Monthly Archives: March 2021

“The Dragon” was played by Pope Pius XII in an uncredited role, or so the backstage rumor mill had it.

The Golden Coach (1952) is one of those whimsical productions which indulge in sundry bits of unlikely occurrences in order to make a point, and whether you like it or not depends on your taste in drama.

A troupe of the commedia dell’arte type is commissioned to travel from its home in Italy to Peru, to perform for the local colonists. Their dreams of performing in a city where the streets are paved in gold go up in dust, when not only the cold reality of colonial Peru means the gold is being drained away by the colonial governors, but productions such as there’s are expected to perform for free, and depend on the largesse of the local colonial administration to cover their costs.

Fortunately for them, the local administrator, the Viceroy, takes a liking for the leading lady of the troupe, Camilla, a woman who wears her emotions on her sleeve, has lost the leash for same, possesses a hot temper, and pursues a wide variety of, ah, interests. Through the Viceroy’s support, they can continue to perform, if only to earn enough for passage back to their homes. Meanwhile, Camilla finds, besides the Viceroy, two other men of surpassing interest: the gracious Don Antonio, who came over on their ship, and the local champion bullfighter, Ramon, an intensely popular man whose enthusiasm for the work of the troupe also contributes much to its success.

And what of the eponymous golden coach? The Viceroy ordered it from Spain, and it was also on the ship. He wishes to use it to impress other Administrators, the Dons under his jurisdiction, and, well, it’s useful for impressing Camilla as well, now that he’s met her.

But there is a war brewing. and Don Antonio leaves to fight; soon enough, the war impacts the Viceroy, whose financial acumen is already lamentable. But with Camilla still to win, even as he presses his unwilling Dons to contribute more in taxes, he gifts the golden coach to her.

As well as to another woman.

Soon enough, the Viceroy’s position is threatened, as he can be stripped of his post by the nobility, the Dons, if the local Bishop agrees that the Viceroy has become unsuitable to the job. What is to be done? What of Don Antonio, back from the war and world-weary, and the impetuous Ramon? Will the Bishop sign on to the removal of the Viceroy?

And will Camilla, dismayed at the sudden timidity of her wooer, ever respect him again?

It’s all a bit silly, but not in that way where you wonder why you bothered; it’s a professional production, and in English, rather than the expected Italian or Spanish. If you need something to take the weight of the world off your shoulders, this may be a good tonic.

I know CPAC was last weekend, but I can’t help but be fascinated on a hint of what appears to be an attempt to rip the conservative movement apart. From LifeSiteNews:

A spirited discussion during a breakout session at CPAC today brought out into the open what many religious Americans have been saying the past several years, namely, that the conservative movement is compromising on social issues in order to win over gay and pro-LGBT voters.

Pro-life activist Abby Johnson lit the fuse Saturday with remarks she gave during a panel conversation on Christianity that also featured former Trump legal advisor Jenna Ellis. Johnson’s comments resulted in a twenty minute, sometimes combative, back and forth between herself, other panelists, and audience members.

“They haven’t had one keynote speaker stand up there and talk about the attack on traditional marriage,” Johnson thundered. “And they can’t. Because some of their sponsors are gay conservatives.”

Johnson, who has previously spoken on CPAC’s main stage, said she was referring to the influence of groups like Log Cabin Republicans and Atheists for Liberty, which had booths at the conference.

“Transgenderism is running rampant through CPAC and we’re not talking about traditional families, we’re not talking about traditional marriage …. because we have compromised to this false sense of diversity.” …

And here’s the giveaway, the tell of someone who’s desperate for power:

“We have a problem with the conservative movement … we don’t hear enough of [the word of God] from the main stage,” she said. “I think gun rights, election integrity is important … but we need to hear more about God from the largest conservative conference in the United States.”

Rather than support the organization’s bid to increase its influence, she’d rather take the next step in the accumulation of political power. Because this is all about political power, because that’s what CPAC is all about. Like many zealots, it doesn’t seem reasonable to her that her grab for power will be just like Jello squeezing, with much of it running away, but that’s what will happen. Especially those who think she’s committing blasphemy.

Which, by the way, this appears to be most perilous, trying to use her religious mania to accumulate power in the world. Not that there’s anything new in that, but I did have to laugh at this:

She also criticized a golden statue of President Trump that was wheeled into the conference. Attendees could be heard praising the statue as “awesome” as it made its way through the convention floor.

Good for her for spitting into the wind. Too bad she’s not self-aware enough to know she’s treading on equally God-forsaken – literally! – ground herself.

But all of this speaks to an ongoing fracturing of the conservative movement. I wonder how long it’ll take for the Mormons to get run out of the movement, despite being more authentic than the purifiers.

The size of the March 4th “Inauguration” crowd:

Trump's inauguration crowd today. @seanspicer pic.twitter.com/lcYEDeXVGi

— Cheri Jacobus (@CheriJacobus) March 5, 2021

Trying to make that into the biggest inauguration crowd ever might be unkind to the Photoshoppers. Still, keep an eye out for Don, Jr., appearing half a dozen times throughout the crowd. That’ll be your clue to fakery.

Excuse me: Fake News.

Ersatz:

Ersatz is a German word literally meaning substitute or replacement.^[2] Although it is used as an adjective in English, it is a noun in German. In German orthography noun phrases formed are usually represented as a single word, forming compound nouns such as Ersatzteile (“spare parts”) or Ersatzspieler (“substitute player”). While ersatz in English generally means that the substitution is of unsatisfactory or inferior quality compared with the “real thing”, in German, there is no such implication: e.g., Ersatzteile ‘spare parts’ is a technical expression without any implication about quality, whereas Kaffeeersatz ‘coffee substitute‘ is not made from coffee beans, and is thus inferior. [Wikipedia]

Noted in “Fact check: Images of alleged giant human skeletons are altered,” Reuters:

Followers of this conspiracy contend not only that “the trees we see now are small ersatz versions of giant, 20-mile-high trees that used to exist on earth in ancient times,” as related in a Quartz article here , but also that giants who once roamed the earth were the ones who cut them down.

I was not aware of the exact connotations of ersatz. There’s a pun in this somewhere, but I’m too crabby to dig it out. Oh, there’s one in that, too.

Take my keyboard away from me. Or my sense of humor.

Maybe someone should tell these folks there were monstrous dogs that roamed the earth, and they formed the Rocky Mountains in a process that is not for the delicate. And then they chased down and ate Paul Bunyan. The ravaged skeleton can be seen here.

Attack of the kewpie dolls, eh?

Does the idea of turning Cthulhu into a minion and calling it – unknowingly – Spot deeply amuse you or fill you with disgust?

If the former, then Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom (2016) might be a suitable night’s entertainment.

But don’t go into this expecting to be impressed. This effort, while entertaining in parts, suffers from second-rate animation, such as a lack of tracks when traversing snow fields, poor artistic choices (I agree with my Artistic Editor), minions of the antagonist being radically underwhelming and vaguely amusing when they should have served to put Howard in mortal peril, and some plot holes that needed cleaning up.

The result, while it has its moments and made me laugh a couple of times, is generally a bit disappointing. There’s a sense that it could have been quite a bit more, but the makers didn’t quite see how much better it could have been.

And they didn’t put Cthulhu in a tutu. Very disappointing.

A reader remarks on the GOP members of Congress in response to Senator Tuberville’s pursuit of the title The Clown of the Senate:

There is no shortage of idiots in Congress. How so many graduated law school and passed the Bar is a mystery.

Indeed. And although the dis-esteemed Tuberville does not have academic achievements beyond being a football coach, Senator Sasse (R-NE) is a former University president. Senator Hawley (R-MO) is a former University professor. Senator Cassidy (R-LA) is an MD.

It leaves me wondering: did these people benefit from ‘legacies’, did they buy their honors, or are the institutions actually in such bad shape that people like Hawley and Rep Gaetz (R-FL) (Florida State U Law School) can get through?

Or is there a disconnect between academic achievement and provincialism? Does the former not erase the latter?

I see Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) is unwilling to concede the race for the title of Clown Of The Senate. Here he’s seen trying to present a critique of the Covid-19 relief bill (American Rescue Plan):

why are they like this pic.twitter.com/QGYOQrJX1l

— Elizabeth Pancotti (@ENPancotti) March 3, 2021

Yes, that does say “Thickness of a $1 bill: ...”, followed by a bunch of math.

Because, heaven knows, this is a relevant metric when evaluating a proposed piece of legislation. Especially legislation designed to bring relief to a large proportion of America suffering due to a national emergency.

Of Wisconsin, you ding-bat.

It’s another example of ideology over competency, and how that damages the nation. Do better next time, Wisconsin. Johnson’s beyond help, I fear.

The legendary Bruce Schneier doesn’t see much happiness for the customers of the software industry unless government steps in:

The only way to force companies to provide safety and security features for customers and users is with government intervention. Companies need to pay the true costs of their insecurities, through a combination of laws, regulations, and legal liability. Governments routinely legislate safety — pollution standards, automobile seat belts, lead-free gasoline, food service regulations. We need to do the same with cybersecurity: the federal government should set minimum security standards for software and software development.

In today’s underregulated markets, it’s just too easy for software companies like SolarWinds to save money by skimping on security and to hope for the best. That’s a rational decision in today’s free-market world, and the only way to change that is to change the economic incentives.

Which aligns with my long-held view that software should always have a substantial warranty on it, and that the old “this software is not warranted for any particular use” was a scam and should have been made illegal. If we’re going to run a capitalist economy, then it’s necessary that costs of insecurity flow to the responsible party where possible – and while out ‘n out malefactors are not always found and prosecuted, and often can’t pay the piper, the companies selling insecure software can pay for it.

And, because they want bigger profits, they have a motivation to fix their damn software. No surprise here, right?

The question is how far are we going to have to go to create secure software, because products are delivered on the shoulders of other products: operating systems, compilers, software libraries proprietary and free, and all vulnerable to insecurities. As I’ve mentioned before, we need a software equivalent to Underwriters Laboratories (UL), which tests consumer hardware, such as can openers, for safety issues.

On the other hand, it strikes me that I may be pushing the UL analogy too far. After all, UL works on assuring bad designs don’t make it out into the world, while the software problem involves malevolent outside forces attempting to take advantage of mistakes in software design.

There is a difference, and it may affect how we should approach the problem. For example, perhaps these same companies should be permitted to sue the people taking advantage of software flaws, and, if successful, perhaps attach some percent of their incomes for the rest of their lives.

That might get their attention.

In any case, motivation of those producing the software is the key here. As Schneier points out, there’s currently little motivation for producing secure software; time to market and gimmick gimmick gimmick are the leading lights of the software producers. This has to change.

From last night’s Colbert, it’s John Batiste:

Erick Erickson, who I will refrain from saying is my favorite far-right extremist, has an actually interesting piece on critical theory and its interaction with the “American church,” by which I suspect he means mostly Protestant fundamentalist denominations. I don’t know enough about critical theory to say whether or not his summation is accurate, but it seems congruent with Andrew Sullivan’s frequent observations on it – so that’s a point in its favor.

But I wasn’t going to comment on it until I ran across this little gem:

Critical theory has invaded the church — a post-modern Marxist theory that believes there are oppressors and oppressed and that reality is constructed through language, not objective reality. It is trying to speak into and explain the world and theology to a people who worship absolute, objective truth.

Critical theorists cannot actually, truly understand, interpret, or follow the God of all Creation because that God calls Himself the way, the truth, and life. He is objective reality. Critical theorists will scream about me saying this, but a theory that cannot acknowledge absolute, objective truth is a theory that cannot explain or orbit around Christ.

I fear this is an objective reality for which there’s no objective evidence, at least that I’ve never heard of. In fact, the claim of objective reality has at least a shadow of blasphemy about it, for faith, the keystone of the Christian edifice, is the belief in something for which there’s no dispositive evidence, technically speaking, although I would go further and say there’s very little evidence at all. I generally agree that the existence of the Universe may point to a Divine, but that leaves open the question of the origin of a Divine for which, again, there’s little other evidence.

But my feeling is that Erickson’s also trying to bail out a sinking boat. The conservative movement has been the origin of science denial, of racism, and of the January 6th Insurrection. These are not inconsiderable, and I suspect that certain members must be looking at the results of these positions and incidents and begun wondering about walking away, not only from the movement, but from the evangelical movement.

An idol if I ever saw one.

Because science has that shiny little ornament hanging on it called evidence. Science, as the study of reality, has a lot going for it: objective evidence, self-examination, self-correction, a past and future filled with positives, such as curing the ill, technology, and enabling exploration. And while there’s no denying that many of its practitioners have their distressing flaws, such as racism, misogyny, egotism, fraud, and narcissism, science emerges, time and again, from the shadow of those flawed figures, corrects itself if necessary, and continues onward.

Flinging faith against science is becoming a more and more difficult proposition, as science racks up achievements and victories, while Christian faith has led so many astray of late that the younger generations are failing to sign up for religions, stable or new. So what to do?

Declare your Divine is an objective reality. Never mind it won’t come down to boom its commands, plead its case, or stand by with a sneer on its face. No fingerprints are found. no objectively identified miracles. But it’s a matter of propaganda, truth be told: use the same words as those of that malignant idol, Science, and apply them to the Faith, and hope the faithful never notice.

I wonder how well it works.

Having received and torn into the three-layer packaging for a book today, I am now ready to submit a new phrase to the quantum lexicon:

Quantum Packaging: Packaging so tough that the basic probability function concerning the identity of the book so packaged never collapses.

Unless it meets a Wustof knife.

Certain conservative atheists are all excited about some of the results of CPAC:

For those who shit on my efforts to secularize the right, you can apologize anytime. Also, you're welcome.

How would you like a choice of secular parties to vote for? Coming soon, thanks to AFL. https://t.co/CdWDrpS9QP

— David Silverman (@MrAtheistPants) February 28, 2021

I’ve never heard of Silverman, who apparently is a conservative atheist, but it’s not hard to see how years of hard work – or at least hard wishing – can make it easy to misinterpret the results. People see what they want to see, not what is there. I include myself as an occasional member of that group.

So how is Silverman wrong? This is not a straw poll of the conservatives, the Republicans, or the base.

It’s a straw poll of the attendees of CPAC, and to a poll professional, which I am not, I am quite sure they’d note this is not a random, representative example of anything at all. This is a self-selecting group within the stratified hierarchy of the conservative movement. In fact, it’s probably near the top of the movement.

In fact, a liberal reading of those stats would suggest this: CPAC, being a gathering of conservative/Trumpist leaders, have placed abortion down at the bottom of the straw poll, which reveals them to be deeply out of touch with their base, which remains strongly anti-abortion.

Now, is there any repercussions for telling the truth? How many of the base pay attention to such trivia as straw polls at CPAC? It’s hard to say, actually. The aliens (to sober governance) now infesting CPAC are relatively new to the game, and they may not realize how important it is to posture properly to keep the base happy; indeed, the lack of imposition of anti-abortion laws on the nation may have contributed to the failure of the traditional Republican leadership, who’d been stringing the anti-abortion forces along for decades.

It’s something to keep an eye on.

(For those wondering, I picked up this Tweet and a link for a future post from this Friendly Atheist post by Hemant Mehta. Mehta and his crowd are a bit repetitive and abrasive – like me, come to think of it – but I do appreciate their work on collecting information such as this.)

I’ve been remiss in checking in on Retraction Watch, but was pointed that way by Paul Fidalgo’s blog this afternoon. This is from the abstract of a paper that has gained an Expression of Concern, which Retraction Watch covers here:

Current practices in allopathic medicine measure different types of energy in the human body by using quantum field dynamics involved in nuclear medicine, radiology, and imaging diagnostics.

Red flag #1: Someone mentioning “allopathic medicine,” which means evidence-based or science-based medicine, immediately gets my attention, because it can be considered a denigrative term in some contexts. If evidence must be denigrated, it’s a big signal that someone’s terrified of actually having their work examined.

Once diagnosed, current treatments revert to biochemistry instead of using biophysics therapies to treat the disturbances in subtle energies detected and used for diagnostics. Quantum physics teaches us there is no difference between energy and matter.

Red flag #2: No, quantum physics does not. You bang your nose into matter, and while you may burn your nose on energy, given enough power, you don’t bang it. E=mc² doesn’t make the two equivalent, it merely shows that the two are mutually convertible, with enough struggle. That’s why there’s a c² term.

All systems in the human being, from the atomic to the molecular level, are constantly in motion-creating resonance. This resonance is important to understanding how subtle energy directs and maintains health and wellness in the human being. Energy medicine (EM), whether human touch or device-based, is the use of known subtle energy fields to therapeutically assess and treat energetic imbalances, bringing the body’s systems back to homeostasis (balance).

Red flag #3: Energy Medicine is not something I’ve heard of, and that’s a red flag all on its own. No, it’s not radiology, which may sound like it. If you feel like you’re moderately well-read in the medical field and you run across a broad term like this that you don’t recognize, go look it up and expect it’ll be bullshit. If context suggests it’s a narrow term then it’s far more likely that I’m ignorant of it, but when it’s broad based, ignorance is a less likely hypothesis.

“Christina Ross, PhD, is a Board Certified Polarity Practitioner (BCPP), Registered Polarity Educator (RPE), and Certified Energy Medicine Practitioner (CEMP), who has earned bachelor’s degrees in both psychology and physics from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She earned her PhD in Energy Medicine from Akamai University, with a research appointment to the Wake Forest School of Medicine’s Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM), through the Wake Forest Center for Integrative Medicine (WFCIM).” [E-Wellness Solutions]

Red flags #4-7 come popping right up. I’ve never heard of any of these specialties, and Akamai University, which has no accreditation to speak of, handing out Ph.D.s is about as valuable as a five year old holding forth on -ahem- quantum physics.

Ya gotta wonder about the journal that published it, Global Advances in Health and Medicine. Or maybe just disregard it completely.

There, a healthy laugh at some horseshit masquerading as science.

Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) continues his quest to be the laughingstock of the Senate:

Teaching children moral values by “putting God and prayer back in school,” … were among the educational priorities Republican Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville cited during his first speech on the Senate floor.  [AL.com]

Of course, the media focus I’ve seen on this assertion, of which he said little more, is on how the Constitution and SCOTUS forbid it. Yes, it would help if Tuberville had a clue as to the nature of our democracy.

But that is not the most important facet of this speech.

Returning prayer to public school was a rallying cry of the right at one time, before it was effectively repulsed. But here’s the thing: a public school is a government institution. Even though they are locally controlled, the Federal Government exercises a degree of control over them.

And, for the conservative reader who thinks Tuberville is enunciating a good thing, here’s a question: Do you really want a government, possibly controlled by your political, or even religious, opponents, dictating the prayers of your children, from time to even – perhaps – content?

Let that sink in for a moment. I’ll wait.

This is why Tuberville’s suggestion is the nightmare of every American, whether they’re atheist, agnostics, or consider themselves deeply religious. That’s why the Establishment Clause is the best thing about the Constitution, again for every brand of American. So long as religion remains a distributed institution, free of government control, it can do what it does best – serve the spiritual needs of its adherents, no matter how silly. But, when its adherents seek political power on religious grounds, then every American who is not part of whatever little sect has gained control of the Department of Education – or maybe the Department of Moral Values – loses control of building their children’s moral character.

And that’s why Tuberville’s statement is such a clownish thing to do. For anyone who takes a moment to think, it becomes clear that this is no one’s preference, except for the power hungry who don’t think – or don’t think others think.

That uncomfortable feeling right before the troll eats you –

The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914) is a surprisingly charming story of the Land of Oz, featuring all manner of creatures: intelligent goats, Woozies, Munchkins, and much more of a magical nature. In this tale, we follow the travails of Ojo and Unc Nunkie, a Munchkin and his guardian, who find themselves hungry and resolve to travel to the Emerald City, where there is no hunger. Along the way they meet several odd characters before finding themselves turned into stone; the actual reason for this is obscure, as apparently the film was damaged at this juncture.

Into this terrible event enters the Patchwork Girl, assembled by the wife of the Crooked Magician to his specifications, in order to fetch materials for reversing the accident that has befallen Ojo, Unc Nunkie, and others. Fearless in the face of whimsical Alice In Wonderland like forces, she and an assistant manage to find the fabled ingredients, escape the constrictions of Ozma, and deliver them back to the Crooked Magician.

But just how crooked is he?

A silent effort, the dialog boards are appropriately timed, more or less, and the characters are often quite charming, especially the Woozy. This may not change your life, but it’s fun to see another creation of L. Frank Baum, especially as this is a creation of the author’s own production company.

Perhaps a little confusing, but still a needle under the nail.

Last Fall I covered an observation brought up by health watchers:

Both locally and nationally there have been great concerns expressed about fall, winter, and the flu season that usually accompanies them, as having both flu and Covid-19 would be truly miserable, tough on the hospital facilities, and, incidentally, quite dangerous. But flu is spread through the air, much like coronavirus, and if we’re social distancing, that might put a dent in this season.

And, indeed, the flu season has been minuscule this season, as the AP reports:

February is usually the peak of flu season, with doctors’ offices and hospitals packed with suffering patients. But not this year.

Flu has virtually disappeared from the U.S., with reports coming in at far lower levels than anything seen in decades.

Experts say that measures put in place to fend off the coronavirus — mask wearing, social distancing and virtual schooling — were a big factor in preventing a “twindemic” of flu and COVID-19. A push to get more people vaccinated against flu probably helped, too, as did fewer people traveling, they say.

While there’s also speculation that Covid-19 has physically pushed aside the flu, my suspicion is that we’ve been forced into living a more antiseptic life, and we’re reaping the consequences: fewer bugs to which we’re vulnerable are reaching us.

How that’ll play out next winter depends on how we weigh the benefits of socializing vs the negatives of the flu. But at least this burden on our health system has been alleviated, and is proof of the worth of social distancing and masking.