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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in the "Robin Zimmermann" journal:

[<< Previous 20 entries]

Thursday, Jan. 1st, 2009

12:00 am

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Open Thread 2008!
Buoyed by the terrific success of last year's, I offer you: another open thread! Post! Question! Answer! Flame! (Not too much flame, though - the extinguisher hasn't been recharged in a while.) Anything doesn't reply to regular posts can go here.

Tags: open thread

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Wednesday, Oct. 15th, 2008

12:21 am

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Tweets for Today

15:12 If I ever hear a politician or pundit say "Main Street" again, it will be too soon. For cripe's sake, I don't even think my town *has* one. #

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Tuesday, Oct. 14th, 2008

09:25 pm

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Just wanted to comment on a little poetry of the sports page from Chico Harlan of the Washington Post:

Up it all went for the Dodgers, in nine pitches. The Philadelphia Phillies poked one homer just beyond the fence. They smacked another one halfway to the next Zip code. But distance didn't even matter. One measured these sorts of shots by the silence they caused, the home team's lead they erased, the series they likely shifted -- if not ended.

Good article.

Current Location: home\west_bedroom\south_desk
Current Mood: tired
Tags: news, sports, writing

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Sunday, Oct. 12th, 2008

12:11 am

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Tweets for Today

14:10 Making a new iTunes playlist: Music To Race To. Gonna break this stuff out for Test Drive Unlimited. #

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Saturday, Oct. 11th, 2008

12:09 am

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Tweets for Today

13:35 Check it: Michael Stipe on the Shiny Happy People contradicts the cognoscenti. tinyurl.com/6pn3bt #
17:03 My #1 pet peeve: autocomplete and all its autocrat^H^H^H^Hmatic cousins. Can't they see that a lowercase "i" might merely be half an "is"? #
21:10 Every ad in my train car is for the Lupus Foundation of America, www.lupus.org, CFC #10566. Another worthy cause; this world has too many... #
21:14 There's a tower off the eastbound end of the Fort Totten platform whose light flashes four times or three irregularly. A code, I wonder? #
22:09 Alaska ethics report on Sarah Palin is out, full text here: tinyurl.com/47xhtc #

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Friday, Oct. 10th, 2008

12:19 am

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Tweets for Today

11:28 kirabug: tinyurl.com/4ekd6c - also scary is online.wsj.com/article/SB122092043531812813.html #
16:18 @kirabug In the 1st: “[...] I kind of felt like the ax could fall any time and just never felt like the situation warmed up,” said Dvorak[.] #
21:00 Debate club. Case, opp choice: should deaf parents have right to choose genetic donors to make deaf child more likely? We as opp chose yea. #

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Thursday, Oct. 9th, 2008

10:16 pm

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Writer's Block: The Beatles

In their heyday, The Beatles were the center of the pop universe. Many groups have been hailed as the next Beatles, but does pop music even have a center anymore? Who represents the core of pop music to you?

View other answers

Britney Spears.

Really, though, the nature of the modern music scene is that people are choosing to be more idiosyncratic in their tastes, now - there's a reason why people turn to classic rock songs when they want commonality. Spears may be the biggest figure in pop right now (or in the recent past), but 'big' is smaller now.

Current Location: home\upstairs_staircase\upper_landing
Current Mood: geeky
Tags: beatles, music, pop music, writer's block

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12:24 am

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Tweets for Today

19:06 @kirabug Nnngh! Even with the hatchet job she did with her staff? I don't want another President who hires purely based on personal loyalty! #

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Wednesday, Oct. 8th, 2008

12:12 am

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Tweets for Today

19:21 @somerled I'm putting off my IRA contribution for this year until the last minute. #
19:35 @kirabug Who's the VP on that ticket? Maybe Chris Rock? #
22:49 My impression: McCain completely dodged half the questions; Obama, only a tenth. Both went off-topic on most. I guess that's debate today. #
23:04 On the other hand, Tom Brokaw was a fairly good moderator, though prone to asking stupid questions like 'Russia: evil or not?' That was sad. #

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Tuesday, Oct. 7th, 2008

12:17 am

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Tweets for Today

10:26 Y'know what I deplore? The "anyone from 100+ years ago brought forward to today would be terrified" meme. Humanity hasn't changed that much. #
11:25 @fadeaccompli Doubly so when there's a trash bin. I've seen a healthy young man standing less than ten feet from it drop a peel at his feet. #
11:41 @fadeaccompli Granted, there's not a great supply of ashtrays around these days. Cup lids, though - there's no excuse. Always carry out. #
11:54 @fadeaccompli I've a lot of tolerance for addicts - probably be a horrible enabler. But at minimum I'd want them to grind out their butts. #
17:23 @kirabug I think you have to click on the thumbnail pictures in the thing on the right - one is the next one, the other is the previous one. #
18:25 @fadeaccompli ...hm. They should have a system to say: "yes, for the next [time period], you may make the same decision on identical cases." #

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Monday, Oct. 6th, 2008

12:26 pm

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If I Were A...
Original to me, for once:

Most people have the same religion (or lack of religion) as their parents. That something this large in the life of an individual should even appear to be so much up to chance invites the question: what would you be like if you changed that one variable? And how would you interact if you met?

If I were a Christian:

I would play Christian rock. (But possibly good Christian rock, if my church were liberal enough to give me my Joni Mitchell et al.)
I would go on missions to third-world countries and donate generously to charity.
I would play by the rules with a passion, and deplore the hypocrisy I see in others, also with a passion. (Probably to excess on both counts - I would still cross at the crosswalk were I the last person on earth.)
I would debate theology for fun - possibly even go to seminary.
The Man Who Was Thursday would still drive me nuts.

If real-me met Christian-me:

We'd get in long arguments about the justifications of belief and foundations of morality.
We'd exchange mixtape-CDs. I would be very nervous about putting anything anti-religion or anti-Christianity on them.
He'd badger me to take up playing the piano again. I would promise, and then forget.
He would be appalled that I could lose my Eagle Scout for being an atheist.

God bless, as he would say, and wind to thy wings, as I would reply.

Current Location: school\engineering_lab\office
Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Music: Like the Weather - 10,000 Maniacs
Tags: personal history, punch in the presence of the passenjare!, thoughts

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12:13 am

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Tweets for Today

09:19 Checkit: the XBox360 wireless controller draws as much power as *a flashlight*. When I swapped the batteries, it barely warmed the filament. #
15:02 I talked about "Planned Obsolescence" by 10000 Maniacs earlier, but *d-mn!* - the harmony on "with wealth and prominence" is just ... *mmm!* #

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Sunday, Oct. 5th, 2008

03:37 pm

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Writer's Block: United Nations World Teachers Day

In recognition of United Nations World Teachers Day, let us reflect on the subjects we hated most in school but must now grudgingly admit were useful. What subject will today’s students find most useful when they’re older?

View other answers

...wow, the question has nothing to do with the setup.

Now, English was a pain in the butt, but I have to admit that it is extremely important.

Current Location: home\west_bedroom\south_bed
Current Mood: tired
Current Music: You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman - Aretha Franklin
Tags: school, students, teachers, united nations world teachers day, writer's block

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12:10 am

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Tweets for Today

08:02 Morning. Most everyone is asleep/hungover - one roommate and myself are up. Waking them now. #
09:26 About to see who we're paired against for Round Four. #
11:07 Another eloquent loss, my PM. Did should-Truman-have-should-Truman-have-nuked-Japan opp-choice, they chose yea. Next: watch Swat-Jeopardy. #
11:22 After an Adolf Hitler question: "I think that's the first time that got applause!" #
14:26 5th rnd Gov: "Repeal Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell". We tried & failed. -- After was the 'banquet'; they showed a humor tape of interviews, incl. ... #
14:37 The break - which teams make the quarterfinal. No MD teams. #
15:54 Watched one debate in quarterfinals. Wasn't bad - if skill displayed was typical, can see why we missed the break. Waiting to see what next. #
16:53 Escape! (But got kicked out of big van, so am stuck in back of car for 2-1/2 hour ride home.) Experienced debators disappointed. #

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Saturday, Oct. 4th, 2008

10:16 pm

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Back from Swat!
Further information later. For those of you who skip Twitterposts: my team (it's two-on-two) went one for five. But, as they say, you win or your learn.

Current Location: home\west_bedroom\south_bed
Current Mood: tired
Current Music: Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes - Paul Simon
Tags: personal history

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12:11 am

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Tweets for Today

15:18 On way to debate tournament @ Swarthmore. Team name: Murder Inc. (Current loc: just passed Whitemarsh.) #
19:40 Round one: good by both sides, but gov was better - we lost. I was leader opp, so Alex will PM next. Let's do this. #
21:30 Round two - another near loss. Alex PM'd a cool case, but opp was too sharp. Key takeaway: exude confidence: stand up straight. #
23:38 Alex: We deserved to lose that round. (We won.) #

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Friday, Oct. 3rd, 2008

07:40 am

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Writer's Block: Day of German Unity

It’s the Day of German Unity, marking the 1990 reunification of East and West Germany. In our current period of global instability, do you ever feel nostalgic for the seeming simplicity of the Cold War?

View other answers

When the Cold War was at its height, nobody expected to survive. (Just read Farnham's Freehold and try to disagree.) I'd rather have a future.

Tags: cold war, german unity, writer's block

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12:16 am

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Tweets for Today

15:30 Question: if you were the last person alive on Earth, would you still cross at the crosswalk? #
15:55 A thought: God is the word people say when they should be silent. #
16:27 @kirabug ...I still haven't read it. *is ashamed* #

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Thursday, Oct. 2nd, 2008

11:13 pm

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Swat!
Oh, hey, I'm going up to Swarthmore tomorrow for a novice parliamentary debate tournament! Yeah, late to be mentioning it, but there it is!

Anyway, my laptop will be staying home, so expect only text-message Twitters between tomorrow morning and Saturday night. As for the format, Wikipedia's description of American parliamentary debate is mostly accurate.

See you Sunday!

Current Location: home\west_bedroom\south_bed
Current Mood: awake
Tags: geekery, personal history, weekend plans

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08:47 am

[Link]

Supreme Court: Lemon v. Kurtzman
Via

demiurgent, a little meme in honor of our dear Alaskan governor:

The Rules: Post info about ONE Supreme Court decision, modern or historic, to your lj. (Any decision, as long as it's not Roe v. Wade. Preferably your own country, but SCOTUS acceptable.) For those who see this on your f-list, take the meme to your OWN lj to spread the fun.

(Full disclosure: I looked up the decision on Wikipedia. It's mostly my own wording, though.)

One of the most important decisions in the battle over the wall of separation between church and state is Lemon v. Kurtzman. This decision is famous for being the source of the well-known Lemon test, requiring that any measure involving the government in religious matters meet three simple criteria:

1. There must be a ~~compelling state interest~~ secular purpose,
2. It must not have as its primary effect the advancement or inhibition of a particular religion, and
3. It must not result in excessive entanglement between state and religion.

Reposted to

peri_renna.

Current Location: school\student_union\basement_lounge
Current Mood: amused
Tags: politics, punch in the presence of the passenjare!