True Rebel

Someone Said...

A gentleman is a man who can play the accordion but doesn't.

George Winters Said...

If God had really intended men to fly, he'd make it easier to get to the airport.

Zig Ziglar Said...

Fear is faith in reverse.

A Joke I Relate To...

An elderly couple are both lying in bed one morning, having just awakened from a good night's sleep. He takes her hand and she responds, "Don't touch me".

"Why not", he asks.

She answers back, "Because I'm dead".

The husband says to her, "What are you talking about? We're both lying here in bed together and talking to one another".

The wife says, "No, I'm definitely dead."

Her husband insists, "You're not dead. What in the world makes you think you're dead?"

His wife answers, "I know I'm dead because I woke up this morning and nothing hurts!"

Sunday Scripture Choice

Isaiah 6:7

And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

Mark Twain Said...

Most people are bothered by those passages in scriptures which they cannot understand. But for me, I always notice that the passages in scripture which trouble me the most are those that I do understand.

April Snow

It happens every year yet it still surprizes us!

Monday Thought

Sunday Scripture Choice

Psalm 77:1

I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my my voice; and he gave ear unto me.

Zane Jensen Said...

Why savor it when you can have more?

So Long Boston!

Twain Science

Therefore, the Mississippi between Cairo and New Orleans was twelve hundred an fifteen miles long one hundred and sevety-six years ago. It was eleven hundred and eighty after the cut-off of 1722. It was one thousand and forty after the American Bend cut-off. It has lost sixty-seven miles since. Consequently is length is only nine hundred and seventy-three miles at present.

Now, if I wanted to be one of those ponderous scientific people, and “let on” to prove what had occurred in the remote past by what had occurred in a given time in the recent past, or what will occur in the far future by what has occurred in the late years, what an opportunity is here! Geology never had such a chance, nor such exact data to argue from! Nor “development of species” either! Glacial epochs are great things, but they are vague—vague—vague. Please observe:--

In the space of one hundred and seventy-six years the Lower Mississippi has shortened itself two hundred and forty-two miles. That is an average of a trifle over one mile and a third per year, Therefore, any calm person, who is not blind or idiotic, can see that in the Old Oölitic Silurian Period, just a million years ago next November, the Lower Mississippi River was upwards of one million three hundred thousand miles long, and stuck out over the Gulf of Mexico like a fishing rod. And by the same token any person can see that seven hundred and forty-two years form now the Lower Mississippi will be only a mile and three quarters long, and Cairo and New Orleans will have joined their streets together, and be plodding comfortably along under a single mayor and a mutual board of alderman. There is something fascinating about science. One gets such a wholesome return of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of time.

Mark Twain, from "Life on the Mississippi".

A Reader's Response (Left as a comment)

Yaroslav said,

Mike,
i write it here cuz couldn't find any other contacts. Really quick: i came across your article at Animal LAB wesbite about AETA.

You have one point missing: in a pursue for a better cause you can easily justify any mean. And that's not right.

So called pursue for a "better good" leads to hell. I don't know if you're LDS or not, but if you are then you must no that evil has never been good.

Apply this simple principle to animal testing industry and you'll see that there is not much good in what it does.

Or look at it from another angle. Think we are all in heaven now and not only humans but all these lamblike creatures. After enduring the earthly life, I'd be ashamed that, for inctance, the cost of my painless dental care was some creature's suffersings. That's what we will be ashamed even if those animal souls have long forgiven us.

Now that we have all the technology in the world we must put all our efforts in the direction of finding more progressive ways of science and exploration. I mean, use new ethods. Use those supercomputers! Yes, they cost somewhat $2,5 a day rent but what's the price you'd give a life?

As to AETA, think of what's written in the Declaration of Independce. Out of what is said there I got it like a man's duty is to fight for the right things and right ways. that's why Americans fought with British Empire for the Independece, that's why you guys sent your troops to Europe back in WW II. So those people who protest against animal expolitation, why you call them terrorists?

Those Nazi officers who wanted to blow up Hitler - were they terrorists or heroes? What do you think?

I do not favor the exterme animallibers' practice. But i don't do that not because I hate them - on the contrary, I respect them. I do not suport any violent actions because it harms firstly the whole idea of the movement.

This time it's all about enlightement. But AETA goes far beyond just law enforcement. In fact it can be applied against absolutely non--violent activities like giving out flyers or running a website. If you call out to boycott some brand - heck, it now can be considered as terrorism cause you harm the business's profits. Yjq can you explain why there is a need to protect a specific industry? See, if you break a window it's already a crime. But if you break a window of an animal enterprise, is it another sort of a crime or what? Where is logic? In this relation AETA sounds like if it was a law to punish anti-slaveey abolitionists. In this case it's all the same like to call the whole Nothern States terrorists when they fought the South to quit slavery.

Mike, think full-scale. Ask yourself right questions. Why? Who's in profit? What's the challenge in this whole animal issue? What's the truth? We have all the aswers in our heads.

2636 Miles Later

Long Day, Short Taxi Ride, and Good Night!

View form seat 21C

On the Ground at SLC. 550 miles down.

Buffalo Mountain Lovelock Nevada

Buffalo Mountain, I think. It was on the backside that was the silver mine to which I was first expose to mining.

Sunrise Begining

The begining of the first leg. Carson City to Salt Lake.

Easter Sunday Scripture Choice

Luke 24:5,6

And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?

He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee,

Road Trip cont.

Sierra Nevadas

End of the Road

I think the oddest thing about being in Carson City is the fact that the mountains are on the wrong side of the city. Living in Salt Lake City, the mountains are on the East side. There are hills to the west, but the big mountains form the eastern border. Here in Carson, it is the Sierra Mountains that form the western border. Along with Reno, this part of Nevada represents making it happen in the desert. There is nothing around here and it has a sense of surviving for no other reason but to survive.

Still, despite the progress and growth both cities have produced, wherever the progress and city end, the desert maintains its grasp on the land. Wherever someone hasn’t planted grass and is currently tending to it, sage brush is the only thing growing. The surrounding hills are brown and desolate, a old reminder of what this place really should look like.

But like I said, it is the mountains on the wrong side that seems odd to me. The rest of what I just spoke of just seems like home, it all applies to Salt Lake as well. I have been in places with no mountains and I am constantly turned around. Luckily it is not mandatory for me to always know which way is East, but when you are used to 10,000 foot reminders it is unnerving not to know. I don’t know how those people can tell which way is east and west unless they get up early in the morning and watch the sun come or stay up late and watch it go down. I would have to buy a compass!

Road Trip! Cont.

Truckee River Valley

Road Trip!

Beowawe, Nevada

A Little Additional National Attention

Link is available under my home page links as ALN Column APR 07.

Hope Lost?

It happened. My beloved A’s lost the first game of the season. Shut out no less! The opportunity of going undefeated is over. There are however, 161 more games to be played this season. It might be premature to hang up hope already.

One of the reasons I like baseball is the fact that there are so many games, that any team is bound to win a number of them. In fact the difference between the good teams and the bad teams is not all that different, except in extreme cases. A good to great team will win 80-100 games. A very poor team will win 30-50 games. The average team’s victory totals are somewhere between those numbers. That is still a lot of opportunities to enjoy victories.

To start off the season with a win or a loss is irrelevant. To start off with a streak of wins or losses is irrelevant. The season lasts from April until September. Each day is a new game and has no connection to the game or games already played. Anything can happen on any day, on any pitch.

Isn’t life the same? Each day is its own “game”? Yes it’s true consequences do extend past the length of a day and can be really significant, but doesn’t each day live a life of its own? If we started each day having learned the lessons of the days before and yet set out fresh each morning, wouldn’t we also not be able to celebrate the “wins” as they come.

Life is full of victories and of setbacks. Enjoy the victories. Learn from the defeats. Both are fleeting. The trick is to work at it until the victories outnumber the defeats.

Hey batter, batter, batter....swing!

At last the wait is over and it's Baseball Season once more!

An avoidable situation?

Stop! Watch for pedestrians.

Sunday Scripture Choice

James 1:22

But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.