Note: since I originally posted this, the technology has changed. Now we have rigs to directly convert vinyl to mp3 (although vinyl purists cringe at the thought.) But I'm not sure these are the best way to go; the turntables and cartridges aren't always the best. I still prefer a Mac for this and use …
Now If We Could Only Pump Out the Bilge…
The Ninth Circuit--of all judicial bodies--has ruled that the State (dare I say "People's Republic?") of California cannot regulate on their own emissions from ships entering California ports: A federal appeals court Wednesday rejected a state regulation that reduced emissions from ships, dealing a blow to California's attempt to combat one of the major sources …
Old Labour Is Back After All
Ten days ago, I opined the following in the wake of Northern Rock's nationalisation: The Brown government’s decision to nationalise Northern Rock takes us back to the days when Labour governments in the UK were wont to nationalise just about everything that moved–literally in the case of British Rail and British Leyland...If the Brown government …
The Problem with Obama Negotiating
George Bush's attack on Barack Obama's idea of negotiating with the likes of Raul Castro makes an earlier piece, The Problem with Americans Negotiating, worth repeating: The Iraq Study Group report highlights something that deserves better treatment than it receives in our political/media system: the problem with Americans negotiating for anything. Basically, Americans look at …
Conflict Resolution, Then and Now: the Indian River School District Decision
I have to confess that I was a little "buffaloed" by the story of the school district in Delaware which (mercifully) came to a settlement in litigation concerning religious expression in schools. One line, however, caught my special attention: Mrs. Dobrich’s decision to leave her hometown and seek legal help was made after a school …
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Defining What the United States Means
In the middle of my debate with "DJ" over what it means to be patriotic, another debate has surfaced: is John McCain, who was born in the Canal Zone, eligible to be President since he was born in the Panama Canal Zone, which is outside the continental United States? Let's take this issue apart on …
A Follow-Up on Barack Obama’s Patriotism
I expected at least some response on my piece on Barack Obama's patriotism, and I wasn't disappointed. "DJ" (as is so often the case with my opponents, from California) expressed unhappiness with it. So some response is in order. Let me start at the end of his comment: except for some pieces in the "static" …
Starbucks’ Transformation and Leonard Sweet
One of the objectives of many "post-modern" Christian authors is to faithfully echo the style (if not the message) of our culture. But, even though I read and reviewed Leonard Sweet's book The Gospel According to Starbucks, I never appreciated how successful he was in doing that until I saw Starbucks' Chairman Howard Schultz' address …
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A Lift From the East
Every time I get discouraged at the way U.S. Evangelicals operate, it's good to see some sense coming from somewhere else, as is the case with Sunny Lee's article about the North Korean commando turned South Korean pastor Kim Shin-jo: Kim believes that foreign aid to North Korea has its limitations and that true change …
The Explosive Subject of Laptop Batteries on Airplanes
Mike Elgan wonders if the next ban on things taken on a commercial flight are batteries in laptops: Laptops are the best thing that ever happened to airline travel. They enable you to catch up on your work, play games or watch a movie while you are traveling. Better still, many airlines are now installing …
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Positive Infinity 