Hitcounts

This is what happens when you get Atrios to link to you:

Holy cow. As you can see, I served 363 megabytes of geekable.com yesterday. That's a lot, considering my poke at Scalia was quickly debunked in the legal sense. (I still claim Scalia's arguments are kind of fishy, but I can see where you might interpret Scalia's decision as sarcasm.) I hope those of you who've decided to visit regularly, or even subscribe to my RSS/Atom feed, enjoy my commentary. I may not be as intelligent, or as hard-hitting, or even as grammatically correct as Calpundit or Talking Points Memo, but what I lack in skill, I make up for in smarminess.

Let's get it on!

P.S. I'm still more accurate than Drudge.

Wishy-washy Scalia

From Olympic Airways v. Husain, February 24, 2004:

Today's decision stands out for its failure to give any serious consideration to how the courts of our treaty partners have resolved the legal issues before us. This sudden insularity is striking ... The Court’s new abstemiousness with regard to foreign fare is not without consequence: Within the past year, appellate courts in both England and Australia have rendered decisions squarely at odds with today’s holding. Because the Court offers no convincing explanation why these cases should not be followed, I respectfully dissent.

Constitutional entitlements do not spring into existence because some States choose to lessen or eliminate criminal sanctions on certain behavior. Much less do they spring into existence, as the Court seems to believe, because foreign nations decriminalize conduct. The Bowers majority opinion never relied on “values we share with a wider civilization,” ante, at 16, but rather rejected the claimed right to sodomy on the ground that such a right was not “ ‘deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition,’ ” 478 U.S., at 193—194 (emphasis added). Bowers’ rational-basis holding is likewise devoid of any reliance on the views of a “wider civilization,” see id., at 196. The Court’s discussion of these foreign views (ignoring, of course, the many countries that have retained criminal prohibitions on sodomy) is therefore meaningless dicta. Dangerous dicta, however, since “this Court … should not impose foreign moods, fads, or fashions on Americans.” Foster v. Florida, 537 U.S. 990, n. (2002) (Thomas, J., concurring in denial of certiorari).

Want One performance

Some cities have all the luck -- Rufus Wainwright will be performing live at a San Francisco Apple Store on March 6.

Principle versus Pragmatism

Courtesy of the Karelia weblog:

The smurf was talking shit!

The first part of this article doesn't make any sense at all until you scroll down and realize that the man had been taking LSD. Suddenly everything becomes clear.

Great Moments In Punditry

The Daily Show debuted a brand-new segment this evening, called Great Moments In Punditry. It is perhaps the finest sixty seconds of television ever produced. Here's how it works: transcripts from obnoxious political commentary shows are dramatized in deadpan fashion by young actors (aged 9-12). Tonight's debut edition featured a segment from Hannity and Colmes on August 19, 2003 in which Hannity threatened to cut the microphone of Art Torres, the California Democratic Party chairman. Here's the dramatized dialogue, courtesy of Lexis-Nexus.

HANNITY: All right. Wait for your turn. You'll have your say. Be quiet unless we ask you questions.

TORRES: Don't tell me to be quiet.

HANNITY: So the audience can...

TORRES: Don't tell me to be quiet when I have a point to make.

HANNITY: I'll turn your microphone down if you have to. If you're not going to play by our rules...

TORRES: Then put your microphone now. If I'm not going to be allowed to express my opinions, then why have me on this show?

HANNITY: If you will not allow other people to speak, I will turn your mike down and then we're going to ask you to go. So the choice is yours.

The Lashin' of the Christ

Here's a catty little comment from Salon's review of The Passion of the Christ:

We see the Pharisees (it's not hard to notice that all of them have conveniently Semitic hooked or bulbous noses straight out of central casting) agitating for Jesus' blood, and most of the crowd (in the parlance, they're called "rabble," the better to underscore their boorishness and separateness from the true Jesus lovers) seem to agree with them.

But why? The best we can figure is that Jesus is a rebel who, with his message of love and brotherhood (useless business, that), has somehow disrupted the natural order of things. (You'd think he was half of a gay couple trying to get married or something.) A few people, such as the dewy Mary Magdelene (Monica Belluci) and, of course, Jesus' own mother (Maia Morgenstern), gaze at him adoringly, and with great apprehension over what they fear will happen to him next. (The women have very little to do in this picture other than to show anxiety and tearful empathy and to mop things up with little cloths, suggesting that as far as women's roles are concerned, Catholicism hasn't changed a whole lot in 2000 years.)

Un-fucking-believable

The next time Republicans accuse Democrats of resorting to hateful attacks, this should be the first thing to pop into your head.

Education Secretary Rod Paige called the nation's largest teachers union a "terrorist organization" during a private White House meeting with governors on Monday.

Democratic and Republican governors confirmed Paige's remarks about the 2.7-million-member National Education Association.

"These were the words, 'The NEA is a terrorist organization,' " said Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin.

...

Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas, a Republican, said of Paige's comments: "Somebody asked him about the NEA's role and he offered his perspective on it."

The noble function of poetry

While cleaning my room today, I found a copy of Richard Brautigan's "The Edna Webster Collection of Undiscovered Writings". In one of the introductions, I found a very telling paragraph:

Often [Brautigan's] poems were designed to get him a girlfriend. This strategy remained a constant; Brautigan wrote many of his poems because, as an ex-girlfriend once remarked, "Richard was always on the make." (Kenneth Rexroth once opined that poetry functions nobly to ease our passages in and out of love, and that anyone who writes poems for other reasons is out to lunch.)

Atrios now TrackBacks

HaloScan, the popular comment-hosting company, has implemented TrackBack. When I first was introduced to TrackBack technology, I wasn't quite sure what it did, but that's because I didn't investigate (I just went around thinking TrackBacks were crappy comments). Now that I know how it works, I think it's a great idea. It's really what the inventors of the World Wide Web had in mind -- articles that reference other articles should link back so that readers can see how the ideas develop. So here you go, Atrios, a TrackBack -- you deserve more than one, as I get a lot of my best links from you.

On mortality and computer science

Suppose that intelligence is just one big recursive function. Does that mean death is just an inevitable stack overflow?

All you need is a warm spring day

The Raving Atheist may be polarizing and brash (and often turns me off with his rhetoric), but he often nails issues on the head. I love his series wherein he criticizes the God Squad, and the latest edition is no exception. Here's a great quote from his commentary:

The Squad later reminds us not to forget that “the same Christianity that produced the Inquisition and the Crusades also produced Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr.” -- a point which I heartily agree should not be forgotten. The fact that it was the “same” Christianity in either case proves that it’s an unreliable guide to morality, and that the distinction between right and wrong must be sought outside of a mere appeal to Christian dogma.

First date

I was sorting through my mess of a room today, and looked through some old personal files. I found the program from the university event I met my first long-term girlfriend at. (I now refer to her as "Crazy Jackie", or "that cheating bitch".) Turns out, the day we met was September 11, 2000, which is fitting, considering how our relationship turned out.

Interpreting headlines

From today's Washington Post:

D.C. Urged to Flush Longer

Residents with lead water lines should run taps for 10 minutes, officials say.

Grey

This week, many news articles mentioned the Grey Album by DJ Danger Mouse. This experimental album combines the vocals from Jay-Z's Black Album with instrumentals and beats from the Beatles' White Album. Since so many people are praising and condemning this music, I figured I'd give it a listen.

Thanks to a torrent of bits, I now have a copy of it, and I must say it's awesome. EMI should stop filing cease-and-desist orders and instead sign DJ Danger Mouse to a record contract.

You don't wanna hear me, you just wanna dance

Oh, the articles I read:

LONDON (Reuters) - Outkast fans like to "shake it like a Polaroid picture," but the instant camera maker is warning consumers that taking the advice of the hip-hop stars could ruin your snapshots.

Outkast's number one hit "Hey Ya" includes the "shake it" line as a reference to the motion that amateur photographers use to help along the self-developing film.

But in the "answers" section on the Polaroid Web site, the company says that shaking photos, which once helped them to dry, is not necessary since the modern version of Polaroid film dries behind a clear plastic window.

The image "never touches air, so shaking or waving has no effect," the company said on its Web site.

Self-amusement at meetings

Today's Dilbert strip has a neat little touch you may not notice -- Wally sticks his coffee cup to his chin (using a vacuum as suction, no doubt). How cute!

Artificial intelligence?

I wouldn't worry about Skynet nuking the world yet, if this is the best automated response Yahoo! can come up with:

Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2004 12:18:33 -0800
From: Yahoo!Games <games-feedback@yahoo-inc.com>
Subject: Re: Feedback - Suspected Bug (KMM9555908V62684L0KM)
To: Jeffrey

Hello,

Thank you for writing to Yahoo! Games.

Ratings are available for Chess, Go, Reversi, Checkers, Backgammon, Hearts, Pinochle, Spades, Euchre, Cribbage, Canasta, Gin, Word Racer, Dominoes, Chinese Checkers, Literati, Go Fish, Dots, Naval Command, Pool, Go Stop, Graffiti, Yahoo! Towers and Toki Toki Boom.

The ratings for all games except Backgammon are based on the rating system of the USCF (U.S. Chess Federation). Backgammon uses the rating system of FIBS (First Internet Backgammon Server). When you create a table in these games, you have the option of choosing whether you want the game to be rated or not. Your ratings will change as you win (or lose) rated games.

The amount your rating changes depends on the difference between your rating and your opponent's rating. Also, in Backgammon, it is the length of the match that affects the change in ratings, not by how much the match was won.

Please note that your rating might go down if you play someone who has a significantly lower rating than you.

Partnership games (Pinochle, Euchre, Canasta, Spades, Dominoes) have additional rules to account for partnerships. The average rating of each team is computed. A standard one-on-one rating calculation is made using these averages. Each player's individual rating is changed by the result of this calculation.

In the free-for-all games (Hearts, Sheepshead, Literati, and Mahjong), a one-on-one rating calculation is made between the winner and each loser. The rating change for each result is added to the winner's rating. Each loser's rating is only affected by the one-on-one calculation against the winner.

Ratings for Word Racer and Graffiti are similar to the free-for-all games. The difference is that your rating is calculated against all players, not just the winner. For example, if you come in 4th out of 8, your rating will reflect losses against players 1, 2, and 3 and will reflect wins against players 5, 6, 7, and 8.

Chinese Checkers, Go Fish, and Dots use a straightforward extension of the USCF system to support games with more than 2 players.

In Go Stop, the ratings are calculated over 3 hands. At the completion of these 3 hands, your score/money for those 3 hands is calculated and the overall winner is determined.

Yahoo! Towers uses the same rating system as Chinese Checkers. The only difference is that since it's a partnership game, your rating and your partner's rating are averaged together, and then the rating calculations are made.

For more information on the USCF rating formula, please visit their web site at:

http://www.uschess.org/ratings/

For more information on the FIBS rating formula, please visit their web site at:

http://www.northcoast.com/~mccool/fibsrate.html

Thank you again for contacting Yahoo! Customer Care.

Regards,

Yahoo! Customer Care

For assistance with all Yahoo! services, please visit:

http://help.yahoo.com/

Original Message Follows:
-------------------------

Name: Jeffrey
Yahoo! ID: greasypeso

What game were you playing?
Literati

Subject: Suspected Bug
Time and date: Sun Feb 15 2004 10:50 pm EST

Type your feedback here
While playing, I formed an eight-letter word that contained both a double-word score and a triple word score. It was scored like this:

48 points awarded to GreasyPeso. 'stressed': (1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1) x (2 + 3).

Obviously, that math is not correct. Perhaps you have a bug in the scoring system?

While Viewing: http://games.yahoo.com/games/login2?page=lt&cat=beginner

President's Day

Today sucks. I'm depressed, grumpy, tired, and in need of a haircut. (Unfortunately, all the salons are closed for Monday/the holiday.) I can't help but obsess today about how every female I've ever deeply cared about and loved romantically has cheated on me. Since I'm in a negative mood, I attribute this to the fact that I'm not particularly attractive or talented, thus women are constantly trying to find someone to "trade up'' to. Then I wonder if I'd be able to recognize love if I experienced it, and if I could, whether I'd inevitably screw it up or not.

Fuckin' Monday.

My Detroit experiences

Reading DetroitBlog brought back memories of my first year of college, when I lived in an apartment down in Detroit. I survived just fine, but that's because Wayne State University has their own police force that keeps the surrounding area extra-safe. I didn't venture much into the seedier areas of Detroit, but I did document my experiences in my old Blogger blog.

I recently moved all the content from my Blogger blog over to geekable.com, and it can be found here. (I lived in Detroit from September 2000 until April 2001, but the blog extends into 2002.) I may be immature now, but I was even more immature then!

The best blog I've ever seen

DetroitBlog is one of the most fascinating things I've ever read on the Internet.

Here's what I know: John is a man living in downtown Detroit. He works at a newspaper. On weekends, he enjoys drinking at dive bars, playing hockey, and breaking into abandoned skyscrapers in order to take pictures. He then talks about his experiences and posts his pictures on his blog. The result is captivating, blending breathtaking photographs with "I-can't-believe-anyone-would-do-this" stories. Scattered among the photo entries are various comments about hooker slayings, corrupt cops, Detroit culture, etc. It really conveys the mood of the darker side of Detroit.

I hope that John and his partner-in-crime continue to have success in documenting the history of Detroit that no one ever sees, and that they don't sustain any more injuries. Who knows, maybe I'll run into John at a Cass Corridor bar one day -- but how will I recognize him?

Spellcheck of the day

Posted inside the menus at the new Mexican restaurant:

Licor, beer, wine -- Coming soon

Celestial bling

Astronomers have discovered a diamond with a diameter of 2,500 miles. Thanks to Google, I was able to convert its distance from the Earth into a more meaningful figure.

Come on, you entrepreneurs! You could easily claim this if you found a way to travel near the speed of light.

Manwich

Andy, I feel your pain:

(Though in my defense I didn't realize that we were actually dating. I thought we had merely been hanging out. Then there was this Tuesday night when I imagined we were going to spend the evening playing Scrabble as usual and instead she threw an awful lot of food at me. It was all in cans, which is what really offended me, to be honest, but the joke was on her: I scooped them all up and ate like a king for a week. Anyway, that's when the penny dropped that for the past three months we'd been having "relationship sex" and not "platonic friends who occasionally get together for movies and Scrabble" sex. Lesson learned; I emerged a better person for the experience. Plus, again, I had all that soup, stew, and Manwich sauce. So shed no tears for me, dear reader.)

Atom feed

Ranchero released a beta version of NetNewsWire with an Atom parser today, and I finally got to see my site's Atom feed. Let me tell you, it looks great! The default Atom template is almost perfect, whereas I had to tweak the hell out of the included RSS templates.

Fisking Raskin

Today I'm going to make fun of Jef Raskin! Let's get right to it!

Among his criticisms of graphic user interfaces (GUIs), Macs and Windows, as told to BusinessWeek are: pull-down menus hide information that users might want to see; text editors require too many keyboard movements...

Oh, and about pull-down menus -- where else would you like those options to be placed? On little palettes floating around the screen? I know that my monitor isn't big enough for that.

Raskin and his company, T.H.E. (The Humane Environment) are working on a new type of command structure (dubbed simply THE) that merges the strengths of the graphical user interface with the flexibility of command-line systems common in more complex software.

As for Apple, which Raskin left in 1982, purportedly after Steve Jobs increasingly muscled in on the Macintosh project, Raskin says there are major flaws with most reports of the company's history.

...he bristles at being called "one of the creators" of the Mac, saying that he is "the" creator.

Finally, Raskin does have some advice for Apple, especially in its development of the Mac. "Hire me to lead the design of the next generation of interfaces, and thus let Apple become No. 1 again," he says.

Feels Like Home

Quick note -- I love the song "Carnival Town" on Norah Jones' new album.

The National Guard scandal is heating up

Richard Cohen has a very important article in the Washington Post today:

During the Vietnam War, I was what filmmaker Michael Moore would call a "deserter." Along with President Bush and countless other young men, I joined the National Guard, did my six months of active duty (basic training, etc.) and then returned to my home unit, where I eventually dropped from sight. In the end, just like President Bush, I got an honorable discharge. But unlike President Bush, I have just told the truth about my service. He hasn't.

At least I don't think so. Nothing about Bush during that period -- not his drinking, not his partying -- suggests that he was a consistently conscientious member of the Texas or Alabama Air National Guard. As it happens, there are no records to show that Bush reported for duty during the summer and fall of 1972. Nonetheless, Bush insists he was where he was supposed to be -- "Otherwise I wouldn't have been honorably discharged," Bush told Tim Russert. Please, sir, don't make me laugh.

It is sort of amazing that every four or eight years, Vietnam -- that long-ago war -- rears up from seemingly nowhere and comes to figure in the national political debate. In 1988 Dan Quayle had to answer for his National Guard service. In 1992 Bill Clinton had to grapple with the question of how he avoided the Vietnam-era draft. Now George Bush, who faced this question the last time out, has to face it again. The reason is that this time he is likely to compete against a genuine war hero. John Kerry did not duck the war.

But George Bush did. He did so by joining the National Guard. Bush now wants to drape the Vietnam-era Guard with the bloodied flag of today's Iraq-serving Guard -- "I wouldn't denigrate service to the Guard," Bush warned during his interview with Russert -- but the fact remained that back then the Guard was where you went if you did not want to fight. That was the case with me. I opposed the war in Vietnam and had no desire to fight it. Bush, on the other hand, says he supported the war -- as long, it seems, as someone else fought it.

It hardly matters what Bush did or did not do back in 1972. He is not the man now he was then -- that by his own admission. In the same way, it did not matter that Clinton ducked the draft, because, really, just about everyone I knew at the time was doing something similar. All that really matters is how one accounts for what one did. Do you tell the truth (which Clinton did not)? Or do you do what I think Bush has been doing, which is making his National Guard service into something it was not? In his case, it was a rich kid's way around the draft.

In my case, it was something similar -- although (darn!) I was not rich. I was, though, lucky enough to get into a National Guard unit in the nick of time, about a day before I was drafted. I did my basic and advanced training (combat engineer) and returned to my unit. I was supposed to attend weekly drills and summer camp, but I found them inconvenient. I "moved" to California and then "moved" back to New York, establishing a confusing paper trail that led, really, nowhere. For two years or so, I played a perfectly legal form of hooky. To show you what a mess the Guard was at the time, I even got paid for all the meetings I missed.

In the end, I wound up in the Army Reserve. I was assigned to units for which I had no training -- tank repairman, for instance. In some units, we sat around with nothing to do and in one we took turns delivering antiwar lectures. The National Guard and the Reserves were something of a joke. Everyone knew it. Books have been written about it. Maybe things changed dramatically by 1972, two years after I got my discharge, but I kind of doubt it.

I have no shame about my service, but I know it for what it was -- hardly the Charge of the Light Brigade. When Bush attempts to drape the flag of today's Guard over the one he was in so long ago, when he warns his critics to remember that "there are a lot of really fine people who have served in the National Guard and who are serving in the National Guard today in Iraq," then he is doing now what he was doing then: hiding behind the ones who were really doing the fighting. It's about time he grew up.

Republicans and common sense

Occasionally I find that one of those forwarded email jokes is actually funny:

Things you have to believe to be a Republican today:

Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime, unless you're a conservative radio host. Then it's an illness and you need our prayers for your recovery.

The United States should get out of the United Nations, and our highest national priority is enforcing U.N. resolutions against Iraq.

"Standing Tall for America" means firing your workers and moving their jobs to India.

A woman can't be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.

Jesus loves you, and shares your hatred of homosexuals and Hillary Clinton.

The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans' benefits and combat pay.

Group sex and drug use are degenerate sins unless you someday run for governor of California as a Republican.

If condoms are kept out of schools, adolescents won't have sex.

If everyone had a gun, teenagers could shoot the angry kid in school before he shoots anyone else.

A good way to fight terrorism is to belittle our long-time allies, then demand their cooperation and money.

HMOs and insurance companies have the interest of the public at heart.

Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism.

Global warming and tobacco's link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should be taught in public schools.

Saddam was a good guy when Reagan armed him, a bad guy when Bush's daddy made war on him, a good guy when Cheney did business with him and a bad guy when Bush needed a "we can't find Bin Laden" diversion.

A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die is solid defense policy.

Government should limit itself to the powers named in the Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.

The public has a right to know about Hillary's cattle trades, but George Bush's driving record is none of our business.

You support states' rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have a right to adopt.

What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '80s is irrelevant.

Trade with Cuba is wrong because the country is communist, but trade with China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.

The Christian Right has a monopoly on family values, and hate is one of them.

The separation of Church and State applies only to nations under Islamic rule.

Valentine's Day cards

If you'd like something a bit more... unique in your Valentine's Day card, go here. If you don't find what you're looking for, at least there's a good chance you'll be offended.

Slogan-writing

Because the Democratic party can't seem to get their act together, here's my latest idea for a slogan.

If you ran your personal finances like the Bush administration does, the bank would repossess everything you purchased. It's time to repossess the country from the tax-cut-and-spend conservatives!

Out of the mouths of babes

George W. Bush on Meet The Press:

I'm a war president.  I make decisions here in the Oval Office in foreign policy matters with war on my mind.  Again, I wish it wasn't true, but it is true.

"Shrill" Krugman

Depressing, disgusting -- and true:

As someone once pointed out, it's a lot easier to document links between the bin Laden family and the Bushes than it is to document links between the bin Ladens and Saddam Hussein.

My creative mind works on a parody

(To the tune of OutKast's Ms. Jackson)

I'm sorry Ms. Jackson
I copped a feeeee-eeel
Never meant to rip apart your dress
I apologized to CBS

I'm sorry Ms. Jackson
I copped a feeeee-eeel
Never meant to show the world your tit
Didn't think they'd make a deal of it

It's a trap!

"...I say let them marry. Why shouldn't they be as miserable as the rest of us?"

Gawkers

Last night I spent half an hour in my car, literally parked on Interstate 75 because of a bad accident. I'm guessing I would have been there half the time if it weren't for the gawker phenomenon.

It's completely unexplainable to me why the vast majority of the population wants to stop their car and stare at the carnage. Does stopping make you feel like a good Samaritan? Are you passively helping the police and the fire trucks out? Or do you want to see the grandeur of the spectacle? The gratuitous blood and guts? What are you going to tell your family when you get home? "Oh man, you should've seen it! There was blood and gasoline everywhere, and an arm was still stuck in the windshield*!"

People, while you may be concerned with the welfare of the unfortunate souls involved in traffic accidents, you must also be concerned with the welfare of the thousands of cars stacked up miles behind you! And if you're gawking just for the blood and guts, then fuck you! Fuck you in the ass with a stinky pineapple!

* These details are completely made up, because I did not stick around to watch. I was born without a gawker reflex, or maybe it's my "I will make it to my destination" driving philosophy. Either way, I floored the accelerator as soon as there was a clear section of pavement in front of me.

Modern delusions

Jen sent me a link to this article detailing Francis Wheen's top 10 modern delusions. This guy is brutally smart and very very witty! Here's an example of one of his myths:

9. America's economic success is entirely due to private enterprise
In the 19th century, the American government promoted the formation of a national economy, the building of railroads and the development of the telegraph. More recently, the internet was created by the Pentagon. American agriculture is heavily subsidised and protected, as are the steel industry and many other sectors of the world's biggest "free-market economy". At times of economic slowdown, even under presidents who denigrate the role of government, the US will increase its deficit to finance expansionary fiscal and monetary policies. But its leaders get very cross indeed if any developing country tries to follow this example.

Gruber on OmniWeb 5 Beta

He says it all, and he says it well. John Gruber analyzes the recent beta release of OmniWeb 5, and hits all the important points. Some excerpts:

OmniWeb 5 has the potential to be a very big deal.
...
Workspaces are simply the best new feature in OmniWeb 5. The way its preferences are configured out of the factory, however, you might not notice them (other than the new Workspace menu).
...
OmniWeb has always supported a large assortment of application preferences. OmniWeb 5, however, introduces something revolutionary: per-site preferences. Site Preferences are more than just great. They’re fucking great.
...
OmniWeb 5.0’s rendering engine is derived from WebCore v85, which corresponds to Safari 1.0, which shipped last June. By what I can only assume is coincidence, Apple today shipped Safari 1.2, which updates WebCore to v125. Thus, OmniWeb’s rendering engine is about eight months behind Safari’s, missing out not only on the improvements and fixes included in today’s 1.2 update, but also the version 1.1 update that shipped as part of Panther.
...
OmniWeb 5.0b1 feels a bit slower than Safari.

What does "1828D2DD55" mean?

Did you win a free song through the Pepsi-Apple iTunes giveaway, but then find yourself overwhelmed by the 500,000-song selection? Let Jeff tell you what songs to buy!

1. Suite for 20 G by James Taylor. Feeling down in the dumps because of winter? Tired of shoveling snow and doing fishtails in your car? Download this song and reminisce about warmer weather.
2. Help Me Scrape The Mucus Off My Brain by Ween. This is perhaps the finest hangover song ever written.
3. Rhythm Bandits by Junior Senior. Not the first song to mix surf rock with electronica, but it's definitely the most fun.
4. Grazing In The Grass by The Friends of Distinction. Baby, can you dig it?
5. Battle Hymn of the Republic by Gene Harris. A gospel update of an American classic -- it's got a jazzy feel, yet it conveys the appropriate respect.

Only Andy may criticize religions

Andrew Sullivan, a man who loves to throw around the anti-Semitism label at everyone including Jews, decides to write a hateful blurb today about Islam:

THE CULTURE OF DEATH: A couple of hundred people are dead because they were a little too enthusiastic about stoning the Devil. This happens every year. Is it culturally insensitive to ask whether there isn't something profoundly awry about a religion that sends so many to their deaths as part of a religious duty? The Hajj minister in Saudi Arabia comments: "All precautions were taken to prevent such an incident, but this is God's will. Caution isn't stronger than fate." Excuse me? God's will to commit hundreds to their deaths? At the same time, Islamist fanatics murder scores by killing themselves in Iraq. What we have on our hands is, in some instances, not that far from a death cult.

It's disappointing that there isn't more outrage over these comments -- imagine if Andy had made similar comments about Judaism! I'll continue to keep Andrew Sullivan on my links list, because his insanity more than cancels out all the so-called "liberal" blogs I link to.

Roman numeral humor

Doesn't Janet Jackson know that type of publicity stunt is much more appropriate for the thirtieth Super Bowl, not the thirty-eighth?