Get 50% off the coming retail price of Windows 7, by pre-ordering now.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/buy/offers/pre-order.aspx

Jonathan Last: "There is something unwell about a society that requires fathers to pretend to find beauty in effaced cervixes, episiotomies and the bloody show -- but then allows them to skip out on the rearing of the child."

I'm really enjoying Ryan Adams' latest album, Cardinology.

Did Bethany have a choice? -- "The father of a Jehovah's Witness who lost her life after refusing a blood transfusion is fighting back."

"On Monday, the Alberta Court of Appeal required two cancer physicians and Edmonton's Cross Cancer Centre to defend the manner in which they cared for the leukemia-stricken teenager of a Jehovah's Witness family. Importantly, the court examined whether the Watchtower Society, the main legal entity used by Jehovah's Witnesses, should be held accountable for obstruction of proper medical treatment."

For the benefit of my JW friends...

Friday Releases


DVD Release: The Wonders of Creation Reveal God's Glory
Announced upcoming release of a new songbook: Sing to Jehovah

Saturday Releases


Brochure: The Bible -- What is its Message?


Book: Bearing Thorough Witness About God's Kingdom

Sunday Releases
Announcement of new music CD available Sept 1st, which will include orchestra and vocals of 17 of the new songs.

". . . parental autonomy is not an absolute right, and the state can and should intervene when, as here, a child's health and safety are in jeopardy."

Exactly. If we fail to protect our innocent, we have failed as a civilized society.

I've uploaded a few new photos of Olivia and John Ellis.

"We are Simon Jester."

I've uploaded a few snapshots from today.

You can now download the finished version of Internet Explorer 8.

The Economist: How to Stop the Drug Wars

"Legalisation would not only drive away the gangsters; it would transform drugs from a law-and-order problem into a public-health problem, which is how they ought to be treated. Governments would tax and regulate the drug trade, and use the funds raised (and the billions saved on law-enforcement) to educate the public about the risks of drug-taking and to treat addiction. The sale of drugs to minors should remain banned. Different drugs would command different levels of taxation and regulation. This system would be fiddly and imperfect, requiring constant monitoring and hard-to-measure trade-offs. Post-tax prices should be set at a level that would strike a balance between damping down use on the one hand, and discouraging a black market and the desperate acts of theft and prostitution to which addicts now resort to feed their habits."

An update for Firefox was released yesterday. Please update your copy.

YouTube: Cult Tactics & Mind Control - B.I.T.E.

Steve Chapman: Why I Miss Bill Clinton

Trailer: Public Enemies - This is a trailer for Michael Mann's John Dillinger movie, starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Looks great.

From a NY Times blog post discussing Louisiana Governor Jindal's attendance at an excorcism while he was in college, we get the graphic below.


According to this Pew Survey, Jehovah's Witnesses believe that angels and demons are active, more than any other religious group.

Microsoft Said Shipping Windows 7 in September

"Microsoft could have Windows 7 on shipping PCs by September, Compal president Ray Chen said today at an investor's conference. The PC contractor executive understands from plans that the software should be available in either late September or early October. The news would corroborate word of an April release candidate that would let Microsoft finish, manufacture and deliver Windows 7 well ahead of the holidays."

ABC News: "The Obama administration will seek to reinstate the assault weapons ban that expired in 2004 during the Bush administration, Attorney General Eric Holder said today."