Isaac Schrödinger

I'm Betting on the Feline

A dino vs. a cat.

The Senseless

Why did the shooting take place?

Let me tell you that even after you read this psycho's note, you're still not going to have any satisfactory answer that explains why he did what he did.

Any attempts to find a "why" disturbed people commit crimes like that boils down to video games, violence in our culture, rap music, porn, bad influences, etc., will always fall short because tens of millions of other people participate in those activities without becoming murderers.

The Monster Arrives

Tom's Hardware Guide:

On March 16, 2007, UPS delivered to our storage test lab a shipment from Hitachi, which we had anticipated for several weeks. The box contained the world's first hard drive with a total capacity of 1 terabyte (1 TB): the Deskstar 7K1000.

I'm surprised. I thought Seagate would be the first-to-market with the 1 TB drive. Still, it's good news since prices for the 300 GB to 500 GB drives should see a significant drop in the coming weeks.

Those Trixy Israeli Bananas

Josh Scholar left this link in the comments here:

The teacher could not believe what he overheard. The "visiting" imam was launching into a tirade against the Jews and Americans that bordered on the ludicrous.

But then came the clincher, he recalled. "The imam told the students that the Jews were putting poison in the bananas and they should not eat them."

How do the Jews do it!?

The Sunday Age has been told that Werribee College appears intent on exporting its particular brand of Islam to Indonesia, an achievement made possible by generous commonwealth and state grants — estimated to be in excess of $3 million a year.

So kind of the Australians to pay the jizya in advance.

The teacher was alarmed by what she discovered in the school library. An image of Christ in a book on comparative religion had been defaced.

When she asked students to explain, they told her that another teacher, a devout Muslim, had asked them to demonstrate that Islam was the one true faith by striking the picture with sharpened pencils.

Take that Jesus!

The teacher, who was dismissed from the school because she was "over qualified", is now employed at a Christian faith-based school.

She says she has no regrets about leaving. "The atmosphere at the school was unhealthy," she said. "When you asked children to write about their favourite hero, they nearly always wrote about Osama bin Laden."

But, of course. Read the rest.

PG Version of 300

OMG.

Link via Sophist Pundit.

Keeping the Mind Closed

Katherine Kersten:

Last week, I wrote about Minneapolis Community and Technical College, which is planning to install facilities to help Muslim students perform ritual washing before daily prayers. It's a simple matter of extending "hospitality" to newcomers, says President Phil Davis -- no different than providing a fish option in the college cafeteria for Christian students during Lent.

Sure. However, it won't stop there.

Later, we get to this revealing part:

At Georgetown University, Muslim women can live apart in housing that enables them to "sleep in an Islamic setting," as the website puts it. According to a student at the time the policy was adopted, the university housing office initially opposed the idea, on grounds that all freshman should have the experience of "living in dorms and dealing with different kinds of people." That might sound appealing, Muslim students told a reporter in an article featured on the website. But in their view, the reporter wrote, "learning to live with 'different kinds of people'" actually "causes more harm than good" for Muslims, because it requires them to live in an environment that "distracts them from their desire to become better Muslims, and even draw[s] weaker Muslims away from Islam."

So very true. Islam, with its wretched rotten core, just can't seem to survive contact with inconvenient reality. Solution? Close off the world.

Those Trixy Israeli Melons

Ynet News via Tim Blair:

"Beware of Israeli melons infected with AIDS arriving in Saudi Arabia!" is the latest rumor being spread throughout Saudi Arabia like a wildfire.

An SMS message being sent around the country this week said, "The Saudi Interior Ministry warns its citizens of a truck loaded with AIDS infected melons that Israel brought into the country via a 'ground corridor.'"

Let me be clear: I support Israeli melons.

About Time

Tens of thousands of people rally in Karachi against the self-appointed sharia court in the capital of the city.

The religious nuts should have continued with their anti-Musharraf stance. They blundered when they showed themselves as anti-Bollywood.

Invisible Bike!

Oh, these made me laugh out loud.

Link via The Spirit of Man.

Update
OMG, it's the invisible lawn mower!

Glorified Purse

Is it just me or does that look incredibly tiny?

Some Kidnappings Are More Equal Than Others

Daimnation: Cognitive Dissonance.

Confused Canadians

Liam O'Brien excerpts some comments from this page where many ignorant and dense Canadians can't seem to support a democratic nation that once stood alone against the vilest evil of the 20th century over a totalitarian regime that has no concept of human rights*.

He comments on his blog:

[...] apparently the "anti-war" movement is often filled with people who would gladly accept torture, genocide, murder, beatings and kidnappings of innocent civilians as well as an end to democratic freedoms they themselves would never want to lose, provided it all happens to somebody else. Apparently all those things are still preferable to "war." I'm just glad our grandparents' and great grandparents' generation didn't think like that. There'd be a lot fewer jews in the world, a lot less democracy, and a lot more authoritarianism. . .

* July 19, 2005: Two teenagers were hanged in Iran for the alleged "crime" of being gay.

Leopard 2 for the Canadians

The Germans make arguably the best tank* in the world.

The Canadians are buying a few. The older tanks are soon going to be out of spare parts plus the internal temperatures in them were reaching 60 degrees Celsius in the Afghan summer!

* The main gun of the American Abrams tank is designed by the Germans and till a few years ago was actually built by them as well.

Link via Small Dead Animals.

World Champions

Cricinfo: "More Australian talent on display in Barbados".

Mmm-hmm.

This Will Give You Nightmares

The Easter bunny like you've never seen him before.

Link via Victory Soap.

Krazy Klowns

Charles Johnson:

So let’s see if I understand this creep’s position. He celebrated because the United States deserved the attacks, but at the same time he believes the Bush administration was behind the whole thing. Is that about it?

There is a very bad craziness loose in the world.

Yup.

The Other Pakistani Religion

Younis Khan declines to lead the Pakistani cricket team:

Younis admitted that widespread criticism of the national side since their shock exit had been tough to digest, and affected his decision. "I am still hurt and upset at the sort of hostile reception we have got since returning from the World Cup. I have always given 100 percent for my country. But when your family gets threatening calls and our effigies are burnt and our pictures put on donkeys, then I can't lead the team in such circumstances."

I don't see why any sane man would.

Jihad At The Micro Level

Raymond Ibrahim:

A few Muslim cashiers working at Target stores in Minneapolis are refusing to scan customer purchases that may contain pork. Instead of swiping the products themselves — which is their job — they are inconveniencing the customers or fellow employees by having them do it.

Muslim cab drivers have long been discriminating against customers carrying or suspected of carrying alcohol. Officials at the St. Paul International Airport estimate that, on average, alcohol-bearing customers seeking cab rides are denied 77 times per month. Some blind customers have also been turned down on account of their seeing-eye dogs.

Flopping Aces:

[...] they choose to come to this country and demand that WE change.  Now that is arrogance my friends.  If you don't want to scan pork then don't take a freakin job in which you check out food items.  If you don't want to swim with men then buy a pool or don't freakin swim in a public pool.  Why is it WE must be inconvenienced because you chose to leave a devout Muslim country and live in a land where we are all free to do as we want.

Idiots.

The "inconveniences" will only get worse in the near future.

How Pakistani Are You?

Take the quiz and find out. My result:

Arey, you are 67% Pakistani!

 

Shabash puut, your score puts you in the ranks of the REAL Pakistanis! Have some lassi to celebrate - maybe it'll encourage your true character to come out more often.

How Pakistani are you? (first class number one!)
Create a Quiz

Question #4 brought a restrained smile. Of course, it's the last option for me.

Now regarding Question #5, what is it with the ladoo!? Why can't it be the far superior gulab jamun?

DEATH TO LADOO!

Question #23 is quite simple. Aish. Period.

Question #24. My mother actually worried about the last option. You see, my younger brother got a lot of cooing reactions from various Aunties. My mother's response: Hai hai, nazr na lag jai!

I still remember the answer to Question #30. Every day at my school, the anthem was played before the start of classes.

Link via Koonj.

Genius

You Tube: How Superman should have ended.

Soft Intensity

An HDR panorama.

A Mobius Strip of Perpetual Confusion Taken to Infinity

David Thompson excerpts some high-octane stuff and then says:

I hope that’s clear to everyone.

I don't get it.

Make Her Stop!

For the love of all that is good, make her stop!

Please, I can't take it, make her stop!

Don't Do It For Mother Earth

Celestial Junk: Quotes to Raise the Hair on Your Neck.

This one is surreal:

"Licences to have babies incidentally is something that I got in trouble for some years ago for suggesting even in Canada that this might be necessary at some point, at least some restriction on the right to have a child."

Maurice Strong

I wonder how the Muslims in Canada would react to that...

Burying XP

APC via Slashdot:

Computer makers have been told they'll no longer be able to get Windows XP OEM by the end of this year, despite consumer resistance to Vista and its compatibility problems.

By early 2008, Microsoft's contracts with computer makers will require companies to only sell Vista-loaded machines. "The OEM version of XP Professional goes next January," said Frank Luburic, senior ThinkPad product manager for Lenovo. "At that point, they'll have no choice."

By then Windows Vista Service Pack 1 will be out. So, the situation will (hopefully!) improve. Still, this looks like a desperate move by Microsoft.

Water + Sugar + Little Fizz

The Arabic (or Arabic-like) writing caught my eye.

Standing Up, Again.

Patrick:

We love life, and we hold death in utter contempt.

Yes, we do.

With both legs severed after being blown out of a Tube carriage, Danny Biddle was sure he was about to die.

But next week, the most seriously injured survivor of the 2005 attack will walk up the aisle to marry his fiancee.

Read it all.

Into The American Future

Greg Mankiw:

Here's my question for the comments section: What do you think will really happen to government spending and tax revenue as a share of GDP over the next half century?

I don't think total federal spending will go beyond 30% of GDP.

Imperialism Today

Kashmiri Nomad:

Western civilization no longer defines itself for reasons of political correctness in terms of race but none the less views it a collective duty upon itself to civilise those less fortunate than itself.

That's not true. If anything, the West has physically retreated from the rest of the world. For example, the British Empire rapidly fell apart after WWII. India, East Pakistan, West Pakistan, Burma, Palestine Mandate, Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya are some of the countries that were once ruled by the Brits.

The language in which imperial conquest is couched in may have changed but the effects are still the same. No longer is there mention of the White Man's Burden or the Manifest Destiny but rather platitudes regarding globalisation, free markets and democracy are now the oft repeated mantras.

So, for example, saying that the North Koreans should be allowed to trade with the world and have a free marketplace and be allowed to vote is ... equivalent to imperialism?

Human nature irrespective of what one may wish to believe has always been the same and will always be the same. Throughout history the human experience has witnessed mighty empires from the Egyptians to the Assyrians to the Persians to the Macedonians to the Romans to the Sassanids to the Caliphate to the Mongols to the European colonialist. Two themes tie all of the a fore mentioned together and they are conquest and domination.

I'm surprised he put the Caliphate in that group.

Why should one expect that just because we are in 2007 human nature will have changed when it has not changed in the last 5000 years.

Human governance has gone through incredible changes over that time. We've moved on from helots, serfs, and slaves to free men, at least in the West. To support this way of living -- to endorse human rights -- is not to call for imperialism, for in the end, the West doesn't gain any "control" over the free peoples.

Of course, by doing so, the West does have something to gain: security. Oddly enough, free nations, and thus free peoples, don't fight each other often.

It also doesn't make sense to put the super powers of all ages into one category. For instance, the US did rule a large part of Germany and the whole of Japan for many years following WWII. But the US didn't "dominate" them. After a few years, America voluntarily gave up control of the political institutions in these two nations. Today, they are free to construct their own domestic and foreign policies.

How many empires of the past did that? Human nature might be similar at the personal level but it can't be denied that Western Civilization is far superior to any and all other systems of government created by man.

It would be uncivilized if one hoped that those who don't reside in the West continue to live a miserable existence.

Prisoners Tortured At The Top Level

This shot gives the construction a very sinister feel.

Unhinged

Umar Lee goes for the ad hominem. That post says a lot about him.

Sausage Fest

Yes, that's exactly what it is.

Sharia Reloaded

Western Resistance:

The Pakistan Daily Times and Agence France Presse report that already the fanatics at the Lal Masjid have singled out their first victim. In line with Abdul Aziz' knack for garnering maximum publicity, the target is a woman minister of the Pakistan government.

What is her "crime"?

The minister is Nilofar Bakhtiar, the nation's tourism minister. She fell foul of the fanatics at the Lal Masjid by being depicted in several newspapers "hugging" a paragliding instructor in Paris, after she took part in an exercise.

That's right. She should resign because she hugged an infidel man (gasp!).

The Quran-Hadith Complex

Do read this Front Page symposium that includes Kenneth Levin, Nancy Kobrin, Peter Raddatz, David Gutmann and Robert Spencer.

They discuss these questions: "Why are Jews in particular called these names by Arabs and Muslims? What gratification is involved when one needs to turn others into animal form?"

Jamie Glazov asks a few more questions later. Peter Raddatz replies:

Your questions are more than justified but based on partially wrong or rather incomplete assumptions. You insinuate that there is a logic of some sort that might be compatible with the one we are basing this talk around. Intentionally or not, you come up with a few expressions which are central to the whole problem: logic - pathological - reality - contradiction - belief - science - Allah. What misses here is the counter piece to reality which we might call utopia or rather pipe-dream.

Let me try to unravel your chain of questions the answering of which you are quite entitled to. They comprise a beautiful example for the aporetic character of the so-called "dialogue with Islam" as it deals with logical levels completely different from what we are used to in the Western world.

What follows after this is the most spectacularly illuminating explanation of Islam and its supreme vileness.

Iran Producing Nuclear Fuel

Fars News Agency via Gateway Pundit:

The Islamic Republic of Iran has succeeded in entering the phase of industrial nuclear fuel production following its significant technological progress at Natanz enrichment facility, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Agency (IAEO) Gholam Reza Aghazadeh said on Monday.

Quote of the Day

How do you tell an Islamist? Well, it's someone who follows the Quran and Muhammad. And how do you tell an anti-Islamist? It's someone who understands the Quran and Muhammad.

Inspired by Ronnie.

The Desired Effect

I did think that the cars were miniatures.

"Pure Hate"

You Tube: An interview with Nonie Darwish.

Note the part between 3:08 and 5:11. I didn't have to call friends back "home". I actually went to the Middle East in December of 2001 and saw, read, and heard the vile sickness. That was the final straw for me.

Link via The Islamic Threat.

ODI no. 2565

The Australian juggernaut rolls over England.

The sorry Brits went down by 7 wickets. Pietersen scored a fighting century but the rest of the team scored 125 runs combined.

The Australians have now gone undefeated in 24 consecutive World Cup matches. They are one slick ODI-winning machine.

Not The Right Kind Of News

The Telegraph:

Amid the deaths and the grim daily struggle bravely borne by Britain's forces in southern Iraq, one tale of heroism stands out.

Private Johnson Beharry's courage in rescuing an ambushed foot patrol then, in a second act, saving his vehicle's crew despite his own terrible injuries earned him a Victoria Cross.

For the BBC, however, his story is "too positive" about the conflict.

The corporation has cancelled the commission for a 90-minute drama about Britain's youngest surviving Victoria Cross hero because it feared it would alienate members of the audience opposed to the war in Iraq.

Glenn Reynolds:

That says it all, doesn't it?

Fantasy-like

This looks like something out of photoshop.

Very Embarrassing

Bangladesh defeat South Africa:

How many times in your life will you watch the No. 1 side in the world comprehensively outclassed by one ranked eight places lower? This match, three weeks on from that epic triumph against India at Port-of-Spain, will linger long in the memory for the manner in which a young and vibrant side embarrassed one that appeared to rest on its laurels.

The South Africans will likely have to win all their remaining matches to make the semi-finals. Oh, they're no longer ranked number one -- Australia deserves that spot.

History Will Soon Resume

Belmont Club:

Historically, the EU owes its very existence to the fact that America, with its "continuing belief in God, national sovereignty, and their military" kept the Soviet Union from overrunning it. It is questionable whether Europe could today even obtain oil supplies from the Middle East or maintain freedom of navigation in the vital waters like the Persian Gulf (remember HMS Cornwall?) without America, with its "continuing belief in God, national sovereignty, and their military".

It's quite something: most Europeans living today have, historically speaking, a distorted view of reality. They've lived in their American-subsidized peace bubble for too long. They think that calling the Iranians, Syrians or the North Koreans evil is the problem. Bush having a comic book view of the world is the problem. America is the problem.

All we have to do is sit down and have a little tea and biscuits with those misunderstood regimes and it'll all be peachy.

These people don't learn from history because they think that they've "progressed" beyond the savage past. They'll learn the hard way.

Lessening the Meaning

I agree with NOTR on this one.

Awards should not boil down to merely hand-eye coordination.

Too Much Islam?

Cricinfo:

PJ Mir, Pakistan's media manager during the World Cup, has blamed the influence of religion in the dressing room for Pakistan's disastrous performance in the Caribbean.

Speaking to reporters after his appearance at the performance evaluation committee looking into Pakistan's shambolic display, Mir said, "I could not disclose this fact before, but today I inform the media that most of the members had no focus on cricket. Their fixation was on preaching, affecting the team's preparations."

Devil's Advocate: Hey, the outcomes of the games were in the hands of Allah. So, really, what's the point of planning and preparation?

The Price of Freedom

Chickpea:

My dad called me this morning while I was waiting for the bus to my campus. I talked to my aunt while I was on the train, I had to update her on the email that my dad sent this past weekend. She was shocked and surprised on the plan of action that my dad has decided to take, but at the same time she wasn’t that surprised. She was very good at consoling and supporting me, and noticed that I was doing pretty good at keeping calm and not stressing out.

She, from a Muslim family, is dating a non-Muslim. Read the rest.

Link via The Apostate.

Yikes!

Hillary sees Monica?

What Did They Say!?

An amusing defense argument.

Allah Doesn't Like Bunnies

Sydney Morning Herald:

INDECENCY charges against the editor of Indonesian Playboy have been thrown out of court, prompting an outcry from Islamic groups.

It's important to note the exact ruling.

Chief judge Efran Basyuning said that Playboy's pictures "could not be categorised as pornography". He quoted an expert witness who testified they were not vulgar as the models' genitals were covered.

What the future holds:

Islamic leaders and cabinet ministers had joined the opposition to Playboy following large public demonstrations. They claimed the magazine was corrupting Indonesia with "Western decadence".

Indonesia's parliament is still considering sweeping anti-pornography laws that would ban any pictures or films that could be considered titillating. Under the proposed laws, women could be jailed for wearing "provocative clothing" that revealed their navels or emphasised their breasts.

A commenter at Reason puts up, what I call, the Uber Theorem:

I've finally figured it out: a religion that bans booze and nudity makes people cuh-raaazeey.

Purr

300 Kittens vs. the Persian Empire?

The Persians will be mauled!