« September 2006 | Main | November 2006 »
Isn't it interesting that with Democrats set to take over the House, and possibly the Senate -- and with the prospect of investigations against the White House to come about as a result -- that there should be a paper shredding company truck parked outside Dick Cheney's house?
No, it's not real. I stole it from here.
Arguably -- arguably -- the federal government might have an interest in getting teenagers not to have sex.
But why do they now have federal programs urging adult single 29 year olds to abstain from pre-marital sex? Is this really a good use of tax dollars?
An actual excerpt from the Christian-published children's book, "Mommy, Why Don't We Celebrate Halloween?"
'October 31st again and all the kids are trick-or-treating,' said Jerry as he looked out the window in front of his house. 'Mom, why can't we go trick-or-treating like all the other kids? Are you afraid we'll eat too much candy and our teeth will rot?'
'Well, Jerry,' said Mom, 'I certainly don't want your teeth to rot, but no, that isn't the reason you can't go trick-or-treating. As Christians, Daddy and I don't let you take part in Halloween because we know Jesus doesn't want us to do such things.'
'But why, Mommy?' Sarah exclaimed. 'What's wrong with Halloween?'
'Think for a moment, children, about other holidays we celebrate. Take Christmas, for example. How does Christmas make you feel?' asked Mom.
Happy!' exclaimed Sarah.
Excited,' added Jerry.
'That's right,' said Mom. 'Christmas is a time of happiness and excitement as we celebrate the birth of Baby Jesus. Do you remember what the angel told the shepherds the night He was born?'
'Yes,' said Sarah. 'The angel told the shepherds good news of peace and great joy.'
'That's right,' said Mom. 'Halloween has none of these. Halloween is filled with fear, meanness, and sadness.'
'I don't understand, Mom,' said Jerry. 'How is dressing up in funny costumes and going door-to-door to get candy scary or sad?'
'The devil is very good at making things look wonderful on the outside that are wrong on the inside. Halloween is one of those things,' Mom said.
'Many Christians haven't been taught the true meaning behind Halloween. They can't see the truth behind the costumes, parades, and candy of Halloween,' continued Mom. 'Only when we know the truth about something can we know whether it is good or bad for us. That's why the Bible says we are free when we know the truth.' (See John 8:32.)
'So, what's the truth about Halloween, Mom?' Sarah asked. 'Why shouldn't Christians take part in its fun?'
'Let me see if I can explain it a bit better,' Mom said. 'First, let's think about Christmas again. When the three wise men came to visit Baby Jesus, what did they bring Him?'
'Presents!' Sarah said.
'Yes, presents,' Mom agreed. 'When they gave Jesus the presents, the wise men knelt before Jesus to show that they honored Him.'
'What does it mean to honor someone?' Jerry asked.
'To honor someone means that you show great respect for that person. You show that you understand his importance and great worth,' Mom replied.
'But we don't kneel before anyone at Halloween,' Sarah protested.
'You see, Sarah,' Mom said, 'there are many ways to show honor. One way is to set aside a special day, a holiday, to remember some important person or event.'
'Yes!' Jerry agreed. 'Thanksgiving reminds us of the big dinner the Pilgrims shared with the Indians to thank God for His help in the New World.'
'Exactly,' Mom responded. 'What event do we celebrate at Easter?'
'That's when the angel rolled away the stone,' Sarah answered. 'Jesus wasn't dead anymore!'
'That's right,' Mom replied. 'At Easter we remember God's love when He sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. We also honor God for His great power that brought Jesus from death to life.'
'So what do we honor at Halloween?' Jerry asked.
'A long time ago,' Mom answered, 'many people did not believe in God or honor His Son, Jesus. Instead they honored statues made of wood or stone. They also worshiped things in nature like the sun and the stars.'
'Do you mean they bowed down to them like the wise men knelt before Baby Jesus?' Sarah asked.
'Yes, Sarah,' Mom said. 'They sang praises to their statues just like we sing praises to Jesus. They believed that the sun and stars had great power.'
God must not have liked that! He wants us to worship only Him,' Jerry said.
'You are right, Jerry,' Mom replied. 'God's first laws for His people teach us not to worship any other gods or to bow down to their statues.' (See Exodus 20:3-5.)
'But, Mommy, we don't worship any statues or other gods at Halloween,' Sarah said.
'In many parts of the world,' Mom answered, 'Halloween is a religious holiday - a holiday when people worship satan and honor evil. In fact, it is the biggest holiday on satan's calendar, kind of like Christmas and Easter on our calendar.'
'But why?' Jerry asked. 'Where's the evil in Halloween?'
Somehow, on reading this except, I think the kids have the stronger argument. And I think "Mom" is making it up as she goes along.
ESTRAGON: You're sure it was this evening?
VLADIMIR: What?
ESTRAGON: That we were to wait.
VLADIMIR: He said Saturday. (Pause.) I think.
ESTRAGON: You think.
VLADIMIR: I must have made a note of it. (He fumbles in his pockets, which are bursting with miscellaneous rubbish.) What'll we do?
(Beeping sound as ESTRAGON dials number.)
VOICE OF RECORDING ON PHONE: You've reached the number for Mr. Godot. Mr. Godot told me to tell you he won't come this evening but surely will tomorrow.
ESTRAGON: Well, shall we go?
VLADIMIR: Yes, let's go.
- From McSweeney's
Good article in Time:
A woman walked into a polling place in Peoria, Ill. last week and proceeded to use one of the new electronic voting machines set up for early voting. She logged on, went through each contest and seemed to be making her choices. After reviewing each race, the machine checked to see if she was satisfied with her selections and wanted to move on. Each time, she pressed YES, and the machine progressed to the next race. When she was done, a waving American flag appeared on the screen, indicating that her votes had been cast and recorded.
But there was a problem. The woman had not made any choices at all. She had only browsed. Now when she told the election judges she was ready to do it again--but this time actually vote--they told her it was too late. Pressing the last button, they said, is like dropping your ballot in an old-fashioned ballot box. There's no getting it back.
So what?
So this: In one week, more than 80 million Americans will go to the polls, and a record number of them--90%--will either cast their vote on a computer or have it tabulated that way. When that many people collide with that many high-tech devices, there are going to be problems.
If you buy online -- and more and more people will do that this Christmas than before -- you probably have seen those boxes and the "checkout" page where you can enter a "promotional code" or a "coupon code" and get a discount on your purchase. Sadly, you probably don't have a code, right?
Fear not.
Retailmenot.com is an online depository of discount codes. It was just launched, but it is sure to grow. (It's done by the same people who started bugmenot.com - the online depository of passwords in case you don't want to register).
So the next time you go shopping, don't forget your code!
A smattering of uncaptioned photos (some a bit unflattering) here.
Christopher Guest -- who brought us Waiting For Guffman, Best In Show, and A Mighty Wind -- has assembled his usual crew of actors (Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Michael McKean, Catherine O'Hara, Harry Shearer, Fred Willard), and a few new ones (Ricky Gervais) for another film.
This one lacks the "mockumentary" style, but it could be good.
It's called "For Your Consideration".
| Gasoline Prices |
Recent Comments