I'd always wondered how many of the people who say "IQ does not matter at all" or "heredity has nothing to do with IQ" really believe it. Somebody (Daniel Mocsny?) has once suggested an experiment: if a person is faced with a heart surgery and has a choice of surgeons with the IQ of two standard deviations below normal and two standard deviations above normal, how many of the IQ-nonbelievers would choose a low-IQ surgeon and how many would have a crisis of faith? I'd like to add: if a person needed donor sperm or a donor egg, for many would willingly choose an egg or sperm of a donor with low IQ?
Incidentally, the stupidest person I have met in my life is a mother of two very smart children. It happens. Maybe she inherited some particularly unfortunate combination of genes. Maybe something happened to her, too little oxygen at birth or something like that. I'd still choose a smart donor's genetic material over a stupid one's. Not that I have any use for any genetic material, of course.
I wanted to write about the Bell Curve, but Tommi read my mind and beat me to it.
Friday, August 13, 2004
Vanhanen
Looks like Tatu Vanhanen is not going to be accused of inciting racial hatred after all. Thanks god for small favors.
What bothers me about the attempt to accuse him is how it relates to the scientific process in general. The man was obviously not screaming "kill the black people!" in the streets - he was expressing the results of his research, his theory, which he of course believes is right. Which brings us to the question: if his theory, god forbid, is right, do we want to forbid saying the truth because it insults an ethnic group? And if we are trying to punish him precisely because he is, in fact, wrong, does it mean that making mistakes in science is punishable by law, at least when these mistakes are insulting to as ethnic group or race? I thought that scientific research normally involves a lot of people being wrong a lot of the time.
OTOH: this is an example where the claim is not likely to incite violence. Saying "Blacks are stupid", "Jews are ugly" or "Norwegians fart all the time", although is not likely to please said groups, is also not likely to incite violence against them. What if the claim were "most Russians living in Finland have spied on Finland for Russia during the Winter War" and it were uttered right after the Winter War? And what if it were the truth? Would the turth have to be suppressed in order to avoid the violence? I don't know.
Another disturbing thing: some things are just too hot to touch, even for scientific community. IQ, as some people say, does not matter in any way and is totally unimportant, and therefore everybody who is studying it is a menace to society. IQ has absolutely no hereditary component, say some, and any correlation between smart parents and smart children is purely accidental. The thought that there might be variations in intelligence between ethnic groups is outright heretical, especially when expressed as "group A has lower IQ than our society's average", as opposed to the also politically incorrect, but much less so "group B has higher IQ than our society's average".
Vanhanen's research might be of low quality; hard to say since I have not read the book, but if this article is true, his method of data collection is, to put it mildly, rather unfortunate. What bothers me, however, is that if somebody did perfectly good research and came up with the same or similar results, it would not piss people off any less, in fact probably more. And no matter how good or well-proven the theory would be, the scientific community and the rest of society would not accept it - we are just too uncomfortable with the idea. In fact I am rather uncomfortable with the idea, though obviously not to the point of wanting to punish the researcher.
What bothers me about the attempt to accuse him is how it relates to the scientific process in general. The man was obviously not screaming "kill the black people!" in the streets - he was expressing the results of his research, his theory, which he of course believes is right. Which brings us to the question: if his theory, god forbid, is right, do we want to forbid saying the truth because it insults an ethnic group? And if we are trying to punish him precisely because he is, in fact, wrong, does it mean that making mistakes in science is punishable by law, at least when these mistakes are insulting to as ethnic group or race? I thought that scientific research normally involves a lot of people being wrong a lot of the time.
OTOH: this is an example where the claim is not likely to incite violence. Saying "Blacks are stupid", "Jews are ugly" or "Norwegians fart all the time", although is not likely to please said groups, is also not likely to incite violence against them. What if the claim were "most Russians living in Finland have spied on Finland for Russia during the Winter War" and it were uttered right after the Winter War? And what if it were the truth? Would the turth have to be suppressed in order to avoid the violence? I don't know.
Another disturbing thing: some things are just too hot to touch, even for scientific community. IQ, as some people say, does not matter in any way and is totally unimportant, and therefore everybody who is studying it is a menace to society. IQ has absolutely no hereditary component, say some, and any correlation between smart parents and smart children is purely accidental. The thought that there might be variations in intelligence between ethnic groups is outright heretical, especially when expressed as "group A has lower IQ than our society's average", as opposed to the also politically incorrect, but much less so "group B has higher IQ than our society's average".
Vanhanen's research might be of low quality; hard to say since I have not read the book, but if this article is true, his method of data collection is, to put it mildly, rather unfortunate. What bothers me, however, is that if somebody did perfectly good research and came up with the same or similar results, it would not piss people off any less, in fact probably more. And no matter how good or well-proven the theory would be, the scientific community and the rest of society would not accept it - we are just too uncomfortable with the idea. In fact I am rather uncomfortable with the idea, though obviously not to the point of wanting to punish the researcher.
Life, games and shooting stars
Have no time to write much this week: too much work and three role-playing sessions, two of them for the same campaign. Although did not really have to do much there since my character got delivered to a hospital with a punctured lung in the beginning of the Tuesday session and therefore was in no condition to be very efficient. But it's fun to watch other people playing while one's own character is very much out of the game.
Saw the shooting stars on Wednesday. Even dragged my ass to Kaivopuisto for that just before midnight. Spent 20 minutes lying on my back and staring into the sky, saw 4 shoting stars for my trouble. There was a lot of other people out there but they were all going to Kaivohuone. Have no idea what was happening there.
Never understood the popularity of Kaivohuone, but then I tend to favor quiet pubs with as little smoke and music and as big a selection of beer as possible.
Saw the shooting stars on Wednesday. Even dragged my ass to Kaivopuisto for that just before midnight. Spent 20 minutes lying on my back and staring into the sky, saw 4 shoting stars for my trouble. There was a lot of other people out there but they were all going to Kaivohuone. Have no idea what was happening there.
Never understood the popularity of Kaivohuone, but then I tend to favor quiet pubs with as little smoke and music and as big a selection of beer as possible.
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
I just can't leave Al-Muhajiroun in peace, can I?
Here is a lovely article with instructions in toilet use for proper Moslems. Features: "you can't read Quran in the bathroom", "don't stay there too long", "did the Prophet piss sitting or standing", etc.
OK, shouldn't make fun of it. Whatever people do in the toilet is their business, provided they don't miss the bowl.
Here is another one about the education system:
The Islamic state will have its own media department which it will use to propagate Islam and the Islamic values throughout the world and refute all the lies and misconceptions that have been propagated by the disbelievers. All the latest technological and scientific means of communications, such as satellite, electronic mail, teleconferencing etc. will be tapped, used and explored by the state in its quest to educate the citizens of Khilafah. Foreign media sources like BBC World Service, CNN, Voice of America etc., which exist in the Muslim world to confuse, attack and divert Muslims from Islam will be banned.
This sounds somehow familiar to an old Russian.
The current secular school system is very, very bad:
Perhaps the first lesson is geography. Your child will be taught about the different countries : its resources, population, peoples and culture, language, its national flag etc.... And many of these will inevitably be of Muslim countries. It all seems quite harmless until you realise that Islam does not recognise most of these countries as legitimate countries.
...
Maybe the next lesson in the daily routine will be science. You expect your child to gain an understanding in science that will further his/her future career. But it is easy to forget that many of the ideas taught in this subject are in direct contradiction to the Islamic belief.
After all, many theories, hypotheses and speculations, which have no firm foundation in evidence and which are subject to dispute among experts are taught as if they are established facts. The Theory of Evolution suggests that humans evolved from apes. The principle of Conservation of Energy proposes that energy is eternal (cannot be destroyed or created, but just transformed). Humans are put in the same category as animals (differing by being just a more advanced animal). The water cycle is presented as a self-subsisting system.
"Attitudes in Western science threatens the very status of God. " Duh.
Their vision of an Islamic state includes a vision of schools:
Let us consider a similar scenario as above. Your child arrives at a school in the Islamic State, and begins the day by greeting his/her colleagues and teachers with the greeting of Islam. Your child has the first lesson, perhaps a science subject. It could be a selection of the experimental or pure sciences. It would be taught with the Islamic 'aqeedah (belief) as the basis and an overriding guide. You as the parent, could rest assured that ideas such as the Theory of Evolution would not be taught; humans would not be considered as advanced animals; the Big Bang Theory would not be taught as fact (these would be studied later in university along with their refutation). Allah (swt) says in the Qur'an : "But most of them follow nothing but conjecture. Truly conjecture can be of no avail." [TMQ 10:37]
Yeah, "conjecture can be of no avail" is just an attitude for a scientist to have.
Whereas science in the West is seen as a contradiction to belief in God, within the Islamic State science would be a confirmation of the existence of Allah. Your child would come home and explain that he/she learnt about the water cycle : how Allah (swt) causes water to rise as vapour from the seas by evaporation and form clouds; then Allah (swt) would cause these clouds to give rain once they were over the lands; and Allah (swt) would cause the rain-water to gather and return back to the seas to once again start the cycle. Nothing that is taught would be in contradiction to Islam.
OK, shouldn't make fun of it. Whatever people do in the toilet is their business, provided they don't miss the bowl.
Here is another one about the education system:
The Islamic state will have its own media department which it will use to propagate Islam and the Islamic values throughout the world and refute all the lies and misconceptions that have been propagated by the disbelievers. All the latest technological and scientific means of communications, such as satellite, electronic mail, teleconferencing etc. will be tapped, used and explored by the state in its quest to educate the citizens of Khilafah. Foreign media sources like BBC World Service, CNN, Voice of America etc., which exist in the Muslim world to confuse, attack and divert Muslims from Islam will be banned.
This sounds somehow familiar to an old Russian.
The current secular school system is very, very bad:
Perhaps the first lesson is geography. Your child will be taught about the different countries : its resources, population, peoples and culture, language, its national flag etc.... And many of these will inevitably be of Muslim countries. It all seems quite harmless until you realise that Islam does not recognise most of these countries as legitimate countries.
...
Maybe the next lesson in the daily routine will be science. You expect your child to gain an understanding in science that will further his/her future career. But it is easy to forget that many of the ideas taught in this subject are in direct contradiction to the Islamic belief.
After all, many theories, hypotheses and speculations, which have no firm foundation in evidence and which are subject to dispute among experts are taught as if they are established facts. The Theory of Evolution suggests that humans evolved from apes. The principle of Conservation of Energy proposes that energy is eternal (cannot be destroyed or created, but just transformed). Humans are put in the same category as animals (differing by being just a more advanced animal). The water cycle is presented as a self-subsisting system.
"Attitudes in Western science threatens the very status of God. " Duh.
Their vision of an Islamic state includes a vision of schools:
Let us consider a similar scenario as above. Your child arrives at a school in the Islamic State, and begins the day by greeting his/her colleagues and teachers with the greeting of Islam. Your child has the first lesson, perhaps a science subject. It could be a selection of the experimental or pure sciences. It would be taught with the Islamic 'aqeedah (belief) as the basis and an overriding guide. You as the parent, could rest assured that ideas such as the Theory of Evolution would not be taught; humans would not be considered as advanced animals; the Big Bang Theory would not be taught as fact (these would be studied later in university along with their refutation). Allah (swt) says in the Qur'an : "But most of them follow nothing but conjecture. Truly conjecture can be of no avail." [TMQ 10:37]
Yeah, "conjecture can be of no avail" is just an attitude for a scientist to have.
Whereas science in the West is seen as a contradiction to belief in God, within the Islamic State science would be a confirmation of the existence of Allah. Your child would come home and explain that he/she learnt about the water cycle : how Allah (swt) causes water to rise as vapour from the seas by evaporation and form clouds; then Allah (swt) would cause these clouds to give rain once they were over the lands; and Allah (swt) would cause the rain-water to gather and return back to the seas to once again start the cycle. Nothing that is taught would be in contradiction to Islam.
Al-Muhajiroun, again
Al-Muhajiroun have an opinion on democracy, too:
To vote for a particular candidate on the 10th June will also be recorded as a vote AGAINST Allah (swt), his Messenger Muhammad (saw) and the deen of Islam.
Voting for Democracy is pure baatil (falsehood) and has no place in Islam; unfortunately some so called Muslim organisations have been duped by the fancy packaging of democratic elections, and even rally behind kuffar (disbelievers in Allah and Islam) propagating this FALSE system.
...
O Believers in Allah (swt) do not fall into the trap of apostasy; refrain from the kufr elections on the 10th June.
I wholeheartedly agree. Hey, Al-Muhajiroun and their supporters! You heard the man: voting is again the will of Allah.
The Muslim Council of Britain happened to disagree, for which Al-Muhajiroun called them a voice of Shaytaan.
Seriously, if I did not know they are real I would have though Al-Muhajiroun are a parody of some sort.
To vote for a particular candidate on the 10th June will also be recorded as a vote AGAINST Allah (swt), his Messenger Muhammad (saw) and the deen of Islam.
Voting for Democracy is pure baatil (falsehood) and has no place in Islam; unfortunately some so called Muslim organisations have been duped by the fancy packaging of democratic elections, and even rally behind kuffar (disbelievers in Allah and Islam) propagating this FALSE system.
...
O Believers in Allah (swt) do not fall into the trap of apostasy; refrain from the kufr elections on the 10th June.
I wholeheartedly agree. Hey, Al-Muhajiroun and their supporters! You heard the man: voting is again the will of Allah.
The Muslim Council of Britain happened to disagree, for which Al-Muhajiroun called them a voice of Shaytaan.
Seriously, if I did not know they are real I would have though Al-Muhajiroun are a parody of some sort.
Londonistan
The annual Rally for Islam in Britain, organized by Al-Muhajiroun, took place a couple of weeks ago. Here is Al-Muhajiroun's press release about it.
I'll only quote some choice bits from their vision of how Sharia should be implemented in Britain:
...hence it is a fundamental belief of every Muslim that Islam will one day dominate the world, including Britain, it is just a matter of time. Today we call for the people to embrace Islam and change the law and order themselves ; tomorrow an Islamic State may forcefully remove all obstacles in the way of the implementation of Islamic law, as part of its foreign policy.
...
The sale of alcohol or pork would be prohibited, gambling would be outlawed. The currency would change from paper money to the use of Gold as standard, thereby eradicating inflation. Stocks and shares would be prohibited as would insurance, interest based transactions and the current company structures - all of this would be replaced with a unique economic system encouraging distribution of wealth, banning exploitation and hoarding and ensuring transactions are done where the goods are tangible, the services specified and the companies are real. Man would be the trustee of God's wealth on Earth promoting investment of it to please God as in Jihad to conquer other lands to spread the law and order of Islam.
...
There would be no pubs for example, and night-clubs, porn shops or other places of entertainment between men and women, encouraging promiscuity and sexual deviancy (such as homosexuality) will be banned. Both men and women will be required to cover themselves properly in public with women wearing the Khimar and Jilbab (headscarf and long barrel shaped dress) and men covering at least from the navel to the knees at all times. Segregation (between men and women) in all public places will be enforced.
...
The Islamic judicial system would be implemented where adulterers would be stoned to death and thieves would have their hands cut. There would be no jury service or solicitors or barristers, rather Judges qualified in Islamic Law would preside over all cases and Judge according to God's law.
...
There would be compulsory Islamic education for all with Arabic being the national language so that the people can properly read and understand the Qur'an. False ideas such as evolution and the equality of religions and corrupt subjects such as music, drama and art would not be taught. Rather every subject will be linked to the relationship with God and new subjects such as Islamic concepts, Shari'ah law and Islamic Jurisprudence will be introduced to the curriculum. Other subjects such as science and mathematics will be cleansed of any concepts contradictory to divine revelation. History from an Islamic perspective will be studied. There will also be an emphasis upon boys to have military training so that they can participate in Jihad after they become 15 years old and an emphasis upon girls to learn those subjects such as cooking, managing the household and looking after and bringing up children to train them properly for their roles as mothers in the future.
With such advertisement it's really a wonder all Britons are not standing in lines for conversion to Islam. Wouldn't you all love to live in such a country? The members of A-Muhajiroun are willingly sacrificing their opportunity to live in the wonderful and happy lands of Shariah in order to live in miserable and decadent Britain and carry Islam to the poor British infidels, and the infidels are still persisting in their own infidel ways. But I am sure they will all see the light real soon now.
Incidentally, my own very suspicious attitude towards Islam began right there: at the Al-Muhajirouns Rally for Islam in Britain in July 1998. I wandered into the rally by accident, listened for a little while, was given some leaflets, read them, took a look at the people holding the "Islam - the Future for Britain"-slogan and was a bit surprised at the extent of how much I did not want Islam to be the future for Britain, or any other country that is currently not Islamic.
BTW, I wonder how come all the religions and movements who think that a woman's primary or only role is a wife and/or a mother always try to teach the girls "cooking, managing the household and looking after and bringing up children" and never a word about sex, even though being able to have sex is usually a fairly important prerequisite for being a wife and a mother? Yeah, people can usually have sex without being taught how to, but same goes for cooking and raising kids, and teaching might improve it. Wouldn't this sound better: "an emphasis upon girls to learn those subjects such as cooking, managing the household, sexual subjects such as intercourse, oral and anal sex and handjobs and looking after and bringing up children to train them properly for their roles as mothers in the future"?
I'll only quote some choice bits from their vision of how Sharia should be implemented in Britain:
...hence it is a fundamental belief of every Muslim that Islam will one day dominate the world, including Britain, it is just a matter of time. Today we call for the people to embrace Islam and change the law and order themselves ; tomorrow an Islamic State may forcefully remove all obstacles in the way of the implementation of Islamic law, as part of its foreign policy.
...
The sale of alcohol or pork would be prohibited, gambling would be outlawed. The currency would change from paper money to the use of Gold as standard, thereby eradicating inflation. Stocks and shares would be prohibited as would insurance, interest based transactions and the current company structures - all of this would be replaced with a unique economic system encouraging distribution of wealth, banning exploitation and hoarding and ensuring transactions are done where the goods are tangible, the services specified and the companies are real. Man would be the trustee of God's wealth on Earth promoting investment of it to please God as in Jihad to conquer other lands to spread the law and order of Islam.
...
There would be no pubs for example, and night-clubs, porn shops or other places of entertainment between men and women, encouraging promiscuity and sexual deviancy (such as homosexuality) will be banned. Both men and women will be required to cover themselves properly in public with women wearing the Khimar and Jilbab (headscarf and long barrel shaped dress) and men covering at least from the navel to the knees at all times. Segregation (between men and women) in all public places will be enforced.
...
The Islamic judicial system would be implemented where adulterers would be stoned to death and thieves would have their hands cut. There would be no jury service or solicitors or barristers, rather Judges qualified in Islamic Law would preside over all cases and Judge according to God's law.
...
There would be compulsory Islamic education for all with Arabic being the national language so that the people can properly read and understand the Qur'an. False ideas such as evolution and the equality of religions and corrupt subjects such as music, drama and art would not be taught. Rather every subject will be linked to the relationship with God and new subjects such as Islamic concepts, Shari'ah law and Islamic Jurisprudence will be introduced to the curriculum. Other subjects such as science and mathematics will be cleansed of any concepts contradictory to divine revelation. History from an Islamic perspective will be studied. There will also be an emphasis upon boys to have military training so that they can participate in Jihad after they become 15 years old and an emphasis upon girls to learn those subjects such as cooking, managing the household and looking after and bringing up children to train them properly for their roles as mothers in the future.
With such advertisement it's really a wonder all Britons are not standing in lines for conversion to Islam. Wouldn't you all love to live in such a country? The members of A-Muhajiroun are willingly sacrificing their opportunity to live in the wonderful and happy lands of Shariah in order to live in miserable and decadent Britain and carry Islam to the poor British infidels, and the infidels are still persisting in their own infidel ways. But I am sure they will all see the light real soon now.
Incidentally, my own very suspicious attitude towards Islam began right there: at the Al-Muhajirouns Rally for Islam in Britain in July 1998. I wandered into the rally by accident, listened for a little while, was given some leaflets, read them, took a look at the people holding the "Islam - the Future for Britain"-slogan and was a bit surprised at the extent of how much I did not want Islam to be the future for Britain, or any other country that is currently not Islamic.
BTW, I wonder how come all the religions and movements who think that a woman's primary or only role is a wife and/or a mother always try to teach the girls "cooking, managing the household and looking after and bringing up children" and never a word about sex, even though being able to have sex is usually a fairly important prerequisite for being a wife and a mother? Yeah, people can usually have sex without being taught how to, but same goes for cooking and raising kids, and teaching might improve it. Wouldn't this sound better: "an emphasis upon girls to learn those subjects such as cooking, managing the household, sexual subjects such as intercourse, oral and anal sex and handjobs and looking after and bringing up children to train them properly for their roles as mothers in the future"?
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
Adventures in installing SuSE
I was feeling a bit self-destructive last night and decided to upgrade from SuSE 8.2 to SuSE 9.1. That in spite of the fact that even when I was a little kid my mother always said that you shouldn't upgrade an operating system while the current one is still working fine. I think she is right, but sometimes I just can't resist. Maybe should join some OS Upgraders Anonymous. "Hi, I am Vera, and my internal peace is always severely disturbed by the release of a new SuSE."
First I tried to do an online update from YaST, in order to preserve whatever configurations I had. I think I did something wrong, because in the end I had a truckload of new software and no working kernel, and the new kernel sources did not want to compile with the tools I had. After doing some things that do not bear mentioning I said "bugger it" and stuck a 9.1 Personal Edition installation CD into the DVD drive. You know, nowadays they distribute the Personal Edition installation CDs right on the net, just burn your own and install. Very convenient. Except that the fucking thing did not work.
You could boot from it. It gave you a normal-looking YaST menu. It even did the base system installation, and the machine even booted after that. But unlike all previous, and, as it turned out, subsequent SuSE installation CDs, it never returned to any configuration menus, and the base system it had installed was, well, too base to run any self-respecting config program from there. If I were a woman with a spirit or the situation were an emergency I could have configured it from there, but it was 3 am already: too late for a spirit and too early for an emergency.
I found my weapon number two, a boot CD which can install from the net, and, after a short bit of disagreement as to where on the net the installation source was located it started installing. Installed everything, including the kernel, quite uneventfully. I chose to install the default system since I wanted to see the results of my handiwork fairly fast and was not sure how long it would take. Turned out to be quite fast, too almost as fast as from a CD.
Installed, booted, configured. The only thing that did not get configured properly was the X server, because for some reason the system decided to take a wild guess and guessed that my monitor has a resolution and a refresh rate that would make even ancient Romans cry. I tried to correct it by editing the config file and then realized with horror that the default installation of SuSE 9.1 does not include emacs. SaX did not want to work either. After a bit of howling I managed to get SaX to work and fixed the refresh rate, after which I beheld the ugliest and most difficultly readable instance of KDE ever seen by human eyes. Fixing it, however, was pretty easy, and after a bit of fucking with YaST I installed emacs and then started installing everything else. Hope it's done by now.
The whole process made me unbelievably horny, too, which probably makes me a pervert. 3 years ago I had a serious sexual fixation on compiling and installing new Linux kernels, but I am a bit better now.
First I tried to do an online update from YaST, in order to preserve whatever configurations I had. I think I did something wrong, because in the end I had a truckload of new software and no working kernel, and the new kernel sources did not want to compile with the tools I had. After doing some things that do not bear mentioning I said "bugger it" and stuck a 9.1 Personal Edition installation CD into the DVD drive. You know, nowadays they distribute the Personal Edition installation CDs right on the net, just burn your own and install. Very convenient. Except that the fucking thing did not work.
You could boot from it. It gave you a normal-looking YaST menu. It even did the base system installation, and the machine even booted after that. But unlike all previous, and, as it turned out, subsequent SuSE installation CDs, it never returned to any configuration menus, and the base system it had installed was, well, too base to run any self-respecting config program from there. If I were a woman with a spirit or the situation were an emergency I could have configured it from there, but it was 3 am already: too late for a spirit and too early for an emergency.
I found my weapon number two, a boot CD which can install from the net, and, after a short bit of disagreement as to where on the net the installation source was located it started installing. Installed everything, including the kernel, quite uneventfully. I chose to install the default system since I wanted to see the results of my handiwork fairly fast and was not sure how long it would take. Turned out to be quite fast, too almost as fast as from a CD.
Installed, booted, configured. The only thing that did not get configured properly was the X server, because for some reason the system decided to take a wild guess and guessed that my monitor has a resolution and a refresh rate that would make even ancient Romans cry. I tried to correct it by editing the config file and then realized with horror that the default installation of SuSE 9.1 does not include emacs. SaX did not want to work either. After a bit of howling I managed to get SaX to work and fixed the refresh rate, after which I beheld the ugliest and most difficultly readable instance of KDE ever seen by human eyes. Fixing it, however, was pretty easy, and after a bit of fucking with YaST I installed emacs and then started installing everything else. Hope it's done by now.
The whole process made me unbelievably horny, too, which probably makes me a pervert. 3 years ago I had a serious sexual fixation on compiling and installing new Linux kernels, but I am a bit better now.
Monday, August 09, 2004
Those pesky Israelis
Now they are supporting the rebels in Darfur, according to the Sudanese government.
The purpose of this lie is not to discredit Israel, of course, but to discredit the Darfur rebels and gather sympathy for the Sudanese government in the Arab world. Looks like the best way to discredit somebody in the Arab world is to allege their ties with Israel.
I wonder at what point Israel will catch on and use this for blackmailing various Arab nations and organizations. "Do as we tell you, or else we'll say you have ties to us, and we'll fabricate the evidence, too."
The purpose of this lie is not to discredit Israel, of course, but to discredit the Darfur rebels and gather sympathy for the Sudanese government in the Arab world. Looks like the best way to discredit somebody in the Arab world is to allege their ties with Israel.
I wonder at what point Israel will catch on and use this for blackmailing various Arab nations and organizations. "Do as we tell you, or else we'll say you have ties to us, and we'll fabricate the evidence, too."
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Hot
Too hot for any kind of normal life, really. Was 26 degrees outside today. Is 27-28 inside my apartment all the fucking day and night. My freezer keeps melting all the time, and the fridge is all wet. Just had my 7th cold shower of the day, it helped, but not for long.
Worst of all, can't sleep properly. I keep waking up every few hours for another cold shower. Feel awfully dehydrated and salt-depleted all the time.
Heat sucks.
Had a nice girls' night out on Friday (a couple of boys appeared at some point too), but got way too dehydrated. Saw a green bus that said "Jesus on tour".
Saturday was three friends' graduation party in a sauna. Liked it a lot but was very tired so had to bugger off to bed fairly early. The funny moment of the evening for me happened when I tried to recommend the meringue cake to Tuija ("hey, it's great, grab it while it's still there!") and it turned out to be her own. Gotta ask her about the recipe.
Killeri came over today, and then we went to visit Ville and Leena. They fed us some really good steak and wine. Leena has got a new haircut, which is a bit perverse looking but she likes it.
Talked a bit about IQ in relation to some article in Helsingin Sanomat. Some guy had tried to measure average IQs in different countries. The articles gives lots of numbers, but never the scale of the test, its standard deviation. I think there should be a special place in hell for journalists who write about IQ with numbers but without any mention of the standard deviation.
Some people say one can train for IQ tests, but I never managed to raise my own IQ test scores by training. But if this is true for some people, I wonder whether one can do IQ-comparing research by training the subjects and then measuring the IQs after the training. That would take care of at least some of the problem of culture-specific tests, but would make research a lot more expensive.
Worst of all, can't sleep properly. I keep waking up every few hours for another cold shower. Feel awfully dehydrated and salt-depleted all the time.
Heat sucks.
Had a nice girls' night out on Friday (a couple of boys appeared at some point too), but got way too dehydrated. Saw a green bus that said "Jesus on tour".
Saturday was three friends' graduation party in a sauna. Liked it a lot but was very tired so had to bugger off to bed fairly early. The funny moment of the evening for me happened when I tried to recommend the meringue cake to Tuija ("hey, it's great, grab it while it's still there!") and it turned out to be her own. Gotta ask her about the recipe.
Killeri came over today, and then we went to visit Ville and Leena. They fed us some really good steak and wine. Leena has got a new haircut, which is a bit perverse looking but she likes it.
Talked a bit about IQ in relation to some article in Helsingin Sanomat. Some guy had tried to measure average IQs in different countries. The articles gives lots of numbers, but never the scale of the test, its standard deviation. I think there should be a special place in hell for journalists who write about IQ with numbers but without any mention of the standard deviation.
Some people say one can train for IQ tests, but I never managed to raise my own IQ test scores by training. But if this is true for some people, I wonder whether one can do IQ-comparing research by training the subjects and then measuring the IQs after the training. That would take care of at least some of the problem of culture-specific tests, but would make research a lot more expensive.
Friday, August 06, 2004
Grandma, part two
She was born in a small village on the Russian-Polish border, the youngest child of 7. Sometimes she says that people spend a lot of time with their children nowadays, unlike when she was a kid, when nobody paid much attention to them.
She remembers the first radio in their village, and the sense of wonder.
She also remembers that the village was so close to the border that her sister, who was studying elsewhere, had to apply for a special permit to visit back home with her family. After the border moved half of the family turned out to be living in Russia and half right across the border in Poland. They (the Russian half) never saw the Polish half again.
When grandma graduated from high school, she went to Leningrad to apply to the university to study physics. Don't know where she got the idea, and why. I was quite surprised when I found out about it. Anyway, she didn't get in and was offered a place in the biology program instead, which she didn't accept. She went to study economics in an engineering school. Have no idea why they teach economics in engineering schools in Russia. I suppose this is similar to the tuotantotalous programs in technical universities in Finland. She made a fairly good career for a person with a quadruple handicap (Jewish, female, born in an area that occasionally belonged to Poland and of a wrong social background - her parents owned a "leather factory" of which they were the only workers).
She is the one person I know whose health had really greatly benefited from overwork. During the war she came to work on Sunday, and suddenly soldiers came, grabbed everyone and stuck them on a train. Turned out to have been the last chance to get out of Leningrad before the siege. The train came somewhere in the middle of nowhere and grandma got placed with a family in a village that was not blessed with any of the necessities of modern life. The host family was very surprised to her that she was Jewish, because they had thought that Jews had horns and she didn't have any. Should've told them that they fell off during the train jorney. Anyway, grandma learned some agriculture, to the point that she managed to provide her two surviving sisters with something green every once in a while (they were evacuated to some nearby towns and did not have a lot of opportunities in the way of agriculture).
After the war she came back to Leningrad, continued her career, got a husband, got a kid, got a grandkid and retired. The poor thing probably thought that the grandkid would turn out better than the kid, now that she has retired and has a lot of time to participate in child-rearing. Turned out even worse, I think, from her point of view.
She tries to advertise the advantages of husbands over boyfriends: "A boyfriend does not have to be with you 24 hours a day and obey all your orders". The mind boggles. Why would a marriage certificate do that to a person, and why would I want a man who is with me 24 hours a day and obeys all my orders? "I have a computer for that," I say. Grandma looks pensive.
She doesn't have many books, almost none. She (and Grandpa, when he was alive) is the only person in the family like that. Moreover, she disapproves of the rest of us owning so many books. Never could figure out why. She likes to read, though, and she borrows a lot of books. The books she reads are usually history books and sometimes historical fiction about the parts of history she'd seen with her own eyes. Considering the history, "masochistic" is the word that springs to mind.
For a person with a fair bit of anti-intellectial inclinations she sometimes has amazing questions. Once tried to get me to explain to her how the TCP/IP works. Apparently understood the explanation, too. She loves all the new technical gadgets, not to own but to look at, at least on TV, and listen about. Sometimes she says that at her age the only thing to live for is curiosity, to find out what kind of things they'll invent the next year.
I think what the old bat really needs is a computer with Russian fonts installed as a default, and a broadband connection. Maybe I should see about it the next time I am there.
She remembers the first radio in their village, and the sense of wonder.
She also remembers that the village was so close to the border that her sister, who was studying elsewhere, had to apply for a special permit to visit back home with her family. After the border moved half of the family turned out to be living in Russia and half right across the border in Poland. They (the Russian half) never saw the Polish half again.
When grandma graduated from high school, she went to Leningrad to apply to the university to study physics. Don't know where she got the idea, and why. I was quite surprised when I found out about it. Anyway, she didn't get in and was offered a place in the biology program instead, which she didn't accept. She went to study economics in an engineering school. Have no idea why they teach economics in engineering schools in Russia. I suppose this is similar to the tuotantotalous programs in technical universities in Finland. She made a fairly good career for a person with a quadruple handicap (Jewish, female, born in an area that occasionally belonged to Poland and of a wrong social background - her parents owned a "leather factory" of which they were the only workers).
She is the one person I know whose health had really greatly benefited from overwork. During the war she came to work on Sunday, and suddenly soldiers came, grabbed everyone and stuck them on a train. Turned out to have been the last chance to get out of Leningrad before the siege. The train came somewhere in the middle of nowhere and grandma got placed with a family in a village that was not blessed with any of the necessities of modern life. The host family was very surprised to her that she was Jewish, because they had thought that Jews had horns and she didn't have any. Should've told them that they fell off during the train jorney. Anyway, grandma learned some agriculture, to the point that she managed to provide her two surviving sisters with something green every once in a while (they were evacuated to some nearby towns and did not have a lot of opportunities in the way of agriculture).
After the war she came back to Leningrad, continued her career, got a husband, got a kid, got a grandkid and retired. The poor thing probably thought that the grandkid would turn out better than the kid, now that she has retired and has a lot of time to participate in child-rearing. Turned out even worse, I think, from her point of view.
She tries to advertise the advantages of husbands over boyfriends: "A boyfriend does not have to be with you 24 hours a day and obey all your orders". The mind boggles. Why would a marriage certificate do that to a person, and why would I want a man who is with me 24 hours a day and obeys all my orders? "I have a computer for that," I say. Grandma looks pensive.
She doesn't have many books, almost none. She (and Grandpa, when he was alive) is the only person in the family like that. Moreover, she disapproves of the rest of us owning so many books. Never could figure out why. She likes to read, though, and she borrows a lot of books. The books she reads are usually history books and sometimes historical fiction about the parts of history she'd seen with her own eyes. Considering the history, "masochistic" is the word that springs to mind.
For a person with a fair bit of anti-intellectial inclinations she sometimes has amazing questions. Once tried to get me to explain to her how the TCP/IP works. Apparently understood the explanation, too. She loves all the new technical gadgets, not to own but to look at, at least on TV, and listen about. Sometimes she says that at her age the only thing to live for is curiosity, to find out what kind of things they'll invent the next year.
I think what the old bat really needs is a computer with Russian fonts installed as a default, and a broadband connection. Maybe I should see about it the next time I am there.
Grandma
Grandma is showing her unfriendly side, says my family. It's very disconcerting to think that she has an unfriendly side, in the sense of being even less friendly than the side that she usually shows to people. But she has just turned 90, she is sick, she is depressed, probably clinically, and she is pissed off, which is sort of the normal state of affairs.
She is complaining about all the diseases that she's been diagnosed with, which are plentiful, and all the diseases that she believes she has but has not been diagnosed with, which is the rest of diseases known to man, Or woman. OK, she probably knows enough biology to figure out she does not have testicular cancer.
If you visit her you have to have all shields up to protect yourself from her. If you have any cracks in your armor, she'll find them and poke you with a hot poker through them. Usually I can manage fairly easily, but in 2001, when I wasn't feeling so well, the woman managed to make me cry every time. Each time she was extremely surprised at my reaction. She also wondered why I did not visit her too often.
Here is how visits usually go (that's the variety that does not make me cry):
Her: Oh, hi! So glad to see you! Your hair is really ugly! Why don't you cut it off?
Me: [rolling my eyes]
Her: You are so awfully fat, too! Want some candy?
Me: No, thanks,
Her: But have some.
Me: [would take some candy if it were of the kind I like, but it usually isn't] No, thanks. Didn't you just say that I was too fat?
Her: A little candy won't hurt.
Me: No, thanks.
Her: You are dressed horribly! [To Benka] Why do you dress her like that?
Benka: [Giving grandma a steely bluish-gray stare that you generally see on some Western hero before he shoots up a saloon full of enemies] She's 32, mom, and I haven't been dressing her for quite a while. But if you want to try, be my guest.
Her: Horrible clothes, horrible. Want some tea?
While we are drinking the tea she discusses my wrongful life and all the things I am doing wrong. I live in a wrong country, work in a wrong field, and in a wrong company, have wrong friends, am dating a wrong guy and generally do everything wrong. Mind you, she doesn't really know what I do at work, has never met any of the friends she disapproves of, and has never met Killeri, either. Although in Killeri's case she probably mostly disapproves of his unability to speak Russian and therefore unability to listen to her lectures.
She has something to say on the subject of boyfriends in general:
Her: You shouldn't have a boyfriend. You should have a husband.
Me: Husbands generally start out as boyfriends, you know.
Her: That's bullshit! None of the women in our family has ever had a boyfriend.
Hrrmm. I don't know of any woman in her branch of the family who got married while still a virgin. Not that I'd checked, of course, but I assume the vast majority of women who have lived together with a guy in a relationship for several years have managed to lose their virginity at some point. And living together was also the normal thing in my parents' and grandparents' generation. A certain relative of my grandmother's age married her boyfriend when they got a granddaughter. My grandma might claim that she'd been a virgin all the while but I don't buy it.
She also has something to say on the subject of friends: they are not necessary. In the same breath she complains about the lack thereof. She does have some friends, in fact, but won't usually call them because she believes that if they wanted to talk to her they'd call her themselves. I tell her that this way nobody would ever call anybody.
When she is done with the bitching for the day, she can be interesing to talk with. I've known her all my life and still her personality somehow does not compute for me, but we do have things to talk about. She talks about the past, speculates about the future, and is one of the very few old people who do not believe that the old days were better.
She is complaining about all the diseases that she's been diagnosed with, which are plentiful, and all the diseases that she believes she has but has not been diagnosed with, which is the rest of diseases known to man, Or woman. OK, she probably knows enough biology to figure out she does not have testicular cancer.
If you visit her you have to have all shields up to protect yourself from her. If you have any cracks in your armor, she'll find them and poke you with a hot poker through them. Usually I can manage fairly easily, but in 2001, when I wasn't feeling so well, the woman managed to make me cry every time. Each time she was extremely surprised at my reaction. She also wondered why I did not visit her too often.
Here is how visits usually go (that's the variety that does not make me cry):
Her: Oh, hi! So glad to see you! Your hair is really ugly! Why don't you cut it off?
Me: [rolling my eyes]
Her: You are so awfully fat, too! Want some candy?
Me: No, thanks,
Her: But have some.
Me: [would take some candy if it were of the kind I like, but it usually isn't] No, thanks. Didn't you just say that I was too fat?
Her: A little candy won't hurt.
Me: No, thanks.
Her: You are dressed horribly! [To Benka] Why do you dress her like that?
Benka: [Giving grandma a steely bluish-gray stare that you generally see on some Western hero before he shoots up a saloon full of enemies] She's 32, mom, and I haven't been dressing her for quite a while. But if you want to try, be my guest.
Her: Horrible clothes, horrible. Want some tea?
While we are drinking the tea she discusses my wrongful life and all the things I am doing wrong. I live in a wrong country, work in a wrong field, and in a wrong company, have wrong friends, am dating a wrong guy and generally do everything wrong. Mind you, she doesn't really know what I do at work, has never met any of the friends she disapproves of, and has never met Killeri, either. Although in Killeri's case she probably mostly disapproves of his unability to speak Russian and therefore unability to listen to her lectures.
She has something to say on the subject of boyfriends in general:
Her: You shouldn't have a boyfriend. You should have a husband.
Me: Husbands generally start out as boyfriends, you know.
Her: That's bullshit! None of the women in our family has ever had a boyfriend.
Hrrmm. I don't know of any woman in her branch of the family who got married while still a virgin. Not that I'd checked, of course, but I assume the vast majority of women who have lived together with a guy in a relationship for several years have managed to lose their virginity at some point. And living together was also the normal thing in my parents' and grandparents' generation. A certain relative of my grandmother's age married her boyfriend when they got a granddaughter. My grandma might claim that she'd been a virgin all the while but I don't buy it.
She also has something to say on the subject of friends: they are not necessary. In the same breath she complains about the lack thereof. She does have some friends, in fact, but won't usually call them because she believes that if they wanted to talk to her they'd call her themselves. I tell her that this way nobody would ever call anybody.
When she is done with the bitching for the day, she can be interesing to talk with. I've known her all my life and still her personality somehow does not compute for me, but we do have things to talk about. She talks about the past, speculates about the future, and is one of the very few old people who do not believe that the old days were better.
Who let the monkey out again?
At the signing ceremony for the defense spending bill President Bush gave a speech.
"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we," Bush said. "They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
No one in Bush's audience of military brass or Pentagon chiefs reacted, probably due to being asleep.
"But the American people know this president speaks with clarity and conviction, and the terrorists know by his actions he means it," White House spokesman McClellan said.
"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we," Bush said. "They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
No one in Bush's audience of military brass or Pentagon chiefs reacted, probably due to being asleep.
"But the American people know this president speaks with clarity and conviction, and the terrorists know by his actions he means it," White House spokesman McClellan said.
Thursday, August 05, 2004
One-way Masspike, our terrible weapon in the war on terrorism
The fearless leaders of the Boston Emergency Management Agency have in their infinite wisdom decided that in case of a major terrorist attack on Boston they will turn Masspike into a one-way westbound highway from downtown Boston to route 128.
For those who don't know, Masspike is a big east/westbound highway (more properly, the big highway) into and out of Boston. It can't handle the traffic on a perfectly normal workday. Or rather, it can, but the people in the cars cannot. I used to drive there against the traffic every day, since most people live in the suburbs and commute to Boston and I lived in Boston and commuted to the suburbs. There was an inbound traffic jam from route 128 to Framingham there every day, and that's at 10 am and not during the worst rush hour. On Friday afternoons there was usually traffic (of the standing kind, not of the moving kind) outbound all the way from route 128 to route 495, and that's about 35-40 kilometers.
What they are suggesting now is to open all lanes westbound till route 128. But what then? There are jams on the exits to 128 as it is - do they expect those cars to add to the jams or to magically disappear into the thin air? Have these people ever tried to drive from Downtown Boston to, say, Natick Mall at 4pm on Friday?
Mind you, those are the same people who still haven't figured out how to cope with the terrifying and totally unexpected emergency of having snowfall each year.
But not to worry - Masspike is indeed our weapon in the war against terrorism. No terrorist is ever going to attack the city if he or she knows that the only route to escape will be Masspike. Even suicide terrorists just might kill themselves in the car out of sheer frustration before ever getting to Boston.
For those who don't know, Masspike is a big east/westbound highway (more properly, the big highway) into and out of Boston. It can't handle the traffic on a perfectly normal workday. Or rather, it can, but the people in the cars cannot. I used to drive there against the traffic every day, since most people live in the suburbs and commute to Boston and I lived in Boston and commuted to the suburbs. There was an inbound traffic jam from route 128 to Framingham there every day, and that's at 10 am and not during the worst rush hour. On Friday afternoons there was usually traffic (of the standing kind, not of the moving kind) outbound all the way from route 128 to route 495, and that's about 35-40 kilometers.
What they are suggesting now is to open all lanes westbound till route 128. But what then? There are jams on the exits to 128 as it is - do they expect those cars to add to the jams or to magically disappear into the thin air? Have these people ever tried to drive from Downtown Boston to, say, Natick Mall at 4pm on Friday?
Mind you, those are the same people who still haven't figured out how to cope with the terrifying and totally unexpected emergency of having snowfall each year.
But not to worry - Masspike is indeed our weapon in the war against terrorism. No terrorist is ever going to attack the city if he or she knows that the only route to escape will be Masspike. Even suicide terrorists just might kill themselves in the car out of sheer frustration before ever getting to Boston.
Craziness in Paraguay
More than 400 people have burned to death last Sunday in a mall in Asuncion. Apparently, after the fire started the owners told the security guards to lock the exits so that people wouldn't run away with merchandise without paying. Now the owners and the security guards are accused of manslaughter.
WTF is wrong with these people? Even if we disregard the moral aspects of letting people burn vs. letting them get away with unpaid merchandise, the merchandise was about to burn anyway, and did. Did the fuckers only have insurance for fire and not theft? Wouldn't be hard to make a fake claim under the circumstances.
Wonder how much they give for manslaughter in Paraguay. Also, how long it would be until some relative of some of the manslaughtered gets a shotgun and tries to get some extra justice of his or her own. Feel sorry for the cops on this one: "Did the guy have any serious enemies?" - "Yep, here is the list of 3256."
WTF is wrong with these people? Even if we disregard the moral aspects of letting people burn vs. letting them get away with unpaid merchandise, the merchandise was about to burn anyway, and did. Did the fuckers only have insurance for fire and not theft? Wouldn't be hard to make a fake claim under the circumstances.
Wonder how much they give for manslaughter in Paraguay. Also, how long it would be until some relative of some of the manslaughtered gets a shotgun and tries to get some extra justice of his or her own. Feel sorry for the cops on this one: "Did the guy have any serious enemies?" - "Yep, here is the list of 3256."
Drinking outside and ATMs.
Spent last night drinking outside with Anu. Had a couple of beers. Good thing that Benka is probably not reading this, she disapproves of beer even more that she disapproves of other forms of alcohol. Don't know why. She says that beer has a lot more calories than everything else, but that is not really the case. She has never let any facts get in the way of chewing me out when she feels like it.
Had a few drops of honey in my beer, after which Anu informed me that usually people put it (honey, not beer) into their tea. Never heard about it before, but then I realized that I don't know what people usually do with honey at all. A police car drove by and they stared at my little bottle of honey suspiciously. Probably wondered how come a crazy woman is drinking tea instead of beer on a hot summer day.
At some point two drunk ATMs (men of low sexual market value) came up to us. One was British, the other one apparently Finnish. The British one sat next to me, way closer than even friends usually sit to each other, leaned even closer towards me, and the Finnish one stood next to us, and they immediately tried to cut into our conversation, which was not easy for either party considering that we were speaking Finnish and they English.
"I don't think we need any company," - I said.
"But you have huge tits," - responded the Finnish guy, although it was unclear to me how it related to our need for company or lack thereof. He, like most of such people, sounded like he was offering me a bit of useful information that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise.
"And you have a small dick," - followed my automatic answer, which the guy took in like it was also meant as useful information.
At that point Anu exploded with the elation of a zoologist who has finally heard some rare frog produce the "kraah" sound it was supposed to produce. Waving her hands in the manner of small but powerful helicopter she started telling me that she'd always listened to my stories of the guys who come up to me and inform me that I have big tits, but had never actually seen one before. She was positively delighted with this anthropological phenomenon. In the meanwhile the British guy, who was still sitting right behind me, was also describing my breasts and making uneducated guesses about my vagina. Was kind of hard to tell him to bugger off while simultaneously discussing with Anu whether we should take a picture of the anthropological phenomenon.
Suddenly I felt the British guy's hand going under my arm from behind and trying to grab my breast. I turned to him while growling "irrrrti, saaaaatana!" in a tone of voice similar to the one that Killeri uses on Jero when Jero tries to eat his guests, but a whole lot louder. The Brit immediately acquired a sufficient working knowledge of Finnish, jerked his hand away, and the whole anthropological phenomenon quickly buggered off, complaining about violent women in English to each other. I still managed to take a picture, but only from behind.
Had a few drops of honey in my beer, after which Anu informed me that usually people put it (honey, not beer) into their tea. Never heard about it before, but then I realized that I don't know what people usually do with honey at all. A police car drove by and they stared at my little bottle of honey suspiciously. Probably wondered how come a crazy woman is drinking tea instead of beer on a hot summer day.
At some point two drunk ATMs (men of low sexual market value) came up to us. One was British, the other one apparently Finnish. The British one sat next to me, way closer than even friends usually sit to each other, leaned even closer towards me, and the Finnish one stood next to us, and they immediately tried to cut into our conversation, which was not easy for either party considering that we were speaking Finnish and they English.
"I don't think we need any company," - I said.
"But you have huge tits," - responded the Finnish guy, although it was unclear to me how it related to our need for company or lack thereof. He, like most of such people, sounded like he was offering me a bit of useful information that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise.
"And you have a small dick," - followed my automatic answer, which the guy took in like it was also meant as useful information.
At that point Anu exploded with the elation of a zoologist who has finally heard some rare frog produce the "kraah" sound it was supposed to produce. Waving her hands in the manner of small but powerful helicopter she started telling me that she'd always listened to my stories of the guys who come up to me and inform me that I have big tits, but had never actually seen one before. She was positively delighted with this anthropological phenomenon. In the meanwhile the British guy, who was still sitting right behind me, was also describing my breasts and making uneducated guesses about my vagina. Was kind of hard to tell him to bugger off while simultaneously discussing with Anu whether we should take a picture of the anthropological phenomenon.
Suddenly I felt the British guy's hand going under my arm from behind and trying to grab my breast. I turned to him while growling "irrrrti, saaaaatana!" in a tone of voice similar to the one that Killeri uses on Jero when Jero tries to eat his guests, but a whole lot louder. The Brit immediately acquired a sufficient working knowledge of Finnish, jerked his hand away, and the whole anthropological phenomenon quickly buggered off, complaining about violent women in English to each other. I still managed to take a picture, but only from behind.
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
Life
Monday was the last day in the Northern wilderness, at least as far as this project is concerned and as long as there are no bugs that'd require a visit there.
Now everyone in the office is back from their summer vacations, but as soon as they came back to work the summer actually started. Too hot at home, and ice cream melts in the freezer a bit. My fridge has a shitty freezer; I'd like to buy myself a separate freezer, but really have nowhere to put it. Do they sell little freezers? Never seen one.
Killeri finally came to visit me Monday (hadn't managed to spend any time alone with him for a while because of the Ropecon). He applied the stress relief method that they probably didn't teach him in the Red Cross, and I immediately felt better. I would've made him mix me a drink or two, too, but I had only booze and nothing to mix it with, and figured that a cognac-rum-vodka mix wouldn't be good.
Skipped work yesterday due to an unexpected tooth problem that felt like a filling falling out. Went to get acquainted with the public dental care in Helsinki. The dentist took an X-ray, didn't see anything on it, didn't see anything in my mouth, either, said that maybe the filling is too high and lowering it might help, lowered it a bit and wished me a speedy recovery. Against all my expectations it actually did help. I wonder how come though: this filling had been there for many years and I assume it did not grow in the meanwhile. So why did it suddenly get so sore?
Saw the new Harry Potter yesterday with Heli. Was good, although it was clearly meant for people who have read the book.
Now everyone in the office is back from their summer vacations, but as soon as they came back to work the summer actually started. Too hot at home, and ice cream melts in the freezer a bit. My fridge has a shitty freezer; I'd like to buy myself a separate freezer, but really have nowhere to put it. Do they sell little freezers? Never seen one.
Killeri finally came to visit me Monday (hadn't managed to spend any time alone with him for a while because of the Ropecon). He applied the stress relief method that they probably didn't teach him in the Red Cross, and I immediately felt better. I would've made him mix me a drink or two, too, but I had only booze and nothing to mix it with, and figured that a cognac-rum-vodka mix wouldn't be good.
Skipped work yesterday due to an unexpected tooth problem that felt like a filling falling out. Went to get acquainted with the public dental care in Helsinki. The dentist took an X-ray, didn't see anything on it, didn't see anything in my mouth, either, said that maybe the filling is too high and lowering it might help, lowered it a bit and wished me a speedy recovery. Against all my expectations it actually did help. I wonder how come though: this filling had been there for many years and I assume it did not grow in the meanwhile. So why did it suddenly get so sore?
Saw the new Harry Potter yesterday with Heli. Was good, although it was clearly meant for people who have read the book.
Monday, August 02, 2004
Tired
On Saturday Lasu, Joy and Krabak had a party and it was great. I've spent Friday evening and Saturday morning baking chocolate cakes and then partied hard with the feeling of a job well done. Killeri was mixing drinks all the time and I have a feeling that I drank them all, although I am sure there were other people helping. Anyway, the last time I had ingested so much alcohol was sometime in the summer of 1995, when I shared a 1.75l bottle of Absolut with Tanya and Anya, jumped into the 13-degree ocean on Revere beach in my clothes and lost my panties in the process. In comparison with that event the Saturday's party went very innocently, with no loss of underwear and very little hangover.
Had to work on Sunday, which was not nice, but now the software works! Really, really works! Go me!
Today woke up god knows when and went to the desolate place in the north. At some point Markus and Kaius came there to rescue me and brought me a piece of working hardware, after which everything started working properly.
But now I am tired and ready to go home.
Had to work on Sunday, which was not nice, but now the software works! Really, really works! Go me!
Today woke up god knows when and went to the desolate place in the north. At some point Markus and Kaius came there to rescue me and brought me a piece of working hardware, after which everything started working properly.
But now I am tired and ready to go home.
Friday, July 30, 2004
Run! Run! The Democrats have come!
It looks like the whole population of Boston has evacuated the city for the Democratic Convention. The local businesses are idling, because people don't go downtown and Democrats don't go downtown either. The Mayor (probably, after this disaster, the soon-to-be-ex-mayor) has appealed to the population to hang out downtown and rescinded some parking fees in order to lure the people. People are listening, but not going anywhere. Gee, I wonder why? Could it be the threat of terrorism, the fact that MBTA decided to "discourage" people from taking any bags and backpacks with them on public transportation this weekend, the constant searches and the fear that the Democrats can, so to say, eliminate the middleman and simply put their hands in people's pockets in crowded places and help themselves to their wallets? Good luck getting people to hang out downtown.
But cheer up, Bostonian businessmen, businesswomen and other businesscreatures! The Republican Convention is coming up in New York. Imagine the terrorism threat and the public transportation disruption there! All the population of New York City is gonna run, and guess where are they gonna run? That's right, expect a very busy weekend.
But cheer up, Bostonian businessmen, businesswomen and other businesscreatures! The Republican Convention is coming up in New York. Imagine the terrorism threat and the public transportation disruption there! All the population of New York City is gonna run, and guess where are they gonna run? That's right, expect a very busy weekend.
Hero - director's cut
A 120-minute director's cut of Hero is now available for copying, and I am copying it for myself. Wonder where it came from, though. YesAsia has got a 108-minute director's cut, which I'll probably buy as well, but where can I get a 120-minute director's cut on DVD?
They have different editions on the 108-minute version, too, with different extras. For once I want to buy something with extras that are subtitled in some language that I can read. Chinese is not a language that I can read, although sometimes I think that it's easier to learn to read it than to find Chinese DVDs with properly subtitled extras.
My mplayer has balked at some vobsub subtitles lately. It looks like it does not like the subtitles files that contain Chinese subtitles. Does anyone know how to fix the problem?
They have different editions on the 108-minute version, too, with different extras. For once I want to buy something with extras that are subtitled in some language that I can read. Chinese is not a language that I can read, although sometimes I think that it's easier to learn to read it than to find Chinese DVDs with properly subtitled extras.
My mplayer has balked at some vobsub subtitles lately. It looks like it does not like the subtitles files that contain Chinese subtitles. Does anyone know how to fix the problem?
Night photos
Had a few drinks with Anu yesterday, and the world feels normal again. Under the influence of alcohol, Anu and hot chocolate I went for a walk with a camera to take some pictures of the neighborhood at night. Here are the results.
Thursday, July 29, 2004
Northern wilderness and work
The software mostly works ok, although there are some things still to work out with the communication with server, which I can luckily do from the office, and with the keys.
The teenage mutant singing employees have luckily disappeared.
Using a tiny laptop while perched on a fucklift is hazardous to your wrists.
Their net connection was fucked for most of the day, which meant that I couldn't upload the software from the laptop to my work machine. This is not a huge problem, but if the next time it does not work in the morning it means that I cannot download the needed stuff from the office to the laptop, which would suck big time.
On the way back I saw a few chanterelles, which were the first chanterelles I've seen on the ground for years. I almost tried to get them but then luckily noticed a ditch that was full of water and mostly covered with grass. Falling on my ass into the ditch with my employer's laptop and unbackupped day's work on it would not have been nice.
The teenage mutant singing employees have luckily disappeared.
Using a tiny laptop while perched on a fucklift is hazardous to your wrists.
Their net connection was fucked for most of the day, which meant that I couldn't upload the software from the laptop to my work machine. This is not a huge problem, but if the next time it does not work in the morning it means that I cannot download the needed stuff from the office to the laptop, which would suck big time.
On the way back I saw a few chanterelles, which were the first chanterelles I've seen on the ground for years. I almost tried to get them but then luckily noticed a ditch that was full of water and mostly covered with grass. Falling on my ass into the ditch with my employer's laptop and unbackupped day's work on it would not have been nice.
Amazing disappearing umbrella trick
I don't normally use umbrellas. I've had maybe 3 of them when I was 14 years old. Each was used exactly once. Every time I went out of the house with an umbrella I lost it. I don't know why. I don't normally lose stuff, at least not often.
I figured umbrellas were not for me and did not buy or otherwise acquire any more of them until, 3 years ago, I inherited one from my grandmother. It had been hanging happily on my coat rack all these 3 years. Yesterday I woke up, saw the Mother of All Rains outside and decided to give the umbrella a try. It worked, in the sense of making me a lot less wet than I would otherwise have been. I rejoiced, thinking that I am not gonna lose this one and that from now on I'll use it every time it's raining hard enough. I was happy with it. Until the fucking thing dematerialized.
That's what it did, otherwise I can't imagine where it went. One moment it was in my hand as I was standing at a bus stop, the next moment I was in the bus and it wasn't there. I am pretty sure I'd have noticed if I dropped it on the ground.
Go figure.
I figured umbrellas were not for me and did not buy or otherwise acquire any more of them until, 3 years ago, I inherited one from my grandmother. It had been hanging happily on my coat rack all these 3 years. Yesterday I woke up, saw the Mother of All Rains outside and decided to give the umbrella a try. It worked, in the sense of making me a lot less wet than I would otherwise have been. I rejoiced, thinking that I am not gonna lose this one and that from now on I'll use it every time it's raining hard enough. I was happy with it. Until the fucking thing dematerialized.
That's what it did, otherwise I can't imagine where it went. One moment it was in my hand as I was standing at a bus stop, the next moment I was in the bus and it wasn't there. I am pretty sure I'd have noticed if I dropped it on the ground.
Go figure.
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
All work and no play makes Vera a bitch
I've spent Monday and today again in the great northern wilderness. Dead tired. My eyes are sore. My hands are sore too, and not from masturbation this time, no matter what evil tongues might say, but from one shitty little laptop. I haven't had a decent sleep in god knows how long. Besides, my umbrella dematerialized yesterday.
I think I am gonna bugger off to bed.
I think I am gonna bugger off to bed.
Tuesday, July 27, 2004
Utomlyonnye solntsem - Burned by the sun (major spoilers)
A few people seem to be surprised at the fact that this movie did not have the intended emotional impact on me, so here is a bit of explanation:
The movie is about a KGB official who is a Bolshevik hero and leads a happy life. He gets visited by another KGB official who is not a Bolshevik hero and wallows in self-pity all the time, and whom KGB-guy-1 has majorly fucked over a couple of times before. The year is 1936 or 1937 and now the balance of power has shifted and KGB-guy-1, who is a bigger boss at the moment, is about to be arrested by KGB-guy-2, who is apparently on the rise. We are supposed to be sorry for the KGB-guy-1, who is a True Certified Hero, a Good Father and a Real Man, and also for the KGB-guy-2, who is a victim of Unhappy Love (mostly due to KGB-guy-1 sending him abroad for many years and marrying his woman in th meanwhile).
First of all, these stories were a dime a dozen in Russia in the eighties, and I've seen a lot more of them than I ever cared to see. Poor True Communist dying in Gulag. Problem is, I think Gulag is exactly the right place for the kind of people who were Party and KGB officials in the thirties. They have built that lovely concentration camp system for the general population, and it was only a matter of time until a significant part of them was put there as well. They deserved it. Remember KGB-guy-1 getting beaten up by scary thugs in a car in the end? He used to be their boss. The movie tries to introduce him to us as a loving husbamd and father, but all I see in him from the very beginning of the movie is a boss of such thugs.
I think that the story of the poor mailman who gets shot near the end by KGB-guy-2 just because the KGB-guy-2 is feeling bad about the arrest of KGB-guy-1 deserves our attention a lot more that the KGB guys, although it probably wouldn't have made a very good movie either.
Not that the movie was a total loss for me - I sure enjoyed it when the KGB guys got what they deserved.
The movie is about a KGB official who is a Bolshevik hero and leads a happy life. He gets visited by another KGB official who is not a Bolshevik hero and wallows in self-pity all the time, and whom KGB-guy-1 has majorly fucked over a couple of times before. The year is 1936 or 1937 and now the balance of power has shifted and KGB-guy-1, who is a bigger boss at the moment, is about to be arrested by KGB-guy-2, who is apparently on the rise. We are supposed to be sorry for the KGB-guy-1, who is a True Certified Hero, a Good Father and a Real Man, and also for the KGB-guy-2, who is a victim of Unhappy Love (mostly due to KGB-guy-1 sending him abroad for many years and marrying his woman in th meanwhile).
First of all, these stories were a dime a dozen in Russia in the eighties, and I've seen a lot more of them than I ever cared to see. Poor True Communist dying in Gulag. Problem is, I think Gulag is exactly the right place for the kind of people who were Party and KGB officials in the thirties. They have built that lovely concentration camp system for the general population, and it was only a matter of time until a significant part of them was put there as well. They deserved it. Remember KGB-guy-1 getting beaten up by scary thugs in a car in the end? He used to be their boss. The movie tries to introduce him to us as a loving husbamd and father, but all I see in him from the very beginning of the movie is a boss of such thugs.
I think that the story of the poor mailman who gets shot near the end by KGB-guy-2 just because the KGB-guy-2 is feeling bad about the arrest of KGB-guy-1 deserves our attention a lot more that the KGB guys, although it probably wouldn't have made a very good movie either.
Not that the movie was a total loss for me - I sure enjoyed it when the KGB guys got what they deserved.
Goodbye, Lenin (mild spoilers)
Saw Goodbye, Lenin yesterday. It's a movie about a East Berlin family where the mother spends 8 months in a coma after a heart attack, eventually wakes up and her adult children are ordered to keep her away from anything upsetting. Thing is, the woman is an ardent Communist and during her coma the Berlin Wall has fallen and Germanies are about to unite. The children go through heroic efforts to pretend that everything is still like it was and nothing whatsoever has happened.
The movie is entertaining, and the parts of it that are supposed to be amusing are properly amusing. Nevertheless I kept having a feeling that the movie is designed to manipulate the viewer into crying. I have nothing against such manipulation on general principle, but it fails here, or at least does not work for me. I mean, there are the normally sad scenes with people being sick and all, and they are sad in a normal way, but this thing was clearly designed to make people cry nostalgically for a lost way of life, including and especially the people who never liked that way of life to begin with. My problem with it is that it did not work for me. And it's not like it's hard to manipulate me into crying, so a movie that tries to do so and fails must be really bad on some level, or just on a very different wavelength.
The only movie ever that was even worse at it was Burned by the Sun. It had two tragic main characters, and we were supposed to be sorry for both in turn. I sat through that movie wishing slow and painful death on both of them.
The movie is entertaining, and the parts of it that are supposed to be amusing are properly amusing. Nevertheless I kept having a feeling that the movie is designed to manipulate the viewer into crying. I have nothing against such manipulation on general principle, but it fails here, or at least does not work for me. I mean, there are the normally sad scenes with people being sick and all, and they are sad in a normal way, but this thing was clearly designed to make people cry nostalgically for a lost way of life, including and especially the people who never liked that way of life to begin with. My problem with it is that it did not work for me. And it's not like it's hard to manipulate me into crying, so a movie that tries to do so and fails must be really bad on some level, or just on a very different wavelength.
The only movie ever that was even worse at it was Burned by the Sun. It had two tragic main characters, and we were supposed to be sorry for both in turn. I sat through that movie wishing slow and painful death on both of them.
Monday, July 26, 2004
Kauhea täti
No niin, nyt suku on antanut minulle virallisen luvan käskeä L.:aa painumaan vittuun sekä pahoinpidellä sitä tarpeen mukaan. Olisin kyllä voinut tehdä tämän kaiken ilman niiden lupaakin. Siinä, että minulle kerrotiin tästä erikseen, on tietynlaista "me olemme kaikki jo yrittäneet kesyttää L:aa, ja nyt on sinun vuorosi, tyttöseni"-sävyä. En hetkeksikään kuvittele, että voisin opettaa hänelle mitään sellaista, mitä edellisen 65:n vuoden aikana maailma ja suku eivät olisi opettaneet.
En kuitenkaan aio harrastaa väkivaltaa muuten kuin itseni, omaisuuteni tai viattomien sivullisten puolustamiseksi. Luultavasti seuraan yhtä Jukan neuvoa ja kerron, että mun luona on kamala remontti.
Kun L. ja sen mies tulivat viimeksi käymään Helsingissä, mikä oli 8 vuotta sitten, ajatus koko viikonlopun viettämisestä niiden kanssa oli aivan yhtä kamala kuin nytkin. Silloin onnistuin selittämään heille, että Tukholmakin on hyvin kaunis kaupunki, ja lähettämään heidät sinne päiväksi. Nyt sama temppu ei enää onnistune - vai toimisiko se myös Tallinnan kanssa? Hmmm...
En kuitenkaan aio harrastaa väkivaltaa muuten kuin itseni, omaisuuteni tai viattomien sivullisten puolustamiseksi. Luultavasti seuraan yhtä Jukan neuvoa ja kerron, että mun luona on kamala remontti.
Kun L. ja sen mies tulivat viimeksi käymään Helsingissä, mikä oli 8 vuotta sitten, ajatus koko viikonlopun viettämisestä niiden kanssa oli aivan yhtä kamala kuin nytkin. Silloin onnistuin selittämään heille, että Tukholmakin on hyvin kaunis kaupunki, ja lähettämään heidät sinne päiväksi. Nyt sama temppu ei enää onnistune - vai toimisiko se myös Tallinnan kanssa? Hmmm...
Saturday, July 24, 2004
Rauhallinen viikonloppu ja sukulaisongelma
Olen niin stressaantunut sen työasian kanssa, että pidän ns. rauhallisen viikonlopun, jolloin en tee mitään muuta hyödyllistä kuin töitä, eli tähän asti olen vain lukenut viihdyttäviä kirjoja ja ostanut ja syönyt mansikoita. Huomenna ehkä töitä. Suurin osa kavereita on kuitenkin Ropeconissa.
Nyt on uusi päänsäryn aihe: eräs täti on tulossa kylään.
L. on ärsyttävin ihminen, johon kukaan voi ikinä törmätä. No ok, on olemassa myös Osama Bin Laden ja Sierra Leonen joukkomurhaajat, mutta L. on epäilemättä ärsyttävin niistä ihmisistä, joiden perässä ei ole poliiseja eikä minkään maan armeja. L. on myös ikävä kyllä isäni serkku, mikä on meidän mittakaavassamme melko läheinen sukulainen, joten minulla on velvollisuuksia.
Viikko sitten isäni sanoi, että L. käy Helsingissä hetkeksi matkalla Pietariin tai Pietarista ja että hän haluaisi mun puhelinnumeron. Faija, perkele, antoi ymmärtää että (a) L. ei vietä yötä täällä ja (b) L. on yksin. Käskin antamaan mun kotipuhelinnumeron mutta ei kännykkänumeroa, ja toivoin että hän on täällä jonain arkipäivänä jolloin mulla voisi olla paljon työtä tai joku muu hyvä tekosyy.
Tänään sain tietää että hän on Helsingissä koko viikonlopun, ja että hänellä on mies mukana. Vittu. Ensinnäkin mulla on parempaa käyttöä kesäviikonlopulle kuin L.:n seura - itse asiassa jopa Lisp-ohjelmointi tai asunnon siivoaminen on hauskempaa - ja sitten siellä on vielä se mies. Mies on paljon vähemmän ärsyttävä, mutta hänen läsnäolonsa tekee L.:n sietämisestä paljon vaikeampaa. Pystyn vielä kuuntelemaan L.:n loputtomia tarinoita siitä, miten miehellä seisoo huonosti tai ei lainkaan, mutta ei niitä viitsi kuunnella sen miehen läsnäolleessa, joku raja sentään.
Hän aina kertoo jotain kamalia juttuja sukulaisista, mukaanlukien sellaisista jotka ovat paljon läheisempiä mulle kuin hän. Hän kertoo jatkuvasti, miksi hänen veljensä on mulkku (noin 3 tunnin tarina). Hän vaatii saada tietää ketä muita ihmisiä mummoni on kuskinut olleessaan naimisissa vaarini kanssa. Kun vastasin, etten ole seissyt siellä kynttilän kanssa, hän vaati myös tietää, muksi en ole seissyt siellä kynttilän kanssa. Hän aina kertoo, että hänen poikansa vaimot (sekä nykyinen että edellinen) ovat iljettäviä huoria, ja hän varsinkin kertoo tämän mielellään näiden vaimojen lapsille, minkä jälkeen hän ihmettele, miksi lapsenlapset eivät pidä hänestä kovin paljon. Hän kertoi varastaneensa koruja anoppinsa luona, ja hän on yrittänyt repiä valokuviani (siis minun ottamiani sellaisia) mun vanhempien luona, minkä takia olisi varsin toivottavaa olla päästämättä sitä mun kotiin.
Kaiken lisäksi hän pitää minusta, en ymmärrä miksi. Hän on sanonut että olen ainoa ihminen, joka sietää häntä, mikä ei edes pidä paikkaansa mutta mitä on helppoa näytellä silloin kun tyyppi on jatkuvasti 10000 kilometrin päästä. Olen joskus ajatellut että se pitää minusta sen takia, että olen ainoa perheenjäsen joka ei tähän asti ole tehnyt sille fyysistä väkivaltaa, mutta nyt tämäkään ei enää pidä paikkaansa.
Vittu. Nyt neljän viikon päästä on viikonloppu, jolloin joudun koko ajan kuuntelemaan L.:n juttuja ja yrittämään olla päästämättä sitä kotiin. Pitäisi keksiä jotain. Voisin valehdella, että asun Tikkurilassa. Voisin keksiä työmatkan. Voisin teeskennellä meneväni nukkumaan aikaisin ja mennä dokaamaan illalla. Voisin hankkia vatsataudin. Voisin lainata Jeron viikonlopuksi, se aivan varmasti puree L.:aa perseestä. Työpaikka voisi lähettää minua kiireiselle työmatkalle. Mitäs muuta voisi tehdä? Henkirikos olisi luultavasti ylilyönti.
L.:n veli päästi siitä eroon silleen, että löi sitä päähän puujalalla Thanksgiving-illallisella, mutta törkeä pahoinpitely illallistilaisuuksien yhteydessä ei kuulu minun tapoihini.
Neuvoja otetaan vastaan.
Nyt on uusi päänsäryn aihe: eräs täti on tulossa kylään.
L. on ärsyttävin ihminen, johon kukaan voi ikinä törmätä. No ok, on olemassa myös Osama Bin Laden ja Sierra Leonen joukkomurhaajat, mutta L. on epäilemättä ärsyttävin niistä ihmisistä, joiden perässä ei ole poliiseja eikä minkään maan armeja. L. on myös ikävä kyllä isäni serkku, mikä on meidän mittakaavassamme melko läheinen sukulainen, joten minulla on velvollisuuksia.
Viikko sitten isäni sanoi, että L. käy Helsingissä hetkeksi matkalla Pietariin tai Pietarista ja että hän haluaisi mun puhelinnumeron. Faija, perkele, antoi ymmärtää että (a) L. ei vietä yötä täällä ja (b) L. on yksin. Käskin antamaan mun kotipuhelinnumeron mutta ei kännykkänumeroa, ja toivoin että hän on täällä jonain arkipäivänä jolloin mulla voisi olla paljon työtä tai joku muu hyvä tekosyy.
Tänään sain tietää että hän on Helsingissä koko viikonlopun, ja että hänellä on mies mukana. Vittu. Ensinnäkin mulla on parempaa käyttöä kesäviikonlopulle kuin L.:n seura - itse asiassa jopa Lisp-ohjelmointi tai asunnon siivoaminen on hauskempaa - ja sitten siellä on vielä se mies. Mies on paljon vähemmän ärsyttävä, mutta hänen läsnäolonsa tekee L.:n sietämisestä paljon vaikeampaa. Pystyn vielä kuuntelemaan L.:n loputtomia tarinoita siitä, miten miehellä seisoo huonosti tai ei lainkaan, mutta ei niitä viitsi kuunnella sen miehen läsnäolleessa, joku raja sentään.
Hän aina kertoo jotain kamalia juttuja sukulaisista, mukaanlukien sellaisista jotka ovat paljon läheisempiä mulle kuin hän. Hän kertoo jatkuvasti, miksi hänen veljensä on mulkku (noin 3 tunnin tarina). Hän vaatii saada tietää ketä muita ihmisiä mummoni on kuskinut olleessaan naimisissa vaarini kanssa. Kun vastasin, etten ole seissyt siellä kynttilän kanssa, hän vaati myös tietää, muksi en ole seissyt siellä kynttilän kanssa. Hän aina kertoo, että hänen poikansa vaimot (sekä nykyinen että edellinen) ovat iljettäviä huoria, ja hän varsinkin kertoo tämän mielellään näiden vaimojen lapsille, minkä jälkeen hän ihmettele, miksi lapsenlapset eivät pidä hänestä kovin paljon. Hän kertoi varastaneensa koruja anoppinsa luona, ja hän on yrittänyt repiä valokuviani (siis minun ottamiani sellaisia) mun vanhempien luona, minkä takia olisi varsin toivottavaa olla päästämättä sitä mun kotiin.
Kaiken lisäksi hän pitää minusta, en ymmärrä miksi. Hän on sanonut että olen ainoa ihminen, joka sietää häntä, mikä ei edes pidä paikkaansa mutta mitä on helppoa näytellä silloin kun tyyppi on jatkuvasti 10000 kilometrin päästä. Olen joskus ajatellut että se pitää minusta sen takia, että olen ainoa perheenjäsen joka ei tähän asti ole tehnyt sille fyysistä väkivaltaa, mutta nyt tämäkään ei enää pidä paikkaansa.
Vittu. Nyt neljän viikon päästä on viikonloppu, jolloin joudun koko ajan kuuntelemaan L.:n juttuja ja yrittämään olla päästämättä sitä kotiin. Pitäisi keksiä jotain. Voisin valehdella, että asun Tikkurilassa. Voisin keksiä työmatkan. Voisin teeskennellä meneväni nukkumaan aikaisin ja mennä dokaamaan illalla. Voisin hankkia vatsataudin. Voisin lainata Jeron viikonlopuksi, se aivan varmasti puree L.:aa perseestä. Työpaikka voisi lähettää minua kiireiselle työmatkalle. Mitäs muuta voisi tehdä? Henkirikos olisi luultavasti ylilyönti.
L.:n veli päästi siitä eroon silleen, että löi sitä päähän puujalalla Thanksgiving-illallisella, mutta törkeä pahoinpitely illallistilaisuuksien yhteydessä ei kuulu minun tapoihini.
Neuvoja otetaan vastaan.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
A prayer, again
Dear Lord,
The people who smoke in our stairwell nowadays also congregate right outside the back door for a smoke in the mornings. This is a very good opportunity for smiting, don't miss it, but please mind the door. You could also do a bit of smiting of people who park their cars inside our gate and make it impossible for everyone else to get through, or at least their cars.
Could you please fix the front door? It does not look like it's ever going to be fixed without a divine intervention.
Please carry the (undoubtedly divine) concept of public transportation to the infidels living in the busless, subwayless and tramless desolate wilderness to the north of Kehä III, especially in the towns that contain our customers. Failing that make the customers move somewhere closer. Better yet, send us some customers who are located in nice touristy towns in warm but civilized countries, need us to visit them fairly often in winter and are willing to pay for the trips.
Guard my soul from the evil that are summer sales. On the second thought, don't.
Help me write the Lisp code for the new fucklift, and bless its serial bus so that it would continue to transmit mostly sensible messages. Charge the battery of that old laptop. Oh, never mind, I have asked Markus to do it already.
I think the people at the Ropecon are gonna have fun without any divine intervention, but if they get bored you could show them some aurora borealis or something.
Bestow a huge erection upon Killeri during the Ropecon to remind him about me. Extra points if he actually summons me there to help with it. Lots of extra points if we get caught having sex in some embarassing public place.
Heal grandma's rib ASAP, and while you are at it also give her some drugs to improve her mood and temper. No, I can't do it myself, I don't know where to get hold of such amounts of Ecstasy. Besides, when you do it it's Divine Intervention (tm), and if I do it it's "posession of a class B substance with intent to distribute".
Gaah! Now it's really late and nothing works yet! Give me a hand with that Lisp program, now! Or whatever divine appendage you have...
The people who smoke in our stairwell nowadays also congregate right outside the back door for a smoke in the mornings. This is a very good opportunity for smiting, don't miss it, but please mind the door. You could also do a bit of smiting of people who park their cars inside our gate and make it impossible for everyone else to get through, or at least their cars.
Could you please fix the front door? It does not look like it's ever going to be fixed without a divine intervention.
Please carry the (undoubtedly divine) concept of public transportation to the infidels living in the busless, subwayless and tramless desolate wilderness to the north of Kehä III, especially in the towns that contain our customers. Failing that make the customers move somewhere closer. Better yet, send us some customers who are located in nice touristy towns in warm but civilized countries, need us to visit them fairly often in winter and are willing to pay for the trips.
Guard my soul from the evil that are summer sales. On the second thought, don't.
Help me write the Lisp code for the new fucklift, and bless its serial bus so that it would continue to transmit mostly sensible messages. Charge the battery of that old laptop. Oh, never mind, I have asked Markus to do it already.
I think the people at the Ropecon are gonna have fun without any divine intervention, but if they get bored you could show them some aurora borealis or something.
Bestow a huge erection upon Killeri during the Ropecon to remind him about me. Extra points if he actually summons me there to help with it. Lots of extra points if we get caught having sex in some embarassing public place.
Heal grandma's rib ASAP, and while you are at it also give her some drugs to improve her mood and temper. No, I can't do it myself, I don't know where to get hold of such amounts of Ecstasy. Besides, when you do it it's Divine Intervention (tm), and if I do it it's "posession of a class B substance with intent to distribute".
Gaah! Now it's really late and nothing works yet! Give me a hand with that Lisp program, now! Or whatever divine appendage you have...
Special Court for Sierra Leone (disturbing material warning)
The Special Court for Sierra Leone has started its investigation of war crimes committed by RUF and other factions during the recent civil war in Sierra Leone. Some quotes from the prosecutors' statements:
A witness will testify that while hiding in the Malama bush near Batmis she could hear the rebels in Batmis shout out threats to those in hiding. As it became light the witness was captured by a rebel. He hit her, pushed her down on the ground and raped her while another rebel looked on. Afterwards, other rebels armed with guns, knives and cutlasses rounded up the witness, her husband and other Sierra Leoneans. They were taken into Batmis where the witness was forced to pound fundeh (which is millet). Other civilians were forced to carry water. Some managed to escape. Those who remained were punished. The rebel commander ordered the witness's husband to be killed. The witness will testify she watched while her husband was hacked to death with a cutlass. The rebels then took hold of her right hand and with 4 long strokes of a machete cut it off. Then they chopped off her left hand telling her to go to Kabbah, who would give her hands.
In 1999, another witness in Koidu will testify that when RUF and AFRC rebels drove the Kamajors from the town they began to burn the houses of Koidu. The witness and his family fled to a nearby village. The RUF rebels followed them in a number of trucks filled with young women. The rebel commander took the 16 year old sister of the witness. He declared loudly that he was going to take her as his wife. The witness tried to protect his younger sister, but was told he would be killed. The rebels left with around ten girls from the town, the youngest being 12. His younger sister was kept by the rebels for four long years. The witness will testify further that upon hearing that ECOMOG troops had taken Koidu town the family decided to return, walking for four days. When they reached Penduma village it was overrun with armed RUF rebels. Twenty civilians who attempted to flee were shot dead. The rest of the survivors where grouped together and told to wait for their commander. Upon arrival the commander addressed the frightened civilians saying to them, "so you are the supporters of Tejan Kabbah." They were separated into three groups the witness will declare: first, pregnant women, suckling mothers and children; second, men and boys; and third females--teenagers to grandmothers. Twenty-five men and women were picked out at random from the last two groups. The commander gave the order, "Una take them. Make una burn dem." These civilians were placed in a house which was set on fire by the rebels. All of them were burned alive while the others were forced to listen to their agonized screams.
The commander then pointed at the group of females. There were around twenty. The wife of the witness was one of them. The women were raped in front of everyone. The witness will testify that he and his children were forced to watch while his wife and their mother was raped by eight different RUF rebels before she was stabbed to death with a bayonet by the last RUF rapist. Why does he recall their being eight rapists, he will be asked, because the witness had to count out loud the number as they tore into his wife. Two other women were likewise gang raped and then murdered. Note, while this is taking place, twenty-five human beings are roasting to death in a burning house, their cries adding to this true living hell on earth. Fifteen of the men were then marched away by rebels armed with knives. Two who attempted to run were shot. The remaining thirteen had their throats cut. Incredibly the witness and eight others still remained. Each of them was called forward and had a hand cut off. When the witness attempted to retrieve his severed hand he was struck in the back with a bayonet.
The similarity of the stories from all parts of the country will become hauntingly familiar. The witness from Kono who heard the screams of 25 people burned alive by rebel forces in Penduma village will echo in the evidence of the witness from Koinadugu who saw people rounded up and burnt alive in his village. The testimony of both these witnesses will resound in that of the witness from Port Loko who will describe the 73 innocent and helpless people burned alive in a house in Manaarma, and again in the testimony of the many witnesses from Freetown who saw families die together in the flames of their houses. Within these court room walls the terrifying words "Go to Kabbah" "Go to Kabbah" will reverberate again and again and again. "Go to Kabbah." These words were said by thousands of rebels to thousands of Sierra Leonean men, women and children, the vast majority of whom have never met, who have never seen or did not even know the President of Sierra Leone. "Go to Kabbah," These words were said by rebels as the blood of the people of Sierra Leone dripped from their blunt and crude machetes, cutlasses, axes and swords, and the chopped-off hands and limbs of the people lay severed on the ground. "Go to Kabbah." Witnesses from Kono, Koinadugu, Bombali, Freetown and Port Loko will all tell a similar harrowing tale of vicious and primitive amputation by rebel forces. The RUF decided upon amputation as punishment for civilians whose only crime was to support democracy. Left faint or unconscious, left vomiting and in agony, and simply left to die, the RUF told these people to go to Kabbah for new hands. In fact, the evidence will show that it did not matter which government the citizens of Sierra Leone supported. Amputation was a tool of fear systematically used by the RUF to terrorize the population into submission.
This court will also hear the evidence of girls and women who were subjected to sexual violence and sexual slavery; the unmistakably atrocious and ghastly signature of RUF violence. The evidence of the teenager from Kono who was publicly raped by eight rebels and was so badly injured that she bled for three days, has terrible parallels with that of the witness from Koinadugu who was pregnant but miscarried after being publicly raped by three rebels. The Prosecution will invite this chamber to juxtapose these stories with the gruesome account of the witness from Freetown who was taken to Waterloo, raped by seven rebels and saw another girl abandoned by her captors because she had been gang-raped to the point where she could no longer walk.
A witness will testify that while hiding in the Malama bush near Batmis she could hear the rebels in Batmis shout out threats to those in hiding. As it became light the witness was captured by a rebel. He hit her, pushed her down on the ground and raped her while another rebel looked on. Afterwards, other rebels armed with guns, knives and cutlasses rounded up the witness, her husband and other Sierra Leoneans. They were taken into Batmis where the witness was forced to pound fundeh (which is millet). Other civilians were forced to carry water. Some managed to escape. Those who remained were punished. The rebel commander ordered the witness's husband to be killed. The witness will testify she watched while her husband was hacked to death with a cutlass. The rebels then took hold of her right hand and with 4 long strokes of a machete cut it off. Then they chopped off her left hand telling her to go to Kabbah, who would give her hands.
In 1999, another witness in Koidu will testify that when RUF and AFRC rebels drove the Kamajors from the town they began to burn the houses of Koidu. The witness and his family fled to a nearby village. The RUF rebels followed them in a number of trucks filled with young women. The rebel commander took the 16 year old sister of the witness. He declared loudly that he was going to take her as his wife. The witness tried to protect his younger sister, but was told he would be killed. The rebels left with around ten girls from the town, the youngest being 12. His younger sister was kept by the rebels for four long years. The witness will testify further that upon hearing that ECOMOG troops had taken Koidu town the family decided to return, walking for four days. When they reached Penduma village it was overrun with armed RUF rebels. Twenty civilians who attempted to flee were shot dead. The rest of the survivors where grouped together and told to wait for their commander. Upon arrival the commander addressed the frightened civilians saying to them, "so you are the supporters of Tejan Kabbah." They were separated into three groups the witness will declare: first, pregnant women, suckling mothers and children; second, men and boys; and third females--teenagers to grandmothers. Twenty-five men and women were picked out at random from the last two groups. The commander gave the order, "Una take them. Make una burn dem." These civilians were placed in a house which was set on fire by the rebels. All of them were burned alive while the others were forced to listen to their agonized screams.
The commander then pointed at the group of females. There were around twenty. The wife of the witness was one of them. The women were raped in front of everyone. The witness will testify that he and his children were forced to watch while his wife and their mother was raped by eight different RUF rebels before she was stabbed to death with a bayonet by the last RUF rapist. Why does he recall their being eight rapists, he will be asked, because the witness had to count out loud the number as they tore into his wife. Two other women were likewise gang raped and then murdered. Note, while this is taking place, twenty-five human beings are roasting to death in a burning house, their cries adding to this true living hell on earth. Fifteen of the men were then marched away by rebels armed with knives. Two who attempted to run were shot. The remaining thirteen had their throats cut. Incredibly the witness and eight others still remained. Each of them was called forward and had a hand cut off. When the witness attempted to retrieve his severed hand he was struck in the back with a bayonet.
The similarity of the stories from all parts of the country will become hauntingly familiar. The witness from Kono who heard the screams of 25 people burned alive by rebel forces in Penduma village will echo in the evidence of the witness from Koinadugu who saw people rounded up and burnt alive in his village. The testimony of both these witnesses will resound in that of the witness from Port Loko who will describe the 73 innocent and helpless people burned alive in a house in Manaarma, and again in the testimony of the many witnesses from Freetown who saw families die together in the flames of their houses. Within these court room walls the terrifying words "Go to Kabbah" "Go to Kabbah" will reverberate again and again and again. "Go to Kabbah." These words were said by thousands of rebels to thousands of Sierra Leonean men, women and children, the vast majority of whom have never met, who have never seen or did not even know the President of Sierra Leone. "Go to Kabbah," These words were said by rebels as the blood of the people of Sierra Leone dripped from their blunt and crude machetes, cutlasses, axes and swords, and the chopped-off hands and limbs of the people lay severed on the ground. "Go to Kabbah." Witnesses from Kono, Koinadugu, Bombali, Freetown and Port Loko will all tell a similar harrowing tale of vicious and primitive amputation by rebel forces. The RUF decided upon amputation as punishment for civilians whose only crime was to support democracy. Left faint or unconscious, left vomiting and in agony, and simply left to die, the RUF told these people to go to Kabbah for new hands. In fact, the evidence will show that it did not matter which government the citizens of Sierra Leone supported. Amputation was a tool of fear systematically used by the RUF to terrorize the population into submission.
This court will also hear the evidence of girls and women who were subjected to sexual violence and sexual slavery; the unmistakably atrocious and ghastly signature of RUF violence. The evidence of the teenager from Kono who was publicly raped by eight rebels and was so badly injured that she bled for three days, has terrible parallels with that of the witness from Koinadugu who was pregnant but miscarried after being publicly raped by three rebels. The Prosecution will invite this chamber to juxtapose these stories with the gruesome account of the witness from Freetown who was taken to Waterloo, raped by seven rebels and saw another girl abandoned by her captors because she had been gang-raped to the point where she could no longer walk.
Shopping, measuring and cataloging
Went to check out Stockmann's summer sale yesterday. I usually check it out on the first day and unless there is something I really want I put the shopping off till there is a final (64% off) sale. This way I don't buy too much. I love the name of the final sale in Swedish: "slutrusch". As if everybody is rushing to get some sluts.
Anyway, I was supersensible this time and only bought some of those things that you use to handle hot pots and pans. I had somehow managed to lose almost all the ones I had, now I have 3 more.
Also bought a blood pressure meter in Lidl. Good thingie, 20 euro, batteries included. 124/78, it said, which is not bad. Maybe I should take the thing to work with me tomorrow and see the blood pressure double at the sight of the fucklift and triple at the sight of the singing teenagers.
Finally got to cataloging the DVDs, did almost half of then yesterday, hopefully will do the rest today.
Anyway, I was supersensible this time and only bought some of those things that you use to handle hot pots and pans. I had somehow managed to lose almost all the ones I had, now I have 3 more.
Also bought a blood pressure meter in Lidl. Good thingie, 20 euro, batteries included. 124/78, it said, which is not bad. Maybe I should take the thing to work with me tomorrow and see the blood pressure double at the sight of the fucklift and triple at the sight of the singing teenagers.
Finally got to cataloging the DVDs, did almost half of then yesterday, hopefully will do the rest today.
Oh shit, here we go again...
Tomorrow I am going to the little-town customer's place again. Argh!
When I chose this profession I imagined sitting in a nice office in some ivory tower, having the newest computers and algorithms to play with and ogling and maybe occasionally having sex with cute young students, and maybe occasionally going to some conferences in nice faraway places. Nobody told me about having to go to the god-forsaken wilderness in the middle of nowhere beyond Kehä III and performing unnatural acts on fucklifts while having nothing at all to ogle besides two female teenagers who have the worst singing voices in the world.
Besides, I am supposed to have at least something that works tomorrow, and it doesn't.
When I chose this profession I imagined sitting in a nice office in some ivory tower, having the newest computers and algorithms to play with and ogling and maybe occasionally having sex with cute young students, and maybe occasionally going to some conferences in nice faraway places. Nobody told me about having to go to the god-forsaken wilderness in the middle of nowhere beyond Kehä III and performing unnatural acts on fucklifts while having nothing at all to ogle besides two female teenagers who have the worst singing voices in the world.
Besides, I am supposed to have at least something that works tomorrow, and it doesn't.
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Fly the friendly skies
A passenger was beaten up by two drunk flight attendants, says CNN. They attacked him for complaining about them being drunk.
The level of Aeroflot's service is clearly improving: at least they did not try to fly the plane while drunk. OTOH, has anyone given a breathalyzer test to the pilots?
The level of Aeroflot's service is clearly improving: at least they did not try to fly the plane while drunk. OTOH, has anyone given a breathalyzer test to the pilots?
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Life
The weekend was rather quiet. Had some drinks with the Axis of AEvil, her husband and her dog on Friday. Was a very nice evening, and Honeybear (the dog) didn't even eat me. Honeybear is really funny, he looks at pizza with puppy eyes and chews people's backpacks a little.
Spent the rest of the weekend at home trying to arrange my photos (mostly successfully in the case of the digital photos; I still have some paper ones that need to be put in albums; paper photos are a pain in the ass), reading and trying to learn a bit of Hebrew and a bit of Swedish. German was scheduled too but I never got around to it.
I am having an attack of some arranging mania. Yesterday bought a big box for various small objects in Lidl. Gotta hunt down the small objects lying around the house someday soon and stick them all in the box. Tried to install some video cataloguing software but it wanted libxml-parser-perl or something like that; tried to see if it can be found in my distribution but YaST2 malfunctioned badly. After that started thinking whether to update the system, got lost in thinking and never got to installing anything.
The update would be SuSE 9.1 professional, and as usual there is the dilemma of whether to buy an update on DVD from a store like a decent person or to download it from the net like a geek with more time than money, and have to fix xine and mplayer later (the last time the net download had broken versions of both).
Also need to catalogue all books and DVDs and VCDs and maybe CDs that I own, and mark them as mine. If somebody knows a place where I can have stick-on labels with my name and email address printed cheaply, let me know.
Pia came on Sunday with her laptop that got a virus, imagining that I know what to do about it. I know fuck all about anything having to do with Windows, and my response to questions having to do with Windows problems usually is "get SuSE or Debian", which works surprisingly often. Pia can't do that since her school requires Microsoft Word, including some of the functionality that cannot be easily simulated by using OpenOffice. Stupid school, I say. Anyway, I installed her some trial software from F-Secure webpage, and it found and ate the virus, but that's only for a month, and what then? (Yeah, the obvious response would be for her to buy the software.) I wonder how the whole thing happened in the first place. Doesn't Windows come with a firewall and a virus scanner of its own?
Yesterday had some hot chocolate and saw a movie with Sini, Aapo and Odessa. The movie was called But I am a Cheerleader and is about a girl who is put by her parents into a gay-to-straight re-education camp. Won't write any spoilers here, but you can imagine that putting a bunch of gays and/or lesbians together in a camp is not very likely to teach them to become straight. The movie's plot had a great porn potential but unfortunately it wasn't a porno movie. Was funny, though.
Next weekend is Ropecon, and everybody is going to be there, except me. I think I'll use the time to improve my whatever-language, take some photos, hang out with the few friends who do not participate in Ropecon and/or maybe go to Tallinn and buy some sour cherries. Killeri is very busy with Ropecon, no chance of getting laid this weekend at all.
Spent the rest of the weekend at home trying to arrange my photos (mostly successfully in the case of the digital photos; I still have some paper ones that need to be put in albums; paper photos are a pain in the ass), reading and trying to learn a bit of Hebrew and a bit of Swedish. German was scheduled too but I never got around to it.
I am having an attack of some arranging mania. Yesterday bought a big box for various small objects in Lidl. Gotta hunt down the small objects lying around the house someday soon and stick them all in the box. Tried to install some video cataloguing software but it wanted libxml-parser-perl or something like that; tried to see if it can be found in my distribution but YaST2 malfunctioned badly. After that started thinking whether to update the system, got lost in thinking and never got to installing anything.
The update would be SuSE 9.1 professional, and as usual there is the dilemma of whether to buy an update on DVD from a store like a decent person or to download it from the net like a geek with more time than money, and have to fix xine and mplayer later (the last time the net download had broken versions of both).
Also need to catalogue all books and DVDs and VCDs and maybe CDs that I own, and mark them as mine. If somebody knows a place where I can have stick-on labels with my name and email address printed cheaply, let me know.
Pia came on Sunday with her laptop that got a virus, imagining that I know what to do about it. I know fuck all about anything having to do with Windows, and my response to questions having to do with Windows problems usually is "get SuSE or Debian", which works surprisingly often. Pia can't do that since her school requires Microsoft Word, including some of the functionality that cannot be easily simulated by using OpenOffice. Stupid school, I say. Anyway, I installed her some trial software from F-Secure webpage, and it found and ate the virus, but that's only for a month, and what then? (Yeah, the obvious response would be for her to buy the software.) I wonder how the whole thing happened in the first place. Doesn't Windows come with a firewall and a virus scanner of its own?
Yesterday had some hot chocolate and saw a movie with Sini, Aapo and Odessa. The movie was called But I am a Cheerleader and is about a girl who is put by her parents into a gay-to-straight re-education camp. Won't write any spoilers here, but you can imagine that putting a bunch of gays and/or lesbians together in a camp is not very likely to teach them to become straight. The movie's plot had a great porn potential but unfortunately it wasn't a porno movie. Was funny, though.
Next weekend is Ropecon, and everybody is going to be there, except me. I think I'll use the time to improve my whatever-language, take some photos, hang out with the few friends who do not participate in Ropecon and/or maybe go to Tallinn and buy some sour cherries. Killeri is very busy with Ropecon, no chance of getting laid this weekend at all.
Monday, July 19, 2004
Middle East, business almost as usual
A Hezbollah terrorist was killed by a bomb in his car in Beirut. The bomb was allegedly installed by sunni terrorists. I like this self-service approach to war on terrorism, but to avoid collateral damage I call on all terrorists to use knives on other terrorists.
In hopefully unrelated but similar news Yassir Arafat has managed to appoint two different guys as the Palestinian security chief. One of them just happens to be Arafat's cousin. Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades expressed their dissatisfaction with the appointment of the cousin by burning down offices of the Palestinian intelligence services. Hmm, maybe it's time for me to believe that Arafat really does not control those assholes, or al least not all the time?
With all the terrorists fighting among themselves Ariel Sharon was left to make his own trouble for himself, which he promptly did. In a speech addressed to visiting French Jewish community leaders Sharon said that all the French Jews should move from France to Israel immediately due to the number of anitsemitic attacks in France and the number of Moslems there. Sharon, face it, man: Israel currently leads the Western world in the number of antisemitic attacks per Jew, and also has a higher Moslem population than France. (Although of course I am not suggesting that the size of the Moslem population can in any way be related to the number of antisemitic attacks. Perish the thought! Sharon, however, seems to think so.) The French Jews would be making a change for the worse. Anyway, French Jewish community leaders told Sharon to stuff it where the sun don't shine, and so did the French government.
In hopefully unrelated but similar news Yassir Arafat has managed to appoint two different guys as the Palestinian security chief. One of them just happens to be Arafat's cousin. Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades expressed their dissatisfaction with the appointment of the cousin by burning down offices of the Palestinian intelligence services. Hmm, maybe it's time for me to believe that Arafat really does not control those assholes, or al least not all the time?
With all the terrorists fighting among themselves Ariel Sharon was left to make his own trouble for himself, which he promptly did. In a speech addressed to visiting French Jewish community leaders Sharon said that all the French Jews should move from France to Israel immediately due to the number of anitsemitic attacks in France and the number of Moslems there. Sharon, face it, man: Israel currently leads the Western world in the number of antisemitic attacks per Jew, and also has a higher Moslem population than France. (Although of course I am not suggesting that the size of the Moslem population can in any way be related to the number of antisemitic attacks. Perish the thought! Sharon, however, seems to think so.) The French Jews would be making a change for the worse. Anyway, French Jewish community leaders told Sharon to stuff it where the sun don't shine, and so did the French government.
The Senate vote
The Senate vote on whether to vote on the anti-gay-marriage has come and gone. The proponents of voting on the amendment had to get 60 votes to get their way. They got only 48 against 50. And guess who were the two who graced the senate with their shining absense that day? Why, our future fearless leaders Kerry and Edwards, of course.
Are we about to get the most spineless presidency in the recorded history? Don't get me wrong, I have always liked Kerry well enough as a senator. He is my senator, after all. I've always voted for him. He's been a senator for as long as I could remember and I can't recall him doing anything objectionable. Or anything at all, for that matter. This can be a nice feature in a senator, but these are troubled times - is it a good idea to have a president who always has two diametrically opposed opinions on every issue and always bends down to tie his shoelaces when he is not sure whether or not he should bow to someone?
OTOH the alternative is another fearless leader with a two-digit IQ who is very sure of being always right and would cheerfully lead the country to a great end if he only could. Well, I guess that a spineless weasel is better that a moron with initiative.
Is it just me, or does anybody else notice that the quality of the presidential candidate material in the US is falling with every election? Used to think it couldn't go lower than Dukakis, but apparently was wrong.
Are we about to get the most spineless presidency in the recorded history? Don't get me wrong, I have always liked Kerry well enough as a senator. He is my senator, after all. I've always voted for him. He's been a senator for as long as I could remember and I can't recall him doing anything objectionable. Or anything at all, for that matter. This can be a nice feature in a senator, but these are troubled times - is it a good idea to have a president who always has two diametrically opposed opinions on every issue and always bends down to tie his shoelaces when he is not sure whether or not he should bow to someone?
OTOH the alternative is another fearless leader with a two-digit IQ who is very sure of being always right and would cheerfully lead the country to a great end if he only could. Well, I guess that a spineless weasel is better that a moron with initiative.
Is it just me, or does anybody else notice that the quality of the presidential candidate material in the US is falling with every election? Used to think it couldn't go lower than Dukakis, but apparently was wrong.
Saturday, July 17, 2004
Hebrew
A couple of days ago a few guys made some loud comments in Hebrew to me in the street. I did not understand them, of course, but they sounded like sexual innuendo. Should've responded "little dick", which is one of the very few things I know how to say in Hebrew, but didn't. Bummer.
Tried to read a Hebrew textbook again after a long time, but the fuckers still haven't learned to write vowels. Although since it's the same textbook that I read way back, it would be surprising if vowels suddenly appeared in it even if Israelis had in fact started to write vowels like normal people.
Maybe one day some antisemites have stolen all the Hebrew vowels? Those guys apparently did not like Arabs either, stole all their vowels too.
Tried to read a Hebrew textbook again after a long time, but the fuckers still haven't learned to write vowels. Although since it's the same textbook that I read way back, it would be surprising if vowels suddenly appeared in it even if Israelis had in fact started to write vowels like normal people.
Maybe one day some antisemites have stolen all the Hebrew vowels? Those guys apparently did not like Arabs either, stole all their vowels too.
Cthulhu for president
Ran across Cthulhu's presidential campaign page. " Cthulhu for President. Why vote for a lesser evil?"
Problem is, there were slogans like that last time around, 4 years ago. And I think we have actually elected Cthulhu. Now he is in the White House.
Problem is, there were slogans like that last time around, 4 years ago. And I think we have actually elected Cthulhu. Now he is in the White House.
Bloody hell
Had to spend Thursday and Friday on the premises of one fine customer in a fine small town in the middle of fucking nowhere way beyond Kehä III. The fine town is not blessed with public transportation, but is still too big to make it possible to get around by walking, especially when dragging around a ton of equipment. There is one bus going at some ungodly hour in the morning from the railway station to the customer's plant; the only way to get back is to bum a ride off someone. In order to be on time for the bus I have to get up at 6.
Thursday was totally fucked. Got up at 6; went to sleep at 2 after finishing writing the piece of software that was supposed to work by the next morning, and set the alarm clock for 6am. 20-hour days don't agree with me very well, especially not if I have to start the next day 4 hours later. Although it wasn't really a 20-hour-workday - I took several hours off in the evening to hang out with Killeri. Anyway, in the morning Markus (a coworker) and I missed our bus, or rather the bus missed us: we were there and the bus wasn't. Had to bum a ride off one guy.
There was two of us and one crappy little laptop with a tiny keyboard. Half the time the laptop had to be attached to the... well, let's call that machine a fucklift. The other half we had to share a desk with two fine teenage employees, who talked loudly, played a radio loudly and sometimes sang along with it. I'd never imagined there exists a human being who has a nastier singing voice and less of a musical ear than myself, and now I found two of them. Considering that my singing usually causes my even nearests and dearest friends to throw shoes at me (real friends throw shoes without hard sharp parts, of course), and considering that the fine employees were not my friends, it's amazing I did not strangle them with an extension cord. OTOH, I was sort of a guest there, and strangling people with extension cords is probably the kind of behavior that is unworthy of a guest.
By noon we figured that somebody has to write a piece of software that tells us what the hell do the numbers that come out of the fucklift mean, and I buggered off to do exactly that. Managed to write it and it even worked the next day. Friday was marked by fucked-up minicom settings and more atrocious enthusiastic singing from the girls. Well, at least everything works now.
The place has no open cafeteria, no way to get anywhere for lunch except other people's cars, and no tea.
I am going there again sometime next week. Oh joy...
Thursday was totally fucked. Got up at 6; went to sleep at 2 after finishing writing the piece of software that was supposed to work by the next morning, and set the alarm clock for 6am. 20-hour days don't agree with me very well, especially not if I have to start the next day 4 hours later. Although it wasn't really a 20-hour-workday - I took several hours off in the evening to hang out with Killeri. Anyway, in the morning Markus (a coworker) and I missed our bus, or rather the bus missed us: we were there and the bus wasn't. Had to bum a ride off one guy.
There was two of us and one crappy little laptop with a tiny keyboard. Half the time the laptop had to be attached to the... well, let's call that machine a fucklift. The other half we had to share a desk with two fine teenage employees, who talked loudly, played a radio loudly and sometimes sang along with it. I'd never imagined there exists a human being who has a nastier singing voice and less of a musical ear than myself, and now I found two of them. Considering that my singing usually causes my even nearests and dearest friends to throw shoes at me (real friends throw shoes without hard sharp parts, of course), and considering that the fine employees were not my friends, it's amazing I did not strangle them with an extension cord. OTOH, I was sort of a guest there, and strangling people with extension cords is probably the kind of behavior that is unworthy of a guest.
By noon we figured that somebody has to write a piece of software that tells us what the hell do the numbers that come out of the fucklift mean, and I buggered off to do exactly that. Managed to write it and it even worked the next day. Friday was marked by fucked-up minicom settings and more atrocious enthusiastic singing from the girls. Well, at least everything works now.
The place has no open cafeteria, no way to get anywhere for lunch except other people's cars, and no tea.
I am going there again sometime next week. Oh joy...
Wednesday, July 14, 2004
The antisemitic attack that wasn't
Now it's official: the woman who claimed to have been attacked by 4 Arabs and 2 Africans on a RER D train in Paris has confessed that she'd made it up. The motive was apparently being somewhat fucked in the head, since she had claimed being a victim a many attacks in the last few years, none of them proven.
Belge, gay marriage and the guy who shot himself in the balls
Been to Belge yesterday for the first time. I noticed the place when it first opened and decided to visit it sometime, but I don't get out much to restaurants now that I live in downtown, everyone just comes to my place usually. Belge turned out to be a very nice place, not very crowded or noisy, at least not on Tuesday night, and with a large non-smoking space which looked like it was primarily for eating but they did not mind us just drinking there. Eventually had some fries, which had a price tag of 4.50 but were quite worthy, pretty much the same quality as you usually get in Belgium, and a bit of chocolate cake with ice cream, which was too expensive, too small and generally Ville's and Lasu's fault (they were being a bad example). Belge is a nice place to be, but their selection of Belgian beers is quite poor in comparison to any decent beer restaurant.
US Senate is voting today on the proposed constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage. It's a procedural vote and they need 60 votes even to start really voting on the damn amendment. In order for them to approve the stupid thing they need 67 votes, and there's no way the fuckers are getting that. In order for an amendment to pass you need two-thirds of the Senate, two-thirds of the House, and ratification by 38 states. We might be a nation of homophobic fuckers, but that much of homophobic fuckers we hopefully ain't.
A British gentleman who accidentally shot himself in the testicles earlier this year has received a 5-year sentence for posession of an illegal firearm. The man had enjoyed 15 pints of lager in a local pub, argued with a friend about whose turn it was to buy the next beer, went home to get his sawed-off shotgun, stuffed it down his pants and accidentally discharged it on his way back to the bar.
5 years for owning an illegal firearm is a bit stiff in my opinion, especially in the absense of any previous firearm offences, but the man had been convicted for the posession of a screwdriver once. The article says it's unclear to what extent he'll recover, but other articles say his testicles have been removed, so I guess he qualities for a Darwin award.
That's what you get for drinking 15 pints of lager. Try ale next time.
US Senate is voting today on the proposed constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage. It's a procedural vote and they need 60 votes even to start really voting on the damn amendment. In order for them to approve the stupid thing they need 67 votes, and there's no way the fuckers are getting that. In order for an amendment to pass you need two-thirds of the Senate, two-thirds of the House, and ratification by 38 states. We might be a nation of homophobic fuckers, but that much of homophobic fuckers we hopefully ain't.
A British gentleman who accidentally shot himself in the testicles earlier this year has received a 5-year sentence for posession of an illegal firearm. The man had enjoyed 15 pints of lager in a local pub, argued with a friend about whose turn it was to buy the next beer, went home to get his sawed-off shotgun, stuffed it down his pants and accidentally discharged it on his way back to the bar.
5 years for owning an illegal firearm is a bit stiff in my opinion, especially in the absense of any previous firearm offences, but the man had been convicted for the posession of a screwdriver once. The article says it's unclear to what extent he'll recover, but other articles say his testicles have been removed, so I guess he qualities for a Darwin award.
That's what you get for drinking 15 pints of lager. Try ale next time.
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
Gay marriage in Massachusetts and elsewhere
Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is trying to uphold the 1913 law forbidding the out-of-state couples whose marriage would be illegal in their own state from marrying in Massachusetts. The reasoning being that if out-of-state couples start marrying in Massachusetts it might cause a backlash across the country, and even possibly a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.
Oh, wait! Isn't that the same Mitt Romney who has just testified on Capitol Hill in favor of such an amendment? Couldn't be, could it? Must be another Massachusetts governor by the same name.
The law was passed in 1913, when Massachusetts allowed interracial marriage and most other states didn't, for the exact purpose of preventing interracial couples from other states from marrying there. It wasn't enforced ever since all states started allowing interracial marriage, but was kept on the books. Never throw out the old stuff, never know when you'd need it again... The law was taken into use again this May by a strange coincidence, and naturally is enforced for both homosexual and heterosexual couples now. To prevent discrimination, you know.
The whole fight for gay marriage in the US reminds so much of the fight for interracial marriage that the wrong side of the debate could really just read up on history, realize that they are gonna lose and give up. Or, failing that, both sides could take the arguments from the old newspapers instead of writing their own.
Oh, wait! Isn't that the same Mitt Romney who has just testified on Capitol Hill in favor of such an amendment? Couldn't be, could it? Must be another Massachusetts governor by the same name.
The law was passed in 1913, when Massachusetts allowed interracial marriage and most other states didn't, for the exact purpose of preventing interracial couples from other states from marrying there. It wasn't enforced ever since all states started allowing interracial marriage, but was kept on the books. Never throw out the old stuff, never know when you'd need it again... The law was taken into use again this May by a strange coincidence, and naturally is enforced for both homosexual and heterosexual couples now. To prevent discrimination, you know.
The whole fight for gay marriage in the US reminds so much of the fight for interracial marriage that the wrong side of the debate could really just read up on history, realize that they are gonna lose and give up. Or, failing that, both sides could take the arguments from the old newspapers instead of writing their own.
Expats
Lately I've seen a lot of the use of the word "expat" to mean people who move from one country to another. When I first saw the word, 10 years or so ago, I thought it was just a British word for immigrant/emigrant. Nowadays I see it used a lot by Americans too, and the usage seems to have differentiated from "immigrant": the people who came from the third world to the civilized world tend to be called immigrants and the people who move from one civilized country to another tend to be called expats. Also in historical contexts it's always "immigrants" and never "expats".
Has the word "immigrant" gotten so many negative connotations already that people need to find another word for "nice immigrants"? Or is there something else at work?
Has the word "immigrant" gotten so many negative connotations already that people need to find another word for "nice immigrants"? Or is there something else at work?
Monday, July 12, 2004
ATMs and what to do about them
No, I don't mean the automatic teller machines, nor asynchronous transfer mode. I mean the men of low sexual market value, or rather the subgroup of them that pesters women in public places and do not take a polite "no" for an answer. The question is not how to get rid of them - I knew how to get rid of them when I was 10 - but how to get rid of them politely without making them too upset.
You see, nowadays I decided to be a polite young - well, youngish - woman with good manners and, as Bridget Jones puts it, inner poise, as opposed to the little bitch from hell that I was back when I was a jailbait. The net result is usually that I tell them to leave me in peace politely and with inner poise for a few minutes without getting any results, then do the bitchy thing and they disappear. I do get a nice bit of righteous satisfaction from not starting my half of conversation with "bugger off, asshole", but the whole process is tedious.
Today, for example. Waiting for a bus in Herttoniemi. 10 minutes to the bus, and I sit down on the elevated border of the grassy area to read my book, since the bench is already occupied by the kind of gentlemen who usually enjoy beer and kossu on benches in Herttoniemi in the early morning. After a moment a couple of legs appear in front of my face and stay there. I take a look at the owner: small, mid-fifties, drunk but not very drunk, smoker but not currently smoking, does not look like someone about to attack. I take my eyes back to a book and try to read. One'd think he'll understand that his company is not needed.
It's hard to concentrate on reading when there is someone standing within 20 cm in front of you and looking at you. It's even harder when the guy bends down so that his face is on the same level as mine and looks at my face from the same distance. He grabs my knee and I push his hand away and growl at him rather menacingly. He gets scared and starts to apologize, saying that he lost his balance by accident. I don't know whether it's true, and, most importantly, don't care. "No problem. Bye now."
He asks for my name. I politely refuse him this information and try to continue reading. He continues standing in that bent-down position. Then he tries to wave hands in front of my book and I tell him that this interferes with reading. He tells me that I seem like a very nice person. I think he is not a very good judge of character. He asks what am I reading. I flip the cover of the book at him without answering and continue reading. After doing this I realize it was a mistake since the title of the book is Porno.
He asks me whether he can sit there. I say it's a free country and he sits about 30 cm from me. He carries on about me being such a nice and pleasant person. I tell him that thanks for the compliment but I'd really rather not have any company and concentrate on reading. The concentration is somewhat disturbed by having to watch his hands. After two attempts to touch me that I have to block physically I growl at him and move further away. He whines like a beaten dog and after a minute moves up to me. He asks me where I am going and whether I'd go for a beer with him. "To work, " - I say, politely declining the invitation, but the concept is clearly unfamiliar to him because he then invites me to Alko with him, which I also politely decline. After he attempts to touch me again I employ the same tone of voice that Killeri uses on Jero when Jero tries to eat his guests. The man whines and recoils. At that moment the bus comes and I go there, accompanied by whining from behind.
Way back 20 years ago the 12-year-old jailbait bitch Vera would have told him from the beginning something like "What the fuck are you thinking? You are old enough to be my grandfather and ugly enough to be a dick of a walrus! Frankly, I don't think you have any chance even with women your own age, let alone a teenager. Besides, you probably haven't been sober for 30 years now - are you sure your dick still works and do I get a microscope to see it? Face it, man - most women wouldn't screw you even if you were the last man on earth, and they were out of all the cucumbers and bananas, too." Saying things like that was good fun when I was a kid, but somewhere in my late teenage years I mellowed out a bit and figured it wasn't nice to be so mean to a guy just because the poor bugger wants to get laid and has no chance whatsoever.
There are moments though when I wish I hadn't decided to become a semi-polite person. Too much bother, can't concentrate on reading, and in the end they are upset anyway.
You see, nowadays I decided to be a polite young - well, youngish - woman with good manners and, as Bridget Jones puts it, inner poise, as opposed to the little bitch from hell that I was back when I was a jailbait. The net result is usually that I tell them to leave me in peace politely and with inner poise for a few minutes without getting any results, then do the bitchy thing and they disappear. I do get a nice bit of righteous satisfaction from not starting my half of conversation with "bugger off, asshole", but the whole process is tedious.
Today, for example. Waiting for a bus in Herttoniemi. 10 minutes to the bus, and I sit down on the elevated border of the grassy area to read my book, since the bench is already occupied by the kind of gentlemen who usually enjoy beer and kossu on benches in Herttoniemi in the early morning. After a moment a couple of legs appear in front of my face and stay there. I take a look at the owner: small, mid-fifties, drunk but not very drunk, smoker but not currently smoking, does not look like someone about to attack. I take my eyes back to a book and try to read. One'd think he'll understand that his company is not needed.
It's hard to concentrate on reading when there is someone standing within 20 cm in front of you and looking at you. It's even harder when the guy bends down so that his face is on the same level as mine and looks at my face from the same distance. He grabs my knee and I push his hand away and growl at him rather menacingly. He gets scared and starts to apologize, saying that he lost his balance by accident. I don't know whether it's true, and, most importantly, don't care. "No problem. Bye now."
He asks for my name. I politely refuse him this information and try to continue reading. He continues standing in that bent-down position. Then he tries to wave hands in front of my book and I tell him that this interferes with reading. He tells me that I seem like a very nice person. I think he is not a very good judge of character. He asks what am I reading. I flip the cover of the book at him without answering and continue reading. After doing this I realize it was a mistake since the title of the book is Porno.
He asks me whether he can sit there. I say it's a free country and he sits about 30 cm from me. He carries on about me being such a nice and pleasant person. I tell him that thanks for the compliment but I'd really rather not have any company and concentrate on reading. The concentration is somewhat disturbed by having to watch his hands. After two attempts to touch me that I have to block physically I growl at him and move further away. He whines like a beaten dog and after a minute moves up to me. He asks me where I am going and whether I'd go for a beer with him. "To work, " - I say, politely declining the invitation, but the concept is clearly unfamiliar to him because he then invites me to Alko with him, which I also politely decline. After he attempts to touch me again I employ the same tone of voice that Killeri uses on Jero when Jero tries to eat his guests. The man whines and recoils. At that moment the bus comes and I go there, accompanied by whining from behind.
Way back 20 years ago the 12-year-old jailbait bitch Vera would have told him from the beginning something like "What the fuck are you thinking? You are old enough to be my grandfather and ugly enough to be a dick of a walrus! Frankly, I don't think you have any chance even with women your own age, let alone a teenager. Besides, you probably haven't been sober for 30 years now - are you sure your dick still works and do I get a microscope to see it? Face it, man - most women wouldn't screw you even if you were the last man on earth, and they were out of all the cucumbers and bananas, too." Saying things like that was good fun when I was a kid, but somewhere in my late teenage years I mellowed out a bit and figured it wasn't nice to be so mean to a guy just because the poor bugger wants to get laid and has no chance whatsoever.
There are moments though when I wish I hadn't decided to become a semi-polite person. Too much bother, can't concentrate on reading, and in the end they are upset anyway.
SMS to police?
The RER story made me think: why doesn't the police have an emergency number that accepts SMSs? Could be a very handy thing in a situation where you don't want to attract the criminals' attention by making a phone call.
Or does the police already have such number? They don't advertise it much if they do.
Or does the police already have such number? They don't advertise it much if they do.
The RER attack, again
I was wrong before - there are still no witnesses. They did not get anything from security tapes either.
I am starting to suspect that it either means that somebody really doesn't want those guys found, or that there never was any attack to begin with. In the former case - who? In the latter case - why?
There surely exist criminals that cover their tracks well, but I reckon the kind of thugs who mug people on a commuter train in broad daylight in front of twenty witnesses aren't exactly the criminal masterminds.
In any case the mind-boggling fact remains: in France you have to interfere in such a situation, and can get up to 5 years if you don't. If you do the sentence apparently depends on how successful you were.
I am starting to suspect that it either means that somebody really doesn't want those guys found, or that there never was any attack to begin with. In the former case - who? In the latter case - why?
There surely exist criminals that cover their tracks well, but I reckon the kind of thugs who mug people on a commuter train in broad daylight in front of twenty witnesses aren't exactly the criminal masterminds.
In any case the mind-boggling fact remains: in France you have to interfere in such a situation, and can get up to 5 years if you don't. If you do the sentence apparently depends on how successful you were.
More on the RER attack
Now, after all the politicians and the media have said all the nasty things they'd had to say about the witnesses of the attack and their failure to interfere, Minister of State for Victims' Rights Nicole Guedj is asking witnesses to come forward. She is promising them anonymity and says that they probably won't be prosecuted for their failure to interfere. How nice of her, especially the "probably" bit. There were about 20 people in the train; I think they have found 1 or 2 witnesses so far.
The Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin has encouraged citizens to display civic courage in the face of violence. If there is any believing the French people who write on usenet, actual civic courage displayed in the face of violence is usually rewarded in France much in the same way as in Finland. I can only imagine the headlines we'd see if somebody had really stood up and shot the bastards.
Hell, I still remember all the noise that ensued when Bernard Goetz shot 4 muggers on a New York subway train, and that's America, where self-defence is usually respected better than in Europe, and he was defending himself and not somebody else. Goetz killed three, paralyzed one, got acquitted on the killings but convicted on the weapon charge, and was later successfully sued for $43 million by the surviving attacker, oops, I mean victim, who was paralyzed and brain-damaged (although I suspect Goetz could argue that the poor child was already brain-damaged by the time of the incident). That'll teach him to shoot better next time.
Of course, the RER attack was completely random and had nothing to do with the attackers' ethnicity or religion, and therefore you won't guess it. They could have just as well been Chinese, after all. Or Norwegians. Or Indians (of either variety). Or even Finns.
(Actually four of them were of the ethnicity you'd guess first if you are a bad person, and two were not.)
The Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin has encouraged citizens to display civic courage in the face of violence. If there is any believing the French people who write on usenet, actual civic courage displayed in the face of violence is usually rewarded in France much in the same way as in Finland. I can only imagine the headlines we'd see if somebody had really stood up and shot the bastards.
Hell, I still remember all the noise that ensued when Bernard Goetz shot 4 muggers on a New York subway train, and that's America, where self-defence is usually respected better than in Europe, and he was defending himself and not somebody else. Goetz killed three, paralyzed one, got acquitted on the killings but convicted on the weapon charge, and was later successfully sued for $43 million by the surviving attacker, oops, I mean victim, who was paralyzed and brain-damaged (although I suspect Goetz could argue that the poor child was already brain-damaged by the time of the incident). That'll teach him to shoot better next time.
Of course, the RER attack was completely random and had nothing to do with the attackers' ethnicity or religion, and therefore you won't guess it. They could have just as well been Chinese, after all. Or Norwegians. Or Indians (of either variety). Or even Finns.
(Actually four of them were of the ethnicity you'd guess first if you are a bad person, and two were not.)
A weekend of antisemitic violence
A bomb exploded in Tel Aviv Sunday, killing 1 and injuring 20. Al Aqsa we-make-Martyrs Brigades claimed that one. Arafat, as usual, blamed Israel (not in the sense that Israel provoked the bombing, but in the sense that Israel really did it).
A young woman was attacked on RER D (a Paris suburban train) on Friday morning. Six young men armed with knives first robbed her, then claimed that she was Jewish, which she incidentally wasn't, and proceeded to cut tufts of her hair, cut up her clothes, draw swastikas on her stomach with a magic marker and throw her baby out of the carriage (out of the baby carriage, luckily, not the train carriage).
Now all the country is outraged, politicians and various religious leaders are all competing in expressing their outrage, half of the police are looking for the thugs and the other half is patrolling RER D, apparently in case the thugs are still there.
A Jewish cynic in me says that the degree of outrage is so high precisely because the woman is not Jewish and suddenly a lot of goyim who felt they were safe from antisemitic violence realized that they really aren't, but the Jewish cynic might well be wrong, since an attack on a young mother with a baby by 6 armed thugs would generally attract more attention than, say, an attack on a teenage boy by 6 unarmed classmates.
Most of the public figures expressing their outrage are also condemning the other passengers for doing nothing. Much as I would like to encourage people to interfere with attacks on random people in public transportation - WTF do they expect the other passengers to do against 6 armed thugs? Read them a sermon on dire consequences of ethnic hatred in a multicultural society? Use harsh language? Kung fu? Pull out their own knives? Shoot? Pretty much the only thing one could do under the circumstances is shoot. The obvious obstacles to that is that in civilized societies (yes, this uncludes the USA) people rarely sit in the subway with a loaded gun, that you have to be a fairly good shot to incapacitate 6 people with the 8 or 9 bullets that you can fit into a normal gun, and you won't have time to reload, that you cannot predict what the other 5 will do after you'd shot the first one, and the possible things they can do include pulling out 5 guns, that you'll have to explain your behavior to police and the courts afterwards, and they might not like it, and that all this shooting in an enclosed space is likely to injure bystanders and somewhat damage everyone's ears.
A young woman was attacked on RER D (a Paris suburban train) on Friday morning. Six young men armed with knives first robbed her, then claimed that she was Jewish, which she incidentally wasn't, and proceeded to cut tufts of her hair, cut up her clothes, draw swastikas on her stomach with a magic marker and throw her baby out of the carriage (out of the baby carriage, luckily, not the train carriage).
Now all the country is outraged, politicians and various religious leaders are all competing in expressing their outrage, half of the police are looking for the thugs and the other half is patrolling RER D, apparently in case the thugs are still there.
A Jewish cynic in me says that the degree of outrage is so high precisely because the woman is not Jewish and suddenly a lot of goyim who felt they were safe from antisemitic violence realized that they really aren't, but the Jewish cynic might well be wrong, since an attack on a young mother with a baby by 6 armed thugs would generally attract more attention than, say, an attack on a teenage boy by 6 unarmed classmates.
Most of the public figures expressing their outrage are also condemning the other passengers for doing nothing. Much as I would like to encourage people to interfere with attacks on random people in public transportation - WTF do they expect the other passengers to do against 6 armed thugs? Read them a sermon on dire consequences of ethnic hatred in a multicultural society? Use harsh language? Kung fu? Pull out their own knives? Shoot? Pretty much the only thing one could do under the circumstances is shoot. The obvious obstacles to that is that in civilized societies (yes, this uncludes the USA) people rarely sit in the subway with a loaded gun, that you have to be a fairly good shot to incapacitate 6 people with the 8 or 9 bullets that you can fit into a normal gun, and you won't have time to reload, that you cannot predict what the other 5 will do after you'd shot the first one, and the possible things they can do include pulling out 5 guns, that you'll have to explain your behavior to police and the courts afterwards, and they might not like it, and that all this shooting in an enclosed space is likely to injure bystanders and somewhat damage everyone's ears.
Saturday, July 10, 2004
Beer, but no zoo
Went for a beer with the funny Russian guy yesterday, who turned out to be a funny Belarussian guy (not just from Belarus, but a real native speaker and all). I'd like to write more about our conversation, but I think I shouldn't for privacy reasons. One thing I'll say: aliens really do live among us. The fact that aliens are friendly to us and can reminisce with us on the subjects of Newbury Street and the sausage situation or lack thereof in Belarus in the early eighties makes it even more amazing.
It's raining today, so not going to the zoo with Lasu like we wanted to. Too bad. Somebody could fix the damn sky, it's been leaking for a while now.
Since was going to go to the zoo did not make a shooting appointment. Damn. OTOH maybe should take some time off doing anything useful, wholesome or social and just go and do absolutely nothing all by myself.
It's raining today, so not going to the zoo with Lasu like we wanted to. Too bad. Somebody could fix the damn sky, it's been leaking for a while now.
Since was going to go to the zoo did not make a shooting appointment. Damn. OTOH maybe should take some time off doing anything useful, wholesome or social and just go and do absolutely nothing all by myself.
Friday, July 09, 2004
US on alert
Tom Ridge is saying that Al Qaeda is planning major attacks on the USA before the November election in an effort to influence the outcome. He's not elevating the official terror threat level, though.
I wonder what does Al Qaeda want a Republican landslide for?
I wonder what does Al Qaeda want a Republican landslide for?
Movies, Killeri, DVD, work and funny Russian guy
Went to see Ladykillers yesterday with Killeri. It was good, and funny in the way I like, and a lot funnier than I expected.
Spent the rest of the evening with Killeri. Killeri is good to have around. Smart and sweet and innocent (probably pretending anyway), and very cute, too. Hmm, am I repeating myself here.
At night I learned how to burn a DVD, and burned the first one, and it actually works! Took me 4 tries, but better luck next time. Gonna get lots of movies soon.
I have my doubts about the morality of copying movies without paying any money to their makers, but I reckon that if it's not in any store where I can buy it in person and if I can't buy it on the net by sending my credit card number to a reputable webstore located in a civilized country, then the makers probably don't want my money.
There is more work at work, and it involves going to a customer's place sometime soon. Thing is, the customer is in the middle of nowhere. Oh joy... Wonder if I can get a ride from somebody there just by batting my eyelashes at them...
A Russian guy named Dmitry from one web forum sent me an email and asked me out for a beer. I rarely want to meet almost-lurkers but he was quite funny so I did. Let's see what kind of a person he is.
The weird thing (and, again, an etiquette question): I told him I'd have a beer with him if he promises not to smoke in my presense, and he was a bit taken aback in a "why do you assume that I smoke?" way. I didn't really assume it, although it's common among Russians, but how do you communicate your avoidance of smoking company politely to the new acquaintance wannabes?
Spent the rest of the evening with Killeri. Killeri is good to have around. Smart and sweet and innocent (probably pretending anyway), and very cute, too. Hmm, am I repeating myself here.
At night I learned how to burn a DVD, and burned the first one, and it actually works! Took me 4 tries, but better luck next time. Gonna get lots of movies soon.
I have my doubts about the morality of copying movies without paying any money to their makers, but I reckon that if it's not in any store where I can buy it in person and if I can't buy it on the net by sending my credit card number to a reputable webstore located in a civilized country, then the makers probably don't want my money.
There is more work at work, and it involves going to a customer's place sometime soon. Thing is, the customer is in the middle of nowhere. Oh joy... Wonder if I can get a ride from somebody there just by batting my eyelashes at them...
A Russian guy named Dmitry from one web forum sent me an email and asked me out for a beer. I rarely want to meet almost-lurkers but he was quite funny so I did. Let's see what kind of a person he is.
The weird thing (and, again, an etiquette question): I told him I'd have a beer with him if he promises not to smoke in my presense, and he was a bit taken aback in a "why do you assume that I smoke?" way. I didn't really assume it, although it's common among Russians, but how do you communicate your avoidance of smoking company politely to the new acquaintance wannabes?
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Party manners
I was raised with fairly strict rules with regard to to partying and other similar social interaction. I don't mean the kinds of rules that parents set for children while they are children, but the kind that are taught to children for later use in the adult world. You were supposed to assume that you are to come alone, unless told otherwise, and were not supposed to even ask; if the invitation was "avec", you were still supposed to ask about any specific companion you wanted to bring; there were no "open house" parties, etc.
When I grew up I figured out that first, these rules are not optimal for me, and second, the vast majority of the people I know follow a much looser set of rules. I have developed some new rules (or rather new ways) for myself, but I still wish for some explicit party etiquette rules, not necessarily because I want to adjust my own to them but because I would be nice to know what is considered normal, what is considered ok, what is definitely abnormal. Basically, etiquette is a matter on consensus and it's hard to have a consensus without a conversation, so I'd like some input on the following:
1. When there is a small group of people (2-3) who have decided to spend an evening together, as far as I am concerned it's a closed group and extra people can be brought in only after asking everyone's permission, and being the host of the party gives one no special privileges in this respect. No, this is not the moment to feel guilty for having brought some extra person to my place sometime. :) I am aware that not everybody follows the same rule, and rarely resent it, but I would feel quite uncomfortable asking a third person to join us without discussing it with the second person first. I am wondering how common is my way of doing this.
2. When there is somebody's party, and then some of the people, including the organizer of the party, move on to "jatkot" to somebody else's house, what are the rights and responsibilites of the original host vs. the new host? Or is this completely the new host's party at that point?
3. When somebody brings an extremely unacceptable person with them, what is the proper procedure for removing such person in general? How are the responsibilities of the host and the guest who brought the unappropriate person divided in the following cases: (a) if the guest knew that the person is unwelcome by host, (b) if the guest did not know that the person was unwelcome, (c) if the person was not unwelcome to begin with, but started behaving very badly during the party?
4. What is the proper procedure for letting people know who is unwelcome, especially in a context of a medium-to-large fairly open party? I remember once sending out an email that said "if I have forgotten somebody from this list by accident please bring them with you; X. was forgotten on purpose; anyone else can be assumed to have been forgotten by accident", but I don't think it was a correct thing to do. How do you let people know that a certain person is unwelcome?
(For all my curious friends here: if you don't know who is the one person who is very unwelcome to any of my parties it means that I believe that you are extremely unlikely to bring him there; if you are somebody who knows me through roleplaying or programming circles it's unlikely that you even know the obnoxious asshole.)
5. What is a proper procedure for letting people know that they should not bring anyone with them without clearing it with me first? I mean the situation when the party is generally avec but that particular person has previously exercised such a severe lack of judgement in choosing their avecs that I want them to pre-approve it with me.
(For all the paranoid friends here: there is one person like that and she knows who she is, so if you need to ask, then no, it's not you. Those of you who have been to the party in question: thanks for helping me to remove her avecs from my place.)
6. How do you let people know politely that they should not be sleeping over? This is quite relevant to me, especially during large and long parties - I need to communicate to people that they are welcome to party till the morning but I'd like them to go home afterwards as opposed to passing out in my bed and in random corners.
When I grew up I figured out that first, these rules are not optimal for me, and second, the vast majority of the people I know follow a much looser set of rules. I have developed some new rules (or rather new ways) for myself, but I still wish for some explicit party etiquette rules, not necessarily because I want to adjust my own to them but because I would be nice to know what is considered normal, what is considered ok, what is definitely abnormal. Basically, etiquette is a matter on consensus and it's hard to have a consensus without a conversation, so I'd like some input on the following:
1. When there is a small group of people (2-3) who have decided to spend an evening together, as far as I am concerned it's a closed group and extra people can be brought in only after asking everyone's permission, and being the host of the party gives one no special privileges in this respect. No, this is not the moment to feel guilty for having brought some extra person to my place sometime. :) I am aware that not everybody follows the same rule, and rarely resent it, but I would feel quite uncomfortable asking a third person to join us without discussing it with the second person first. I am wondering how common is my way of doing this.
2. When there is somebody's party, and then some of the people, including the organizer of the party, move on to "jatkot" to somebody else's house, what are the rights and responsibilites of the original host vs. the new host? Or is this completely the new host's party at that point?
3. When somebody brings an extremely unacceptable person with them, what is the proper procedure for removing such person in general? How are the responsibilities of the host and the guest who brought the unappropriate person divided in the following cases: (a) if the guest knew that the person is unwelcome by host, (b) if the guest did not know that the person was unwelcome, (c) if the person was not unwelcome to begin with, but started behaving very badly during the party?
4. What is the proper procedure for letting people know who is unwelcome, especially in a context of a medium-to-large fairly open party? I remember once sending out an email that said "if I have forgotten somebody from this list by accident please bring them with you; X. was forgotten on purpose; anyone else can be assumed to have been forgotten by accident", but I don't think it was a correct thing to do. How do you let people know that a certain person is unwelcome?
(For all my curious friends here: if you don't know who is the one person who is very unwelcome to any of my parties it means that I believe that you are extremely unlikely to bring him there; if you are somebody who knows me through roleplaying or programming circles it's unlikely that you even know the obnoxious asshole.)
5. What is a proper procedure for letting people know that they should not bring anyone with them without clearing it with me first? I mean the situation when the party is generally avec but that particular person has previously exercised such a severe lack of judgement in choosing their avecs that I want them to pre-approve it with me.
(For all the paranoid friends here: there is one person like that and she knows who she is, so if you need to ask, then no, it's not you. Those of you who have been to the party in question: thanks for helping me to remove her avecs from my place.)
6. How do you let people know politely that they should not be sleeping over? This is quite relevant to me, especially during large and long parties - I need to communicate to people that they are welcome to party till the morning but I'd like them to go home afterwards as opposed to passing out in my bed and in random corners.
Tired
Tired. Tired almost to death. Had a long, long day yesterday. Should've probably kicked people out an hour earlier, but did not get around to it for a variety of reasons. OTOH, don't know if it would've helped much, the day was tiring in many other ways, too.
Wanted to call in sick in the morning, but then found some sisu (this is some mythical collective Finnish quality that gives them the strength to work while hungover) and dragged myself over to work. Am not hungover, just tired.
What is it that makes people (myself included) feel that being hungover or being tired after doing something fun all night is an insufficiently moral reason to call in sick? Is it because these are self-induced? But so are many other things - is kissing somebody on the mouth when they obviously have a flu somehow less of a negligence than drinking too much the night before? Not to mention practicing dangerous sports... Or is it that tiredness or hangover are considered to be a lot milder than a flu? (This is almost always true for me, but some other people have milder flues and more severe hangovers.)
Wanted to call in sick in the morning, but then found some sisu (this is some mythical collective Finnish quality that gives them the strength to work while hungover) and dragged myself over to work. Am not hungover, just tired.
What is it that makes people (myself included) feel that being hungover or being tired after doing something fun all night is an insufficiently moral reason to call in sick? Is it because these are self-induced? But so are many other things - is kissing somebody on the mouth when they obviously have a flu somehow less of a negligence than drinking too much the night before? Not to mention practicing dangerous sports... Or is it that tiredness or hangover are considered to be a lot milder than a flu? (This is almost always true for me, but some other people have milder flues and more severe hangovers.)
Tuesday, July 06, 2004
The mind boggles
The Telegraph had an article about 14-year-old girls demanding fertility treatments. Imagine, the poor girls have been having unprotected sex since they were 12, and now they are 14 and still not pregnant. Can't you just feel their pain?
Stress, ice cream and ulkomaalaisvirasto
Must be stressed out somehow, although not sure why. Keep seeing nightmares.
Went to see Marja and Hannu yesterday and had some ice cream at their place. Hadn't seen them for a while. Somehow I tend to get am impression that I don't see the old Aspekti people often, but they all see each other all the time, but then when I see them and ask them about each other, it turns out that they don't see each other either. Should have a party or something, except that I am definitely not having any big parties at my place until they get the door fixed.
Marja and Hannu were nice to see, and would be nice to see again in the near future. I did not manage to teach Kauri to give people a finger although I threatened to.
Called ulkomaalaisvirasto this morning, and even got through. Wanted their opinion on whether or not an existing temporary residence permit prevents a person from receiving a permament one. They have 3-year temporaries nowadays, and I wanted to know what happens if a person becomes eligible for a permanent residence permit while there is still two years' worth left in his or her temporary - will they give a permanent or will they make the person wait until the temporary one expires? The law expresses no opinion on that matter, and neither does their webpage. The woman who answered me went to consult with their lawyer for a while and then told me that yes, they will give a person a permanent residence permit even if a temporary one is still valid for a couple of years. I wouldn't take their word for it without getting this answer in writing, though.
Went to see Marja and Hannu yesterday and had some ice cream at their place. Hadn't seen them for a while. Somehow I tend to get am impression that I don't see the old Aspekti people often, but they all see each other all the time, but then when I see them and ask them about each other, it turns out that they don't see each other either. Should have a party or something, except that I am definitely not having any big parties at my place until they get the door fixed.
Marja and Hannu were nice to see, and would be nice to see again in the near future. I did not manage to teach Kauri to give people a finger although I threatened to.
Called ulkomaalaisvirasto this morning, and even got through. Wanted their opinion on whether or not an existing temporary residence permit prevents a person from receiving a permament one. They have 3-year temporaries nowadays, and I wanted to know what happens if a person becomes eligible for a permanent residence permit while there is still two years' worth left in his or her temporary - will they give a permanent or will they make the person wait until the temporary one expires? The law expresses no opinion on that matter, and neither does their webpage. The woman who answered me went to consult with their lawyer for a while and then told me that yes, they will give a person a permanent residence permit even if a temporary one is still valid for a couple of years. I wouldn't take their word for it without getting this answer in writing, though.
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