"Clinically Proven"

Ever wondered what the term "Clinically Proven" means, it gets bandied about by marketers alot. Here's an article that delves into what it really means.
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The War on Drugs

The insanity of mandatory minimum sentences and the resulting flood of petty offenders filling up US prisons (largely the poor who cannot afford good lawyers) will one day be looked at the same way we look at the Gulags of the Soviet Union (see my previous post entitled "The Land of the Free?"). Thanks to Lara for forwarding this facinating article. Her quote is from a ways down in the article, about 4/5 of the way.

Curry, who had been driving Brown's car, in which a one-pound rock of crack was hidden, imagined he would pay a price; he imagined he would serve a short jail sentence and then be given a chance to atone for the sins of his naivete. He had no criminal record. One FBI agent called him a "flunky."

But there were federal laws, hurriedly passed by Congress, and those laws decreed that drug offenders were subject to mandatory minimum sentences, and those who trafficked in crack were especially susceptible. Despite sympathy from a judge who could do nothing to help him, Derrick Curry was sentenced to 19 years and seven months in prison for his role in a drug conspiracy under laws that had been passed in the summer of 1986, in the midst of an unprecedented cry for reform in the wake of the death of Leonard K. Bias.

For starters, "a one-pound rock of crack"!!!??? I had no idea a rock of crack could attain that dimension. The catch 22 in US politics is that to stand up and say "mandatory sentences are nuts, we need to change how we solve our drug abuse problem" is to be called weak on crime, your odds of being elected diminish greatly. As they were passing the laws that sentenced Curry, the legislators knew it was crazy, but if pressed would all quickly add "of course I'm for it".

Amid the fury and panic and ignorance, amid what Sterling calls a "legislative frenzy," Congress acted in a bipartisan fashion, passing the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. One Oklahoma legislator admitted it was "out of control," but added, "of course I'm for it." The law established mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders; it also decreed that possession or sale of 1/100th of an amount of crack cocaine as compared to powder cocaine (5 grams versus 500 grams) would trigger those mandatory minimum sentences.

Fortunately it looks as though the tide is slowly ebbing, bi partisan bills are beining to be brought forward. Slowly, slowly the situation will redress, in a decade or two, amid the ruins of litterally millions of US citizens who have spent time in prisons, and live with criminal records.
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The Sneakiest Goal in the History of Soccer

Found this over at Digg, the title says it all.

Calling David Attenborough

Photo: Jill M. Lassaline

A few days back I was holding Simon and hanging out in the front lawn for a few minutes before loading him into the car. A family of Chickadees (Janet's call) had set up a nest in a tree in our front yard, two of the chicks were on the ground in our front yard looking like they had just exited the nest. Both were doing their best to try flying. One off to my right was actually getting off the ground a bit. I was pointing this out to Simon who was fascinated. The little chick we were watching made a big effort and got a few feet off the ground, and flew like crazy maybe four feet along when WHAM, in streaked a hawk and nailed it about five feet from where we were standing and in an instant was gone.
Okay dokay, moving on, I'm glad Simon's only one and what just happened is lost on him.



Photo: Jim Parrish

My Dad just got back from Italy

I pick Merv up at the airport yesterday and he tells me how he scored a single ticket to the opera the night before. It was a fabulous seat, the opera was Carmen, the male lead was Andrea Bocelli. Being ever social Merv introduces himself using the little Italian he knows to the woman seated beside him, roughly the same age, who, with limited English, introduces herself as Monica, Monica Mussolini. Merv comments on how that is a famous surname, any relation? She replies "daughter", or at least that is all Merv understands, later I discover he was sitting beside Donna Monica Mussolini, widow of the late Vittorio, Mussolini's eldest son.

Here's a link to an interesting article on her:

The mass over, Donna Monica Mussolini, widow of the late Vittorio, Mussolini's eldest son, led the congregation out of the llth-century church into the ferocious midday heat, then down into the dark crypt at one end of the cemetery to file past the stone tombs of the Duce and members of his immediate family. Candles flickered and the air was thick with the sweet smell of lilies as Signora Mussolini stood in front of the Duce's tomb, on which is a giant stone bust of her father-inlaw's head. She raised her right arm in the Roman salute and delivered the traditional fascist greeting. 'A noi!' (`To us'). She then patted the nearby tomb of Vittorio, who died last year [1997], kissed it and left.

C-Shirt: T-Shirts, But Way Cooler With CC

Many thanks to Steve M for pointing this very cool posting on the CC blog about a Japanese t-shirt company taking mass customization to the next level!

From the post:

First, the conventional idea: users submit t-shirt designs which can be viewed online and ordered for printing. However, the twist is that since all the designs are placed under CC, Nota provides an interface with which to edit and reproduce these designs accordingly.

Even better, the service is outfitted to work with some enabled mobile devices, so if you see a shirt you like on the street, you can scan the Quick Response (QR) code included on each design with your phone, which will capture a unique address where you can load and edit the t-shirt before getting it yourself.
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Photoshop Disasters

The blog is called Photoshop Disasters, love it!

Carl Sagan

I found myself watching clips of Carl Sagan on YouTube, I'd forgotten how mesmerizing he was, still is. The clip I watched had some amazing footage of rural India, which took me back to visiting my sponsor child Punam in the Terrai region of southern Nepal. It was a double pleasure to listen to this most erudite man while watching amazing footage.
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Urban Explorers

I've seen these pictures before, and love the concept of exploring urban landscapes in our midst.
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Understanding Introverts

I was nosing around Neil Stephenson's (one of my favourite authors) personal web site, a fun collection of tidbits. Under the "Author" section he has a list of randomish thoughts, I clicked on "Introvert" and it led to an article over at Atlantic.com entitled "Caring for your Introvert". This article was a bit of a bombshell for me, an unrepentant Extrovert married to an Introvert.

Extroverts are energized by people, and wilt or fade when alone. They often seem bored by themselves, in both senses of the expression. Leave an extrovert alone for two minutes and he will reach for his cell phone. In contrast, after an hour or two of being socially "on," we introverts need to turn off and recharge. My own formula is roughly two hours alone for every hour of socializing. This isn't antisocial. It isn't a sign of depression. It does not call for medication. For introverts, to be alone with our thoughts is as restorative as sleeping, as nourishing as eating. Our motto: "I'm okay, you're okay—in small doses."

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I'm sure my wife Janet will be very pleased my understanding of her is vastly increased, and I'll shut up more often... The article was written in 2003, and was apparently immensly popular; there are alot of Introverts chaffing at the hegemony of Extroverts. One follow-up article regarded whether Introverts and Extroverts can make good couples (let's hope so!). From the reader feedback:

I think, as an introvert, that the companionship of an extrovert can be very beneficial. The extroverted partner is like a shield for the introvert in social settings. I caution, however, that the "social" needs of the introvert can become burdensome for the extrovert. The burden is borne by requiring the extroverted partner to carry the load, provide the motivation and energy to engage in the social scene. The intro-extrovert relationship can be a palliative for the introvert, but an absolute chore for the extrovert who must often carry the full load of managing social arrangements and engagements. In the end, as a result of the effort required, the introvert may deprive the extrovert of the oft-needed joy of the social life the extrovert needs to thrive.

I just married an extrovert a few months ago. I have always treasured any alone time that I can get, and it takes a all of my energy to "act" like an extrovert for more than a few hours. He has to have people in the house every waking moment, and I get my fill after about two hours and want to just hide in another room and accomplish things other than visiting. I guess it comes down to finding balance in all things, because he does bring more living and memories and relationships to my life, but it also wears me out. I don't think it's healthy for him to have zero alone time to reflect on his life and thoughts, so I'm still working on the compromise part of our social life. If both of us were introverts, maybe we would be really miserable and depressed and have no enjoyment out of life whatsoever, so as long as we both can balance things out, its a great combination.

I'm a female introvert. One problem with an extroverted spouse (I should know, I had one!) is that this person is always wanting to go to parties, to social events, out to dinner with other couples, to family get-togethers. Either the introverted spouse has to go too and be miserable (hearing: "What's the matter, why aren't you having a good time?"), or the introverted spouse stays home, making the extroverted spouse irritated ("Can't you at least come to one of these things?"), and leading other attendees to assume something is wrong with your marriage.

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Cool Interactive

A bit of a waste of time, but mesmerizing none-the-less. Left mouse click to jog through the different configurations. From www.webupon.com
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Table of Elements

A very fun Table of Elements, sadly I've lost the thread of where I found it...
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