One Man Makes a Difference in Haiti

Jake Wood, known in the milblogosphere as "Badger Jake," is a former U.S. Marine who has been in Haiti for several days, setting up triage centers and bringing much-needed aid to earthquake victims there. The team he put together is comprised of other Marines, first responders, and two doctors (who volunteered to join him even as he was on board a plane on his way to the Dominican Republic to cross over into Haiti).

Jake's small but capable team is accomplishing things that larger organizations cannot. They are swift and strong, unfettered by bureaucracy, and doing incredible work. Follow Jake via his blog or on Twitter @TeamRubicon.

And if you have a few dollars to spare for the relief effort, in conjunction with other orgs you may be supporting, please consider a donation to help him bring down his second relief team (more doctors and supplies). You can donate right here.

It's Official: I Live in a Movie

Los Angeles has finally become a parody of itself.

This morning I saw a gigantic billboard on my way to work that made me say to myself, out loud, "What disgusting strip club is doing a male AND female act all in one, and making it CHRISTMAS themed?!?!?"

And then I said to myself, "Oh. The Beverly Center."

Roget's Uses for a Drunken Sailor

Put him in a trawler 'til he's temperate
Put him in a pinnace 'til he's prudent
Put him in a kayak 'til he's solemn
Put him in a schooner 'til he's temperate
Put him in a dinghy 'til he's Baptist

Sacrifice and Unity

Today is a day of mourning in this country as it has been every year since 2001, and there are not enough waking hours within it to read every word of every worthy article and tribute and commentary and memory posted on the Web. Others have already said it, and better, so I want to show you a few things.

Rick Rescorla -- Viet Nam veteran (you may remember him from "We Were Soldiers") who perished on 9/11 as he helped bring 2,700 other people to safety out of a tower he knew was going to collapse -- was a man among men.

Honor his memory and heroism by reading about his exceptional life here, at Mudville Gazette.

Also noteworthy is "The World Mourns", a moving collection of photos illustrative of the grief and empathy felt by citizens of other nations in the days immediately following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. May we never see so many flowers adorning the gates of our embassies again.

Prayers today, please, for the United States and her leadership, and for all who are still haunted by the events of that day.

Amen to That, Thomas Aquinas

With a hearty hat tip to Brett at the Stand To Reason blog for bringing this to my attention, I now bring it to yours.

In his Summa Theologica, Thomas Aquinas praises the virtue of wit:

"Jokes and plays are words and gestures that are not instructive but merely seek to give lively pleasure. We should enjoy them. They are governed by the virtue of witty gaiety to which Aristotle refers (Ethics II28aI) and which we call pleasantness. A ready-witted man is quick with repartee and turns speech and action to light relief."

I could totally see Thomas throwing down some sarcastic barbs at fellow members of the Domincan Order. Later Aquinas says:

"It is against reason to be burdensome to others, showing no amusement and acting as a wet blanket. Those without a sense of fun, who never say anything ridiculous, and are cantankerous with those who do, these are vicious, and are called grumpy and rude."

Though I'm a proponent (and...perpetrator?) of sarcasm, I think that for the sake of others, there are boundaries of offense and irreverence which need not be crossed. People tend to disagree about the particulars of those boundaries, but sometimes we in the church take ourselves -- and everything else -- far too seriously. A very funny man I knew, who was new to the pastorate at the time, was so self-censoring that after leading a small group Bible study he'd often repent during the closing prayer time for any jokes or humorous comments he'd made. I thought that was funny in itself, and unnecessary, as the rest of us felt his sense of humor was a unique gift that made for enjoyable fellowship, but at least it showed his heart; he was genuinely concerned with not offending God or the people for whom he felt responsible.

Humor can be a great connection tool. Read the whole post at STR to find out how Brett and the high school students he teaches find humor to be a bridge between those who disagree, specifically Christians and atheists.

A Collision of Classics

Now making the rounds on the Internet:

MJ Continues to Inspire

Say what you will about the sadder circumstances of Michael Jackson's life -- his dysfunctional background, his eccentricities, the scandals and accusations that marked the last several years of his public-glory-private-pain existence -- there's no denying that his talent was hugely influential. Even after his death, Michael Jackson's music has continued to have an impact...on Iranian freedom fighters?



HT: Blackfive

Dreams I've Had Due to My Co-Worker's Choice of Cubicle Ambiance Music

The one where Jon and I are dancing in the dark

The one where Jon's searching for a heart of gold

The one where Jon goes insane in the membrane

The one where Jon checks out the hook while the DJ revolves it

The one where Jon is creeping on Gordon Lightfoot's back stairs

Dancing in Heaven: Lindy Hop Legend Frankie Manning (1914-2009)

Frankie Manning, the legendary pioneer of Lindy Hop who continued to dance, teach and inspire dancers all over the world until the time of his death, passed away this morning at the age of 94.

Among the many accolades of his accomplished life, Frankie choreographed high-energy dance numbers for Hollywood films and did the first -- the FIRST -- "aerial" move, at the Savoy, way back in the '30s. He was amazing to watch, even decades later.

This is a clip of him (in the overalls) in 1941's Hellzapoppin:



This is an interview about him and with him, in the '80s:



And here's 89-year-old Frankie leading the Shim Sham in 2003:



I hope that dance floors all over the world will be crowded with lindy hoppers tonight, and that his legacy will continue. Goodnight, Frankie.

Have We Met?

When Worlds Collide

Here's something you don't see every day.

Unfortunately.

Best. Day. EVER.

So, hey. Guess what?



Thaaaaaat's right! Wanna see it again?



The bluish tint to my skin in that second photo? Lack of oxygen. Other than that, everything's great.

I'm gettin' hitched! :)

Indescribably '80s

I can't explain why I love this.

Jedi Gym

"Bless You, Prison"

"It was granted to me to carry away from my prison years on my bent back, which nearly broke beneath its load, this essential experience: how a human being becomes evil and how good. In the intoxication of youthful successes I had felt myself to be infallible, and I was therefore cruel. In the surfeit of power I was a murderer and an oppressor. In my most evil moments I was convinced that I was doing good, and I was well supplied with systematic arguments. It was only when I lay there on rotting prison straw that I sensed within myself the first stirrings of good. Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either—but right through every human heart—and through all human hearts.... That is why I turn back to the years of my imprisonment and say, sometimes to the astonishment of those about me: 'Bless you, prison!' I...have served enough time there. I nourished my soul there, and I say without hesitation: 'Bless you, prison, for having been in my life!'"

-- Alexander Solzhenitsyn (The Gulag Archipelago: 1918-1956, Vol. 2, 615-617)

I Before E, Except When We Get Tired of Correcting You

It's not bad enough that most people can no longer follow a logical line of argument, express their own thoughts in an articulate manner, or even craft a proper sentence? NOW we have to let people spell words however they'd like?

Here's the main idea of an article that suggests better living through lower standards:

Fed up with his students' complete inability to spell common English correctly, a British academic has suggested it may be time to accept "variant spellings" as legitimate.

Rather than grammarians getting in a huff about "argument" being spelled "arguement" or "opportunity" as "opertunity," why not accept anything that's phonetically (fonetickly anyone?) correct as long as it can be understood?

"Instead of complaining about the state of the education system as we correct the same mistakes year after year, I've got a better idea," Ken Smith, a criminology lecturer at Bucks New University, wrote in the Times Higher Education Supplement.

"University teachers should simply accept as variant spelling those words our students most commonly misspell."

To kickstart his proposal, Smith suggested 10 common misspellings that should immediately be accepted into the pantheon of variants, including "ignor," "occured," "thier," "truely," "speach" and "twelth" (it should be "twelfth").

No. No, no, no, no, no, no, NO.

What's Shakin'?

From an actual IM conversation I just had a few minutes ago with a co-worker (who is working from home today):

me: um...earthquake
gabe: yeah
me: holy crap
me: still moving
gabe: this is a long one
me: man!
gabe: whew... it's rare that i actually have time to remember to find cover
me: at least we have no windows here!
me: lol
gabe: lol
gabe: sad but true
gabe: there are ppl working on the street outside and they didn't even notice it
gabe: they're hardcore
me: lol ... it was a 5.8 centered 2mi SW of Chino Hills
gabe: that's a good size
me: yeah!
gabe: this is so LA of us... IMing while the earthquake is happening
gabe: lol
me: LOL!!!

Independence Day

From an essay by Bill Whittle at Eject! Eject! Eject!, called "Freedom:"

The American Revolution surely is unique in the sense that its ringleaders -- Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Hamilton, etc -- were men of property, wealth and prestige; in other words, men with something to lose. Compare this to any other revolution in history, where the ringleaders were outsiders; plotters staring in through the windows of prosperity, powerless. The Russian Revolution, French Revolution, etc -- these were joined by desperate people fighting mind-numbing poverty and severe political repression.

And yet the Founding Fathers were men who were as well-off as any men on earth at the time, and furthermore, any of them could have been (and were) political leaders under His Majesty's government. The average colonial farmer likewise led a life far more comfortable than those of his cousins in Europe, to say nothing of Asia or Africa.

For all practical intents and purposes, these people had absolutely nothing to gain, and everything in the world to lose, by taking on the greatest military force the world had ever known. Why would they do this? What possible motivation could well-off, comfortable people have? Militarily, they seemed certain to lose, and they knew before they started -- and Patrick Henry made that abundantly clear -- that they would be hanged as common criminals if they failed.

Of course, the answer is, they did it to be free. And they did it to make the rest of their nation -- the poor, the disenfranchised -- free as well. And it is clear as crystal from their collective writings that they took that risk to make Noam Chomsky and Michael Moore and the rest of us in their unseen posterity free, too. They could look down the dim, moonlit riverbanks of the future and see a society worthy of their sacrifice and determination. They knew that God, (or for me, chance perhaps) had put them together in a time and place where bold, courageous action, followed by much suffering, doubt, blood and fear could, perhaps, unleash in mankind an energy source the likes of which they could not imagine.

Read the rest....

If You're Having as Crappy a Day as I Am

This will make you feel better:


via videosift.com

There's Always Room...

...for Jell-O....