Archive for the ‘Clippings’ Category

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The Flying Dutchman and the Sisters.

Tuesday, February 1st, 2011

Today is cold and wet and gloomy, and I’m pulling a long shift.

So here’s a little story that might brighten your day. Last year, a former employee of Ford passed away. He had no children and no wife, so he left his entire estate to the organization his sister belonged to: the School Sisters of Notre Dame. (The gentleman’s sister was a member of the order; she preceded him in death.)

The heartwarming part of the story is that his estate is estimated to be worth more than $1 million dollars, which will go a long way towards helping the work of the sisters.

But here’s the best part of the story: that estate included an original T206 series Honus Wagner baseball card, which was recently sold for $220,000. (If that seems low for a T206 card, you’re probably right; this one was not in mint condition.)

Here’s a nice bit of detail from the NYT story:

Long before the card was sold, sports were popular at Villa Assumpta, which houses about 75 retired and ill nuns. In the common room, baseball and football games are often shown on the big-screen television. The local teams are the favorites, with some nuns sporting team colors on game days.

Sister Mary Agatho Ford, who died at 100 in 2003, had received a signed photo and baseball from Cal Ripken for her 98th birthday. They are displayed in a glass case next to other cherished items, including chalices that deceased sisters held dear.

My opinion of baseball is well known, but God bless you, Sister Mary. And God bless Cal Ripken, the School Sisters of Notre Dame, and the gentleman in question (who is not named in the NYT article).

Posted in Clippings, Sports | Comments Closed

If you are confused, check with the sun.

Monday, January 31st, 2011

I’ve kind of wanted to pick up the DVD sets of “Get A Life”. I have fond memories of that series, especially the “Neptune 2000” episode, and I’d like to see if it holds up. (I appear to be one of a very few people who have those fond memories. Lawrence, for example, rolls his eyes in irritation every time I bring it up.)

But cheese louise! $81.59?! $124.99?! For DVD sets of four freaking episodes? This is the kind of thing that drives people to piracy. (Not that I condone piracy, but…)

Actually, that was mostly a transparent excuse to link to this NYT article, which brings us the happy news that Chris Elliot is…working! Also, apparently, the NYT has decided that “filthy whore” is acceptable usage in the Grey Lady. That is, as long as you’re discussing a fishing boat, or a Chris Elliott movie.

Posted in Clippings, TV | Comments Closed

Confucius say, “We’ve lost our lease! Everything must go!”

Monday, January 31st, 2011

The Forbidden Gardens in Katy are closing.

Yes, I know. “The what?”

…neither did throngs of tourists, in large part because Forbidden Gardens didn’t employ theme parks’ usual noisy methods of attracting them. There were no billboards, no radio ads, no coupons. The place was as reticent as its owner.

Lisa Gray in the HouChron has a pretty good piece that covers the closing, the history of the Forbidden Gardens, and what little she could find out about Ira Poon, the shadowy millionaire who’s supposedly behind the attraction.

Based on the Chron’s story, I wouldn’t be shocked if they start digging for the Grand Parkway expansion and find a gargantuan underground lair beneath the Forbidden Gardens, complete with death ray and shark tank.

Posted in Clippings, Museums | 2 Comments »

Important safety tip. (#3 in a series)

Monday, January 31st, 2011

This has been said many times, in many places, but I think it bears repeating for reasons that I’ll illustrate shortly:

GPS systems are a guide and a tool. They are not absolutely perfect. They are human designed systems that can fail.

Also, no matter how insistent that voice is, and no matter how often it says “Recalculating”, your GPS system is not the boss of you. You are the person in control of the vehicle; you have the option to ignore it, mute it, or even throw it out the window. (I even know one person who took a perverse enjoyment in tormenting their car’s GPS system by driving in circles.)

Several things bring this to mind. Some folks who were attending Saturday’s SDC found that their GPS systems were showing a location for Korean Grill that was quite a bit off from the actual location. (By the way, Korean Grill is a pretty darn spiffy place; I recommend giving it a shot.) On Sunday, we had a similar experience trying to find the Gruene Door; somehow, we ended up in a residential area several hundred feet behind the Gruene Door, and more or less stumbled on the restaurant through pure luck. (Also: the Gruene Door was fantastic. I’d like to go back sometime soon.)

And then there’s this story from the Sacramento Bee:

“It’s what I’m beginning to call death by GPS,” said Death Valley wilderness coordinator Charlie Callagan. “People are renting vehicles with GPS and they have no idea how it works and they are willing to trust the GPS to lead them into the middle of nowhere.”

And then they get stuck in the middle of nowhere in 120 degree heat where there’s no cell phone service and wind up drinking their own urine to survive. Or just simply vanish until someone stumbles across their remains in the desert.

It does seem like there may be a little more to this than just GPS failures. (Why aren’t closed roads better marked? Perhaps with a big sign: “ROAD CLOSED. IF YOU GO PAST THIS POINT YOU WILL DIE.“) But the main problem still seems to be blind trust in a technology that can fail.

(Unfortunately, I can’t find a YouTube clip of the Hill Street Blues episode where Joyce Davenport lectures one of her clients on desert survival techniques. Too bad, because she’s actually got some pretty sound advice to offer.)

Posted in Clippings, Food, GPS, Safety, SDC | 3 Comments »

Obit watch: “Who Cares If You Listen?”

Sunday, January 30th, 2011

Milton Babbitt, composer.

Mr. Babbitt, who had a lively sense of humor despite the reputation for severity that his music fostered, sometimes referred to himself as a maximalist to stress the musical and philosophical distance between his style and the simpler, more direct style of younger contemporaries like Philip Glass, Steve Reich and other Minimalist composers. It was an apt description.

And:

…although colleagues who worked in atonal music objected when their music was described as cerebral or academic, Mr. Babbitt embraced both terms and came to be regarded as the standard-bearer of the ultrarational extreme in American composition.

That reputation was based in part on an article published by High Fidelity magazine in February 1958 under the title “Who Cares if You Listen?” The headline was often cited as evidence of contemporary composers’ disregard for the public’s sensibilities, and Mr. Babbitt objected that it had been added by an editor, without his permission. But whatever his objections, the article did argue that contemporary composition was a business for specialists, on both the composing and listening end of the transaction, and that the general public’s objections were irrelevant.

Posted in Art, Clippings, Music, Obits | Comments Closed

All the old paintings on the tombs, they do the sand dance, don’t you know…

Friday, January 28th, 2011

Who says school is useless?

One of the things I picked up last semester in my Modern Revolutions class (this specifically comes from James DeFronzo’s Revolutions and Revolutionary Movements) is that there are five critical factors required for a revolution to be successful.

  1. Frustration among the masses, resulting in unrest and uprisings in the cities or in rural areas. It sure seems to me like we’ve got that in Egypt.
  2. The presence of “elite” political movements in opposition to the ruling powers. By “elite” DeFronzo means that these movements have access to wealth, power, specialized skill sets, or higher levels of education than the average population. This is something I’m not so clear on; are there “elite” political movements in Egypt? If the coverage I’m seeing in places like the CSM is any guide (hattip: Battleswarm), the Egyptian government has been rigging elections; I can see that leading to pent up political opposition which finally has a chance to vent, but I’m not sure that meets DeFronzo’s criteria.
  3. Motivations that serve to unify major classes and that cut across class distinctions. Again, looking at the coverage in the CSM and other places, we’ve got that:

    Political analyst Mustapha Kamel Al Sayyid says the fact that the protests took place across the nation, and were not led by a particular political movement or opposition party, set them apart from demonstrations in the last decade.
    “This time it is really a national movement. It’s quite remarkable that the slogans raised by the demonstrators were not typical of any political party. They were general slogans about democracy, ending the state of emergency, and lowering prices…. The government will not respond favorably so I think the continuation of the protests is almost certain.”

  4. Some sort of severe political situation that paralyzes the administrative authority of the state. Such a crisis allows the revolutionary movement to flourish, free of government repression. At this point, I’m not sure we have that; is the army going to continue to avoid confrontation? Or is cutting off the Internet and cellphones a prelude to Mubarak mobilizing forces and machine-gunning people in the streets? If he gives that order, will the army obey?
  5. The rest of the world has to, if not actively support the revolution, at least not interfere with it. DeFronzo calls this “a permissive or tolerant world context”. At this point, I don’t see the U.S., or the rest of the world, actively trying to interfere in an Egyptian revolution.

I’d welcome thoughts and responses in the comments below.

Edited to add: I think this post from Megan McArdle (obligatory: my favorite CNE) has some bearing here, too. Especially this part:

This insistence on staying in power comes against the backdrop of widespread unemployment, corruption, high levels of poverty, high levels of illiteracy, and failure to provide the basic services–from decent transportation, to clean streets, to workable traffic, to basic education.

Edited to add 2: One thing that I should have mentioned, but forgot to, is that I’m not 100% sure DeFronzo’s criteria are sufficient for a successful revolution. In particular, I think DeFronzo and other revolutionary theorists underplay the role of a charismatic leader in the success of a revolution: Mao, Ho Chi Minh, Khomeini…

Edited to add 3: The Scalz doesn’t have much to say, but many of his commenters in this thread do.

Posted in Clippings, Politics, School | 1 Comment »

Things I have learned in the past 24 hours.

Thursday, January 27th, 2011

Something called Vladimir Putin Action Comics exists, and is funny.  (I am particularly amused by this one.)

(Found by way of “Hipster Hitler“, which in turn I found by way of Borepatch.)

Ford produced “Bullitt” commemorative special edition Mustangs in 2001, and again in 2008/2009.

There is an “International Mustang Bullitt Owners Club“.

(The latter two facts were fallout from reading this WSJ article.)

Posted in Cars, Clippings, Movies | Comments Closed

Bad boys, bad boys…

Thursday, January 27th, 2011

…what you gonna do, what you gonna do when your city government runs out of money because corrupt city officials have been pillaging the treasury, and the city decides to disband the police department and outsource to the L.A. County Sherrif’s Department?

(Okay, so I need to work on the scansion a bit.)

Edited to add this bulletin from Captain Obvious:

Members of Bell’s police union said the proposal to disband the police force to help stave off bankruptcy is “a slap in the face” to officers.

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Cops, Law | Comments Closed

Things you may have wondered about. (#2 in a series)

Thursday, January 27th, 2011

What ever happened to Jacqueline Kennedy’s pink suit and matching pillbox hat?

The pink suit, blood-stained and perfectly preserved in a vault in Maryland, is banned from public display for 100 years.

And the hat? Sadly, it did not wind up on top of a cantaloupe honeydew melon in an episode of Penn and Teller’s “Bullshit”. Indeed, nobody knows for sure where the hat is…

The pillbox hat — removed at Parkland Hospital while Mrs. Kennedy waited for doctors to confirm what she already knew — is lost, last known to be in the hands of her personal secretary, who won’t discuss its whereabouts.

(Previously.)

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Wondering | Comments Closed

Important safety tip. (#2 in a series)

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

A gun is a gun. It is designed to shoot things.

A gun is not an all purpose tool. A gun is not a club. A gun is not a prybar. A gun is not a bottle opener (the Galil aside). A gun is not a tool for breaking out windows.

Bad things can happen when you use your gun for things other than shooting. For example, if you use your gun to club someone (no matter how deserving) you may mar the finish. Blood does awful things to a gun’s finish, especially the beautiful bluing on older Smith and Wesson revolvers.

Hitting things with your gun can also bend parts. Then your gun won’t go off when you need for it to go off. As the great Peter Hathaway Capstick once said, “The most terrifying sound in nature is not the roar of a charging lion, nor the whistle of a descending bomb; rather it is a click when you expect a bang.”

But the worst thing that can happen is that your gun might go off when you don’t want to go off. (I’d almost be willing to argue with Capstick that the sound of a “bang” when you expect a “click” is even more terrifying. However, I haven’t spent much of my life hunting lion and elephant in Africa, more’s the pity.) For example, when you’re breaking out a car window.

An Humble police officer had apprehended two fleeing car burglary suspects in a stolen truck. One of the suspects, whose identity has not been released, was accidentally shot to death by the police officer, who used his duty weapon to break the passenger window of the stolen truck, Humble police said.

Bad move, space cadet. (Edited to add: Just to make it clear for my readers outside Texas, “Humble” in this case is a city near-ish to Houston, not a description of the police officer.)

But two police tactical experts said the action taken by the Humble police officer is not common practice and is not taught in police academies.

“I’d hate to be in his pants right now,” said retired Houston police Sgt. Frank C. Miller, who taught tactical procedures to Houston Police Department narcotics officers for more than 20 years.

“From a tactical standpoint, it was very risky. Good arrest, shaky tactic — but, you know, they pulled it off. But the (suspect) died, unfortunately. Those things happen. (The suspect) was the bad guy — I don’t feel sorry for him.”

Posted in Clippings, Cops, Guns, Law, Safety, Stupid | 3 Comments »

Dinner with Dick.

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

Or “Nixon In China: The Dinner”:

Nearly 40 years later, Mr. Tong will serve the menu again to about 60 invited guests on Jan. 31, after the Metropolitan Opera’s dress rehearsal for its staging of John Adams’s “Nixon in China.” The Zhou dinner figures prominently in the 1987 opera, by John Adams, which makes its Met debut next week.

I’d always thought that Nixon had rather crappy taste in food; his cottage cheese with catsup is notorious. However, at least according to this web site (which provides sources) the catsup thing is a base canard, and the Nixon family was quite fond of seafood. That puts the shrimp dishes in a new light.

Anyone seeking the full Nixon experience will naturally want to down a shot of maotai, which the restaurant will be pouring for $25 for a tiny cup.

I tried searching for maotai online, but couldn’t find any sources. However, I did turn up this Washingtonian article that goes into more detail about the banquet.

At their table, Chou En-lai said proudly to Nixon that mao-tai, with its alcohol level of more than 50 percent, had been famous since the San Francisco World’s Fair of 1915. Chou took a match to his cup, saying, “Mr. Nixon, please take a look. It can indeed catch fire.”

Posted in Clippings, Food, Mixology, Music, Nixon | 1 Comment »

We are amused.

Monday, January 24th, 2011

By this story in the LAT about the arrest of rapper “40 Glocc” (sp?).

Specifically, we are amused by:

  • the name “40 Glocc” (which, Lawrence points out, is both distinctive and not subject to trademark infringement suits).
  • Mr. “Glocc”‘s arrest (his real name appears to be Lawrence White) on weapons charges.
  • the fact that he was arrested carrying a 9mm handgun and not a .40 S&W. The LAT does not specify if it was, at least, a Glock.

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Guns, Law, Stupid | Comments Closed

Random notes: January 24, 2011.

Monday, January 24th, 2011

Things are still kind of up in the air, but improving slowly. In the meantime, have a handful of random crap:

Your Jack LaLanne obit from the NYT. And from the LAT.

Just for Lawrence, a review of the New World Center, designed by Frank Gehry.

Happy belated birthday, John Moses Browning.

The Pack is back, baby! (Mostly, I’m linking this for the font: may not be valid after 1/24. Did they drag the “Japs Attack Pearl Harbor!” font out of the Linotype case?)

Should General Vang Pao be buried in Arlington?

Posted in Art, Clippings, Gehry, Guns, History, NFL, Obits, Sports | 1 Comment »

A sad end to a sad story.

Thursday, January 20th, 2011

Remember the case of the clerk who shot the beer thief? The one who got eight years probation for his murder and evidence tampering conviction?

Yeah. Well, there’s a follow-up to that story. You see, it turns out that the jury couldn’t do that.

The Texas Legislature took away from juries the ability to sentence murder defendants to probation in 2007. Juan Romero , 24, fatally shot 22-year-old Jorge Vielma at a South Austin Shell station in 2009.

So the judge tossed the verdict, and everybody involved made a deal. Romero pled out to manslaughter instead of murder, and got the same eight year probated sentence.

I would have preferred to see a retrial, and a fight at the appellate level if Romero was convicted again. But I can’t blame Romero and his lawyers for taking the deal.

Posted in Clippings, Guns, Law | Comments Closed

Lasers, eight o’clock, day 1!

Wednesday, January 19th, 2011

Last year, Los Angeles International Airport recorded the highest number of incidents in the country involving laser beams that were pointed at aircraft, a potentially dangerous activity that can distract or temporarily blind pilots, the Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday.

(Sorry.)

Posted in Clippings, Lasers, Planes | Comments Closed

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