Well, I had my first midterm today in Game Theory. I am always surprised by the ability of my professors to make difficult exams, but I think it turned out ok. So now I just have three midterms, three finals, and one paper before my two prelim exams in June.

-Trevor

So I was over at some friends the other night and they were giving me a hard time because of my tan line from always wearing socks and shoes with shorts and they told me I should take a look for sandals. Of course when it comes to clothes I am notoriously cheap, so does anyone have any recommendations that does not include flip flops (I have to think about ankle support because I am such a loser ). I've been eyeing these Dr. Martens 8B70, they look to be good, but I'm always looking for an "upgrade". By the way, Payless' poor shoe selection does not offer any deals in my opinion.

-Trevor

MSNBC and Newsweek have a nice article on India and it's rising status in the world. It is worth the 20 minutes or so to get through the six pages.

-Trevor

This is old news, but still funny. For the superbowl, Norman Frey filled a balloon with Acetylene gas (used for welding) in order to give a big bang. Well as you can see in the picture, it did just that. The blast broke his eardrums and he is now facing jail time for posession of an incendiary device. I just don't know why he didn't fill his house up with oxygen and then light a cigarette.

-Trevor

I just wanted to post this link to the Patriot Guard. This is the group that tries to prevent those such as Fred Phelps from ruining the funerals for the fallen soldiers and trying to put the blame on those who have not done anything to deserve this hate. Fred Phelps even made his way to Minnesota yesterday, but the Patriot Guard was there to help those in the funeral maintain a level of privacy. It is really too bad that this stuff has to happen.

-Trevor

I barely know where to begin. Evidently there are groups out now going to fallen soldiers' funerals and protesting by saying that God has killed these soldiers because the United States supports homosexuals. Regardless of anyone's stance on homosexuality this is one of the most hate filled actions since the holocaust. Not only are they harassing those who have fought to protect their beliefs they are also promoting what is clearly a message of hate at a group that does little of the damage to families that critics have claimed. I usually have a dislike towards legislation trying to prevent freedom of speech, but this is certainly not freedom of speech and I hope proposed legislation to prevent this type of harassment will help. These memorials while outside are not public events in the usual sense of the word and should have privacy as to not have to hear this bullshit.

I really do not think the protestors truly believe in the message as this group led by Fred Phelps from the Westboro Baptist Church have a website www.godhatesfags.com. And I thought Pat Robertson was bad.

-Trevor

I am finally getting into some research. It looks like for now I am making a move into some economic history. I'll be examining the effects of New Deal spending on infant mortality rates. This should be a good topic and I am able to take advantage of the fantastic and fantasically large dataset that my advisor, Professor Fishback has been collecting for the last eight years. Now my chore is to learn how to use Stata and to hone my econometric skills because all women like guys who have skills and what better line to hook a girl than, "Did you know that the AAA actually increased infant mortality rates among farmers?"

-Trevor

I was watching the news last night when I realized just how much Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of his friend will affect the current state of the United States. So much so that I realized I need to inform you about the latest news and breaking news from the world of Trevor.

Last night after coming home from a hard night of studying, I walked towards my fridge and took out some sliced turkey, iceberg lettuce, pepper jack cheese, and mustard. I was planning on making a sandwich and a great sandwich it was going to be. I decided I would spice up the sandwich a bit by toasting the bread, but not too much because I don't like bread when it starts to become black from too much heat. After taking the first bite, I decided that it was a good sandwich (almost as great as the sandwich of '05) and that I will have to try toasting the sandwich more often. But my mouth was getting so dry, I needed something to drink quick, so I grabbed a cool and refreshing Mountain Dew. That really hit the spot. But after so much caffeine I become dehydrated due to having to urinate so often. At least I do not have any prostate problems, so it leaves without any pain. Now that itch though... I wonder if it wasn't covered for 23 3/4 hours a day, maybe it would stop itching and pussing. That puss always tastes kind of funky. That could explain my bad breath...

Too much detailed information about something you didn't care about or need to know about? I thought so.

-Trevor

Usually I do not like to fuel gossip of actors and actresses, but I'll make an exception for this case as it deals with the always volatile topic, religion. According to the taxes filed by Mel Gibson (why do people bother to look at these in the first place?), Mel has put $5 million into a foundation that supports the Holy Family Catholic Church. This church is a splinter christian group which does not recognize Vatican II. While I have seen indications of those who do not enjoy the teachings of the second Vatican council, this is one of the highest profile members who claim to be Catholic and who has rejected their teachings.

I always wondered what has gotten into people like Gibson and others such as Tom Cruise (who was once going to be Jesuit Priest and look at what the hell he believes now). These weird splinter religious groups are rather exclusive and secretive and do seem to have elements of cults.

However, if you read the related article, do be certain to be wary of the author's implications that Gibson does not believe in the holocaust, it is a bit of a stretch and he also focuses way too long on the fact that the church is situated next to a barbecue restaraunt. It weakens the overall credibility of the article in my opinion, but still interesting.

-Trevor

Note: Vern, thanks for the link

According to the BBC, the number of Suicide Club suicides are on the rise in Japan. Apparently these kids over in Japan meet up in chatrooms and websites to try to meet up and commit suicide together. After reading this article I am really torn between thinking the government should try to censor these websites as they promote a rather heinous act and thinking that these people can do whatever they damn please for they are destroying the ultimate gift, their life.

I am of the opinion that those who are suicidal need to be supported by family and friends as that condition is not permanent and after help can lead very happy and productive lives. I feel though that these group suicides may be of another nature entirely as they seem to embrace death in itself while I believe those who are suicidal just have no more love for life. This could suggest that tactics used to help those who are suicidal may not be effective in this case, as it may reflect a culture which has become increasingly apathetic towards the intrinsic value of life.

This is definitely crazy stuff as it almost falls along cult status.

-Trevor

Todd Holes was recently arrested for selling stolen books to the U of A bookstore belonging to students from the university and has now also been charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

Todd is not a student of U of A, but that doesn't mean that he has not been inspired by many of the boys and girls who go to college to learn new skills to enhance their careers, or in his case goes to a college to try to enrich his skills at stealing students' books and then selling the stolen property. Unfortunately he was doing this while on drugs.

For those who are looking to copy-cat Mr. Holes, be sure to sell the books away from the area you bought, possibly ebay (I hear a lot of those books are stolen). You may even consider trying to commit harder crimes such as grand theft, bank robberies, or even money laundering. Don't forget to use drugs which will impair your judgement, it will enhance the challenge and make you a better career criminal in the long run, just look at Tony Montana is Scarface, he got high in his own supply.

In any case, there might be a moral of the story here, but I can't quite think of what it is.

-Trevor

There has been a lot of news recently about the protests in the Middle East over that controversial comic of Mohammed that was originially published in Denmark and has sparked riots and deaths. I will admit to not having a lot of knowledge in the subject which may mean maybe I should not comment so I would rather leave this comment in the form of a question. I will pose my thoughts on the title question on the third paragraph.

From what I have gathered, Islam prohibits the depiction of prophets as a way to stop idolatry (the worshipping of statues, items, etc.) This is not controversial as Christianity has had that problem throughout the years as well. However, people are preaching that the author and editors of the comic were insensitive to Muslim beliefs. I believe this is all PC BS because what about some religious groups not being sensitive to Christians or Jews, or Hindis by forcing their belief structures on those who are not Islam? At some level we disrespect other religions when we follow our own belief structure so why is there a requirement to be sensitive to some other religions? Those who are Christians commit sacriliege towards those of Jewish faith when they depict God in paintings and eat pork, but I have not seen them protesting and burning embassies. Similarly we do not see backlash from Hindi due to consumption of beef. To even make an even more absurd example, when have Mormons killed others for drinking coffee? So for this reason I wonder why we cannot do some things that may be construed as a sin in some religions, but we get a free pass on others. Who makes these decisions anyways? What I am trying to get across is that we all believe in different things and we all have different beliefs about some details of what is or is not a sin, but we really have no basis for demanding that others follow most of our religious beliefs, since it is mostly faith based to begin with.

Now getting to the main question of this post... Talking with a friend who is Muslim, she was telling me that one of the main reasons of not depicting the prophets and mainly Mohammed is that it takes emphasis from God (Allah). Their rioting over this comic seems to be doing just that, placing a large amount of emphasis on a prophet, with some claiming that they will kill and kidnap Danes, etc., all because a non-Muslim drew a picture of a prophet. While I see why there is some emphasis on Mohammed (as he founded Islam), it seems like they do not care whether we depict Jesus (a prophet in Islam) which is clearly a sin according to Islamic Law (but not according to Christianity or agnostics, atheists, etc.) I gather from my interpretation is that they are committing a sin by focusing their lives towards a prophet due to their rioting over an image of a prophet and I think this constitutes idolatry. Why? Because had no one made a fuss over this comic, it could easily have passed out of sight of the world and no one would have been worse off, however, now it is the center of attention taking away from the works of God and His children, which is effectively placing barriers to God and those who worship Him.

This is where I find the double standard of organized religion. On one hand, the majority of religions (includes both Christianity and Islam) preach tolerance of others, however, religion also does an excellent job of stratifying the human race. These stratifications are the basis for many forms of hatred that hurt everyone and every religion has a populace that is guilty of enhancing mistrust of those outside of their religion. The rioters are performing hate crimes that hurt more than just the people of Denmark, they hurt other Muslims who become targets due to misunderstandings and preconceptions, and they hurt themselves because they close themselves off towards freedom of expression and religion.

So in conclusion, I would like to add that the Muslim leaders who wish to kill Danes should have pursued an alternative path to try to stop what they believed was wrong. If they truly cared about humanity, they would have suggested that there was a democratic method in which to inform the editors of the newspaper which published the article (as the paper is not representative necessarily of the ideals of the populace) that they were unhappy with the depiction of a prophet in a comic and would wish to see a change in what they publish. This can be achieved by informing the public of their belief and letting the public decide what they want. In this way we would all become closer to the image of God by utilizing our knowledge to make positive choices that push humanity forward.

-Trevor

Well it's official, approximately 23 years ago this minute, my mother gave birth to this author.

Astrology tells us that there is a relation to those who have been born the same day, so clearly I thought I could discover who I am by listing every great person who was born today. Well... I couldn't really find anyone except for:
Tallulah Belle Willis, 3rd daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore
Cody Newton Gifford, son of Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford
Pamela Cossey, England, model/sister of transsexual Tula
Henry Heimlich, doctor/inventor, Heimlich maneuver
and around 10 cricket players...

So I guess I cannot claim greatness this way... So I can use the scapegoat routine by questioning my parents for their poor timing on unprotected sex (couldn't you have done it the day before so I could have been born on Groundhog's Day?) Now I'm grouped with people who were born to crazy women, those related to transexuals (not there is anything wrong with that), those who discover ways to french kiss those who are suffocating on food and are unable to resist (not a group to be associated with), and cricket players, what's up with that?

Not to give up my case I decided to look at historical events, they must have altered the alignment of the stars to help make me a better person...

1998: U.S. military plane clips cable car lines in northern Italy, kills 20
1993: Cincinnati Red owner Marge Schott suspended for 1 year due to racist comments
1993: Federal trial of 4 police officers charged with civil rights violations in videotaped beating of Rodney King begins in Los Angeles California
1982: John Sharples of England finishes disco dancing 371 hours
1979: Minnesota Twins trade Rod Carew to California for 4 players
1972: U.S. performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1962: President Kennedy bans all trade with Cuba except for food and drugs
1945: Walt Disney's "3 Caballeros" released
1919: League of Nations 1st meeting (Paris)
1887: To avoid disputed national elections, Congress creates Electoral Count Act

Damn, that didn't work, well, I guess it's official, the stars have it out for all born on the day after February 2nd, the day of great rejoicing for those hoping to soon see the end of winter, but wait, if winter ends too soon (Phil did see his shadow though yesterday), it is just going to get too damn hot in Tucson, fuck that, I'll take crazy women and cricket players over that anyday, so I guess I should thank my parents (and maybe for shopping at Walmart in 1982-83 [I don't think there was one in the area at the time, but you get the gist] .)

That was certainly a divergence of talking about my 23rd birthday, hmm. Well thanks to all who have read this entire post because I spent way too much time on it. And for all those who have had their birthdays in July-January, I have completed ignored my Bebo warnings that yours were coming up, so here's a big Happy Birthday. Now only if someone would give me a wang machine pictured below...(Warning: Using the crank when inserted may be hazardous for long term health)

Not had enough yet? Well for "shits and giggles", I decided to check out my horoscope, and here is some of the BS they fed me...
"How are your past experiences influencing your life right now, for good or ill? It's time to take a long, clear-headed look at how old patterns may be inhibiting you in the present. Learn from these events."
It is supposed to be my horoscope, but asks me a question, do the stars not know? I must think hard on this as I reflect if I should devote my life to those who can read the future from the relative position of Orion's Belt to Uranus and everything inbetween.

-Trevor

Well it looks like the military has some new non-lethal tools in which to utilize in Iraq. Well all the insurgants should be scared when marines start using Long Range Acoustic Devices, Lazzer Dazzlers, or Active Denial Tecnology against them. Wondering what the hell they do? Well the first uses an "annoying" sound to persuade people to leave, the second attempts to find lasers from a sniper, and the last microwaves 1/64" under the skin. I really do hope these help our soldiers, but could we not come up with better names? Don't we have crack marketing teams to help give our soldiers a little pride in their tools they use in addition to guns and missiles (which we can always rename to Active Life Suppressors). On a side note, I hope they can do a better job to conceal their DirecTV satelite dish, that will certainly be a giveaway to terrorists to use ear plugs and don some lead suits.

In other military related news, Britain will shortly launch the HMS Daring which along with carrying lots of firepower, also will feature Ipod plugins, internet access, and 5.1 surround sound in their hotel facilities (aka Living Quarters). Well, I am shocked that this is how the British military has to recruit for their navy makes me wonder if these amenities are popping up in their American counterparts (in addition to Active Denial Technology).

-Trevor

Three Women in MA backed by a pro abortion group are suing Wal-Mart over not stocking "Morning After" pills. These pills can be used for up to five days after conception by basically flushing out the egg before it has a chance of implanting itself on the uterus. Walmart has stated that this is merely a business decision and directs patients on locations such as CVS which carries the pill. The women claim that MA law requires that pharmacies stock all "popular" drug.

I find that this is being turned into a political/law drama which should not be the case. No company should be forced to carry some product out of "public necessity" when there are competitors who will. If you disagree with either of the business/moral decisions of Wal-Mart it is really simple, do not shop there. If enough people believe the way you do, Wal-Mart will respond or disappear like Woolworths. What is unfortunate about this fiasco is that hospitals are required in MA to carry this pill is available for those who are in need of this pill (which there are legitimate cases such as rape victims and others).

This is just a drop in a torrent of anti Walmart news recently. With groups such as Walmart Watch out preaching about the evils of Walmart, it is hard to see that Walmart has any redeeming qualities. In reality, Walmart is merely a reflection of American's values and right now this is an individualistic view which chooses individual happiness over social welfare. This is not inherently good or bad, but Walmart's customers for whatever reason have made a choice that by buying from Walmart they are increasing their purchasing power (due to lower prices) at the expense of others (due to a supposed depression of wages). There are costs involved at both outcomes and there are always "losers." Cases can always be made where Walmart has made the local communities better or worse off.

However, this does not say that Americans are worse off because Walmart spends billions among thousands of suppliers across the United States which also opens these suppliers to markets such as China which Walmart has had tremendous success breaching in recent years (see above picture).

There are many new small busineses that popup everyday and properly structured and managed, they even have a chance to compete with the "big boys", granted we do not see such bullshit as mergers aimed at eliminating competition and artifical barrieres to markets (I always love the taglines such as offering more choices from mergers, but I always wondered how one can have more choices with less...). These are all part of a very dynamic market that is constantly changing, often for the better. Walmart is merely redefining the retail market and change has brought upon much of our dominance over the rest of the world in terms of economic output. I recall the candle industry pressuring for laws against the lightbulb and just think what that could have done to the country had laws against innovation gone into effect (As we can see in the DMCA, there can be too much of a good thing).

Going back to the women, I challenge you to support those who believe in the way you do and if no company does, start a company which encompasses the values you represent. If enough people follow your cause, it will be successful. For if Walmart is really supressing the values of the American public, it will turn out to be like Woolworths which did not change to the changing values of the American public.

-Trevor

Alito was confirmed and voted as Justice on the Supreme Court on Tuesday. Today he has shown that he will not side only with conservative justices by refusing to allow Missouri to execute death-row inmate Michael Taylor. This is probably a good thing for everyone, but conspiracy theorists of course could claim that he is merely doing this as a ploy and then he will show us all the pure evil he has in his dark dark heart. Anyways, it is finally good that the whole thing is done with for now so now the senate can get going on some new issues.

This also marks the new category, Politics. I seem to be on a whole political kick right now (I think it stems from my study group not talking about politics and I need some form of release and force it on all of my readers), and while I'm in this kick, I thought this should fall under a Politics category as it is not really news, it's politics, which is all opinion anyways...not really, as this could lead down a path of moral relativism, a path that that is almost as dark and twisted as sewing drugs in a dog's body to smuggle heroin across the border...

-Trevor

I got back from studying last night just in time to catch the last half of the State of the Union address. While these things are relatively ceremonial (an outline of the speech was posted a day before the actual address), it is a good show of how divided the political spectrum is nowadays. I would like to mention one thing during that speech that made me fairly angry. Bush made a comment that we need to reform social security. While making headlines for a while last year, both parties eventually agreed to pass the bill onto people who will actually be alive when the shit begins to hit the fan. However, the Democrats started to hoot and holler like a bunch of idiot children after Bush said his reforms failed to pass. I guess they enjoy the fact that they have pulled a fast one on the American public and can sit back with their Senate pensions as we all try to scrape along trying to pay high social security taxes (predicted to be around 60% of the government budget by 2030).

The Republicans are definitely not without their faults, one thing I would like to mention is that Bush is pushing for line-item vetoes, something the Republicans opposed Clinton using. This has great potential for getting rid of crap that goes through Congress, such as those small million dollar projects that are often attached to bills of a totally different nature.

I would like to end the comment by saying one thing, opposition can be good to spur debate Democrats, but dammit, don't feed me the bullshit that Republicans are wrong but not give me why or what would youv do to change. That goes for Senator Murtha, who they pulled from the depths of the senate floor for us all to hear his Marlo Brando impression about pulling out of Iraq.

-Trevor