Posts from — March 2003

A National Case Of International Importance. Plastic::Politics::Queer: The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to hear what some believe may be 'the most important gay rights case in a generation.' [Plastic: Most Recent]

are there odds makers in the current audience, I have a bet, and i greatly disapprove of the way i think this will go in the current court.

jpb. John Perry Barlow: “I thought Cheney, Bush, and Rumsfeld were
bluffing. I still think they were. But they painted themselves into
a terrible corner by failing to recognize the irrationality and
intransigence of Saddam Hussein as well as the powerlessness of his
people.” [Adam Curry: Adam Curry's Weblog]

well, wrong is well, wrong.

for martha

Adam Osborne, RIP?. Sad news if true: Adam Osborne, one of the personal computer industry's most important pioneers, seems to have died, according… [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]

mmmm, people do die, it happens, though for many it is a shock…. as Idaho Blackie said, “heaven, I'm a rabbit in new jersey”……

For Work or Wanderlust, Carry Thousands of Maps. Even if you could afford to buy 62,000 topographic maps and nautical charts, storing them might pose problems. Now Maptech, a company that distributes digital copies of government maps on CD's, is making its collection available for downloading by subscription. By Ian Austen. [New York Times: Technology]

I found my families farm on the map, nifty. Actually i found all the houses that i lived in until i was 20 or so, which is interesting somewhat.

Constitutional Amendment to Rollback Copyright Duration. Marci Hamilton: it will take nothing short of a social movement to stop further increases [Tech Law Advisor]
if ever there was a reason to amend the constitution, it is to limit the term of intellectual property, perhaps, if done appropriately, it will limit the wealth of idiots such as those that may be found in the current administration. Note idiots is not a technical term in this sense and is not mean to demean those where the technical term or other definition may apply, it is meant purely as a way of questioning the wisdom of an adminsitration that thinks we live in 1970 and miss the Soviet Union.

Gertrude of Iraq. Have I ever told you what the river is like on a hot summer night? At dusk the mist hangs in long white bands over the water; the twilight fades and the lights of the town shine out on either bank, with the river, dark and smooth and full of mysterious reflections, like a road of triumph through the midst. – Gertrude Bell writing of the Euphrates near Baghdad.

Gertrude Bell – daughter of the desert, Uncrowned Queen of Iraq, Advisor to kings and Ally of Lawrence of Arabia.
Gertrude Bell was a Bell's influence on Middle Eastern politics made her the most powerful woman in the British Empire in the years after World War I. She was a archeologist, writer, translated the poetry of Hafiz and a photographer as well. 1909: Letters from Gertrude Bell, dated May 14 andMetaFilter]

ahh history, it serves us well, until well, we try to understand what is going on now or what might go on in the future, especially in human or national affairs. the system, as they say, is indeterminate.

The Geneva Conventions in full. Since what is and is not a violation of the Geneva Conventions is a subject of some discussion as a result of today's news, this collection of the complete texts of the Geneva Conventions (as well as other treaties) should be a useful reference. Of particular relevance is the Third Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War. [MetaFilter]

as i recall, i was a category 1 under the convention, i wonder what category i am now….

Ethical and religious perspectives on war and peace. Ethical and religious perspectives on war and peace. While most
of the discussions have focused political perspectives of the
current conflict, there are quite a few ethical and religious
perspectives. A BBC website provides excellent
overview of the positions including the various types of pacifism
and just
war.

For more detail there is a nice index site on Anabaptist-
Mennonite nonresistance, Leon Trotsky's Marxist
critique of pacifism, a secular argument for pacifism,
a Christian Primer on Just
War, an atheist ethical
perspective, and a buddhist
perspective. [MetaFilter]

This is important for people to understand. For me, I'm not a pacifist, but I don't think that this war is justified by any known convention modern or otherwise. There are times to fight, and you know when that is, but there are rarely ever times where attack can be justified. A few more months and perhaps this attack would become justifiable, now it seems like the bully on the playground, an affrontage to convention. But if you are a pacifist of some sort, it is best to be clear as to your motivation, just in case the draft is reinstated.

TouchGraph GoogleBrowser V1.01.

TouchGraph GoogleBrowser V1.01 is a cool Java tool to let you see your Google neighbors. Uses Google API. Reminds me a bit of the Blogstreet visual neighborhood.

Via Werblog

[Joi Ito's Web]

First I tried http://www.cddc.vt.edu then i tried http://www.cddc.vt.edu/jeremy then i added aoir.org and then i clicked on RCCS and between those the whole thing filled the screen. nifty.

World of Ends.

Two members of >the other Gang of Four are at it again: Doc Searls and David Weinberger have teamed up to produce World of Ends, another manifesto on the Internet and how to relate to it. [Advogato]

keep an eye on it folks…