December 2008 Archives

New Year's Day in Philadelphia means that a whole lot of grown men dress up in feathers and sashay down Broad Street.

Even as a child, I never "got" the Mummers.

Well, if dressing up in feathers and sashaying is your thing, more power to you!

Fascinating interview with Don Tapscott, author of Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is Changing Your World, on the latest net@night podcast.

The discussion ranges over Obama's use of the Internet, the educational system in the USA, and the current young generation and how they interact with technology.

It's a great discussion. If you only listen to one podcast this year, make it this one!.

On a recent visit to the Reading Terminal Market I heard something unusual: an unfamiliar Christmas song.

While I enjoy the traditional Christmas songs and carols well enough, I do get tired of hearing the same ones over and over, so hearing a fresh one was, uh, refreshing.

In the same spirit I'd like to recommend a Christmas-themed movie that's a bit off the beaten track. I mean, how many times can you re-watch It's a Wonderful Life or White Christmas?

Joyeux Noel is a fictional story based upon a true series of incidents.

On Christmas Eve, 1914, during the "Great War", there were incidents of French, German, and British soldiers informally declaring a temporary "truce" and getting together along the trenches to exchange gifts (well, cigarettes) and sing carols. The informal "truce" actually extended a bit longer, as the soldiers were now reluctant to fight the enemy, who they now realized were not all that much different from themselves.

The military brass were not amused.

Joyeux Noel (or Merry Christmas) takes the various documented incidents and with great understatement weaves them into a mesmerizing film. Highly recommended.

Via Schneier's security blog comes word of this nifty device.

It's a 2 Gig USB drive designed to look like a frayed cable.

So if the border police search your bags, they'll likely overlook it because it appears so innocuous.

Love it!

I used to think that former Philadelphia mayor John Street and his dumber than ditch water brother Milton were among the stupidest politicians in the country.

I used to think that Pennsylvania State Senator Vince Fumo was one of the most corrupt politicians in the country.

Uh-uh.

Meet Rod Blagojevich. That's pronounced bluh-GOY-uh-vich. Though perhaps it should be Stu-PID-uh-vich.

I mean even John Street was alert enough to have his office swept for bugs.

So today we have Rod Blagojevich, the Stupidest Politician in the World!

Paul Krugman is now giving his Nobel lecture on “New trade”, “new geography”, and the troubles of manufacturing.

Still no solution to the murder of Betsy Aardsma.

But David Dekok has a very comprehensive rundown, not just of the murder, but of her life.

Betsy Aardsma's friends and teachers said she was among the best America had to offer in the late 1960s.

Artistic and poetic, imbued with liberal ideals and empathy for the underprivileged, she planned to join the Peace Corps after graduating with honors from the University of Michigan in 1969.

But her boyfriend, David L. Wright, wouldn't promise to wait for her, so she dropped those plans and followed him to central Pennsylvania.

Wright began classes at the Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey, while Aardsma enrolled in the graduate English program at Penn State's main campus, taking the bus to Harrisburg on weekends.

She perished in one of the bloodier years of the 1960s, when the Manson family and the Zodiac killer were attacking in California and an unknown serial killer was murdering women around the University of Michigan.

Aardsma's family were relieved she was leaving Ann Arbor. They thought State College would be safe.

Instead, they were about to enter a nightmare that has lasted four decades.

Read the whole article on Who killed Betsy Aardsma?

Update: The second part of David Dekok's article, which goes into the details of the Aardsma murder investigation is now available.

A separate article goes into the five theories about the case.

h/t Mark Evanier

Let's see, there's Allison Janney, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris, Jack Black, and ... a cast of dozens!

I just tried the Fennel and Celery Salad that Mark Bittman wrote about last week.

Delicious!

Who would have thought that thinly sliced fennel, celery, and parmesan cheese, mixed with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, could taste so good?

Only difficulty that I had was using the mandolin for the first time.

I should have watched Bittman's video more carefully.