AtomicBaboon!?!

<EDIT: Fixed the link to the essay> This essay by Albert Einstein entitled "The World As I See It" is a bit... what's the word... well... it seems like something I would write if I could write that well. Honestly, except for the fact that he was an amazing genius and I'm not, I identify with practically everything he says. Even his take on heroism and patriotism to an extent. I wish that men in our society could feel like they've accomplished something or proven themselves men without having to put themselves through what they do. Maybe that is just how I see it. I often think that in order to prove my honor and that I am a man I need to join the military to become a hero. To prove to my family and my countrymen that I am worth something and should be taken seriously I need to have my mettle tested in combat. Granted, what our people in the service do is valuable and honorable, but should I feel that way about my worth?

He also writes about his solitude and his lack of need for direct contact with other people. Although recently my feelings in that area have begun to change a bit I know exactly what he means. I relish the time I have alone to think about my existence and that of humankind and of the universe. To attempt to wrap my mind around the very fact that anything exists at all is quite a trip. By attempting to look beyond what my temporal mind can understand and contemplate the infinite I can make myself vaguely aware of just how small and insignificant we all are; before I scare the bejesus out of myself and have to go do something to take my mind off it.

The last paragraph of the essay touches on that mystery and the origin of "religiosity." As I have gotten older I find myself thinking of religion and spirituality more in the sense of admitting to the mystery and being in awe of it than something I am told or read in a book. Granted, I stand on the shoulders of giants when it comes to what I know of the world and of that great mystery. However, I cannot with clear conscience simply accept what I am told on that subject. To accept what mortal men have said simply because they were here first and wrote about it first would be absurd. If we are all truly equal in the eyes of our creator then the ideas presented by those before me are no more valuable than my own.

I really enjoy his paragraph on democracy and the value of the "sentient individual." He wrote "In my opinion, an autocratic system of coercion soon degenerates; force attracts men of low morality..." I can't argue with that.

In my opinion this essay very succinctly and elegantly sums up the way I feel about the world. However, it makes me worry that I may be egotistical to say so considering who wrote it... makes me feel good at the same time though.

When I was approaching the end of my high school career I applied for several of the advertised scholarships at school. I figured I would get at least one considering I was in the top 10 of my class with a GPA greater than 4.0, had built a solar car, was a member of various mathematics and engineering clubs, and at the time was a pretty nice guy (not as much of a cynical jerk as I am now).

So I wrote essays (which I was really good at at the time) and answered questionnaires like many of my fellow students were doing. During the process I noticed there were many scholarships that I was automatically disqualified to apply for. Their requirements basically being that I could not be white and/or male. This bugged me a bit but you know I'm a white male so I can't get upset by those things... "they" said so and at that time in my life I wanted to make "them" happy.

So the big night rolls around where they hand out all the scholarships at a ceremony and the people that received them walk across the stage and shake some persons hand and get a check. I can't remember now how many I applied for but I do remember that I didn't get any of them. By that point I had taken the ACT and scored high enough to benefit from one of the states socialist programs so I was in good shape. However, as far as the scholarships made available to me by my high school were concerned, it appeared to me that I had been discriminated against. It seemed that the assumption at the time was that since I was a white male I would some how automatically be able to afford to get the education I needed so I didn't need the money. This of course was not true. Had I scored a couple points lower on the ACT I wouldn't have been able to afford college. However, if I had been a "minority" or a female I would have been guaranteed money. That's the way it looked anyway. So, I decided then that when I had the money to do it I was going to start the Dan Feather Scholarship for Middle Class White Males. I figure if other racial and gender scholarships exist this shouldn't be a problem and I could at least help out one kid in the same situation.

I heard about an incident in Rhode Island a while back but didn't get around to looking it up until this morning. I Googled for "White Male Scholarship" and came up with many blog entries but I can't seem to find any national news about it. The "Cybercast News Service" has a couple articles regarding the situation here and here. It got pretty ugly for the student republican group that created the scholarship. They created it to make a statement of course. It makes me wonder how the Dan Feather Scholarship for Middle Class White Males would go over in Carthage. Probably not very well...

I'm a half glass empty kind of guy. I'm a realist.
-Matt

Yep... half glass empty.

Coolness: I got my motorcycle permit today at lunch. I scored 100% on the test. cool.

Stupidity: Short, fat people may get rights. Mmmmkay... so... when did they not have them? If a person is being harassed or discriminated against for ANY reason it is wrong and in severe enough cases legal action can be taken. It's the same thing as sexual harassment. Say what you want, they are not different. If you are being harassed at work and it makes your work environment hostile the company has the legal obligation to address the issue or face legal action. Do we really need laws any where that list out when that is wrong? Is this something that is different in Missouri than other places?

I think this is the one: Triumph Thruxton.

My friend Ed and I went to the Springfield Blogger's meeting last night at Patton Alley Pub. Zach was there and it was his last meeting before he makes the big move to K.C. So we got to sit and shoot the breeze for a couple hours which was fun. I am certain Zach will do really well in K.C. Good luck Zach!

A couple new people were there and... ummmmm... I am having a hard time remembering their names. We had a great discussion about music with one of them. He is going to be starting a blog about music and based on our conversation I'm pretty sure it will be a great site.

Andy, Jack, Tony, Larry, and Steve were all there as well. As always it was a good time. If you blog and live in Springfield or the surrounding area I encourage you to stop by some time. It is cool to meet the people behind the blogs.

I paid my car off today. After almost 5 years I actually own the vehicle I've put 98,000 miles on. Sweet...

I was thinking today. If Sheryl Crow would go on national television and show that she can get by using one or two squares I will start using one or two too.

I know how it is done and it wouldn't be pleasant. But if she can prove she does it I will do it.

P.S. Just like her, I am kidding too. I think she's got a good sense of humor.

I am a member of the Free Software Foundation. I receive interesting e-mails from time to time from them and I got this one a few days ago.

If you are at a university which has a law school, please go to the university archives, and check the old course catalogs to see when classes in the law school began using the propaganda term "intellectual property" (see http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/not-ipr.html) in the names of courses. Please send the date, school, course title and description to rms@gnu.org.

Apparently RMS is doing some research. Could turn into something interesting. A couple days later I got this message from RMS forwarded to FSF members.

>From Richard Stallman:

The reason for the question about old law school course catalogs is that we're looking for historical information that shows when use of the propaganda term "intellectual property" became widespread. We are pretty sure this occurred in the 70s and 80s, but we want to find objective evidence about it.

Since we know that the term was widely used in the late 90s, there is no point sending references to the term from the 2000s. They won't show when the usage _started_. Likewise, the rare uses from long ago are not relevant to this question.

Law school course catalogues from the 70s and 80s can show when they started using that term. By checking them, you can provide evidence that directly relates to the question.

The way to look at the old catalogues from the 70s and 80s is to phone or visit the university library and ask where they are kept and how you can look at them.

You may be able to think of other ways to measure when use of that propaganda term became widespread. If so, please try them -- that information may be useful.

As of Friday evening, I am no longer part owner of Geekerz. I was 1/3 owner for a little over a year and it was a learning experience. However, I am glad to be freed of that obligation. It becomes extremely apparent how nice free time is when you don't have as much of it any more. I am glad I have mine back.

After reading "Do you need a Collaborator, or a Schemer?" I think I've identified the reason why projects I have attempted or been involved in in the past were never fruitful. I am a schemer as are many of my friends. I think we need a collaborator to get things moving. So, I am looking for a collaborator or collaborators who might be interested in a programming project. My initial thoughts are it will involve Python, Ajax, and C. Possibly using Django as the web frame work. If you read this and it sounds like something you'd be interested in let me know. My e-mail address is dfeather at acm dot org (or leave a comment with your e-mail address and I will contact you).

Right now it is just a vague idea and I hope to meet with some of my fellow schemers to get the idea more solidified soon. I don't want to get any more specific than that right now. If the languages and tools mentioned above change I will post an update about it.