No Way!

I love Buffalo Wild Wings!

On Being

I got the following conundrum from here. Makes my brain hurt, a little.

***

Consider a photo of someone you think is you eight years ago. What
makes that person you? You might say he she was composed of the same
cells as you now. But most of your cells are replaced every seven
years. You might instead say you're an organism, a particular human
being, and that organisms can survive cell replacement - this oak being
the same tree as the sapling I planted last year.

But are you really an entire human being? If surgeons swapped
George Bush's brain for yours, surely the Bush look-alike, recovering
from the operation in the White House, would be you. Hence it is
tempting to say that you are a human brain, not a human being.

But why the brain and not the spleen? Presumably because the
brain supports your mental states, eg your hopes, fears, beliefs,
values, and memories. But then it looks like it's actually those mental
states that count, not the brain supporting them. So the view is that
even if the surgeons didn't implant your brain in Bush's skull, but
merely scanned it, wiped it, and then imprinted its states on to Bush's
pre-wiped brain, the Bush look-alike recovering in the White House
would again be you.

But the view faces a problem: what if surgeons imprinted your
mental states on two pre-wiped brains: George Bush's and Gordon
Brown's? Would you be in the White House or in Downing Street? There's
nothing on which to base a sensible choice. Yet one person cannot be in
two places at once.

In the end, then, no attempt to make sense of your continued
existence over time works. You are not the person who started reading
this article.

Can't Beat It! (Or can We?)

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Hint: There is something missing.

How I Like My Coffee

I like my coffee like I like my woman... Hot, Sweet, Strong, Stimulating, Robust, and sometimes (hazel)nutty.

Let's Keep It Going!

Drive a little slower, plan a better route... Take the metro and the bus... This is good for all of US!

¡Dijo, "Si"!

Drop, Baby, Drop!

Capitalism at work... If the demand for gasoline (by way of oil) drops, then the price drops to entice more consumption. Do we need to drill at home? Yes. But we need to develop technologies that reduce the demand for gasoline, immediately.

Engaged

Last Saturday, I asked The Girl to marry me, and I put forth a ring...



She said "yes". And now another dream has come true.

A May 2010 wedding is planned.

Juan Camilo Mouriño Terrazo(1971-2008)

A rising star in Mexican politics was lost yesterday in a plane crash in Mexico City, along with the Mexican Secretary of Public Safety, Jose Luis Santiago Vasconcelos. They were on their way back to the capital after a security summit in nearby Mexico State. Both had been integral in the current war (where over 1,500 have died just this year) against the drug cartels that threaten Mexico's existence.

Secretary Mouriño was, at the age of 37, one of the youngest members of a presidential cabinet in Mexico. Many believed that he would run for the Presidency in 3 years. He was a graduate of the University of Tampa, with a degree in Economics, and the University of Campeche, with a Master's Degree in Accounting and Finance. Having been a victim of crime himself, being kidnapped and held for ransom, he entered public service at the age of 29 as a member of Mexico's chamber of deputies.

When he became Secretary of the Interior (similar to the American Secretary of State), he became the target of intense attacks, personal and political, from the opposition parties. All of the accusations were investigated by Congress, and none were found to be valid. Even an investigation by Mexico's Attorney General found no fault.

Juan Camilo Mouriño Terrazo achieved a lot in his short life... Makes me want to live my life a little more. Rest in peace, Juan. Vaya con Dios.

Habemus Obama

Congratulations, President-Elect Barack H. Obama!!! If you run your Presidency like you ran your campaign, pouring your heart and soul into winning at all costs, the country will be better for it.

Election Time

In the history of mankind, one person has not made a difference. Sure, they can make a difference, but it has been goups of people who have really made the big changes in this big world. And who leads people? Usually, it's a person, and that person gets all the blame and all the glory.

Today, the American Electorate will choose a new leader for the next 4 years. What this person will do includes a myriad of things. The most important thing is how they do what they'll do. Will they straighten the economy by giving us the power by keeping less of our taxes or by taking more taxes and having the government be our savior? Will the troops come home with honor or will they be pulled out in haste? And will children have all the healthcare they need or just the healthcare their parents want?

Either way, things are going to change because change is inherent of a change in Administrations. And whether things get better or worse depend on so many factors that anyone believing that one person has the power is out of touch with reality or misinformed. That written, may the best man win, and may God be with us all.