Assorted links, vol. 67

--Al-Qaeda has released a new video tape supporting the Arab Spring.
*--Pediatricians called out Michele Bachmann for her statements on the HPV vaccine.
*--Looks like I'm not the only one living at home.
*--Mormon women's sex lives improved when they read romance novels, and Mormon missionaries were asked to stop proselytizing on buses.
--The PCUSA may divest themselves of Caterpillar, Motorola, and HP due to their various business practices with respect to the Israel/Palestine conflict.
--America (the magazine) compares the GOP to a cult.
--It would be wonderful to see ecumenical progress on the Catholic-Orthodox front.
--Oklahoma's ban on sharia law had its hearing in the Tenth Circuit Court.
--North Carolina is being sued by the ACLU for allowing pro-life license plates while denying pro-choice ones.

Assorted links, vol. 66 (video game edition)

--Even though it's not coming out soon, at least Persona 5 is eventually coming out.  Now if only I we knew more about Kingdom Hearts 3....  And on which system(s) will these be?
--Check out the evolution of video game graphics from 1991-2011.
--One person's thoughts on the 10 hardest Mario levels ever (though, to be fair, this was pre-Galaxy 2, which had some insane ones -- Grandmaster Galaxy, anyone?).
*--Have you heard of cosplay?  Some of the costumes are so insane -- check out Cloud, Sephiroth, Zelda, Rikku, Prince of Persia, Midna, Jessie (from Team Rocket), Sora, and a Persona 4 group.
*--NPR talks video game music.
*--And a paopu fruit drink, keychain, and crocheted pillow.

Assorted links, vol. 65

--This infographic explains why we should be subsidizing solar rather than fossil fuels.
*--How do military operations get their code names?
--With so much shouting about Rowan not standing up to the "liberal" churches (or the "conservative" churches, depending on whom you ask), here's a nice outside perspective on his tenure as Archbishop of Canterbury.
--Shane Claiborne and Ben Cohen (of Ben and Jerry's) teamed up to protest militarism.
*--Religion at Burning Man.
--Iran inaugurated its nuclear program.
*--Can the disparate Palestinian groups unify, regardless of the outcome at the U.N.?

Assorted links, vol. 64 (fun edition)

--A breakdown of where people say "pop" vs. "soda" vs. "Coke".
*--The Kama Sutra is (perhaps unsurprisingly) the U.S.'s most downloaded book on Project Gutenberg.
--I remember reading some of these hard Encyclopedia Brown mysteries.
--What movies predict the future will be like.
--Championship breakdancing.
*--I want a glow-in-the-dark, AIDS-resistant cat...
*--...and also a palladium credit card.

9/11 thoughts

I have been planning not to post about 9/11, since it seems to me that all media has been single-mindedly focusing on it for awhile now.  But then I started to think of a few things, so lo and behold, a post, with three sections: articles (neither the one-sided political point-scoring ones nor the "where were you on 9/11/01" ones), thoughts on "remembrance", and songs.

Articles: Though I have already previously posted some and I'm sure you have found some of your own, here are a couple more.  This is perhaps the most incisive editorial about 9/11 I have yet read.  This tells of the F-16 pilot ready to kamikaze her jet into flight 93.  This tells of the astronaut who witnessed 9/11 from outer space.  And this encyclopedia has most everything.

Remembrance: Though the word "remember" is nearly always contrasted with the word "forget", it can just as readily be contrasted with the word "dismember".  To remember is to reconnect that which has been severed, to repair that which has been broken.  The more Catholic-minded might consider Jesus' call to continue the Eucharist "in remembrance of me," effectively reconstituting his broken body in his Body, the unified Church (see further thoughts in this vein here and here).  So in the midst of all the remembering (i.e., recollecting) 9/11, we ought to put at least as much effort in to remembering (i.e., restoring) what has been dismembered: faith in common humanity, peace, justice, trust in God's omnipotence, and love, to name only a few.

Music: A few pieces that might be worth a listen to commemorate the day.  First, Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings", one of the most tragic pieces I have in my music collection.  Second, John Tavener's haunting "Song for Athene", which was most famously performed at Princess Diana's funeral.  Third, the hymn "Saint Patrick's Breastplate", binding virtues to oneself.  And finally, John Adams' Pulitzer Prize-winning "On the Transmigration of Souls", written specifically to commemorate 9/11/01.  Each of these pieces feel appropriate to me.

Assorted links, vol. 63

*--Who might be the next dictatorial coconut to fall?
--SlutWalk invades Morocco.
*--This awesome website keeps you up-to-date on movements going on throughout the world.
*--I've been reading several exciting things about the potential for an American Autumn.  The one that I am most interested in seeing is Occupy Wall Street, scheduled for 9/17 (more here and here).  Anonymous will be there.
--If Rowan Williams were to return to academia, here's how his replacement would be selected.
--People in Iran need our voices to achieve equal access to education.  (Also, is Dwight Schrute narrating this?)
--Bishop Walter Righter, tried for heresy in The Episcopal Church, just died.

Hacktivism

I am getting more interesting in the idea of hacktivism and the controversies surrounding it.  Before you ask, no, I haven't done any hacking or illegal computing of any kind.  As you may know from news reports, the two big-name groups are Anonymous and (the now-disbanded) LulzSec, who have done some work together under Operation AntiSec.  It seems to me that the attacks they carry out are not legal (see here, here, and, most fully, here), though I am often sympathetic to their rationales.  Using a variety of attacks, they have hit Sony (protesting the arrest of someone who had hacked them), MasterCard and PayPal (protesting their severing ties with WikiLeaks), and Arizona (protesting SB1070), among many others.  Their DDoS attacks use Low-Orbit Ion Cannon to attack other sites.  They have worried about being caught, and the eventual arrest of an alleged member after LulzSec called it quits led rapper Moses to pen this song.  And joining is easy.  But be warned: others will want to take you down of you get too involved.

Assorted links, vol. 62

*--Might Rowan Williams be stepping down as the Archbishop of Canterbury in the near-ish future?
--This website parodies fundamentalist Christianity, but some of their lampooning is so good that it took a Google search for me to determine whether the views are real.  Until I read a handful of articles, I thought it was serious, and even afterwards I still wasn't positive.  Thankfully, the Atlantic and the NY Times came to the rescue.
--An essay about teaching Islam in post-9/11 America.
*--A serious breach of security in Egypt: the military government allowed protestors to invade the Israeli embassy.  Mark my words, this is the beginning of a very bad spiral.
--I found a young-earth creationist institute that has an associated school with (non-accredited) bachelor's and master's degrees....
*--And here's a round-up of everything useful online about the proposed Anglican Covenant: a book (which I want to buy), Anglican Communion guide, Living Church guide, No Anglican Covenant guide, Church Times guide, and Executive Council guide.

Assorted links, vol. 61

*--(Alleged) temple prostitution, right here in Phoenix.
--Are you a hipster Christian?
--You can buy a Pope Benedict XVI teddy bear for a mere $325.  Which I suppose is fine; Benedict does have a bear on his coat of arms, after all.
*--The anti-immigrant governor of New Mexico admits that her grandparents were undocumented.
--Some awesome nuns in Washington grabbed hoses to help fight a wildfire.
--An editorial on the intersection of patriotism and Christianity.
--Jan Brewer is dumb, again.  This time, she is trying to take away benefits from domestic partners of same-sex employees, pretending that this will rescue the state from its budget crisis.  But two courts in a row have now slapped this idiocy down.
--More on the "credible but unconfirmed" threat for the 10th anniversary of 9/11.
*--Rowan Williams reflects on 9/11 (don't forget, he was essentially right next door to the Twin Towers when they came down [cf. "Writing in the Dust"]).

100th post :-)

Wow, this is my 100th blog post.  When I first started blogging, I don't honestly think that I would have expected to make it this far, especially this fast.  But I'm glad I have; it has been fun to write.  What article(s) that have been posted have been your favorite?  Are there topics that you want to see more postings about?  Thanks for reading!

Assorted links, vol. 60 (Miller-McCune edition)

*--Breastfeeding mothers may be more aggressive than non-mothers or those mothers who do not breastfeed.
--Women's "gaydar" effectiveness may depend on where their are in their menstrual cycle.
--This idea of "predictive policing" reminds me of "Minority Report".
--Babies prefer Picasso to Monet.
*--Demining sounds like amazing and heroic work.
*--What is the extent of cigarette companies' free speech rights?
--An article on the importance of documenting endangered languages.
--Could we be seeing eco-driving in the near future?

Assorted links, vol. 59

*--A very eye-opening article about the FBI's use of sting operations against Muslims who they fear might some day become terrorists.
--A nerdy but moderately funny web comic.
--The U.S. is apparently facing a "credible but unconfirmed" terror threat for the tenth anniversary of 9/11.
*--New polling data about beliefs in global warming by political affiliation.
--Here's how liberals, neocons, and libertarians are reflecting on the anniversary of 9/11, all in one place.
*--And a 3-dimensional printer, which is pretty awesome.

Assorted links, vol. 58

--A man accused a woman of stalking him after she called him 65,000 times in one year.
*--Fascinating article arguing that "in red America, families form adults; in blue America, adults form families".
*--GOP debate mini-roundup:  Fox News thinks either Perry or Romney won (apparently); MSNBC thinks it was Paul or, if you discount that verdict citing his techno-savvy fan base, Romney.  Huntsman wants the GOP to stop being anti-science, and Perry likened his (non-)scientific views to those of Galileo.  Perry also received applause for executing more than 200 people (including one who was likely innocent).
*--Virginia's political maneuvering about the health care law hit the wall today, as the federal court of appeals declared that the state can't pass a law that contradicts a federal mandate and then use that contradiction to sue.  Duh: any U.S. history student who studied McCulloch v. Maryland could tell you that federal laws trump state laws.  Here are the Washington Post's and Fox News's takes on the ruling.
--A new Australopithecus fossil may tell us more about human evolution.
--Google bought Zagat.

Assorted links, vol. 57

--Those Republican candidates know better than to buy into the ideas that humans might be causing global warming, or that such a thing even exists at all.  Rick Perry especially, whose native Texas is facing a terrible wildfire after a drought, ought to know better.
*--Listen to this whole story about the San Francisco Giants' biggest fan, Billy.
*--Also, listen to this story about the newest way to harvest marijuana: naked, on horseback.
*--A good introduction to recent successes and challenges in Turkey.
--The Long War Journal is the place to read everything about the struggles in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia, etc. that you won't read anywhere else.
--The recession is hitting anti-gay groups, too.
--The campaign for Palestinian statehood began today.
--And a drunk moose in Sweden got stuck in a tree.  Yes, you read that right.

Assorted links, vol. 56

--What can the Postal Service do to prevent a default?
--Here's a good summary (with links) of the ties between Chick-Fil-A and anti-gay groups.
*--Interesting new polling data about the attitudes of Americans toward Muslims.
--Can the Afghani army prove itself to be just as Islamic as the Taliban claims to be?
--How will Rick Perry do in GOP primary debates?
*--What do you know about the "shadow war" of drone attacks?
*--Mars Hill pastor Mark Driscoll thinks Protestants are too wimpy and that pastors need to be tougher.  You know, like go-ahead-and-punch-me-in-the-face tough.
--A nice, quick poem from Slate.

Assorted links, vol. 55

--An article about Jon Huntsman's work with and knowledge of China.
--Seven and a half years ago, the fastest super computer could perform 35.9 trillion operations per second.  Today, the fastest supercomputer can perform 8162 trillion (that's 8.162 quadrillion) operations per second.  This interesting Wikipedia article gives some idea of how these staggering numbers are calculated.
--Another book to add to the ever-growing list of defenses of hell against the likes of Rob Bell.
*--A new novel frames some of the questions about Islam in the minds of Americans since 9/11.  Sounds like it's definitely worth a look.
--Relevant Magazine talks abstinence, and also Owl City.
*--Really good article on a display of 2nd/3rd century Buddhist art that is now on display in New York.
*--A Roman Catholic priest doubles as an official at the U.S. Open.

Assorted links, vol. 54

*--A new website allows Arabs, Muslims, and Sikhs to tell the stories of discrimination that they have faced since 9/11.
*--Today was the next in a long line of big court days in the Prop 8 case.  Here are takes on the day from The Advocate, Towleroad, and the LA Times.  A live blog of the hearing is here.
--The beginning of what ought to be an interesting week-long series of posts about marriage.
--Can the supercommittee work without the taint of lobbying special interests?
--Some of the challenges facing Afghanistan as the U.S. looks toward a military drawdown.
--Looks like some benefits may be returning to the domestic partners of gay and lesbian Arizona state employees.
*--Have you heard of Burning Man?  Here is one RD writer's take on it, here is a picture of the event taken from space, and here are copious photos of the event itself throughout the years (which contain some nudity -- fair warning).
--Is fashion going 3-D?

Assorted links, vol. 53

--The Maricopa County Republican party isn't happy that one of their own is about to go down in an ethics trial.  (Must be that left-wing Bar Association's fault -- right, because Thomas surely didn't play any part in any wrongdoing....)
--If only this parody about Jesus taking the GOP to task for misrepresentation were true.
--Tea Party darling and debt-bashing congressman Joe Walsh knows a little something about the horrors of big debts... mostly because he owes $117,000 in unpaid child support.
*--Check out al Jazeera's take on GOP dominionism.
*--Would Rick Perry be happier living with the Confederate Constitution than with the American one?
--Some last ditch meetings are underway to try to circumvent Palestine's bid for statehood at the U.N.
*--Great take on the intersection of social justice and evangelism.
--Nothing says heavy metal like... quilting?

Assorted links, vol. 52

*--What's the best way for Prop 8 to go down?  (Don't forget that today was the big day to argue about whether Prop 8's official proponents have standing to appeal.)
--How is Mitt Romney coming out of the South Carolina GOP Q&A looking like the most normal one?  Now granted, I didn't watch this, but it sounds like Michele Bachmann didn't do so well there.
*--I am totally ready to watch this documentary about the Maine campaign to repeal LGBT marriage equality.
*--With advance apologies for the poor copy, as we approach 9/11, everyone should read this article from Harper's Magazine about the limits of remembrance.
--A Georgia church got an $80,000 winning lottery ticket in its collection plate.  (And I love the security director's assertion that it must have come from someone outside the church, because no one in the church gambles.)
--An encouraging report of some good interfaith work in Syracuse.

Assorted links, vol. 51

*--US Catholic bishops are not at all happy with Health and Human Services' recent decision (which I noted earlier) to require insurance companies to provide contraception.
--A nice NY Times op-ed honoring teachers.
*--Thought-provoking article about the costs and benefits of enhancing security at federal buildings.
--Interesting essay about the the potential for spiritual renewal in the "New Normal".  I also am now interested to read the Richard Rohr book he mentioned.
--Cool article about the broad, but diminishing, diversity of fencing.
*--A good overview of the Andrew Thomas hearing from the local PBS affiliate.

Assorted links, vol. 50

[50th assorted links -- thanks for reading!]

*--South Korea was cyberattacked by North Korea (presumably).
--Mark Harris wonders if it is time to call a Special General Convention.  Thoughts?
--A short and sweet rumination on contemplative prayer.  Love his quote about what "thinking" is not.
--Does the GOP still care about social issues?
--What are the secrets to writing faster?
--Turkey and Israel still haven't gotten anywhere in their spat.
*--The Washington Post believes that the CIA has largely morphed into a killing machine.
*--Awesome explanation about the legality of fighting in a foreign war.

Assorted links, vol. 49

--Meet the man whose job it is to take down al-Qaeda.
*--Is a Cal State professor the leader of the infamous motorcycle gang Devils Diciples?
--Were Anonymous' DDoS attacks against PayPal and Mastercard out of bounds?
*--A vote on Palestinian statehood is expected at the U.N. general assembly later this month.  Israel is preparing to deal with the outcome, the EU seems tight-lipped about it, and U.S. opinion is divided (as you might stereotypically expect): liberals are more supportive of the proposal, while conservatives generally are against it.
--More on Marcus Borg and "speaking Christian".
*--Check out this crazy chart about our economic status, as well as the others below it on the same page.
--Thoughts about the entire Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), blogged.  Awesome.

Assorted links, vol. 48

*--Two interesting and worthwhile blogs to check out: the more conservative blog of Dave Wiegel and the more liberal blog of Ta-Nehisi Coates.
--It's like "The Year of Living Biblically" (another book in the long yet-to-read queue), but for women.
*--I finally made it through Rowan Williams' response (#58, here) to "A Common Word," which I posted the other day, and it is fabulous.  It is 17 pages long, but well worth it.  If nothing else, do yourself a favor and read the section spanning pages 12-14, which is basically a masterpiece.
--Some true thoughts on youth ministry.
--And finally, here is perhaps the most diverse blog about all the music and videos that you didn't even know you didn't know about.

Assorted links, vol. 47

--Here's another reminder that Islamophobia isn't confined to the United States.
*--Fascinating article about the nature of time.
--Cute pictures of heart-shaped graphs, known as cardioids.
--The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has generously given $25,000 to the National Cathedral to help offset some of the repair costs.  Here are the two (similar) reports from ENS and NCR.
--Looking at al-Qaeda's legacy, 10 years after 9/11.
*--Speaking about Italy, of which he is prime minister, Berlusconi said to an alleged extortionist, "I'm leaving this shitty country of which I'm sickened."  But I guess that by now, people's expectations are pretty low, so maybe this isn't that surprising after all.
--Maricopa County paid out a $100,000 settlement to a judge for harassment by Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former County Attorney Andrew Thomas.
*--And I found a Mormon apologetics website, which for all its articles, doesn't seem rebut, or even address (so far as I can see) this infamous letter....

Assorted links, vol. 46

[All good links this time, even though I can't star them all.  Check 'em all out.  :-)]

 --Graphene -- the new chemical structure that is the way of the future.
*--Here's the data that demonstrates why same-sex marriage is inevitable, as well as a breakdown of the data by religious affiliation.
--To help combat the obfuscation of good science, here are some sites that clearly lay out the facts about evolution and global warming.
*--Check out the Center for Affirming Theology -- good stuff!
*--I love that they referred to "The Challenge of Peace" in this article contrasting the costs of Iraq and Afghanistan against things like food stamps and Amtrak.
--Pacifism is good...
--...and "typing in tongues" is just weird (see also: #typingintongues).

Assorted links, vol. 45

*--What was Sarah Palin like behind the scenes?
--Who wants to read this book about fonts with me?
*--Wow, just wow.  The Pima County GOP is raffling off a Glock handgun as a fundraiser.  Yes, like the gun that was used to shoot Pima County congresswoman Gabby Giffords.  Wow.
--Two great ideas for social websites: SCVNGR (which I've used for awhile and enjoyed) and Hey, Neighbor! (which i just learned about, but seems really cool).  But both need more people to join them before they can really take off.  What do you think of them?
--The future of bananas appears to be somewhat uncertain.
*--Goodwin Liu was confirmed today as the California Supreme Court's newest justice.  Why does this matter?  Here are two reasons.
--And if only I weren't stuck in this postponed generation....