OK, a few things to link today.

   On a sad, depressing note: Richard Wright, keyboardist for Pink Floyd died yesterday from cancer.  Son of your mother!!!!! He was only 65?!?!?!?! GAAAH! I honestly sat here for 5 minutes, at work, and did nothing as I tried to digest that he was gone. In my heart I hoped that the Floyd would tour one more time. Now it won’t happen.

   Second thing is a link that Ben sent to me about the effect of eating rotting, decaying flesh on the environment and global warming. Here it is.

   I will echo Ben’s sentiment when I say “DO IT BECAUSE IT’S THE RIGHT THING TO DO!!!!!!”

   Now I will propose something to reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses being expelled that is so shocking in its simplicity that it will confound, stymie and otherwise make your cognitive functions grind to a smoking, shuddering, wheezing halt: we make people pay full price for the carcasses they consume. So, no government subsidies to animal torturers, no water benefits, no tax breaks, no anti-defamation laws (which by the way are illegal. What happened to the first amendment? Free speech and all that...). People pay the full price for their putrefying skin and muscle. If they want it, they can pay for it.

   If they had to do that, there would be no more meat industry, because the cost would rise so high that it would be unattainable to anyone, even Bill Gates. Know why? Because if you factor in the cost of land that has been destroyed by grazing, and the water pollution caused by the feces (ßI changed that word from what I had there previously. You should be proud of me for my restraint.) of cattle being hosed in to our waterways, and the air pollution from the fossil fuels burned, and the methane from cow farts, there is no unreasonable price that could be set. I don’t know about you, but I like having clean air to breathe, and clean water to drink. Can you put a price on that last lungful of air you just inhaled? How about when you are thirsty, but all you could get is a glassful of tap water that has fecal particulates and bovine antibiotics in it? Sounds great, doesn’t it?

   If they want it, they can pay for it. Oh, the cost is priceless? I guess you won’t get your burger then, will you?

   Well, here is an update for all of you blog-readers out there:

   I now work from 5PM until whenever, so I don’t have a lot of time to post anymore. It’s very frustrating to see or read things and have neither the time nor the inclination to write a scathing, rage-filled diatribe. I also don’t want to just post a link to something and say “This sucks and it really makes me mad...” I want to do justice to the topic I choose. It also bites that I can’t post pictures from work. *blah*

   Now, it is time to choose a suitable topic for today...

   Ah yes...

   “It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine...”

   The Large Hadron Collider goes online today. True, it is only starting to send a hyper-accelerated beam of particles in one direction. Soon it will be creating 2 or more streams in opposite directions and then colliding them to study Planck/quantum events and leftovers...

   "I don't know how you can say that. Although I will admit that the possibility of a resonance cascade scenario is extremely unlikely, I remain uncomfortable with the---"
   "Gordon doesn't need to hear this. He's a highly trained professional. We have assured the Administrator that nothing will go wrong."
   ...
   I think I’ll keep my aluminum T-ball bat close at hand just in case they open up an inter-dimensional portal and the headcrabs (from the game Half-Life, where the above quote is from. That quote makes me smile, because I know what happened after...) or the legions of Hell (Doom) come spewing forth. Maybe right now would be a good time to stock up on semi-auto rifles and powerful handguns...Food and water also...

I'm glad I was going to work at 4 this afternoon...

...instead of coming home. A 210k pound tank shifted as it was being transported on a semi, and all NB I-15 was closed.

  And boy did it look nasty. Supposedly the freeway will also have to be repaired since it wasn’t designed to handle that much weight at one place. The only other thing I can think is that it was a very good thing that it didn’t fall off when it was on one of the 2 overpasses there in NSL. That would have sucked even more.

This story is just a bit too close for my comfort...

...fake bomb threat at Dick’s Market in Centerville.

    I can’t count the number of times that Val and I have walked to this store. It’s 1 mile from our house. We also pass by it every Saturday to go shopping.

   Why do people think it is funny to do stupid things like this? Do they have nothing better to do with their time than call in fake bomb threats? Why not go read a book, play a video game, or be gainfully employed somewhere? Instead, you’ll probably pollute further the gene pool that already is in dire need of Clorox.

   One last note: whoever did it, way to keep an eye out for those security cameras, retard.

Ah, humility and weakness...

Jacob 4:7 “Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things.”

   The only way that we can ever get to be like Jesus and Heavenly Father is through submitting our wills to Theirs. They will not change anyone; indeed They cannot. But if I will make the conscious decision to let Them make me what They desire, They will. It’s really that difficult and simple. In order to gain the Celestial Kingdom, I must become godly myself. But the only way to do that is not through my efforts alone, but in tandem with the enabling power of the Lord. Grace works to save us, not only at the end of our efforts (after all we can do), but during our efforts to make ourselves better. If we try to make ourselves better by ourselves, we fail. Always. Every time. But if we ask for the help of God along with our efforts, which is a gift of grace to us, then we progress. It may not seem lioke a big distinction to you, but it makes every difference to me.

   You see, I have come to realize, again, that my efforts to do better against my shortcomings and my addictions are ultimately futile, because my strength of will, although a bit considerable, is ultimately finite. Eventually, I will fail. But Jesus never fails. Therefore, if I rely on Him, then I can’t lose. The only way I can is if I do nothing.

 

Also Jacob 5:22 “And the Lord of the vineyard said unto him: Counsel me not; I knew that it was a poor spot of ground; wherefore, I said unto thee, I have nourished it this long time, and thou beholdest that it hath brought forth much fruit.

   The Lord plants where He thinks is the best, not according to what others think. I may be a poor spot of ground now, or have been in the past; but as the Lord nourishes me, I can be fruitful. I just need time and patience. (True, later on that piece of ground brings up bad fruit, but eventually it gives good fruit. It just takes work and patience.)

Keep your eye on the ball, aim for the target...

...keep your focus on the mark.

   I’ll use the middle part of verse 14:”Wherefore, because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking beyond the mark, they must needs fall.”

   It’s easy to lose sight of our goals, isn’t it? It’s very easy, unless our habits are in line with them. How fortunate a person is whose doesn’t have to re-evaluate very often their course or progress towards their goal.

   I have found for myself that I will be going along, quite nicely, along my chosen path, when I am suddenly/not-suddenly-at-all confronted with a choice that is not at all in line with my goals. Then I have to stop and think about where I am at that point in time, and ask a ‘why did that choice come to me right now?’ sort of question. Then, invariably, I realize that my path has been a deviated course from where I thought I had wanted to go. I wanted to be somewhere else, but I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and what my choices and habits were leading me. It’s like I had finally woken up to where I was and the poor choices that I had made in order to get to that point.

  I suppose the point to all of this is that I need to make better, consistent choices in order to make better habits for myself, so that I don’t need to keep evaluating whether or not what I am choosing to do is the right thing to do.

 

If your child is obese...

...the stop feeding them crap for food!

   The American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending that children at risk for obesity and/or heart disease be given cholesterol-reducing drugs in order to lower their risk. These children wouldn’t have these problems if they were fed good food, and not what necessarily tasted good.

   I have a news flash for all of ya: Stop your intake of cholesterol, and let the body create its own. Low-fat milk is not the answer, because the fat quantity is based as a percentage of weight. So, that 2% milk you think is so great? Well, that ‘2%’ is the percentage of fat to weight, not calories. One-fiftieth of that glass of pus-ridden ‘beverage’ you are drinking is fat. Mmmmmm. Yummy! If you don’t believe me, go to milksucks.com. Or perhaps you could read a report done by 3^rd party scientists whose study isn’t paid for by the United Dairy Council.

   Do yourself a favor, and avoid any side-effects from these unnecessary drugs that are trying to be foisted upon your children: be vegan, and cut your cholesterol intake to 0%. That’s right, to nothing! Eat good food that is also good for you. You will still get saturated fat, but no cholesterol.

   I can’t think of anything more horrid than giving a 3 year-old child some Plavix in order to reduce their LDL count. Hello?!?!?! You are the parent! Be responsible for what you feed your child!!!!

   Finally, if you are what you eat, what are you? Be honest...

I'm a firm believer...

   ...that when someone gets offended by something I choose to do, it is either because they/you are ignorant as to why I do it, and/or they/you infer some sort of judgment, from me, about you/themselves. (Sorry for all of the slashes. It wont happen again./)

   I reference the plethora of 3^rd person accounts of people who have inactivated themselves from the LDS church because of actions, statements or policies that either people in authority have put in place, or said, or instituted, etc. ad nauseum. “Bishop so-and-so said this, and I’m never going back to church until he’s not bishop anymore and he moves out!” “The church let blacks have the priesthood. Well, they’re wrong, the Negroes don’t deserve it. The church can’t be true because of such an outrageous doctrine.” “Brother so-and-so is such a lame neighbor. I hear him out in his yard swearing at the kids who walk on his lawn. I know he knows he’s supposed to not talk like that. I’m not going to keep going to church because he is a bad person.” We’ve all heard things like this, or have thought them to ourselves. Our choice is how we will react to these supposed ‘slights’.

   I am vegan because I choose to be, in order to alleviate the suffering of helpless animals that have no choice for themselves, and can’t escape their loathsome existences. I do not want to exploit any animal, because to do so is morally wrong. It is wrong because animals have souls, and will be exalted in the Celestial kingdom along with the righteous. Did you hear me? They will be exalted, and have souls! They are not dumb, and they are not to be used as food, except in extreme circumstances. If you don’t believe me, go read D&C 89:12-14 and then come back and we’ll talk. The only justification for animal consumption is if you’re going to die and that’s all you have. Nothing else. They are, spiritually speaking, only different from us in their inability to choose for themselves what to do. They are God’s creations as much as we are. They have as many rights as dogs and cats do.

   Keep your situational ethics out of the discussion, please. Just because you don’t want to offend someone by not partaking of their egg-infested cake or brownies, is a pathetic excuse. And if you think that being vegan is a ‘higher law’, then live it! If you think that, you have an obligation to live it, and to do it. Enforce it in your house, and don’t worry about that you might offend someone. Don’t be wishy-washy. And I also have a news flash for all of you LDS carnivores: what do you think the Millennium is going to be like? 1000 years of peace. No violence. The lamb and the lion will lie down together, the lion will eat straw. Doesn’t sound like animals will be killed for food, does it? ; which, by the way, is violence of the worst sort- violence against the helpless.

   The thing that fries my cookies (poor metaphor, but there it is) is that 99% of the church who have temple recommends say they live the Word of Wisdom, and they don’t. I suppose that the caveat is that they don’t know that they aren’t living it. Pay attention to your scriptures! Interpret them for yourself and pray for understanding! Don’t be a sheep and take someone else’s word for it. THINK FOR YOURSELF!!!!

   I know of 3 people, who are relatives of mine, who think that Val and I have gone off the deep end because we are vegan. One of them, whose father is a cattle-rancher, is offended because it isn’t possible that her father does anything morally wrong, so she is offended both on his part, and her own.  Her soon-to be husband is of the opinion that he has to have meat and that anything that doesn’t have necrotic, decaying animal flesh is ultimately weakening. He also follows her in a lot of things. The last person feels that veganism is morally wrong, even though she can’t elaborate as to why she thinks that. She just thinks that it is wrong. (I am pleased that I kept all of my negative comments about these people to myself. Aren’t you proud? And believe me, those thoughts are there. Lots of them.)

   The problem with these and other people who profess disbelief and amazement at our eating habits is that so very few are even slightly interested as to why we do what we do. If we were to tell them anything, that might mean they have to change, or do something different. Oh no, the horror of it!!!!

   I have real problems with ignorance. My mother says that we Fauvers do not ‘suffer fools gladly’. But, in a sense everyone is ignorant of some things. No one knows it all. What I have a problem with is willful ignorance, and disrespect to go along with it.

   An example: if Val and I provide a vegan dish that tastes good and we make enough for everyone, why is it sneered upon and seen as inferior? Or why is it not sufficient and something else, which is not vegan, has to be brought to ‘supplement’ our food? What, your decaying flesh is better than what we took the time and $ to make? Thanks for the disrespect. And by ‘thanks’ I mean that you can keep it to yourself.

   Don’t whine to me about inclusion. Try being vegan for 1 week, preferably around Thanksgiving or Christmas, and then go to family parties. MMMMMmmmm. Noodles and tomato sauce, while everyone else eats a dead bird or a hunk of flesh. Then come back and whine about including everyone.

   If you choose not to eat what my wife and I prepare, fine. But it is your choice. Don’t come trying to ‘supplement’ our food, that we worked hard on, with your unholy swill, whining about how you don’t like it, or how you prefer ‘real’ meat. Don’t eat it, and do it out of choice. True, Val and I choose not to eat meat out of choice, but ours is a moral choice, and theirs is personal preference. Our choice is not morally wrong. Theirs is.

   What is wrong is always wrong, no matter if you believe it or not. You can sin in ignorance, and God will forgive you. But, He knows if you know something, and when you started knowing it. You will be held accountable.

Not just organic farming...

...but it’s VEGANIC farming! Whoo hoo!

   Apparently veganic farming is similar to organic, but it doesn’t use any animal fertilizers or animal products, nor the approved pesticides that can be used on organic produce.

   I hadn’t ever heard of this, but it sounds like a very good idea. The less impact we have on the eco-system, the better off we are. Besides, I like knowing that my produce is 100% cruelty free.

I spent 4 hours yesterday in a fitting room at Kohl's...

...trying on new suits for the wedding here in a week. 4 HOURS! Val and I knew I needed a new suit, since the pants on my other suit had snagged open a huge hole on a hymn book 8 months ago, and the suit is at least 10 years old. It wasn’t going to be cheap nor easy to repair the suit, since it was so old and worn. So, we went to Kohl’s to see if they had any suits that were vegan: no wool, silk or anything like that.

   We got there, and after a tiny bit of searching we found a plethora of suits that fit the bill, made of a polyester and rayon blend, made by Haggar. But, we wanted to make sure that everything fit correctly, so Val shuttled in pants, coats and new, white shirts while I tried on what she brought in. She would also give her opinion of how they looked. There were a LOT of choices, so it took a long time. I was REALLY tired of trying on clothes, and standing for so long.

   By the time it was over I had chosen a grey suit that I liked as soon as I saw it, a black suit that Val thought I should get, and 2 new shirts. I left behind a very pale olive-green/light grey suit, since I didn’t NEED 3 suits. Maybe in the future I’ll piock up a light suit like that...On Friday I’ll go get a few new ties to add to my tiny collection of non-silk ties.

   The best part is that with all of the in-store discounts and coupons we had, all of this came out to ~$281. Normally it would have been more than twice that ($600), but it was this particular store’s grand opening here in Centerville, and the nice manager gave us a 20% discount for using a Kohl’s card, instead of the usual 15%.

   I will post pictures when I get a chance, but I will say that I look smokin’ hot in the grey suit. Really.

Tradition: the thief of rational thought and spirtuality...

   I would like to start out this post by saying that comments for discussion are welcome from now on, on any topic I post about, or any questions you may have. I would also like to apologize to Mr. Raty and ask for forgiveness, if you feel I deserve it, for being easily offended and incommunicado. From now on, if I don’t think that I can reasonably discuss something without being defensive or angry, I will say so, and bow out. I will do my best to provide accurate info in a timely manner, but I won’t always make it. Please be patient and communicative all of you, and give me a chance. Sorry for being a jerk, Ben. I crave forgiveness.

  

   In an e-mail discussion with a friend of mine, he said that his soon-to-be father-in-law is “steeped” in tradition. He observed that people have a hard time breaking away from tradition because it means that they have to blaze their own path, which is hard. He also lamented how much it costs to plan a “traditional” wedding.

   My opinion, reinforced more and more as I ‘talk’ (more like answer questions when asked and then watch as the asker goes ‘nuclear defensive’) to others about being vegan, is this: that tradition, doing that which has always been done, or that which has been done for so long that it no longer has a clear beginning, takes away the decision-making opportunity for most individuals. I should clarify: the opportunity isn’t taken away, but most people, depressingly, never think about “why” they are doing something. They never evaluate the habits that they indulge in.

   Now, obviously, there are some decisions or habits that should only be made once, and then re-evaluated only out of necessity. I quote D&C 68:25 “And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents

  26 For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized.

  27 And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.

  28 And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord.

  29 And the inhabitants of Zion shall also observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

  30 And the inhabitants of Zion also shall remember their labors, inasmuch as they are appointed to labor, in all faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord.”

   Obviously regular prayer, scripture study, Sabbath observance, service and the like should always be done, especially if we have a testimony of it. But I would assert that we should always be cognizant of “why” we do these things, to always have a remembrance as to what purpose these activities serve. We should decide, early on, that we will obey the Word of Wisdom in all of its respects (see my post from Monday 7Apr08), that we will obey the Law of Chastity in all respects, and that we will commit ourselves to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as it has been revealed in the latter days, and that we will teach our children these things, and do our best to see that they also live these principles as long as they are in our care. These sorts of things should be decided once, and then we move forward. There shouldn’t be any vacillation between whether we should do something right or not.

   Any of us who have served LDS missions realize the power of tradition in people’s lives. Religious tradition can be one of the most powerful forces on earth, promoting either righteous, valiant service in furthering God’s kingdom, or fostering the most stultifying ignorance imaginable. And unfortunately, this ignorance is not endemic to only those who are not members of the Church, but to those inside as well. I’m sure those of you who read this know of adults whose testimonies (if any) are borrowed from their parents or their forebears. They have no light of their own. These are the sorts of people who seem to be grateful to have ancestors who came across the plains as pioneers, or whose predecessors joined the Church while living in Europe in the 1850’s. They profess to be very blessed to be a member of the Church, but when asked to fulfill a calling, they decline. When asked to home teach, their dedication is minimal. When asked to volunteer for service, their hand never goes up. Tradition of Church membership has failed to help this person gain a burning, activating testimony. All they can do is mouth the words, but the feeling is absent. Their works don’t match with their protestations of faith.

  There are, of course, other traditions of equal or greater power outside of faith or religious promulgation. One in particular is food. I know, for myself, that I like to eat a lot of the things I ate while I was growing up. A favorite of mine is gorditas with limeade. Gorditas are flour tortillas, heated on a skillet, with refried beans, cheese, guacamole and BBQ sauce. Mmmmmm, yumminess! Before I was married, I had those almost every night for dinner. For a while I did without the guacamole, but I did the bean and cheese thing consistently. There were things that I wouldn’t eat, but they were few and far between. I didn’t like raw tomatoes, nor raw avocado. I am no stranger to the seduction of food, as is attested to by my previous record weight of 275 pounds. I was pretty much convinced that the only good food was the kind that I couldn’t fit into my mouth. No one said I was fat; in fact, when I told people how much I weighed, their response was a shocked “You don’t look that heavy!”

   There are good kinds of foods, and there are bad kinds. I don’t think that anyone will dispute that. If you feel like I am mistaken, let me know and I will be happy to discuss it, reasonably, with you. But, there are things to eat that are socially responsible and physically helpful/good, and things that are physically and environmentally destructive/bad. 85% of all grain grown in the US goes to feed livestock that is eventually killed so you can eat it. Furthermore, that grain is only partially digested and is dumped (intentional pun) out the back end of the cow. Livestock methane emissions are the 2^nd biggest contributor to global warming behind CO2 emissions from cars and factories. But, that cow poop has to be cleaned up somehow, so factory farms use ~10 million gallons of water per 10k head of cattle per day! PER DAY! And guess where that water goes? Nope, not to the treatment plant, but right in to whatever waterway is convenient, be it a creek, river, stream, whatever. In ~10 years the Ogalala aquifer will be dried up because of the use for the water to clean off cows every day. Range cattle are more destructive, but I will not comment on them right now.

   It is sufficient to say that clearing away the rain forest and turning verdant land in to desert only to satisfy a craving or a tradition is asinine or ignorantly destructive at best, morally reprehensible at worst, and an inefficient way to use our resources. Remember how 85% of US grain goes to livestock? How about using that grain to feed people instead of cows? Imagine how much space there is in the US, and how much of it is used to grow things. We could use all of that to feed ourselves instead of an ungulate horde. We’d save water, breathable air, and our ecosystems.

   I’m all in favor of making people pay full price for their meat, since the meat industry is one of the most heavily subsidized industries around (The dairy industry is another one). If it weren’t subsidized to the extent that it is now, the price of meat would go up ~300%. Maybe more. In fact, the cost is incalculable, due to the fact that clean air, clean water and diverse ecosystems are beyond value.

   Would you rather have that burger you're salivating over, or have good air to breathe? If you think I’m hyperbolizing, here is a fact for you Skippy: the rain forest is being cleared away at the rate of ~1 acre every 4 seconds. That’s, quick math everyone!, 21600 acres every day (15 acres/minute*60 minutes/hour*24 hours/day). I don’t have any comparison as to how much land that is, but it’s more than we can afford to lose since that land holds trees that convert the CO2 we emit back to oxygen we need to breathe.

   This started out as a discussion about tradition. Another name for tradition is habit. There are good habits and bad habits. Be aware that what you do, or say, or are affects those around you, possibly in ways you cannot comprehend. Be responsible for the things you do and the choices you make. Don’t do things just because you’ve always done it that way, but realize “why” you do it. Realize the consequences of giving in to habits that are destructive and harmful both to yourself, and to those who you are in contact with. Choose responsibly, choose products that are environmentally friendly, and ask yourself : “What is the real cost of this thing I’m buying? What effect will I have around me if I buy it? Whose efforts am I supporting? Do they care about me, or are they out for themselves, regardless of the cost?”

  Break bad habits. Substitute good ones, even if they cost more monetarily. In the end, the $ cost is lots less than not being able to breathe without coughing, isn’t it?

I'm sure I'm going to Hell for laughing...

...at this. There seems to be a LOLCat translation of the Bible, which is cute, but I’m sure I condemned myself by laughing at it.

 

If you need to know where LOLCats come from, check this site out.

When are you meat-eaters going to realize... (green words are links)

...that animals are not resources!?!?!?!

Animals are animals. They have feelings, they hurt and feel pain, they react to stimuli. Since they are alive, they also have spirits. Do you think God like it when people/you kill His creatures indiscriminately? Or to sate your addictions? Would you like to be referred to as a resource? They are not to be exploited, used, or abused only to satisfy your addictions. Just because you are too weak-willed to admit that you don’t even want to try and quit, or that you should, for your own sake and the planet’s, doesn’t make further slaughter any more justified. If you give the weak-assed justification “Everything in moderation” excuse, well, that means some drug use is OK, isn’t it? How about I pick up a prostitute once a month? That’s fine, isn’t it? It’s only once a month... How about a bit of murder? Once a year all right?

If you LDS people have a problem with this, I refer you to the 89^th section of D&C. The only place that it says that it is OK is in verses 12 and 13, where it says they are to be used sparingly, ONLY IN TIMES OF WINTER, COLD OR FAMINE!!!!!!!!!!! Not whenever you feel like it, nor when it is convenient, but out of dire NECESSITY! If you are going to die, then it’s OK, but not at any other time! Priesthood commemoration steak fries? OUT! Bacon and pancakes with milk for breakfast for Father and Son’s outings? Nope! Fried chicken at Elder’s quorum activities? Unnecessary...

Go ahead and try to justify your position and say “But Jordan, it references in verse 15 section 49:18, which reads “And whoso forbiddeth to abstain from meats, that man should not eat the same, is not ordained of God;” Read this verse very carefully. Whoever tries to forbid me from abstaining from/not eating meat is not ordained of God. So, if you are going to tell me that I am wrong for not eating meat, I have a news flash for you: you’re the one who is wrong. My ward members who want to call Child Protective Services because I let my 13 year-old child choose not to eat meat (in other words, he chooses for HIMSELF!), you can shove off. You are the ones who are deluded.

Don’t tell me that eating meat in today’s world is ordained of God, especially here in the US. It isn’t. I’m pretty sure that Heavenly Father nor Jesus approve of factory farms (I haven’t read the whole article, I only provide the link to illustrate what a factory farm is. Don’t those breeding sows look comfortable?), nor of raping the earth or the water we drink in order to sustain them. There is NOTHING good that comes from eating meat or animal products of any kind. Those who claim otherwise are deluded and ignorant both of the extent to which meat/animal products contribute to diseases of every kind, and the extent to which the industies destroy everything associated with them. Those who claim so are either ignorant, at best of the devastation, or are being paid by the industries themselves, at worst.

In places like Argentina, where there are few vegan alternatives, you can still choose to eat vegetables. Here in the US, the only excuse someone has is that they are TOO DAMN/ F’ING LAZY AND/OR ADDICTED TO ANIMAL PRODUCTS THAT THEY CAN’T STOP. That’s it: you just choose not to. They aren’t necessary to us, they are a luxury item. There are better plant alternatives, but you are too lazy.

Don’t try and justify to me as to why you can’t stop contributing to wholesale desecration and slaughter of God’s precious creations. Cheese tastes too good to give up? Tough. Steaks are too good to pass up? Quit whining. Milk is better at giving calcium that vegetables? Get real, pull your head out, stop being a pawn of the milk industry and get educated on the realities of calcium. Animal protein is better for human consumption than plant protein? A question for you: Which is more complex and therefore harder to break down and digest, plant or animal protein? Remember that all protein has to be completely broken down and then reconstituted in order to be utilized by the body. I can’t use zebra protein if it is not broken down first. Neither can you. Which is easier to process?

Stop being a pawn, realize that you are addicted to animal products, and choose to not support the destruction of the earth. Methane emissions from factory farm animals is the 2^nd largest contributor to global warming. Where do you think all of the sewage from those farms go? That’s right, in to the water YOU DRINK! The rain forests are being cleared at a catastrophic rate in order to supply your meat addiction. Thanks a lot: In 20 years they will be gone and then we’ll all suffocate because you had to have a burger. You think I exaggerate? Hardly. I could reference painstaking studies that say that if we don’t stop de-forestation, we as a species will be doomed. Another question: how long has that flesh been dead that you are eating, whether avian, bovine or fish? MMMmmmm...rotting flesh. Delicious. And do you think that the USDA cares about protecting you? If you knew the truth, they are more concerned about keeping the businesses working, because the businesses then either kick-back to the USDA officials or they get other benefits, either monetary or otherwise. Also, the USDA has a dual mandate: protect consumers and protect the well-being of agriculture. Who do you think the USDA caters to more? Repeat after me, children...”CONFLICT OF INTEREST!” How much pus, growth hormone, antibiotics and morphine are in that glass of frosty cold milk that you just drank? Remember, factory farms are built for profit, not for taking good care of the cows, so a cow can be mistreated and still produce, even when it has been over-milked and its udders are sore and bleeding.

Admit you have a problem, and that there is a better way to live. Just because something has always been one way doesn’t make it correct or right. What is wrong has always been wrong, regardless of the situational circumstances. Don’t be too lazy to change yourself. The whole point of the gospel is to better ourselves. Commit to yourself that you will do differently, stop contributing to animal cruelty and therefore be a more responsible person.

For myself, I want God to be pleased with me, as he says in verse 13 of section 89: “And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine” Don’t you want him to be pleased with you?

Sick sucks!

I apologize if some of you have been trying to get a hold of me. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I was at home with a fever of ~102-103. That and a hacking cough that is still plaguing me, it was NO vacation.

            I think the 105 hours I worked in the last 2 weeks contributed to this, along with the average of 100 hours per 2 weeks, plus a lack of sleep, and a really fun vegan pizza party that Val and I went to on Saturday the 15^th. Lots of pizzas, and a whole TABLE full of vegan cupcakes, all of different varieties. I am ashamed to say that I lost count of how many cupcakes I had. I lost track after 12 or 13. We had lots of fun watching all of the Indiana Jones movies, and all for $20 for both of us. But...I paid for it all this week.

Sunday was the most miserable day at work I could remember. Even with the heat turned up to 75, a long-sleeved shirt, and my coat, it took me more than 45 minutes to warm up, only to lose all of that precious warmth when I had to go out into the warehouse. I almost fell over a few times...Yeah, good times.

Being sick with a fever makes it really hard to enjoy anything. I didn’t play any computer games because I would have had to expose my hands to the cold outside world. I did watch a few DVD’s, namely ‘The Goonies’ and appendix 5 for ‘Return of the King’. I ate some fruit, and drank lots of water. LOTS of water. Like 6 gallons worth.

The only possible upside to all this is that I dropped ~10 lbs. I’m now down to 220 lbs. I’m becoming quite slim. How nice...

And just as a test, if anyone can actually see this picture, would you please e-mail me and let me know?

Apparently, the war is over...

...the hi-def format war, that is.

Toshiba decided that they aren’t going to be doing HD-DVD any more, making Sony Blu-ray the de-facto hi-definition standard.

I guess this means that when I’m ready to go hi-def (not anytime soon), I’m going to need to re-buy the DVD’s I have now. I think we have ~70 movies. Oh well.

It’ll be cool to see Return of the King in HD.

Here is your First Presidency update for today...

Not much else for today, so I’ll go now.

Pres. Hinckley died this evening...

Here is the link to an article I was able to find: link

 

While I am sad, it certainly is reassuring to have a testimony that all of the keys and powers to make the Church work and function sit with the 12 and not with only one person.

 

Upon further reflection, that is the only sane, logical way to go, especially since this is God’s church. I mean, why put all of the keys in one person’s hands, except by necessity? Joseph Smith didn’t have a choice, since he was the first. But after that, obviously the Twelve are going to be the ones to make decisions, since you need to spread the keys/power around so that they can be utilized to make the work go forward. Also, accidents can happen to anyone, and since we have been told that the truth will not be taken away again, the keys have to reside with the Twelve. Since there is a very small chance of all 12 being taken at one time, someone would always be around to make sure the power/keys were not lost again. And even then, the keys also still reside with the quorums of the 70. So, they could always ordain another Apostle, give him the necessary authority, and then he could ordain other Apostles to repopulate the Quorum. And the work continues.

 

I feel kind of sorry for Sidney Rigdon when he tried to go it alone. He just didn’t have a chance. He didn’t realize that that isn’t God’s way. (Not that I claim to understand the mind of our Heavenly Father...)

Good day, fellowcitizens!

 

Your link for this post is right here.

 

The vegan in me yells “If you people would stop supporting the dairy and/or the meat industries, there would be enough water, and lots more arable land that could be used to grow these crops all over the world. Instead, the water is used and polluted by these machines of slaughter, and the land is used to grow food for the animals instead of the humans.

Brilliant!” Then, people wouldn’t be forced off of land because there would be a LOT MORE SPACE for everybody.

Posting at work has to be...

...the most unhelpful thing in the world.

 

I tried to post my Christmas pictures, but apparently my work computer won’t let the pictures through. So, still no pix.

 

I gave blood today, and it wasn’t bad at all. It hurt a little bit more than last time, but it wasn’t any worse than getting a shot. Someone I know gave blood and almost passed out from it; not because it hurt, but because her body doesn’t react well to being poked.

 

The cookies that I got afterwards were really good. MMMMMmmmmmm. Cookies.

The computer I want...

Motherboard-  Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R

Processor- Intel Core2 Duo E6750, E6850 or QuadCore 6600

RAM – 2Gb DDR2-800 SDRAM

Video card – NVIDIA GeForce 8800 Ultra

Sound card – Creative X-fi XtremeGamer

Hard drives – WD (WesternDigital)  Raptor 1 x 150Gb and 2 x 500Gb WD5000AAKS

DVD drive – 2 x Pioneer DVR-212D

Case – Antec P182

Power Supply – Corsair HX520

Headphones –Sennheiser HMD280-Pro

Monitor: BenQ FP241W 24” LCD                 

WinXP Pro

 

All of this for less than $2k would be great.

Well friends and neighbors...

...I’m off all of next week, until the 31 of December.

Have a merry, safe and happy Christmas, all of you. I hope you have fun and get some of the things you want.

Hasta luego y feliz navidad.

Eggless nog

2 ½ Cups (C) soft tofu – usually 1 store bought vacuum-sealed container is enough

3 C Soy milk (add more or less to suit taste)

1 Tbsp Vanilla extract

¾ - 1 C sugar

2 Tbsp maple syrup

¼ tsp turmeric

¼ - ½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp rum flavor (or real rum if you swing that way...)

 

In blender blend tofu, 1C milk, syrup, sugar, spices and vanilla and rum flavors until smooth. Pour in to pitcher and add the rest of the soy milk. Stir well, chill, and serve. MMMMMM! The yumminess!

Don’t be a sad vegan warrior during the holidays!

By the way...

...doesn’t the name ‘Occupational Homicide’ sound like a great name for a rock band?

Well, I think it does.

Driving pet peeves...

Here is the link for today. I have to agree with some of these, as I even see them now in greatly reduced traffic at 4PM. I think the ones I dislike the most are either the people who don’t use their blinkers (and almost get rear-ended), or the ones who camp out in the left lane while sightseeing at 20 under the limit.

2 Posts in 1!!!!

2 things tonight:

 

            First, I just found out that Eastgate Drug will be closing its doors on Saturday, 1 Dec 07. Here is the link for the Channel 8 story. So, for Ben and I, and Lyman Holyoak and any others who may have been employed by Doug, this is the closing of a chapter in our lives. I remember working for Doug while he was still in the old building, and also helping move all of his stuff out of there in to where they are/were now.

I wonder what Doug is saying right now...

 

            Second, a website that I frequent has a Star Trek questions thread going on. As I have admitted in the past, I am a Trek geek, but not a Trekkie. If you call me a Trekkie, I’m liable to come after you with a power-sander and a bottle of lemon juice. But even I was amazed at the amount of info I have stashed away in my noggin when I was able to answer some of the questions in this thread. Here is the link for it. Read it and see how well you fare.

 

I’m beginning to think that I ought to get Deep Space 9 on DVD before I get a new computer. That would be sweet!

Well, no pictures, unless I can figure out how to make the picture send in the email, and not as an attachment.

Hey, my e-mail test worked.

 

Now I just have to figure out how to go back and edit. I probably can’t, not without being at home. That kinda sucks, but at least I can post.

 

Now for a picture test:

This is an e-mail test...

 

ADDICTION IS NOT A DISEASE, YOU MOUTH-BREATHING, SLACK-JAWED IMBECILES!!!!!!11111

 

Addiction comes about because people make consistently poor choices. I know, because I have an addiction of my own. Don’t remove the responsibility from them just because you want to sell your heroin-addiction withdrawal reducer drug.

 

I don’t have a problem with people seeking help for their addictions in whatever way they see fit, but don’t take away their ability to choose by calling it a disease.

Back online...

...at least temporarily, here from home.

I'm working nights now, probably permanently, and the work computer decided to block Blogger. So, if I post, I'm gonna have to do it from home, or e-mail the post to myself here on Blogger.

I'll figure something out...

Bye!!!!

Another one...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY dearest sister of mine!

She's .... 24 I think.

Happy Birthday, Lemur!

Just another sign that civilization as we know it is doomed...

...I peeked in to the break room and "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" was on. A ~23 year old woman was asked "How many consonants are in the word vowel?" Her reponse was that the word is spelled "voul", so there are 2. Some of the 5th graders gave her a look like she was out of her mind. The little girl she had helping her got the correct answer, which is 3, and the young woman got nothing except the opportunity to look foolish in front of prime-time America.

If I had an emoticon of a smiley-face shaking his head, I'd put it here. -> <-

The irony of this post would be if I had mispelled something and I didn't catch it.

"Our deepest fear...

...is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Nelson Mandela 1994

This quote gives me chilly-bumps.

This is awesome...

...a shirt that shows the strength of the Wi-Fi signal where ever you are.

For those of you that aren't as tech literate as others, Wi-Fi is another name for wireless internet, usually over a large area (cities and such.)

I'm not geek enough to get one, but it made me laugh.

It's Sunday...

...and it's been too short of a weekend. However, it was interesting.

It started raining Friday night, and by Saturday morning it had turned to snow. It didn't stick, but it was the first snowfall of this season.

We also went to a wedding reception at Wheeler Farm in Murray. But while we were there we met a whole FLOCK OF GEESE AND DUCKS. Like 200 of them. The geese were honking, the ducks quacking, all milling around our feet, waiting for the bread that we didn't have, but they were sure we did. The funniest thing is that it started with 3 ducks and a goose, and the goose must have said something; because then a line of 150+ ducks and geese come waddling our direction, making quite a bit of noise. They were so close we could have touched them. When we went to go in to the receptuion, all of them, all 150+ FREAKIN' GEESE AND DUCKS, turned to follow us as we went away. The geese were honking merrily, and the ducks waddling along, waiting for their bread.

Unfortunately we didn't have the camera. But we plan to go back and get a picture of us in the flock.

Here's how it looks now...

Here are the 2 IBM 2210's. We got rid of the Xerox, got rid of the cubicle wall around the UPS there in the top middle of the picture, and moved the other 2210 away frm the far wall. Now there's lots of room over there.

Here is the data storage unit on top of the 2 servers for Streamserve. That storage thing weighs about 45 pounds, and the servers weigh about 60 pounds apiece and are about 3.5 feet long.

Oh, and do you notice that empty space next to them? Yeah, that's ALL CLEANED OUT NOW! ALL 50 square feet of it!

Well, we're officially on our own...

Everyone who was part of our automated output (Streamserve) development team is now gone, never to return to SLC. They are scheduled to go to Seattle next, then Denver, and then I think they're gonna split up and do more DC's simultaneously.

However, before they left I was able to get pictures, all of which are ( L > R ):


First, the actual code writers for the Stream server: Tien Tien Lai, Phi Nguyen and Sundeep Reddy. The 2nd day they were here, they set up camp in Mark's office (at Mark's insistence). Poor Tien Tien (Tin Tin) was always cold, no matter where she was. She had some pretty funky dress shoes. She's all of 4 foot nuthin'. Phi was the only one with an Asian accent, and he used to work for Earth shoes (a pair of which I have on right now). He's a really nice guy. Sundeep was also super nice. He lived in Boston up until last year when he transferred to Atlanta. He was kind of their supervisor, but worked just as hard as the other 2. The 3 of them wrote the program for Streamserve.

Next, we have John Trippe. He was/is more or less the one overseeing this project for the company. He's a really nice guy with a real Southern-drawl, who doesn't like his picture to be taken, but who relented after I asked him 'please'.

Then there is Mike Governale and Dave Hutchins. We didn't see them much, but I think they were in charge of user names and login ID's.

Finally, there is Trevor McLinn and Tom Rials. I don't know where Trevor is from, but he was the youngest one here from the company. I think he works for John Trippe. Tom was from Mobile, Alabama, and every time he talked it was evident where he was from. He was the implementation person for the company on this project. He used to work the computer room in Birmingham, AL a while ago.

I'm gonna miss all of these people. They have become part of the team, and they're going to other places.

On a final note, I think Mark will be glad to have his office back.

Happy Birthday to Ben...

...I hope he's having fun at BYU.

Today is also my supervisor Mark's birthday.

I also went to the driving range with Val, her sister and my father-in-law to hit golf balls.

The only thing I will say is that I do not have any innate/latent talents at golf. It will be an acquired skill if I ever choose to follow it.

Wouldn't this be great to have?

A copy of the Magna Carta from the year 1297.

That was 710 years ago!

How much has changed since that time, when democracy was not nearly as prevalent as it is now. Granted, it's not global, but it has spread much further than it was at that time.

Just a thought, but was the Roman Empire also a democracy? How about the Greeks?

Wow, that was a long time ago.

My, how times change...

This is a 1 gigabyte hard-drive from 20 years ago. That is also a 1GB flash card being held at the right of the picture.

Makes me wonder where we'll be in another 20 years.

Here is the link.

Some things make me shake my head...

Here is the link with the photo.

A random quote this morning...

...that I thought of on the way to work this morning.

" 'nother glorious day in the Corp. Day in the marine corp is like a day on the farm: every meal is a banquet, every paycheck a fortune, every formation a parade! I love the Corp!"

Taken from the movie Aliens. I couldn't find a script that had that qoute on IMSDB.com .

That movie still rocks...

I'm split on this one...

A coach sends a 10-year old boy home in his underwear...

Obviously, if this did happen, the coach is an insecure retard for humiliating this child in front of others.

But what about the kid? Couldn't he have said "No, I'm not going to do that. I'll leave, and I understand you don't want me on the team, but I'm not gonna take my clothes off..." Now, he probably wouldn't have said it exactly that way, but I was taught that you don't take off your clothes except in certain situations, none of which involve more than 1 other person at a time, and that person I am married to.

I think the parent needs to have a talk with the child and reinforce that no one has the power to make him do this, under any circumstance.

And the coach, if he's guilty, should be humiliated just as bad as the child was.

A couple of good qoutes for your Monday...

...from the Wikipedia article on Mahatma Gahndi.


"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."

"There are many causes that I am prepared to die for but no causes that I am prepared to kill for."

I like the 'eye for an eye' one a lot. Retribution is ultimately futile, isn't it?

My self-declaration...

I am a successful person, regardless if someone else says I am or not, if they say I am timid, or scared of others, or whatever. I will become successful in order to help others better themselves, and to show everyone else that I can do what I say I can do. I choose to be successful and wealthy every day.

I will not be part of the 50% of people who get life-changing information and do nothing to change their situation. I will change my situation so that I can become financially independent in 5 years or less.

If someone I love or respect tells me that I shouldn't do what it is that I want to do, I will tell them that I respect their opinion, but that I am going to do what I feel/know is best for me.

My future is mine, and doesn't belong to anyone else. I will make the decisions for myself that I know are best for me.

Heavenly Father wants me to become financially secure so that I can serve Him and others, and help others to better their lives. I can't serve as effectively if I am stuck at a job for 8 hours a day.

Well, I'm out...

...for the rest of the week. I'll be back Tuesday.

Have a fun weekend and a great Labor Day!

Be safe.

A hole in space...

...or just a lot of nothing. At least that's what the scientists say. 5 to 10 billion light-years away, and a lot of emptiness inside that area.

It immediately reminded me of this Star Trek: Voyager episode where thay pass through just about the same thing.

And yes, I am a Star Trek geek.

The only thing I can think of...

...when I read this article, which talks about how fast dinosaurs were, is that scene in Jurassic Park where the T-rex is chasing the Jeep with Muldoon, Sattler and Ian Malcolm, with the 'Objects in mirror are closer than they appear' image.

"Must go faster..."

What I don't understand about this article is...

...why is anyone surprised that people are defaulting on loans now, when they couldn't afford the mortgage in the first place?

I blame the lenders, who didn't even see if a person had the capability to repay their loan before giving them the money. I also blame the people getting the loans in order to buy houses that they can't afford. I don't know what people think, that they can get large amounts of money to buy a ginormous estate, and then they aren't responsible to pay it back? Or did they over-estimate their earnings? Or did they over-estimate the appreciation of their "asset".

I put "asset", because a house is not an asset, because it earns you nothing. It may appreciate in value, and you may sell it for more than you bought it. But you still have to live somewhere, and the market is also appreciating along with your "asset". However, your house/mortgage is an asset to the institution that lent you the money to buy the house, since you pay it back along with interest.

I think almost all people try to buy things they can't afford, because they don't have the patience to buy a true asset that will make them be able to afford the things they want. They want it RIGHT NOW NOW NOW!!!!!!11111

Well, I'm not surprised by the market conditions. I feel sorry for those people who are gonna be foreclosed against, but that is the consequence of their actions.

I think everyone needs a real financial education, and don't just rely on someone who doesn't have your best interests at heart. Take responsibility for yourself...because no one else is gonna do it.

By the way, Val and I are gonna become educated in these things very soon. I challenge you to do the same.

Artificial life...

...made in a lab, and NOT by artificial insemination.

Scientists are trying to create a single cell by artificial means, starting with the cell membrane.

Am I too paranoid because I envision, based on this qoute at the end of the article; "Bedau said there are legitimate worries about creating life that could "run amok," but there are ways of addressing it, and it will be a very long time before that is a problem.
"When these things are created, they're going to be so weak, it'll be a huge achievement if you can keep them alive for an hour in the lab," he said. "But them getting out and taking over, never in our imagination could this happen."

Am I paranoid to think that this is the typical start to a lot of sci-fi novels where life is created, then gets away from the scientists?

Ah, I love the Internet, because it gives me things like this...

I know it's small, but you can see an enlarged version here (I think so, but the work PC won't let me go to it. Stupid Websense.)

Happy 25th birthday...

...to the CD.

Yes, today the CD is 25 years old.

I was only 4 years old when it started. I remember listening to 'Dark Side of the Moon' and Beethoven's 5'th Symphony on LP records, but I also remember buying my first CD player, and even my first CD set ( Pink Floyd's Delicate Sound of Thunder concerts, which I still have).

I wonder what the next big format will be after the CD dies out, and the the mp3.

Also, Joel's birthday is on Sunday. I think he's 22, so drop him a line and wish him a happy birthday.

Have a great weekend!

Your weekly update...

An interesting weekend. Val and I went and saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on Friday. It was an OK movie. Nothing spectacular.

Saturday we went to a concert at Temple Square in the Tabernacle, but we arrived late and only caught Beethoven's 5th. Kind of sad, but it was still awesome to be able to watch the orchestra play one of my favorite selections of music. We also found out that Pres. Faust had died the day before, and that's why the flags at Temple Square were at half-staff.

Yesterday we went to a 24 stake YSA(Young single adult) fireside, even though we aren't 'S', because the speakers were Linda and Richard Eyre. Val was very excited. It was a great thing to be at.

Wokin' on a Saturday...

I'm here at work doing the weekly restart of the computers/AS400.

I don't have much to say, except that Val and I are going to a baptism and then a funeral today. I'm not too excited about the funeral part, but that is part of life, isn't it?

Oh well. Have a great weekend!