Why did only a few of us oppose the Iraq invasion?

This question is misleading.  In 2003, approximately 40% of us opposed the invasion.   But it felt like there were only a handful of us.

I was looking through my 2003 writings to recall my rational for opposing the Iraq invasion.  I don’t see that I wrote anything much about Iraq back then.  I do remember thinking the invasion was a big mistake.  I do remember thinking that Colin Powell was blowing smoke at the U.N. 

Though I didn’t find much in writing from 2003, I found this 2004 email I wrote to a friend who was very much in favor of the war:

I’ve been working a lot of hours lately, but I can’t help but feel deep gnawing need to pry myself away periodically to do my small part to stop this insane movement that goes in the name of “conservatism.”  Squandering the budget is only one part of it for me.  Every day, this lunatic’s rhetoric and actions are causing 100 talented young men from the Middle East to dedicate their entire lives to lighting a nuclear fire so as to melt New York.  I truly believe that the short term temporary good that Bush has accomplished in the Middle East is far outweighed, not only by the blood spilled to accomplish it, but by the horrors we will be facing 10 and 20 years from now.  This country would never have gone to war had Bush and his team not bald-faced lied about the alleged urgent need

Continue ReadingWhy did only a few of us oppose the Iraq invasion?

U.S. Park Service refuses to admit the age of the Grand Canyon

According to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), the U.S. National Park Service won't admit the well-established age of the Grand Canyon. Why?  Because our National Park Service doesn't want to offend young earth creationists.  Here's the well-established geological story: The principal consensus among geologists is that the Colorado River basin (of which…

Continue ReadingU.S. Park Service refuses to admit the age of the Grand Canyon

The Media (which media? THE Media!)

This age.  Bizarre.  Part of the bizarreness rests in how much we actually know about it.  We swim in a deepening sea of information.  How to cope?  We compartmentalize.  So, though, do those providing us the information, and therein lies another problem, which is a question of integration. Recently at…

Continue ReadingThe Media (which media? THE Media!)

Blood on his hands too: Gerald Ford stumbles again, this time by failing to speak up about Iraq

We're not supposed to speak ill of the dead, right?  Our newly deceased former president, Gerald Ford, will now be turned into some kind of hero.  That's the role of the media--to say happy things to put us in the mood to buy the products they advertise.  Therefore, the media…

Continue ReadingBlood on his hands too: Gerald Ford stumbles again, this time by failing to speak up about Iraq

Nuance’s Dragon, Version 9: Cloud nine for anyone needing dependable speech recognition software.

Dragon, for those who are not seen it in action, is a speech recognition software. You talk into a microphone connected to your computer and the program transcribes your words into written text.  For those of you who haven’t seen the process of speech recognition before (or those who have only seen earlier versions of voice recognition software), the current version works like magic. 

Who could make good use of speech recognition software?  Anyone who writes.  That probably includes you.  All of you bloggers, take note.  Same for all of you professionals.  For instance, I work as a lawyer and I spend an hour or two each day using Dragon. 

I have worked with Dragon ever since Version 6. It is now up to Version 9.  I use the “Preferred” version of Dragon 9, which costs about $160.  The software comes with a microphone in the box.  The software is loaded with a vast vocabulary of legal and medical terms, something to keep in mind for those of you who might otherwise be tempted to jump to the vastly more expensive Legal or Medical versions of Dragon. For most people, there’s no need to make that jump, in my opinion.

There are millions of people out there who could make good use of voice recognition software. Dragon allows you to give your hands a break, even if you are a proficient typist.  Dragon works so well that it seems like magic. No, I do not own any stock in Nuance …

Continue ReadingNuance’s Dragon, Version 9: Cloud nine for anyone needing dependable speech recognition software.