the end of the world is nigh
Saturday, June 22, 2002
well, soccer has been interesting.
i'm still holding out hope that brazil will lose, but if turkey can't finish any better against them than they did against senegal there is no chance. south korea / germany? hmmm. that's a pickem, i think.
a germany / turkey final would be cause for mass rioting throughout germany, by the way.
tomorrow morning i'm going to drive to alabama and stay with my folks for a few weeks before moving to mexico. this should save a bit of money, as well as giving me a chance to spend quality time.
today is west virginia day. on this date in 1863, this state was born after seceding from the dirty rebel state of (east) virginia. motto of west virginia? montani semper libre.
speaking of semper libre, i saw "minority report" yesterday. it was excellent and dark and scary and timely. spielberg added a clumsy happy ending, but the rest of the movie was very much worth watching.
i'm still holding out hope that brazil will lose, but if turkey can't finish any better against them than they did against senegal there is no chance. south korea / germany? hmmm. that's a pickem, i think.
a germany / turkey final would be cause for mass rioting throughout germany, by the way.
tomorrow morning i'm going to drive to alabama and stay with my folks for a few weeks before moving to mexico. this should save a bit of money, as well as giving me a chance to spend quality time.
today is west virginia day. on this date in 1863, this state was born after seceding from the dirty rebel state of (east) virginia. motto of west virginia? montani semper libre.
speaking of semper libre, i saw "minority report" yesterday. it was excellent and dark and scary and timely. spielberg added a clumsy happy ending, but the rest of the movie was very much worth watching.
Friday, June 21, 2002
a small plane flew dangerously close to the white house and it (the white house) was evacuated: no one told bush (no joke) until later.
meanwhile, i await soccer.
hands up who (other than me) has a drunken englishman sleeping on his couch!
meanwhile, i await soccer.
hands up who (other than me) has a drunken englishman sleeping on his couch!
Wednesday, June 19, 2002
here is the story, in english, of "korea team fighting" (sorry for the lack of loveliness in linking):
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2002/04/23/200204230035.asp
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2002/04/23/200204230035.asp
Tuesday, June 18, 2002
KOREA TEAM FIGHTING also, by the way.
they won against italy team (not fighting).
google "korea team fighting", and you'll find the whole story of the phrase. i think it's funny.
they won against italy team (not fighting).
google "korea team fighting", and you'll find the whole story of the phrase. i think it's funny.
Monday, June 17, 2002
USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!USA TEAM FIGHTING!!!!
Sunday, June 16, 2002
THIS reminds me that the country which made me what i am (usa) is about to play the country in which i'm about to work (mexico) for the right to play the country which made birgit what she is (germany).
actually, it's even more tangled than that. i've studied and lived and worked in the u.s. and germany and am about to work in mexico. birgit has studied and lived in the u.s., studied and lived and worked in germany, and currently works in mexico. birgit will almost certainly go back to germany to work at some point. i would like to. neither of us are against the idea of working again/forever in the u.s. or germany or mexico.
i'm going to be torn to shreds by these games! good job birgit doesn't care much about soccer.
actually, it's even more tangled than that. i've studied and lived and worked in the u.s. and germany and am about to work in mexico. birgit has studied and lived in the u.s., studied and lived and worked in germany, and currently works in mexico. birgit will almost certainly go back to germany to work at some point. i would like to. neither of us are against the idea of working again/forever in the u.s. or germany or mexico.
i'm going to be torn to shreds by these games! good job birgit doesn't care much about soccer.
Friday, June 14, 2002
hehehe! an article in SPIEGEL ONLINE just pointed out that several times in the last few days (you probably heard it), dubyah used a variation on the line "we've got over 2400 people in custody. now [with the "arrest" of padilla] it's 2401".
i wish i was prominent, so that i could attach my name to THIS STATEMENT.
i hope THIS STATEMENT gets loads of press around the world.
i fear THIS STATEMENT will not show up in most american media outlets.
i hope THIS STATEMENT gets loads of press around the world.
i fear THIS STATEMENT will not show up in most american media outlets.
Korea team fighting!
i move that, in gratitude for their good work in dragging our sorry asses through to the second round, we withdraw our troops immediately!
i move that, in gratitude for their good work in dragging our sorry asses through to the second round, we withdraw our troops immediately!
Thursday, June 13, 2002
hardball, which i rarely watch due to a wierd allergy i have to chris matthews's voice, is discussing the recent decision by cnn's lou dobbs to no longer refer to the u.s. engaging in a war against terrorism. his (dobbs's) idea is that this is really a "war against islamists".
this will, no doubt, spark a small debate on semantics. right now, a guest (tashbih sayyed) has trotted out the "true muslims can't be terrorists" line. it is my understanding that all it takes to be a "true" muslim is to sincerely declare oneself to be one. same deal with being a "true" christian.
it strikes me that the core problem in many of the various conflicts in the middle east, the u.s. (not quite so violent at the moment), northern ireland, or other places is rooted precisely in how people *interpret* their religions.
i can think of one "easy" solution to ALL such problems: stop believing in any religion! of course that's unlikely to happen any time soon (if ever) for most people, and atheists have proven themselves more than capable of being as nasty as the next fella . . . sigh.
this will, no doubt, spark a small debate on semantics. right now, a guest (tashbih sayyed) has trotted out the "true muslims can't be terrorists" line. it is my understanding that all it takes to be a "true" muslim is to sincerely declare oneself to be one. same deal with being a "true" christian.
it strikes me that the core problem in many of the various conflicts in the middle east, the u.s. (not quite so violent at the moment), northern ireland, or other places is rooted precisely in how people *interpret* their religions.
i can think of one "easy" solution to ALL such problems: stop believing in any religion! of course that's unlikely to happen any time soon (if ever) for most people, and atheists have proven themselves more than capable of being as nasty as the next fella . . . sigh.
speaking of people attacking the greens . . . bushwatch has opened a new front. i guess this is some planned action from the left in the democratic party.
ugh.
if these weenie democrats were to spend as much time and energy attacking folks inside the democratic party (with whom they disagree on numerous issues) as they did attacking the greens (with whom they agree on numerous issues, then guess what . . .
FEWER PEOPLE WOULD SUPPORT GREENS BECAUSE THEY WOULDN'T SEE AS MUCH NEED FOR AN ALTERNATIVE!!!
dumbasses. they should look in the fucking mirror. they will see the faces of joe lieberman, zell miller, gray davis, bill clinton, al gore, etc etc etc. you can't have progress without progressives. you can't oppose conservatives in one breath and support them in the other.
ugh.
if these weenie democrats were to spend as much time and energy attacking folks inside the democratic party (with whom they disagree on numerous issues) as they did attacking the greens (with whom they agree on numerous issues, then guess what . . .
FEWER PEOPLE WOULD SUPPORT GREENS BECAUSE THEY WOULDN'T SEE AS MUCH NEED FOR AN ALTERNATIVE!!!
dumbasses. they should look in the fucking mirror. they will see the faces of joe lieberman, zell miller, gray davis, bill clinton, al gore, etc etc etc. you can't have progress without progressives. you can't oppose conservatives in one breath and support them in the other.
i've just added the following link to my links stuff on the left of this page: Eric Alterman: Altercation.
i have to say that, while i like just about everything i've ever read by eric alterman (he writes for The Nation, if you're wondering who he is), i do want to go on record as disagreeing strongly with him about the greens/nader. he was REALLY nasty about the nader candidacy during the 2000 election (and takes another poke in a recent entry on his site).
otherwise i dig him.
i have to say that, while i like just about everything i've ever read by eric alterman (he writes for The Nation, if you're wondering who he is), i do want to go on record as disagreeing strongly with him about the greens/nader. he was REALLY nasty about the nader candidacy during the 2000 election (and takes another poke in a recent entry on his site).
otherwise i dig him.
scott recently blogged on the meaning of terrror/ism/ists. this article: Robert Fisk: Bush's Weird War fits right into that discussion, particularly in this segment:
"Sure enough, Michael Elliott turned up in Time magazine last week to tell us that "not all terrorists are alike". There are, he claimed, "political terrorists" who have "an identifiable goal" and "millenarian terrorists" who have no "political agenda", who "owe their allegiance to a higher authority in heaven". So there you have it. If they'll talk to the Americans, terrorists are OK. If they won't, well then it's everlasting war. "
i know we know this, but what do we do with the knowledge?
"Sure enough, Michael Elliott turned up in Time magazine last week to tell us that "not all terrorists are alike". There are, he claimed, "political terrorists" who have "an identifiable goal" and "millenarian terrorists" who have no "political agenda", who "owe their allegiance to a higher authority in heaven". So there you have it. If they'll talk to the Americans, terrorists are OK. If they won't, well then it's everlasting war. "
i know we know this, but what do we do with the knowledge?
Wednesday, June 12, 2002
HAHNAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA SatireWire | GREENPEACE WILL NOW OPPOSE EVERYTHING.
not long ago i blogged about the mtv awards. i forgot to mention that mandm performed. i just don't get mandm. i thought the dido song was clever, but otherwise i don't see it. among other things (other things are below), i hate the self referential nature of his whole genre (an ironic thing to say in a blog, i realize).
mostly i'm upset about the things so deftly handled in the following link: The Eminem Shtick.
any thoughts on mandm, or similar themes?
mostly i'm upset about the things so deftly handled in the following link: The Eminem Shtick.
any thoughts on mandm, or similar themes?
Tuesday, June 11, 2002
UPDATE: padilla apparently has seen a lawyer. i've just heard her interviewed on the fox newspeak channel, and she is now seeking to see him again now that he's been transferred to the brig.
DER SPIEGEL notes, in an analysis of the recently announced capture of the "dirty bomber", that the tip came from Abu Zubaydah (a captured al quaida member alleged to be close to bin laden himself).
why is zubaydah being so helpful? is he pulling legs? he was, remember, the guy who recently warned of attacks in new york city. his warning turns out to appear to have been inspired by the film "godzilla". my my my.
of course, we'll likely never know much (or it will at least be a long time) since these folks will never get an open trial and we'll therefore never have evidence presented. sigh.
it has often been said, since 11 sept, that the terrorists hate us for our freedom and our "way of life" (this is suggested every few minutes in the awful commercial where the guy says he will fight terrorism by going to work!). if that is indeed the case (and i think it is only indirectly true: the direct cause seems likely to have been geopolitics) then we are showing them! with a mighty roar of righteous indignation, the american people have cried: "try to take away OUR freedoms, eh, you dastard? NEVER! we'll take them away from ourselves and rob you of your victory!"
ugh.
why is zubaydah being so helpful? is he pulling legs? he was, remember, the guy who recently warned of attacks in new york city. his warning turns out to appear to have been inspired by the film "godzilla". my my my.
of course, we'll likely never know much (or it will at least be a long time) since these folks will never get an open trial and we'll therefore never have evidence presented. sigh.
it has often been said, since 11 sept, that the terrorists hate us for our freedom and our "way of life" (this is suggested every few minutes in the awful commercial where the guy says he will fight terrorism by going to work!). if that is indeed the case (and i think it is only indirectly true: the direct cause seems likely to have been geopolitics) then we are showing them! with a mighty roar of righteous indignation, the american people have cried: "try to take away OUR freedoms, eh, you dastard? NEVER! we'll take them away from ourselves and rob you of your victory!"
ugh.
Monday, June 10, 2002
the u.s. and south korea tied. sigh. the u.s. was VERY lucky not to lose, as the koreans were far better in the second half. brad friedel should be framed and hung on a wall for his performance, and eddie pope and jeff agoos should cater to his every whim for eternity.
mayor quimby, on a simpson's rerun, just said that it is time for us "to face up to the un-face-up-to-able". i agree.
so johnny law has foiled a terrorist plot . . . hoo rah?
nevermind that the guy they have in custody . . .
is a native born u.s. citizen from new york city . . .
has been in custody since early may . . .
has not been charged with a crime . . .
has had no access to an attorney . . .
is HISPANIC . . .
is being held in a NAVAL BRIG . . .
and will probably never get the trial entitled him by the constitution.
the bullshit just keeps a flowin, and the fucking sheep herd that is the american public just keeps on looking away! this is AMAZING.
nevermind that the guy they have in custody . . .
is a native born u.s. citizen from new york city . . .
has been in custody since early may . . .
has not been charged with a crime . . .
has had no access to an attorney . . .
is HISPANIC . . .
is being held in a NAVAL BRIG . . .
and will probably never get the trial entitled him by the constitution.
the bullshit just keeps a flowin, and the fucking sheep herd that is the american public just keeps on looking away! this is AMAZING.
Sunday, June 09, 2002
the guardian asks what sort of superhero you are . . .
THIS has GOT to be the biggest coup in satire history!!! i am SOOOO crippled by laughter right now!
lennox lewis won over mike tyson in a knockout. he apparently dominated the entire fight after the first round. hopefully this will be the last we'll hear of tyson. hopefully he can now be locked up to get the intense help he seems to need.
any thoughts on boxing?
any thoughts on boxing?
Saturday, June 08, 2002
i am a close personal friend of one of the members of lupec >> ladies united for the preservation of endangered cocktails>> l - u - p - e - c.
this group has recently gotten lots of press. pretty cool deal!
this group has recently gotten lots of press. pretty cool deal!
Friday, June 07, 2002
ahem . . .
from today's New York Times (to read the whole thing, you'll have to log in with their site, but it is worth it):
All-American Osamas
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
ALISPELL, Mont.
We Americans have conjured so specific a vision of terrorists — swarthy, glowering Muslims mumbling fanatically about Allah — that we're missing the threat from home-grown nuts, people like David Burgert.
Mr. Burgert, a 38-year-old who last made a living renting out snowmobiles here in this spectacularly beautiful nook of northwestern Montana, had a terror plan that made Osama bin Laden's look rinky-dink. Not content merely to kill a few thousand people, Mr. Burgert's nine-member militia was planning a violent revolution and civil war to overthrow the entire United States government.
The plan, according to Sheriff James Dupont, was for the militia to use its machine guns, pipe bombs and 30,000 rounds of ammunition to assassinate 26 local officials (including Mr. Dupont), and then wipe out the National Guard when it arrived. After the panicked authorities sent in NATO troops, true American patriots would rise up, a ferocious war would ensue, and the U.S. would end up back in the hands of white Christians. . . .
from today's New York Times (to read the whole thing, you'll have to log in with their site, but it is worth it):
All-American Osamas
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
ALISPELL, Mont.
We Americans have conjured so specific a vision of terrorists — swarthy, glowering Muslims mumbling fanatically about Allah — that we're missing the threat from home-grown nuts, people like David Burgert.
Mr. Burgert, a 38-year-old who last made a living renting out snowmobiles here in this spectacularly beautiful nook of northwestern Montana, had a terror plan that made Osama bin Laden's look rinky-dink. Not content merely to kill a few thousand people, Mr. Burgert's nine-member militia was planning a violent revolution and civil war to overthrow the entire United States government.
The plan, according to Sheriff James Dupont, was for the militia to use its machine guns, pipe bombs and 30,000 rounds of ammunition to assassinate 26 local officials (including Mr. Dupont), and then wipe out the National Guard when it arrived. After the panicked authorities sent in NATO troops, true American patriots would rise up, a ferocious war would ensue, and the U.S. would end up back in the hands of white Christians. . . .
in a recent blog i mentioned a few pieces of evidence that the end of the world is nigh. i forgot to mention argentina. read Do cry for us.
sad and scary.
incidentally: birgit discussed the possibility of these very problems in her thesis on argentina's move to neo-liberal economics, written for her degree in bonn, IN 1998!!!
sad and scary.
incidentally: birgit discussed the possibility of these very problems in her thesis on argentina's move to neo-liberal economics, written for her degree in bonn, IN 1998!!!
Thursday, June 06, 2002
i'm halfway watching the mtv movie awards and, though i've not given it my full attention (and much of what i have seen has been sort of forgettable) i would suggest that when it is (inevitably) replayed over the next few days, you check out the opening sequence. jack black and sarah michelle geller do a really hillarious send up of "spiderman". i mean REALLY funny (depending, of course, on whether you've seen "spiderman" and whether you think jack black is funny).
later in the show there is a similar spoof of "the fellowship of the ring" and it is simlarly funny.
now there's a spoof of "panic room". so far, so funny, although i've not seen the movie (added bonus: will ferrel).
in another bit (not funny, but cool), action/comedy star chris tucker urges people to call their senators to urge increased aid to african countries for help in fighting aids. good job.
one last reference to the elephant in the corner: sad irony that more people have looked at my web page in the past two days than in all the months i've been doing this thing. oscar wilde was wrong. not being talked about is rather pleasant in comparison to some alternatives.
later in the show there is a similar spoof of "the fellowship of the ring" and it is simlarly funny.
now there's a spoof of "panic room". so far, so funny, although i've not seen the movie (added bonus: will ferrel).
in another bit (not funny, but cool), action/comedy star chris tucker urges people to call their senators to urge increased aid to african countries for help in fighting aids. good job.
one last reference to the elephant in the corner: sad irony that more people have looked at my web page in the past two days than in all the months i've been doing this thing. oscar wilde was wrong. not being talked about is rather pleasant in comparison to some alternatives.
Wednesday, June 05, 2002
i'm not sure, but i think ctrl-alt-ego@undisturbed.org thinks i've been trying to pick a fight. she claims not to be in the mood.
i suppose asking why she decided to slander me was provocative.
if (and this is a big if, since it seems plausible that she would have someone else "trying to pick a fight" with her) she does mean me and happens to read this, i have a message:
i'm not (and never have been and never will be) in the mood to have someone say patently untrue things about me and not even have the decency to allow for a rebuttal.
this has been bugging me all day. doggone it.
i suppose asking why she decided to slander me was provocative.
if (and this is a big if, since it seems plausible that she would have someone else "trying to pick a fight" with her) she does mean me and happens to read this, i have a message:
i'm not (and never have been and never will be) in the mood to have someone say patently untrue things about me and not even have the decency to allow for a rebuttal.
this has been bugging me all day. doggone it.
the u.s. beat portugal (a bittersweet day for jeff agoos, who did an own-goal) and ireland tied germany in the 90th minute (keeping their hopes alive).
good soccer.
i'm, of course, a bit conflicted about national team soccer. i'm no fan of the very concept of a nation state, but somehow watching it is fun. i particularly like to root for underdogs (and, in soccer at least, the u.s. is one). i guess that's why.
by the way: i posted a very polite comment to my accuser asking what it was that made her so angry. she deleted my comment with no comment of her own. i guess i'll never get any sort of closure on this one . . . sigh.
good soccer.
i'm, of course, a bit conflicted about national team soccer. i'm no fan of the very concept of a nation state, but somehow watching it is fun. i particularly like to root for underdogs (and, in soccer at least, the u.s. is one). i guess that's why.
by the way: i posted a very polite comment to my accuser asking what it was that made her so angry. she deleted my comment with no comment of her own. i guess i'll never get any sort of closure on this one . . . sigh.
hmmm. it seems that i am being discussed but no one has (yet) said anything of substance to me. i wonder if anyone looking at this has anything they'd like to say . . .
i forgot to add, by the way, that my correspondent asked if i opposed u.s. actions in afghanistan. i most certainly do. READ MY BLOG, WHOEVER YOU ARE, BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME!!!
golly gee whiz! thanks to scott and shelley i got accused of antisemitism.
well, it's not really their fault. they just guided me to a chat site. the chat site host and i started chatting. the chat site host asked if s/he should interpret my blog as anti-semitic. i answered something to the effect of "no. anti current israeli policy." s/he asked if i had an idea of how to deal with the terrorists. i said "arrest all one can arrest" (or soemthing like that) and then said that, since the bulk of the terrorists come from territory the israeli government claims not to want, the israeli govenment should pull out of said territory. if, then, terrorist attacks continued, israel would have clear moral high ground (i didn't get the chance to say this, but the idea is that, by genuinely pulling out of the west bank, israel would demonstrate solid interests in peace. any fighting thereafter would not reasonalbly be considered israel's fault).
before i was able to fully articulate this thought, i was accused (albeit indirectly) of being antisemitic and my link to the chat site cut out. harumph.
i defy anyone to find anything i've ever written which could be described as anti-semitic (or anti any sort of people: anti-capitalism doesn't count).
so much for debate.
well, it's not really their fault. they just guided me to a chat site. the chat site host and i started chatting. the chat site host asked if s/he should interpret my blog as anti-semitic. i answered something to the effect of "no. anti current israeli policy." s/he asked if i had an idea of how to deal with the terrorists. i said "arrest all one can arrest" (or soemthing like that) and then said that, since the bulk of the terrorists come from territory the israeli government claims not to want, the israeli govenment should pull out of said territory. if, then, terrorist attacks continued, israel would have clear moral high ground (i didn't get the chance to say this, but the idea is that, by genuinely pulling out of the west bank, israel would demonstrate solid interests in peace. any fighting thereafter would not reasonalbly be considered israel's fault).
before i was able to fully articulate this thought, i was accused (albeit indirectly) of being antisemitic and my link to the chat site cut out. harumph.
i defy anyone to find anything i've ever written which could be described as anti-semitic (or anti any sort of people: anti-capitalism doesn't count).
so much for debate.
Tuesday, June 04, 2002
YOU! over there! the one who finds u.s. support for israel difficult to understand . . . your problem is improper logic. see, you've been analyizing it in terms of realpolitik, but you really need to get right with GOD.
and for those of you who pay attention: you'll know i've said this before.
and for those of you who pay attention: you'll know i've said this before.
Monday, June 03, 2002
George Monbiot is very smart, but he doesn't seem to see why the looming nuclear (fucking) war between india and pakistan is a net gain for the west. lemmie suggest some perspective:
sure, 12 million people can be expected to die. so it goes. but some of them may have connections to the taliban or al quaida, so cheer up!
sure, lots of towns and cities will be destroyed. they'll need to be rebuilt . . . can i hear a "cha ching"?
sure, the bulk of the militaries of both countries might get destroyed. two words: cha ching.
one of the fears of the oil hawks is that pakistan (and, more importantly) india will consume enormous amounts of oil in the not too distant future, thereby cutting into supplies. no problem.
this helps greens, too, of course: reduced demand for energy, a big whack at population growth . . .
this could also demonstrate (for hawks in the u.s.) that a limited nuclear war is not so bad and can be won. woo hoo!
if mumbai/bombay is destroyed, hollywood can step in and finally supplant bollywood.
and finally, the number one reason why this ain't so bad: IT CANNOT POSSIBLY REALLY BE FUCKING HAPPENING!
the sweet smell of a dark sorrow lies over the land. plumes of smoke rise, and whirl into the leaden skies. a man lies and dreams of green fields and rivers, and awakes to a morning with no reason for awaking . . .
sure, 12 million people can be expected to die. so it goes. but some of them may have connections to the taliban or al quaida, so cheer up!
sure, lots of towns and cities will be destroyed. they'll need to be rebuilt . . . can i hear a "cha ching"?
sure, the bulk of the militaries of both countries might get destroyed. two words: cha ching.
one of the fears of the oil hawks is that pakistan (and, more importantly) india will consume enormous amounts of oil in the not too distant future, thereby cutting into supplies. no problem.
this helps greens, too, of course: reduced demand for energy, a big whack at population growth . . .
this could also demonstrate (for hawks in the u.s.) that a limited nuclear war is not so bad and can be won. woo hoo!
if mumbai/bombay is destroyed, hollywood can step in and finally supplant bollywood.
and finally, the number one reason why this ain't so bad: IT CANNOT POSSIBLY REALLY BE FUCKING HAPPENING!
the sweet smell of a dark sorrow lies over the land. plumes of smoke rise, and whirl into the leaden skies. a man lies and dreams of green fields and rivers, and awakes to a morning with no reason for awaking . . .
in response to popular demand (well, ok, calton's demand. but carlton's popular) i will now tell the story of how it is i came to seek and find employment here.
see, my dear sweet birgit works at the colegio aleman de guadalajara (i can't find a web link), and will be there for at least the next school year. i don't have to be in morgantown anymore. i could use a job. i can teach. they need someone to teach at the school linked above (not the same as the one at which birgit teaches). i'd like to be with her. i could use a change of scenery. sooo . . .
the job will be a course on advanced english essay writing. i'll be teaching advanced high schoolers (mexican unis often offer high school degrees, in addition to the regular stuff). i don't really want to fool with high schoolers, but at least i'll technically be working for a uni (not bad for the resume, and apparently the school has a good reputation). also, although the money isn't great, it is TWICE (at least) what i've been making at wvu and i'll also get insurance.
that's my story so far. i've not given up on my phd at all. i'm just doing the traditional "find some way to subsidise your dissertation" move.
see, my dear sweet birgit works at the colegio aleman de guadalajara (i can't find a web link), and will be there for at least the next school year. i don't have to be in morgantown anymore. i could use a job. i can teach. they need someone to teach at the school linked above (not the same as the one at which birgit teaches). i'd like to be with her. i could use a change of scenery. sooo . . .
the job will be a course on advanced english essay writing. i'll be teaching advanced high schoolers (mexican unis often offer high school degrees, in addition to the regular stuff). i don't really want to fool with high schoolers, but at least i'll technically be working for a uni (not bad for the resume, and apparently the school has a good reputation). also, although the money isn't great, it is TWICE (at least) what i've been making at wvu and i'll also get insurance.
that's my story so far. i've not given up on my phd at all. i'm just doing the traditional "find some way to subsidise your dissertation" move.
Sunday, June 02, 2002
hi.
i’ve not blogged in a while as i’ve been away from my cable modem for the past two weeks. more on that in a moment.
first: from time to time i get the feeling that i have a sixth sense. you know, that i can catch glimpses of the future. like “the shining”. like “greggie’s intuition”. like “spidey sense” (i had to put that one in there to stay hip, since we now live in the age of arachnus). like “the force” (does the new one suck as much as my spidey sense tells me it does?).
this feeling goes beyond the mundane. sure, i have correctly predicted, for almost three full decades, that the sun would rise in the morning (and i would note that i HAVE done this in several time zones). i also predicted that you would read this. there have been, in fact, far too many tiny predictions for me to even remember them all, much less for me to put in this blog. by far the biggest one yet, and the one of which i am most ashamed (because i wonder if i may have caused this prediction to come true just by making it) is the one contained in the title of this blog page. you see, it seems increasingly clear that
THE END OF THE WORLD IS NIGH!!!
i ain’t kiddin. hand’s up who remembers the cold war! (not so fast george dubyah!) is it just me, or were you relieved when it ended? did your sense of relief stem from the notion that, with the easing of tensions between the u.s. and soviet union, the world pulled giant steps back from the likelihood of nuclear fucking war? mine did.
well good mornin’ starshine! by the time i post this (i’m writing on 27 may and won’t likely post until 2 june) several major south central asian cities may no longer bear much resemblance to cities. i cannot fucking believe it.
you have to give the u.s. and soviet cold warriors credit for one thing: they were willing to destroy the world (or chunks of it) over a grand pile of political and economic ideologies. to what, by comparison, do we owe the potential (or, if it has happened already, current) MASSIVE dust up between india and pakistan? as i understand it, these two countries are willing to obliterate one another over the question of whether kashmir should be administered as part of an explicitly muslim dictatorship or an officially secular (but predominantly hindu) republic. yo no comprendo (trying out my sesame street spanish, more on that later)!
and there’s more!
colombia just elected a “hard liner” who will “get tough” on the FARC and various other rebel groups. presumably also on the drugs trade. good luck with that, genius! this would just be sad and silly if it weren’t for the thousands upon thousands of colombian corpses likely to result from the increased use of u.s. made weapons (and, eventually, actual u.s. troops: you SHOULD NOT have heard it here first). it is a tragedy that is seemingly only going to get worse.
more israeli troop movements in the west bank. more terrorist attacks in israel. more wrinkly-browed fake peacemaking efforts from the u.s. more uselessness from the europeans. more mixed messages from egypt and saudi arabia. more u.s. weapons (and cash) sent to israel. more resentment of the u.s. (especially from the fabled “arab street”, which must be incredibly long and busy, with all sorts of groovy shops and cafes) more israeli troop movements in the west bank . . .
more talk of light at the end of the afghani tunnel. it seems to me that this has all sorts of vietnam potential (as does colombia).
the economy is NOT chugging right along.
the far right seems to be a bit of a threat in europe (although this may be overstated). keep your eyes on the french and german parliamentary elections. they are VERY important this time around.
i’m fairly certain war still rages in chechnya. i’m far from convinced that the u.s. has decided not to invade iraq (it is, like so many questions in the current government, not so much a question of “if” as “when”). we’re picking on cuba again, too, as if we needed to borrow trouble.
i said this part way back in the fall, when the end of the world seemed slightly less nigh: watch for al-quaida/taliban “detainees” at guantanamo bay (haven’t heard much about them, lately, have we?) to “escape” into cuba. this will then “justify” u.s. moves into cuba, which will inevitably succeed in exposing castro’s connivance with lex luthor to develop, finally, blue kryptonite.
presiding over all of this is dwight eisenhower? franklin roosevelt? john kennedy? fucking woodrow wilson? for pete’s sake, is it at least martin van buren? nope nope nope nope nope. it is george (the “w.” is pronounced “whuh?”) bush. we should all take a moment to reflect on the following: he wasn’t elected president; his only measurable success in life, before becoming governor of texas, was convincing the taxpayers to build a (nice) new stadium for the texas rangers (of which he owned a little); he once okayed the trade of sammy sosa AWAY FROM the texas rangers, of course; before becoming president he had traveled less than i have . . . and he’s a millionaire!!! cripes.
a stupid, vain, arrogant failure with no real qualifications for ANYTHING except that his daddy was important is now in charge . . . is this the middle ages? did dubyah’s dad once tell him that “all this would be” his and he thought he meant the curtains?
actually, maybe the end of the world is not nigh. maybe we’re just having a flashback to the middle ages (it was that fucking movie “a knight’s tale”! it opened a rift in time!). lets see: the stupid dauphin has become king but is unready; a sinister older nobleman (cheney?) is the power behind the throne; a collection of derranged knights (rumsfeld, rice, wolfowitz, etc) demand a fresh crusade (like, the fourth one: the one where they sack constantinople because it’s easier and richer than the “holy land”); a wild-eyed mystic (ashcroft) has become bishop; and the assembled lords of the realm respond to all of this by channeling more of the kingdom’s money into their “lands”.
i guess what i’m saying is that death awaits us all with nasty sharp pointy teeth.
OH! did i mention that a little piece of kashmir is claimed by a country other than india or pakistan? can you guess which country it is? think quick! tick tock tick tock clarice!
daggumole china, man! that’s right! CHINA could get pulled into this mix.
i intend to be in mexico. i’ve taken a job. funny thing: remember a couple of months ago there was a story that warner brothers wasn’t going to distribute speedy gonzales cartoons anymore? because they were offensive? i just watched speedy, in spanish, on mexican television! ehehe! but back to the end of the world: my only major concern is that, i think, mexico is roughly along the same lines of latitude as the imminent war zone. do any of you know if a cloud of nuclear radiation is likely to turn into a band around the earth? golly, i hope not. i hope it blows around and scatters. otherwise i’ll get cancer. which reminds me. i need cigarettes.
i’ve not blogged in a while as i’ve been away from my cable modem for the past two weeks. more on that in a moment.
first: from time to time i get the feeling that i have a sixth sense. you know, that i can catch glimpses of the future. like “the shining”. like “greggie’s intuition”. like “spidey sense” (i had to put that one in there to stay hip, since we now live in the age of arachnus). like “the force” (does the new one suck as much as my spidey sense tells me it does?).
this feeling goes beyond the mundane. sure, i have correctly predicted, for almost three full decades, that the sun would rise in the morning (and i would note that i HAVE done this in several time zones). i also predicted that you would read this. there have been, in fact, far too many tiny predictions for me to even remember them all, much less for me to put in this blog. by far the biggest one yet, and the one of which i am most ashamed (because i wonder if i may have caused this prediction to come true just by making it) is the one contained in the title of this blog page. you see, it seems increasingly clear that
THE END OF THE WORLD IS NIGH!!!
i ain’t kiddin. hand’s up who remembers the cold war! (not so fast george dubyah!) is it just me, or were you relieved when it ended? did your sense of relief stem from the notion that, with the easing of tensions between the u.s. and soviet union, the world pulled giant steps back from the likelihood of nuclear fucking war? mine did.
well good mornin’ starshine! by the time i post this (i’m writing on 27 may and won’t likely post until 2 june) several major south central asian cities may no longer bear much resemblance to cities. i cannot fucking believe it.
you have to give the u.s. and soviet cold warriors credit for one thing: they were willing to destroy the world (or chunks of it) over a grand pile of political and economic ideologies. to what, by comparison, do we owe the potential (or, if it has happened already, current) MASSIVE dust up between india and pakistan? as i understand it, these two countries are willing to obliterate one another over the question of whether kashmir should be administered as part of an explicitly muslim dictatorship or an officially secular (but predominantly hindu) republic. yo no comprendo (trying out my sesame street spanish, more on that later)!
and there’s more!
colombia just elected a “hard liner” who will “get tough” on the FARC and various other rebel groups. presumably also on the drugs trade. good luck with that, genius! this would just be sad and silly if it weren’t for the thousands upon thousands of colombian corpses likely to result from the increased use of u.s. made weapons (and, eventually, actual u.s. troops: you SHOULD NOT have heard it here first). it is a tragedy that is seemingly only going to get worse.
more israeli troop movements in the west bank. more terrorist attacks in israel. more wrinkly-browed fake peacemaking efforts from the u.s. more uselessness from the europeans. more mixed messages from egypt and saudi arabia. more u.s. weapons (and cash) sent to israel. more resentment of the u.s. (especially from the fabled “arab street”, which must be incredibly long and busy, with all sorts of groovy shops and cafes) more israeli troop movements in the west bank . . .
more talk of light at the end of the afghani tunnel. it seems to me that this has all sorts of vietnam potential (as does colombia).
the economy is NOT chugging right along.
the far right seems to be a bit of a threat in europe (although this may be overstated). keep your eyes on the french and german parliamentary elections. they are VERY important this time around.
i’m fairly certain war still rages in chechnya. i’m far from convinced that the u.s. has decided not to invade iraq (it is, like so many questions in the current government, not so much a question of “if” as “when”). we’re picking on cuba again, too, as if we needed to borrow trouble.
i said this part way back in the fall, when the end of the world seemed slightly less nigh: watch for al-quaida/taliban “detainees” at guantanamo bay (haven’t heard much about them, lately, have we?) to “escape” into cuba. this will then “justify” u.s. moves into cuba, which will inevitably succeed in exposing castro’s connivance with lex luthor to develop, finally, blue kryptonite.
presiding over all of this is dwight eisenhower? franklin roosevelt? john kennedy? fucking woodrow wilson? for pete’s sake, is it at least martin van buren? nope nope nope nope nope. it is george (the “w.” is pronounced “whuh?”) bush. we should all take a moment to reflect on the following: he wasn’t elected president; his only measurable success in life, before becoming governor of texas, was convincing the taxpayers to build a (nice) new stadium for the texas rangers (of which he owned a little); he once okayed the trade of sammy sosa AWAY FROM the texas rangers, of course; before becoming president he had traveled less than i have . . . and he’s a millionaire!!! cripes.
a stupid, vain, arrogant failure with no real qualifications for ANYTHING except that his daddy was important is now in charge . . . is this the middle ages? did dubyah’s dad once tell him that “all this would be” his and he thought he meant the curtains?
actually, maybe the end of the world is not nigh. maybe we’re just having a flashback to the middle ages (it was that fucking movie “a knight’s tale”! it opened a rift in time!). lets see: the stupid dauphin has become king but is unready; a sinister older nobleman (cheney?) is the power behind the throne; a collection of derranged knights (rumsfeld, rice, wolfowitz, etc) demand a fresh crusade (like, the fourth one: the one where they sack constantinople because it’s easier and richer than the “holy land”); a wild-eyed mystic (ashcroft) has become bishop; and the assembled lords of the realm respond to all of this by channeling more of the kingdom’s money into their “lands”.
i guess what i’m saying is that death awaits us all with nasty sharp pointy teeth.
OH! did i mention that a little piece of kashmir is claimed by a country other than india or pakistan? can you guess which country it is? think quick! tick tock tick tock clarice!
daggumole china, man! that’s right! CHINA could get pulled into this mix.
i intend to be in mexico. i’ve taken a job. funny thing: remember a couple of months ago there was a story that warner brothers wasn’t going to distribute speedy gonzales cartoons anymore? because they were offensive? i just watched speedy, in spanish, on mexican television! ehehe! but back to the end of the world: my only major concern is that, i think, mexico is roughly along the same lines of latitude as the imminent war zone. do any of you know if a cloud of nuclear radiation is likely to turn into a band around the earth? golly, i hope not. i hope it blows around and scatters. otherwise i’ll get cancer. which reminds me. i need cigarettes.
