More links that I found

What a great mission for an organization!
Birthday Wishes:
http://www.birthdaywishes.org/pages/1/index.htm

Who knew Jack had a blog?
http://blog.tonyandme.com/

Random things

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What I did today

• I woke up, which is always good.
• I signed up at BlogHer and hopefully they will add my blog to the blogroll, especially since I added their blogroll to my blog some time ago.
• It looks like any and all plans I made for V-Day are GO.
• I discovered the more I see photos of New Order as they look now, the more I think they are goofy looking, which is not a bad thing but it does make it challenging to read the fan newsletter. Actually I think they always look like naughty boys that got caught at something.**
• I determined that I will see the Grammys because Gorillaz will be in the opening. I don't think that I could sit through the "tribute" to Sly. The Clash tribute and the Funk tribute were all right. I did concede that Bruce Springsteen and the boys' rendition of "London Calling" was actually good.**
• I decided that I will not waver in my decision to homeschool any future children that I have after hearing about the 6 year old that was suspended for sexual harrassment. **
• I will totally outline what my funeral service will look like and list what will be allowed and what will not be allowed.**

**=Topics I will expand on either later on today or tomorrow.

Grade School/High School Revisited

One of the things that I hated about grade school and high school is the whole "one person ruining it for everyone else" scenario that teachers seemed fond of enacting. One person coould not be quiet so no one gets the treat. Sometimes the offender would just go ahead and ruin it for everyone because they have nothing to lose.

Flashforward to 2006: I read a blog at Alter Peek that informs me that prior to tonight's State of the Union address the Republicans and the Democrats have been using Wikipedia to shore up their positions by shaping entries to suit their positions. Apparently the Republicans in particular have been adding slanderous information against the Democrats and taking out anything that criticizes the current administration's policies.

Gadzooks.

I would be the first to say that Wikipedia is not the end-all in terms of a resources for researchers but it is a good start and it is a great idea. Why does anyone from either side feel the need to tamper with it?

If your political platform is sound, you don't need to stoop to such behaviour to win your position. That kind of behaviour is what takes place in grade school and high school.

So now it seems that both parties have made it rotten for everyone.

Sites that I go to from time to time-2

I happened across this cool customer-driven blog about customer service at everyone's favorite fast food chain-McDonalds:

McChronicles
http://mcchronicles.blogspot.com/

It is not a blog that just engages in bashing what is amounts to a state religion in the United States and the rest of the world. It also highlights McDonalds restaurants that get it right. This blog also includes photos to illustrate its commentary.


Not to be outdone, joining the bandwagon of business blogs that are usually about reinforcing the "brand" of the company is McDonalds. Their blog can be found here.

Happy B-Day Wolfgang!

I wonder what he would make of his popularity today...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart

Remembering those lost explorers

It was 20 years ago that the Space Shuttle Challenger blew up as it ascended into the sky. I remember that I was in the library with a classmate (who was called Bobby Brady until about 5th grade, when he started going by the more mature Robert Brady, largely because he wanted not to be taunted about it) to do a report on some topic that I can't even remember. A librarian told us that Challenger was gone. We could not absorb it fully. After all, we were born after the lunar landing and the Apollo 13 almost disaster. We witnessed as tots the flawless flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. We even saw Challenger's first flight. It never occurred to us that of NASA's missions would fail.

And it never occurred to us that anyone would die.

Die they did, and we learned real quick that this space business was serious and that it was not like on Star Trek or Star Wars even.

The event was made all the more poignant because a teacher died. She was not military and she surely was not obscure by the time she boarded Challenger. Her name was Christa McAuliffe and she was living out a teacher's dream.

Let us all take a moment to remember them on Jan. 28th:
Commander Dick Scobee
Pilot Mike Smith
Astronaut Ellison Onizuka
Astronaut Judy Resnik
Astronaut Ron McNair
Astronaut Greg Jarvis
Teacher Christa McAuliffe

NASA will be holding a Day of Rememberance for the Challenger crew as well as for the Apollo I crew and the Columbia Crew.

Here are some articles marking the 20th anniversary:

• Remembering Challenger 20 Years Later
• NASA's account of the Challenger accident is here.
• An update on Barbara Morgan, Christa McAuliffe's understudy is found here.
  
  
  I think that one of the casualties of the Apollo I, Virgil "Gus" Grissom said it best in regards to space flight and disaster:
  
  

  "If we die, we want people to accept it. We are in a risky business and we hope
  that if anything happens to us it will not delay the program. The conquest of
  space is worth the risk of life."
  

  -Virgil I. Grissom, after the Gemini 3 mission, March 1965