Over the objections of the National Archives, Vice President Cheney exempted his office from the presidential order that establishes government-wide procedures for safeguarding classified national security information. The Vice President asserts that his office is not an “entity within the executive branch.” The National Archives protested the Vice President's position in letters written in June 2006 and August 2006. When these letters were ignored, the National Archives wrote to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in January 2007 to seek a resolution of the impasse. The Vice President's staff responded by seeking to abolish the agency within the Archives that is responsible for implementing the President's executive order.
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6/22/07
Google ranks last for privacy
This was kind of a bummer, especially since I'm addicted to all things Google...
According to a report released June 6 by privacy watchdog Privacy International (PI), search engine Google ranks dead last among Internet service providers (ISPs) in terms of protecting the privacy of ts users.Read the rest of the article HERE.
6/21/07
Stanzas to Pale Ale
(This poem is in honor of the delightful brew served at Motor City Brewery - cheers!)
Stanzas to Pale Ale
Oh! I have loved thee fondly, ever
Preferr’d thee to the choicest wine;
From thee my lips they could not sever
By saying thou contain’dst strychnine
Did I believe the slander? Never!
I held thee still to be divine.
For me thy color hath a charm,
Although ’tis true they call thee Pale;
And be thou cold when I am warm,
As late I’ve been—so high the scale
Of Fahrenheit—and febrile harm
Allay, refrigerating Ale!
How sweet thou art!—yet bitter, too;
And sparkling, like satiric fun;
But how much better thee to brew,
Than a conundrum or a pun,
It is, in every point of view,
Must be allow’d by every one.
Refresh my heart and cool my throat,
Light, airy child of malt and hops!
That dost not stuff, engross, and bloat
The skin, the sides, the chin, the chops,
And burst the buttons off the coat,
Like stout and porter—fattening slops!
Stanzas to Pale Ale
Oh! I have loved thee fondly, ever
Preferr’d thee to the choicest wine;
From thee my lips they could not sever
By saying thou contain’dst strychnine
Did I believe the slander? Never!
I held thee still to be divine.
For me thy color hath a charm,
Although ’tis true they call thee Pale;
And be thou cold when I am warm,
As late I’ve been—so high the scale
Of Fahrenheit—and febrile harm
Allay, refrigerating Ale!
How sweet thou art!—yet bitter, too;
And sparkling, like satiric fun;
But how much better thee to brew,
Than a conundrum or a pun,
It is, in every point of view,
Must be allow’d by every one.
Refresh my heart and cool my throat,
Light, airy child of malt and hops!
That dost not stuff, engross, and bloat
The skin, the sides, the chin, the chops,
And burst the buttons off the coat,
Like stout and porter—fattening slops!
6/20/07
"Sweet Love, I cannot show thee in this guise..." - William Ellery Channing (1818–1901)
Sweet Love, I cannot show thee in this guise
Of earthly words, how dear to me thou art,
Nor once compare thy image in my eyes
With thy dear self reposed within my heart.
The love I bear to thee I truly prize
Above all joys that offer in the mart
Of the wide world, our wishes to suffice,—
And yet I seek thy love; for no desert
That I can boast, but that my new love cries
For love that to its own excess is meet,
And searching widely through this dark world’s space,
Hath found a love which hath its holy seat
Within thy bosom’s blissfulest embrace,
And to awake this love is at thy feet,
Whence will it not arise till thou accord this grace.
Let not my love implore of thee in vain,
For in its loneliness it dooms to wo,
From whose deep depths I cannot rise again;
Let not thy love conspire to kill me so
With my love, which will only share its reign
With thine its sister; rather may both go
To that high altar, where no longer twain,
In sweetest concord both together grow,
Thence to ascend to the Eternal Love,
And be absorbed and spread through all the life
That breathes in purest holiest bliss above,
Or that incites all mortals to the strife
Of kindness, in this scene of mixed delight
And griefs—of brightest day and darkest night.
Of earthly words, how dear to me thou art,
Nor once compare thy image in my eyes
With thy dear self reposed within my heart.
The love I bear to thee I truly prize
Above all joys that offer in the mart
Of the wide world, our wishes to suffice,—
And yet I seek thy love; for no desert
That I can boast, but that my new love cries
For love that to its own excess is meet,
And searching widely through this dark world’s space,
Hath found a love which hath its holy seat
Within thy bosom’s blissfulest embrace,
And to awake this love is at thy feet,
Whence will it not arise till thou accord this grace.
Let not my love implore of thee in vain,
For in its loneliness it dooms to wo,
From whose deep depths I cannot rise again;
Let not thy love conspire to kill me so
With my love, which will only share its reign
With thine its sister; rather may both go
To that high altar, where no longer twain,
In sweetest concord both together grow,
Thence to ascend to the Eternal Love,
And be absorbed and spread through all the life
That breathes in purest holiest bliss above,
Or that incites all mortals to the strife
Of kindness, in this scene of mixed delight
And griefs—of brightest day and darkest night.
The June - by George Marion McClellan(b. 1860)
THE JUNE
The June has come with all its brilliant dyes,
Its honeyed breath, its balmy gusts and sighs,
In fields and stretching up-lands, glade and glen,
And by the high and lowly haunts of men,
With all-surpassing glory bloom the flowers,
And come are sun-lit skies and dreamy hours.
The morning earth is all begemmed with dew.
The toiling bee the blissful hours through
Hums softly on his self-beguiling tune,
While gathers he the sweetest sweets of June.
Low murmuring the crystal brooklet leads
Its way through fields and lane and emerald meads.
The clover fields are red and sweetly scent
The pasture lands, where browse the kine content.
The corn is swayed with breezes passing by,
And everywhere the bloom is on the rye.
Already on the bearded wheat is seen
The gold which tempts the farmer’s sickle keen,
And I can almost see the gleaming blade
By which the golden grain is lowly laid;
And hear the singing scythe and tramp of feet,
And see the cone-shaped shocks of wheat.
All shimmering the landscapes far and wide
Bespeak fair promise for the harvest tide.
The June has come with summer skies and glow,
Reflecting bliss and Junes of long ago—
Bare feet, and careless roving bands of boys
That haunted lake and stream in halcyon joys,
The bow and arrow, hunting ground and snares,
The sudden flight of quails and skulking hares,
The wild and joyous shouts along the glen
Come back in all the month of June again.
Then other days and solitary dreams
Are come again with flash of flaming gleams,
Where red birds shot across the opening glades,
In quest of deeper thickets, deeper shades.
Again far inland, on and on I tread,
Where cooling shades and carpets green are spread
And modestly the violet blooms and sups
The dew; and glow the golden butter-cups;
And sweet the odor of the woods I scent
Where perfume of a thousand kinds is spent.
And stretched full length upon the ground
I lie and watch the leaves and hear their sound
And wonder what their whisperings include
To tell of life spent in such solitude.
Here dreaming on forgetting time and men
The June a million visions brings again,
In imagery so rare of that and this,
A self-forgetting turmoil, nameless bliss.
Unseen but felt, the spirit of the wood
Without a dogma teaches of the good
In God sublime. An all-pervading sense
Is everywhere of his resource immense,
His love ineffable—infinite power,
In storm resisting oaks, and purple flower
Scarce lifting up its head an inch above the ground
Is seen alike, and with the joyous sound
Which Robin-Redbreast from a tree top trills
Full orthodox confession comes and fills
The heart. The lip is mute but deep a sigh
The spirit sendeth upward to the sky
Baptized in faith, its adoration, love,
A credo of the soul, to God above.
The June has come with all its brilliant dyes,
Its honeyed breath, its balmy gusts and sighs.
The soft sunshine comes down aslant the hills,
With perfume sweet the honeysuckle fills
The summer atmosphere for miles around,
And all the groves and fields are sweet with sound,
While hills, and woods and vale and grassy slope
Are teeming everywhere with life and hope.
Come out, ye sons of men from street and ward,
Come forth again upon the welcome sward,
At least for one brief day leave toilsome care
In offices and stifling banks and wear
The boyish spirit over field and glen,
Drink deep once more of all his joys again.
The way is not so long—the brook in size
Has lost to longer legs and manhood eyes,
But its low murmuring the morning through
Is still a lullaby; and love is true
In brook and field, and sky, and dale and glen
For all the changing, faithless sons of men.
In these no hot contentions, endless strife,
Nor aching hearts, consuming greed of life,
No soul-corrupting lusts, debasing sin,
Nor blighted lives where innocence has been
Are ever brought by June. But to assuage
The sorrows of mankind from age to age
A subtle charm, a bliss, a merry tune
Abideth in the country lap of June.
Come out where kindly nature deftly weaves
Her cooling bowers with the tender leaves
Ye tired wives and husbands vexed with care.
And find life’s true elixir in the air.
Let tinkling bells of flocks and browsing herd,
The song of brooks and twitter of the bird
Unite with children voices in their shout
Of mirth and joy on all the sward about,
And let the maidens come with rosy cheeks
And merry boys with gallantry that speaks
Of dawning love, and sentiment the best
That ever came to swell the human breast;
Let all come forth in holiday array
From care, and feel the bliss of one June day.
The June has come with all its brilliant dyes,
Its honeyed breath, its balmy gusts and sighs,
In fields and stretching up-lands, glade and glen,
And by the high and lowly haunts of men,
With all-surpassing glory bloom the flowers,
And come are sun-lit skies and dreamy hours.
The morning earth is all begemmed with dew.
The toiling bee the blissful hours through
Hums softly on his self-beguiling tune,
While gathers he the sweetest sweets of June.
Low murmuring the crystal brooklet leads
Its way through fields and lane and emerald meads.
The clover fields are red and sweetly scent
The pasture lands, where browse the kine content.
The corn is swayed with breezes passing by,
And everywhere the bloom is on the rye.
Already on the bearded wheat is seen
The gold which tempts the farmer’s sickle keen,
And I can almost see the gleaming blade
By which the golden grain is lowly laid;
And hear the singing scythe and tramp of feet,
And see the cone-shaped shocks of wheat.
All shimmering the landscapes far and wide
Bespeak fair promise for the harvest tide.
The June has come with summer skies and glow,
Reflecting bliss and Junes of long ago—
Bare feet, and careless roving bands of boys
That haunted lake and stream in halcyon joys,
The bow and arrow, hunting ground and snares,
The sudden flight of quails and skulking hares,
The wild and joyous shouts along the glen
Come back in all the month of June again.
Then other days and solitary dreams
Are come again with flash of flaming gleams,
Where red birds shot across the opening glades,
In quest of deeper thickets, deeper shades.
Again far inland, on and on I tread,
Where cooling shades and carpets green are spread
And modestly the violet blooms and sups
The dew; and glow the golden butter-cups;
And sweet the odor of the woods I scent
Where perfume of a thousand kinds is spent.
And stretched full length upon the ground
I lie and watch the leaves and hear their sound
And wonder what their whisperings include
To tell of life spent in such solitude.
Here dreaming on forgetting time and men
The June a million visions brings again,
In imagery so rare of that and this,
A self-forgetting turmoil, nameless bliss.
Unseen but felt, the spirit of the wood
Without a dogma teaches of the good
In God sublime. An all-pervading sense
Is everywhere of his resource immense,
His love ineffable—infinite power,
In storm resisting oaks, and purple flower
Scarce lifting up its head an inch above the ground
Is seen alike, and with the joyous sound
Which Robin-Redbreast from a tree top trills
Full orthodox confession comes and fills
The heart. The lip is mute but deep a sigh
The spirit sendeth upward to the sky
Baptized in faith, its adoration, love,
A credo of the soul, to God above.
The June has come with all its brilliant dyes,
Its honeyed breath, its balmy gusts and sighs.
The soft sunshine comes down aslant the hills,
With perfume sweet the honeysuckle fills
The summer atmosphere for miles around,
And all the groves and fields are sweet with sound,
While hills, and woods and vale and grassy slope
Are teeming everywhere with life and hope.
Come out, ye sons of men from street and ward,
Come forth again upon the welcome sward,
At least for one brief day leave toilsome care
In offices and stifling banks and wear
The boyish spirit over field and glen,
Drink deep once more of all his joys again.
The way is not so long—the brook in size
Has lost to longer legs and manhood eyes,
But its low murmuring the morning through
Is still a lullaby; and love is true
In brook and field, and sky, and dale and glen
For all the changing, faithless sons of men.
In these no hot contentions, endless strife,
Nor aching hearts, consuming greed of life,
No soul-corrupting lusts, debasing sin,
Nor blighted lives where innocence has been
Are ever brought by June. But to assuage
The sorrows of mankind from age to age
A subtle charm, a bliss, a merry tune
Abideth in the country lap of June.
Come out where kindly nature deftly weaves
Her cooling bowers with the tender leaves
Ye tired wives and husbands vexed with care.
And find life’s true elixir in the air.
Let tinkling bells of flocks and browsing herd,
The song of brooks and twitter of the bird
Unite with children voices in their shout
Of mirth and joy on all the sward about,
And let the maidens come with rosy cheeks
And merry boys with gallantry that speaks
Of dawning love, and sentiment the best
That ever came to swell the human breast;
Let all come forth in holiday array
From care, and feel the bliss of one June day.
6/16/07
Tattoos - no thanks.
For the longest time, I grappled with the idea of getting a tattoo. I wanted something like "Knowledge will protect me" written in Latin or an ibis, which is a bird that represents Thoth, the Egyptian God of scribes. These things seemed so true to who I am and they seemed like something that I would never regret.
Fact is, never say never.
I read an article in the New York Times today about how tattoo removal is getting better, but that it is quite expensive and it feels like someone is snapping rubber bands on your skin. The procedure can leave shadows or white spots on your skin. Further, it can take up to 30 sessions to get big stuff removed.
So, let me get this straight...it hurts to get tattooed. There is still quite the stigma attached with tattoos. It's still very difficult to remove them. And life changes quickly and constantly. Although I don't foresee myself ever turning my back on knowledge, I can picture myself regretting the decision to have it inked into my skin, even if the article says that there's some ink that is easier to remove coming out on the market.
Besides, so many people are getting tattoos that it's really not that unique. It's soooo 2000.
Fact is, never say never.
I read an article in the New York Times today about how tattoo removal is getting better, but that it is quite expensive and it feels like someone is snapping rubber bands on your skin. The procedure can leave shadows or white spots on your skin. Further, it can take up to 30 sessions to get big stuff removed.
So, let me get this straight...it hurts to get tattooed. There is still quite the stigma attached with tattoos. It's still very difficult to remove them. And life changes quickly and constantly. Although I don't foresee myself ever turning my back on knowledge, I can picture myself regretting the decision to have it inked into my skin, even if the article says that there's some ink that is easier to remove coming out on the market.
Besides, so many people are getting tattoos that it's really not that unique. It's soooo 2000.
6/15/07
Homeless in the Library
I must admit, I enjoy my current place of work that involves NO homeless people, but it's good to see that libraries are keeping their doors open. Perhaps homeless people aren't the easiest or most pleasant to deal with, but they are people that need our services just as much as everyone else. Check it:
Libraries offer more services to homeless
By Carol Motsinger, USA TODAY
Public libraries, long a daytime sanctuary for homeless people, increasingly are offering services targeted to them. "The broader mission of the library is a very welcoming one," says Jane Salisbury, supervisor of library outreach services at Multnomah County Library in Portland, Ore. Libraries are shelters from cold and heat, she says, but homeless people also go there because "people are there to serve them." Services vary:
Four years ago, Kibler helped a homeless man in his 50s complete an online application for a job at a grocery store. The man didn't know how to use a computer mouse, Kibler says. He left the reference desk to help him four or five times.
"We try to do the best we can with the time we have," he says.
"When someone is honestly trying to improve themselves and you don't have time, you feel particularly helpless."
Nancy Huntley, director of the Lincoln Library in Springfield, Ill., says services for the homeless are outside the scope of a librarian's job. "Our role is just to provide books and information," she says.
Accommodating homeless patrons without alienating others can be a challenge, librarians say. Richard Parker of the Tulsa City-County Library, says visitors have complained about people panhandling, staring or saying inappropriate things to children.
Sanford Berman, founder of the American Library Association's Hunger, Homelessness and Poverty Task Force, says others complain about patrons' grooming. Libraries such as the Dallas Public Library have hygiene rules. Berman says they must be administered evenly.
"That kind of rule should be equally applied to a suburban matron doused in perfume," he says.
Libraries offer more services to homeless
By Carol Motsinger, USA TODAY
Public libraries, long a daytime sanctuary for homeless people, increasingly are offering services targeted to them. "The broader mission of the library is a very welcoming one," says Jane Salisbury, supervisor of library outreach services at Multnomah County Library in Portland, Ore. Libraries are shelters from cold and heat, she says, but homeless people also go there because "people are there to serve them." Services vary:
- In Washington, D.C., the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library has begun seminars about library resources and health care services for the homeless. The library plans to offer music appreciation and arts classes to homeless patrons.
- Jacksonville Public Library teaches Internet use to homeless job-seekers.
- The Free Library of Philadelphia pays homeless people to work as bathroom attendants at the central library.
- The San Francisco Public Library has two part-time staffers who refer the homeless to housing and mental health agencies.
- The Los Angeles Public Library has a five-day summer camp for homeless children. In July, a magician, mime, musician and storyteller will perform and teach.
- Volunteers take children from homeless shelters to New York Public Library branches for monthly story time sessions.
Four years ago, Kibler helped a homeless man in his 50s complete an online application for a job at a grocery store. The man didn't know how to use a computer mouse, Kibler says. He left the reference desk to help him four or five times.
"We try to do the best we can with the time we have," he says.
"When someone is honestly trying to improve themselves and you don't have time, you feel particularly helpless."
Nancy Huntley, director of the Lincoln Library in Springfield, Ill., says services for the homeless are outside the scope of a librarian's job. "Our role is just to provide books and information," she says.
Accommodating homeless patrons without alienating others can be a challenge, librarians say. Richard Parker of the Tulsa City-County Library, says visitors have complained about people panhandling, staring or saying inappropriate things to children.
Sanford Berman, founder of the American Library Association's Hunger, Homelessness and Poverty Task Force, says others complain about patrons' grooming. Libraries such as the Dallas Public Library have hygiene rules. Berman says they must be administered evenly.
"That kind of rule should be equally applied to a suburban matron doused in perfume," he says.
Birthday Blog (a belated one)
Yesterday was my birthday. I don't really know if anything ever happened on my birthday, like a big world event or some really notable birth, so I thought I'd take a look. Basically, my birthday is sorta' boring, with the exception of my glorious sprouting back in '82. Here's other stuff I found.
Events:
1775 - The United States Army was founded.
1777 - John Adams introduces a resolution in the Continental Congress describing the future flag of the United States (Hence, Flag Day).
1900 - Hawaii becomes a United States territory.
1937 - U. S. House of Representatives passes the 1937 Marihuana Tax Act.
1938 - Action Comics issues the first Superman comic.
1940 - Germans enter Paris.
1940 - The Nazis opened a concentration camp at Auschwitz in German-occupied Poland.
1966 - The Vatican announces the abolition of the index librorum prohibitum (index of prohibited books), which was originally instituted in 1557.
People:
1811 - Harriet Beecher Stowe, author/abolitionist (Litchfield, CT; died 1896)
1820 - John Bartlett, editor/compiler of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (Plymouth, MA; died 1905)
1928 - Che (Ernesto) Guevara, Latin American guerrilla leader (Argentina; died 1967)
1946 - "The Donald" Trump, real estate executive (New York, NY)
1961 - Boy George, singer (London, England)
1968 - Yasmine Bleeth, actress (New York, NY)
1969 - Steffi Graf, tennis player (Bruhl, West Germany)
Holidays
Flag Day (USA)
Mother's Day (Afghanistan)
Events:
1775 - The United States Army was founded.
1777 - John Adams introduces a resolution in the Continental Congress describing the future flag of the United States (Hence, Flag Day).
1900 - Hawaii becomes a United States territory.
1937 - U. S. House of Representatives passes the 1937 Marihuana Tax Act.
1938 - Action Comics issues the first Superman comic.
1940 - Germans enter Paris.
1940 - The Nazis opened a concentration camp at Auschwitz in German-occupied Poland.
1966 - The Vatican announces the abolition of the index librorum prohibitum (index of prohibited books), which was originally instituted in 1557.
People:
1811 - Harriet Beecher Stowe, author/abolitionist (Litchfield, CT; died 1896)
1820 - John Bartlett, editor/compiler of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (Plymouth, MA; died 1905)
1928 - Che (Ernesto) Guevara, Latin American guerrilla leader (Argentina; died 1967)
1946 - "The Donald" Trump, real estate executive (New York, NY)
1961 - Boy George, singer (London, England)
1968 - Yasmine Bleeth, actress (New York, NY)
1969 - Steffi Graf, tennis player (Bruhl, West Germany)
Holidays
Flag Day (USA)
Mother's Day (Afghanistan)
6/13/07
Mr. Wizard dies at age 89
I learned of a very sad death today. Mr. Wizard, the man that made science not only tolerable but wicked fun, has passed away. As I am the science collector at SPL, I'm going to try to get my hands on a couple of episodes. Although the show stopped years ago, he helped me realize at a young age that science is all around us and, hell, it's fun!
The New York Times wrote an article, here's a snippet:
The New York Times wrote an article, here's a snippet:
Don Herbert, who unlocked the wonders of science for youngsters of the 1950s and ’60s as television’s Mr. Wizard, died yesterday at his home in the Bell Canyon section of Los Angeles. He was 89.
...
Mr. Herbert held no advanced degree in science, he used household items in his TV lab, and his assistants were boys and girls. But he became an influential showman-science teacher on his half-hour “Watch Mr. Wizard” programs, which ran on NBC from 1951 to 1965.
...
After his children’s program went off the air, Mr. Herbert remained a presence in TV science programming with general-audience shows like “How About” and “Exploration.” NBC revived “Watch Mr. Wizard” for one year in the early ’70s. In the 1980s Mr. Herbert reprised his children’s shows with “Mr. Wizard’s World” on the Nickelodeon cable network.
Thanks for all the knowledge Mr. Wizard - you were one of the first that helped me realize how cool knowledge really is!
6/12/07
And we're back!
Welcome back!!
I've decided to revive the Knowledge is Cool blog and fill it with wonderful information for your brain's consumption. Here I will blog about my various places of work - the Southfield Public Library, UM-D's Mardigian Library and also my litigation consultation. I love my work so much and I didn't feel MySpace was really appropriate for that type of stuff. I will also start posting about books - all sorts of stuff about books - including reviews, podcasts, my collection (the 500s, which is science) and discussions I have with others about books. Finally, I'll also post interesting news ranging from anything about science to politics to gardening to sports. But it will all be newsworthy - I assure you.
I've decided to revive the Knowledge is Cool blog and fill it with wonderful information for your brain's consumption. Here I will blog about my various places of work - the Southfield Public Library, UM-D's Mardigian Library and also my litigation consultation. I love my work so much and I didn't feel MySpace was really appropriate for that type of stuff. I will also start posting about books - all sorts of stuff about books - including reviews, podcasts, my collection (the 500s, which is science) and discussions I have with others about books. Finally, I'll also post interesting news ranging from anything about science to politics to gardening to sports. But it will all be newsworthy - I assure you.
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