Silflay Hraka

Scylla et Charybdis.

When you mention “the French riots,” most people assume you’re talking about the excitable chaps rampaging around in 2005. But it was another set of riots six months later that symbolizes the trap in which the political class is caught. The fall 2005 rioters were “youths” (ie Muslims from the suburbs), supposedly alienated by lack of economic opportunity. The spring 2006 rioters were “youths” (ie pampered deadbeats from the Sorbonne), protesting a new law that would enable employers to terminate the contracts of employees under the age of 26 in their first jobs, after two years.

Lightsticks may hold deadly attraction for sea turtles. Damn ravers.

President George W. Lincoln?

Steadiness in the war effort in the face of a strong opposition is nice and all, but everything Lincoln became was a result of his unceasing intellectual curiosity. At one early point in his life, Lincoln had read every book within a 50-mile walking radius of his home. I don’t think George has that same quality. I don’t think anyone does, even his most fervid supporters.

History may still come to judge him kindly, but the politician Bush resembles most is not Lincoln or Truman, but Teddy Kennedy.

I’ll let you figure out why.

I picked snake lilies* out in the swamp fer Maw while she watched the young-uns. They’s hard to find, as it is late in the season for snake lilies. Most of them was dead by now, so it is a mark of my true love that they’s so many. I put ‘em in a Mason jar, as that seemed fittin’. A clean one, for I knows the ladies can be particular about that sorta thing.

*Fancy pants fellers got a different name for ‘em, but don’t nobody call ‘em that round here.

Was Also Sprach Zarathustra playing somewhere? Because it probably should have been.

A mission to test satellite servicing techniques took a giant leap forward in a 300-mile-high space ballet Saturday, when two spacecraft separated, spent an hour flying in tight formation, and automatically docked together again.

(lvamc)

I blame Woundwort, who burned the cd in the first place. Admittedly, the copy was intended for me, not Ngnat, and I did almost immediately lose it in the storage closet, the dim recesses of which Ngnat extracted it from last month, but still–as any good politician will inform the public after discovering mismanagement in the public arena–It’s not my fault!

At least it’s ska….ish.

Scotty M is missing his Munchlax.

In an announcement that will no doubt warm the cockles of Pokemon’s corporate heart, he informed us at the breakfast table this morning that he suspects it was taken by Team Rocket.

Americans are fleeing to flyover country.

The nation’s center of gravity is shifting: Dallas is now larger than San Francisco, Houston is now larger than Detroit, Atlanta is now larger than Boston, Charlotte is now larger than Milwaukee. State capitals that were just medium-sized cities dominated by government employees in the 1950s–Sacramento, Austin, Raleigh, Nashville, Richmond–are now booming centers of high-tech and other growing private-sector businesses. San Antonio has more domestic than immigrant inflow even though the border is only three hours’ drive away. The Interior Boomtowns generated 38% of the nation’s population growth in 2000-06.

Last I heard NC was set to pass New Jersey at the next census, becoming the 10th most populous state. That’s nice, but all in all I think I preferred the days when we were #14.