10 Nov 2004
In Vegas, an Unholy Alliance (Los Angeles Times)

The ACLU (of which I'm a card carrying member) does some good - despite the fact that their "clients" in this case despise them ... and I'll bet the attorneys for the ACLU don't particularly care for the clients, either, on a personal level.

I don't care for the message being spewed. In fact, I'd probably be one out there arguing with the preachers (or with the war protestors), just for fun). But if you start letting government (or private concerns who own property in the general vincinity) decide what can or can't be said in public, you've opend a can of worms. And aborgated the First Amendment.

Los Angeles Times - LAS VEGAS — The preacher with a hole in the knee of his jeans and a pocketful of prayer cards waded through the late-night crowd — young men with hats on sideways, women in saucy dresses, hired hands passing out fliers for escort services. Tom Griner turned a raised palm toward Robert Jones, a 21-year-old visiting from Illinois.

(link) [Yahoo! News: Top Stories]

00:00 /Politics | 0 comments | permanent link

Ghosts stop barn demolition

Well, in defense of the owner, he didn't exactly say "ghosts" - I can't find the article in Norwegian (and my knowledge of Old Norse probably wouldn't help much anyway) but as the farmer described it:

"There are underworld creatures living in that barn," the man wrote. "My entire family knows about this."

Knowing a bit about Nordic folklore, I would wager that the translation of "ghosts" and "underworld creatures" really means what modern heathens (in English speaking countries) call the landwights - some older words would be tomte or nisse.

Sometimes we Heathens must not seem too "enlightened" to our friends, given our predilection for this kind of lore. But look at it this way: is it a literal "creature" that bedevils the barn, or a lack of respect for the land? Obviously the barn is in disrepair. The message is clear to me, literal "boogie man" or not. Just fix the barn up rather than trying to tear it down, and maybe leave out a bit of porridge and beer every once in a while (to be eaten by the barn cats and other critters), and you won't have to worry about going into your own barn! A little respect goes a long way, in any direction.

Officials in the northern Norwegian city of Tromsø have withdrawn their order that a local farmer tear down an old barn on his property. They accepted his argument that demolishing the barn will anger the ghosts living under it.

(link) [Aftenposten]

00:00 /Asatru | 0 comments | permanent link

Microsoft getting nervous about Firefox?

If they aren't, they should be.

A call from Microsoft PR leads CNET News.com to believe the creator of Internet Explorer is getting ready to defend its turf.

(link) [CNET News.com]

00:00 /Technology | 0 comments | permanent link

You can find anything on the 'net

even Thanksgiving Dinner in a bottle.

00:00 /Humor | 1 comment | permanent link