Wes uncovers final proof that we must fear (fear) the menace of Persian Plutonium.

And, on a more serious note, scuttlebutt from the military types says there's a pretty good-sized arms buildup around Iran, though maybe all it really is is a way to gin up the price of oil. Hmm...

From Slashdot:

"According to CNET, Congress has set its sights on 'the purported problem of violent and sexually explicit video games.... A U.S. House of Representatives committee on consumer protection says it will hold a hearing on the topic later this month, with a focus on 'informing parents and protecting children' from the alleged dangers of those types of games.' " The article goes on to describe seven bills under consideration that either attach fines to the sales of Mature titles to children, or study "the effect of electronic media on youths." Five of them are sponsored by Democrats.

I wish they would wise up and stop. There's no political gain to be had here; quite a lot to lose actually. More importantly, there no real positive outcome in terms of increased social wellfare either. Leave it alone, you suckers.

Meanwhile, your kids can kill the heathens and insufficient believers in a Left Behind-themed shooter. No, seriously.

So, uhh... any guess who's got the better strategy here?

Just back from John and Noreen (Lavin) Yarwood's wedding. Great wedding. Beautiful cerimony and a kickass party. There was even a conclusive Journey sing-along.

What more could you ask for? Well...

Tip to sololakidan, Keelin Nelson and Whipple Newell III.

Whipple is the groom. WASPiest names ever? Could be!

Contratz, kids!

The other day after my last day of work I made the executive decision to get pretty high and take a hot shower, do some yoga, pushups, handstands, and generally stretch out my mind and body. It's kind of a ritual thing for me, similar to heavy cardiovascular exercise; helps to keep the engine running clean.

In the midst of this I encountered a hard knot of fear, which is unusual for me. I don't tend to be afraid of things -- paranoia's not my style -- but for a bit there I was grappling with some kind of deep and undeniable terror. It was a moment of weakness and confusion, debilitating even, and as I tried to relax my body and breathe through it, I also of course tried to figure out what was causing this mind-killing tension.

I'm afraid of dissapointing people, that I won't be able to live up to the expectations I create around myself. I'm afraid that I'll end up a faker, a poseur, a con. I'm afraid I won't be able to live through to my highest ideals, that lazyness and greed will drag me down. I'm afraid of wasting my life in some fruitless pseudo-bohemian masturbatory snit, and at the same time I'm afraid of "settling down" and "growing up" in conventional terms.

I believe I'm reaching a point in my life where I have to start making choices, and I worry about making the wrong ones, about writing metaphysical checks that my butt can't cash. I'm afraid that I won't be able to do it; I'm afraid of what might happen if I do.

This calls to mind that Nelson Mandella quote about how what we fear most is not that we are powerless, but that we are powerful. I think it's a little bit too glib to make much of a life philosophy, but there's a pretty sharp kernel of truth in there.

A more precise formulation for me is that I fear the responsibility that comes with the power of my agency. I do sort of believe that I can do anything, which as a younger man was quite a liberating and energizing idea to have, and one that I cherish and seek to spread. Yet as the idea becomes more and more realized -- "why yes, I can accomplish quite a lot if I put my mind to it" -- it grows more complex.

I think this is part of why people have conventional careers. Having a trail before you that's clearly marked and endorsed by your tribe eases these concerns. I don't have any such path; I'm am sort of out in the wilderness, feeling that my ability to find a way through the thick of life on some level matters, not just to me and my soul-survival, but to something greater as well.

This could well be hubris and nothing else. I don't get paranoid, but that doesn't mean I don't suffer from other problems of egocentricity. Delusions of grandeur, perhaps. My general sense though is that it's not worth second-guessing these kinds of feelings unless they're demonstraby proving themselves to be destructive, and so far my self-importance hasn't been more than annoying.

Anyway, it's not like I have a choice. I'm not gonna put on a tie and live in a cube or anything, so it's the wilderness for me, friends. Nothing to do but face this fear head on and plunge forward into the darkness.

Today was my last day of being a full time Lead Developer for Trellon LLC. I'm going to stay on in a reduced capacity to make sure that the projects I'm involved in continue to work out well, but I won't be taking on anything new unless it's special, and that would be on a contract basis. In a substantial way, my time is now my own.

This is all part of the plan to free me up for the summer. I'll be living in Westhaven, writing a thousand words a day, working on The Democrobot and generally preparing for the next cycle of activity.

It's been a nice steady run here in Park Slope. I've paid off some debts, enjoyed a quieter NYC life, had plenty of good moments, but I'm looking forward to jumping out of the comfey little rut I've made. I'm looking forward to trying to stake a new career claim. I'm looking forward to getting creative, to getting more physical exercise, to getting out into nature a bit.

Plenty of whacky internet adventures to come. Stay tuned for all the excitement.

Digby:

What we do about Islamic fundamentalism is a topic we must deal with. I suspect that it will take a global effort and a willingness to deal intelligently with the impending global oil crisis. There will be other challenges as well, including potential wars and regional strife and any of the other things that have marked civilization from the beginning. All peoples must deal with such things.

But there is no war on terrorism. The nation is less secure because of this false construct. We are spending money we need not spend, making enemies we need not make and wasting lives we need not waste in the name of something that doesn't exist. That is as politically incorrect a statement as can be made in America today. But it's true.

It's a lie and a scam and a sham and a show, but it's a meal-ticket a lot of lazy fatbacks are riding, and which a lot of paranoid juicers are drawing power from. It'll be right hard to get rid of.

Our national leadership class is remarkably small and entrenched. They resist change and it's much easier to stop things than to start them. Yeah, the Democratic party is getting an infusion of new blood, and that's all good, but the revolution isn't really happening in any meaningful way.

Maybe we'll get healthcare though. That'd be nice.

Memorial Day Truth from FireDogLake.

I've said about the same before, and I feel it just a little bit personally as a New Yorker. The "War on Terror" is a scam, implicit in it's naming and explicit in how it's been carried out (where's Osama, bitch?) since day one.

Until we move past this -- not gonna happen soon given the number of people who are riding this meal-ticket -- we're going to have a very difficult time dealing with many of our national problems.

I can only hope in the mean time that more people continue to wake up from the vestigital grip of fear, and that these folk eventually recognize the potential power of their own agency in the world, and decide to do something about it.

I don't know what anyone's complaining about. This was just as good as the other ones. FWIW I didn't think the others were any more than popcorn-munching fun, so maybe I'm out of synch with the expectations game.

Also, the bit at the beginning w/Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen coming to visit young Jean Grey... those two old British dudes so totally want to make out.

Very likely, based on the opening weekend take, there will be a fourth. Maybe we'll finally get a little Gambit action.

My server is acting up. Hopefully it'll all get worked out shortly.

This is also why comment moderation is on for the moment.