Happy St. Patrick's Day

Enjoy the day, and have a green beer. I'm gonna try to get a little Irish in me. Thinking some Bailey's should do it.

Holy Grail....in ~5 seconds.

This is just random, but immensely funny. Enjoy!

The Golden Compass

A little while ago, I was disappointed to hear that the final two books in Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" series were not going to be made. I understood the economics of it, seeing how it brought in less than 100 million domestically, and cost more than that to make.

But now the news comes out that the film has grossed over 200+ million worldwide, with a huge release in Japan and China, where it just premiered. And sales of DVDs have yet to occur, where many (including myself) will increase profits for the feature. I hope this news may force the hand of the film makers and encourage them to finish the trilogy. Don't cave to pressure from the church!

An Atheist's Creed

For those that feel that atheists believe in nothing, this is a response. (Thanks to PZ Myers, of Pharyngula fame.)

I believe in time,
matter, and energy,
which make up the whole of the world.

I believe in reason, evidence
and the human mind,
the only tools we have;
they are the product of natural forces
in a majestic but impersonal universe,
grander and richer than we can imagine,
a source of endless opportunities for discovery.

I believe in the power of doubt;
I do not seek out reassurances,
but embrace the question,
and strive to challenge my own beliefs.

I accept human mortality.
We have but one life,brief
and full of struggle,
leavened with love and community,
learning and exploration,
beauty and the creation of new life,
new art, and new ideas.

I rejoice in this life that I have,
and in the grandeur of a world that preceded me,
and an earth that will abide without me.

Creationist arguments, this time showing how ignorant Big Science is, by exposing the fraud of Leap Year/Leap Day:

"We have leap years because the earth is slowing down in its orbit, which proves that the earth can't be old — a million years ago the earth would have been whirling around the sun so fast it would have flown out of orbit!"

Happy Leap Day. I'm gonna go bang by head against a wall in an attempt to figure out where these people are coming from. (For an extremely detailed look at Leap Year, see this Bad Astronomy post by Phil Plait.)

3-D Tattoo

OK, so I'm not going to get into having a tattoo, seeing how I have several myself. It's a growing art form, with an increasing number of people in society possessing a tat in some form or another. And yet, isn't this taking things a little far?

Apparently, this guy wasn't content with the tattoo of a busty cowgirl on his calf. He felt it needed a little something more. So he had implants put into the tattoo. Or, more precisely, into his leg to give the effect of boobs in his tattoo. Unfortunately for the poor guy, they ruptured, and he tried to stitch things up himself. Fortunately, he eventually saw a real doctor, who put him on medication to heal him up.

See more at: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2008/02/18/4856191-sun.html

Way to go, Pat. Credibility = Zero.

Wonderful discussion here from Pat Robertson. In retrospect, either God lied to him, or Pat made the whole thing up. No terrorist attack with tremendous loss of life, and the whole thing about not inter-marrying with the heathens. Classic. No wonder people worldwide listen and respect this guy. I feel nauseous just listening to him. Maybe he should seek humility and leave the rest of us alone.

UPDATE: UFO Sighting

Oh, damn. That UFO was just the lunar eclipse tonight. Silly me.

Watched it through the telescope. It was an awesome sight, and framed by Saturn on one side, and one of the brighter stars in Leo on the other made for some spectacular stargazing.

UFO Sighting

So I was outside this evening, and saw what just had to be an alien spacecraft. After hearing so many descriptions of UFO behaviour, this had to be my first experience. There was a large, semi-crescent shaped object, probably a hundred miles wide, that just hovered in the sky. It faded out, in a way that no human vehicle could, then suddenly re-appeared about an hour later. It seemed to grow rapidly in size, probably flying quickly in my direction at many hundred of miles an hour. It made absolutely no sound, and the whole experience was creepy. Totally unexplainable.

Snuggly, the Security Bear

I just heard this on "The Rachel Maddow Show" on Air America Radio yesterday. Outstanding! Nice commentary on politics today. More science/skepticism to com ein the following days, but for now, enjoy this video.