Wordless Wednesday: Baby Bunny

Here's a picture of the baby bunny, as seen out of my office window.

Monday Madness!

An Anatomically-Correct Gargoyle??!?

A man in Arizona, David Smith, created a stir in his new neighborhood by placing a nine-foot tall metal statue of a gargoyle in his front yard.  The problem is that Mr. Smith attempted to make the gargoyle anatomically correct.  You can read up on the specifics on a variety of news websites, but what I find funny is that no one has asked the important question here.

How does Mr. Smith know what an anatomically correct gargoyle look like?

After all, gargoyles are not real.  A male gargoyle might look like a female until time to procreate.  Then he might suddenly have a violin sprout between his legs, that magically transforms into a bar of dark chocolate that the female eats to get pregnant.  It's all make believe.

Here's a happy dance for you!!!

Arizona Haters Smacked Down by Supreme Court

Today, the Supreme Court rejected the Arizona law requiring people to provide proof of US citizenship to register for federal elections.  I actually did a little happy dance for this one, because that law did not come out of reason or rational thought, but out of hate and fear.

FBI Still Searching for Jimmy Hoffa

Proving they never stop, the FBI is still searching for Jimmy Hoffa's body, this time in a field about 20 miles north of Detroit.  In 2008, a man called Tony Zerilli left prison.  An alleged mobster, Zerilli claimed to know where the body was buried.  The FBI investigated the claims, and now have a court warrant to search a large field for a shallow grave or for other signs of human decomposition.

While these actions might seem like madness, I think it's important for the FBI to continue to work cold cases.  Maybe they can provide any remaining family members with a real answer as to what happened to Mr. Hoffa.  Maybe they can send a message to other criminals out there that no matter how much they try, the FBI will always follow up and will find answers.  Maybe the general public just needs to know that the FBI cares enough to not give up, even on someone like Jimmy Hoffa.

The CIA and Facebook Walk Into a Bar....

Two years ago, the Onion New Network did a parody of Facebook and the CIA.  They reported on how the CIA extended the funding for their biggest information gathering platform - Facebook.




When I first saw this video, I laughed out loud.  Who would have thought that the Onion News Network actually came close to the truth?

While some people think that the CIA has a connection to Facebook, I find the facts scary enough without attempting to add in potential back door connections.  The fact that I'm speaking of?  In 1999, the CIA created its own venture capital company, In-Q-Tel, for the purpose of utilizing the private sector to create new technologies applicable to intelligence gathering. (For more information, see the CIA website.)

To be clear here, that means that the CIA is using tax money from the American people to create technology to spy on the American people.

Since 1999, In-Q-Tel has contributed to over 130 technological advances that help intelligence gathering, from creating longer-lasting, smaller batteries to facial recognition software to quantum computers to Keyhole, satellite-mapping software. Google bought Keyhole in  2004, and renamed it Google Earth.  In fact, Google based not only Google Earth, but Google Maps and all of its associated services on Keyhole.

If you want more information, you can find a list of all the companies currently working with In-Q-Tel here.  You can also find similar information on Wikipedia.

Before you point out that the CIA focuses on foreign intelligence gathering, let me ask you a question.  Do you really think that the FBI, CIA, and NSA don't share resources and technologies?  In fact, I hypothesize that the intelligence community might have picked the CIA to begin In-Q-Tel to make the situation more palatable for the tax payers.  Think about it - what kind of uproar would have happened if the NSA or FBI said that they want new ways to spy on Americans?

The big question is:  What will we do now?  Do we keep rolling over, accepting the false statement that safety trumps liberties?  Or do we fight to get our liberties back?

Wordless Wednesday: Printed Food

A new company now offered a chocolate printer for €3000.  Read about it here.

Book Review: "Dead Ever After" by Charlaine Harris

Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Dead Ever After" begins right after "Deadlocked" ended. Sam's recovering from his death and rebirth, Sookie wonders what is happening with Eric, and Eric is still dealing with his marriage contract to Freyda, Queen of Oklahoma. Overall, the book begins on a depressing note that doesn't lift until the very end.

Ms. Harris changes the format of this book, having different chapters narrated by different characters. I like how this lets the reader hear first hand all the intricacies of plot as they happen, as opposed to a second-hand telling afterwards. And intricacies abound here, as various people from the past novels show up, all with one thing in mind - kill Sookie.

(Side note: There are a few "mystery" characters here that I had to look up as I read, because I'd forgotten who these people where.)

The main plot of this book revolves around Sookie discovering who is trying so hard to kill her, and around Sookie trying to sort out her love life. I liked the parts in which Sookie has to defend herself, if nothing else because so many people who Sookie has helped show up to offer her support. It's nice to see how many come together when Sookie needs a hand. I dislike the parts in which Sookie thinks about and interacts with Eric. Considering how much they have been through, how much Eric and Sookie love each other, I found this story dissatisfying.

I must admit, though I've enjoyed reading about Sookie and her adventures, I feel it's time for it to end. Ms. Harris seems to have run out of steam in this universe, and I look forward to reading what she writes next.

View all my reviews