C.S. Lewis

I just finished rereading The Chronicles of Narnia. Its been said so many times that I don't really know what I could add to it, but those books are fabulous. I would implore anyone who hasn't read them to read them. They are some of the most beautiful literary works ever. Yes, you read that right, not just in children's lit, or fantasy genre. Of all literary works ever written, these are some of the most touching and beautiful. I love these books. As I reread them I was at time amazed at times moved by the simpleness of the story, and the wonderful way he is able to convey such deep religious themes in what on the outside seems to be a children's tale of centaurs, dwarfs, and magic.

Read them, you won't regret it. Read them again.

Back: Something about Obama

So, I have been meaning to blog about something now for weeks. So, today I'll drop two quick little entries, and hopefully be back in the full swing of things.

Pres. Obama just signed into law a regulation that will require auto makers to up their fleet mpg to 35. I like this. Before anyone starts talking about free market etc. etc., I don't buy it. When the consumer has true choice you might be able to argue free market. However, that is not the case. The vast majority of people either cannot afford some sort of hybrid car, or the cars currently in manufacture will not meet their needs (large families, etc.). Furthermore, I believe that as a country we have a flat out security/environmental need here. Our petroleum based economy is absolutely flawed, and we need to get off the oil kick (not just because of foreign oil, I frankly don't care that much where it comes from), and we have a need to lower emissions in any responsible way possible. And in case you've never read my environmental opinions before, that stance isn't because I implicitly believe that we are causing global warming or any such thing. It is because I believe we are required to be wise stewards and I do not think, as a society, we are....at all.

So, thumbs up Pres, I think that is a great move.

Prediction

So, I have mostly sworn off of making sports predictions. One always looks bad when the vagueries of chance turn out to not be in your favor. I am going to suspend that rule for March Madness however. I'm not going to talk about BYU, or Utah. I am going to talk about a blow out in the making. Marquette vs. Utah State.

Utah State won 30 games this year, thats insane. They beat Utah, nearly beat BYU, and blew through the WAC like they were playing High Schools. Marq is from the Big East (this is where you are supposed to gasp in awe). They've probably never heard of Boise (where the game will be played) and barely are able to condescend to play there. Utah State fans will drive up to Boise and they will be able to watch Marquette get lit up, this thing is going to be a blowout. You can take that to the bank.

Back to geek stuff. Star Trek: The Movie.

Go here watch the trailer, it is awesome. If we are lucky the movie will live up to that trailer.

Chiropractors Part 2: Unknown

So, I went to the Chiropractor. A lot of things that he did were pretty awesome, he has this table with rollers on it that you just lay on as it massages your back with a heat pad and electric things on your back. It felt great, wish I had one at home. Then he did get a few good pops out of my back when he messed with it. However, I think I am now sure that it is/was a muscle thing. Either a pull or a tear. I felt pretty good as I left the place, then as I cooled down, my back just tightened back up and this morning I hurt again, but I can pretty much tell that it is muscle pain. So, to be fair to chiropractors, I don't think there is anything he could have done to help a pulled/torn muscle.

Final determination, unable to quantify his overall effect. So, I don't know how well chiropractors work.

But I still hurt.

Chiropractors Part 1: Do they work

So, I was helping my neighbor move last night and something in my back popped. I wasn't lifting or twisting (the two big killers), I was pulling a big appliance dolly with a freezer on it. Who knows what kind of irreperable harm I have done to myself, right now I'm willing to have back removal surgery. Anyway, I have made an appointment with a chiropractor for this afternoon. Part 2 of this stirring in depth investigative report will be whether or not I will survive to perform my Elder's Quorum duties again.

Two more Obama decisions, one indifferent, one bad.

Yucca mountain. So, after we have spent 16 billion dollars to prepare Yucca mountain to be the depository for the nations spent fuel rods, the Obama administration has decided to scrap it because, as the energy seceretary says "we can do better". Thats all fine and good, and may even be true, but I think that is beside the point. We currently have spent fuel rods that have to be stored on site. By law, the federal government is supposed to take possesion of those, and store them, they currently are not. In order to comply with the law, Yucca mountain was chosen as the site. We have spent the money, but now, I guess, the mountain will just sit unused. Is there possibly a better option, who knows. Is the status quo better than Yucca mountain, by no stretch of the imagination. Anyway, it seems to be political pandering that doesn't help anything, and is actually harmful, and wasteful. Big disagreement from me.

Second, stem cells. Here I could have done an entire post on this topic, but something else has me a little more miffed, so this one will stay on the shorter side. Stem cells are a hotly debated topic, problem is, I think the argument is on the complete wrong portion of the process in my opinion.

Currently those who go through the in vitro process harvest and fertilize more eggs than they use, when they are not used, the vast majority get dumped down the sink (maybe not the exact technical process, but the result is the same.) Anyway, the arument is over whether or not these embryos should be used (or actually whether or not federal funding should be used) in research. So, people can have their safe moral stance against it, because surely a human life > research, right? I would agree, but don't think that is the comparison. When these embryos are going to be flushed, shouldn't our debate be about whether or not its moral to create so many embryos that will never be used, and discard the excess? By the time we hit research stage, these embryos are disposable either way. But it is harder to take a moral stance against people who want to have a baby. It makes the debate more complex, but I think its more intellectually honest.

So, I am kind of indifferent to Obama's lifting of the ban on research money.