educating eric

This is a good trick; if you don't like what someone says at a public forum, just send the FBI his way. From a Washington Times article : "Jim Bensman thought his suggestion during a public hearing was harmless enough: Instead of building a channel so migratory fish could go around a dam on the Mississippi River, just get rid of the dam. Instead, the environmental activist found himself in hot water, drawing FBI scrutiny to see whether he had any terrorist intentions."

Months and months ago I made a post here about the fact that Eleanor Mondale was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Every so often someone searching for more information would show up in my web logs, and I felt bad that there wasn't anything more out there. (Not because I like to gossip, but because I was genuinely concerned about her health.) Imagine my happy surprise when I read this morning's Star Tribune article Eleanor Mondale coming back to WCCO-AM ! Long story short... she's okay! Yay!

A good article on Technology and Worship from byFaith Online . I particularly note the comment that: Young people witness some of the cheesy video and computer "art" in worship and they see it for what it is: kitsch. Stock clip art. Old-fashioned, 19th-century background images under song text: the sun shining on the Cross, running streams, baby faces -- all of the stereotypical images that say, "Christians are crummy artists and naive sentimentalists." To them, such kitsch is like handing out illustrated kids' Bibles to high school students and telling them that these images represent the depth of insight and excellence of the Christian faith. Which is why, in my opinion, we need to empower more artists like Jeff Holmberg , who are 1) young enough to "get it", and 2) artistic enough to "get it".

The story at kare11.com :: KARE 11 TV - Jail inmate killed fills in the blank that what landed Carl Moyle in jail was "driving without proof of insurance for the third time in seven years". Still not worthy of death, but at least it brings a little comfort that Sherburne County deputies aren't jailing people for no reason.

Sherburne County inmate beaten to death Unbelievable story. I'll have to follow up on our state law a little bit, because I'm surprised that you'd be arrested for not having proof of insurance. Apparently he was booked for "allegedly driving without insurance", and maybe he just didn't have enough answers to satisfy the sheriff (because the truck wasn't his). Anyway, here's a case of some guy, driving a perfectly fine insured vehicle, sitting in jail because of a traffic stop... and beaten to death by another inmate. Wow. I wonder what will happen with this one.

What happens when Kim Possible grows up? You get Esurance - Erin's World . Just thought I'd mention that.

Ever wonder how long it takes for a motorcycle to melt a popsicle? I have, for years and years. Okay, you're right -- it's never crossed my mind. But Jay Leno thought of it, and pulled Heather Higginbotham out of the audience to guess how long. Her choices were 19 seconds, 28 seconds, or 37 seconds. My recommendation? When in doubt, always aim for the middle. She said 19 seconds, and while the popsicle was substantially melted at that point, the sticks weren't dry until 28 seconds. She saved the day for the audience, giving them Jay's popsicles, by hitting a high note on command. Why do I post this? Because 1) we know an opera singer and it's a sorta interesting topic for me (though we've never asked her to hit a high note on command), and 2) I'm sure that there are all sorts of people who are going to be search for combinations of Heather, Tonight Show, and Popsicle; I wonder if they'll get here. If so... Hi!!! :) And hey, Heather, if you read

I want this I want this I want this I want this I want this!!! Meeting Recording After years of dreaming about cool "telepresence" technologies, it looks like they're finally coming! (Microsoft Photosynth is another one out there that's really promising!)