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12. februar 2003
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Yes, in foxholes, too
Here's a good debunking of a very persistant myth:
Philip K. Paulson's "I Was an Atheist in a Foxhole"
The saying is obviously intended as an insult to atheists, showing they are "weak" in the non-faith (without realising that is the way Christians, not atheists, think), but really it's as much as an insult to Christians themselves. Obviously, becoming a believer is something that happens when you are at your most irrational, shaking in fear.
9:19:22 PM 
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How widespread is Anti-Americanism?
Think the world is against the USA? Take this BBC quiz on the world's attitude to everything American, and I am sure you'll be surprised at some of the answers.
7:33:49 PM
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Darwin Day and beyond
February is a good month for science birthdays. We have Charles Darwin's today, Feb. 12. Galileo Galilei was born on February 15th, in just a few days, and on Feb.19 is Nicholas Copernicus' birthday. The two latter is credited with proposing and later demonstrating that the Sun, not the Earth, is at the center of our solar system.
For some great insight on evolution, check out PBS' evolution site.
6:45:07 PM
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Iraqi dissident welcomes coalition attack
Professor Kanan Makiya, an Iraqi exile dissident and author, supports the US/UK plan to attack his country to oust Saddam Hussein from power. Unlike pessimists who expect grave consequences of an American occupation of Iraq, Makiya hopes that bringing genuine democracy to an Arab nation can help change the whole region for the better.
5:26:42 PM
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Obscure US law creates new problem for space station
"Russian spacecraft remain the only option for moving crew out of the International Space Station (ISS) after the US shuttle fleet was grounded, but the US law forbids aiding Russia until it stops sharing military technology with Iran." (BBC News)
Put together a bunch of people who couldn't point out their own country on a map and give them the power to make laws about intenational affairs, and this is what happens.
5:04:42 PM
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Culture gap
Either the Americans don't understand it, or they are arrogant enough to ignore it. Anything but blind obedience to Bush from the US allies is treated as a form of treason, and the US administration reacts with blind insults. Rumsfeld used to be the frontrunner in the war of words, but Colin Powell's recent reaction to the French proposal to increase the number of weapons inspectors has escalated the emnity further. He brushed aside the proposal by comparing it to "Inspector Clouseau running all around Iraq."
The British actor Peter Sellers playing the 'French' Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies has given an immortal insult to the French, and now the clutz has been dragged into big politics.
The resentment between the French and the British go back to the Hundred Years Wars, or beyond. This is what the Americans seem to have inherited. Emnity between the English-speaking nations and Germany is more recent, but hardly weaker. The recent disagreement over Iraq has allowed all this to surface in an orgy of intercontinental insults. People on both sides are forgetting the topic of discussion alltogether, just remembering the hurt in their national pride and the latest insult.
Old and new Europe brings and old tensions. The US administration should know better than to provoke these reactions, and the fact that they continuously do it, to many Europeans reinforce the impression of Bush specifically and Americans generally as uncultured cowboys.
2:46:48 PM
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State of the Union hacked
Some people with way too much time on their hands, but a great sense of humour, has chopped up George Bush's State of the Union address to reveal what he really meant. MP3, req. sound.
2:23:38 PM
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Greenspan speaks against Bush's tax cuts
Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, sometimes considered an ally of George Bush, gave pointed criticism of Bush's plan for economic recovery in a meeting with lawmakers. He did not, for one, agree with Bush that the rising deficits have little relationship to hightened interest rates, a chilling message to the administration indeed. Furthermore, Greenspan disagreed that short-term stimulus was what was needed now. He also noted that the economy suffers badly from uncertainty on the war with Iraq.
11:59:15 AM
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A virtual certainty
Slate's "saddameter" has been keeping track of the ups and downs of the Iraq situation, but presently it's difficult to find any way to make peace spins of the news. Chance of invasion: 94 percent.
3:49:17 AM
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Osama Bin Laden speaks about Iraq
A tape allegedly from Bin Laden speaks against the US and gives advice to Iraqi soldiers on how to beat the US coalition, drawing from Al Qaeda's alleged experience in Afghanistan.
The US government asserts this tape shows a link between Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein, which is not at all true. The voice calls Saddam's government 'socialist,' (the Baath party once was), and stresses that the mujahedeen (Islamic warriors) should fight for Islam, not for a secular government.
2:54:14 AM
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MAP of early universe
Detailed investigations by the NASA spacecraft MAP (Microwave Anisotropy Probe; I bet they worked a lot with that acronym) has given scientists a clear all-sky picture of the early universe, more precisely the microwave background, at 300,000 years after the Big Bang. This has helped scientists to a real breakthrough in the understanding of the early development of our universe.
According to reports, the universe is for the first time given an age with a high degree of accuracy: 13.7 billion years, +/- 0.1 billion. Many other key figures that was eaelier given a crude estimate is now given more robust figures.
1:03:37 AM
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Darwin Day is February 12th, the date Charles Darwin was born in 1809.
Darwin, through the discovery of evolution and common descent, and the devlopment of the theory of evolution that carries his name, has a strong claim to being the greatest scientist that ever lived. Today, Darwin Day, is a good day to remember the accomplishments of science and to ponder the wonder of life.
12:16:07 AM
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© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland.
Last update: 01.03.2003; 00:14:51.
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