Quote Of The Day

"So, basically we are being asked to restructure the entire economy of the planet on the say-so of a few "scientists" whose work cannot be verified or even reconstructed. Is there any intellectually honest person who thinks that is a good idea?"

-- TigerHawk on the CRU destroying the original climate data

November BlogMeet!

Robert X has the announcement!

Another Example Of People In Public Education

Commenting on the assaults reported in 10 North Naples Middle students suspended for taking part in “kick a Jew day”, District Spokesman Joe Landon says:

You are talking about an incident that has anti-Jewish bias if not anti-Semitism.

So, Joe, being anti-Jewish is bad, but 'anti-Semitism' is worse and only then deserves punishment? Do you have any clue at all as to what the fuck you're saying?

Saturday Romance

h/t Boing Boing

Global Warming Junk Science?

It's all over the interwebs that stolen E-mails point to Global Warming as a scientific fraud but I still believe Tiny Tim:



Update: Wretchard has a thoughtful exposition on the situation.

Angelic Friday

Every time a bell rings. . .

Reform in Politics

I am becoming a strong proponent of both term limits and mob violence; at times the latter bringing the former.

United States presidential line of succession

1. Vice President Joe Biden
2. Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi
3. President pro tempore of the Senate Robert Byrd
4. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
5. Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner
6. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates
7. Attorney General Eric Holder
8. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
9. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
10. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke
11. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis
12. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius
13. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan
14. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood
15. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu
16. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
17. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki
18. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolita

Fuck.

Shoot Nazis AND Dinosaurs!

Man oh man oh man oh man!



Dino D-Day

Guns and Gardens

Now THIS is useful!



h/t Boing Boing

North to Alaska Michigan

Heading up to Michigan today. Be back Tuesday, November 17.

Update: November 17, 6:00 AM
I'm back. Saw one brother, about 30 does, and one buck that was running after a doe and cleared the shooting lane before any shot could be fired. I had a splendid time, though.

Quote of the Day

"Why are you looking at me like that, Master?"
"I have been thinking, Mister Reese."
Oh no. "About deposing this kindly king?"
"Kindly? Do you not realise, Mister Reese, how perfectly diabolical is this king's genius? Every tyranny imaginable is possible when prefaced by the notion that it is for the well-being of the populace. Patronising? Of course, but when delivered with wide-eyed innocence and earnestness, what is a citizen to do? Complain about the benefits? Hardly, not when guilt is the benign torturer's first weapon of choice. No," Bauchelain rose to his feet and turned to face the dark city. He used both hands to sweep his hair back, his eyes glittering in the gloom, "we are witness to genius, plain and simple."

--Bauchelain in Bauchelain and Korbal Broach: Three Short Novels of the Malazan Empire, Volume One (Malazan Empire Novels) by Steven Erikson

Tuesday Tunes

Getting ready for the police state.



The Politics of Dancing - Re-Flex

Nancy's Donuts

I dropped off some donuts in the Dean's Office today:



h/t to Lisa for getting me a good picture!

AARP Down One Member

The AARP has now officially backed the House's Health Care bill and have made Obama happy.

I've written the AARP and asked to be removed from their membership roll. I'll post any response here.

I'll Tell You Where I'd Like To Park It!

Yesterday I received what I can only call an advertisement from Parking Services here at IUPUI:

From: Parking Services IUPUI
Sent: Wednesday, November 04, 2009 8:47 PM
Subject: Guaranteed Garage Parking While Supplies Last

The temperature is dropping and so will the number of available parking spaces on campus. In a few weeks, the campus skyline will begin to change when a new, 1,300-space parking garage goes up on the east end of campus. As the garage goes up, available parking will go down.

Do you really want to spend your time searching for a parking spot? Premium parking is available in the Vermont Street or North Street garages . . . but only while supplies last.

Get your garage permit before someone else takes your spot. Simply visit Parking Services at 1004 W. Vermont St. to exchange your current permit.

I wrote back with a copy going to Chancellor Charles Bantz:

I'm still astounded that IUPUI would build yet another parking garage when we know for certain that the price of gas will be going up, the number of cars on campus will go down, and students will be looking for better ways and cheaper ways to get to campus. IUPUI is myopic in looking at the current situation and not looking into the future.

Perhaps IUPUI should be looking to partner with local companies for mass transit(and NOT Bloomington-based shuttle companies!) to support our students', staff's, and faculty's transit needs.

Maybe it's time to bring out the clue bat and start hitting these people over the head with it.

UPDATE

I received the following note from Carol Pferrer, the Director of IUPUI Parking and Transportation Services and I'm heartened!

I agree that helping people move to more sustainable options as they relate to transportation needs to be a priority. We’ve been partnering with IndyGo for three years by providing our students with a S pass that is valid on any of IndyGo’s fixed routes. The university has a sustainability committee and I co-chair the Transportation Subcommittee for Sustainability. We are looking at ways the campus as a whole can affect transportation. One of our Assistant Directors is charged with moving us more toward TDM (Transportation Demand Management) and we have an intern that is collecting data for several sustainable transportation projects. I would like to invite you to join our Transportation Sustainability committee as it seems you have a passion for this topic.

All that being said, we are looking to our master plan to guide us as we move into the future. It has many garages on the plan, as we will no longer have a sea of surface parking available for our community. We will continue to search for the balance.

Our next Transportation Sustainability meeting is on November 10, 2009 at 1pm at Parking and Transportation Services. Hope to see you there.

I'm going!

Thursday Twisted Tunes

We know this one:

Dreaming - Blondie

but I'm liking this cover:

Dreaming - Amy Speace

And Iggy Pop's I Wanna Be Your Dog has been re-imagined by Uncle Tupelo.

h/t Cover Lay Down

Wishes for Wishard

Almost a month ago I received the following plea from our Chancellor here at IUPUI. I found it troubling that our Chancellor would stoop to using our E-mail resources for campaigning. Today I went to the polls.

I voted no. Deal with it, Charles!

From: CHANCLLR
Sent: Wednesday, October 07, 2009 4:31 PM
To: CHANCNEWS-L@LISTSERV.IUPUI.EDU
Subject: [CHANCNEWS] Chancellor's Newsletter

Chancellor Charles R. Bantz
IUPUI Website Chancellor's Website Contact the Chancellor About IUPUI

Greetings from IUPUI


October 2009


As you may know, Marion County provides health care through Wishard Hospital and the Health and Hospital Corporation (HHC). This is a 150-year tradition that began with the creation of City Hospital in 1859. IUPUI and our health schools are partners with Wishard, so the proposal by HHC to build a new Wishard Hospital is very important to us.

Under recent state law, the voters of Marion County must approve a referendum at the November 3rd special election that allows Health and Hospital Corporation to borrow money via municipal bonds to build the new hospital.

What is being proposed?

An entirely new Wishard Hospital—including in-patient, out-patient, and emergency services, plus parking and office—would be built on the west side of the IUPUI campus. This facility would replace more than 15 buildings, averaging 61.2 years of age. The hospital would actually be smaller than the current one, but would be more efficiently designed, more energy efficient, and most importantly better designed for the highest standards of contemporary medical care.

Why is this being proposed now?

HHC has conducted a thorough review of its facilities and the options for replacement. There is a great deal you can read about this analysis at WishardFacts.org , however, the short version is the current facilities simply cannot serve into the future. Wishard spends more than $25 million per year to maintain their deteriorating facilities.

The option of a new hospital on the IUPUI campus was selected over three alternatives: no new construction and eventually closing Wishard, remodeling the current facilities in steps over many years, or building a new hospital away from IUPUI.

The option chosen will create a new state-of-the-art facility quickly—and at much lower cost, because of the current construction and financing market. Most importantly, a new Wishard Hospital will both maintain the valuable proximity of Wishard to IUPUI and provide enhanced services to the 20,000 patients admitted annually.

What does this mean for IUPUI?

For our health schools, a new Wishard Hospital on the IUPUI campus would assure the continuation of our long-standing educational partnerships. Nearly 1,100 physicians practice at Wishard Hospital, 99 percent of whom are School of Medicine faculty members. Wishard operates Indiana's largest ambulance service, busiest emergency room (over 111,000 visits last year), largest adult burn unit, the only emergency psychiatric care, and one of only two adult Level I Trauma Centers.

Wishard is our major teaching hospital. It offers clinical practice and field instruction sites for students in our Schools of Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and Social Work as well as the Regenstrief Institute for Health Care and Purdue University School of Pharmacy.

The proposal for a new Wishard Hospital also involves a land swap.

HHC will swap their land and current facilities on the north side of IUPUI for land on the west side of campus, including the now-boarded-up Larue Carter Hospital and State Board of Public Health Building, plus three other IUPUI buildings: the Union, Psychiatric Research, and Campus Facilities Services. The exchange will be phased over several years as the new hospital is built. Planning is under way to find new homes for the occupants of the IUPUI buildings, including the possible reuse of the newer of the existing Wishard facilities.

Marion County voters must approve a referendum to allow public bonds to be issued for the new hospital on the November 3 election ballot.

That will allow Wishard to borrow $613 million over 30 years to finance the new hospital without a tax increase. Absentee and early voting has begun at the Marion County Clerk's Office , which will open three satellite offices beginning October 24th, including one near campus at the HealthPlex on 860 W. 10th Street.

For more information on the proposal, see WishardFacts.org . For voter information, see the Marion County Clerk's Office .

I encourage you to review the materials and consider casting a "yes" ballot in favor of Wishard's new hospital.

________________________________


Charles R. Bantz
Chancellor