Various Things...

[vakkotaur]

Weather
Friday, the 14th, we had a sample of Winter. A few inches of snow, and wind to blow and drift it. Fairmont was not entirely missed by the storm this time, but still got off rather lightly. The few inches was pretty much dealt with Saturday morning and it's been nice since. Meanwhile other parts of the country got hit and hit hard. This, with jmaynard's traveling has resulted in a curious reversal. He's experiencing more Winter type stuff than I am.

How to Get an LJ Entry Ignored
Take an okkay entry, ideally a longish one, and have it center justified. Centering works for some poems, and short items, but otherwise... BLARGH, say I.

Shrubbery
There are arguments that can be made against the current administration's policies. I don't agree with everything, myself. But if someone wants to be ignored as a kook, they can just refer to the President as "Shrub" and I'll happily ignore them, as they make it quite clear they aren't trying to apply reason.

Warmonger!
So I'm for a war, eh? No. I think it'd be wonderful if all the military movement ended up being just a massive exercise in planning and deployment. I also think it'd be nice if the UN resolution had not been needed, or had not needed pressure to get anywhere, and was actually being complied with. Read point 4 before trying to tell me there has been full compliance. That resolution was supposed to be, and not just in the words of the US, but of the UN, an ultimatum. One last chance. Not yet another last chance, with an endless supply to follow. Iraq has now had over a decade of dealing with and ignoring the UN and its resolutions. Over a decade. That's a lot of patience. Maybe it is time to expect actual results. Ideally by peaceful means. Ideally. Alas the world is non-ideal.

What about N. Korea?
What about it? Yes, N. Korea is making noises. Noises like "We will bury you." They are following the old proven-defective Soviet model right down the drain. North Korea won't start anything, but will try to get attention. Why won't North Korea start anything? Because of the response it'd get.

Domestic Terrorism Threats
One argument for doing nothing is that doing anything beyond talking will result in acts of domestic terrorism. There is an aspect of that that has not been mentioned anywhere that I've seen. That is, suppose military action does, unfortunately, take place somewhere. And there actually is a large "successful" domestic terrorist act - or many, many small ones - in response. What will result? Remember how the US shrank and went home after the towers collapsed? Wait, that didn't happen. Something else did. I'm not saying domestic terror won't happen. I am saying it would be VERY counterproductive.

Scaring Coworkers
Sunday I stopped in at Family Dollar and picked up a few odd things. Okkay, I went nuts. See, they had Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Every store has those, you say. Ah, but these were not the regular 2-packs. These were 10-packs. And they were on sale. Very much on sale. Fifty cents per 10-pack on sale. A case holds 36 of those 10-packs. A case for $18 and tax. Like I said, I went nuts. I bought a case, somewhat to the astonishment of the checkout clerk. He started to apologize for not having a bag that'd hold it. No need, they come in a box already. And today I brought them, the Peanut Butter Cups, to work. A third is by the Engineering secretary's desk now. Another third is on the filing cabinets near sales. And the remaining third is on filing cabinets in the Ag. & Force Measurement area. I hit the three main places for goodies on my side of the building. The fellow next to me wonders what I'm up to. I'm being far too nice, he claims. And that scares him. Even more than I usually scare him.

Importance of Birthdays... No, the Unimportance of Age.
A Diplomat is a man who always remembers a lady's birthday but not her age. That's how one saying goes, as I recall it. Birthdays, or the anniversaries thereof, tend to have some importance to a person. It's nice to be remembered and all. (Sharing a birthday with my sister, I don't forget hers, nor she mine, but also we're both used to having one or the other moved celebration-wise... siblings rivalry and such - and two cakes not at once.) But age is different. Age is important only at times. When a little kid "I'm three and a half!" The next time it's of any notice, really tends to be around 16, when one can get a driver's license. Then 18, for voting (if you care enough to) and for men, registration. It used to also be a time when one could purchase alcohol. Now 21 is significant for that. The age of 25 is a marker when auto insurance rates drop. And then, with a few exceptions (like running for some political offices), age doesn't matter until retirement. And after that, it matters not at all except as way to impress the younger that you've survived that many trips around the sun. This is why I have to compute my age if asked. It is not a number that is important to me. "You don't know your age?!" Well, why should I? It's not important. I know the current date, and I know my date of birth. I can compute my age on the vanishingly rare times I need it.

Comments

[kinkyturtle.livejournal.com]

"But if someone wants to be ignored as a kook, they can just refer to the President as "Shrub" and I'll happily ignore them, as they make it quite clear they aren't trying to apply reason."

I'm the same way with people who call Clinton "Slick Willie".

Ooo, I'm also reminded of this Penny Arcade strip, about people who call Microsoft "M$":

http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2002-7-22&res=l