Dick Cheney sez “it’s not an accident that we haven’t been hit in four years.”

This is what’s known as ‘playing both sides of the fence’. If there are no terrorist attacks, they say “We’re doing a super job.” But if there are attacks, they never say, “We’re doing a lousy job.” They say, “They’re getting desperate! We need more resources, more power, more everything to fight this devious enemy.” Either way, they work it to their advantage.

And what about four years ago? Does that mean that 9/11 wasn’t an accident either? By their logic, they should claim some responsibility for it happening, like perhaps their penchant for ignoring memos. But strangely, this idea never seems to occur to them.

Google does the right thing and refuses to hand over its records to the U.S. Government.

To me, the request was especially galling in the light of recent revelations regarding the Bush Administration’s illegal monitoring of U.S. citizens. The Bush team has never done anything to reassure the public that they will do the right thing with the power they’re given, or that they’ll be able to manage it intelligently.

As a researcher in language technology, I wonder if we’re going to be feeling a bit Oppenheimer-ish in ten years after our labours are used to unleash spybots onto every SMS, phone conversation, and email in the world. It’s not a topic that ever gets treated anywhere in the literature that I’ve seen (although more general AI work does cover this sometimes). Not even the Corpora list has had a whisper about the ramifications of this work. I think we’re due for a conversation about our responsibilities and our rights.

In the meantime, I hope Google fights that pack of maniacs off. So do many politicians of the Christian Right persuasion, I am sure. Bet there’s more than a smidgen of porn in those search histories.

My youngest, age 7, wanted to buy a toy gun. Two dollars at Chickenfeed.

I hate guns, and toy guns more specifically. In fact, I think I hate toy guns more than real guns. A real gun could potentially have some use, but a toy gun is just education.

So he knew that I hated guns, but he still wanted one, and he was prepared to pay for it

And so I mulled over the reasons pro and con.

Reasons against:

Reasons for:

Hmm, I thought. That’s more Good Reasons to let him get it than not to. But then I don’t get the outcome I want. What’s a parent to do?

So in the end, I said, “Get the gun, but leave it at Grandma’s.”

And as a result, he was happy. He got to choose. I communicated my Values clearly, but preserved his freedom of choice (which is another of my values). A clamp-down would have given me the outcome I wanted, but at the cost of his freedom and his belief that he can reason with me. That might have cost me later on.

It was a good balance. Except that he has a toy gun. I’m still not completely happy about that.

But he is.

I haven’t seen ‘Brokeback Mountain’ yet, but I was amused by this story in the Australian:

No Christian Hoorays for Hollywood

CHRISTIAN groups have launched a furious campaign against Hollywood, claiming the Golden Globe Awards promote films with gay or “leftist” themes to serve a political agenda.

Okay, now since when did homosexuality become inextricably linked with ‘leftist themes’? Are we saying that gays are in with the lefties? If I were a conservative gay person, I’d be incensed. Come on, right-wing gay folks, they’re trying to besmirch your image! Let’s hear you!

“Once again, the media elites are proving that their pet projects are more important than profit,” Janice Crouse, of Concerned Women for America, said.

“None of the three movies – Capote, Transamerica or Brokeback Mountain – is a box office hit. Brokeback Mountain has barely topped $US25million ($33million) in ticket sales.

“If America isn’t watching these films, why are they winning the awards?”

I don’t know; because the biggest moneymakers aren’t necessarily the best films?

Now there’s an idea: automatically give the Oscars to the highest grossing pictures. We can replace the Academy with a team of accountants. Quantity is quality.

Sheesh.

The criticism from the American heartland carried more weight than usual this year because Hollywood suffered the biggest decline in attendance in two decades last year.

It’s not hard to see where this reporter is coming from. How is this criticism carrying any weight at all? Is this criticism really from ‘the American heartland’ (whatever that is), or is it coming from the right-wing noise machine?

And that’s how it works, folks. Right-wing nutcases make noise pollution. And rather often, the news folks push it.

Of course, the right-wing nutcases can go ahead and make all the noise they want, just like left-wing nutcases can. I just wish people were as good at spotting the right-wing nutcases as they are at spotting the left-wing nutcases. I’m thinking Ward Churchill.