my personal views and feelings of partisanship, I think the result portends very bad things for America's role in the world and the well-being on all levels of this country. Changes in domestic politics, in theory at least, can be shifted back at a following election. The world, though, is different. There we are just a ship — though the largest one — on waters we can never truly control. And I fear that this result will set in motion dangerous dynamics that even the relatively young among us will be wrestling with and contending with for the rest of our lives.

Talking Points Memo

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 13:15:37 EDT - Link

We're Closed Today.

I am de-linking the paper airplanes and fanfictions for today.

Sorry, World.

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 12:04:21 EDT - Link

Oh No, Not Again.

There's something rotten in the state of Ohio. (Oh, and Florida, There's more to come in Florida.)

Wed, 03 Nov 2004 02:12:42 EDT - Link

Print Your Own!

Show the world how your really think about Touchscreen voting machines!

There are 700 or so voters in my precinct, by 09:00 100 of them had cast ballots. Gianormous turnout. Don't be left out of this one. If you don't vote, you don't get to complain afterwards.

Tue, 02 Nov 2004 13:01:15 EDT - Link

Go. Vote. Now.

It's important.

P.S. If Kerry wins, I'll finish Yellow by Christmas.

Now go vote.

Tue, 02 Nov 2004 11:24:00 EDT - Link

A Message From John Kerry

During this campaign I have asked you for so much — your time, your energy, and your financial support. Today, I ask you for one final thing — your vote.

Tomorrow, Americans will face a choice.

How will we find our way forward? How will we keep America safe, and keep the American dream alive?

I believe we begin by giving this country we love a fresh start. This morning, I would like to give you as plainly as I can the summary of my case on how — together — we can change America.

I believe we begin by moving our economy, our government, and our society back in line with our best values.

I believe we do whatever it takes to lead our troops to success and bring them home safe. And when they do come home, I believe we begin by rebuilding an America with a strong middle class where everyone has the chance to work and the opportunity to get ahead.

Tomorrow, you can choose a fresh start. You can choose a president who will defend America and fight for the middle-class.

You can choose between four more years of George Bush's policy to ship jobs overseas and give tax breaks to the companies that do it — or a president who will reward the companies that create and keep good jobs here in the United States of America.

Tomorrow you will face a choice between four more years of George Bush's giveaways to the big drug companies and the big HMOs — or a president who will finally make health care a right, and not a privilege, for every American.

This election is a choice between four more years of tax giveaways for millionaires along with a higher tax burden for you — or a president who will cut middle-class taxes, raise the minimum wage, and make sure we guarantee women an equal day's pay for an equal day's work.

Tomorrow, America faces a choice between four more years of an energy policy for big oil, of big oil, and by big oil — or a president who finally makes America independent of Mideast oil in ten years. A choice between George Bush's policy that just yesterday showed record profits for oil companies and record gas prices for American consumers. I believe that America should rely on our own ingenuity and innovation, not the Saudi Royal family.

Tomorrow this campaign will end. The election will be in your hands. If you believe we need a fresh start in Iraq; if you believe we can create and keep good jobs here in America; if you believe we need to get health care costs under control; if you believe in the promise of stem cell research; if you believe our deficits are too high and we're too dependent on Mideast oil then I ask you to join me and together we'll change America.

I ask for your vote and I ask for your help. When you go to the polls bring your friends, your family, your neighbors. No one can afford to stand on the sidelines or sit this one out.

And in return for your hard work, you have my commitment to always fight for you, to always be on your side. In the words of Bruce Springsteen that have become the theme of this campaign. "We've made a promise we swore we'd always remember...no retreat and no surrender."

Tomorrow we will change America and with your help I will always keep that promise to you.

Thank you,

John Kerry

Mon, 01 Nov 2004 20:05:12 EDT - Link

Please

A polite request from the patio of a building just off Page Mill Road in Palo Alto, CA.

Fri, 29 Oct 2004 13:13:54 EDT - Link

Rethuglicans In Ohio

When Catherine Herold received mail from the Ohio Republican Party earlier this year, she refused it.

The longtime Barberton Democrat wanted no part of the mailing and figured that by refusing it, the GOP would have to pay the return postage.

What she didn't count on was the returned mail being used to challenge the validity of her voter registration.

Beacon Journal

Fri, 29 Oct 2004 11:55:58 EDT - Link

I Didn't Make The Bed This Morning

Thu, 28 Oct 2004 15:10:51 EDT - Link

What's Your Sign?

The Hiptop has a stong following in the deaf and hard of hearing community, but today I learned that there is even a 'sign' in use for the Hiptop. (Would that be ASL slang?) The sign mimics the motion of the display rotating open, one hand being the base, and the other the display. How entirely cool is that?

Tue, 26 Oct 2004 00:04:04 EDT - Link

More Sounds: Summer Evening

This isn't really a podcast, It's just an MP3 of a Instrumental I recorded with Clayton Neece (a former housemate) one summer evening in our backyard. I'm doing the rythmn track in open tuning, and Clayton is providing the improvised lead. This was a single take, recorded onto an Akai CS-M01A cassette deck with a pair of inexpensive condensor microphones on boom stands. There's no reverb added, but I did balance the channels and mix them to reduce the stereo separation.

The tape was digitized and mixed in Steinberg's Wavelab Lite, and Cubasis VST (unfortunately, VST only runs on my old and infirm win98 laptop.) The mixdown .wav was converted to .mp3 in iTunes, and the ID3v2 tags added in HTagEditor. All of which took far longer than I would have liked. (Why can't I get iTunes to save the tags?

It's pretty clear that my audio setup needs a lot more work before I attempt a mixdown podcast.

Summer Evening is released under Creative Commons : Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 You may use it and abuse it for non-commercial use.

Listen to: Summer%20Evening.mp3

Sun, 24 Oct 2004 14:30:35 EDT - Link

I Told Ya. He's One Of Us.

John Kerry stopped by a local brewery in Wisconsin. He took a tour, and a sip.

That John Kerry, He's really one of us. It's Berghoff time!

Fri, 22 Oct 2004 20:17:10 EDT - Link

8100 Miles per Gallon?!?!?!

So says the history page of the Fancy Carol Shell Ecomarathon team in Japan. Okay, they actualy say 3444 km/L. You do the math. (Seriously. 1 kilometer = 0.6213712 miles, 1 Gal = 3.785412 Liters)

here is their home page. (Why are so many Japanese websites laden with frames?)

Fri, 22 Oct 2004 11:30:42 EDT - Link

The world though a pinhole

The Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day website has a wonderful collection of images taken on 25 April 2004, without the benefit (or detriment) of lenses.

I gave away my wet darkroom a couple of years ago, but images like these inspire me to give it another try.

Fri, 22 Oct 2004 01:45:15 EDT - Link

Sidekick II At Amazon For $24.99

Do your Christmas shopping early! Amazon

Disclosure: I had a little something to do with the design of the Sidekick II, and I'm really quite proud of it.

Thu, 21 Oct 2004 13:13:38 EDT - Link

Sorry Don

I wrestled with the descision, but last night I decided to add the John Kerry bumper sticker image to each of the paper airplane pages.

Today I found this entry in the paper airplane guestbook From Don in JAX Florida

Comments: Great site but please remove the Kerry Edwards Sign.. Remember there are children on this site too..

Yes, Don. I am acutely aware that children read this website, That's the reason why I avoid crude language throughout the site. But it's because of the kids that those signs are there.

I care enough about the kids that I've provided these designs to all of them, all over the world, for the last four years — all on my own dime. I care enough about the kids that I have placed my support behind the candidate I know in my heart will provide them with a better future. I want them to have clean air in which to fly their planes. I want them to grow up in an economy that lets their fathers and mothers to have good jobs, so that they can spend time folding paper and chasing in the yard, rather than taking on a second job to pay for health care. I want them to live in a country that is respected and admired in the world.

I'm hoping, like anyone who places a bumper sticker on their car, or a sign on their lawn, to get people to think about my candidate. I live and drive in California, which has already decided for Kerry, so bumper stickers or lawn signs have no chance of affecting this election.

My website, however, has national and global reach. I get hundereds of hits per day on the paper airplanes, but only a handful for this pathetic excuse for a weblog. ^_^;

I have no way of measuring the ratio of adult to child (or even US vs Global) readers, but judging from the guestbook, there might be a few undecided voters that I could help sway each day. I have to try to sway them. I didn't want to wake up on November 3rd knowing that there was something so simple I could have done. (And If you have a website, I urge you to do the same!)

By the way, these are not paid ads. Far from it. I pay for this site out of my own pocket. I decided to put them up on my own, and they will remain up through the election.

Wed, 20 Oct 2004 22:14:18 EDT - Link

Why I'm Voting For John Kerry #1

Kash over at Angry Bear gives us his five good reasons for voting for John Kerry: Economy, Iraq, Democracy, Budget and Terrorism.

I agree whole-heartedly with his Reality-Based reasons, so I won't repeat them here, but I have a few gut-level reasons for voting for John Kerry I'd add to a list:

John Kerry is More Likeable: I know this goes against the grain, but if I were at a party, and came across Kerry talking with folks in the kitchen, I'd probably hang out to see what he had to say. I like smart people, they tell smart jokes, and have interesting stories. I'd also suspect I'd find a fine local beer, or some California vintage in his hand, half full, but mostly forgotten, because if he's not talking, he's listening, and listening's more fun than drinking.

He's got interesting stories; he's traveled extensively and met with world leaders. He's been there, done that, and remembers why it mattered. He has a quick smile, and a genuine laugh, and doesn't laugh at his own jokes.

I'd love to talk to him about religion, I too was an alter boy, but left the church when it was disclaiming verifyable facts of science. (I suppose that's when I became a card-carring member of the Reality-Based Community). I'd like to plumb the reasons for his remaining. I'll bet they're persuasive.

One of the Media's memes is that altough I've got ample reason to vote against Dubya, I should still lean his way because he has a record as president (and gave a good speech to the firefighters at the WTC) and Kerry doesn't have a record and didn't give that speech.

There's a lot of reasons to vote for Kerry, but in the end it is a simple choice. I do not need to place him on a scale and see if he measures up to some arbitrary standard, I need only to weigh him against his opponent so see who I would personally rather follow for the next four years. John Kerry's that man.

Wed, 20 Oct 2004 11:42:43 EDT - Link

Bush Receives Endorsement From Iran

Yes. Really.

TEHRAN, Iran — The head of Iran's security council said Tuesday that the re-election of President Bush was in Tehran's best interests, despite the administration's axis of evil label, accusations that Iran harbors al-Qaida terrorists and threats of sanctions over the country's nuclear ambitions.

Newsday

Now THATS what I call realpolitiks.

Wed, 20 Oct 2004 11:42:43 EDT - Link

Reality-Based Community

The aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."

Without a Doubt by Ron Suskind in the New York Times Magazine

I'd spent most of my computer time last weekend doing a little back end tinkering on the site, but I'd seen links to this article, but had not read it until today.

Last summer I'd read (and highly recomend) Suskind's book on Paul O'Neil, and this article re-enforces and extends that story. This president, and his administration, have open contempt and naked disdain for fact.

Once Bill Clinton was asked what big idea he brought to Washington. "Mathmatics" was his response.

Dubya's big idea is "Faith". Faith is a good thing, but it's not the only thing.

Faith cannot grow trees.

Faith cannot keep the wings from breaking off airliners.

Faith cannot balance the budget of the United States.

Faith cannot change black to white, cold to hot, or up to down.

Faith cannot put humpty-dumpty back together again.

Faith cannot bring back the lives of the soldiers killed in Iraq.

And Faith alone cannot make peace.

Dubya is asking us to disclaim the inconvenient facts, to ignore his record and place our future in his resolute, blind faith.

No, Dubya. My eyes are open, I read the papers, and I have a calculator.

Oh yeah, I have Faith too. Faith that America will awake on November 2nd, and see the inconvienient facts. Faith that America will place a thoughtful man into the Whitehouse. Faith that we will again take up the unfinished work of creating a more perfect union.

Tue, 19 Oct 2004 15:08:22 EDT - Link

This is a test

Okay, added the permalinks to the homepage. Now I need to think about doing some podcasts.

Mon, 18 Oct 2004 23:19:30 EDT - Link

Backstage At The Interwebs

Permalinks are now working. One of the features of RSS 2.0 is that each item can optionaly contain a GUID (Global Unique IDentifier), and many rss readers and aggregators use them to keep track of items. My original feed didn't have them, and I saw a lot of duplicate items roll up in LiveJournal, so I added them, in the form of a URL, but without marking the atribute isPermaLink to true. Ever since then, LiveJournal has prominently displayed the guid at the top of each item, and starting now you can click them there (or wherever they show up in your favorite aggregator or reader) and you will be taken to a new page that displays only the entries from that day.

Now I have to do a little design work to add permalinks to the html on my homepage.

Mon, 18 Oct 2004 00:55:03 EDT - Link

The Power of Nightmares

During the three years in which the "war on terror" has been waged, high-profile challenges to its assumptions have been rare. The sheer number of incidents and warnings connected or attributed to the war has left little room, it seems, for heretical thoughts. In this context, the central theme of The Power of Nightmares is riskily counter-intuitive and provocative. Much of the currently perceived threat from international terrorism, the series argues, "is a fantasy that has been exaggerated and distorted by politicians. It is a dark illusion that has spread unquestioned through governments around the world, the security services, and the international media." The series' explanation for this is even bolder: "In an age when all the grand ideas have lost credibility, fear of a phantom enemy is all the politicians have left to maintain their power."

The Guardian UK

Here's a scary tought; maybe the administration really is doing okay on the War On Terror, because the reality of that threat isn't really as bad as what they've been saying.

That notion is a double-edged sword. On one hand comforting, because the threat of actually being the victim of a terrorist attack has been overblown. On the other hand, it would expose the war against Sadam as a cynical fraud — based on the (now disproven) connection between Sadam and the less than great and powerfull al-Qaida.

Fri, 15 Oct 2004 11:30:41 EDT - Link

Here's Your Mistake, Dubya. Here's Your Mistake.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Equipment and materials that could be used to make nuclear weapons are disappearing from Iraq but neither Baghdad nor Washington appears to have noticed, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency reported on Monday.

...

The equipment — including high-precision milling and turning machines and electron-beam welders — and materials — such as high-strength aluminum — were tagged by the IAEA years ago, as part of the watchdog agency's shutdown of Iraq's nuclear program. U.N. inspectors then monitored the sites until their evacuation from Iraq just before the war.

The United States barred the inspectors' return after the war, preventing the IAEA from keeping tabs on the equipment and materials up to the present day.

Under anti-proliferation agreements, the U.S. occupation authorities who administered Iraq until June, and then the Iraqi interim government that took power at the end of June, would have to inform the IAEA if they moved or exported any of that material or equipment.

But no such reports have been received since the invasion, officials of the watchdog agency said.

Yahoo

Nov 2 is coming soon. Vote Dubya's incompetent administration out of office. We're in a real mess now, and we need some grown-ups in charge.

Tue, 12 Oct 2004 10:52:11 EDT - Link

7 Out Of 10 Economists Agree

The Angry Bear comments on and points to a survey in the Economist.

It ain't pretty for Dubya.

P.S. The Economist is a conservative publication.

Mon, 11 Oct 2004 20:46:05 EDT - Link

Show Your Support

I've added this graphic:

to the masthead of my website to show my support of John Kerry. I ask you to do the same. You can copy the image to your own website, or link to the graphic from mine. The important thing is to show your support. Link the graphic to www.JohnKerry.com.

Think of it as a bumper sticker that can be seen from all over the world.

P.S. Drop me a line with the URL of your site, and I'll link to it here.

Sun, 10 Oct 2004 15:53:50 EDT - Link

Oh, Get Over It.

There's been a lot of speculation about that rectangular bulge in the back of Dubya's suit during the first debate. Some are going so far as to claim he was equiped with a radio receiver so as to have Rovetounge's voice in his ear to feed him answers.

Get over it. It wasn't a reciever, it's just cover for the hole where Cheney sticks in his hand.

Sun, 10 Oct 2004 12:48:44 EDT - Link

Our Favorite Phone Ever

They Like it, they really like it!

Fri, 08 Oct 2004 13:18:47 EDT - Link

Another Day, Another Debate

Now we now know why the misadministration wanted to move the subject of Iraq to the first debate; Things are deteriorating so fast there that westerners are no longer safe even in the Green Zone, and there's this:

The chief US arms inspector has reported that Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction (WMD) at the time of last year's US-led invasion. The Standard

I Bet Dubya wished he could have had the Iraq debate a year and a half ago.

Tonight will be about domestic issues, which will prove no better for Dubya, since it's now official:

For their part, the Kerry campaign can truthfully assert that the US economy currently has lost a net of 821,000 total jobs since Bush was inaugurated, and 1.63 million private-sector jobs. (Yes, the Bush economy has been pretty good at creating more government jobs.) — Angry Bear

Fri, 08 Oct 2004 11:17:42 EDT - Link

Revenge Of The Nerds

Last night the VP mentioned that should we want information on Halliburton we should visit www.factcheck.com

Okay Dick. I Clicked. You should too, but put down your coffee first ;)

Wed, 06 Oct 2004 00:48:36 EDT - Link

I Know You Are, But What Am I?

You've all heard the childish claim that "Sadam was a Weapon Of Mass Destruction" from the right wing.

Do you suppose we on the left should now claim that Dubya was his own "No Fly Zone?" Naw. That'd be to childish.

Tue, 05 Oct 2004 20:32:39 EDT - Link

"It's A Wonder That They Still Know How To Breathe" or "Dumb And Getting Dumber"

The same poll in June showed that 56% of all Republicans said they thought Saddam was involved with the 9/11 attacks. In the latest poll that number actually climbs, to 62%.

Editor & Publisher

Tue, 05 Oct 2004 20:11:49 EDT - Link

Custom Hiptop Case

I found the perfect case for the new Hiptop! (AKA Sidekick II) Alas, they haven't signed me for a promotional deal, that's another Palmer.

They have Other cases too, but when I saw the Palmer case I just had to have it.

Mon, 04 Oct 2004 18:45:11 EDT - Link

Volcano Alert? I'm More Worried About That Giant Fly!

Mon, 04 Oct 2004 16:36:22 EDT - Link

Xprize Is Ovah

Congradulations to the Spaceship One Team. October 4th now hosts two Historical Space Events

Mon, 04 Oct 2004 12:32:34 EDT - Link

Ranma's Worst Nightmare

The Hiragana on the sign is "A—Akane", which is something that Ranma says.

The restaurant is in Los Altos, CA. The sushi is very good. (I think Kasumi runs the kitchen.)

Sun, 03 Oct 2004 19:03:02 EDT - Link

1994 Saturn/SW2 Wagon - 116K - Auto - $2250

• Model SW-2
• Medium Red
• 116,050 miles
• One Owner
• No Collisions
• Non-Smoker car
• Automatic (3-spd)
• Air Conditioning
• Power Steering
• Power Windows
• Power Door Locks
• Tilt Wheel
• Cruise Control
• AM/FM Stereo
• Driver's Air Bag
• Anti Lock Brakes
• Alloy Wheels

Good Condition, Minor ding in hood, minor scratches.

I'm selling because I got my Prius!

Kelly Blue Book for Private Party Value is:

Fair: $2,180

Good: $2,605

Asking: $2,250 (Negotiable)

Sat, 02 Oct 2004 19:08:23 EDT - Link

Sadly, no.

I have — I understand everybody in this country doesn't agree with the decisions I've made. And I made some tough decisions. But people know where I stand.

— Dubya 2004 09 30

Actually Mr. pResident — no. They Don't.

PIPA did a little research, and most of your supporters are in fact confused about your stands on many, many issues. But you'd have known that if you read my blog this morning. You do read my blog, don't you?

Fri, 01 Oct 2004 16:51:12 EDT - Link

So Long, Hiroshima Okonomiyaki

I stopped by tonight to pick up dinner, and Hank (the owner) told me over the grill, "It's the last day. We close tonight."

Wife and I were there on opening day (I think were were customers three and four) and we were there on the last day. (And many in between.)

I sat in teary stunned silence while he cooked our dinners. On the way out, I bowed deeply and thanked him.

Sayonara Hiroshima Okonomiyaki, I'll miss you.

Fri, 01 Oct 2004 00:16:10 EDT - Link

Now THAT Was A Debate.

Jim Lehrer, Thank you. You did great. Those were solid, penetrating questions. Bygones.

Anyone who thinks Dubya won that debate was watching through rove-colored glasses.

Kerry looked presidential. Calm. Attentive. Respectfull. Likeable. He had a firm grasp on the facts. He played by the rules, and stretched past his time less often than Dubya. You know, maybe he should carry one of those light things with him for the rest of the campaign. Can't you see it? Kerry in front of a crowd, he takes a question, nodds, then pats his pockets, pulls out the box, and puts it on the front of the podium. The place would explode in laughter and applause.

Kerry did let a few pitches go past, I really think he should have nailed that "Voted For War" question. Something like:

Yes, I voted to give the President the authority to go to war, and I'd do it again, and should I become president I hope that the members of the other party would put partisan politics aside and do the same for me, should I need that authority.

Sadam had not responded to the UN resolutions. More pressure was required to get him to open his country to weapons inspectors. It worked. Faced with the treat of war, Sadam backed down and permited Hanz Blix back into Iraq.

Without that vote, that pressure would not have come to bear.

Without that vote, no inspections could have taken place.

Without that vote, the status of Sadam's weapons programs would have remained a mystery.

That's what I voted for, and Yes, I'd do it again.

Fri, 01 Oct 2004 00:03:09 EDT - Link

That's Not A Debate... This Is A Debate

I've watched Jim Lehrer's news show for years. He's a folksy guy with a good nose for news. He's also reaching that age where he's probably planning to retire. Here's how he could go out with a bang...

Tonight at the top of the dabate broadcast he should pull out that 32 page memorandum of understanding, face the camera and make a statement:

Ladies and gentlemen, the candidates came up with this set of rules, but I remember what a bunch of manure the debates were in 2000, and these rules make it even harder to get to the issues. Now I'm not going to shame the candidates my pointing out which ones asked for which restictions, but the simple fact is we are here to choose the next leader of the free world, than this (waves memorandum) is horse hocky. (Rips it in half)

Now, tonight's about foreign policy. I'm not going to ask questions. I'm going to name countries, and then you two debate the issues related to that country.

Let's start with Iraq. Mr. President, you won the coin toss, would you prefer to ask the first question, or answer it?

Thu, 30 Sep 2004 11:28:10 EDT - Link

I Don' Think You' Candidate Stan' For What You Think He a Stan' For

As the nation prepares to watch the presidential candidates debate foreign policy issues, a new PIPA-Knowledge Networks poll finds that Americans who plan to vote for President Bush have many incorrect assumptions about his foreign policy positions. Kerry supporters, on the other hand, are largely accurate in their assessments. The uncommitted also tend to misperceive Bush’s positions, though to a smaller extent than Bush supporters, and to perceive Kerry’s positions correctly. Steven Kull, director of PIPA, comments: “What is striking is that even after nearly four years President Bush’s foreign policy positions are so widely misread, while Senator Kerry, who is relatively new to the public and reputed to be unclear about his positions, is read correctly.”

PIPA

I think what's really going on here is that the folks being polled are thinking I think labor and environmental standards in trade agreements makes sense, so of course my favored candidate does too.

Thu, 30 Sep 2004 11:28:10 EDT - Link

I Wanna Be Like Mike (Melvill)

It looks like Spaceship One made the altitude for the first of two flights required to claim the X-Prize.

In the post flight interview, Burt Rutan mentiond that the ground controllers were reccomending astronuat Michael Melvill cut the engine as soon as the ship began an unscripted roll, (which developed into a corkscrew, putting my heart in my throat) but Melvill felt he could ride it a few more seconds — to the cutoff point for achiving the minimum altitude goal. He cut the engine 11 seconds before the sheduled time, but late enough to surpass the altitude by over 9 kilometers.

Melvill bounded out of the craft after landing exclaiming, "Now that was fun!".

Oh yes, I wanna be like Mike.

Wed, 29 Sep 2004 15:22:27 EDT - Link

Memo Found

I just got an email with a link to the 32 page Memorandum! It's at the Washington Post (.pdf)

Thanks Michael!

P.S. Yes, I really do need to fix the permalinks. I finaly figured out a simple and clean way to implement that function, and should have them working within a week.

Tue, 28 Sep 2004 14:28:47 EDT - Link

Memorandum of Obfuscation

Great. This years debates are being held under rules laid out in a 32 page Memorandum of Understanding between the parties.

I'll bet Dubya read all 32 of those pages.

But I can't. And You can't. Because for some reason the news media is thrilled to report on the Memorandum, but for some reason, none of the multitude of websites I've visited, including the Commission on Presidential Debates site has linked the actual 32 page document.

COME ON. We're not talking about National Security here. We're talking about the rules of the televised debates to choose the next leader of the free world.

If anyone finds a link, let me know.

Tue, 28 Sep 2004 11:37:11 EDT - Link

Galluping Bias, or Bent Poll?

Except that yesterday, they not only did it again, they apparently felt that a 7% GOP bias wasn't good enough. So they perpetrated the same fraud upon the media (including their partners CNN and USAT) and voters and this time used a 12% GOP bias in their likely voter screen. I kid you not.

Left Coast

Why would they do this? Why would they use a model so far removed from the evidence of voter turn out the last elections?

Do they really think that Democrats will stay away in droves from the voting booth?

Do they know of some October surprise?

Have they been shown a video of Osama Bin Laden being frog marched out of his cave — the one cave with the John Kerry yard sign planted by the GOP Special Opps Team in front?

Tue, 28 Sep 2004 11:14:25 EDT - Link

Router? We Don't Need No Steenkin' Router

D suggested we purchase the Linksys WRT54G to replace our old wireless access point. Halfway through the setup I realized that we didn't really want or need the router function, and there was no way to program the router as a passthough.

I spent a little while Googling for information on using it as an access point only, and found one encouraging tech support site which cheerfully suggested I sign up (only $9.95 a month) for that one critical bit of information.

I turned down their gracious offer, and was getting ready to return the router to the store when it hit me: I could connect the existing home network to one of the regular ports, and just leave the WAN port disconnected.

Now all of the traffic on the house twisted pair net goes to the wireless — and I've got the WRT54G is opperating as a basic wireless access point, with three spare switched ports, all at he same price as the WAP54G access point (which does not have the switched ports). One of those spare ports was used to replace the repeater I'd installed for the Playstation. Ya-ta! Thanks, D.

Tue, 28 Sep 2004 02:13:05 EDT - Link

Even More Ranma Fanart

Chai By Kokemomo

Kimi to Boku (You And Me) by Kokage

Ranma Special By Hinata

strawberry shortcake By banana

Sakura Drop By Ayuri

I love Ranma fanart, and from time to time prowl the links from one art site to another. I have to wonder if there was some super popular book on web design, since so many sites seem to be built on the a similar model.

Most sites open to a splash screen, with a link or graphic to click before you get to the main site. This practice has pretty much been dropped in the USA, with the exception of some Fortune 500 wannabees with more budget for Flash than user testing.

Once you are inside, most of the sites are heavy with frames, and many are laden with javascripts. Sometimes the frames work really well, and sometimes rather less so.

Many of the sites are 800x600 hostile; I suppose I need to upgrade my aged laptop one of these days.

I'm also jealous of the some of the dingbats-like gliphs in the Kanji fonts, the musical note makes an especially fun punctuation mark.

Tue, 28 Sep 2004 00:19:10 EDT - Link

50.3 MPG

I finaly filled the Prius for the first time this morning; 8.617 gallons after 434 miles. This includes a week of commutes, test drives with freinds, acceleration tests (wow!) and a couple of 'extra' trips to try it out.

The buzz on the net is that I should expect the milage to increase after a break-in period.

In other news, today in New York, crude oil rose to a record $49.74 per Barrel.

Mon, 27 Sep 2004 20:38:28 EDT - Link

Two Hiptop Family

We picked up a second Hiptop II for wife at the T-Mobile store at Westfield Valley Fair in San Jose today. They still have a couple in stock.

Ask for Aldolfo!

Sat, 25 Sep 2004 16:24:53 EDT - Link

Sneak Pix of Sidekick II

Since you can now walk out of a T-Mobile stire with a Sidekick II, I figured it would be a matter of days before someone took one apart for photos. Please don't void your warranty, just look at these.

Fri, 24 Sep 2004 13:57:38 EDT - Link

Bluetooth MP3?

I've been looking into adding MP3 playback to my Prius, and so far I'm not satisfied with the solutions I've found. The stereo system already has a 6 CD changer, but I've been spoiled by iTunes. 6 ordinary CDs just isn't enough. (And this from a guy who only had AM-FM in his last car.)

There are some aftermarket wiring harnesses, but I'm not even sure that they are compatable, since there may not even be a changer expansion jack on the 6 CD deck. In any case, going to RCA jacks and treating an MP3 player like a dumb CD changer is simply going in the wrong direction.

My ideal car stereo includes a hard drive and 802.11 connection, so that I could just sync my collection to the car, but there is abother option...

The car stereo is already wired for Bluetooth phone applications. It could talk to a Bluetooth MP3 player. That data pipe is bi-directional, and all of the information that the MP3 player has could be shared with the car's LCD display system; song lists, transport controls, even album art.

I'm guessing that the stereo in the 2004 Prius doesn't have the right stuff to deal with MP3 packets, but since nearly all of the plumbing is already there we'll see it in future models.

Fri, 24 Sep 2004 13:39:00 EDT - Link

Losing The Thread

I was catching up on The Daily Show (Thanks, Tivo) and just saw the interview with Richard Clark (Former head of anti-terrorism).

He made one of those oh yeah observations; why are we killing people in Iraq?

Do they have any Weapons of Mass Destruction?

Did they support Sadam?

Did they support Al-Qaida?

Just what are we doing?

Fri, 24 Sep 2004 01:49:39 EDT - Link

Le Nozze di Figaro

Opera San Jose has arrived in its new home in the beautifly restored Historic California Theater. The California is far larger and more ornate than thier privious home at the Montgomery, and I was concerned that the larger space would overwealm the cast, but last night's performance of The Marriage of Figaro put an end to my concerns.

The sound in the California is good, though different from the Montgomery. From our fourth row seats the violins have lost thier individuality—in the old theater the sounds of rosin on string were more apparent, more live. In the new theater the woodwinds are now fully under the stage, and the oboes and bassoons were obscured and muted. Overall, the effect was to take the edge off each of the instruments, and at first I was a little dissapointed. I had become accustomed to the sound from our seats in the old theater. (Note: I can only report on sound from our seats, the mix will be different in the balcony where you have a direct sound from the instruments.)

As the evening progressed, my opinion changed. The new theater has a warm, big room sound, with no noticable echo. It works well for quiet passages, and fills wonderfully on the larger.

Joseph Wright (Figaro) must love the new theater. His voice can be comfortably heard above the volume of the orchestra, and the 4X larger stage gives him room to move about. Unlike the Montgomery, the stage of the California appears to be free of dead-zones, all of the cast could be heard from any location in the set.

Sandra Rubalcava was playfull and wonderful as Susanna, one of the more difficult rolls in opera because she is on the stage for so much of the perfomance.

David Babinet Sang and Acted Count Almaviva brilliantly, a perfect mix of villan and dupe.

For me Deborah Berioli's (Countess Almaviva's) aria "And Susanna comes not" was the high point of the evening, It's one of my favorite Mozart pieces, and her voice filled the hall. I literally had goosebumps. It also sealed my impressions of the California Theater. That aria comfortably filled the new hall with emotion and sound. That same performance would have simply been too big for the Montgomery Theater, where I frequently found my ears overloaded by the volume of a strong singer.

Opera San Jose Debut Season in the California Theatre:
September 18, 2004 - April 24, 2005

Wed, 22 Sep 2004 16:36:28 EDT - Link

Oh, I Hope Not.

Yesterday Dubya delivered an address at the UN general assembly. He was speaking of Afghanistan and Iraq, and following one of his characteristic overly-long pauses began the next paragraph with:

These two nations will be a model for the broader Middle East, a region where millions have been denied basic human rights and simple justice.

As is his habit of speech, he delivered the comma as a full period stop. I imagine that many of the delegates felt a jolt of icy adrenaline as they imagned a region full of Afganistans and Iraqs.

Afghanistan and Iraq will be a model for the broader Middle East? Doesn't our pResident read newspapers [wait—he literally said he doesn't]. Doesn't he watch CNN? [no—just Faux News and Bassmasters on OLN]. Internet? [Yeah. Right.]

Afghanistan and Iraq will be a model for the broader Middle East? Sounds like a model for World War III to me.

Wed, 22 Sep 2004 11:10:50 EDT - Link

I'm Being Followed By A Moon Shadow, No It's John Ashcroft.

Cat Stevens (AKA Yusuf Islam) was the cause of the airliner diversion to Bangor. He was questioned, then ejected from the country.

I don't know about you, but I'll sleep Much Better ™ tonight.

Wed, 22 Sep 2004 03:30:01 EDT - Link

It's Here.

Exclusively at T-Mobile

This is what I've been working on when I'm not blogging.

Tue, 21 Sep 2004 20:31:06 EDT - Link

A Letter From John Kerry

This election is about choices. The most important choices a president makes are about protecting America at home and around the world. A president's first obligation is to make America safer, stronger and truer to our ideals.

Three years ago, the events of September 11 reminded every American of that obligation. That day brought to our shores the defining struggle of our times: the struggle between freedom and radical fundamentalism. And it made clear that our most important task is to fight and to win the war on terrorism.

In fighting the war on terrorism, my principles are straight forward. The terrorists are beyond reason. We must destroy them. As president, I will do whatever it takes, as long as it takes, to defeat our enemies. But billions of people around the world yearning for a better life are open to America's ideals. We must reach them.

To win, America must be strong. And America must be smart. The greatest threat we face is the possibility Al Qaeda or other terrorists will get their hands on a nuclear weapon.

To prevent that from happening, we must call on the totality of America's strength — strong alliances, to help us stop the world's most lethal weapons from falling into the most dangerous hands. A powerful military, transformed to meet the new threats of terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. And all of America's power — our diplomacy, our intelligence system, our economic power, the appeal of our values — each of which is critical to making America more secure and preventing a new generation of terrorists from emerging.

National security is a central issue in this campaign. We owe it to the American people to have a real debate about the choices President Bush has made and the choices I would make to fight and win the war on terror.

That means we must have a great honest national debate on Iraq. The president claims it is the centerpiece of his war on terror. In fact, Iraq was a profound diversion from that war and the battle against our greatest enemy, Osama bin Laden and the terrorists. Invading Iraq has created a crisis of historic proportions and, if we do not change course, there is the prospect of a war with no end in sight.

This month, we passed a cruel milestone: more than 1,000 Americans lost in Iraq. Their sacrifice reminds us that Iraq remains, overwhelmingly, an American burden. Nearly 90 percent of the troops — and nearly 90 percent of the casualties — are American. Despite the president's claims, this is not a grand coalition.

Our troops have served with extraordinary bravery, skill and resolve. Their service humbles all of us. When I speak to them when I look into the eyes of their families, I know this: we owe them the truth about what we have asked them to do and what is still to be done.

In June, the president declared, "The Iraqi people have their country back." Just last week, he told us: "This country is headed toward democracy. Freedom is on the march."

But the administration's own official intelligence estimate, given to the president last July, tells a very different story.

According to press reports, the intelligence estimate totally contradicts what the president is saying to the American people.

So do the facts on the ground.

Security is deteriorating, for us and for the Iraqis.

42 Americans died in Iraq in June — the month before the handover. But 54 died in July — 66 in August and already 54 halfway through September.

And more than 1,100 Americans were wounded in August — more than in any other month since the invasion.

We are fighting a growing insurgency in an ever widening war-zone. In March, insurgents attacked our forces 700 times. In August, they attacked 2,700 times — a 400% increase.

Falluja, Ramadi, Samarra, even parts of Baghdad — are now "no go zones" — breeding grounds for terrorists who are free to plot and launch attacks against our soldiers. The radical Shiite cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, who is accused of complicity in the murder of Americans, holds more sway in the suburbs of Baghdad.

Violence against Iraqis from bombings to kidnappings to intimidation is on the rise.

Basic living conditions are also deteriorating.

Residents of Baghdad are suffering electricity blackouts lasting up to 14 hours a day.

Raw sewage fills the streets, rising above the hubcaps of our Humvees. Children wade through garbage on their way to school.

Unemployment is over 50 percent. Insurgents are able to find plenty of people willing to take $150 for tossing grenades at passing U.S. convoys.

Yes, there has been some progress, thanks to the extraordinary efforts of our soldiers and civilians in Iraq. Schools, shops and hospitals have been opened. In parts of Iraq, normalcy actually prevails.

But most Iraqis have lost faith in our ability to deliver meaningful improvements to their lives. So they're sitting on the fence instead of siding with us against the insurgents.

That is the truth — the truth that the commander in chief owes to our troops and the American people.

It is never easy to discuss what has gone wrong while our troops are in constant danger. But it's essential if we want to correct our course and do what's right for our troops instead of repeating the same mistakes over and over again.

I know this dilemma first-hand. After serving in war, I returned home to offer my own personal voice of dissent. I did so because I believed strongly that we owed it those risking their lives to speak truth to power. We still do.

Saddam Hussein was a brutal dictator who deserves his own special place in hell. But that was not, in itself, a reason to go to war. The satisfaction we take in his downfall does not hide this fact: we have traded a dictator for a chaos that has left America less secure.

The president has said that he "miscalculated" in Iraq and that it was a "catastrophic success." In fact, the president has made a series of catastrophic decisions from the beginning in Iraq. At every fork in the road, he has taken the wrong turn and led us in the wrong direction.

The first and most fundamental mistake was the president's failure to tell the truth to the American people.

He failed to tell the truth about the rationale for going to war. And he failed to tell the truth about the burden this war would impose on our soldiers and our citizens.

By one count, the president offered 23 different rationales for this war. If his purpose was to confuse and mislead the American people, he succeeded.

His two main rationales — weapons of mass destruction and the Al Qaeda/September 11 connection — have been proved false by the president's own weapons inspectors and by the 9/11 Commission. Just last week, Secretary of State Powell acknowledged the facts. Only Vice President Cheney still insists that the earth is flat.

The president also failed to level with the American people about what it would take to prevail in Iraq.

He didn't tell us that well over 100,000 troops would be needed, for years, not months. He didn't tell us that he wouldn't take the time to assemble a broad and strong coalition of allies. He didn't tell us that the cost would exceed $200 billion. He didn't tell us that even after paying such a heavy price, success was far from assured.

And America will pay an even heavier price for the president's lack of candor.

At home, the American people are less likely to trust this administration if it needs to summon their support to meet real and pressing threats to our security.

Abroad, other countries will be reluctant to follow America when we seek to rally them against a common menace — as they are today. Our credibility in the world has plummeted.

In the dark days of the Cuban Missile Crisis, President Kennedy sent former Secretary of State Dean Acheson to Europe to build support. Acheson explained the situation to French President de Gaulle. Then he offered to show him highly classified satellite photos, as proof. De Gaulle waved the photos away, saying: "The word of the president of the United States is good enough for me."

How many world leaders have that same trust in America's president, today?

This president's failure to tell the truth to us before the war has been exceeded by fundamental errors of judgment during and after the war.

The president now admits to "miscalculations" in Iraq.

That is one of the greatest understatements in recent American history. His were not the equivalent of accounting errors. They were colossal failures of judgment — and judgment is what we look for in a president.

This is all the more stunning because we're not talking about 20/20 hindsight. Before the war, before he chose to go to war, bi-partisan Congressional hearings... major outside studies... and even some in the administration itself... predicted virtually every problem we now face in Iraq.

This president was in denial. He hitched his wagon to the ideologues who surround him, filtering out those who disagreed, including leaders of his own party and the uniformed military. The result is a long litany of misjudgments with terrible consequences.

The administration told us we'd be greeted as liberators. They were wrong.

They told us not to worry about looting or the sorry state of Iraq's infrastructure. They were wrong.

They told us we had enough troops to provide security and stability, defeat the insurgents, guard the borders and secure the arms depots. They were wrong.

They told us we could rely on exiles like Ahmed Chalabi to build political legitimacy. They were wrong.

They told us we would quickly restore an Iraqi civil service to run the country and a police force and army to secure it. They were wrong.

In Iraq, this administration has consistently over-promised and under-performed. This policy has been plagued by a lack of planning, an absence of candor, arrogance and outright incompetence. And the president has held no one accountable, including himself.

In fact, the only officials who lost their jobs over Iraq were the ones who told the truth.

General Shinseki said it would take several hundred thousand troops to secure Iraq. He was retired. Economic adviser Larry Lindsey said that Iraq would cost as much as $200 billion. He was fired. After the successful entry into Baghdad, George Bush was offered help from the UN — and he rejected it. He even prohibited any nation from participating in reconstruction efforts that wasn't part of the original coalition — pushing reluctant countries even farther away. As we continue to fight this war almost alone, it is hard to estimate how costly that arrogant decision was. Can anyone seriously say this president has handled Iraq in a way that makes us stronger in the war on terrorism?

By any measure, the answer is no. Nuclear dangers have mounted across the globe. The international terrorist club has expanded. Radicalism in the Middle East is on the rise. We have divided our friends and united our enemies. And our standing in the world is at an all time low.

Think about it for a minute. Consider where we were... and where we are. After the events of September 11, we had an opportunity to bring our country and the world together in the struggle against the terrorists. On September 12, headlines in newspapers abroad declared "we are all Americans now." But through his policy in Iraq, the president squandered that moment and rather than isolating the terrorists, left America isolated from the world.

We now know that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and posed no imminent threat to our security. It had not, as the vice president claimed, "reconstituted nuclear weapons."

The president's policy in Iraq took our attention and resources away from other, more serious threats to America.

Threats like North Korea, which actually has weapons of mass destruction, including a nuclear arsenal, and is building more under this president's watch — the emerging nuclear danger from Iran — the tons and kilotons of unsecured chemical and nuclear weapons in Russia — and the increasing instability in Afghanistan.

Today, warlords again control much of that country, the Taliban is regrouping, opium production is at an all time high and the Al Qaeda leadership still plots and plans, not only there but in 60 other nations. Instead of using U.S. forces, we relied on the warlords to capture Osama bin Laden when he was cornered in the mountains. He slipped away. We then diverted our focus and forces from the hunt for those responsible for September 11 in order invade Iraq.

We know Iraq played no part in September 11 and had no operational ties to Al Qaeda.

The president's policy in Iraq precipitated the very problem he said he was trying to prevent. Secretary of State Powell admits that Iraq was not a magnet for international terrorists before the war. Now it is, and they are operating against our troops. Iraq is becoming a sanctuary for a new generation of terrorists who someday could hit the United States.

We know that while Iraq was a source of friction, it was not previously a source of serious disagreement with our allies in Europe and countries in the Muslim world.

The president's policy in Iraq divided our oldest alliance and sent our standing in the Muslim world into free fall. Three years after 9/11, even in many moderate Muslim countries like Jordan, Morocco, and Turkey, Osama bin Laden is more popular than the United States of America.

Let me put it plainly: The president's policy in Iraq has not strengthened our national security. It has weakened it.

Two years ago, Congress was right to give the president the authority to use force to hold Saddam Hussein accountable. This president, any president would have needed the threat of force to act effectively. This president misused that authority.

The power entrusted to the president gave him a strong hand to play in the international community. The idea was simple. We would get the weapons inspectors back in to verify whether or not Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. And we would convince the world to speak with one voice to Saddam: disarm or be disarmed.

A month before the war, President Bush told the nation: "If we have to act, we will take every precaution that is possible. We will plan carefully. We will act with the full power of the United States military. We will act with allies at our side and we will prevail." He said that military action wasn't "unavoidable."

Instead, the president rushed to war without letting the weapons inspectors finish their work. He went without a broad and deep coalition of allies. He acted without making sure our troops had enough body armor. And he plunged ahead without understanding or preparing for the consequences of the post-war. None of which I would have done.

Yet today, President Bush tells us that he would do everything all over again, the same way. How can he possibly be serious? Is he really saying that if we knew there were no imminent threat, no weapons of mass destruction, no ties to Al Qaeda, the United States should have invaded Iraq? My answer is no — because a commander in chief's first responsibility is to make a wise and responsible decision to keep America safe.

Now the president, in looking for a new reason, tries to hang his hat on the "capability" to acquire weapons. But that was not the reason given to the nation; it was not the reason Congress voted on; it's not a reason, it's an excuse. Thirty-five to forty countries have greater capability to build a nuclear bomb than Iraq did in 2003. Is President Bush saying we should invade them?

I would have concentrated our power and resources on defeating global terrorism and capturing or killing Osama bin Laden. I would have tightened the noose and continued to pressure and isolate Saddam Hussein — who was weak and getting weaker — so that he would pose no threat to the region or America.

The president's insistence that he would do the same thing all over again in Iraq is a clear warning for the future. And it makes the choice in this election clear: more of the same with President Bush or a new direction that makes our troops and America safer. It is time, at long last, to ask the questions and insist on the answers from the commander in chief about his serious misjudgments and what they tell us about his administration and the president himself. If George W. Bush is re-elected, he will cling to the same failed policies in Iraq — and he will repeat, somewhere else, the same reckless mistakes that have made America less secure than we can or should be.

In Iraq, we have a mess on our hands. But we cannot throw up our hands. We cannot afford to see Iraq become a permanent source of terror that will endanger America's security for years to come.

All across this country people ask me what we should do now. Every step of the way, from the time I first spoke about this in the Senate, I have set out specific recommendations about how we should and should not proceed. But over and over, when this administration has been presented with a reasonable alternative, they have rejected it and gone their own way. This is stubborn incompetence.

Five months ago, in Fulton, Missouri, I said that the president was close to his last chance to get it right. Every day, this president makes it more difficult to deal with Iraq — harder than it was five months ago, harder than it was a year ago. It is time to recognize what is — and what is not — happening in Iraq today. And we must act with urgency.

Just this weekend, a leading Republican, Chuck Hagel, said we're "in deep trouble in Iraq ... it doesn't add up ... to a pretty picture [and] ... we're going to have to look at a recalibration of our policy." Republican leaders like Dick Lugar and John McCain have offered similar assessments.

We need to turn the page and make a fresh start in Iraq.

First, the president has to get the promised international support so our men and women in uniform don't have to go it alone. It is late; the president must respond by moving this week to gain and regain international support.

Last spring, after too many months of resistance and delay, the president finally went back to the U.N. which passed Resolution 1546. It was the right thing to do — but it was late.

That resolution calls on U.N. members to help in Iraq by providing troops, trainers for Iraq's security forces, a special brigade to protect the U.N. mission, more financial assistance, and real debt relief.

Three months later, not a single country has answered that call. And the president acts as if it