Braving the Elements

Ingersoll

If the account given in Genesis is really true, ought we not, after all, to thank this serpent? He was the first schoolmaster, the first advocate of learning, the first enemy of ignorance, the first to whisper in human ears the sacred word liberty, the creator of ambition, the author of modesty, of inquiry, of doubt, of investigation, of progress and of civilization.

- Robert G. Ingersoll, "The Gods", 1872

I've noticed this myself

It's a peculiar arrogance of the true believers that at the same time they fervently follow this imaginary being that they claim is omnipotent and manifest in everything around us, they also flop into paroxysms of flustered, frantic defensive denial when some guy merely criticizes their holy hero. That's it; we say, "we don't believe in your deity, can you give us a reason we should?" and they immediately start blustering about how we should believe, and it's good for us, and all these other smart people believed, and atheists are unlettered nuisances who should quit annoying us with these questions. But they never, ever give us any evidence or any reason.

Baby Bear's lament: James Wood in the New Yorker (Pharyngula)

Just back from China



Yep, you read that correctly, and classes start tomorrow (panic will kick in any minute now...).



Probably the highlight of the trip was a visit to Mt. Changbai in Northeastern China, and the climb up to Heaven Lake. If you cut the lake in half, 50% belongs to China and 50% (roughly) belongs to North Korea. So I can now say I've seen North Korea.

Fortunately, the weather was nice during the visit so we could see the North Korean side (the far side in the picture).


The other main highlight was hiking along the Jinshanlang and Simatai sections of the great wall. The two sections are connected and it's about a 10Km hike from one to the other.


And it nearly did me in. Up and down and up and up and up. Fortunately about the halfway point I got my second wind and started pacing myself better.


I'd recommend the Jinshanlang if you only have time to visit one. The Simatai has undergone major restoration to the point that it doesn't have quite the authentic 'feel' that the Jinhsanlang portion does.


Okay, panic has set in...it's time to get ready for classes!

On Patriotism

Over at a Load of Bright was one of the bests posts I've ever read, called On Patriotism. I've linked to it before (too lazy to look the previous link up). I've checked back periodically to see if the author is posting and to my delight found the Minich video "Storm" that was in my previous post. Since I could not gather from the author how long the site would be up, and since I like to re-read this post and its utter brilliance from time to time, I'm cutting and pasting it here for easy reference.

On Patriotism

I am a proud Englishman. Or, at least, I used to be. Today, I’m just a proud human being. In my late teens and early twenties I was passionately patriotic, with a huge St George’s Cross flag hanging menacingly from my bedroom wall, and England cups, towels and key rings never far away. I followed the England football team fanatically, and took an active interest in any other sport where England competed. My younger brother is Welsh, and we used to mock each other mercilessly, albeit in a friendly manner.

Over the last year or so, my patriotism has waned to the point where there is almost none left. I’ve questioned it more and more and come to see it as rather pointless and empty. I’m proud to be English; why? It wasn’t a choice. And, even if it had been, so what? What does the fact that I was born in England actually mean? Does it make me better than people who weren’t born in England? Of course not. The planet is made up of land and water. Human beings have drawn lines to divide that land up. Those lines are certainly not random, but they are arbitrary when it comes to where they lie in the moments that you draw your first breaths.

So, what about England as a country and as a culture? Well, I’m certainly proud of some of the values we hold in England, such as freedom of expression. On the other hand, I’m ashamed that we are officially a Christian nation, and still function under the archaic monarchy system. I’m proud of some of the achievements by English men and women, and by England as a nation. In the past we have lead the way in industry and contributed richly to music, art, literature and sport. On the other hand, in our colonial adventures we have been the tyrant, spilling much blood and taking many lives.

Another thing, was that I always thought of myself as English rather than British, but the absurdity of this identification has dawned on me too. I’ve lived in Wales for the last 20 years, been raised here, educated here and worked here. I can’t really claim to be English rather than Welsh or British, looking at it rationally.

I consider myself British insofar as I live in Britain, and so what is in the British interest is inevitably in my interest. If I were to move abroad, I would see it exactly the same with whatever country I moved to. I find it much easier now to think of myself as a global citizen. There are aspects of England to be ashamed of and aspects to be proud of, and the same can be said of any other nation. The same can also be said of human beings. I think I may as well just consider myself human. As a human I am ashamed of the religious ignorance in Saudi Arabia, but I am supremely proud of the United States Constitution. I see very little to be gained from patriotism and much danger. The segregation and emphasis on arbitrary differences often simply fosters resentment and disdain, and it is a mindset that can be easily manipulated and exploited by charismatic speakers, who dress up racism as fair and rational.

Is it worth it? To me, the answer is an ever more resounding no.

Tim Minchin


"Storm"


"If you open your mind too much your brain will fall out (Take my wife)"



(via A Load of Bright)

Recent Pictures





From the International Space Station

(via Beccarii)

Weebles wobble but they don't fall down

If I live to be a hundred I'll probably never forget that jingle. And now I find that there's a web site of "Weebl's stuff". A couple of the videos were entertaining:

Satire


Demolition Squid ("...you son of a church").