The state of New Mexico could effectively secede from the astronomical community if a resolution to call Pluto a planet is passed.
Joint House Memorial 54 was introduced by representative Joni Marie Gutierrez, who represents Dona Ana County. It states that Pluto, the recently demoted object, “be declared a planet and that March 13, 2007 be declared ‘Pluto Planet Day’ at the legislature.”
Pluto was stripped of its planet status last August when a group within the International Astronomical Union voted to call the diminutive, far-flung world a dwarf planet. The decision was immediately and widely criticized by astronomers, many of whom have said it might not stand over time.
Author: NewMexiKen
Founding actors
At such moments, [Amazing Grace] offers a dream of perfect articulateness—superbly trained actors delivering expertly phrased remarks with ease and force. . . . In this country, we have great actors, but not these kinds of great actors—men and women who can play historical figures and hold to formal syntax without losing their sense of play. Our founding crew of statesmen and intellectuals were no less gifted than Pitt and Wilberforce, but, despite an endless number of best-selling books about them, there isn’t a single good movie devoted to their efforts. At this point, no one can look at an American in a powdered wig without laughing. Popular culture and the democratization of taste and style have made our history irredeemable as entertainment—which is a loss, though I don’t suppose anyone will do much about it.
Best audio line of the day, so far
Best audio line of the day. [mp3 file]
But could they dunk?
Back at the game, the halftime show was a big hit. Two male performers from one of the shows in town [Las Vegas] – the Bracket missed which one, but probably could not spell it anyway – walked solemly to center court wearing tight pants and no shirts. To the Bracket, that was daring enough. But they thrilled the crowd with several uncomprehensible feats of strength. The smaller man did a one-armed hand stand on top of the bald head of the other, did a slow motion dip and performed a slow 360-degree turn while his body was parallel to the floor. Then the smaller man, feet in the air, rested the back of his neck on the back of the other man’s neck, who was standing. Take a moment to picture that. With no hands, the big man knelt down on the court, looking as if he had an upside-down guy Velcroed to the back of his neck. The Brigham Young cheerleaders watched from the sideline, mouths agape. When they came out and the female cheerleaders were lifted into the air by their male counterparts, it suddenly didn’t seem so special.
Bell’s Experimental Notebook
“Alexander Graham Bell’s notebook entry of 10 March 1876 describes his successful experiment with the telephone. Speaking through the instrument to his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, in the next room, Bell utters these famous first words, ‘Mr. Watson — come here — I want to see you.'”
On the 145th anniversary of the battle
“On March 9, 2007, the much-anticipated USS Monitor Center opened its doors, allowing visitors from all over the nation to see for themselves why it is truly one of America’s premier Civil War attractions.”
The Mariners’ Museum: Newport News, Virginia.
The battle between the ironclads Monitor and Merrimac was fought to a draw on this date in 1862.
The previous day the Merrimac (actually christened the Alabama) had mauled the Union fleet that was blockading Hampton Roads. The following is an Extract from Annual Report of the Secretary of the Navy Concerning the Battle of the Monitor and the Merrimac (via The American Civil War Home Page).
All efforts to get the Minnesota afloat during the night and into a safe position were totally unavailing. The morning was looked for with deep anxiety, as it would in all probability bring a renewed attack from the formidable assailant. At this critical and anxious moment the Monitor, one of the newly-finished armored vessels, came into Hampton Roads, from New York, under command of Lieut. John L. Worden, and a little after midnight anchored alongside the Minnesota. At 6 o’clock the next morning the Merrimac, as anticipated, again made her appearance, and opened her fire upon the Minnesota. Promptly obeying the signal to attack, the Monitor ran down past the Minnesota and laid herself close alongside the Merrimac, between that formidable vessel and the Minnesota. The fierce conflict between these two ironclads lasted for several hours. It was in appearance an unequal conflict, for the Merrimac was a large and noble structure, and the Monitor was in comparison almost diminutive. But the Monitor was strong in her armor, in the ingenious novelty of her construction, in the large caliber of her two guns, and the valor and skill with which she was handled. After several hours’ fighting the Merrimac found herself overmatched, and, leaving the Monitor, sought to renew the attack on the Minnesota; but the Monitor again placed herself between the two vessels and reopened her fire upon her adversary. At noon the Merrimac, seriously damaged, abandoned the contest and, with her companions, retreated toward Norfolk.
Live for the moment
Click to enlarge.
If you liked the film, you’ll probably like this
And if you didn’t like the film, you probably won’t like it.
Animation of a Samuel L. Jackson Pulp Fiction speech in type.
I had some of these classes
Ratings of professors:
- BORING! But I learned there are 137 tiles on the ceiling.
- Not only is the book a better teacher, it also has a better personality.
- Teaches well, invites questions and then insults you for 20 minutes.
- I learned how to hate a language I already know.
- Very good course, because I only went to one class.
- Bring a pillow.
Priests to Purify Site After Bush Visit
GUATEMALA CITY — Mayan priests will purify a sacred archaeological site to eliminate “bad spirits” after President Bush visits next week, an official with close ties to the group said Thursday.
“That a person like (Bush), with the persecution of our migrant brothers in the United States, with the wars he has provoked, is going to walk in our sacred lands, is an offense for the Mayan people and their culture,” Juan Tiney, the director of a Mayan nongovernmental organization with close ties to Mayan religious and political leaders, said Thursday.
Bush’s seven-day tour of Latin America includes a stopover beginning late Sunday in Guatemala. On Monday morning he is scheduled to visit the archaeological site Iximche on the high western plateau in a region of the Central American country populated mostly by Mayans.
Tiney said the “spirit guides of the Mayan community” decided it would be necessary to cleanse the sacred site of “bad spirits” after Bush’s visit so that their ancestors could rest in peace.
Maybe the Mayan priests could come to Albuquerque and purify the El Pinto. The restaurant hasn’t been the same since Bush started visiting it these past few years.
Sex in shop class
Indianapolis – For months it’s been a well-kept secret. But now Warren Township Schools confirm a disturbing case of sex in the classroom. The illicit activity has parents concerned and a district at a loss for words.
Shop class gives students a chance to learn outside of the book. But at Warren Township’s Raymond Park Middle School, two students engaged in illicit acts in view of goggled eyes.
13 Investigates was tipped off by a disturbed resident who writes:
“…during school hours in a classroom with an experienced teacher present, two sixth graders completed the act of intercourse…at least ten students were witnesses. No disciplinary actions were taken against the teacher… All teachers were told to keep quiet.”
NewMexiKen is quite disturbed by this story. When I was in junior-high shop class I spent my time making a copper ash tray and a plaque for an award I’d won.
The Amistad case
… was handed down by the Supreme Court on this date in 1841.
The National Archives has a web page on the Amistad case with links to images of several documents. The Archives summarizes:
In February of 1839, Portuguese slave hunters abducted a large group of Africans from Sierra Leone and shipped them to Havana, Cuba, a center for the slave trade. This abduction violated all of the treaties then in existence. Fifty-three Africans were purchased by two Spanish planters and put aboard the Cuban schooner Amistad for shipment to a Caribbean plantation. On July 1, 1839, the Africans seized the ship, killed the captain and the cook, and ordered the planters to sail to Africa. On August 24, 1839, the Amistad was seized off Long Island, NY, by the U.S. brig Washington. The planters were freed and the Africans were imprisoned in New Haven, CT, on charges of murder. Although the murder charges were dismissed, the Africans continued to be held in confinement as the focus of the case turned to salvage claims and property rights. President Van Buren was in favor of extraditing the Africans to Cuba. However, abolitionists in the North opposed extradition and raised money to defend the Africans. Claims to the Africans by the planters, the government of Spain, and the captain of the brig led the case to trial in the Federal District Court in Connecticut. The court ruled that the case fell within Federal jurisdiction and that the claims to the Africans as property were not legitimate because they were illegally held as slaves. The case went to the Supreme Court in January 1841, and former President John Quincy Adams argued the defendants’ case. Adams defended the right of the accused to fight to regain their freedom. The Supreme Court decided in favor of the Africans, and 35 of them were returned to their homeland. The others died at sea or in prison while awaiting trial.
In 1997 Steven Spielberg directed a fine movie concering the case with Anthony Hopkins portraying John Quincy Adams. Morgan Freeman and Anna Paquin are other “stars” in the film, but many critics thought Djimon Honsou as the leader of mutiny, Joseph Cinqué, was the heart of the film. Retired Justice Harry Blackmun played Justice Joseph Story.
Pancho Villa
… and his forces attacked Columbus, New Mexico, on this date in 1916.
Why Columbus? A series of circumstances and events: Columbus had a garrison of about 600 U.S. soldiers and the U.S. had taken sides against Villa and for Venustiano Carranza in the continuing Mexican revolutions. Villa had been sold blank ammunition by an arms dealer in the town. A few days earlier 10 Mexicans had been “accidentally” burned to death while in custody in El Paso during a “routine” delousing with gasoline.
The attack at dawn lasted about three hours before American troops chased Villa’s forces into Mexico. The town was burned and 17 Americans, mostly private citizens, were killed. About 100 of Villa’s troops were reportedly killed. The arms dealer was absent from Columbus that morning. He had a dental appointment in El Paso.
The next day President Wilson ordered General Jack Pershing and 5,000 America troops into Mexico to capture Villa. This “Punitive Expedition” was often mis-directed by Mexican citizens and Villa allegedly hid in the dust thrown up by Pershing’s vehicles. (The American Army used aircraft for reconnaissance for the first time. This is considered the beginning of the Army Air Corps.)
Unsuccessful in the hunt, by February 1917 the United States and Pershing turned their attention to the war in Europe. Minor clashes with Mexican irregulars continued to disturb the border from 1917 to 1919. Engagements took place near Buena Vista, Mexico, on 1 December 1917; in San Bernardino Canyon, Mexico, on 26 December 1917; near La Grulla, Texas, on 8-9 January 1918; at Pilares, Mexico, about 28 March 1918; at Nogales, Arizona, on 27 August 1918; and near El Paso, Texas, on 15-16 June 1919.
NewMexiKen’s very own grandfather served in Columbus during World War I, making him the first NewMexiKen.
Villa, born Doroteo Arango, surrendered to the Mexican Government in 1920 and retired on a general’s pay. He was assassinated in 1923.
Columbus photo via New Mexico Magazine.
Unprecedented
Paul Krugman in today’s Times via The Daily Dish:
Donald Shields and John Cragan, two professors of communication, have compiled a database of investigations and/or indictments of candidates and elected officials by U.S. attorneys since the Bush administration came to power. Of the 375 cases they identified, 10 involved independents, 67 involved Republicans, and 298 involved Democrats. The main source of this partisan tilt was a huge disparity in investigations of local politicians, in which Democrats were seven times as likely as Republicans to face Justice Department scrutiny.
How can this have been happening without a national uproar? The authors explain: “We believe that this tremendous disparity is politically motivated and it occurs because the local (non-statewide and non-Congressional) investigations occur under the radar of a diligent national press. Each instance is treated by a local beat reporter as an isolated case that is only of local interest.”
And let’s not forget that Karl Rove’s candidates have a history of benefiting from conveniently timed federal investigations. Last year Molly Ivins reminded her readers of a curious pattern during Mr. Rove’s time in Texas: “In election years, there always seemed to be an F.B.I. investigation of some sitting Democrat either announced or leaked to the press. After the election was over, the allegations often vanished.”
Help me out here
NewMexiKen has the sense that if I ask my representative to request an ethics investigation of Heather Wilson it isn’t going to go very far. My Representative is Heather Wilson. (Capital R, because she sure as hell isn’t my representative.)
So if you have a moment today, please give your representative a call, whether Dem or Republican, and politely ask him or her to request an ethics investigation into Rep. Wilson’s conduct. Specifically, you want the ethics committee to look into whether Wilson “violated House rules by improperly contacting sitting U.S. Attorney David Iglesias of New Mexico, regarding pending litigation.” Of course, you don’t have to use that exact phrasing, but I think the part in quotes gets straight to the nut of the story.
Best picture of the day, so far
From last week’s eclipse. Click image for larger version and to learn more.
Sterile and soulless
David Pogue just takes CompUSA apart.
This may sound a little harsh—but frankly, I’ve never quite understood how CompUSA stayed in business to begin with. Most of the stores I’ve visited have been sterile and soulless, and pervaded by a feeling of abandonment. You’d think a gearhead like me would get all excited to be there, but for some reason, I just can’t wait to get out.
. . .But what about the old argument that local shops offer hand-holding, friendly advice and personal service?
Well, there may be CompUSA employees who provide all that. But I haven’t met many of them.
There’s more.
Super-Close Google Maps Zooms
Saw this a couple of places but thanks to dangerousmeta for reminding me.
John McPhee
It’s the birthday of writer John McPhee, born in 1931 in Princeton, New Jersey, and considered one of the greatest living literary journalists.
When he was in high school, his English teacher required her students to write three compositions a week, each accompanied by a detailed outline, and many of which the students had to read out loud to the class. Ever since he took that class, McPhee has carefully outlined all his written work and has read out loud to his wife every sentence he writes before it is published.
He is known for the huge range of his subjects. He has written about canoes, geology, tennis, nuclear energy, and the Swiss army. He won the Pulitzer Prize for his book about the geology of America, Annals of the Former World (1998).
In his book Oranges (1967), about the orange-growing business, he wrote, “An orange grown in Florida usually has a thin and tightly fitting skin, and it is also heavy with juice. Californians say that if you want to eat a Florida orange you have to get into a bathtub first. California oranges are light in weight and have thick skins that break easily and come off in hunks. The flesh inside is marvelously sweet, and the segments almost separate themselves. In Florida, it is said that you can run over a California orange with a 10-ton truck and not even wet the pavement.”
This week’s New Yorker has an article by McPhee. What’s it about you ask. Who cares, it’s by John McPhee.
A “literary journalist.” That’s what I want to be when I grow up.
Gasoline prices in inflation-adjusted cents
The chart is six months out of date, but still interesting.
Gasoline prices in inflation-adjusted (2005) Cents, 1950 to 2006.
The cheapest gas of the last half century was in 1998.
The February Revolution
… began in Russia on this date 90 years ago.
The February Revolution was the first stage of the Russian Revolution. Mostly bloodless, it led to the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II. Ultimately, the regime that began in the February Revolution was replaced during the October (Bolshevik) Revolution.
Here’s some contemporary reports from The New York Times.
[Russia was still using the Julian Calendar in 1917. Hence, March 8 elsewhere was February 23 in Russia; November 7 was October 25 .]
A year from now
… the party presidential candidates may be all but decided.
In light of years of corruption and incompetence, no sane person will vote Republican. The choice for reality-based voters will be from among the Democratic Party contenders. So …
{democracy:11}
Send me a postcard
Shortly after noon on Wednesday, the last few feet of a steel and glass skywalk was rolled out over the southwest rim of the Grand Canyon, a 2-million-pound engineering marvel that the Hualapai Indians hope will boost tourism to their remote ancestral land and provide the impoverished tribe with a desperately needed economic boost.
With sage burning and tribal members playing gourds, spiritual leader Emmett Bender blessed the cantilevered horseshoe-shaped skywalk, which will jut out 70 feet from the canyon rim and dangle 4,000 feet above the canyon floor. He called the structure “the white man’s idea.”
. . .Three years in the making and topping $30 million in cost, the 30,000-square-foot skywalk, which will open March 28, will allow 120 visitors at a time to walk out over the canyon rim to look at the gorge through glass walls and through a glass floor at the bottom of the canyon, nearly four-fifths of a mile below.
NewMexiKen gets nervous looking over the railing from Jill’s landing into her family room.
An Unjust Expulsion
The Cherokee Nation’s decision to revoke the tribal citizenship of about 2,800 descendants of slaves once owned by the tribe is a moral low point in modern Cherokee history and places the tribe in violation of a 140-year-old federal treaty and several court decisions. The federal government must now step in to protect the rights of the freedmen, who could lose their tribal identities as well as access to medical, housing and other tribal benefits.
. . .Advocates for the expulsion say it is about self-determination. But the tribal history makes clear that it is about discrimination — and that it is illegal. The Bureau of Indian Affairs, which has been curiously silent, should bring the Cherokee government into compliance with the law and require it to restore the tribal rights of the expelled members.
The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming
A fascinating, eclectic iTunes playlist from Alan Arkin.