I.D. Vs. Evolution
The last post on the Vatican’s article rebuking Intelligent Design netted a couple of responses one of which is here in part.
“While the curriculum proposed by the proponents of ID in the Pennsylvania case was questionable as to whether it was more religious than scientific, there are numerous counter examples in the geological record, fossil evidence, and other fields of science that call into question many of the assumptions drawn from theory of evolution.
Good scientific method (which by the way was originated by Grosseteste, a Catholic priest) and intellectual honesty demands that all evidence be considered and taught in order to discover and understand the laws governing God's creation. However, current evidence calling aspects of evolution and uniformitariansm into question are not taught in our schools. It's important to remember that science never proves anything; it only investigates and must accept that even one counter-example can call into question a theory that has been accepted for centuries.
Thus, Copernicus and Galileo should have been accepted. So too, should Michael Behe's (a Catholic) work in "Darwin's Black Box", as well as other scientists' work that demonstrates evidence of Intelligent design as opposed to random chance behind the origin of life and the universe, be examined honestly and taught since it adheres to the scientific method.
Aristotle's theory of spontaneous generation and Ptolemy's geocentric model of the solar system was held onto for centuries despite evidence to the contrary simply because of the scientists' reputations and because their theories were accepted by the culture. Our current society is permeated with attitudes derived from Darwin's work (e.g. social Darwinism), uniformitarianism and the so-called enlightenment that pits religion against science when it was the world view of Christianity that gave birth to the scientific method during the middle ages (i.e that we can know God better by understanding His creation). It has been the work of devout Christians that have made great advances in science. (e.g. Bacon, Mendel, Pascal, Einstein, etc.) Will we fall into the trap again of rejecting scientific evidence and thought simply because it bucks established cultural norms that claim that faith and scientific reason are at odds with each other?“
The sentence that most telling is “So too, should Michael Behe's (a Catholic) work in "Darwin's Black Box", as well as other scientists' work that demonstrates evidence of Intelligent design as opposed to random chance behind the origin of life and the universe, be examined honestly and taught since it adheres to the scientific method.
I would refer anyone interested to Michael Behe’s “Darwin’s Black Box” which seems to be the main text of the proponents of Intelligent Design.
Unfortunately it is published by a science teacher as a scientific text. Reading any of the reviews reveals it is not supported by any proofs what so ever.
My reply to the letter above follows.
Thank you for your thoughtful response. It has challenged me to formulate my thoughts on the subject.
Please indulge me a little time to reply.
I want to review Dava Sobel's "Galileo's Daughter"
"In 1609, when Suor Maria Celeste (his daughter) was still a child in Padua, Galileo had set a telescope in the garden behind his house and turned it skyward. Never-before-seen stars leaped out of the darkness to enhance familiar constellations; the nebulous Milky Way resolved into a swath of densely packed stars; mountains and valleys pockmarked the storied perfection of the Moon; and a retinue of four attendant bodies traveled regularly around Jupiter like a planetary system in miniature.
"I render infinite thanks to God," Galileo intoned after those nights of wonder, "for being so kind as to make me alone the first observer of marvels kept hidden in obscurity for all previous centuries."
If you haven't read this book it is a wonderful account of Galileo and his daughters faith.
Also I refer to this article in Physics Web that discusses the "proofs" of Pythagoras. Pythagoras is, of course, known for the "proof "of the right triangle. The concept of the formula was know well before Pythagoras but it was his "proofs" that set the rigorous scientific standards that were used by Galileo and are still used by our scientific benchmarks today. The right triangle is in some ways an easier "theory" to explore than the more emotional challenge of evolution.
"Thomas Hobbes (1588- 1679) saw a display copy of Euclid's Elements opened to Book I Proposition 47, Pythagoras's theorem. Pythagoras's theorem is important for its content as well as for its proof. But the fact that lines of specific lengths (3, 4 and 5 units, say) create a right-angled triangle was empirically discovered in different lands long before Pythagoras. Another empirical discovery was the rule for calculating the length of the long side of a right triangle (c) knowing the lengths of the others (a and b), namely c2 = a2 + b2. A Babylonian tablet from about 1800 BC shows that this rule was known in ancient Iraq more than 1000 years before Pythagoras, who lived in the sixth century BC. Ancient Indian texts accompanying the Sutras, from between 100 and 500 BC but clearly passing on information of much earlier times, also show a knowledge of this rule. An early Chinese work suggests that scholars there used the calculation at about the same time as Pythagoras, if not before.
But what we do not find in these works are proofs - demonstrations of the general validity of a result based on first principles and without regard for practical application. Proof was itself a concept that had to be discovered. In Euclid's Elements we find the first attempt to present a more or less complete body of knowledge explicitly via proofs."
Proofs.
There are no scientific and there cannot be scientific "proofs" applied to belief. We believe because it resides in our "souls".
There can only be "proofs" applied to scientific tenets. Can evolution be "proven" NO! Are "proofs" available to keep the "theory" of evolution the most viable explanation of the origin of species, YES! Should they be challenged vigorously YES!
Do such "proofs" exist for I.D.? I'm sorry no such "proofs" exist, nor does Mr. Behe attempt to provide any. His book is devoid of any scientific "proofs", only opinions that cannot be challenged. The phrase "irreducibly complex" that he uses to define his "theory" merely says "we can't know so we shouldn't try to know".
My thesis is not a debate of evolution vs. I.D. but how believers reconcile their belief in the modern world in the face of scientific exploration. Just as Pope Urban VII censored Galileo's realistic observations of the solar system unjustly, I.D. tries to deny realistic observations of the origins of life. How then do we find God in this? Intelligent Design denies any belief in GOD.
I will argue that belief is not denied by scientific exploration and that observation of the majestic wonder of life will only make our beliefs stronger. I believe that is why Professor Fiorenzo Facchini wrote in L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper 'It is not correct from a methodological point of view to stray from the field of science while pretending to do science," calling intelligent design unscientific. "It only creates confusion between the scientific plane and those that are philosophical or religious."
In other words IMHO I.D. is a philosophical/religious discussion NOT a scientific one and should be separated from science classrooms. It is this philosophical/religious discussion that should be engaged in the appropriate forum.
Here is food for thought. In the quest for the origins of our species it is widely believed that we (humans) first appeared in central Africa from one common ancestor. Fifty thousand years ago central Africa could have easily been called an Eden. The Leakey's "Lucy" (or one of the early homo-sapiens) could be the "Eve" that we are all descended from. Discounting whether I am a monkeys uncle (sorry) hasn't "science" taken a step towards verifying a crucial part of the first book of the Torah (known to us as Genesis)? Could it be that sound "science" will lead us to our origins rather than an a denial of the real world around us? Could it be that God, who created this so very real world, will in his own time and wisdom reveal it to us through our vigorous scientific exploration?
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1/28/2006
1/20/2006
The Vatican Gets It Right
In an article in the NY Times the official Vatican newspaper takes the side of evolution.
It reads in part;
ROME, Jan. 18
The official Vatican newspaper published an article this week labeling as "correct" the recent decision by a judge in Pennsylvania that intelligent design should not be taught as a scientific alternative to evolution.
"If the model proposed by Darwin is not considered sufficient, one should search for another," Fiorenzo Facchini, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Bologna, wrote in the Jan. 16-17 edition of the paper, L'Osservatore Romano.
"But it is not correct from a methodological point of view to stray from the field of science while pretending to do science," he wrote, calling intelligent design unscientific. "It only creates confusion between the scientific plane and those that are philosophical or religious."
The article was not presented as an official church position. But in the subtle and purposely ambiguous world of the Vatican, the comments seemed notable, given their strength on a delicate question much debated under the new pope, Benedict XVI. "
I am glad to see the Vatican step away from Intelligent Design as non-science. It was, after all, Pope John II who pardoned Galileo after 400 years. The trial in Pennsylvania and the school board in Kansas shows just much our education system is under attack by people who cannot reconcile their faith with modern science.
Pope Benedict has taken an important step for Catholics to study science in the real world.
The New York Times articles require registration but are free.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
In an article in the NY Times the official Vatican newspaper takes the side of evolution.
It reads in part;
ROME, Jan. 18
The official Vatican newspaper published an article this week labeling as "correct" the recent decision by a judge in Pennsylvania that intelligent design should not be taught as a scientific alternative to evolution.
"If the model proposed by Darwin is not considered sufficient, one should search for another," Fiorenzo Facchini, a professor of evolutionary biology at the University of Bologna, wrote in the Jan. 16-17 edition of the paper, L'Osservatore Romano.
"But it is not correct from a methodological point of view to stray from the field of science while pretending to do science," he wrote, calling intelligent design unscientific. "It only creates confusion between the scientific plane and those that are philosophical or religious."
The article was not presented as an official church position. But in the subtle and purposely ambiguous world of the Vatican, the comments seemed notable, given their strength on a delicate question much debated under the new pope, Benedict XVI. "
I am glad to see the Vatican step away from Intelligent Design as non-science. It was, after all, Pope John II who pardoned Galileo after 400 years. The trial in Pennsylvania and the school board in Kansas shows just much our education system is under attack by people who cannot reconcile their faith with modern science.
Pope Benedict has taken an important step for Catholics to study science in the real world.
The New York Times articles require registration but are free.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
My life is complete. I have seen the goat with a tire around it's middle.
The Robert Rauschenberg show at the Met is a very worthwhile show. It concentrates on the period between 1954 and 59 and has most of the most well known "combines". There are some canvases that are clearly cashing in on his popularity, the summer house series, but most are unique.
I didn't know about Black Mountain and his studying under Joseph Albers. Again the Bauhaus influences our culture. It also becomes clear that Jasper Johns was close to him, the coca cola piece could have been made by Johns, and there are hints at what Louise Nevelson was doing.
What is remarkable is the fact that he was a very good abstract expressionist without all the goodies hanging off the canvases.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
The Robert Rauschenberg show at the Met is a very worthwhile show. It concentrates on the period between 1954 and 59 and has most of the most well known "combines". There are some canvases that are clearly cashing in on his popularity, the summer house series, but most are unique.
I didn't know about Black Mountain and his studying under Joseph Albers. Again the Bauhaus influences our culture. It also becomes clear that Jasper Johns was close to him, the coca cola piece could have been made by Johns, and there are hints at what Louise Nevelson was doing.
What is remarkable is the fact that he was a very good abstract expressionist without all the goodies hanging off the canvases.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
8/18/2005
”The incompetence of the prosecution of the war has been at times bewildering.
The incompetence of the anti-war effort remains surpassingly bewildering.”
This is the closing sentence to a commentary on the front page of Global Security.
The article talks about Cindy Sheehan, the mother of a soldier killed in Iraq who is camping out in front of the Shrub’s ranch in the Texas heat.
It turns out, according to this article that the P.R. firm of Fenton Communications who has been allied with Move On.Org is generating a lot of the publicity. It now seems the plight of this woman is part of a larger, national P.R. campaign that may or may not have her best interests at heart.
A look at Move On.Org’s page will find it plastered with Mrs. Sheehan’s image and articles of the vigils that are surrounding her.
The article in Global Security asks;
“Media relations firms serve an essential function in the information food chain, and David Fenton is certainly a fine fellow. But what purpose is served by the high visibility of this PR firm in the Cindy Sheehan matter? After all, the entire point of the Cindy Sheehan phenomena is that she is simply a citizen, speaking truth to power. Now she has been visibly repositioned as simply a pawn in the Washinton spin machine.”
After the march in New York in February before the U.S. went into Iraq the anti-war movement just dried up. The article chronicles Fenton’s involvement with Win Without War which purported to be a not for profit anti-war organization. The article goes on to state;
“On closer examination, Win Without War was revealed as a paid media buy. It was an advertising campaign, hosted at Fenton Communications, with a cast of hundreds of thousands hauled out at demonstrations to give the media buy legitimacy.
Once the war actually started, the paid media buy ended, and the anti-war "movement" as well.”
The point here is that there is no “organic” movement to end the war. By the fact that marches and now Mrs. Sheehan are touted by a P.R. firm once the heat is off and there is no more money paid to the P.R, firm the issue just dies.
This gets back to my post yesterday wondering where the actual anti-war movement is.
The incompetence of the anti-war effort remains surpassingly bewildering.
Indeed.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
The incompetence of the anti-war effort remains surpassingly bewildering.”
This is the closing sentence to a commentary on the front page of Global Security.
The article talks about Cindy Sheehan, the mother of a soldier killed in Iraq who is camping out in front of the Shrub’s ranch in the Texas heat.
It turns out, according to this article that the P.R. firm of Fenton Communications who has been allied with Move On.Org is generating a lot of the publicity. It now seems the plight of this woman is part of a larger, national P.R. campaign that may or may not have her best interests at heart.
A look at Move On.Org’s page will find it plastered with Mrs. Sheehan’s image and articles of the vigils that are surrounding her.
The article in Global Security asks;
“Media relations firms serve an essential function in the information food chain, and David Fenton is certainly a fine fellow. But what purpose is served by the high visibility of this PR firm in the Cindy Sheehan matter? After all, the entire point of the Cindy Sheehan phenomena is that she is simply a citizen, speaking truth to power. Now she has been visibly repositioned as simply a pawn in the Washinton spin machine.”
After the march in New York in February before the U.S. went into Iraq the anti-war movement just dried up. The article chronicles Fenton’s involvement with Win Without War which purported to be a not for profit anti-war organization. The article goes on to state;
“On closer examination, Win Without War was revealed as a paid media buy. It was an advertising campaign, hosted at Fenton Communications, with a cast of hundreds of thousands hauled out at demonstrations to give the media buy legitimacy.
Once the war actually started, the paid media buy ended, and the anti-war "movement" as well.”
The point here is that there is no “organic” movement to end the war. By the fact that marches and now Mrs. Sheehan are touted by a P.R. firm once the heat is off and there is no more money paid to the P.R, firm the issue just dies.
This gets back to my post yesterday wondering where the actual anti-war movement is.
The incompetence of the anti-war effort remains surpassingly bewildering.
Indeed.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
8/17/2005
Media And The Truth
My friend Steve has been railing against the lack of courage in the media. There is no question this administration went to war on false pretenses yet the media has acquiesced to the charge that any dissent is un-American.
There are a few voices to be heard. Maureen Dowd (NY Times requires registration) has returned from her book tour and taken up the torch right where she left off. Her writing is witty but trite. I can say she has guts and is unrelenting in her insistence that the administration face the consequences of its actions. And of course there is the ever verbose Andrew Sullivan, a gay, Catholic, conservative. But Steve is right. Where are major media outlets on the Iraq issue? Where are the songs that speak to the hypocrisy? No where. They have stayed with commerce and refuse to budge.
Meanwhile a woman who has lost her son camps in the Texas heat and the Shrub refuses to see her while he has a vacation. His vacation from reality is leaving our country in dire straights and the media hides their collective heads in the sand.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
My friend Steve has been railing against the lack of courage in the media. There is no question this administration went to war on false pretenses yet the media has acquiesced to the charge that any dissent is un-American.
There are a few voices to be heard. Maureen Dowd (NY Times requires registration) has returned from her book tour and taken up the torch right where she left off. Her writing is witty but trite. I can say she has guts and is unrelenting in her insistence that the administration face the consequences of its actions. And of course there is the ever verbose Andrew Sullivan, a gay, Catholic, conservative. But Steve is right. Where are major media outlets on the Iraq issue? Where are the songs that speak to the hypocrisy? No where. They have stayed with commerce and refuse to budge.
Meanwhile a woman who has lost her son camps in the Texas heat and the Shrub refuses to see her while he has a vacation. His vacation from reality is leaving our country in dire straights and the media hides their collective heads in the sand.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
8/09/2005
They Are Having Their Effect
I got off the subway today because of a young man with a backpack.
He got on the subway and stood in the doorway as a lot of young men do, staking out his territory by the exit. Short and dark his packpack was conspicuous in its size. In his left hand he held an electronic device with a wire that led up to a large pair of headphones.
I’m sure it was an MP3 player but the image of a large stuffed backpack and a device with a wire held in the hand of a young dark skinned man was just too much.
The conductor announced the closing of the doors and I was out as they shut.
Nothing happened, all the passengers got home safely. Terrorism isn’t the act it self it is the thoughts that we now live with every day.
I got off the subway today because of a young man with a backpack.
He got on the subway and stood in the doorway as a lot of young men do, staking out his territory by the exit. Short and dark his packpack was conspicuous in its size. In his left hand he held an electronic device with a wire that led up to a large pair of headphones.
I’m sure it was an MP3 player but the image of a large stuffed backpack and a device with a wire held in the hand of a young dark skinned man was just too much.
The conductor announced the closing of the doors and I was out as they shut.
Nothing happened, all the passengers got home safely. Terrorism isn’t the act it self it is the thoughts that we now live with every day.
3/25/2005
Despotism
A friend of mine sent me a link to a 1946 film Despotism produced by the Encyclopedia Britannica Films. I’m not sure how or why he came across this film but it was interesting to see the simple style of an “educational” film of the era. He asked what I thought and I replied.
With the war just over, Truman in office and the death of Roosevelt still fresh there was a strong utopian movement. Communism was not the evil threat it would become in the fifties. How to keep from falling back into another world war was on everybody’s mind.
The even distribution of wealth was not looked down upon as an ideal as it is today. So this film takes a simplistic propagandistic view of democracy vs. despotism. But it makes a few good points that are relevant today.
These quotes are from the film.
“The spread of respect and power in a community is influenced by certain conditions which many observers measure by means of the economic distribution and information scales.”
“If a community's economic distribution becomes slanted, its middle income groups grow smaller and despotism stands a better chance to gain a foothold.”
If wealth is power, the concentration of wealth in the upper 1% has increased dramatically since Reagan coming to office.
“Look beyond the legal formalities of an election in measuring a community on the power scale to see if the ballot is really free.”
Anyone want to open up the Florida election results again?
The film goes on to talk about education and dictating to young minds.
“See how a community trains its teachers.”
"Bear this in mind. Young people cannot be trusted to form their own opinions.”
“And when teachers put such training into practice, despotism stands a good chance.”
The intimidation that many school boards are using on teachers to teach creationism comes to mind today.
Where are we today? We have an administration that came to power in a questionable election. Has insisted on tilting the judiciary towards the religious right, willfully lied to the people to start a war, is trying to change the constitution to define marriage according to their religious views and recently manipulated the legislature to press a right to life position in the case of Terri Schiavo.
The assault on Social Security is the battle to dismantle the programs that Roosevelt put in place. When Bush talks about the “ownership” society he is describing a society that truly evolutionary in that it will be all out survival of the fittest with no social programs.
It’s a silly film but it has some lessons that are being unlearned.
Just my opinion.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
A friend of mine sent me a link to a 1946 film Despotism produced by the Encyclopedia Britannica Films. I’m not sure how or why he came across this film but it was interesting to see the simple style of an “educational” film of the era. He asked what I thought and I replied.
With the war just over, Truman in office and the death of Roosevelt still fresh there was a strong utopian movement. Communism was not the evil threat it would become in the fifties. How to keep from falling back into another world war was on everybody’s mind.
The even distribution of wealth was not looked down upon as an ideal as it is today. So this film takes a simplistic propagandistic view of democracy vs. despotism. But it makes a few good points that are relevant today.
These quotes are from the film.
“The spread of respect and power in a community is influenced by certain conditions which many observers measure by means of the economic distribution and information scales.”
“If a community's economic distribution becomes slanted, its middle income groups grow smaller and despotism stands a better chance to gain a foothold.”
If wealth is power, the concentration of wealth in the upper 1% has increased dramatically since Reagan coming to office.
“Look beyond the legal formalities of an election in measuring a community on the power scale to see if the ballot is really free.”
Anyone want to open up the Florida election results again?
The film goes on to talk about education and dictating to young minds.
“See how a community trains its teachers.”
"Bear this in mind. Young people cannot be trusted to form their own opinions.”
“And when teachers put such training into practice, despotism stands a good chance.”
The intimidation that many school boards are using on teachers to teach creationism comes to mind today.
Where are we today? We have an administration that came to power in a questionable election. Has insisted on tilting the judiciary towards the religious right, willfully lied to the people to start a war, is trying to change the constitution to define marriage according to their religious views and recently manipulated the legislature to press a right to life position in the case of Terri Schiavo.
The assault on Social Security is the battle to dismantle the programs that Roosevelt put in place. When Bush talks about the “ownership” society he is describing a society that truly evolutionary in that it will be all out survival of the fittest with no social programs.
It’s a silly film but it has some lessons that are being unlearned.
Just my opinion.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
9/23/2004
It’s autumn.
I like the idea of following the cycles of the sun and moon. I never understood why the summer solstice, when the days start to get shorter is called the beginning of summer. It’s more an end than a beginning. Same with the winter solstice, the days start to get longer and the rebirth of Mother Earth is on its way.
At least the autumnal equinox is called autumn. I find it the most wonderful of seasons. Certainly spring with all its color and sexual verve is exciting after the doldrums of February and March. But the clear sky’s and perfect temperatures after August’s frightful heat, humidity and haze is so refreshing.
Maybe it’s the bitter sweet knowledge that so perfect a time of year is leading us into the depths of winter. But we are soothed and cajoled by autumn. With its warm days and brisk winds for the best of the sailing season and the cool nights that make being under the covers a joy.
So here’s to autumn. Not so much an ending but a bucolic and wonderful season that stands on its own.
I like the idea of following the cycles of the sun and moon. I never understood why the summer solstice, when the days start to get shorter is called the beginning of summer. It’s more an end than a beginning. Same with the winter solstice, the days start to get longer and the rebirth of Mother Earth is on its way.
At least the autumnal equinox is called autumn. I find it the most wonderful of seasons. Certainly spring with all its color and sexual verve is exciting after the doldrums of February and March. But the clear sky’s and perfect temperatures after August’s frightful heat, humidity and haze is so refreshing.
Maybe it’s the bitter sweet knowledge that so perfect a time of year is leading us into the depths of winter. But we are soothed and cajoled by autumn. With its warm days and brisk winds for the best of the sailing season and the cool nights that make being under the covers a joy.
So here’s to autumn. Not so much an ending but a bucolic and wonderful season that stands on its own.
5/11/2004
AAaaahhhh…….
I spent the first weekend of the season on "Peregrine". It rained Saturday night but my enclosure for the pop top and a cockpit canopy kept me dry. It’s great to be back on the water and Oyster Bay is glorious this time of year. It was a long cold winter now it’s time to sail.
More on sailing as the season develops.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
I spent the first weekend of the season on "Peregrine". It rained Saturday night but my enclosure for the pop top and a cockpit canopy kept me dry. It’s great to be back on the water and Oyster Bay is glorious this time of year. It was a long cold winter now it’s time to sail.
More on sailing as the season develops.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
3/20/2004
A Year Latter
Today marks the first year since the start of the Iraq war. Bush has his cronies out in force protesting that the WMD’s were not the reason we went to war. But if you read Bush’s speech to the American people on March 20 2003 you will see that Bush used the WMD’s as the main reason we were sending our troops into Iraq.
Here are a couple of quotes,”, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq, to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.”
Clearly the “disarm Iraq” relates to the WMD’s and he infers that the entire world is in danger of nuclear harm.
He goes on to say “The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.” How much more clear can he get? He says we are fighting to stop an outlaw who has WMD’s.
Don’t let his peons tell you differently.
He closes the speech with this little gem,” We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities. “
This is a reference to 9/11. He is saying that your homes and lives are at risk if we don’t go to war. He uses the fear of more bombings in our cities. That is not what a responsible President should be doing because he knew it was not true.
The speech was cynical and calculating. He used the speech to instill fear into all Americans.
Well to date NO WMD’s have been found and now over 500 American soldiers are dead, over 10,000 Iraqis are dead, 200 Spaniards are dead, and the Iraqi people live in chaos.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Today marks the first year since the start of the Iraq war. Bush has his cronies out in force protesting that the WMD’s were not the reason we went to war. But if you read Bush’s speech to the American people on March 20 2003 you will see that Bush used the WMD’s as the main reason we were sending our troops into Iraq.
Here are a couple of quotes,”, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq, to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.”
Clearly the “disarm Iraq” relates to the WMD’s and he infers that the entire world is in danger of nuclear harm.
He goes on to say “The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.” How much more clear can he get? He says we are fighting to stop an outlaw who has WMD’s.
Don’t let his peons tell you differently.
He closes the speech with this little gem,” We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities. “
This is a reference to 9/11. He is saying that your homes and lives are at risk if we don’t go to war. He uses the fear of more bombings in our cities. That is not what a responsible President should be doing because he knew it was not true.
The speech was cynical and calculating. He used the speech to instill fear into all Americans.
Well to date NO WMD’s have been found and now over 500 American soldiers are dead, over 10,000 Iraqis are dead, 200 Spaniards are dead, and the Iraqi people live in chaos.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
3/01/2004
Super Tuesday indeed.
Tomorrow we vote. As usual NY is voting when the outcome is no longer in doubt. In the past I have used my vote to keep the dialogue alive by voting for Jessie Jackson and Jerry Brown. Not that I would have wanted either to be President but I wanted to keep the democrats in the news and continuing to talk about ALL the issues.
This time I will vote for the front runner and IMO opinion the next democratic nominee for President, John Kerry.
Tomorrow we vote. As usual NY is voting when the outcome is no longer in doubt. In the past I have used my vote to keep the dialogue alive by voting for Jessie Jackson and Jerry Brown. Not that I would have wanted either to be President but I wanted to keep the democrats in the news and continuing to talk about ALL the issues.
This time I will vote for the front runner and IMO opinion the next democratic nominee for President, John Kerry.
The Remodeling is in Phase II
The Russians left today!!
They cleaned up and left today at 4pm. I have new bathroom and most of a new kitchen. Both came out great. Now my work starts. I have to strip the kitchen cabinet doors and put new hardware on them, all 18 doors, then paint the kitchen and hang the center fixture, an old factory glass shade. Then I have to paint the rest of the apartment. Whew. Lots to do but the ordeal of construction is over. Yeah!!
The Russians left today!!
They cleaned up and left today at 4pm. I have new bathroom and most of a new kitchen. Both came out great. Now my work starts. I have to strip the kitchen cabinet doors and put new hardware on them, all 18 doors, then paint the kitchen and hang the center fixture, an old factory glass shade. Then I have to paint the rest of the apartment. Whew. Lots to do but the ordeal of construction is over. Yeah!!
2/24/2004
On to Politics
Did you hear President Bush’s speech yesterday on gay marriage? Today he is goading on the right-wingers in the congress to amend the constitution to ban gay marriage. The constitution? This is a religious fight and we cannot have zealots messing with the constitution to pawn their brand of religion on the country. This is an administration driven by religious fundamentalists no less dangerous than the ruling power in Iran. Separation of church and state means just that keep government and religion separate and the objection to gay marriage is religious. Even thinking of amending the constitution for a religious belief is wrong.
To quote President Bush’s speech ;
“An amendment to the Constitution is never to be undertaken lightly. The amendment process has addressed many serious matters of national concern, and the preservation of marriage rises to this level of national importance.
The union of a man and woman is the most enduring human institution, honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith.
Marriage cannot be severed from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening the good influence of society.”
There is no question that Bush and the right wing Christians intend to have their religion dominate every aspect of our lives.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Did you hear President Bush’s speech yesterday on gay marriage? Today he is goading on the right-wingers in the congress to amend the constitution to ban gay marriage. The constitution? This is a religious fight and we cannot have zealots messing with the constitution to pawn their brand of religion on the country. This is an administration driven by religious fundamentalists no less dangerous than the ruling power in Iran. Separation of church and state means just that keep government and religion separate and the objection to gay marriage is religious. Even thinking of amending the constitution for a religious belief is wrong.
To quote President Bush’s speech ;
“An amendment to the Constitution is never to be undertaken lightly. The amendment process has addressed many serious matters of national concern, and the preservation of marriage rises to this level of national importance.
The union of a man and woman is the most enduring human institution, honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith.
Marriage cannot be severed from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening the good influence of society.”
There is no question that Bush and the right wing Christians intend to have their religion dominate every aspect of our lives.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Remodeling Redux
Day 13 Friday 2/20/02
Disappointment. I get home to find no work has been done. I had been brought home by Artie who cut up some plywood for shelves etc. and to find the work not done was really a bummer. It could be it was the 13th day. I called Gregory who said “I told you” well his English is not the best so I didn’t understand. Ultimately I see why but that is not enough to appease me. There was/is only for hours work to finish the bathroom and that would have wasted a day of one of his most valuable men. So on Tuesday two guys will come finish the bathroom and get started on the kitchen. Oh well it will soon be over then my work starts. I still have to paint the entire apt and strip and paint the kitchen cabinets.
Day 14 Tuesday 2/24
Walking home from work I ran into the real estate broker who sold me my apt. and she said a smaller one bedroom in this building ended up in a bidding war and got $15K more than asked! In just five months I‘ve already made good money on the apt.
Outside my building is a big truck and I asked the driver if he had delivered a stove and fridge. Indeed my new appliances are here. They are stainless and black, very cool. There is loud Russian rock and roll blaring on my portable radio and Vitali is painting away in the bathroom the floor in the kitchen has a layer of luan down and the counter is gone. Progress at last! There might be a chance the Russians will history by the end of the week but I am afraid to jinx it so just go in my bedroom and close the door.
Day 13 Friday 2/20/02
Disappointment. I get home to find no work has been done. I had been brought home by Artie who cut up some plywood for shelves etc. and to find the work not done was really a bummer. It could be it was the 13th day. I called Gregory who said “I told you” well his English is not the best so I didn’t understand. Ultimately I see why but that is not enough to appease me. There was/is only for hours work to finish the bathroom and that would have wasted a day of one of his most valuable men. So on Tuesday two guys will come finish the bathroom and get started on the kitchen. Oh well it will soon be over then my work starts. I still have to paint the entire apt and strip and paint the kitchen cabinets.
Day 14 Tuesday 2/24
Walking home from work I ran into the real estate broker who sold me my apt. and she said a smaller one bedroom in this building ended up in a bidding war and got $15K more than asked! In just five months I‘ve already made good money on the apt.
Outside my building is a big truck and I asked the driver if he had delivered a stove and fridge. Indeed my new appliances are here. They are stainless and black, very cool. There is loud Russian rock and roll blaring on my portable radio and Vitali is painting away in the bathroom the floor in the kitchen has a layer of luan down and the counter is gone. Progress at last! There might be a chance the Russians will history by the end of the week but I am afraid to jinx it so just go in my bedroom and close the door.
2/19/2004
Light at the End of the Tunnel
The remodeling continues.
I have a toilet. Yeah!! Of course nothing is going the way "Vitali" would have hoped. First the floor is lower so he had to cut the toilet drain down to the floor which was messy to say the least. Then a plastic part broke inside the flush mechanism, luckily the super had the part. Now he is installing the pedestal sink and he just found out the floor is not level so he will have to shim the base. I looked up the sink on the web and found the Toto pedestal sink is pictured with the same faucet I chose.
Vitali is Gregori's main man and he stoically goes about his business and solves each problem in a methodical way.
I bought towels today and will get a rug, shower curtain and new toilet seat tomorrow while I am near BB&B. Those of you with out a Bed Bath and Beyond it is a one stop urban supplier for all the things for the NYC apartment. We couldn't live without it.
By the time Vitali left the sink was in and working a third layer of plaster is on the walls which are now ready for paint and we set the placement for all the towel bars glass shelves and even a four foot stainless shelf which sits high in the wall opposite the mirror so the door will clear under it. Supplies not needed every day will live there. A trip to the Container Store will fill that shelf with matching boxes.
By the time I get home from work the bathroom will be usable. Next the kitchen. The good news is Gregori wanted me to order the appliances today to be delivered on Tuesday. I know he is ready for this job to be done which is good for me. The faster the better.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
The remodeling continues.
I have a toilet. Yeah!! Of course nothing is going the way "Vitali" would have hoped. First the floor is lower so he had to cut the toilet drain down to the floor which was messy to say the least. Then a plastic part broke inside the flush mechanism, luckily the super had the part. Now he is installing the pedestal sink and he just found out the floor is not level so he will have to shim the base. I looked up the sink on the web and found the Toto pedestal sink is pictured with the same faucet I chose.
Vitali is Gregori's main man and he stoically goes about his business and solves each problem in a methodical way.
I bought towels today and will get a rug, shower curtain and new toilet seat tomorrow while I am near BB&B. Those of you with out a Bed Bath and Beyond it is a one stop urban supplier for all the things for the NYC apartment. We couldn't live without it.
By the time Vitali left the sink was in and working a third layer of plaster is on the walls which are now ready for paint and we set the placement for all the towel bars glass shelves and even a four foot stainless shelf which sits high in the wall opposite the mirror so the door will clear under it. Supplies not needed every day will live there. A trip to the Container Store will fill that shelf with matching boxes.
By the time I get home from work the bathroom will be usable. Next the kitchen. The good news is Gregori wanted me to order the appliances today to be delivered on Tuesday. I know he is ready for this job to be done which is good for me. The faster the better.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Love & Marriage
Two friends of mine waited three hours and got married in San Francisco yesterday. They have been a couple for many years and have the protection of same sex couple benefits but yesterday they were allowed to do what most people in America take for granted, they are “married”. I don’t want to go on too much about same sex marriage per say. With the divorce rate at 50% or higher in America the straight world should embrace anyone who wants to build a long term loving relationship with another person.
What I really want to talk about is way our President has defined the argument. He and his Christian right government talk about the “tyranny of judiciary “.. He has decided that the judiciary branch of the government is the enemy. In other words the executive branch wants to rule without the benefit of the courts. This is a direct assault on the way we govern ourselves. The last time Bush used the word tyranny he bombed the crap out of Iraq. Take a look at the judges Bush has put forward. Charles Pickering, Priscilla Owen, Miguel Estrada these people are right wing ideologues looking to use their judgeships to put forward a Christian fundamentalist view. They openly oppose abortion, same sex marriage and will support the executive branches abuse of privacy. There is no difference between the Bush administrations stacking of the judiciary with religious zealots and the Imams controlling the Iranian government.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, Texas Republican, said.
"We are pushing a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. We're working on one, we're trying to bring everybody together," he said. "When you have a runaway judiciary, which we obviously have, that has no consideration for the Constitution of the United States, then we have available to us through that Constitution [a way] to fix the judiciary."
This no less than an attempt to circumvent the legal system which does not fit their view of morality.
I think we should all be thankful for Mayor Gavin Newsom's brave and historic dictum to allow same sex marriages.
Now I know most of you waiting with bated breath for the latest report on the remodeling. Well the toilet just got hooked up and I am hoping for a working sink by the end of the day. I’ll update the work latter this evening.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Two friends of mine waited three hours and got married in San Francisco yesterday. They have been a couple for many years and have the protection of same sex couple benefits but yesterday they were allowed to do what most people in America take for granted, they are “married”. I don’t want to go on too much about same sex marriage per say. With the divorce rate at 50% or higher in America the straight world should embrace anyone who wants to build a long term loving relationship with another person.
What I really want to talk about is way our President has defined the argument. He and his Christian right government talk about the “tyranny of judiciary “.. He has decided that the judiciary branch of the government is the enemy. In other words the executive branch wants to rule without the benefit of the courts. This is a direct assault on the way we govern ourselves. The last time Bush used the word tyranny he bombed the crap out of Iraq. Take a look at the judges Bush has put forward. Charles Pickering, Priscilla Owen, Miguel Estrada these people are right wing ideologues looking to use their judgeships to put forward a Christian fundamentalist view. They openly oppose abortion, same sex marriage and will support the executive branches abuse of privacy. There is no difference between the Bush administrations stacking of the judiciary with religious zealots and the Imams controlling the Iranian government.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, Texas Republican, said.
"We are pushing a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. We're working on one, we're trying to bring everybody together," he said. "When you have a runaway judiciary, which we obviously have, that has no consideration for the Constitution of the United States, then we have available to us through that Constitution [a way] to fix the judiciary."
This no less than an attempt to circumvent the legal system which does not fit their view of morality.
I think we should all be thankful for Mayor Gavin Newsom's brave and historic dictum to allow same sex marriages.
Now I know most of you waiting with bated breath for the latest report on the remodeling. Well the toilet just got hooked up and I am hoping for a working sink by the end of the day. I’ll update the work latter this evening.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
2/18/2004
Thank You and Good Bye Dr. Dean
Just a quick political note before I get back to the report on the remodeling. Last night I wrote the following to as many places on the Howard Dean web site; as I could find.
"QUIT NOW!!
As a Vietnam veteran I will be voting for the man who not only fought in Vietnam but led the Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
Your campaign is over. You have done well now go home."
Today we wake up to hear he will announce the end of campaign. Do I think he listened to me? Of course not but each message is tallied. Whether you write your congress person or the White House, be sure to state your position right up front and keep the message short. Basically you will be sending a pro or con message and it will be counted as such if you keep it brief.
Howard Dean was good for the party and made the race interesting and has kept the Democratic Party in the headlines. It is now up to Kerry and Edwards to continue the dialogue and make the case against what I feel is the most dangerous administration since Eisenhower. Eisenhower allowed South America to be plundered by corporate thieves and threw out Iraq’s last chance for democracy by supporting coup that put the Shaw in place. Now the Bush administration has turned Afghanistan into a mire and lied to the American people to start a war that was planned long before 9/11.
Can Kerry win it? It will be a long hard road and the Christian Right will be fighting with all their efforts. But the fight has to at least define the position against a government of ideologues.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
Just a quick political note before I get back to the report on the remodeling. Last night I wrote the following to as many places on the Howard Dean web site; as I could find.
"QUIT NOW!!
As a Vietnam veteran I will be voting for the man who not only fought in Vietnam but led the Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
Your campaign is over. You have done well now go home."
Today we wake up to hear he will announce the end of campaign. Do I think he listened to me? Of course not but each message is tallied. Whether you write your congress person or the White House, be sure to state your position right up front and keep the message short. Basically you will be sending a pro or con message and it will be counted as such if you keep it brief.
Howard Dean was good for the party and made the race interesting and has kept the Democratic Party in the headlines. It is now up to Kerry and Edwards to continue the dialogue and make the case against what I feel is the most dangerous administration since Eisenhower. Eisenhower allowed South America to be plundered by corporate thieves and threw out Iraq’s last chance for democracy by supporting coup that put the Shaw in place. Now the Bush administration has turned Afghanistan into a mire and lied to the American people to start a war that was planned long before 9/11.
Can Kerry win it? It will be a long hard road and the Christian Right will be fighting with all their efforts. But the fight has to at least define the position against a government of ideologues.
Highlighted words are hot links that open in a new window.
2/17/2004
Day 10 Tuesday 2.17.2004
Its 4:45 and Sasha just left. He’s in a little bit of trouble because it’s his wife’s birthday and he had hoped to get out early. But it turned out to be a long day in the bathroom. Today he had to fit all the floor tiles which are on a diagonal and cut the wall tiles around all the pipes. To finish it off he set the threshold before he left. The threshold is the best part, Gregory bought a black and green marble threshold that looks so classy next to the green tiles. He usually uses gray marble but he knew this was a great finishing touch.
Gregory took me to the paint store where I got the usual primer and decorators white but for two walls I am using Benjamin Moore #1583 a light celadon, it’s just enough to pick up the color of the floor.
It seems like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Sasha will do the grout in the morning then the plasterer will do his second coat and then the painting after that all the appliances and towel bars etc. It could be a bathroom by the end of the week.
Its 4:45 and Sasha just left. He’s in a little bit of trouble because it’s his wife’s birthday and he had hoped to get out early. But it turned out to be a long day in the bathroom. Today he had to fit all the floor tiles which are on a diagonal and cut the wall tiles around all the pipes. To finish it off he set the threshold before he left. The threshold is the best part, Gregory bought a black and green marble threshold that looks so classy next to the green tiles. He usually uses gray marble but he knew this was a great finishing touch.
Gregory took me to the paint store where I got the usual primer and decorators white but for two walls I am using Benjamin Moore #1583 a light celadon, it’s just enough to pick up the color of the floor.
It seems like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Sasha will do the grout in the morning then the plasterer will do his second coat and then the painting after that all the appliances and towel bars etc. It could be a bathroom by the end of the week.
2/16/2004
Day 9 continued
The toilet is now sitting in the tub and the floor tiles are being laid. They really look great. Sasha is at the point of fitting them around the toilet and the pipe for the tub cut off. Slow work but he is good and meticulous. With the toilet out I am off to stay in Manhattan with friends. Back in the AM to buy paint and see the progress.
The toilet is now sitting in the tub and the floor tiles are being laid. They really look great. Sasha is at the point of fitting them around the toilet and the pipe for the tub cut off. Slow work but he is good and meticulous. With the toilet out I am off to stay in Manhattan with friends. Back in the AM to buy paint and see the progress.
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