Point-Nine Repeating Decimal

2007-02-22T19:15:00.000-05:00

More on Baptism, from Oak Hill

The human mind explaining Baptism is like a harmonica interpreting Beethoven: the music is too majestic for the instrument. No scholar or saint can fully appreciate what this means in heaven. Any words on baptism, including these, must be seen as human efforts to understand a holy event. Our danger is to swing to one of two extremes: we make baptism either too important or too commonplace. Either we deify it or we trivialize it. One can see baptism as either the essence of the gospel or as irrelevant to the gospel. Both sides are equally perilous. One person says, "I am saved because I was baptized." The other says, "I'm saved so I don't need to be baptized." The challenge is to let the pendulum stop somewhere between the two viewpoints. This is done by placing the issue where it shoud be -- at the foot of the cross.

Later the statement notes that there are no examples of unbaptized believers in the New Testament, except for...

The thief on the cross, however, is a crucial exception. His conversion drives dogmatists crazy. It is no accident that the first one to accept the invitation of the crucified Christ has no creed, confirmation, christening, or catechism. How disturbing to theologians to ascend the mountain of doctrine only to be greeted by an uneducated thief who cast his lot with Christ. Here is a man who never went to church, never gave an offering, never was baptized, and said only one prayer. But that prayer was enough. He has a crucial role in the gospel drama. The thief reminds us that though our dogma may be airtight and our doctrine dead center, in the end it is Jesus who saves. [emphasis mine]

Another interesting section is in answer to the question "How much do I need to know to be baptized?" This is interesting to me because the churches I've belonged to generally follow the pattern of a) someone walks down the aisle, or otherwise makes known a decision for Christ, b) the person meets with an eldor/deacon/minister and they talk -- I don't know for certain about what because I haven't been a part of that, at least not since I was seven when the preacher came to my house to talk to me , c) the person is baptized...with what time lag I'm not sure, but probably no more than a few weeks. I was surprised to visit Richland Hills Church of Christ in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and see someone come down the aisle and be baptized in the same service! I didn't know quite what to think of it because I see both sides: we don't want to be dunking people who have no idea what they're actually doing, as that cheapens baptism and may create an assurance of salvation in one who has not been saved, but if someone has been saved and is excited and eager to follow Christ's command to be baptized, who am I to say "no, you cannot, I must first deem you truly worthy"?

Oak Hill's answer is grounded in an analysis of each of the NT's baptism narratives. Who was baptized and what did they understand/know prior to baptism? Oak Hill's conclusion is

The message and the response are consistent. The message is Jesus and the response is voluntary--a simple faith in Christ and an immediate response of faith to be baptized.

Interesting food for thought!

The concluding statement is "For all we may not understand about baptism, we can be sure of one thing: it is a holy moment." I'm not sure if I really thought about my baptism as a holy moment before. I think this emphasis on the holiness of baptism comes from the influence of the teaching of baptism as part of a process of salvation (though Oak Hill apparently doesn't teach that view at all). I appreciate the contribution that teaching has given me in a better appreciation of baptism. I have been known to tear up (frequently!) while witnessing a baptism, but more as a result of joy over someone's brand new commitment to Christ. I'm pretty sure I'll still feel that joy, but I think I'll also feel more of a sense of holiness about the event as well now.

2007-02-16T22:00:00.000-05:00

Weather Woes

It's cold, I'm snowed/iced in, and I haven't been able to go to the grocery store. It's the perfect night to order a pizza...but I'd be out a million bucks or more after the delivery boy broke his neck trying to get up my sidewalk.

Bummer.

2007-02-13T19:41:00.000-05:00

Update on Dave Barry's 24 Commentary

I'm reading "Steve the 24 Guy"' s minute-by-minute comentary, a comment on Dave's blog (scroll down maybe 90% to the bottom) and it's so cleverly funny I'm about to have a little accident in the chair if I don't make a strategic retreat to the restroom.

Did I just post that on a blog...????? =)

Update to the update: I think simply being familiar with 24 will be enough to find Steve's "comment" gut-bustingly funny.

Update to the update to the update: My favorite quip so far...

Bill is going to send Milo out into the field with Jack! Milo is in the background kicking and screaming, because he’s heard what happens to “people out in the field with Jack” before. Some of the CTU extras try to give him a going away cake, but he doesn’t even look at it.

Just to be certain to avoid plagiarism, the link is in the previous post!

2007-02-13T19:30:00.000-05:00

24 Running Commentary ala Dave Barry

OK, dumb me, I forgot that 24 was a two-parter starting at 8, so while I recorded it, I didn't start recording until like 8:45 and missed the first 45 minutes. Drat! Jack probably tortured a few more family members during that time and I missed it!

The funniest thing I've ever seen, ever, ever! on 24 was on Dave Barry's blog--does he do it every week? It's kind of a running commentary, Dave Barry style, very funny! And the comments -- uh, yeah, 890 of them at the time of this writing -- are really funny too. There are some witty people out there! I don't think you'll get much out of it if you don't watch 24, or if you didn't specifically watch those episodes of 24 -- I definitely found it way funnier when it reached the part I had seen. (Incidentally, I'm fond of the actress playing "Mrs. Baldy" and I think she's a pretty good actress. Rena Sofer started [that I know of] on General Hospital back in the day when I watched it, and she really stood out in that way that talented actors do on soap operas.)

I especially loved the bit about Jack being caught in a nuclear blast and then molecularly reassembled, because no way such a little thing as a nuclear bomb could stop Jack! Dave even comments on the commercials! Good stuff.

2007-02-13T17:30:00.000-05:00

More on PNRD = 1

I was lying awake in bed the other night contemplating the fact (that's right, "fact," I give in) that .9-repeating-decimal equals 1, and thought of another way to conceptualize it, a way that actually makes it somehow make sense to me. Why do I care?

What do you add to PNRD to make it equal 1?

Think about this for a moment.

You know that eventually you have to add a "1"...but when do you add it? The "9" repeats into infinity...so, again, when would you add the "1"? After how many "point-zero's"?

The answer is, of course, that since the 9's stretch into infinity, you can never add the 1, because you never reach the infinity. That's pretty much what infinity means, as I understand it. And if you can never add anything to it to make it equal to 1 (and there's nothing else you can do to it to make it equal 1), then...it must already equal 1.

This is probably the simplest way to think about it (to my mind), even simpler than the 1/3 vs. .3-repeating-decimal. And somehow less mind-blowing, but perhaps that's just because it's had a few months to slosh around and sink in.

2007-02-11T17:44:00.000-05:00

Musings on Tim Tebow

Find out all about how Tim Tebow is going to make it three more years when it's great to be a Florida Gator.

My favorite? "Tim Tebow can win a game of Connect Four in only three moves."

Scroll down to PJ Harrison's posts. But actually, this is a really entertaining blog post, again from Nathan Finn (new site location).

I laughed so hard my chest hurt and I could only breathe in gasps.

Laughed...and rejoiced to be a Gator. Keep the sackcloth handy, Nathan!

2007-02-11T17:17:00.000-05:00

Grab the Closest Book...

I'm not sure why I'm doing this, but I read the following, some kind of blog chain letter or something, on Nathan Finn's blog (which focuses on Southern Baptists).

1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123; go down to the fourth sentence.
3. Post the text of the following three sentences.
4. Name the author and book title.
5. Tag three people to do the same.

Well, I don't even know what "tagging" is, and I'm still trying to figure out what exactly this "RSS feed" thing is and how it works--I may not even the initials right--that a friend from work told me about and I've since seen everywhere.

But doggone, I know how to open a book!

But in the Rhineland it was different. The emporer there ruled only by virtue of his election. When at Cologne on November 12 Aleander tried to have a bonfire, though the archbishop had given his consent, the executioner refused to proceed without an express imperial mandate.

--Roland H. Bainton's "Here I Stand" on Martin Luther, this section on the beginnings of the Counterreformation and book burnings

(This is the closest book, the only book in my office, because I've been intending to post a book review on Amazon...yeah, for a few months now.)

As for tagging three people, yeah, well, maybe if I knew that meant. I'm not sure there are even three people looking at this blog, but if anyone does, it might be a fun little experiment.

2007-02-08T19:00:00.000-05:00

General Paulus's Sharp Wit

General Lucius Aemilius Paulus wielded a clever pen back in B.C. Rome that has not dulled with time. Definitely worth a read. My eye was initially drawn to it because of the "Come with me to Macedonia" -- happily! (Well, maybe depends what part.)

(No, this doesn't count as substantive.)

2007-02-08T18:54:00.000-05:00

Welcome Back Borat...Not

My good friend "Lantana" will be so happy! Sacha Baron Cohen has signed on to make "Borat 2." Saw this while, ahem, checking TV Guide to see what's on tonight. I'm beat, long workdays all week, debating whether I have the energy to fix supper or just order pizza. It's a good TV/do the laundry night regardless.

Hopefully I will post something substantive before next year....

2007-01-21T13:35:00.000-05:00

No Vitriol, Please

Sometimes I would like to blog more about my opinions on various matters, political, theological, linguistic, what have you, but I've seen far too much vitriol flung out there to want to get too much into that. (Not that there's more than a [small] handful of people reading this anyway, none of whom are likely to sling vitriol, but there's at least a tiny chance that someday hordes of people will descend on my humble little blog...okay, very tiny!)

And it seems to not necessarily have anything to do with the tone of the original post. Today while randomly hopping around various blogs (I don't have any I read daily, or even weekly for that matter) I came across what I thought was an incredibly thoughtful, insightful post on the issue. It was on Cerulean Sanctum -- Cerulean of "Blue...cerulean blue" X-files fame that often makes me think twice before pulling into an intersection -- I blog I hadn't seen before. The comments were interesting, too, with no vitriol in sight, thank goodness.

Came across some other things, too, but I'm tired of being on the internet and will post some more later.

2007-01-19T00:12:00.000-05:00

Five Guys -- Finally Washington Recognized for Cuisine

After being on another blog where Five Guys came up, I had to post. Yummy, yummy, yummy hamburgers, and you can be as picky as you want. Everything you want on it (bell pepper! mushroom! A-1 sauce!) and nothing you don't (onion, tomato, mustard...yuck!). There's a long list of ingredients and you just start from the bare burger and say what you want on it. The fries are good too -- very greasy, but good. They're fried in peanut oil, which I guess is what gives them their unusual flavor. Did I mention the hamburgers are yummy?

The Guys are Washington-based but rapidly expanding amidst rave reviews -- keep an eye out, they may be coming to city near you!

Can I get paid for this?

2007-01-19T00:08:00.000-05:00

Michelle Malkin's Comments on Iraq Visit

Click here to read about the conservative commentator's recent visit to Iraq. I thought it was pretty balanced, conveying some of the soldiers' frustration with those on both the left and the right.

2007-01-16T21:17:00.000-05:00

Two Unique Resources for Christians

Two rather different resources!

(1) Sacred Space -- "the prayer site run by Irish Jesuits". Somebody from my old church told me abou this site. I have to confess even though I recommen it, I've used it only a couple of times. You should only go through it if it is quiet and your attention is not divided. Such is rarely the case when I'm on the computer. As a language person I find it very cool that you can go through the guided prayers in different languages. Also I should add, although the site is "Catholic," as a non-Catholic I haven't (yet anyway) found anything that was exclusively Catholic in the guided prayers.

(2) LarkNews -- a parody Christian news site. Occasionally I see something on there that's a bit too off-color for my tastes, but for the most part this is a really clever parody site that stays on top of the different movements and currents in today's churches. Some of my favorite articles are...

"Pastor tries inauthenticity" (for those oh soooo sick of hearing about "authentic" this and that in our churches today...as if otherwise we would indeed be inauthentic)

"Church multiplex serves choosy faithful" (which really pings the superficiality of our church-hopping and church-shopping...ouch, I'm still "church-shopping")

There are oh so many more I could list, but my favorite, hands down, of all time, is "Rapture takes two." Praise God that our salvation doesn't depend on our perfectly correct understanding of theology!

2007-01-16T21:05:00.000-05:00

Gators Versus Buckeyes Revisited in Parody

Just came across this site today. Funny funny!

(Don't peruse the rest of the site too far unless you enjoy "off-color" jokes.)

In case you, ahem, never watch TV, this is a take-off on those dumb Mac/PC commercials...which oddly enough make me want to buy PCs even more.

And just to run hurtling down a tangent, why are they called "PC's" anyway? That stands for "personal computer," folks! Ain't that what a Mac is too? I've only given up calling them "IBM-compatibles" in the last couple of years...

2007-01-16T11:07:00.000-05:00

Too Much Water...Not a Good Thing

I'd heard this somewhere before, but here's proof, finally. Here's an article about an unfortunate woman who died from drinking too much water.

How is it that I'm posting this in the middle of the day instead of 10:00 at night? I'm on sick leave. =(

2007-01-11T21:07:00.000-05:00

A Soldier's View on the Plan to Increase Troops in Iraq

Here is Sgt. Boggs's take on Bush's recently announced plan. I've heard lots of mixed reactions from those on the right, and pretty consistent reactions (negative of course) from those on the left. That's perhaps odd since some of those on the left were calling for a short-term surge of more troops not long ago...but I guess that's politics for you. If the shoe were on the other foot I don't particularly expect it would be any different. But regardless, it's quite a shame that something like this, where American and Iraqi lives are on the line -- not to mention the wider security issues -- has to be so politicized. I guess it's naive to expect any different.

2007-01-11T20:52:00.000-05:00

Thank Goodness the Coke Machines Can't Tell the Difference

Time to dump your random Canadian coins into the nearest Coke machine! Got this link from Dave Barry's blog.

2007-01-08T23:14:00.000-05:00

Aunt Penny's Strawberry Salad

And just to prove there is absolutely no theme...much less point...to this blog other than what pops into my head at any given moment...

Here is the recipe for Aunt Penny's Strawberry Salad, which I quite enjoy and was just sent to me by the chef herself.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 8oz carton Cool Whip
1 lg. can crushed pineapple, well drained
2 cups miniature marshmallows (why is that spelled mallow?)
2 cups frozen strawberries (thawed, sliced)
1/2 cup chopped pecans if desired (I personally do not desire them)

Enjoy!

2007-01-08T23:00:00.000-05:00

GATORS RULE!

Please, God, don't make me eat those words! =)

Wow, what a great day the Gators are providing me with. I don't think they've played this well all season long. My cats have become wary of me...they somehow don't appreciate it when I jump up and scream for the Gators.

I smeall a National Championship in the air...right after another one for basketball. What a year!

Defense has been solid, as it pretty much has all season. Offense has been more consistent than it has in a long time...not just this season! The Gators' first drive (and second!) was so beautiful it could have been scripted and pre-planned for some kind of TV show or something.

OK, so I thought it would be a bad night after OSU ran back the kickoff for a touchdown. But then I recalled a game back in the Spurrier glory days, when we were ranked number 1, and by a mere fluke we were playing Northwest Las Vegas Community College or some such team which was ranked 107 in a year when there were precisely 107 football teams playing. Got that? Literally the best versus the worst. Ya kinda gotta feel sorry for NLVCC (or whoever it was). But you know what happened, on what was I think their very first drive, they scored a touchdown, and I think we may have had to punt on our first drive. Number 107 was beating us, Number 1, in the Swamp! For a young gung-ho Gator fan...excruciating humiliation. Well, we came back and beat them 82 to 7 or something like that (we scored tons of points in those days, and other teams would complain that our fourth string players, the jerks, were actually still trying to score). So, lesson learned. One little fluke play in the beginning don't mean much. It might even serve to wake up the Gators and really get them moving.

And how bout that Hetland (hope I've got the name right)? Two field goals, 40 and 43 yards, I think? The guy's had a horrible year, and I was really happy for him that he nailed those. I was thinking about how proud of him his family must be right now, since I'm sure it was really hard on them to see what a difficult year he was having. Darn I'm a sentimental idiot. =)

Go Gators! Third quarter so far is kinda dull. No scores.

2007-01-08T22:47:00.000-05:00

Another Article on the Episcopal Church Divide

This article is thanks to Amy.

It is indeed a very nicely written and succinct article.

This line particularly jumped out at me:
"Would that Episcopal leaders showed the same zeal for their faith that they do for their property."

Reminded me of the split of the (independent) Christian churches/churches of Christ from the Disciples of Christ...the property issue is an unfortunate reality a church may face if its property is owned by some kind of denominational structure. I'm sure it can make leaving a "drifting" or "revisionist" denomination even harder than it would be anyway. I heard conservative commentator Fred Barnes, a member of The Falls Church, say that in this case, raising the money to purchase the property (assuming the Episcopal Church lets them do is) will be "no problem."

2007-01-07T23:15:00.000-05:00

Island Vacation Tips from Dave Barry

Too funny. Click here to read about Dave Barry's recent vacation to St. Barts. Sounds like the number one tip should be: Don't go to St. Barts. = )

2006-12-18T20:14:00.000-05:00

Want to Know More About the Episcopal Church Issues?

I came across a wealth of information on the Falls Church website. A lengthy series of documents traces the history that led to yesterday's vote.

2006-12-18T19:37:00.000-05:00

Historic Day for Two Historic Episcopal Churches

The Falls Church and Truro Episcopal churches voted on Sunday to sever ties with the Episcopal Church with 90% of 1,348 eligible voters (Falls Church) and 92% of 1,095 (Truro) in favor of this move. These churches date to the 1700's and lay claim to the likes of George Washington, the Fairfax family (for whom Fairfax County, Virginia is named), and Francis Scott Key (who penned "The Star-Spangled Banner") in their long histories. The issue, broadly speaking, was the belief of the majority of members -- apparently around 90% -- that the Episcopal Church has moved away from Christian belief. This is not a new belief, but one which has been bubbling over in many Episcopal Churches that have withdrawn from their denominational organization, including one entire diocese if I recall correctly.

This is bigger news because of the historical and modern significance of these two high-profile churches.

Both churches also overwhelmingly voted to retain their church properties, meaning they will have to purchase the properties.

Examples I've heard cited of "Episcopal drift" are -- the most well-known -- the ordaining of a homosexual bishop and the defeat of a resolution at the Episcopal national meeting stating that Scripture was the final authority for the church. Bishop Minns of Truro framed the issues this way:

I am also thankful for our many friends here in the Diocese of Virginia. This is a family struggle, no question about that, and it is a very painful one, but we have managed to conduct the struggle in a way that has sought to honor those with whom we disagree. That hasn’t always been easy because there is a lot of passion around the central issues –

• What does it mean to be Church?
• How do we understand Truth and the exclusive claims of Jesus?
• How do we best love and care for homosexual persons?
• How do we appropriate the power of God to transform lives?

I am thankful that we have been able to wrestle with these essential questions with grace and mutual respect.

I'm not well-versed enough in the Episcopal Church to fully understand all of what they are grappling with, but it seems to me that in general, these are good questions for all churches, and all Christians, to take a look at. (Click here for Bishop Minn's full statement.)

2006-12-16T18:50:00.000-05:00

Military Blog

Check out Sgt. Boggs's blog. He's a veteran of service in Iraq and has some interesting thoughts and observations. Makes a good point about the Iraq Study Group not having a member under 67. (Is that correct? You can take his word for it or try to figure it out yourself!)

2006-12-16T18:23:00.000-05:00

Singing Cats

More like singing cats on drugs...but a mildly entertaining diversion!

2006-12-06T19:48:00.000-05:00

On to the National Championship Game!!!!!

Of course it's old news by now, but Florida beat Arkansa s in a pretty exciting game with some interesting plays, like a punt that Arkansas fumbled in the end zone and we recovered for a touchdown (hey, we'll take the points any way we can get them that's still within the rules!), a bizarrely gutsy (some would say stupid) faked punt when we were still pretty deep in our own territory that we managed to convert into a first down (reminds me a tad of the Spurrier days), and a play where it sure looked like our QB Leak (I hope I spelled his name right) kinda turned around, shook hands with a red jersey'd dude, and handed him the football. I think they got a touchdown out of that one. Other than one pretty horrible mistake, though, I'd say he had a pretty good game.

All in all, a fun game with the right ending, but I didn't think the score (38-28) was good enough to get us up into the #2 spot over Michigan to go the championship. When the game's commentators put up a comparison of the two schools' schedules, though, it seemed to me that Florida pretty clearly had the tougher schedule. Still, I really didn't expect it. So I was really, really excited to learn we indeed got the nod -- apparently the BCS rankings were so close that voting was required (I don't claim to understand how all that works), and Florida, just barely, came out on top.

So off we go to play Ohio State (for the first time I think) for the National Championship. Frankly, ahem, I'm not precisely quite 100% convinced we'll win...but that'll just make it all the more fun if we do! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Gators!

Where palm and pine are blowing,
Where southern seas are flowing...
'Neath the Orange and Blue victorious
Our love shall never fail.
There's no other name so glorious.
All hail Florida, hail.

2006-12-01T18:56:00.000-05:00

Interesting Post and Articles on Open Theism

Click here for an interesting little post on Open Theism, which I have referred to as the "Yoda" view of God. FYI I'm not a fan of said theory; in my view it's another attempt to force God to conform to human logic, without much regard for Scripture. But I also think that we as Christians don't do ourselves much credit if simply reject something without hearing it out, thinking about it, and most importantly going back to check it against Scripture.

I myself still haven't read all that much about Open Theism (sorry, I can't shorten it to "OT" because in my world that means "Optimality Theory")...so I'm not a great example of what I've just said. My impression of the theory is just that, an impression I've received from the few things I have read about it.

The articles mentioned in the blog I've linked to above is found in the Christian Standard. The issues in question contains five articles on Open Theism:

(1) Does God Know the Word 'Perhaps'? (Part 1)

Open theism asserts that God’s knowledge of the world is dynamic rather than static. He does not perceive the entire course of history as a timeless being, but he comes to know events as they take place. God sovereignly decided to be dependent on the world and he can be affected by it.7 This "surrendering of power" is very different from classical theism where God is above time and does not depend on his creatures in any way.

The future does not exist yet and, according to this system, is even for God partly open, composed by many possibilities (contingencies). Indeed, the word perhaps is a part of the divine vocabulary (Jeremiah 26:3; Ezekiel 12:3). There is a general plan with a determined outcome, but not a determined process. God is like a great jazz player who improvises but does not alter the main melody. Open theists stress that prayer is sincere dialogue and presupposes reciprocity, indicating a "perhaps" on both sides.

While it fits well into the thought patterns of the current Western world, does open theism adequately explain how God works in his universe? We will consider more about both open theism and classical theism in part two.

I believe that God can sovereignly decide to do anything He pleases, so long as it is within His nature as God. Then there's the logical conundrum of things like "Can God (sovereignly) decide to create a rock so big He cannot lift it?" But sovereignly decide to be "dependent on the world?" Hmmm, I think I would need to see some Scripture on that! No sacrilege intended here, but if God is dependent on the world He is probably in deep trouble.

Footnote 7, in the text above, is interesting:

The major distinction with process theology is that God decided to limit himself. He is not limited and dependant by nature. His limitations and openness are acts of freedom and love (divine self-limitation). Ron Highfield calls this the "great wall" to protect open theism from being overrun by the more liberal process theology. Ron Highfield, "The Function of Divine Self-Limitation in Open Theism," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, June 2002.

(2) Open to Open Theism (Part 1)

The previous article opposes the "Open" view of God; this article supports it. It presents some examples where one could easily come away with the view that God has taken actions, found out they don't work, then taken new actions. Of course, that's not the traditional theological understanding of God's plans, but it gets to the heart of a question raised nearly a decade ago (for the first time to me) as kind of a challenge to consider by Sherwood Oaks Christian Church minister Tom Ellsworth at a Bible study: Can God change His mind? (The following excerpt is from the article, not Tom, who would probably not appreciate confusion here!)

None of this sounds like God’s plan is working out exactly the way he intended. Instead he persists despite the stubbornness of his own chosen people. If Israel as a whole will not remain faithful, he will work with a remnant. If even that remnant seems to lose its way, he will not give up.

Ultimately, after repeated rejections, God sends his own Son, the only truly faithful descendent of Abraham. Just as God cried over the unfaithfulness of Israel in Hosea’s time, so his Son cried over the unfaithfulness of Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37). Peter assumes even the timing of the second coming is dependent on Christians leading lives of holiness and godliness. By doing so we "hasten" his coming (2 Peter 3:11, 12).

(3) Five Books About Open Theism

These books actually all sound quite interesting. They run the gamut from pro to con to addressing both sides. I'd previously only heard of the first one.

(4) Open to Open Theism (Part 2)

This is a pretty thought-provoking article, perhaps kind of deep, but I really enjoyed it. It makes you think about the difficulty of addressing concepts of God and time when we are constrained by time ourselves and dependent on time (and spatial metaphors for time) in our language. As a linguist of course I really dig that kind of discussion!

It also gets into comparisons of how traditional Calvinism, traditional Arminianism, and Open Theism grapple with some of the most difficult issues of theology. All pretty interesting stuff!

One way to speak of God’s sovereign control of the future is to recognize that certain things are predestined because God has decided to make them happen. Whether humans freely choose to cooperate or are forced is immaterial. God has decided and he will ensure it happens with or without the willing cooperation of human beings. An example might be the actions of Jewish and Roman authorities in condemning Jesus to death (Acts 2:23). Another is the fact of the second coming, but evidently not its timing.

But other matters are not determined or, if truly free, foreknown. The advantage of this way of understanding God is that the relational nature of God is emphasized. When we pray for something we are not doing something that has been predestined before the foundation of the world. When God answers he genuinely responds to our prayers. God hears and responds to our prayers in a relational way. Petitionary prayer, in which our prayers genuinely influence God to act, is difficult to explain on either a Calvinist or Arminian basis.

Although I am not convinced by the conclusion, I must admit I found this article the most interesting read. Without a doubt it made me want to read more.

(5) Does God Know the Word 'Perhaps'? (Part 2)

This article is written in a very different style. It is essentially six reasons why the auther rejects Open Theism.

I found #1 (Open theism has put itself outside the boundaries of traditional faith) the most surprising and unconvincing (the author expected as much and included a footnote). If Martin Luther had heeded this as a warning, we might all still be paying money to have our time in pergatory reduced and listening to the Bible read in indecipherable Latin. On the other hand, it's not like Luther rejected much of the "traditional faith" lightly or frivolously; he did struggle with this issue, and initially sought only minimal changes in Church teaching (on indulgences).

#2-#5 are probably pretty much the standard refutations. I find them pretty convincing, to greater and lesser degrees, but would enjoy reading fuller explanations and taking the time to read the referenced Scripture in its context. Calvinists would exclude #4, which gets into the Arminian understanding of certainty vs. necessity.

I found #6 (Open theism is not very pastorally comforting) the most interesting, because I'd never really thought about it before. It's a human-reaction argument rather than a Scriptural argument, but still interesting, pointing out that while the Open Theist can point to prayers of petition as logical only within Open Theism (not within Calvinism or Arminianism), this author notes that "[s]ince God cooperates he can only help us to a certain limit," ie., the prayers are more logical but the response is more limited.

My, I can be long-winded! Well, it's interesting stuff, what can I say?

Heh-heh, a lot apparently.

2006-11-28T18:31:00.000-05:00

GOOOOOOOOO GATORS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Florida 21

Florida State 14

Need more? Click here.

2006-11-21T19:36:00.000-05:00

"Borat" Across the World

A post for Slavists...should they somehow stumble across my blog!

I haven't seen the movie and don't intend to. (Too vulgar for my taste.) But I've seen clips and heard of the controversies. Today completely incidentally I came across the Croatian-language title, which is

Borat: učenje o amerika kultura za boljitak veličanstveno država Kazahstan

That's the title in Croatian.

It's a pretty good translation of
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,
bad grammar and all. "amerika" should be a Dative adjective but it's a Nominative noun, "kultura" should be Dative but is Nominative, etc. To me it reads pretty much the same as the English version.

As a linguist, I got interested in how the title would be translated in different languages. Would they all "translate" the bad grammar? How would they choose to express it? So I started looking when I got home.

Мacedonian:
Борат: Културни учења за Америка да има придонес за Величенствената казахстанска нација
This one seems to be grammatically correct.

Incidentally, for any Slavists who like me are driven nuts by the random use of Cyrillic letters, check out the Macedonian wikipedia entry on Borat that explains the code behind the letters, which, when lined up to the appropriate Latin letters, turn into grammatically incorrect Russian! (Click on Кириличен код.) You should be able to figure it out even if you don't know Macedonian.

Russian:
Борат: изучение американской культуры на благо славного народа Казахстана
Also grammatically correct as far as I can tell.

Czech:
Borat: Nakoukání do amerycké kultůry na obědnávku slavnoj kazašskoj národu
My Czech's pretty bad...but I think those two adjectives near the end are feminine and should be masculine. And I'm pretty sure America is spelled "Amerika" and not "Ameryka" -- but i/y spelling mistakes are common of less-than-fully-literate Czechs.

Slovak:
Borat: Nakúkanie do ameryckej kultúry na objednávku slavnoj kazašskoj národa
My Slovak's worse than pretty bad, but the same mistakes are there.

That was all I had the patience for. Shouldn't there be a website that lists this stuff? I tried looking...but not that hard.

Please add more foreign-language titles!

2006-11-20T21:50:00.000-05:00

Do you have a mysteriously high water bill?

I laughed 'til I cried. One of my cats is quite clever (the other, well, he has a good personality!), but this cat, which vaguely resembles my dearly departed Frisky, puts my cats to shame.

Thanks to my parents for sending this one.

2006-11-15T19:02:00.000-05:00

Ongoing Aftermath of the Yugoslav Wars of Succession

Yugoslavia no longer exists. (You probably already knew that, but some of us are still stuck in our junior high geography classes. You know, Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia...there was no Eritrea on the map, no Latvia, no Kyrgyzstan, no Slovenia, and Georgia was the state to the north of Florida.)

Its disintegration continues to this day. Montenegro (formerly of Serbia and Montenegro, formerly of Yugoslavia -- "third" Yugoslavia as it is sometimes called, formerly of (second) Yugoslavia, etc., etc.) became independent on June 3 of this year. You can read more about it here (click on "English" in the lower right hand corner if you aren't lucky enough to speak the beautiful Serbian/Croatian/Montenegrin/insert-whatever-you-prefer-here language) or here.

Status talks on Kosovo, a province of Serbia currently under UN administration, remain unresolved. Ethnic Albanians, who make up the large majority of the population (I believe it's around 90%) want nothing short of complete independence, while Serbia's position allows for a large degree of autonomy for Kosovo but draws a line in the sand at independence. Serbian Prime Minister Koštunica has called Kosovo an "inalienable" part of Serbia. I won't predict the future here and I won't pick sides either -- it's really tragic, in fact I'd hate to be a Serb left in an independent Kosovo, and I'd hate to be an Albanian in a Kosovo ruled by Serbia -- but it's certainly possible that 2007 will bring the number of former Yugoslav countries to seven.

If Kosovo gains independence, the Serbs of Republika Srpska, one of the two "entities" of Bosnia and Hercegovina (more conveniently BiH in Serbian/Croatian), could demand independence as well. Could it happen? It seems unlikely, but then five years ago I would have thought Montenegrin independence pretty unlikely, too. Who knows? If it did, that would bring the total to eight. (Read here to learn more; the site has a helpful map that demarcates the "entities" and ties a number of these related issues together. Do note the June 2006 date of the article, though.)

If Republika Srpska becomes independent? Could the minority Croats in the Federation, the other "entity," demand independence as well? And get it? It seems even more unlikely...but who knows?

What about the minority Bosniak villages in Croatian territory in BiH? Will each one demand its independence as well?

I'm getting silly, but still I think it's some interesting food for thought. Years ago in college I read part of the classic article (or book?) "Jihad and McWorld," about the opposing tendencies of nations both to break up and to join larger unions. The former Yugoslavia seems to me to be the perfect example of the principle. As it breaks into smaller and smaller pieces, each piece scrambles to join the EU and NATO -- euroatlantic integration, as it's frequently called in the press there. Thus far only Slovenia, the first to break away from Yugoslavia, has made it in the EU, while Croatia has candidate status and has begun negotiations, and Macedonia has recently gained candidate status as well. During an official visit of Croatian Prime Minister Sanader to the White House, President Bush voiced strong support for Croatia joining NATO in 2008; Slovenia has already joined. Interesting stuff.

Anyway, I'm rambling. What prompted me to initiate this post was an article from a few weeks ago I came across while further perusing the BBC's website. Croatian police arrested several individuals suspected of committing war crimes against Serb civilians in Osijek (eastern Croatia) back in the early 90's.

Osijek county police chief Vladimir Faber announced that five men and one woman, all former members of a paramilitary unit, had been detained.

"Finally, after 15 years we have resolved the killings of civilians in Osijek," he said.

Ethnic Serbs Mladić and Karadžić are still wanted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), and the most famous accused in this never-ending joke- ahem, trial in the Hague, Slobodan Milošević, died in March 2006 before his trial ended. It began in 2002!

Enough. I suppose my point, to the extent that I actually have one, is that although the news may not report much on it anymore, the legacy of the 1990's wars is very much on-going, in some places and in some ways even a part of everyday life.

I suppose it's to be expected. Something that horrific cannot -- and probably should not -- just fade silently into forgotten history.

2006-11-15T17:43:00.000-05:00

A Change in Pakistan's Rape Laws

Mature content; not suitable for children

Today I heard something on BBC World that really grabbed my attention and stunned me.

Pakistan's national assembly has recently voted to change the existing rape laws; I still can't focus on the new laws because the current ones are so shocking. In order to bring a rape charge before the Sharia-law court, a woman must have four male witnesses. Can you imagine? How could such witnesses possibly exist? Four men who just stood around and observed the crime, do nothing to prevent it, and are then happy to testify against the perpetrators? It gets worse. If the woman reports the rape but does not have these four male witnesses, she risks being charged with adultery (a crime in Pakistan, as is any other form of sex outside marriage, and punishable by lashing and stoning).

According to BBC World website article,

A woman is raped every two hours and gang-raped every eight hours in Pakistan, according to the country's independent Human Rights Commission. Correspondents say these figures are probably an under-estimation as many rapes are not reported.

No, really? I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to report such a crime in Pakistan. Seriously, if these are the numbers based on reported incidents, the true numbers must be mind-numbingly staggering.

The reaction of Pakistan's Islamic parties? Again, according to the article,

Addressing parliament on Wednesday, the leader of the six-party MMA Islamic alliance, Maulana Fazlur Rahman, said the bill would "turn Pakistan into a free-sex zone".

"Existing laws are correct and should be maintained... The changes are not in line with Islamic teaching."

The "upper house" and president have not yet ratified the amended law.

To learn more about this issue through the personal story of a woman who endured a gang-rape, brought the case to court, saw six men convicted (four of rape and two of abetting) and another eight set free, then saw five of the six later released as the convictions were reversed (and it doesn't stop there), please read the story of Mukhtar Mai. Her courage is pretty inspiring. She and her family have faced harrassment from the police; her name was placed on a list banning her from foreign travel...then removed the same day her passport is taken from her. To read an overview of Mukhtar Mai's case that also talks about the Urdu-language blog she has (through a journalist -- she herself is illiterate), click here. To read a more detailed timeline of the events leading up to her rape, the trial, and its aftermath (only up to June 2005), click here. To see a few August 2006 translated entries from her blog, click here. The final sentences from those blog entries read:

What I liked most as a child was to bath in the canal next to our village. One of my aunts used to take us there.

In those days I used to help my mother in household chores, picking cotton, cutting grass for fodder and stitching - in such ways did the days pass by.

Gone are those carefree days today. I never knew I would be burdened with so much responsibility.

Of course, if you happen to read Urdu (looks like Arabic to me!), you can always click here.

Pray for the women of Pakistan, and of other nations where women face such treatment with so little hope of justice.

2006-11-09T23:44:00.000-05:00

Recycling: Not So Good For the Environment After All?

Apparently not curbside recycling, anyway, at least according to this article. Hmmm...

2006-11-09T23:11:00.000-05:00

The Latest in Computer Gadgetry

This raises my mild technophobia to some extent...

Will we one day live in a "Matrix"...by our own choice?!

2006-11-09T22:21:00.000-05:00

How to Suppress the Evangelical Vote

I was wandering aimlessly through the blogosphere (it can be so hard to stop!) and came across this little gem.

This weekend Time magazine ran a story titled, “Why the Haggard Scandal Could Hurt Evangelical Turnout.” Two weeks ago Newsweek asked, “Will Kuo's book discourage turnout among the faithful?” Earlier last month the Chicago Times was claiming “Evangelical voter turnout in doubt” because of the Mark Foley scandal.

The media is certain that some news event will cause evangelicals to stay home today. But some of us apparently didn't get the memo. The most recent ABC/Washington Post poll shows the Republican edge in the generic ballot has increased 18 points among white evangelical Christians.

Still, with the election only hours away, there is still time for breaking news to affect the turnout of these “values voters.” Here are the top ten events that could prevent evangelicals from showing up to vote:

10. Our Christian Coalition voter guides get lost in the mail and we don’t know who to vote for.

9. Some evangelical you’ve never heard announces he’s written a book critical of the Republican Party and/or the Bush Administration.

8. Some evangelical pastor you’ve never heard of gets caught in a tawdry scandal.

7. Dr. James Dobson opens his Focus on the Family radio program by saying, “You know, on second thought, it doesn't really matter if we vote or not...”

6. A plague of frogs. (While rain is enough to hinder voter turnout for Democrats, evangelicals are only impeded by inclement weather of biblical proportions.)

5. The Supreme Court holds an unprecedented special session to announce they are overturning Roe and Doe and codifying DOMA.

4. Doogie Howser, M.D. announces he’s gay.

3. We learn that we’ll be expected to bring ID and that we won’t be getting a flu shot after all.

2. Karl Rove, forgetting about the Daylight Savings Time change, accidentally starts the 72-Hour Program an hour too late.

1. The Rapture.

A couple of these, I must confess, leave me baffled, but I find a few particularly witty! And "The Rapture" is the perfect finale...in more ways than one! =)

"Even so..."

If you follow the link above to the original site, do note that vitriol is a-flyin' there. Just in the first few responses to the above post, a Democrat says the Republican Party is by its very essence a criminal enterprise and should be charged under the RICO statutes, and a Republican replies that the Democrat desires a propaganda victory for al-Qaida; another response is rather more blunt and I won't even repeat it. Not the kind of stuff I enjoy reading.

2006-11-09T19:45:00.000-05:00

Veterans' Day

Today was a rotten day. Yesterday, too, actually. I have been busy to the point of insanity at work; yesterday I didn't leave until after 8PM, and when I got home I had leftover Chinese takeout and worked some more until 11:30 when I decided "life's too short." I decided to stop and e-mail myself what I was working...but my e-mail account was over quota and wouldn't let me send anything. Too tired to deal with it, I went to bed and slept poorly for the second night in a row, stressed out about the work I had left to do.

I got up this morning and deleted several pages of e-mails, but still I couldn't send out an e-mail. I realized I forgot to fill in my hours for work, so I called in to beg someone to do it for me. I had a meeting in DC, so I hit the road...which turned out to be a big parking lot when I hit the toll road. It took me almost an hour to cover ground that normally takes 3-4 minutes. I made it to the meeting about 20 minutes late, not much shy of a miracle. When I got back to the office, a whole new stack of things were waiting for me to take care of and there was very little time to do them. I wasn't in the pleasantest of moods.

Veteran's Day -- a day off for me -- couldn't have come a moment too soon. In the NoVA (Northern Virginia) area where I live, the weather is going to be unbelievably beautiful tomorrow. Sunny, 70 degrees. In November! Lots of people around here will be enjoying the outdoors. Whether we sleep in and relax all day to recover from a rough week at work, toss around a football in the backyard, or take a weekend road trip (or, unfortunately, work), let's remember what the holiday is for. I was thinking I'd do the relax-all-day thing, but with the beautiful weather I'm thinking I'll head into DC, maybe visit the Vietnam Memorial or Arlington Cemetery. There's a Veteran's Day ceremony Saturday at Arlington Cemetery.

Thank God for men and women throughout history who have served in America's armed forces in peace time and war, in places all over the world, and protected us to an extent we may never fully appreciate. May God be ever with those currently serving in harm's way.

2006-11-07T20:37:00.000-05:00

Current "entertainment"...

Currenly reading: Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther (almost done -- a fascinating book!)

Currently watching on TV: Election results (with half attention, would like to hear final results on the Webb/Allen Virginia governor's race, and the Maryland Cardin/Steele Senate race); earlier tonight Gilmore Girls (not as good as it used to be, I don't think the current writers know what to do with the Lorelai/Emily relationship)

Most recently watched movie: Ummm, I think the Brazilian film "City of God." (It ain't a religious movie!) Lesson learned from said movie? Don't go to Brazil. Apologies to Brazilians everywhere, but this movie does not make me want to visit.

Second most recently watched movie: Kolya, delightful but sad Czech film for an American used to a saccharine ending. The scene where Kolya talks to his grandmother in the bathtub is painfully sad.

Currently listening to: The Les Miserables soundtrack in my car; at home alternating between The Moody Blues (a greatest hits album with music WAY before my time...but darn if I don't like it!), The Blind Boys of Alabama, and the Footloose soundtrack (the movie now strikes me as ridiculously preachy and sanctimonious...and I don't mean on the part of the preacher, but the music's still fun!). I got all these recently at a going-out-of-business sale, plus the latest U2 album, which I haven't had time to wrestle out of its plastic impatient-adult-proof wrapper.

What's the point of this post? None at all! Except to put off doing a final bit of reading I need to do before going to bed...

2006-11-07T20:11:00.000-05:00

On the Perils of Overemphasis on Mass Testing

Sadly, from what I hear from friends and family in elementary education, what happened to fourth-grade student Tyler doesn't sound like that much of an aberation (except perhaps in the details, which are somewhat entertaining). Tyler was suspended for refusing to answer a test question. Something about politics or God? Not exactly...

Then Tyler came upon this question: ``While looking out the window one day at school, you notice the principal flying in the air. In several paragraphs, write a story telling what happens.''

The nine-year-old was afraid to answer the question about his principal, Olivia McCarthy. ``I didn't want to make fun of her,'' he says, explaining he was taught to write the first thing that entered his mind on the state writing test.

In this case, Tyler's initial thoughts would have been embarrassing and mean. So even after repeated requests by school personnel, and ultimately the principal herself, Tyler left the answer space blank. ``He didn't want them to know what he was thinking, that she was a witch on a broomstick,'' says Tyler's mother, Amanda Wolfe, sitting next to her son in the family's ranch home three blocks from Central Park Elementary School in Aberdeen, Washington.

Because Tyler didn't answer the question, McCarthy suspended him for five days. He recalls the principal reprimanding him by saying his test score could bring down the entire school's performance.

``Good job, bud, you've ruined it for everyone in the school, the teachers and the school,'' Tyler says McCarthy told him.

`He Cried'

Aberdeen School District Superintendent Martin Kay ordered an investigation. ``My suspension was for refusal to comply with a reasonable request, and to teach Tyler that that could harm him in the future,'' McCarthy told an investigator. ``I never, for a second, questioned my actions.''

Strikes me as kinda scary. Check out the full article here.

2006-11-02T19:16:00.000-05:00

White and Nerdy Update

Coincidentally, last night after writing the YouTube post I read in TV Guide that Donny Osmond and Seth Green make guest appearances in Weird Al's White and Nerdy video. That's Donny busting a move with Al, and Seth showing off his Star Wars (best I can tell) figurines. Donny is riotous in places.

I also realized just how many of the lyrics fit me; definitely not all, though! Fluent in JavaScript? Not a chance. Klingon? Um, well, I do own the dictionary. QaPlah! (Apologies to Klingon speakers--I only know a few pleasantries!)

Kirk or Picard? Definitely Picard, the thinking person's captain. (Of course Kirk was before my time.)

Minesweeper? Not in a while, but a few years back...

Pi? Um...3.147...maybe?

Bowling? Used to play in a league...but apparently the gangsters are down with bowling, too, so bowling per se isn't white and nerdy.

Star Wars? Not illicitly in a back alley, but oh yeah! (Except Parts I and especially II.)

Renaissance fairs? Loved 'em back in elementary and high school when I got the chance to go.

Wikipedia? I've thought about editing (kind of like about blogging), but if I understood correctly I actually know the fellow who's more or less the coordinator for Japanese Wikipedia. Does that count?

X-Men? I could watch Wolf Man all day (because he's an intriguing character...really!), but I've only watched the movies when they come out on broadcast TV, and a resounding "NO" to comic books in general.

Laptop in the shower? That's just stupid.

If you haven't yet watched the video, you really must!

2006-11-01T19:45:00.000-05:00

American Soldiers Strike Back...With Wit

I will try to stay as non-partisan as possible in this brief post. If you've watched the news the last two days, you've heard about a little incident that happened with Senator John Kerry recently. In a political speech he said, in essence, that if you don't get an education you'll wind up in Iraq. Lots of people -- Republicans and Democrats alike -- were incensed at the implication that our troops serving in Iraq are there because they were too stupid to do anything else. Kerry has since said that he meant to say in essence that a lack of education is what got us into Iraq. Our interpretation of this event is sure to be colored by our pre-existing biases, but the interpretation of a handful of U.S. troops was clear. They struck back with this sign. (I'm not sure what the copyright status of the photo is, so I thought it best to simply link to the Little Green Footballs site, which was sure to have the photo and is pretty sure to keep it there for a good long time.)

God bless our troops in Iraq, Afghanistan, and everywhere else.

2006-11-01T17:58:00.000-05:00

YouTube Discovered; Weird Al & Others Rediscovered

I knew YouTube existed. That put me ahead of a good half the room. But I didn't really understand what it was, or what kind of things were there. I got a bit more of a taste of it in a class that covered "new media." A couple of weeks ago, I finally broke down and clicked on a link that I knew would take me to YouTube. (If you are the rare reader who (1) is reading this blog in the first place and (2) has never heard of YouTube, it's a site where people post videos. Lots and lots and lots of videos. Homemade or commercially produced.) I found out it was easy to use...and that virtually every 80's video ever made is there in multiple postings. It can be somewhat addictive, as you think of more and more things to look for as in, "Oooh, I wonder if they have that?" And they probably do.

I'm particularly excited by the music videos there. And since you're unlikely to ever see any actual music videos on MTV or VH1, this is quite a resource. Weird Al Yankovic's videos are worth a look as they are particularly conducive to that format; several are worth repeated looks. From his earlier days, check out Like a Surgeon, a parody of Madonna's Like a Virgin. It's even funnier if you're familiar with the original lyrics and video--Madonna rolling around on a gondola if I remember correctly, vs. Weird Al on a gurney, for example.

From a few years back, check out Amish Paradise, a parody of Coolio's Gangsta's Paradise (a pretty interesting song in its own right). This is possibly Weird Al's funniest video ever. Pay special attention to the end, which is filmed in reverse, with Al mouthing the lyrics backwards. Interesting to note that there was apparently bad blood between Weird Al and Coolio, at least on Coolio's part. Weird Al thought that Coolio had given his permission for use of the song, but Coolio denied ever giving it.

From around the same time, The Saga Begins summarizes the entire plot of Star Wars: Episode I. My favorite lyric: "But their response, it didn't thrill us/They locked the door, and tried to kill us." My favorite moments in the video: Weird Al/Obi-Wan flipping open his wallet, which contains a wallet-sized photo of Anakin, and the Emporer adding a flourish to his piano playing (a little thing, but a nice little visual juxtaposition). Come on, this is the only time you'll ever hear the word "midichlorians" in a song--apologies, uber-SW fans, if I've mispelled the word.

From more recently, White and Nerdy is cracking me up. Ever been obsessed with Minesweeper? This song's for you. The lyrics go by quickly, so pay attention. Still, I'm pretty sure he never once mentions that .9 repeating decimal equals one!

I was thrilled to find that my favorite video of all time (odd how just saying that pins your birthday to about a 10 year period) is also available in multiple postings. Take On Me, by Norwegian group a-ha, is a unique video which takes place partly in a comic book world, partly in the "real" world. The comic book scenes involved shooting the action live and then drawing all the scenes. Ah, those were the days! For a little added fun, check out the Pop-Up Video version. Pop-Up Videos were a transition between regular videos and no videos. They were fun, when they weren't too off-color.

And finally, a tribute to the late Steve Irwin. I loved this ESPN commercial because it combined the energetic and entertaining Aussie and my beloved alma mater. And sure enough, it was on YouTube. Crikey, it's a beauty!

G'day, mate!

2006-10-30T20:23:00.000-05:00

"Why Point-Nine Repeating Decimal?"

She must be a math geek! (No, in fact, more of a linguistics geek...and proud of it, which probably makes me even more of a linguistics geek.)

I have thought from time to time, not very seriously, about starting a blog. Mind you, it can't have been much more than two years ago that I first heard the word...and it annoyed me. I can't really say why, but probably for the same reason I refused to use the word "a, az" when, for example, repeatedly asking "Where is the Hotel Phoenix?" / "Hol van (a) Hotel Fonix" while lost in Pecs, Hungary. I knew it belonged there, but I wouldn't say it. Apologies if I've mispelled Hungarian; I don't actually speak it beyond a few pleasantries. But I digress. (I do that a lot.)

Blogs continue to slightly annoy me. It is a means for all of us Joe/Josephine Schmoes out here to scream out our thoughts with bluster and self-importance for the whole world to hear. As if they cared what we thought. And they spread nasty rumors fast enough to leave the old-fashioned rumor mill in the dust.

BUT...I also see the good side of blogs. It's a way to find like-minded people, no matter how tiny your particular niche is. It's a fine example of democracy--and the freedoms that democracy entails--in action. And just like those CNN reporters who put their network on the map while hiding in a hotel room (I'm not judging--I would've been hiding too) and putting video of green tracers into America's living rooms in 1991, the folks over at Little Green Footballs put blogs on the map with their exposure of the CBS forged document scandal. But enough of my bluster and self-importance. (Gee am I going to embarrassed if the Gulf War wasn't in 1991...)

Back to the "Point-Nine Repeating Decimal" thing. I probably never would have started a blog myself were it not for an incident that happened last week. I was at work, and needed to find out what exactly Leishmaniasis is. (Don't ask. Look it up, if you must. And no, I don't have it.) On that fateful day, the featured article on Wikipedia was "0.999...," aka, yes, "Point-Nine Repeating Decimal," henceforth PNRD. Leishmaniasis had to wait, because the foundations of my world, the very bedrock of reality as I understood it, had been destroyed.

Are you ready? Don't read any further if you have a weak heart. PNRD = 1. Not "approximates." Not "becomes infinitely closer to." EQUALS. Yes, EQUALS. Don't believe it? Neither did I. Neither do lots of people, according to Wikipedia. But it is a mathematical fact, and before you can say it, no, it's not an artifact of our base-10 math.

Want proof? Wikipedia provides several proofs. I was too horrified -- and slightly sick to my stomach -- to take in most of them, but here's a simple one even the extremely math-impaired can follow. The fraction 1/3 is represented as a non-fraction by the real number .3 repeating decimal. With me so far? Multiply 1/3 by 3 and what do you get? Do you see where I'm going? Multiply .3 repeating decimal by 3 and what do you get? Don't try to stand too quickly, now. If 1/3 = .3 repeating decimal, then 1 = .9 repeating decimal.

I am still too much in a state of shock to say more. I was obsessed. I had lunch that day with a colleague. I had to tell her about PNRD. I talked to a close friend that night and had to tell her about PNRD. (She had a choice response that summed it up nicely, but I'll leave it to her to hopefully post it, so it will look like someone actually reads my blog--hi, Amy!) I had a long program meeting at work the next day--at one point I couldn't resist doodling ".9 (repeating decimal bar) = 1" on my handout. When we finally got a break, most people fled for the cafeteria for a snack. Those who remained got hit with the tale of PNRD. I only wish I knew where the high school math teacher I had for three of my four year of math lives now. He was an incredible teacher (anybody who can make me more or less understand calculus is not much shy of a miracle worker)...but how could he not prepare me for this? He had three years, for Pete's sake!

So you see, it was PNRD that prompted...no, compelled me to start a blog. Spread the word: our basic comprehension of mathematical meaning is fundamentally flawed. Reality is not what it seems.

I am extremely blog-illiterate, and after hearing an overview of emerging forms of social networking technology I think I've discovered I'm even a bit of a technophobe. But if I find out how to set up a survey, I'd like to ask: How disturbed are you to find out that PNRD = 1? To me it's about like being told -- by a mathemetician who then mathematically proves it -- that five and six are the same thing. They just aren't. They aren't they aren't they aren't! [insert foot stamping sound]

So, if you, the rare soul who has ventured across this somewhat rambling text and persevered to the end, should care to comment, I would love to hear your reaction to this news. Or perhaps you were forewarned by a dedicated math teacher? In any event, I am still recuperating from the news myself.

And I can virtually guarantee this will be my first and last post about math.