This is an interesting article from washingtonpost.com. One lesson that should have been taken from Sept. 11th was that attacks against infrastructure are painful. Beyond the loss of life that day the economy took a huge hit. Especially the travel and financial sectors.

An interesting article from the Washington Post about the last big battle in Afghanistan.

If you haven't read the NYT Portraits of grief then you should. It is the most tasteful memorial that could be created for the victims of Sept. 11th.

I didn't realize this but, it is illegal to have sexual intercourse outside of marriage in Georgia. Amazing that they can make criminals of the majority of the of the adults in the state.

This is dedicated to the person who has spent the last two weeks, calling me every 2 hrs, 5-7 times a day on my cell phone...

Today we salute you, Ms. Cell Phone Crank Caller
(Cell Phone Crank Caller)
Without your undying commitment, my cell phone may never have rung.
(Ring Ring Ring)
Never has one person cranked so many times. It took skill and dedication.
(Skill and Dedication)
While you acted like you couldn't have cared less about my cell phone bill, I know deep down inside
.... you truly didn't.
(Ring Ring Ring)
So crack open an ice cold Bud Light Ms. Cell Phone Crank Caller, because thanks to you I changed my cell phone number.
(Be-BE-BEEP, the number you have dialed is not a working number, please check the number and dial again.)
You deserve it.
-cheryl

This article proves that in any debate there are always wackos on either side. In this case it is unassisted home child birth. Why do people always take logical things to their illogical conclusion? I agree that many hospitals treat pregnancy like a disease rather than a natural part of life, but come on. What is next? Cooking and eating the afterbirth? But what do I know?

An interesting story about the latest plan to make you live longer. I think it is called living a simple faith filled life.

money.telegraph.co.uk - Worldwide web of debt unravelling You know I was thinking. It is really the danger you can't see that causes catastrophy. We all worried about y2k and it was terrorism that was the real danger. I wonder if the EnronGlobalCrossingWorldcom problems will be y2k or wtc?

To prove my point about th US losing face in the world of investing and finance. This is as big as the war on terror, and should be considered as biga national priority.

The news about Worldcom of late is interesting to me. It interests me for several reasons:

• I was dumb enough to buy their stock
• I used to work for AT&T, and watched them beat us consistently in the consumer long distance market
• The stupidity and greed of corporate leaders is astounding.

I am concerned that if these types of stories keep dripping out over time it will kill the market for a long time. The stock market is all about confidence. If the ethical and accounting issues spread the perception that all US companies are corrupt and untrustworthy then foreign investment in the US market will wane. This could put us into the same spiral seen in Japan. The emergence of the EU as a competitor to the US hegemony comes just as this crisis makes people wonder if the US market is worth investing in. But what do I know?

I have been contemplating a blog for awhile, but I decided to make one when Hossein Derakhshan asked if I had one in an email discussion we were having. Iran has always interested me. There seems to be a great disconnect between the people and the government (although the same can be said for any country including ours). I hope one day soon our respective governments can work out their issues (and the will of the Iranian people can be shown). The demographic crisis in Iran is real. According to the BBC, "More than half of Iran's 60m people are under twenty-five, including about 24m at schools and universities." Soon the majority will not remember what caused the revolution. They will not remember the Shah's repression. They will only know the repression of the current government. I do not deprecate the pain that the Shah (and his backers in the US) caused to Iran, but I am afraid that the government that replaced it has surpassed him.

Is there a concept of freedom in Islam? I am not sure. I would like to know more. I know Christianity and Islam share the same origins and the Jesus is considered a prophet in Islam, but there are major differences in philosophy. Is there an analogous concept to freewill in Islam? Is the right chosen better than the right forced? I lean to the former, but what do I know?

This is my first post. it will be interesting to see how my interests evolve over time. I work for a major Computer Mfg company. I am in a class today. I am learning about SAN configuration in a multivendor environment. In my job as a support engineer I work with linux. I am currently working on passing Linux LPI Certification. I am married and have a daughter. We have a son who is due later this year.