Fidel, You Better Forget About It

This could be the funniest beer commercial ever.

If only California had been a Red State

For reasons that are absurdly obvious I have a large amount of empathy Californians living in the mountains waiting to be incinerated by this years forest fire. So just in case you need some one to blame here is a sugestion from Jonah Goldberg over at National Review.

GEORGE W. BUSH HATES RICH WHITE PEOPLE
These fires in California are heading toward million dollar homes in California and where is George? Huddled in the White House dealing with the Supreme Court and the War in Iraq. Heartless bastard

Berkeley Is The Place For You & Me

Berkeley has (or in some cases had) three people that you just can't get any where else. And most towns would love to have just one of them not to mention all three. They are,

1. Hitler Guy
2. Naked Guy
3. Scrotum Guy

I should warn you that there might be material that is adult in nature when you click on Naked Guy, or Scrotum Guy. Also, to the best of my knowledge, Hitler Guy has left Berkeley. I am not to sure about this, so you should as wavelet about him.

Gone Drink'n

Wow: I can smoke in my room! Well, for 2,300 pounds a year, and 5 pounds a pack I should be able to do any thing. I also meet a cute red haired bartender tonight. She is an undergrad, but unlike most undergrads, seems interested in a graduate student. I think I will go drink'n tomorrow.

St. Andrews: Day Two

St. Andrews is one hell of a town. A college and tourist town, that has more bars in it than any other town I have ever been in. On the west side, by the golf course, there are a bunch of hotels, American style pubs and golf shops. That is all tourist, and every tourist I have seen looks to be from America, but we aren't talking the fat older American tourist we are talking the American tourist that can afford to golf at St. Andrews. In other words these people are urbane and rich. Then there is the city center, where most of the university buildings are. This is filled with students and British tourists. On the south-east side of town, where I live, is more Scottish than the rest of the town, that is less touristy and less money.

My flat is in a run down building that resembles a large and very poorly maintained shed. The flat its self is the size of a walk-in closet. But it's not that bad, because my window looks right out on the North Sea. I am not joking, and I am close enough to see the water break as the waves come in. So far the weather has been down right nice for Scotland. It has been sunny for the last two days.

As an American you expect college town to be built around a campus, and there is a sylvan quad and in order to get drunk the students have to walk off campus and go to the nearest pub. Not St. Andrews. The University has no Campus, rather the university just makes up part of the city the way offices and houses do. This makes it extremely hard to find university offices and departments, and I have been lost most of the last two days.

There is more to write about, but I should waite until I start classes and meet people to gossip about. All in all, I wouldn't mind staying here for my PhD. if I can get the money. I shouldn't say that until I start classes though.

When I was writing my thesis I was convinced by the sagacious Plato that knowledge can only be communicated through rhetoric. (To see why I thought this reread the Phaedrus.) Now I then made a, for lack of a better word, crazy jump that thus Aquinas was a rhetorician. Because, he communicates knowledge; knowledge is communicable through rhetoric; Aquinas is a rhetorician Q.E.D..

I have since given up this notion. I still firmly believe that all knowledge is only communicable through rhetoric, but theological knowledge is something else. This way I get may cake and eat is too. Meno's slave still does not learn any thing new, and Euclid is only bringing something out of us through his use of syllogims. However St. Thomas, and the fathers more importantly, do bring teach us. That is because they are using the Lingua Ecclasia (spelling?) that Augustine mentions in the Confessions. The Doctors are speaking in words and truthsthat are not found inside of men, but beyond us. The communication of knowledge is then through faith and not rhetoric. That is why Aquinas is wrong from a logical point of view. The five ways don't work if you are Kant, but they do work if you are a person of faith.

This, if true, has a profound effect upon Christian epistemology. But an effect that has always been with us. Paul said that this is foolishness for the Greeks, and Tutallian (?) "What does Athens have to do with Jerusalem? Nothing at all!".

So I rescind my statement that Aquinas was a rhetorician. His syllogisms worked, ans only worked, because they where about the Way, the Truth, and the Light. And this Light we only see through revelation, and this truth we only know because the "Word became flesh".

Am I just begging the question? I am saying Aquinas is not a rhetorician, but Euclid is.

On the other hand read the Chapter in this book about Aquinas. (I cannot recall which one it is.) Byt Stanley Huerwas in this book argues for my first position; viz, Aquinas is a rhetorician. It is a deep and strong argument, but I think he fails. His premise is that Aquinas knew his five ways would not work and wants the reader to see this, and to therefore look deeper into the nature of God because of the Summa's obvious failings. I read Plato exactly this way, but I think that it is absurd to read Thomas Aquinas this way.

To argue all these points fully would require a living discourse.

Should I post some thing in response to Chimmers suggestion, or just play Rome: Total War (the first video game I have played in about two years). I think its time for Rome.

America is a poorer place tonight. A great American hero has died. Chief Justice William Rehnquist, R.I.P.

The Aquinas Code

I was sitting around with some people tonight, and we got thinking about the whole genre of suspense anti-Catholic literature, a la the "Divinci Code". We got talking about one that we should write, and here is what we came up with. Just note, this might be considered offensive to some people.


Chapter 1.
Algiers - Five Muslim scholars are in a library tolerantly studying. In walk three Dominicans. Thomas Aquinas, Albert (some call great) and a novice, Stephan. Aquinas and Albert pull out swords and kill four of the scholars. Aquinas comes up to the last one; who says "why kill me? Am I not a Philosopher and a Human, just like you?" Aquinas says "I AM A CHRISTIAN" and kills him.

Chapter 2.
French village - Aquinas, Albert, and Stephan are walking through the town on a Friday night. They see a synagogue filled with tolerant Talmudic Scholars. Aquinas gets a torch and lights the building on fire as Albert locks the door.

Chapter 3.
A French convent - Two nuns, sister Agnes and Sister Beatrice, ask the mother superior about the gospel they just heard in mass. Agnes mentions how the priest was mis-reading the text (he was preaching war against the Muslims). The mother cuts her off and accuses her of presumption. She tells Agnes and Beatrice that a nuns duty is to only pray. Agnes mentions wanting to learn how to read so that she can study the bible "without having to listen to priests". The mother superior yells at hear and says she is close to heresy.

Chapter 4.
That night - Agnes and Beatrice decide to run away from the convent and dress as men and go to the University of Paris to learn how to read.

Chapter 5.
Paris - Aquinas, Albert, and Stephan come back from their bloody travels. Only to find two new tolerant Doctors. William of Oxford and Bonaventure. Aquinas mentions about how he has always hated Bonaventure, but Stephan has studied under the tolerant William of Oxford and has a deep respect for him. But Aquinas says that William will come to a bad end and Stephan should keep away from him.

Chapter 6.
Agnes and Beartice, dressed as men, come to Paris. They hear that the two best teachers are Aquinas and Albert; so they go to them. The evil Doctors test them and humiliate them, and tell them that they will not take them on as students. Broken hearted they wander through Paris, and run into Bonaventure the tolerant. Who sees in them great wisdom and offers them places in his class.

Chapter 7.
Unbeknownst to Aquinas, Stephan goes to see William. In his offices William introduces him to the William's brightest new student, Agnes (now going by Adam). It is love at first sight. Further William mentions that although brilliant Agnes needs a tutor, since she can't read. Stephan is all to eager. After leaving Stephan is plagued by homo-erotic thoughts.

Chapter 8.
Aquinas and Albert Plot to kill the tolerant Bonaventure and William. Stephan is becoming estranged from them.

Chapter 9.
Stephan is teaching Agnes to read. They get too close and, (you guessed it) kiss. In the heat of the moment Stephan touches Agnes' breasts only to find out he is not gay! They get down and dirty that very night.

Chapter 10.
William, in class, talks about how there are more ways to God then through the Church. Ah Ha! Aquinas has a spy in his class, Malo, who goes and reports to the evil Albert and Aquinas. They go to the local office of inquisition, which is run by Joseph of Ratzinger. They plot to kill the tolerant William.

Chapter 11.
After a wonderful but sleepless night, Stephan breaks all ties with Aquinas and Albert. He goes to William's office to tell him about his new found love for sex. He thinks that he will surprise William by telling him that Adam is really a woman. But William already knows. In fact he tells Stephan about Beatrice (who has been going by the name Ben). Also William has also been getting action from Beatrice for the last two months. Just after William finishes his story, the troops for the inquisition come in and arrest William the tolerant.

Chapter 12.
Joseph of Ratzinger examines William, ie. Tortures him. It is found out that William's father was Jewish and his mother was a Muslim. They give him a death sentence.

Chapter 13.
Williams execution. His last words are "Forgive them Father, or Mother, or Earth Goddess, or Great Power, or Allah, or Whatever". Beatrice is there and she cries. Aquinas sees this and starts to suspect something.

Chapter 14.
Beartice is forced to come to Aquinas' office. He asks her questions, but with every answer he becomes more suspicious. At one point he grabs her and she screams. He now knows she is a woman. So he blackmails her. Either she does (you know what) or he tells Joseph of Ratzinger. After all, the punishment for a Woman learning how to read is Death! After they torture her of course. She refuses.

Chapter 15.
The execution of Beatrice. First they blind her, because she dared looking at a book. Then they do the standard burning at the Stake.

Chapter 16.
Stephan, Bonaventure, and Agnes (who is now reading at a third grade level) decide that they must leave Paris. The decide to go to the only place where the truth about God, or Allah, or the Mother Spirit, is respected. Baghdad. But as they pack up Joseph of Ratzinger comes in trying to arrest them. Bonaventure fights him and kills him.

Chapter 17.
Aquinas and Albert are looking for the three of them. As they look Albert starts to question their evil ways. Aquinas won't hear any of it. Albert mentions the fifth Gospel that they found, and burned while in Algiers, the Gospel to Mary and Martha. Aquinas tells him that he will kill him if he mentions it again. Albert won't give it up, and says that maybe there are more ways to worship God, or Allah, or the World Mother, then killing people. Aquinas says "YOU TELL ME" and kills Albert.

Chapter 18.
Aquinas finds Joseph of Ratzinger's dead body. He gives up the last bit of sanity he has, and lights the whole university on fire. As he dances around a flaming beam comes down and kills him.

Chapter 19.
Bonaventure, Stephan and Agnes (who can't keep their hands of each other) walk out of Paris; Which is in flames behind them. The End


I should copyright this before someone steals it and sells millions of copies.

Dildo Update

In my very arrogant moments I google "Twelve Dildos on Hooks" and just laugh at the controversy I have stirred in the Blog-sphere. Not as much as Cindy Sheehan I grant you, but still we all need to do our part right? Well today I found this letter from Lois Abbott published in the Denver Post on 8/23. In it he says,

Further, we need to know where the money comes from to pay people to comb the Internet to find these "silly, wonderful things"

Ah, the joy of being an un-paid intern! It makes me feel good to see that most people think I should be making good money for my labor. I am so great I give my internet combing skills for free; when most people would demand remuneration.