Question about fast light

I came across some interesting articles about "fast light", where you can have light pass through a medium at faster than c speeds. Supposedly, this does not violate the rules of relativity because information does not travel faster than the speed of light (c).

My question is this: how do they measure if they've got light traveling faster than c? Would not the detection of this wave send the information that it traveled faster than c?

To get less esoteric, let's take this example: my mother would call her mother when she got back to her own house after a visit, just to let her know she had arrived safely. Because it was a toll call, she'd let it ring twice, then hang up. This would convey the information "I have arrived home safely". If she could hit a button that would send a light beam through a medium at faster than c, and my grandmother was equipped to detect this, would that, then, be information travling at faster than light speeds?

I hate not having Einstein around to answer these questions when they come up...

Benazir Bhutto assassinated

I just need to say that anyone who blows up people whose political views they don't agree with CANNOT be called civilized.

And to anyone who wants to point out any particular government or such that does such things... who said I'm excluding them?

Whatever her history, no one deserves that. May her soul find whatever rest it wants.

Random musings

So, just a few random things.

Have you noticed (of course you have) how MISERABLE people are around the holidays? How did so many people get sucked into this? Honestly, suicide rates go WAY up, and they always say it's because people are lonely, but I think it's because they went to the mall in December and finally realized that life is futile. I think that adults should call a moratorium on Christmas amongst themselves (kids, of course, should not be affected), and just relax... I think no one would ever go back.

The late night guys are going back to work, and the Writer's Guild is quick to villanize. Leno and O'Brien are claiming they're going back to help the other, non-writers that work on the show. True or not, this is a good point. The writers fail to realize that, unlike their own cushy-ass selves, these shows have TONS of other workers that may or may not have a union, and probably isn't going to be able to pay them for months of standing around doing nothing. these poor bastards need to EAT, for crying out loud. It's fucking CHRISTMAS, and I'm sure these working stiffs just LOVE that these fucking prima donnas can cause THEM to be without paychecks. Honestly, if I had someone that could screw up MY life with their own greed, I'd break out one of my Arctic shovels.

Oh, and Hi Alex who's reading my blog!

Thw Writer's Strike

I just wrote some commentary over at BusinessWeek, which I just won't cut and paste here, but wanted to mention.

The studios don't feel like they need writers, that they are a necessary evil. The writers feel the same way about the studios. What both sides don't seem to realize, in their greed-laden haze, is that they both need us, the audience. If they do a show, and no one watches, it does not make a profit, to bastardize one of my favorite koans. Both sides continue to drag their feet, thinking that, somehow, hurting us will make the other side blink. The MLB and NHL thought the same thing, once. Once. Baseball has recovered, but I don't think hockey ever will.

It goes to show what happens when these groups think they can hold the American public hostage, as a bargaining chip, and get away unscathed.

Say goodbye to the Arctic...

It still startles me that so many people, mostly scientists and politicians, can look at the data pouring in from the Arctic and NOT FUCKING DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. Seriously, what's it going to take? They all stand around with their heads up their asses, saying that they'll do more studies and form subcommittees to assess the impact of other studies that have been formulated to diagnose the impact of the infrastructure that's been at a critical juncture until they all drown because the water's over their heads.

I'm making a list of names of all the people who have either said that global warming is a liberal lie (Rush Limbaugh I'm looking at your fat, Oxycontin filled ass) or have stalled and stalled about doing something about it (Mr. Bush), and when the ice finally goes away, I'm going to beat them all to death with a shovel, all the while insisting that the shovel that's killing them doesn't exist, or maybe *whack* I'll form a subcommittee *whack* to look over the implications *whack* of being hit by shovels.

Stupid, stupid bastards.

Republicans face their arch-enemies, the Republicans

Ah politics is in the air, the scent of which is reminiscent of a hot summer day in the goat enclosure. This time up, the Republicans, who haven't seemed to learn the important lesson that it's you against the other party, not against your own party.

Case and point, Mitt Romney launching ads against Mike Huckabee (what a name... can this guy even be President with that name? President Huckabee? There should be a law...). It's like, as soon as someones in the lead, or even looks like they could be in the lead eventually, the others jump on him like a pack of wolves on a lame caribou. Then, eventually, one of these poor bastards comes out on top, and then has to enter the actual Presidential race. You know, against the opponents.

I swear, one political party could win by a landslide if they simply chose, behind closed doors, who would have their party's nomination, and then sat back and watched the other side rip each other to shreds, while taking copious notes. The other poor bastard would be so beat up, and have had so much of his/her dirty laundry aired, it would be child's play to pick them apart in the actual election. I don't know why someone hasn't thought of this.

I love, too, how they can be practically knife-fighting during debates one month, and then, when the actual election is on, how they're all one big happy family again. It's like "Don't praise him! Last month you said you had pictures of him blowing goats!!"

And to think, people say we have the best political system in the world...

Be anti-social, get what you want?

I've noticed this trend a lot over the years, first in the on-line world, but lately more and more in real life: people being anti-social to get their way. Now, you'd think this would be counter-intuitive, but these people actually get away with it. Here's how it works.

1) Anti-Social Person (I'll call them 'ASPs') sees a situation that is not to their liking. Typically, this is something with a social aspect, like a long line, or traffic, or some such.

2) The ASP acts in a TOTALLY anti-social manner. They cut you off, drive in front of you (even though they can't move anywhere, etc). They will normally do this behavior while attempting to make no social contact with the people around them (not making eye contact, pretending not to hear comments).

Simple, eh? Here comes the best part. THEY are totally depending on YOU to act in a socially responsible manner, in order to assist them in their behavior! Calling them on cutting you in line would cause a ruckus in a public place, which people typically don't do. Likewise with honking your horn, drawing attention to them (and to yourself) by reacting loudly, etc.

With bullies (especially online), you'll see this type of behavior magnified. I used to go to this 3D place online, and one of the co-owners was an INCREDIBLE dick to people. He' d insult them, berate them, talk down to them, all the while making it seem like HE was the injured party. Totally unacceptable behavior, which, unfortunately, most of the other socially-responsible people simply ate for the sake of the community... BUT, if someone actually stood up and said "Wait a minute, I didn't do anything, what kind of response is THAT?!", not only would this guy dish on more in defense of his own actions, but OTHERS would jump on as well. It's an interesting social aspect of the PERCEIVED weak being picking on by the PERCEIVED strong, as if somehow these people can affect the worldview of them by initiating behavior typically seen by the actual "strong".

Again, online is the place where this is hardest to resist. In real life, I've found that bringing the anti-social behavior to the next level normally causes these people to run for the hills. Someone cuts in front of me, and I LOUDLY call them on it. The more people that turn and stare, the better, the ASPs hate that. Likewise if someone cuts me off; I'll just SIT on the horn, MAKING them acknowledge that they've done something they shouldn't have.

I think this world would be a lot better off if people were forced to be accountable for their actions, instead of just bludgeoning their way past it.

The joy that is Hugo Chavez, and a bear named Mohammed

I was going to write this post about how Hugo Chavez is just another thug using the system to push his own agenda no matter what the people want... but his referendum was actually voted down. This means that, in 2012, he cannot run for office again. His time will be up. The interesting thing will be if he actually goes along with the vote, or, if he sees his power diminishing, just seizes control. He'll be hard pressed to justify his actions at that point, though... his whole "doing the will of the people" only works when he's, you know, doing what they want.

Still, give it up for Venezuela... they voted and it worked.

Now, on to this whole "bear named Mohammed" thing. Normally I'd jump all over a country who's religion lets people die for inappropriately naming teddy bears (I'm a Zen Bhuddist... the Bhudda would laugh and ask if the teddy bear really cared about his name, and send you off for a year to think about that), but this time, I'm gonna smack the teacher. What kind of idiot IS this woman? She TEACHES in this country, she MUST know what they will and will not tolerate. To be that stupidly insensitive to their religious beliefs takes either a LOT of damaged brain cells, or a lot of misplaced balls. Either way she's an complete moron who I have no sympathy for. She's lucky she made it out alive. I honestly would have chalked her up for a Darwin Award if they had put her to death, with no hard feelings for the people of Sudan. As it was, they only had her serving 15 days in jail, and the Sudanese president communted some of that, saying that he believed she meant no harm.

This whole thing goes to show you just can't go to another country and expect them to cater to YOUR beliefs just because you come from YOUR particular country. These people have the right to do what they want, and if people don't like it, they can get the fuck out and go back home.