Hither and thither 9/17/10

Various things have conspired to me really having to scramble to cobble this together this week. Haven't even had the time to look at some last-minute submissions. Updates? Maybe. Supplement some other day? Maybe.

But for now, I hope you'll enjoy this.

• You know it's Phillips birthday month, yesterday being my very-accomplished dear wife's birthday. Just realized that's not all: happy birthday to the U. S. Constitution, as well.

• I am a cat-lover, in that there are some cats I love. But this village for homeless cats is a bit much, even for me. (A Wal-mart? Eeh.)
• Following up on yesterday's post about Glenn Beck, Andree Seu, and WORLD magazine: I note today (thanks to reader Paula) that the Sola Sisters are not so sanguine about the polytheistic Mr. Beck.
• UPDATE: check the update on the Seu/Beck/WORLD thingie in the original post.
• Then, following up on our post on the Qu'ran-burning-threat incident (itself followed up in Pyro), it's weird to know that a Supreme Court Justice (Breyer; thanks to President Nameless One) thinks the First Amendment doesn't protect the right to do it — though it evidently does cover flag-burning and Bible-burning.
• Detroit's Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, whose most-important-thing her office wants you to know is her skin-color, has a solution for parents missing parent-teacher conferences. The solution? Jail them. Well, there y'go. No comment yet from Obama.
• What is Worthy's political party? Oh, friends, come on! Need you ask?
• Reader Robert notes that Dems are attempting a re-branding and asks, "Do they really think people are that stupid?" To which I reply: of course they do — and with good reason. Look at who's in the White House.
• Well, at any rate this headline gives hope that some of the most inexcusably dim-witted voters in America might be slowly waking up.
• If so, maybe they feel like this:

• Economics lesson: when government takes money from working citizens, and gives it to government ostensibly to create jobs, what is the result? Wellsir, $111 million "creates" 56 jobs — at the cost of #2 million per job.
• Doncha just love "moderates"? Here's how it works: conservatives are supposed to bend left to support "moderates" in the name of Big Tentmanship. But "moderates"? Tip right, even a little? Go on with your bad self.
• Why you shouldn't buy a Mac.
• Oh my. Reader Dave Sloan sees that someone "found" Satan in a bathroom tile. How'd he know it was Satan and not heavy-metal rocker Dee Snyder Snider?

• Reader Heath Norment found a video of Canadian soldiers disassembling and rebuilding a Jeep in under 4 minutes.
• Reader Susan learned that spray-on clothing is about to be a reality. I've seen some this week that could've been already, anyway. Me, I don't think it will pass the sister-show-mercy test.
• Here's a creative display of Post-it art — unfortunately, not at a reliably kid-safe site. Be warned.
• Aah! Run! DAOD found this about killer shrimp!
• On the subject of DAOD, here's her early birthday-present to her DOD:

• Stimulus money at work?

• Not all jihad is violent. There is good reason to see a stealth jihad underway in America. (Reader Chris Carney sent a link.)
• A sign they know they'll lose? We can hope. The Dems on the Judiciary Committee are finally, after turning down four years of minority (GOP) requests, showing great interest in refurbishing the digs for the minority staff.
• Oh dear.
• Similarly, one greets the news of a Reagan biopic with some trepidation. But there is some reason to hope that it will be better than the James Brolin hit-job TV movie.
• Reader Jugulum may have found an image of the last thing this would be autograph-collector ever saw:

• Irony Is Pretty Ironic Alert. Getting weary and worried over America's Obamafied slog towards Socialism? Maybe you should move somewhere heading in the opposite direction. Like, I don't know... Cuba?
• Fred Butler indirectly directed me to the work of Scott Wade, who makes dirty pretty. What kind of "dirty"? Dirty cars.

• Homeschoolers doing geology should find this set of thirteen of Earth's strangest lakes interesting. I love how God loves diversity... if that word isn't ruined forever.
• For Josiah: never, never do this:

• Chicken-wire sculpture.
• Reader Kelly Garrett showed me some pictures that led to a search ending with pencil sculptor Dalton Ghetti, who produces the most amazing art from pencil lead. There are various online "galleries," such as here and here. Ghetti is currently working on a longterm project, a tribute to the victims of the 9/11 attack. Samples:

   

 

 

• Writers: Justin Taylor reprints some advice on writing from C. S. Lewis. The nub: (1) Know exactly what you want to say; (2) Say exactly that.
• Say... that's not bad advice for preachers either, is it?
• Speaking of book-burning, reader Pastor John found what's got to be a pretty big, hot fire. James White will love to see the company he's in, I imagine. It is tempting, though: "fried chicken, with all the sides." Mm-mmm. Makes me hungry just to think of it. I'd toss on my NRSV for that.
• Phil Johnson has done a lot of flying... but has he ever had a flight like this? (Thanks to Berry Davis for link.)
• Berry takes comfort in the fact that we're never more than 115 miles away from a McDonald's.
• ...where Berry (and we) are likelier to eat, than we are to eat this sandwich.
• Freeeeeeeeeeedom!!!

• I pretty much despise PETA hypocrites, who are all wrought up about pain caused to the lowest life-forms, but utterly uninterested in torture-murders of unborn humans. So I reject their rationale...yet find myself sharing to some degree their horror at the (now-former) practice of a local restaurant. My motivation is all about Proverbs 12:10, though, and none about human/animal equivalence.
• Please do not link to the video of some Asian chef frying and serving up a still-living fish. I've seen it. It disgusts me. No one needs his food to be that "fresh." I catch trout, and I have taught all my children to kill them immediately.