01 Jan 2006
Devilish Denim: Jeans a Big Hit in Sweden

Well, most of the nominally Christian folks in Sweden are apparently taking this in stride, but a few are upset:

"One cannot just keep quiet about this," said the Rev. Karl-Erik Nylund, vicar of St. Mary Magdalene Church in Stockholm. "This is a deliberate provocation (against Christians) and I object to that."

And you know, he's right. It is a deliberate provocation. My only question is where these folks were when the "provocations" were being delivered by Christians?

He [King Olaf] would, he declared, either bring it to this, that all Norway should be Christian, or die. "I shall make you all," said he, "great and mighty men in promoting this work; for I trust to you most, as blood relations or brothers-in-law." All agreed to do what he asked, and to follow him in what he desired. King Olaf immediately made it known to the public that he recommended Christianity to all the people in his kingdom, which message was well received and approved of by those who had before given him their promise; and these being the most powerful among the people assembled, the others followed their example, and all the inhabitants of the east part of Viken allowed themselves to be baptized. The king then went to the north part of Viken and invited every man to accept Christianity; and those who opposed him he punished severely, killing some, mutilating others, and driving some into banishment.

Anyone who thinks the North was "converted" by sweet reason and gentle persuasion needs to read their history. The carrion birds let loose by men like Olaf the Slime a thousand years ago are coming home to roost, and this time the corpse they'll feast upon will be that of the foreign gods imposed by force upon the folk so many years ago.

AP - Cheap Monday jeans are a hot commodity among young Swedes thanks to their trendy tight fit and low price, even if a few buyers are turned off by the logo: a skull with a cross turned upside down on its forehead.

(link) [Yahoo! News: Top Stories]

00:00 /Asatru | 0 comments | permanent link

Bush Defends Legality of Domestic Spy Program

Right now if Dubya got on the tube and announced that the sky was blue I'd have to run outside and check. This is not a credibility gap, this is a complete lack of credibility. He's apparently incapable of either telling the truth or holding an oath.

According to this piece, even John Ashcroft "appeared reluctant to sign on to the continued use of the program" ... and given Ashcroft's deserved reputation as no friend of Constitutional rights, that speaks reams about the legality of the program.

President Bush today also denied that he had misled the public last year when he asserted that any government wiretap required a court order.

(link) [NYT > Home Page]

00:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link

GM crops created superweed

Somehow I missed this last July - basically, it's canola that crossed with carlock. And I don't think Monsanto can sue Mother Nature to prevent Her infringing their patent.

And perhaps my gloating is a bit premature, but I daresay it's beginning to look like I (and other contrary farmers) were right: the real danger from GM crops is not poison in the seed, but their ability to confer their resistance to their second cousins in the plant world. And I'll climb out on a limb and predict that the "solution" that the GM companies will proffer for this is more genetic engineering! Which will, of course, only exacerbate the problem.

"Laissez-faire!" is more than good advice for markets, sometimes it applies to Nature as well.

Modified genes from crops in a GM crop trial have transferred into local wild plants, creating a form of herbicide-resistant "superweed", the Guardian can reveal.

(link) [The Guardian]

00:00 /Agriculture | 0 comments | permanent link

Indiana Tries to Pass Game Law Again

The politicians doing this understand full well that the courts will toss this boneheaded legislation at the first opportunity. They've also introduced a bill that would just flat outlaw abortion. That's certain to end up in the round file, too. And they don't care ... this isn't about "making Indiana safe for children" or "stopping the abortion holocaust" any other such nonsense - it's about grandstanding for what they perceive as very socially conservative voters with the next legislative election coming up in November, following the implementation of the very unpopular daylight saving time bill. What better way to distract a populace who will have to get up in the dark to stand in the unemployment line than a few fetus-friendly, save the children bills that are doomed to be overridden by "activist judges" anyway?

Ars Technica has posted their take on Indiana's newest attempt at passing a game law that seeks to restrict the sale of violent video games. This, despite that fact that similar legislation has a track record of failing in every state it has been proposed in. From the article: 'The state capitol, Indianapolis, was one of the first cities in the nation to try and strike out at violent video games, first going after arcades and other entertainment vendors back in 2000. The quest ended up where they all do: in front of a judge, and left for dead. Now that California, Illinois, and Michigan have all suffered astounding defeats in their attempts to address PC and console game sales, Indiana wants to join the ranks of the failures.'

(link) [Slashdot]

00:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link