wienerville

new cells engrafting

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 01:54:00 +0000

briefly, since the long version just got eaten by this shitty blogger engine. it appears the new cells are engrafting and i'm growing a new immune system. thanks for your kind words and your prayers. all the best, later

Transplant starts today

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 14:32:00 +0000

Haven't posted for a good long while. Sorry about that. Anyway, I go to Presb/St. Lukes today to begin a bone marrow transplant. It's a bit risky and no fun at all. But they make a great effort to alleviate both problems. This will be an umbilical cord transplant. They take the marrow stem cells from two cords (two, because I need a lot of mass to kick start marrow growth and one cord doesn't have much at all) and inject them, following truly horrific amounts of radiation and chemo. But, I know someone who went through all this and came out smelling like a rose. I'll be talking to her now and then to reinforce my spirit. I'll try to update this blog when I feel some strength - in about 8 weeks. Wish me luck.

The Bear That Wasn't There

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 00:14:00 +0000

I've been promising this one and it'll probably seem anticlimactic by now. But I assure you it's completely true. I can't explain it. If you can, please try.
About 15 years ago I was elk hunting at my friends property near the Buckhorn Canyon west of Ft. Collins, Colorado. No elk had been seen all week. By Wednesday we were going out just for the exercise. I crossed some very old elk tracks in hard-packed snow. They were a least a couple days old. The snow pack on this ridge was extremely tight as the winds had blown violently the night before. I followed the elk just for something to do and come upon very fresh bear tracks. Very fresh. I thought it might be fun to get a look at this one. I followed the tracks for about a half-mile through pretty open country, a 15 degree incline filled with very skinny trees about eight feet apart. Suddenly the tracks just stopped. The snow was still there, just as before. There was one more step taken by the bear and then nothing. I could see ahead that the tracks didn't pick up again. I carefully walked a 50 yard circuit. I even (sheepishly) looked up into those skinny trees. Nothing. This is hard to believe but it's what happened. Soon after, a dying cousin of mine took comfort from this, but I get only puzzlement.

Leukemia's Back

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 00:09:00 +0000

What I thought was a back problem since October turns out to be a return of my leukemia. It manifested as soft tumors on my spine. Just finished the first course of chemo, will have some more, and then a marrow transplant. With success I'll be completely cured within 12 to 18 months. I'm staying optimistic and seeing this as a series of tasks to complete. That's all for now.

Muslim Compares Barney to Sauron

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 15 Sep 2006 13:00:00 +0000

This piece contains the following: "Anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence," Foreign Minister spokesman Tasnim Aslam said.
No comment necessary. Or possible.

Troll Droppings

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 13:36:00 +0000

The comments here (see previous post) are filled with the unhinged ravings of an old friend of mine. Someone who was very supportive during my late illness. We used to work together in a high-pressure, high-tech environment, and he was a very capable, multitalented, multifaceted guy - really a pleasure to know. But even then it was obvious there was a disconnect. A bunch of us would be yukking it up and enjoying ourselves and this guy would stand on the perimeter and laugh very tentatively, seemingly worried that he was a target and wasn't quite getting it. He was famous for going ballistic over imagined slights, made management earn their salaries you might say. Anyway, I've emailed him a request to take his business elsewhere, removed his link from my blogroll, and will try to cleanse his future execrances from the blog comments. However, he has a lot more energy than I do, so no promises. Sorry it's taken so long, but I'd hoped he'd tire of his sport and return to Kos or DU, where such is the norm. Also, sorry for the very light posting. I've been feeling dull and blurry for the last couple of months. Could change any day though. Check this space soon (soon meaning within the next 30 days). I'm almost ready to tell the 'bear that wasn't there' story - really the main reason I started this blog.

Iran Maps

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 03:00:00 +0000

With Iran taking up more ink and electrons these days I've copied out a couple of maps for your viewing. One is a map of major oil fields, circa 1978. Probably still pretty accurate. The other is an ethnographic map. This one suggests, no, screams, a probable strategy for anyone locked in a major war with that country. The oil is in the Arab areas (naturally) and large minorities dominate in peripheral regions, mostly in the west (the Iraq side). Kurds, Arabs, Azeris, Lurs, Baluchis and others. Iran should more properly be called the Persian Empire. If things unfold in an ugly way, these maps will help us all understand what's happening.

Two great vocalists at DU

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 03:31:00 +0000

I went to the Newman Center at Denver U. last week for a guitar recital and it was outstanding. But the most cosmic, inspiring, exquisitely beautiful (and I'm understating here) part of the experience was the aria from Bachianas Brasileiras no. 5 (Heitor Villa-Lobos) sung by Kimberly Harrison. Every note an inspiration. Everyone in the room breathless, gaping in awe and delight. Afterwards I was able to chat with her very briefly as she was surrounded by admirers. She graduates on the 10th and then... well, I said 'briefly'. If you ever get a chance, drop everything and go see her. You'll never forget it. In the audience was Yvonne Underhill. I talked with her for a few minutes. Saw her a few weeks before at a jazz recital. She's just the best jazz singer I've ever heard. Golden age jazz style singing, definitely her own voice. Very pleasant and confident, she graduates on the 10th also. She told me she's got a gig at Dazzle late in July. I was unable to find it on their schedule but will try again later. FYI, their drinks are pricey. Anyway, two world-class singers right here in Denver (for now). Don't miss them. And, for god's sake, get your ass over to the Newman Center and enjoy their many free, sometimes catered, events.

Michael Rhodes and Randi Savage

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 03:09:00 +0000

Been listening to too much talk radio lately. An interesting question has popped into my head though. Would it be illegal to tie Randi Rhodes and Michael Savage together and throw them off a bridge? A really high bridge? What about a gator pool? A snake pit? That would be redundant. Okay, how about someone lock them in cargo container, put it on a ship to India, and have cameras ready when it's opened. Naw, I like India. We've got to come up with something fast here folks. My best alternative to the above is to put chewing gum in my ears. And chewing gum is bad for you.

Local Star Map

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 30 May 2006 02:45:00 +0000

Local Star Map, originally uploaded by BertW.

This is an OLD map of our local stars. I cut it out of a sci-fi paperback decades ago and just found it again. Some of you science fiction or even astronomy readers and writers might find it useful. I'll be glad to add attribution if anyone has the info.

UPDATE: Here's a local star map that's a little bit nicer. Be sure to zoom out also.

Grandfathering Amnesty

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Sat, 27 May 2006 17:40:00 +0000

I've been surprised by the depth of antipathy to the idea of granting amnesty to illegal aliens. Maybe we should discuss it in terms of 'grandfathering' instead. After all, we winked at the law as much as the illegals did. Given our decades-long record of lax border enforcement and practically nil workplace policing it's unfair to suddenly uproot people who've invested years in building lives here. Let's not give amnesty, let's grandfather them in. On a related note, there are actually people who huff and puff that these people break the law every day by being in this country. Let's see, can anyone remember a drug war victim (the drug war itself being a vile outrage against our freedom and dignity) being charged not only with possession but with possession on a day-to-day basis? Have trials focused on how many days the poor soul was in possession, with a new charge for every day? Jeez, these people need to get a grip.

Global Guerillas

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Sun, 14 May 2006 00:15:00 +0000

I've added Global Guerillas to the blogroll. The latest two entries are 'Fragmentation in India' and 'U.S. Border Collapse'. Not happy reading. The authors thesis is that the nation-state is increasingly vulnerable to systems disruption by tech-savvy guerilla fighters. For instance, he's written about the Nigerians who are shutting down that countrys oil revenue by constantly attacking the pipelines. The pipelines stretch over a large area, are easy to hit, and the cost to the central government is enormous and painful. Low cost, large 'benefit' strikes are easier than ever for guerillas everywhere. Recent entries regarding Iraq are must reads and very depressing. You need to know this stuff, so take your medicine - have a look at GG.

Scalzi wonders

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 23:55:00 +0000

This was just too damn good:

Writing wrt the Bush admin: "any sufficiently advanced incompetence is indistinguishable from malice". A takeoff on Clarke's Law, of course. The whole piece is well worth your time.

Immigration and Mexican Revanchism

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 01:23:00 +0000

Wow. Using a word like 'revanchism' will get me linked to every loony Maoist and Trotskyite site on the web. Let's throw in 'imperialist running dogs' for good measure.

So the immigration issue has caught fire. We've failed to enforce the law, we need the illegals anyway, and now we're suffering buyers remorse. All the while the Mexican government is foolishly indulging in revanchist fantasies which will do nobody any good.

We have to resolve the issues at play here so the immigrants can get on with their lives, we can have a secure border and those buffoons in Mexico City can get back to looting their treasury.

Here's the solution. You can thank me later.
1) Build the damn 'wall' already. Whatever form it takes we have to enforce our borders if we want to be a real country. I haven't yet seen any wall opponents name another country that has as lax an approach as ours has been, or one that should. Do you know how brutal is the Mexico/Guatemala border?
2) After the wall is built give amnesty to most of the people here illegally. Exclude from the amnesty criminals and Islamists. But I repeat myself.
3) In the interest of crushing Mexicos lingering hopes of absorbing the American southwest, start a policy of very liberal immigration from countries with no such fantasies - i.e. the rest of the world. We could give special privilege to people from totalitarian hellholes like Burma, Zimbabwe and Iran. Or people from just plain miserable shitholes like Peru, Cambodia and Zaire (or whatever it's called this year). Or, we could go by the 'cuisine standard'. That would mean virtually unlimited immigration from France, Italy, Thailand and Vietnam. Maybe Spain and Turkey too. Indonesia. Portugal. India and China. Oh hell, this one's impossible.

So, you get the idea. If you're reading this from Crawford - will my Medal of Freedom clash with dark tennies?

Hollywood Reality Timeline

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 18:04:00 +0000

Here's a site that creates a timeline of events from movies, both fiction and non-fiction, as if it were all real. For instance, '1780 Lestat becomes a vampire (Interview With a Vampire)' is followed by '1781 Lord Cornwallis surrenders to the colonies (Birth of a Nation)'. It's a mashup of fantasy and (movie) reality. It's still a work in progress and anyone can contribute. One weird thing is that the line 'Predators arrive for their feasting ritual on xenomorphs and humans' occurs at the beginning of every century. Maybe he's trying to tell us something. via Boing-Boing.

Invertebrate Liberals and the Mo' toons

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 22:42:00 +0000

You've got to read 'The Shame of the Invertebrate Liberals'. The best response I've seen to the Islamic temper tantrum over the infamous Danish cartoons. And it's from a socialist outfit in the UK. Thanks to Harry's Place.

Try these

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 01:10:00 +0000

I've gone to Red Lobster before just to eat some of those incredible biscuits. The cheesiness, the garliciness - they're just too good. The meal was okay, but nothing special. Now I don't need to go there any more, nor do you. Here's the the RL biscuit recipe. Lobsterboy has lots of issues with RL and takes time out to lay down some recipes now and then. Oh yeah, I might add some jalapeno.

Here are some photos of bacteria in petri dishes. Doesn't sound too appealing? Take a look, it's like flowers meet geometry on Mars or something.

Car Crashed Into House Just Now

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Wed, 22 Feb 2006 06:57:00 +0000

Here's some timely news. A car just crashed into my house. I was settling in at about 11:40, doing some reading just before dropping off when I heard tires screeching, a loud bang (my neighbor's house) and a loud thud (my house). This is no joke. I went outside and saw a smashed-up car settled against my front deck. There was a guy inside flailing about. I told him I'd help then went back inside and put some slippers on (still in my t-shirt and shorts) and returned outside. By now a bunch of neighbors were out, calling 911 and gawking. The kid was out of the car, healthy, and I could tell he wanted to run. I crowded him and told him he wasn't smashing into my house and running. The guy from across the street helped. Then the kid tried to make a break for it and we, plus my next-door neighbor (whose house took the brunt of the blow) restrained the kid. About then the ambulance guys showed up, then seconds later the cops. I went back and got dressed, it's 20F out there. Wait, cops just now came to my door for personal info. Okay, it looks like the car came in fast from the north, and a little sideways (there's MAJOR skid marks on the neighbor's sidewalk), hit the (fairly new) concrete porch of my neighbor (west side of house), then swung around 360 counter-clockwise thudding against my deck, about two feet from the natural gas intake. Jack and Henrietta have enough car parts in their yard to open a parts shop. The car is still where it came to rest so I can't be sure, but it looks like it only barked up the side of my deck a little bit. I'll get a good look tomorrow. Oh yeah, the car's at rest about seven feet from where my head was. Well, they just hauled it off and I got a good look the the deck. Just scraped up on the side. Glad to blog this as I can't call anyone at this hour and I feel like sharing.

UPDATE: Just took a good look. The 2x10 piece that supports the planks on the side of the deck (probably has a name, I just don't know it) is definitely cracked and the bottom 80% pushed in about 1/2 inch. Still about the least damage possible for getting your house run into by a car. Also some broken glass strewn about, and one CD lying on the deck titled 'Vertigo Juares - 2001'. It starts with some idiot screaming 'face down, ass up, that the way we like to fuck!' about ten times. The next 26 tracks are ugly, ugly techno-pop. Hell, this might have been a suicide attempt. Next time he should just push the eject button.

Muslim 'Offense Level'

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 14:41:00 +0000

This is like the Terrorist Threat Level but even funnier. For instance, here's the text for 'Guarded' level:

GUARDED
Meaning - We are quite offended, because people are generally picking on us.
Non-Muslim response - Stop making jokes about us
Consequence of non-compliance - We will rant on about "Islamophobia" and "Orientalism", although we don't understand what those words really mean

Big Mo' 'toons

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Sun, 19 Feb 2006 15:40:00 +0000

I just cribbed this from Combs Spouts Off. Wanted to share it with the world in my own small way. Thanks Richard. Just wish I had the three fraudulent ones added in by the Muslim 'holy man'.

Blogilicious

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Fri, 17 Feb 2006 03:57:00 +0000

Instapundit discusses "who's more fanatical - left or right?" and references Janes Law - " The devotees of the party in power are smug and arrogant, the devotees of the party out of power are insane". Pretty good stuff. Then, at the end of Jane's comments is the real payoff - a link to a series of essays on evolutionary psychology addressing such questions as "Why women have breasts", "Why I hate chimps", "Why samurai killed themselves" and much, much more. Really delicious.

Then Eric Raymond hits one out of the park, his best since the seminal "The Cathedral and the Bazaar". This time he addresses the most destructive memes in our political culture and traces their roots to the Cold War. It's an amazing story, still developing as the old Soviet archives are aired. Here's a sample:

"The most paranoid and xenophobic conservatives of the Cold War were, painful though this is to admit, the closest to the truth in estimating the magnitude and subtlety of Soviet subversion. Liberal anticommunists (like myself in the 1970s) thought we were being judicious and fair-minded when we dismissed half of the Right’s complaint as crude blather. We were wrong; the Rosenbergs and Alger Hiss really were guilty, the Hollywood Ten really were Stalinist tools, and all of Joseph McCarthy’s rants about “Communists in the State Department” were essentially true. The Venona transcripts and other new material leave no room for reasonable doubt on this score.

While the espionage apparatus of the Soviet Union didn’t outlast it, their memetic weapons did. These memes are now coming near to crippling our culture’s response to Islamic terrorism."

And one more:

"The first step to recovery is understanding the problem. Knowing that suicidalist memes were launched at us as war weapons by the espionage apparatus of the most evil despotism in human history is in itself liberating. Liberating, too, it is to realize that the Noam Chomskys and Michael Moores and Robert Fisks of the world (and their thousands of lesser imitators in faculty lounges everywhere) are not brave transgressive forward-thinkers but pathetic memebots running the program of a dead tyrant."

You should read the whole thing.

One last thing I learned recently, from The Ministry of Minor Perfidity:
"There has never been a major world leader named 'Floyd'.” Maybe that's a good thing.

I can't really remember, but life must have been very boring before the Web.

Court Packing; Bush vs. FDR

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 01:54:00 +0000

A bunch of leftish bloggers have accused Bush II of 'packing' the supreme court because he selects Justices with whom he has an ideological affinity. Duh!!! Sometimes they also throw in some nonsense about the purported principle of 'balance'. Even John Kerry got into the act. Well, I've go news for you. Bush doesn't know the first thing about packing the court. For a real example, and by the way a clear attempt to completely subvert the Constitution, check out FDR.
The Courts were getting in the way of some of his New Deal proposals so he decided to add extra justices to the bench. Here's a great reponse from a contemorary journalist. A few notches above what we get from today's MSM. Packing? Good lord, what next? Hijacking foreign policy?

Hairdo Bloviation #7

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 01:42:00 +0000

I've been up to my uhhh, elbows, yeah, elbows in alligators this last week.

Long story short, Matthews talked 33.8% of the time on Wednesday, 27.8% on Thursday and 36% on Friday for a weekly average of 32.95%. Compare this to the O'Reilly creature at 39.2%. And consider that while he barks a lot, Matthews asks long questions that are filled with detail and background, while O blurts out his emotional state and idle speculations and demands agreement.

This whole project was a little compulsive but I've proven to my own satisfaction that, by an objective standard, O'Reilly really is a gaseous buffoon. A lot of work for a pretty obvious result. What's all this make me? Anyway, another positive result is that I'm totally cured of the guy. When I surf by, there's an immediate revulsion and I surf away. That's worth something.

Hairdo Bloviation #6

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 23:02:00 +0000

Here's Chris Matthews for Monday and Tuesday. In a fit of compassion and kindness he didn't do any one-on-one interviews on the Tuesday show. Although his interviews turn out to be informative and interesting. Thanks Chris.

Monday 1/23/06 data:

Guest _____________ Guest talk time ____ Matthews talk time

Carole Keeton Strayhorn ___ 5:14 ___________ 2:15
Robert Stein ____________ 3.28 ___________ 1:51
Paul Burka _____________ 2:58 ___________ 1:58

Total ______________ 11:40 __________ 6:04

Matthews talked 34.2% of the time. Once again - Goddamn! the blogger interface sucks. Go into bold and you're stuck with it for the rest of the post. Bunch of maroons. Will comment on subsequent post - give your eyes a rest.

Iran Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Bert Wiener) — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 01:59:00 +0000

The last couple of days have seen some interesting writings concerning Iran's nuclear ambitions. First is a dash of cold water on the whole idea. The Cunning Realist thinks the rhetoric is a little overheated. OUR rhetoric. He makes the point that the White House hasn't quoted U.S. intelligence wrt Iran's nukes for three years.
The next one is quite a bit more negative. Joe Katzman reviews the situation and hopes that we all have solar panels and, I would think, fallout shelters. Then he proceeds "It gets worse."
Then George Friedman gets radical and suggests that the mullahs are counting on an attack from the U.S. or Israel as it would restore their cred as the most badass of all the Muslims. And THAT'S what it's all about.
The three together will keep your brain occupied for a few hours.

UPDATE: Here's one more, shooting down the idea of a single EMP bomb knocking out the whole country.