I'd never heard of the Waldseemüller map--a 1507 map by cartographer Martin Waldseemüller, that is supposedly the earliest map that refers to "America." The Library of Congress purchased the map several years ago, but Angela Merkl is set to officially "hand over" the map to the LOC, while she's in D.C. (and probably hoping she won't get felt up by GW).
Anyway, NPR had a piece about the map on All Things Considered today, but here is also a link to more background about the map.
Interesting.
4.30.2007
4.29.2007
Happy Ending in 30 Minutes or Less.....or Pizza is Free!
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Randall Tobias, in the media frenzy accompanying the revelation that *gasp* a powerful White guy paid for sex apparently thinking he'd be able to do so without anyone ever finding out, didn't take time to think about how his reaction would reveal his misogyny. Apparently, he equates his careless fondness for take-out sex with "ordering a pizza".
This is particularly curious as Dear Leader appointed Tobias to oversee administration AIDS policy and demanded that any group that received government "anti-AIDS" funds (what exactly does that mean, I wonder?) also take a "anti-prostitution loyalty oath"--that prostitution is "inherently harmful and dehumanizing". Tobias has also defended himself by pointing to his oversight of programs designed to help "men and boys develop healthy relationships with women." Nice. How about programs designed to help women realize just how much men truly hate them?
This is particularly curious as Dear Leader appointed Tobias to oversee administration AIDS policy and demanded that any group that received government "anti-AIDS" funds (what exactly does that mean, I wonder?) also take a "anti-prostitution loyalty oath"--that prostitution is "inherently harmful and dehumanizing". Tobias has also defended himself by pointing to his oversight of programs designed to help "men and boys develop healthy relationships with women." Nice. How about programs designed to help women realize just how much men truly hate them?
4.24.2007
T.S. Eliot (1922)
The Waste Land
I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD
April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
Winter kept us warm, covering
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
A little life with dried tubers.
Summer surprised us, coming over the Starnbergersee
With a shower of rain; we stopped in the colonnade
And went on in sunlight, into the Hofgarten,
And drank coffee, and talked for an hour.
Bin gar keine Russin, stamm' aus Litauen, echt deutsch.
And when we were children, staying at the arch-duke's,
My cousin's, he took me out on a sled,
And I was frightened. He said, Marie,
Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.
In the mountains, there you feel free.
I read, much of the night, and go south in winter.
What are the roots that clutch, what branches grow
Out of this stony rubbish? Son of man,
You cannot say, or guess, for you know only
A heap of broken images, where the sun beats,
And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief,
And the dry stone no sound of water. Only
There is shadow under this red rock
(Come in under the shadow of this red rock),
And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.
Frisch weht der Wind
Der heimat zu
Mein Irisch kind,
Wo weilest du?
"You gave me hyacinths first a year ago;"
"They called me the hyacinth girl."
--Yet when we came back, late, from the hyacinth garden,
Your arms full, and your hair wet, I could not
Speak, and my eyes failed, I was neither
Living nor dead, and I knew nothing,
Looking into the heart of light, the silence.
Öd' und leer das Meer.
Madame Sosostris, famous clairvoyante,
Has a bad cold, nevertheless
Is known to be the wisest woman in Europe,
With a wicked pack of cards. Here, said she,
Is your card, the drowned Phoenician Sailor.
(Those are pearls that were his eyes. Look!)
Here is Belladonna, the Lady of the Rocks,
The lady of situations.
Here is the man with three staves, and here the Wheel,
And here is the one-eyed merchant, and this card,
Which is blank, is something that he carries on his back,
Which I am forbidden to see. I do not find
The Hanged Man. Fear death by water.
I see crowds of people, walking round in a ring.
Thank you. If you see dear Mrs. Equitone,
Tell her I bring the horoscope myself;
One must be so careful these days.
Unreal City
Under the brown fog of a winter dawn,
A crowd flowed over London Bridge, so many,
I had not thought death had undone so many.
Sighs, short and infrequent, were exhaled,
And each man fixed his eyes before his feet,
Flowed up the hill and down King William Street
To where Saint Mary Woolnoth kept the hours
With a dead sound on the final stroke of nine.
There I saw one I knew, and stopped him, crying, "Stetson!
You who were with me in the ships at Mylae!
That corpse you planted last year in your garden,
Has it begun to sprout? Will it bloom this year?
Or has the sudden frost disturbed its bed?
Oh keep the Dog far hence, that's friend to men,
Or with his nails he'll dig it up again!
You! hypocrite lecteur!--mon semblable!--mon frère!"
The Waste Land
I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD
April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
Winter kept us warm, covering
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
A little life with dried tubers.
Summer surprised us, coming over the Starnbergersee
With a shower of rain; we stopped in the colonnade
And went on in sunlight, into the Hofgarten,
And drank coffee, and talked for an hour.
Bin gar keine Russin, stamm' aus Litauen, echt deutsch.
And when we were children, staying at the arch-duke's,
My cousin's, he took me out on a sled,
And I was frightened. He said, Marie,
Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.
In the mountains, there you feel free.
I read, much of the night, and go south in winter.
What are the roots that clutch, what branches grow
Out of this stony rubbish? Son of man,
You cannot say, or guess, for you know only
A heap of broken images, where the sun beats,
And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief,
And the dry stone no sound of water. Only
There is shadow under this red rock
(Come in under the shadow of this red rock),
And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.
Frisch weht der Wind
Der heimat zu
Mein Irisch kind,
Wo weilest du?
"You gave me hyacinths first a year ago;"
"They called me the hyacinth girl."
--Yet when we came back, late, from the hyacinth garden,
Your arms full, and your hair wet, I could not
Speak, and my eyes failed, I was neither
Living nor dead, and I knew nothing,
Looking into the heart of light, the silence.
Öd' und leer das Meer.
Madame Sosostris, famous clairvoyante,
Has a bad cold, nevertheless
Is known to be the wisest woman in Europe,
With a wicked pack of cards. Here, said she,
Is your card, the drowned Phoenician Sailor.
(Those are pearls that were his eyes. Look!)
Here is Belladonna, the Lady of the Rocks,
The lady of situations.
Here is the man with three staves, and here the Wheel,
And here is the one-eyed merchant, and this card,
Which is blank, is something that he carries on his back,
Which I am forbidden to see. I do not find
The Hanged Man. Fear death by water.
I see crowds of people, walking round in a ring.
Thank you. If you see dear Mrs. Equitone,
Tell her I bring the horoscope myself;
One must be so careful these days.
Unreal City
Under the brown fog of a winter dawn,
A crowd flowed over London Bridge, so many,
I had not thought death had undone so many.
Sighs, short and infrequent, were exhaled,
And each man fixed his eyes before his feet,
Flowed up the hill and down King William Street
To where Saint Mary Woolnoth kept the hours
With a dead sound on the final stroke of nine.
There I saw one I knew, and stopped him, crying, "Stetson!
You who were with me in the ships at Mylae!
That corpse you planted last year in your garden,
Has it begun to sprout? Will it bloom this year?
Or has the sudden frost disturbed its bed?
Oh keep the Dog far hence, that's friend to men,
Or with his nails he'll dig it up again!
You! hypocrite lecteur!--mon semblable!--mon frère!"
4.23.2007
2007 Pulitzer--Feature Photography
This year's Pulitzer Prize winner for Feature Photography was won by Renee C. Byer of the Sacramento Bee for her series of photographs featuring a 10-year old boy dying of cancer, and his mother. Here is a link to the series, but I would urge that if you look at them, you do so when you are in a place to cry, if you need to. I frequently rage about senseless loss of life, but I am humbled when I am reminded about the magnitude of suffering that many, many people experience and then must absorb as part of continuing life.
I realize my more recent posts have been from an angry and very sad side--and it is with some reluctance that I provide a link to these photographs. However, I found them to be very moving, and for me, they provided a link back to that part of me that still belives human beings have a real capacity for compassion, devotion, and pure love.
I realize my more recent posts have been from an angry and very sad side--and it is with some reluctance that I provide a link to these photographs. However, I found them to be very moving, and for me, they provided a link back to that part of me that still belives human beings have a real capacity for compassion, devotion, and pure love.
Overpowering Gun-Wielding Madmen for Dummies
I'd been ignoring reports of certain pundits publicly speculating as to why no one at Virginia Tech made the decision to recreate the heroics of Flight 93 ("Let's Roll!) and rush to disarm the gunman. One such pundit wondered why there was no apparent "spirit of self-defense".
I had dinner with my folks a couple of nights ago, and we started talking about this. I was rather surprised to hear that apparently he and my brother had wondered about the same thing, and before I knew it I was hearing their assertion that perhaps letting everyone carry a gun anywhere is indeed a good idea. I grew up, to some extent, around guns. My father owned more than a few and he even gave me a few shooting lessons. He would hunt now and then, but his guns were always kept in a locked storeroom and other than when he'd go hunting (which wasn't often), we'd never see them. I never heard my parents talk about the need to have a gun around for self-defense. They chuckled when their liberal daughter reacted in the expected way to Dad's suggestion that he teach my two nephews (but not my niece, interestingly enough) how to shoot.
I'm accustomed to feeling odd-woman out when it comes to certain discussions in my family, but I was actually a bit surprised to hear them affirming the NRA party line. So, am I just completely out of touch with this? Colorado, like my home state of Texas, is big on guns, and so God only knows how many people I come in contact with at the grocery store, the post office, etc., who are packing heat. Would this really make me safer in case some deranged person decides to shoot up the produce section at Safeway while I'm picking out tomatoes? I'm wondering also--if the armed forces of the United States, with their sophisticated war machines cannot prevent our soldiers from being killed from "friendly fire", how on earth is the average citizen going to be protected from a Dirty Harry wannabee standing in line at the post office?
So here's a interesting piece from The Explainer at Slate.com. If you're already up on just what to do when facing the possibility of being attacked by a grizzly bear or a mountain lion, then make sure you'd be prepared to know when to fight or fly from a crazy person with a gun.
I had dinner with my folks a couple of nights ago, and we started talking about this. I was rather surprised to hear that apparently he and my brother had wondered about the same thing, and before I knew it I was hearing their assertion that perhaps letting everyone carry a gun anywhere is indeed a good idea. I grew up, to some extent, around guns. My father owned more than a few and he even gave me a few shooting lessons. He would hunt now and then, but his guns were always kept in a locked storeroom and other than when he'd go hunting (which wasn't often), we'd never see them. I never heard my parents talk about the need to have a gun around for self-defense. They chuckled when their liberal daughter reacted in the expected way to Dad's suggestion that he teach my two nephews (but not my niece, interestingly enough) how to shoot.
I'm accustomed to feeling odd-woman out when it comes to certain discussions in my family, but I was actually a bit surprised to hear them affirming the NRA party line. So, am I just completely out of touch with this? Colorado, like my home state of Texas, is big on guns, and so God only knows how many people I come in contact with at the grocery store, the post office, etc., who are packing heat. Would this really make me safer in case some deranged person decides to shoot up the produce section at Safeway while I'm picking out tomatoes? I'm wondering also--if the armed forces of the United States, with their sophisticated war machines cannot prevent our soldiers from being killed from "friendly fire", how on earth is the average citizen going to be protected from a Dirty Harry wannabee standing in line at the post office?
So here's a interesting piece from The Explainer at Slate.com. If you're already up on just what to do when facing the possibility of being attacked by a grizzly bear or a mountain lion, then make sure you'd be prepared to know when to fight or fly from a crazy person with a gun.
4.17.2007
Prettiness
I regret to say that I wasn't shocked when I heard about the mass murder at Virginia Tech. Grieved, yes, but when in class today and yesterday, I noticed that other people expressed sadness, but everyone seems rather inured to this kind of violence. The flags to go half-mast, the 24 hour news cycle minions go into hyperdrive, George Bush goes on television to express the grief of a nation (but no pondering of why this never happens in say....France, or U.K.), and the requisite parading of testimonials from people who, in the midst of their trauma, are able to spare a few minutes for Good Morning, America. I predict that eventually Oprah will have survivors and parents of victims on her show, that there will be a moment of silence on "Dancing With The Stars", and that there will be an episode of "Law and Order" eerily reminiscent of the VT massacre. This senseless tragedy is made more wretched by media's scripted tragi-tainment that now inevitably follows such an event.
I heard that at today's memorial service, one of the speakers repeated "We will prevail" numerous times which was followed by chanting of "Let's go, Hokies!" If that actually comforted people, then who am I to argue--but I can't help but wonder when people will tire of finding comfort from platitudes delivered by a disingenuous President who serves the gun lobby and admit the outrageous reality that had this young man not had such easy access to a firearm, most or all of his victims would still be alive today.
*****
Well, I'd intended to only mention a few thoughts re the VT tragedy and point out that while people are mourning these losses, the media has taken the time to point out that John Edwards is sort of a girly-man when it comes to his hair. CNN pointed out that "looking pretty" is helping to deplete Edwards' campaign bank account. Not "handsome", but "pretty". Would other male candidate's grooming proclivities ever be described by the more feminine-sounding "pretty?" Did Ann Coulter contribute to this piece?
I heard that at today's memorial service, one of the speakers repeated "We will prevail" numerous times which was followed by chanting of "Let's go, Hokies!" If that actually comforted people, then who am I to argue--but I can't help but wonder when people will tire of finding comfort from platitudes delivered by a disingenuous President who serves the gun lobby and admit the outrageous reality that had this young man not had such easy access to a firearm, most or all of his victims would still be alive today.
*****
Well, I'd intended to only mention a few thoughts re the VT tragedy and point out that while people are mourning these losses, the media has taken the time to point out that John Edwards is sort of a girly-man when it comes to his hair. CNN pointed out that "looking pretty" is helping to deplete Edwards' campaign bank account. Not "handsome", but "pretty". Would other male candidate's grooming proclivities ever be described by the more feminine-sounding "pretty?" Did Ann Coulter contribute to this piece?
4.11.2007
Connecticut Residents Testify Against Human-Dolphin Marriage
Just in time for them to testify against proposed legislation that would legalize same-sex marriage in Connecticut, certain Mensa member residents mounted these intellectually rigorous objections to sex, particularly sex between women and dolphins. For the destruction of American society and the institution of marriage, you can blame abortion, homosexuality, contraception, fornication, defiance of natural law, and a little somethin' called cultural warming. Hi-larious.
I swear, if I'm ever called upon to testify before any legislative body, I'm going to wear a bag over my head in case I say something stupid and it gets posted on YouTube.
I swear, if I'm ever called upon to testify before any legislative body, I'm going to wear a bag over my head in case I say something stupid and it gets posted on YouTube.
4.09.2007
Giant Muffins
I've never really understood the appeal of muffins the size of my head, but this postcard I found over at PostSecret made me laugh remembering the crazy-ass stuff my ex-mother-in-law used to buy me.
4.02.2007
Everyone's Favorite Xenophobe
He has to be from somewhere I guess, but unfortunately he was awarded a congressional salary and benefits by a group of voters in Colorado's 6th Congressional District.
He's all for building the giant wall between the U.S. and Mexico (but not Canada?), and the two biggest threats to the U.S. are"the act of immigration combined with the cult of multiculturalism." "We will never be able to win in the clash of civilizations if we don't know who we are. If Western civilization succumbs to the siren song of multiculturalism, I believe we are finished.”
Colorado is so proud.
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