PartiallyClips Comic "Indians Marching"

I enjoy reading many Webcomics, one of which is PartiallyClips. I particularly enjoyed this specific strip from that comic and thought that others might as well: PartiallyClips - "Indians Marching"


One Bull: "Why are the whites so intent on conquest? Why can't they settle in one place?"
Friend: "They always were an agressive people, One Bull. But now they cannot help it. Colonialism has made them frantic.
One Bull: Mad for wealth and power, you mean?
Friend: No. Think about it.... Tea. Tobacco. Chocolate. Coffee. Cocaine. Every land they conquer brings them a new stimulant.
One Bull: So they've become--
Friend: The most violent and jittery people on Earth.

This explains a lot about our "civilization" in general, doesn't it? (NOTE: It is ironic that such a word should be used to describe many current human societies, when many seem to lack the very core of that word: civility.)

Your impact on the planet

Consumer Consequences | Sustainability Coverage From American Public Media is a "game" of sorts I recently found that calculates your ecological footprint [wikipedia].

It's a fun resource and a real eye-opener. Even though both LK and I are pretty environmentally conscientious, we each still scored 1.9 Earths before "changing policies" (you'll learn what that means after playing the game) and 1.7 Earths after changing policies!

The real advantage to trying this out is that you will see what areas of your life have the most impact (e.g. the amount of meat and dairy I eat). So give it a try and see how many Earths it would take if everyone lived like you.

Here's an excerpt from the Consumer Consequences main page:
>>>
Consumer Consequences will ask you a series of questions about your lifestyle, and as you play, it will show you how many "Earths" of natural resources it would take to sustain all 6.6 billion humans… if everyone lived like you.

Keep an eye on the background graphics of your in-game world as you play. They'll slide across the screen like theater scrims as you answer questions to illustrate what your "world" of consumption would look like. They'll reflect the waste you produce… the infrastructure (commercial, residential, industrial and transportation) you require… the energy (fossil, nuclear, and renewable) you consume… and how your lifestyle impinges on forests and other undeveloped land.

The impact of your lifestyle is calculated based on the "ecological footprint" model created by our research partner, Redefining Progress. Learn more about ecological footprinting or about the calculations that underlie Consumer Consequences.
>>>

INDY Outages Update

Well, there shouldn't be a need to take down the server anymore. However, I am having to rebuild the Gallery from scratch. Don't worry. I make really REALLY good backups, so NONE of the media has been lost. I just have to build the Gallery shell again. Not such a big deal, just a pain. Especially since I have to recreate all user accounts. I think I'm going to try and make some improvements to the user aspects of the Gallery while I'm in there. So, be watching for more updates! Especially since this is where I'll tell you when you can log back into the Gallery!

INDY Outages

I am in the midst of doing a pretty significant upgrade to the INDY server. It's likely that the website will be down frequently over the next couple days.

Google Presentations has arrived!

Time to start converting any worthy PPT files over! A new child has been born to the Google Docs family: Presentations! The presentation docs are pretty exciting: great interface and great slide show viewing. I'm going to spread the word as quickly as possible. No more "it worked this morning" or "sorry team, I thought I emailed it to myself". Just load up your browser and you're ready to go!

INDY Blog feed now on the INDY Homepage

A fellow webmaster recommended to me that I provide users with more content on my website's homepage. I thought it was an excellent recommendation, so now you will find a feed of the INDY Blog on the homepage. Thanks for the advice, Sean!

Wizards and Wii Remotes

As of late, I've been taking a lot of flak from family, friends, and colleagues regarding my Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix gaming habit. I have a kindred spirit over at Penny Arcade who has also fielded some ridicule for waving around a Wii remote while casting arcane spells. So, as was done by Tycho over at Penny Arcade, let me fess up to my habit and just lay it all out there for the world to know:

Do I really cast my spells in the Gryffindor spell-casting pose?
Yes. And to clarify for the muggles... the Gryffindor pose is wand hand forward, empty hand arched above head. (Watch Harry Potter vs. Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for more details.)

Do I say the spells aloud?
Sometimes. When I'm trying to joke with another human being in the same room. Otherwise, no.

Do I wear Hogwarts type clothing when I play?
No. I wear what I usually wear when lounging around the house. Which is nothing I'm embarrassed by when company is over, though some company does merit me putting my INDY sleeveless T-shirt on rather than going shirtless as is the norm. (Shameless plug: INDY Store - sleeveless INDY T-shirt currently only available to me.)

Do I know all the spells from all the books and games?
Yes. And if you laugh at that, I'll give you a real reason to laugh: RICTUSEMPRA!!!

Have I cast spells when not playing the game?
Yes, but only in my head.... I think.

So there you have it. The truth will set me free. Yes, I am a Harry Potter nerd. Deal with it. At least I'm not spouting off Dungeons and Dragons stuff all day. Oh wait....... OK. Maybe that should wait for another post though.

Cheers!

Well, there goes the Fifth Amendment...

The Bush Administration has unveiled an Executive Order Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq. The Guardian has a summary of sorts.

Basically, the Executive Order gives the Secretary of Treasury the authority to block the assets of people determined to "seriously impair my [President George W. Bush] ability to deal with the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 and expanded in Executive Order 13315".

The Fifth Amendment, among other things, protects individuals from being "deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation".

If it is determined that an individual has come in the way of George W. Bush's ability to deal with the national emergency which we are apparently in, that individual would be blocked from his/her assets. In effect, they are deprived of their property WITHOUT due process. A direct violation of the Fifth Amendment.)

Now, I am in no way wanting truly dangerous individuals to have access to those things which allow them to continue their activity, however I feel very strongly that due process of law should prove their endangerment of society.

I'm not normally a publicly political individual (people are just too zealous about many things these days), but I hope that many of my readers will realize the seriousness of what has come into effect with this Executive Order and spread the awareness to others.

Mark Wagner on What Evolution Left Behind On Humans

I was given a link to this article by a friend. It's about some theories on "What Evolution Left Behind On Humans". Pretty intriguing stuff. Especially since, if some are true, it would explain a lot about some of my stranger traits.

Psychology Today: Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature

Thanks to Slashdot, I came across a very interesting article in Psychology Today. It's titled Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature and presents a collection of widely observed - but not so widely understood - studies of human behaviors. It's definitely a fun read and may even help you to explain the crazy behaviors you see around you everyday. Enjoy!