Not the MSM you're used to

January 2005

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I know, I know, where did all the fun stuff go? Well, stuff happens, especially when you host your website with iPowerWeb.

It started about a month ago, when I was posting a comment to an article and GreyMatter went berserk. It ate the CPU, spit out the bones, and went on a rampage, destroying my index and archive page. I was not pleased. Neither was iPowerWeb. They shut down my account.

The next day I finally got through to the tech support people. They said that I should be getting an e-mail that would tell me how to fix the problem. Okay, fine, check the e-mail, yes that's correct, ttyl.

Oh, if only things were that easy. I never got that e-mail. After two more calls (each taking 20 minutes, 15 on hold and 5 with a real person) I finally got them to do what the e-mail would tell me to do: delete the offending scripts and pinky-swear that I would never run them again. Fine, I guess I could get out of the whole blog thing too.

Yeah, right.

I've decided to stop hosting with iPowerWeb, but I don't trust their system. I'm going into Lileks mode (one posting per weekday, no comments) and will switch over to WordPress when I switch providers. This is but a template of what the final (or next) iteration of MM.net will look like. Yes, improvements will be made. Until then, expect lots of "fun" stuff. Or not. Depending on how the mood suits me.

In case you were wondering how my Christmas went, it was fine and dandy. Jennifer and I celebrated on the 22nd, because the next few days would be utter chaos. On the evening of the 22nd we left for Mesa to spend the night with my parents. The next morning we went to Prescott to see my mom's sister. We returned to Phoenix and stayed with Jennifer's parents the 24th (celebrating Christmas with them) and to Mesa the 25th (dizzy yet?) The afternoon of Christmas we left for Dallas, where we spent a week with Jennifer's grandparents (both sets) and visited my uncle and his two boys.

Fortunately, the new year was much smoother and quieter than the previous week. We celebrated quietly and went to bed soon after. During that week we saw a few sights around Dallas, including Dealy Plaza:



It's a remarkably small place, believe it or not. The TV specials always shoot it (no pun intended) with a wide-angle lens, making it appear huge. The lead car is right in front of two Xs, marking where Kennedy and the Governor got hit. Here's the marker:



It reads "Dealy Plaza has been designated a - NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK - This site posesses national significance in commemorating the history of the United States of America - 1993 - National Park Service - United States Department of the Interior". Took them long enough, you think? I wonder if the train station where McKinley got whacked is similarly significant.

I think Oswald did it. And I didn't need to spend the $10/person necessary to tour the 6th Floor Museum (no photos, please) in order to reach that conclusion. It certainly is the site of a killing.

And now, catching up on the blogoshpere news:

• Every time I see a green laser story I want to smack the Homeland Security Director upside the head. Pencil lasers, at the ranges they would be employed, deliver so little power to the cockpit as to be similar to a flashlight at close range. If everyone keeps making a stink about it, you could always equip the planes with common bomber accessories. In the Cold War, the B-52s flying deterrent patrol had flash screens installed in the cockpit. In the event of a nuclear detonation, the screens would deploy, blocking out the intensly bright flash. Imagine a window blind on steroids, capable of making the screen completely opaque in a fraction of a second. If you wanted, you could modify the design to react to laser beams instead of gamma rays. Of course, that would mean that some prankster kid with a pocket laser could be triggering the things at will, which would mean that we would have to patrol the airport fences, which would necessitate stopping some people, cue the ACLU, etc. etc. etc. At some point we decide that we lose too much freedom. At some point we have to say enough. Personally, my point is when they start confiscating Tom Clancy books so we don't get any bright ideas.
• Yes, I am going to buy Hugh Hewitt's new book, Blog, in addition to the numerous books I got over Christmas. Eventually, I think I might finish them. Currently on the Reading List: Amatuers, to Arms! A Military History of the War of 1812.
• GO STEELERS! They've beat everyone they faced (asterisk for the 1-1 record against the Ravens). Lord, we pray that Ben R. would be healed in his side so he can whoop up mightily on their opponents in the playoffs and Super Bowl (God willing, and I think He does).
• As far as the tsunami goes: wow. I know a former co-worker who went to Thailand once. He wasn't over there. Entirely too many people were. Go donate to the American Red Cross, skip the UNICEF fund, its probably corrupt.

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