Why Do Women Even Bother to Practice Christianity?

Christianity is a man's world with "holy" passages written by men used to control other men, but particularly women. For centuries, bibble verses have been used to justify horrible treatment and forced submission of women. Even today. I can no longer fathom why any woman would choose to follow such an oppressive invisible sky daddy.

And now, this behavior is affecting football. FOOTBALL. Because you know, gawd truly cares about football:

Controversy follows girl football kicker

A female football kicker was let back on the field last weekend. But controversy keeps swirling around the decision to let her play football with home-schooled and private school boys.

The Georgia Football League official who sidelined Spalding County kicker Kacy Stuart for most of the season based on her gender gave in and allowed her to play. But he doesn't want to discuss it.

"There's no story," said Hank St. Denis, the league's executive board chairman. "She's playing, isn't she? End of story."

In August, St. Denis told Kacy, 14, she could not play after she was accepted by and practiced with the New Creation Center Crusaders.

The first team Kacy faced relied on the Bible to express its beliefs about female football players in a pre-game statement, said New Creation athletic director Coach Ken Townley.

"The East Atlanta Mustangs didn't play us under protest but they were allowed to read a statement on their beliefs about female football players," Townley said. "They used biblical verses from the book of Romans. I was very stunned by that."

Mustangs Coach Alan Hawkins did not immediately return phone calls or e-mails Monday asking for comment. St. Denis didn't want to discuss why he changed his mind after being sent a letter from an attorney representing the Stuarts.

The Crusaders beat the Mustangs 39-8, with Kacy doing all the kicking and completing three extra-point attempts, Townley said.

"She's an amazing kicker and I'm glad she got to play," he said. "She's a natural, she's really good and only 14."

The Crusaders were slated to face the Bartow Generals Saturday for the last game of the regular season but that has been scrapped. Kacy's mother, Angie, thinks the team doesn't want to face a girl.

But Generals coach Mike Gifford disputed that. "We're not playing them but for reasons not related to that," he said, without elaborating.

The Crusaders, who won the league championship last year, have a 4-3 record, Townley said, and are expected in the playoffs.

Instead, Townley said the Crusaders will play LaGrange's Dawson Street Christian School Wildcats Oct. 30 at 7 p.m.

So, to please their invisible sky daddy, adults are willing to subject a 14-year old girl to discrimination, oppression, and humiliation. This goes beyond a "girls shouldn't play football" mentality. I understand the physical differences between the sexes, but she's a kicker. She'll be fine. What these men are saying is that "you're a girl and you suck. We want nothing to do with you because your actions do not fit our bigoted world view."

But I'll wager that these moronic men are still going to vote for the McCain/Palin ticket. But I wonder how they can justify giving a woman the second most powerful job in America while destroying a young girl's psyche over a game.

Another Case of Mad Cow Disease

Mad Cow disease is alive an well in Cincinnati.

Woman Wearing Cow Suit Charged With Disorderly Conduct 

MIDDLETOWN -- A Middletown woman is accused of being disorderly in public -- while wearing a cow suit.

A police report filed about the incident said Michelle Allen allegedly chased children in her neighborhood while wearing the suit on Monday evening.

Allen also urinated on a neighbor's front porch, the report said, and was warned by officers to go home and stay there.

Allen was charged with disorderly conduct after an officer found her causing traffic problems on North Verity Parkway.

The officer's report stated that Allen was verbally abusive to him on the trip to jail and smelled of alcohol.

The report did not speculate as to why Allen was wearing the cow suit.

"It's Man's World And These Things Will Never Stop"

"It's Man's World And These Things Will Never Stop" 

So goes the chilling quote by an elderly lady as she responds to an "honor" killing in her village:

In a tangle of bushes and trees outside a remote village in southwest Pakistan, six close male relatives of three teenage girls dug a 4-foot wide by 6-foot deep ditch, on a sweltering night in mid-July, and allegedly buried the girls alive.

The girls' crime: they dared to defy the will of their fathers and the customs of their tribe and choose their own husbands. The mother of one of the girls and the aunt of another were shot and killed while begging for the girls' lives, according to local media reports.

This is a despicable act was "carried out according to tribal traditions," said Israrullah Zehri, a senator representing Balochistan in the upper house of Pakistan's parliament in the capital Islamabad. "These are centuries-old traditions and I will continue to defend them," he said.

These are poor, uneducated people who have followed a set of traditions laid down by old men who wanted to control their tribes, especially their women. It is hard to imagine a life such as this in the United States, but looking into the third world reveals horrors and atrocities committed solely on the basis of ancient superstitions and religious texts. 

This event is something to think about the next time you read in the Old Testament (Torah) about how it was okay for parents to stone their children outside the city gates if they rebelled. Rebellion. You know, like wanting to marry somebody you love as opposed to somebody your dad or religion says.

9-11. The Day Religion Became Evil for Me

I hate this day. The events of 9/11/2001 will haunt me and everybody in this country for ever. And we have religion to thank for that. I was a Christian at the time and used my religion to find peace and understanding. But now that I'm an atheist, 9-11has come to represent  for me just how much religion poisons everything. It is a serious delusion that poisons the minds of its followers. I am hopeful that in my lifetime that I will see the measurable decline of all religions. I hope to go to my grave knowing that rational thought and logic will ultimately win out over superstition and ignorance.

In related 9-11 news, Marie Cocco wrote a great piece over at TruthDig about McCain and Obama exploiting the events of 9-11 for political gain.

Yet their decision to visit the site where the Twin Towers once stood is distasteful stagecraft, the sort that a city still striving to recover can probably do without. The Obama campaign says the joint visit was set when the Democratic candidate phoned McCain to congratulate him on his speech to the Republican National Convention, and said that "since they'd be in NYC together that they should go to Ground Zero together," an Obama campaign aide said. "McCain immediately agreed." The two candidates are scheduled to speak on Thursday night at the ServiceNation Summit in New York, an event organized to promote national service as an appropriate response to the events of 9/11.

That, in a word, is the issue. What is appropriate for two political candidates, neither of whom represents New York or the metropolitan area that suffered so much, in a city that grieves so openly on this day?

I totally agree. They have no business being there. The media circus surrounding their visit will be entirely inappropriate for the somberness of the occasions. I'm sure their hearts are in the right places, but McCain and Obama need use their brains and think about the bigger picture rather than their campaigns. Great. Now I have another reason to hate today.

Welcome to the Internet, Loser

I created this blog to find support for and follow my progress in letting Electronic Arts know that their biggest attack on Christian values to date will not be tolerated.

We can not allow the gaming industry to invade our homes and poison the minds of our children.

After all, their billions in revenue and all the advertising in the world are no match for the power of God.

Great. Another christian looney starting a blog to whine about persecution and something attacking his god or values. My favorite part is him writing that the gaming industry is "invading our homes" and poisoning the "minds of our children." I've yet to see a news story about Electronic Arts commandos storming the homes of innocent and unsuspecting Christians and FORCING them to play the game Spore. It sure would be more interesting if that was the case, but this is just another demonstration of some religious nutjob getting his feelings hurt because not everybody subscribes to his world view.

I would like to own this game and would have no problems letting my seven-year old daughter play. Besides, its only a game. It's not like it will actually teach anybody about evolutionary biology. But if it will get my daughter thinking about evolution and get her mind away from the creation nonsense she's getting brainswashed with at Sunday school, I'll glady take that.

Eating Outside the Box...Literally

I got this mini article as part of an e-mail from T-Nation this weekend. Enjoy.

Don't eat anything that comes in a box. Why? Prior to oh, about the 18th century, very few people had diabetes. Then came the invention of industrial-type mills that were able to grind flour to a fine powder. Whammo! Cases of diabetes start to pop up within a decade or so.

It might be mere coincidence, but I tend to think not. Instead, I think that the fine milling greatly increased the glycemic, or insulin, index of the foods it was used in. Prior to high-powered milling, flour had big chunks of fiber in it, kind of like the toilet paper they use in third world countries. As such, it digested slowly, as the bread-equivalent of a two-by-four is wont to do.

That wasn't the case with the new grain products. The fine powdery flour was digested much more quickly than even sugar and consequently caused a big tidal flood of insulin to be released. After years of eating this way, the peasants first became insulin resistant, and then fat. And some would develop diabetes.

It's no different today. Almost any food product you can think of that comes in a box is highly processed, and as such, the insulin index is way off the scale. It's my belief that eating high insulin-index, boxed foods, causes most of the obesity in the country.

And furthermore, these processed foods almost always contain an abundance of trans fatty acids, simply because they don't go rancid as quickly as unsaturated oils.

In short, buy fresh foods whenever possible.

Republican Talking Head Hypocracy Exposed

Reason #263 why The Daily Show should be required viewing for EVERYBODY:

This Frog Makes Me Laugh

The image of this frog makes me all happy inside. I'm not sure why. One reason may be that it reminds me of how a good buddy of mine looks when he's drunk (minus the egg). The other may be that this bit of artwork has the Pope and all his little robe-wearing teetotalers all in a tizzy:

The Vatican wrote a letter of support in the pope's name to Franz Pahl, president of the regional government who opposed the sculpture.

"Surely this is not a work of art but a blasphemy and a disgusting piece of trash that upsets many people," Pahl told Reuters by telephone as the museum board was meeting.

The Vatican letter said that the work "wounds the religious sentiments of so many people who see in the cross the symbol of God's love."

Pahl, whose province is heavily Catholic, was so outraged by the sculpture of the pop-eyed amphibian that he went on a hunger strike to demand its removal and had to be taken to hospital during the summer.

Hunger strike? Over a frog? Geezus H. F***ing Buddha. Here's hoping that reason and free artistic expression win out in the end.

Art experts defended the work.

"Art must always be free and the artist should not have any restrictions on freedom of expression," Claudio Strinati, a superintendent for Rome's state museums, told an Italian newspaper on Thursday.

How can you look at the frog and not smile? Just look at his cute little drunken face.

I can think of worse things done to a frog, namely shoving lighted M80 firecrackers down their gullet as a kid. And I can tell you those acts were most certainly NOT done in the name of art but in the name of destruction.

Awkward Olympic Headline

Hooker wins pole vault gold for Australia

I had no idea prostitutes were so adept with poles:

BEIJING - Steve Hooker of Australia has won the gold medal in the men's pole vault, Australia's first in track and field at the Beijing Olympics.

Hooker cleared 5.90 (19-4 1/4) on his third attempt in Friday night's final, immediately after world indoors champion Yevgeniy Lukyanenko of Russia had failed at his last attempt on the same height and took silver at 5.85 (19-2 1/4).

Hooker was attempting an Olympic record 5.96 (19-6 1/2).

Denys Yurchenko of Ukraine cleared 5.70 (18-8 1/4) and still was eligible at greater heights but withdrew with an injury and settled for bronze.

The irony is that Hooker is a dude.

Testing Block Quotes

I wanted to see if I can do block quotes from the e-mail posting feature.

Testing block quote where I put something in a block quote.

I have ended the block quote.

Now I'm trying to post a picture. I'm not sure where it will end up, but this is where I want it to land.

 

Test Posting

This is me trying out e-mail blogging.

Test

Test

Faith-Based Initiative Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope

Maybe there is hope yet in this battle against stupidity and the Bush's administration's blatant defiance of the separation of church and state:

States Reject Abstinence-Only Funding From Federal Government

WASHINGTON — Skeptical states are shoving aside millions of federal dollars for abstinence education, walking away from the program the Bush administration touts for slowing teen sexual activity. Barely half the states are still in, and two more say they are leaving.

Some $50 million has been budgeted for this year, and financially strapped states might be expected to want their share. But many have doubts that the program does much, if any good, and they're frustrated by chronic uncertainty that it will even be kept in existence. They also have to chip in state money in order to receive the federal grants.

Iowa Gov. Chet Culver, a Democrat, made his decision to leave based on the congressionally mandated curriculum, which teaches "the social, psychological and health gains of abstaining from sexual activity." Instructors must teach that sexual activity outside of marriage is likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects.

"It was just too strict," said Emily Hajek, policy adviser to Culver. "We believe local providers have the knowledge to teach what's going to be best in those situations, what kind of information will help those young people be safe. You cannot be that prescriptive about how it has to be taught."

A federal tally shows that participation in the program is down 40 percent over two years, with 28 states still in. Arizona and Iowa have announced their intention to forgo their share of the federal grant at the start of the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.

[snip]

Longtime critics of abstinence-only education say the dwindling participation is a signal that Congress should abolish the program or change it.

"If Congress isn't getting that message, it's difficult to figure out what will convince them," said William Smith, vice president for public policy at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States.

Since most of Congress has its collective heads up Bush's ass, I doubt the message will get though. Still, it is an encouraging sign. But lo! All good news about the battle to defend the Constitution must be taken with a grain of salt.

From God is for Suckers:

Another typical stunt pulled by the Bush administration, once again subverting the taxpayers’ money to religious groups who have no business getting any tax money to support their blatant prosyletization efforts. Bush and his regime is going to push this faith-based bullcrap agenda as one commenter put it right “down to the wire, to the very last day and hour of being in power.”

Read the entire post to learn about how the U.S. Department of Justice awarded part of a $1.2 million grant to an evangelical Christian organization, Victory Outreach, whose mission is to carry “the hope and message of Jesus Christ to the four corners of the earth."

A commenter from the site summed things up nicely:

At least as far as this issue goes, it will be like the tagline for Aliens vs. Predator: No matter who wins, we lose.

Calling the Kettle Barack

It appears James Dobson, super christian fundamentalnutjob, has his bible belt too tight around his waist these days:

James Dobson accuses Obama of `distorting' Bible

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - As Barack Obama broadens his outreach to evangelical voters, one of the movement's biggest names, James Dobson, accuses the likely Democratic presidential nominee of distorting the Bible and pushing a "fruitcake interpretation" of the Constitution.

The criticism, to be aired Tuesday on Dobson's Focus on the Family radio program, comes shortly after an Obama aide suggested a meeting at the organization's headquarters here, said Tom Minnery, senior vice president for government and public policy at Focus on the Family.

The conservative Christian group provided The Associated Press with an advance copy of the pre-taped radio segment, which runs 18 minutes and highlights excerpts of a speech Obama gave in June 2006 to the liberal Christian group Call to Renewal. Obama mentions Dobson in the speech.

"Even if we did have only Christians in our midst, if we expelled every non-Christian from the United States of America, whose Christianity would we teach in the schools?" Obama said. "Would we go with James Dobson's or Al Sharpton's?" referring to the civil rights leader.

Dobson took aim at examples Obama cited in asking which Biblical passages should guide public policy — chapters like Leviticus, which Obama said suggests slavery is OK and eating shellfish is an abomination, or Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, "a passage that is so radical that it's doubtful that our own Defense Department would survive its application."

"Folks haven't been reading their," Obama said.

Dobson and Minnery accused Obama of wrongly equating Old Testament texts and dietary codes that no longer apply to Jesus' teachings in the New Testament.

"I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own world view, his own confused theology," Dobson said.

The funny part is that Christians do exactly that: distort the bible to fit their world view.

Of course, Obama dismisses Dobson's criticism like he should:

Barack Obama said Tuesday that evangelical leader James Dobson was "making stuff up" when he accused the presumed Democratic presidential nominee of distorting the Bible.

Politicians and religious nutjobs making stuff up? I never! I just wish Obama didn't have to be politically correct in his dismissal of Dobson. I honestly believe he would earn thousands of moderate Christian votes if he just said what we all think: "Shut the f*** up, you lunatic!"

And No, that title is not being blatantly racist by injecting a bad, stereotype Chinese accent for the word "black." It did make me giggle a little, though.

Sometime I Don't Feel Like Moving My Arms

New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less

This is perfect for me today because I don't feel like moving my arms today. Yesterday morning I started a new weight routine, so I'm starting to get sore. Last night, I biked nearly 28 miles in 100 degree heat (plus humidity) at an average pace of 19 mph. This morning, I fought through a tough 2200 meter swim workout.

Well, perfect except that I don't eat those particular brands of foods.

The Secret to Becoming a Plastic Duck

A page from what appears to be a desktop calendar for The Secret was sitting on the toilet paper dispenser in the men's room today.

Live your dream in your heart and let the Universe move everything to bring your dream to you. Feel your dream, feel the presence of the Universe inside you, KNOW that the Universe is with you, guiding you, and then allow the Universe to realize your dream.

Profound. I felt so inspired that I dreamed for some buxom elven maidens to appear and wipe my bottom with silken toilet paper. I felt that dream, baby. I felt the presence of the Universe inside me. I just KNEW the Universe was with me and that it would realize my dream for me.

Alas, the only presence I felt was my skin growing around the toilet seat from sitting on my ass and dreaming. And the only bottom wiping being done was by my own hand with a substance as far removed from silk as possible (probably two notches above sand paper). And you are very welcome for that imagery.

For an appropriate smack-down of this nonsense, check out The Atomic Dog in his article My Speech to the Graduates, 2007.

And sure, The Secret "helps" people, but I'm going to quote Karl Marx here and proclaim that The Secret is the opium of the people. People who believe in The Secret surrender responsibility. They don't need hard work or resolve or perspiration, The Secret will provide all. They're all plastic ducks that have cast themselves onto the mercies of the ocean.

If you're vulnerable to every false god that comes along, you're pretty much doomed to be a 7-11 clerk...4EAE. (That's "forever and ever" to you non-texting people.) And not even a dayshift 7-11 clerk. No, you won't be good enough for "the show." You'll work the night shift and when some punk slips a 12-count box of Bud underneath his parka, you'll look the other way lest he use your rectum as a bottle opener.

If you're prone to every false god that comes along, you're emotionally and intellectually weak. You're a plastic duck.

For fun, I replaced "the Universe" with "God" and got essentially what makes up good Christian dogma: Just ask God to do things for you and it will happen. Never mind hard work, planning, and determination. Simply pray, or dream, for something and it will be delivered to you, no effort required on your part (except a little faith that no effort on your part is required).

But perhaps what disturbed me the most is that I found this in the men's room. In a stall. Was some dude (duck?) meditating on this while he pooped? What a way to treat your holy text.

And in that spirit, I used the sheet to wipe myself. Seemed like a more appropriate use of my time.

Quack. Quack.

The NBA: Where 1987 Happens

I couldn't agree more with Dan Shanoff:

The Last Word: So I was tuned in to the replay of Game 6 of the 1987 NBA Finals between the Lakers and Celtics, and it did nothing to change my mind that the nostalgia kick around the 2008 Finals is a crutch. I was watching with a rabid sports fan in his 20s, for whom the NBA in the 80s was little more than a blurred childhood memory. "Where 1987 Happens" cannot really be the way the NBA wants to look forward.

I realize that all the executives at ESPN and other sports media outlets are reminiscing about the classic battles from the 80's between the Celtics and the Lakers, but this is 2008. Enough with the nostalgia. And if another ESPN personality calls for both teams to wear short shorts, I think I'm going to throw something at the TV (yes, I'm looking at you, Stuart Scott).

Holy Crap!

Let's be careful out there, please.

(Full Article)

Da Brudders R N Da House!

My buddy's kids are living on the online edge with this humorous take on "The Hand That Feeds" by Nine Inch Nails.

(I have to say, though, that one of Da Brudders looks suspiciously like a Sistah)

'Nuff Said

What I Won't Be Getting My Daughter for Her Birthday

My daughter's seventh birthday is tomorrow. This clever Verizon Wireless commercial humorously explains why ponies aren't such great presents. I got her Hyper Dash so she can stay in shape to get where she wants to go under her own power.

Jezus is Ripped, Dude!!!

Seriously. If you were a god, would you like to be honored by this t-shirt, worn by fans who watch mixed martial arts fighting? Unless I was a Viking god or an old time Roman or Greek god of war, I'd be quite offended by this. Or at least puzzled.

Jezus is pretty ripped, though. So is Satan.

News of the Weird: Naked Mom Argues with Son

File this under "Things That Make You Go AH HA HA HA HA":

Naked mom argues with son, accidentally shoots finger (link)
A 73-year-old Fort Worth woman shot her finger after arguing with her son because she had been walking around the house naked, police said.

Fort Worth police were called to a house in the 5600 block of Decory Road around 1:30 a.m. Friday when they found Bertha McElroy with a bullet wound in her left index finger, according to a police report.

Ms. McElroy was taken to John Peter Smith hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

Police said that Ms. McElroy told them she had gotten into an argument with her son, Keith McElroy, 53, because she had been walking around the house in the nude.

Ms. McElroy told police that after the argument her son walked outside and slammed the door. She then went into the bedroom to load the gun when she shot her finger.

Police said they unloaded the gun and gave it to Mr. McElroy.

Here are some of my general thoughts:

• NOBODY wants to see a 73-year old woman naked. Period. So I can understand why the son lit into his mother.
• It's bad enough to fight with your mother, but to do it while she's naked?
  
• Does the son still live with his mother? Why else would he be fighting with her at 1:30 in the morning. That's just creepy. Get a job and get a life, dude.
• The police gave the gun to the son. "Mr. McElroy, here's the gun your mom wanted to shoot you with. We took out the bullets, but here ya go." Logical? Probably not. Let's now see what happens when mom tries to walk around the house naked again. Advantage: son.
• The headline kind of wrote itself. The story was the icing on the cake.
• There are some pretty messed up people in this world.
  

The Walk of No Shame

Hat tip: The Function Key.

Kewl Retro T-Shirts

Cool retro-tech t-shirts.

Abdullah Pimp Slaps Bush

It's always fun when your fearless leader begs for somebody else to save his country from its own gluttony.

Bush: Hey there, Ab-dool-AH. How's about doing me a big faver and put out a bit more?

Abdullah: No more oil for you!

Abdullah pimp slaps Bush then spits on him.

The Saudi oil minister, Ali al-Naimi, said the kingdom decided on May 10 to raise production by 300,000 barrels, at the request of customers, and that increase was sufficient.

“Supply and demand are in balance today,” he told a news conference. “How much does Saudi Arabia need to do to satisfy people who are questioning our oil practices and policies?”

Makes me think how this situation parallels the obesity crisis in this country. Rather than make the necessary changes to live a healthy life, most people choose to look to magic bullets or butchery to solve their problems as easily as possible.

Is this Where the Virgins Come From?

I guess everyone needs a hobby.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict thanked consecrated women virgins gathering at the Vatican on Thursday for their "total gift" to Christ, praising a holy rite that he recognized was difficult for some non-Catholics to understand.

"(Live your lives) in such a way that you always irradiate the dignity of being the wife of Christ," the pope said in an address to hundreds of consecrated virgins from dozens of countries meeting in Rome.

There are several things I can think of doing that would be more fun that not having sex so I can be "wed" to a zombie. Slicing my skin with a razor blade and pour lemon juice on the wound comes to mind.

The article states that it is estimated there are more than 3,000 consecrated Catholic virgins worldwide.

But reading this made me wonder if its from this pool--and what a small pool it is--that the 72 virgins are pulled that Muslim men supposedly receive in the afterlife. Won't they be disappointed? "Wait. You're WHAT?"

Magic Cat

This made me laugh out loud.

There's No Substitution for the Real Thing

I'm trying to wrap my brain around the motivation behind this act:

3 Texas teens accused of using skull removed from coffin to smoke marijuana

HOUSTON (AP) — Three Kingwood teens have been arrested and accused of digging up a secluded grave and removing a skull in Humble, a city north of Houston.

Kevin Wade Jones, 17, and Matthew Richard Gonzalez, 17, both of Kingwood, told Houston police that around March 15 they and a 16-year old juvenile dug up a grave, removed the skull from the coffin and converted it into a “bong,” a device used to smoke marijuana, according to court documents.

So the kids used the skull to smoke some weed. What were they high on when they decided this was a good idea? And I had no idea there was such a law as abuse of corpse.

But the weirdness doesn't end there. These kids weren't caught...one of them fessed up:

Houston police were initially interviewing [Kevin Wade] Jones about the use of a stolen debit card when Jones told them about the grave theft, according to court records. Asked why Jones would volunteer such a story, [Houston police Sgt. John ] Cholmiak said, “we can only speculate and guess to what goes on in the criminal mind.”

I guess it's safe to say that not much goes on in these criminal minds.

Meeting Sydney McGee

Last night at the Barnes & Nobel at Preston and Park, I ran into Sydney McGee. "Who is that?" you're asking. Ms. McGee is a former art teacher from Frisco, TX, who was fired because an elementary student she took to a museum on a field trip saw abstract art of nekkid people.

Seriously.

Here's a recap from a NY Times article:

But Ms. McGee, 51, a popular art teacher with 28 years in the classroom, is out of a job after leading her fifth-grade classes last April through the Dallas Museum of Art. One of her students saw nude art in the museum, and after the child’s parent complained, the teacher was suspended.

Although the tour had been approved by the principal, and the 89 students were accompanied by 4 other teachers, at least 12 parents and a museum docent, Ms. McGee said, she was called to the principal the next day and “bashed.”

She later received a memorandum in which the principal, Nancy Lawson, wrote: “During a study trip that you planned for fifth graders, students were exposed to nude statues and other nude art representations.” It cited additional complaints, which Ms. McGee has challenged.

I found her to be a really nice woman and I gave her encouraging words, telling her that the firing was unjust and that I hope she can eventually find work again. That work, however, will have to be found in Austin as she is trying to sell her house. She told me she is unhireable in Dallas because she's too controversial. I would have loved to sit and talk with her, but I had my daughter with me and she couldn't stand still and it was late.

Best of luck, Sydney! I think you'll find Austin to be more receptive to rational thinking and artistic interpretation.

Barkley Gets Punked

Awfully funny prank played on Charles Barkley the other night on TNT's "Inside the NBA."

I Got Dibs on Ghrelinstat

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm gazing into my crystal ball and predicting that supplement companies looking to profit off of the next weight loss fad will come out with what I call Ghrelinstat:

From MSNBC: A hormone that makes people eat more works by causing food to look tastier.

This natural molecule, named ghrelin, actually improves perception and memory when it comes to food.

"When you go to the supermarket hungry, every food looks better," said researcher Alain Dagher, a neurologist at McGill University in Montreal. "Now, we've found that it is ghrelin that acts on the brain to make food more appealing."

In fact, big pharama is already on the case:

Therapies that disrupt these effects of ghrelin could help fight obesity, the researchers conjectured. However, such treatments might come with unwanted side effects on mood, since they would target the brain's pleasure centers, Dagher said.

"Many drug companies are currently developing ghrelin-blocking drugs as obesity treatments," Dagher said. "However, we show that ghrelin acts on brain areas involved in emotion and motivation. A drug that suppresses this brain system runs the risk of causing depressed mood. There is a risk of side effects."

Side effects, shnide effects. Drug companies don't give a rip about side effects. Look at Alli. It prevents the body from absorbing about a quarter of the fat you eat. Side effects? Just some slight anal seepage lovingly called "treatment effects."

All that matters is how much money can be made by capitalizing off of people's willingness to do nothing and still lose weight. The FDA will force drug companies to slowly bring a product to market, however supplement companies are not under such regulations. I'll wager that somebody is already writing marketing copy for their potential new supplement: It's Not Your Fault You're Fat! Speaking of, I'd better get over to the copyright office and register the name Ghrelinstat.

(Pssst. Want to lose weight fast the right way? Try this.)

BRILLIANT

Hat tip: Pharyngula.

It's All About Priorities

SOUTH CHICAGO HEIGHTS, Ill. - Bill Bramanti will love Pabst Blue Ribbon eternally, and he's got the custom-made beer-can casket to prove it. "I actually fit, because I got in here," said Bramanti of South Chicago Heights.

The 67-year-old Glenwood village administrator doesn't plan on needing it anytime soon, though.

He threw a party Saturday for friends and filled his silver coffin — designed in Pabst's colors of red, white and blue — with ice and his favorite brew.

Redeeming Loserville

At least one team in this town is having some success this year.

DALLAS (AP) -- The Dallas Stars have finally made it back to the Western Conference finals. It took the eighth longest game in NHL history to do it.

I'll admit to being a fair-weather hockey fan. And since the weather is looking pretty damn good right now...GO STARS.

Happy National Day of Wishful Thinking

Happy National Day of Prayer!

Read some great take downs of this ridiculous day at Pharyngula, God is for Suckers (here and here), and Atheist Revolution. Here's a better way to spend the day: The National Day of Reason.

The Most Fun You'll Have Preventing Prostate Cancer

I swear I'm not making this up. May is officially National Masturbation Month as designated by the fine folks at Good Vibrations.

At Good Vibrations, we know that sexual pleasure is a birthright and that masturbation is a powerful source of sexual gratification. Since practically everyone masturbates, but few people talk about it, we created National Masturbation Month, a month-long celebration recognizing the many ways we can pleasure ourselves.

One of the highlights of this month is the The Ninth National Masturbate-A-Thon Weekend. As the slogan says, it's your opportunity to get off for a good cause!

Between now and the end of May, ask people you know to sponsor you for every minute you'll masturbate during the Masturbate-A-Thon on May 27. After you masturbate for the cause, be sure to tell your friends how much money they helped raise.

I just can't seem myself running around the office with my Masturbate-A-Thon pledge sheet. In the belt buckle of the Bible Belt down here in Texas, I'm sure that sort of "deviant" behavior will be frowned upon. That could explain why so many people are so uptight around here. Besides, there are many health benefits to giving yourself some solo loving. One was detailed in a 2003 Australian study that found that men who ejaculated more than five times a week were a third less likely to develop prostate cancer.

So the next time your significant other asks about what you did while she was away, you can confidently proclaim "prostate cancer prevention."

Jack FM Moment of the Week

Leave it to local radio station 100.3 Jack FM to pull out one of my all time favorite songs from my childhood: Born to be Alive by Patrick Hernandez.



I have to say that while I loved this song growing up, I may have sung a different tune if I had seen the video. If MTV Video Awards were handed out back then, this one would have won "Most Awkward and Uncomfortable Performance by an Artist."

I mean, did Hernandez borrow the Flock of Seagulls video set and just remove the foil or was it the other way around. He can't even seem to figure out which camera to look at. That, or he's unaware of the others.

"YOO HOO! Patrick! The camera is to your left. No, your other left!"

You just have to watch it to believe. Ah the good old days when making music videos was simple.

Cool Triathlon iGoogle Artist Theme

I found this really cool triathlon theme by triathlete Vanessa Fernandes for my iGoogle home page.

A top triathlete, Vanessa Fernandes continues to impress fans in her home country of Portugal and around the world with her discipline and spirit of sacrifice. She is considered one of the youngest promising stars of the decade.

And there are plenty of other cool designs. Check them out.

Did I Really Say That?

Did I really predict the Mavs over the Hornets in seven? Dang. My bad.

At least the Stars are doing their best to drag Dallas out of professional sport's Loserville.

Old College Tri Race Recap

The results are in for my Old College Tri triathlon and I couldn't be more pleased. I met or beat my goals for the race and had a wonderful experience. Here's what I wrote for my race report over at Beginner Triathlete. You can see the results broken down by age group here.

Run 3.11 miles Bike 12 miles Swim 300 meters

Total Time = 1h 14m 8s
Overall Rank = 140/400
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 13/28

Pre-race routine:
Breakfast of whole grain waffles with peanut butter and jelly.

Event warmup:
Dynamic warmups along with a few laps in the pool. Nothing much. Could probably benefit from more lower back and hip movements to warm them up.

Swim
Comments:
This was a solid but not spectacular swim. My goals were to swim 5:30 and focus on my breathing and form. The last race, I gulped and gasped during the swim and performed poorly. This time, my form was consistent, as was my speed. I didn't start out too quickly and maintained a steady pace. I passed five people, which surprised me, and wasn't passed. While not spectacular, I'm very pleased with this solid swim.

What would you do differently?:
For this race, not a thing. I would like a faster swim time, but this race was about technique, not speed.

T1
Comments:
Transition was fine. I'm sure I'll get more efficient in the future, but my time was basically the same as the last, so I'm happy. I took a shot of gel before getting on the bike this time for some extra fuel.

What would you do differently?:
Nothing.

Bike
Comments:
This was the area where I thought I could improve the most, and I was right. The additional time spent on the bike with the Carrollton Cycling Club increased my confidence and pace. The shifting could use some more work, but I have no complaints. I've been riding this bike for just over three months now. I took an additional gel shot a couple miles before transition and finished my water bottle as I planned. My back did hurt but not as much as the last race. However, because I was pushing hard, my power levels declined as the race leg progressed. I must continue to work on this area because the bike rides will get longer as the season progresses. If I want to maintain top speeds, my back has to be strong. Overall, I'm very pleased with this ride.

What would you do differently?:
Maybe more back specific warm ups prior to the race, but there's not much I can do while I'm on the bike.

T2
Comments:
Very smooth transition. No issues. Found that running on the my toes and not my heels made the run easier.

What would you do differently?:
Nothing.

Run
Comments:
The course was made for turning a fast time, but my legs were shot from the bike ride. However, that was expected because I have not been running much due to the achilles issues. I had not run the week leading up to the race and had not practiced any bricks since my last race in March. That said, the achilles behaved and I had no calf issues, although both felt a little tight. I began the race deliberately slow, waiting for my running legs to come. They never came, but my pace was steady. No kick, but my pace was steady. I usually only take one drink during a 5K, this time I took two. I had a brief sloshy episode but it quickly passed. Overall, I'm happy with the time.

What would you do differently?:
Nothing other than only taking one drink during the race leg.

Post race
Warm down:
No warm-down. Drank fluid, ate pancakes, visited with friends, and cheered on my girlfriend.

What limited your ability to perform faster:
My sore back may have slightly limited my bike performance. I felt my power leave me over the last couple of miles of the bike leg. For the run, the issue with my achilles is clearly slowing me down. I've running decent times for the races but I know that I can go faster.

Event comments:
Another great race by the Dallas Sports University. And the weather was stunning and perfect. As with the St. Patrick's Day tri, I was beaten by the 11-year old girl from The Woodlands. Although, I'm closing the gap.

This Isn't Helping

I struggle with "why am I doing this thoughts" when it comes to triathlon training. One of the parts about this sport I'm not particularly looking forward to is open water swimming. Tragic stories like this one aren't helping.

Second Try at a Tri

I guess it's time to commit some race goals to writing, especially since my next triathlon is this weekend.

Old College Tri Goals
April 26, 2008
www.oldcollegetri.com

* Goal: Finish in 1:19:57 (yes, that is only one second faster than my last race)
* Swim Goal: 300m in 5:30 (my official seeding time is 5:10)
* Ride Goal: 12 miles in 40 minutes (that's an average of 18 mph)
* Run Goal: Run 5K in 28 minutes
* Total Transition Time: Less than 4:30

So, doing the math, that totals 1:18:00. But my overall goal is to simply be faster than the last race.

I see the bike ride being my area of biggest improvement. When I rode the St. Patrick's Triathlon, you could count the number of times I had ridden my bike on two hands. Since then, I've ridden with and joined the Carrollton Cycling club and have spent more time on the bike. My confidence has grown and I've learned how to tolerate and mange any back pain.

My biggest worry is the run considering the achilles problems I have had. Plus, I haven't trained on the run at all this week, focusing on bike and swim. Training not to break I call it. If the pain is tolerable, I believe I can run faster than 28 minutes. Shoot, I managed to beat that time at St. Patrick's while limping through several hundred meters when my calf exploded.

I'm excited for the race though. The weather is looking good. Rain is forecast for Friday night but Saturday morning will be in the upper 50s. The race starts at 7:00 a.m. so by the time I hit the bike and run the temperature will be warm but not super hot.

The theme of the race is the old college tri so most people will be wearing college-themed gear. I'll be sporting a sweet IU swim cap that one of my ad reps scored for me. Kara will be wearing one as well as a show of support. I'll probably wear a red shirt for the bike and run and maybe an IU cap for the run. No IU t-shirts as the one shirt that I have will be uncomfortable to race in. I may do some body marking, too. We shall see. Until then, I'll leave you with this:

Indiana, Our Indiana
Indiana, we're all for you
We will fight for
the Cream & Crimson,
For the glory of Old IU
Never daunted, we cannot falter
In the battle, we're tried and true
Indiana, Our Indiana
Indiana, we're all for you!
I-U

HA HA. You Suck, Isiah

Finally, justice have been served against The Great Destroyer:

From ESPN.com: Former New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas has been banned from having any contact with members of the team as part of his reassignment agreement with team president Donnie Walsh, the New York Daily News reported, citing a team source.

What a fun month for Ol' Zeke. First, he gets canned as GM. Then the new GM cans him as coach and reassigns him to do...something:

Thomas does not have an official title. He reports directly to Walsh, who said no player brought up Thomas' name during last week's exit meetings Thursday.

"I don't want there to be some kind of double-voice here, so he's answering to me and nobody's reporting to him," Walsh said on 1050 ESPN Radio in New York on Tuesday. "... He's not going to be here on a full-time basis anymore. I'll be calling the shots, I'm in charge of the franchise. It's my responsibility where it was his."

So let's recap Isiah's post-player career: Screws the Toronto Raptors, bankrupts the CBA, leads the New York Knicks into the basement of the NBA as coach and GM, and further embarrasses the once proud franchise by sexually harassing an employee.

I used to love this guy. He was awesome for the Indiana Hoosiers and the only reason why I rooted for the Detroit Pistons during their Bad Boys days and championship runs. He was my hero as a kid. Now? I'll be a happy man if I never hear his name again.

Except here.

Mavs in Seven

Call it karmic payback for last year's historic choke job, but I like the Maverick's chances in the first round of this year's NBA playoffs against the Hornets. Yet:

But the truth is that this Mavericks team is impossible to read. The moment they begin to flex their muscles, the moment they give you a hint that there is playoff hope after victories over Golden State, Phoenix and Utah, they lose to Portland and Seattle.

This team is good, but it's easily the most inconsistent group Avery Johnson has coached. Nothing this team has done during the regular season leads you to believe they are capable of a deep playoff run. But then, last year's team gave every indication it was braced for a long playoff run and went out in the first round.

The Mavericks won't win the title this season. But they are capable of making some noise in the playoffs. They are also capable of leaving the scene with not much more than a whimper.

We're about to find out which route they take.

At least one of my teams has to do well this year: Cowboys? Chokeboys. Colts? Dolts. Hoosiers? Don't get me started.

Mavericks? Somethings gotta give, right? Mavs in seven.

My Tax Dollars at Work?

In the name of chicken sandwiches, I hope my tax dollars are not being used for this:

WASHINGTON - President Bush has quite a birthday present for Pope Benedict XVI: at least 9,000 excited guests gathered on the White House's South Lawn for a 21-gun salute, a famed soprano's rendition of "The Lord's Prayer" and an emotional presidential welcome.

The pontiff turns 81 on Wednesday, the first full day of his first trip to the United States as leader of the world's Roman Catholics. He'll spend most of the day at the White House, only the second pope to do so and the first in 29 years.

The amount of media coverage for the pope's visit is astonishing and nauseating. This guy is no different than any other religious leader, but I wager that no imam or hindu swami would be given this kind of treatment. I'm hopeful that in my lifetime the influence this worthless position has on the world will diminish. Must be the hats because the only things the pope spouts are stupidity, hatred, bigotry, and nonsense.

Nauseating Update:

Bush showed off America to its important visitor, ticking off what he said are its best virtues: a nation of prayer and compassion, a nation that believes in religious liberty and welcomes the role of faith in the public square, and one that is the most "innovative, creative and dynamic country on Earth" but also among the most religious.

"Most of all, Holy Father, you will find in America people whose hearts are open to your message of hope," Bush said.

But while acting the proud father, Bush also seemed to suggest that America could use a little tough talking-to by the pontiff.

"In a world where some treat life as something to be debased and discarded, we need your message that all human life is sacred and that each of us is willed, each of us is loved, and each of us is necessary," the president said, drawing sustained applause from the lawn.

That this is front page news is vomitous. That I'm actually reading it is worse.

Temporal Perspective

An animated short about the evolution of man through the perspective of two rocks on a hillside. The movie is in German with English subtitles.



Hat tip: Pharyngula

What's Your Game?

I love this commercial.

My game? Triathlons.

Eternal Life

Eternal life eligibility, according my daughter:

The only people who can live for ever are Santa and Jesus...and Mrs. Clause.

I laughed.

What? Santa can live forever. Who else brings all those presents?

We are reading about ancient Egypt civilization and their belief that they could live forever. Makes me wonder what will happen when she finally comes to the realization that Santa doesn't exist. Will she make the logical jump about Jesus? I can only hope.

Devil's Cape Book Signing

Rob Rogers, Devil's Cape author, signing my copy of the book.

Here are some of his thoughts about the event.

Of Course It Works!

Five Philadelphia elementary schools replaced sodas, candy, and snack with wise food choices, juice, and good nutrition education. The result? Sit down, because you're going to be shocked:

After two years, besides fewer new overweight children, the overall number of overweight students at the five schools dropped about 10 percent to 15 percent. At the no-change schools, the number of overweight children rose a quarter to 20 percent.

I hope this evidence carries over to a more nation-wide effort for educating children on nutrition. Seems pretty simple, really:

“We found when you give children healthy choices, they pick them,” said Grace McGinley, school nurse at Francis Hopkinson School, one of the test schools.

Let's hope the next administration is way smarter than a fifth grader and get serious about childhood obesity.

New Gear for the New Coach

Tom Crean was hired last night. He had a press conference today at 11:00 A.M. Eastern. He was handed this shirt early this morning. It's not just some enterprising student, it's already on sale.

The 'Crean and Crimson' Era of IU Basketball

Seeing "The Crean and Crimson era of IU basketball" as the title of blog post by Terry Hutchens finally got me excited about the hiring of Tom Crean as IU's next basketball coach. And more I read about Crean, the more I think this is a really solid hire for IU:

I like the hire on several levels. I was not looking forward to a coach who was too old because I felt they needed a younger coach to build a program around. At the same time I wasn't crazy about coaches who had only led a program for a couple of years because I've never thought of Indiana as a place that should be a proving ground for anyone. And so while I thought Tony Bennett would have been a good fit on many levels, his inexperience as a head coach was a less than favorable point with me. With Crean, you have a 42-year-old coach with nine years of head coaching experience at a good school. He's a Midwestern guy, has coached in the Big Ten, he's a proven recruiter and he runs a clean program.

Here's a nice look at his profile. Inside the Hall has a link dump about the hire.

I found out about the hire last night before going to bed. I was in a bit of shock to really know how I felt about the hire. It's now a new day--both for me and the Hoosiers. I'm excited.

But it won't be easy.

So welcome to Bloomington, Tom. Just business as (un)usual around these parts. Fix a broken program. And do it within a year. Maybe two. (Full column by Bob Kravitz)

Let the Crean and Crimson era begin!

Hoosiers Hire Tom Crean as Next Coach

Well, that was fast.

Indiana is turning to Tom Crean to bring respectability back to Hoosiers.

A couple dozen wins each year would help, too.

After a tumultuous season and turbulent coaching search, the Hoosiers finally hired Crean on Tuesday as what they hope will be a long-term replacement for Kelvin Sampson. Sampson resigned in February amid a phone-call scandal that included five major allegations from the NCAA.

Crean is not the sexy hire I was hoping for, nor was he really on my radar...this year. He was on my radar two years ago before Sampson was hired. Overall, I'm happy with this choice. I'm not jumping up and down, but I'm not indifferent. I'll reserve full judgment and wait for the press conference.

Here's a nice take on this over at The Dagger:

Now Crean has landed there. The next step is to find out if he can coach. If his Marquette returns are any indication, he could be an inscrutably solid, if not dazzling, solution to IU's considerable woes. Indiana got bailed out with this one. Now it's up to Crean to right the ship.

I hope he can.

Timely April Fool's Joke

Bravo to the Card Chronicle. Nice little joke. Ha, ha.

Good Lord.

Apparently there's some truth to the message board chatter that Louisville fans have been brushing off for the last couple of weeks, as ESPN's Pat Forde is reporting that Rick Pitino met with Indiana athletic director Rick Greenspan in Bloomington on Monday afternoon, and cites a source close to Pitino as saying that he is "leaning towards" taking the job.

[snip]

Forde didn't say whether or not a timeline had been set for Pitino to make a decision, but he did say that today is April Fool's Day, and that Mike Rutherford of CardChronicle.com had made every word of this post up.

What the Hell is Going on at IU?

I wake up this morning to a fine how-do-you-do:

From the Indianapolis Star: Basset, Ellis Kicked Off Team
The Indiana University basketball team could enter the 2008-09 season with a new coach and no returning starters.

The latter is the result of confirmation Monday that IU starters Armon Bassett and Jamarcus Ellis were dismissed from the team by interim coach Dan Dakich, according to three people close to the program.

According to The Hoosier Scoop, the two players were hoping that whoever the new coach is would change their punishment:

But [Bassett and Ellis] are telling teammates that they hope the dismissal will turn into more of a suspension. They plan on maintaining their eligibility in hopes that a new coach will allow them back on the team, according to a source close to the situation.

These two have been previously suspended during the year for a violation of team rules. Bassett missed games against Kentucky, Western Carolina and Coppin State, and Ellis missed the regular-season finale against Penn State. It was never revealed what they did to earn their suspensions, but suffice to say, these guys were already walking on thin ice when they decided to play the "you're not my real coach" card.

Those people say Bassett and Ellis missed a pre-arranged appointment late last week, and Dakich told them that they were required to run at 6 a.m. the next day as punishment. He also told them at the time that if they didn't show up, they would be off the team.

The next morning neither was there and Dakich informed them later of his decision.

All this happened last night, while I was blissfully unaware. This morning, IU confirmed that the dismissals are a done deal:

Indiana athletics media relations director J.D. Campbell confirmed this morning that IU has dismissed Armon Bassett and Jamarcus Ellis from its basketball team.

Campbell gave no explanation about the reasons for or timing of the dismissals.

Terry Hutchins of the Hoosier Insider has a nice post that about sums up the whole mess that is IU basketball:

A friend just told me that IU was worried at one point about what the NCAA might do to them and what it would do to the program. But this team appears to be imploding all by itself. Can you believe the timing of this one? If this program didn't have bad timing, it would have no timing at all.

I have no idea why an interim coach would toss these two off the team, but clearly there's more to all this than what's on the surface. One thing is for sure, it's going to get worse before things get better. What coach wants to inherit this mess?

Devil's Cape Has Arrived

I received a surprise in my mailbox last night: my copy of Devil's Cape arrived several days earlier than expected. I'm anxious to return to Pirate Town:

If New Orleans has earned its "Sin City" nickname for its debauchery, then its nearby sister Devil's Cape has earned its "Pirate Town" moniker for the violence and blatant corruption that have marred the city since its founding. A city where corruption and heroism walk hand-in-hand, and justice and mercy are bought and paid-for in blood, Devil's Cape is a city like no other.

Buy the book today.

Visit the author's blog.

Devil's Cape Shipped

I got an e-mail from Amazon.com that my preordered copy of Devil's Cape, written by my friend Rob Rogers, just shipped. I should have it no later than Friday. In the meantime, I may hit a bookstore or two with my Border's Rewards coupon and see if it's on the shelves starting tomorrow.

Pssst. Hey Buddy. Wanna Coach a Basketball Team?

Doesn't anyone want to coach the Indiana Hoosiers? Let's recap my three top choices.

Bruce Pearl (Tennessee)?

From The Sporting News: Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton said Friday afternoon he'd received no requests from other schools to interview Pearl for another head coaching position. He is confident Pearl will remain at Tennessee.

Tony Bennett (Washington State)?

From The Hoosier Insider: Indiana and Bennett talked about the opening today and the Washington State coach told IU that he wasn't interested in pursuing the position. "I had an exploratory conversation with Indiana,'' Bennett told the newspaper Sunday, "and I am not going to pursue the Indiana job.'' (Possible reasons why)

Sean Miller (Xavier)?

From The Hoosier Scoop: Publicly, Miller has already stated that he wants to stay at Xavier, where’s he’s been the coach since Thad Matta left for Ohio State.

“I will be at Xavier,” Miller said after his team lost to UCLA Saturday. “I’m looking forward to coaching at Xavier and continuing on with what we’ve done for years behind me and what we’ve done this year.”

I know that most of this is based on speculation and rumor, except the Bennet quote. Coaches will endeavor to say the right thing to cover their butts in case any move doesn't pan out. To quote Don Nelson when he coach the Dallas Mavericks, "If my mouth is moving, I'm lying to you." Not that these coaches are lying, but I do hope one of them has a change of heart.

On the bright side, the great destroyer hasn't been contacted by the search committee.

I'd Like to Thank Tennessee...

...for totally f***ing up my bracket.

On the bright side, the Hoosiers are now free to pursue Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl for its head coach job. Um, so thanks Louisville.

Tell the FDA What You Think About Drug Ads

Endless drug ads on TV: do these drugs really work, and what about side effects? Are we hearing the whole story???

I just took action to make sure we know more about the benefits and risks of the drugs we take. Join me in urging the FDA to require drug companies to include a 1-800 number and website in all TV drug ads so consumers can report side effects. A better system for reporting problems means earlier detection of problems!

Click here and sign the online petition.

Some history from the Prescription for Change Blog:

An Institute of Medicine report found that in 2004, only 21,500 of the 423,000 adverse event reports that year came directly from doctors and patients — even though there is an easy to use 1-800 number.

Drug safety activist Kim Witczak of Minneapolis, Minn. proposed a nifty idea: what if these ubiquitous drug ads included that 1-800 number? Rep Schakowsky of Illinois offered an amendment to the FDA reform bill last fall requiring this information for all drug ads. By the time the bill got to the President, it required drug companies to only include the 1-800 number on print ads, but not TV ads. Rather, the law called for FDA to study the TV ad idea.

I hate drug ads. I wish there were completely banned from print and TV. But since that won't happen any time soon, I'll throw my support behind this effort. I urge you to do the same.

Buy This Book: Devil's Cape

My good friend Rob Rogers is about to have his first novel published. In fact, it will hit stores in ONE WEEK!

From the man himself:

Man, it's just one week until Devil's Cape hits bookshelves. If you're interested in the book, please call your local bookstore and make sure that it's going to be stocking some copies. Judging by the other Discoveries titles, it might not automatically be stocked, and I could really use the help generating some interest.

Wizards has expanded its coverage of Devil's Cape on its site. Some things are still being tweaked and more content is coming, but I'm excited that a sample chapter has been posted. Please take a look at it here. I apologize that it's a zipped file--I'm not sure why they do it that way. If I can figure out a way to host the PDF myself somewhere, I'll do so.

What's this book about, you ask? Allow me to elaborate:

Heroes with a Southern Gothic edge.

If New Orleans has earned its "Sin City" nickname for its debauchery, then its nearby sister Devil's Cape has earned its "Pirate Town" moniker for the violence and blatant corruption that have marred the city since its founding. A city where corruption and heroism walk hand-in-hand, and justice and mercy are bought and paid-for in blood, Devil's Cape is a city like no other.

Devil's Cape is a novel like no other. It blends the gritty crime novel with a heavy dose of the supernatural and weaves a tale of superhuman heroes and villains. Briskly written and highly readable, Devil's Cape will appeal to a wide audience.

I had the privilege of reading an early draft of Devil's Cape. I'm not much of a fan of the comic book genre but story and characters kept me riveted. I can't wait for the final version to be released. I preordered my copy on Amazon months ago. Honestly, I'm not pushing this book just because Rob is my friend. It's a damn good book. Download the sample chapter and see if you're not instantly hooked.

Dakich Receives Kiss of Death

It was bad enough for interim Hoosier coach Dan Dakich to coach what became his final game under the specter of the announcement by the university that it had formed a basketball coach search committee. Now this:

From the NY Daily News: HOOSIER DADDY? With Indiana eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, the school is expected to being a search for a new head coach. Former Hoosier player Dan Dakich is serving as the interim coach. Scott Skiles is scheduled to be interviewed for the job, but when one of Indiana’s most famous alums was asked if he has any interest, Thomas passed. “I would hope that they would keep Dan Dakich there,” Thomas said. “Dan has done a good job under some tough circumstances. “I’ll do everything I can to help and support the program in terms of financial resources and also helping them recruit players. I definitely would like to see Dakich keep the job.”

The support of Isaiah Thomas? The Great Destroyer?

So long Dakich. It's been good knowing you.