June 23, 2008
Monday, June 23rd, 2008  |
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| Isn’t it worth $1 a month to you to keep RGQ going? Please click the link and direct your contribution to reallygoodquotes@yahoo.com. |
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| Little League At one point during a game, the coach called one of his 7-year-old baseball players aside and asked, "Do you understand what cooperation is? What a team is?" The little boy nodded in the affirmative. "Do you understand that what matters is whether we win or lose together as a team?" The little boy nodded yes. "So," the coach continued, "I’m sure you know, when an out is called, you shouldn’t argue, curse, attack the umpire, or call him a pecker-head. Do you understand all that?" Again the little boy nodded. He continued, "And when I take you out of the game so another boy gets a chance to play, it’s not good sportsmanship to call your coach ‘a dumb asshole’ is it?" Again the little boy nodded. "Good,"
said the coach. "Now go over there and explain all that to your
mother." |
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“You can’t get rid of poverty by giving people money.” - P. J. O’Rourke, American political commentator |
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“Where laws end, tyranny begins.” - William Pitt the elder, British Statesman, 1st Earl of Chatham (1708-1778) |
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| Cat
Hangover [Thanks, Brae] |
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On this day in history, June 23, 1868: Christopher Latham Sholes receives US patent #79,265 for an improved type-writer. Sholes, born in Pennsylvania in 1819, moved to Wisconsin after completing an apprenticeship in printing. He became a newspaper publisher and politician – serving in both the Wisconsin State Senate and State Assembly. He was also an inventor. He received several patents over the years for various improvements and innovations to the typing machine. The first patent had 10 short keys above 11 longer ones and were described by the inventor as "similar to the key-board of a piano." The description has 21 keys for 26 letters. His next patent, also from 1868, has 36 keys – digits on the left and letters, alphabettically arranged, on the right. Later patents show keyboard layouts that are more familiar, tiered rows of keys. He is credited with the QWERTY keyboard, a legacy we still revere today. "If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster." - Isaac Asimov "I am returning this otherwise good typing paper to you because someone has printed gibberish all over it and put your name at the top." - English professor, Ohio University "My two fingers on a typewriter have never connected with my brain. My hand on a pen does. A fountain pen, of course. Ball-point pens are only good for filling out forms on a plane." - Graham Greene |
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"Last week
the candle factory burned down. Everyone just stood around and sang
Happy Birthday." |
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As you know, I work with computers and have been doing so for a quarter
of a century. I’ve done everything from configure a server to restoring
one after a disaster. Well, I’ve never *actually* restored a server
after a disaster because we’ve never *actually* had a disaster. But
I’ve practiced for them. What’s really fun is creating a server, backing
it up, wiping it out, and restoring it. But practice doesn’t matter
in real life. Last Monday my PFY (Pimply
Faced Youth) got a call from our Conference Office. They run their
own server for the most part. I configured it, I do the updates, but
I don’t do the backups or regular system maintenance on that machine.
This is the only server that isn’t in our server room, and this is
the only server whose hard drive failed during the electrical storm
we had last weekend. My PFY went to take a look and came back reporting
that the machine was getting the BSoD (Blue
Screen of Death. Normally a simple power off and power on will
work to bring the server back up, but in this case that just wasn’t
happening. The hard drive died. So I brought the server back to my office, put in a new hard drive,
then installed Windows and the backup software. I was then able to
restore the server to the state it was in on the Friday, when the
last disk-to-tape backup was run. The user accounts where there, their
documents were there, but unfortunately, their database wasn’t. I
expected this, and prepared to restore that from the backup SQL’s
(Structured Query Language)
RDBMS (Relational
DataBase Management System) does automatically. You see, you can’t back up an RDBMS database while it is running
and servicing requests, but you can set it to back itself up to a
file. That file then gets backed up to the tape, and you can restore
the database from that RDBMS backup file. It’s really pretty easy.
I’ve done it before when we were doing upgrades. Unfortunately, there was a minor problem. The database stopped backing
itself up about a year and a half ago. I had to get the live database
off a dead hard drive, or they would lose a year and a half’s worth
of data and my reputation for greatness would come into question.
The drive the data was on was dead. I tried to recover it, and I couldn’t.
People that I’ve worked with for over a decade were about to not like
me anymore. That’s when my PFY suggested I put the dead hard drive in the freezer.
I thought the kid had lost it, because there is no reason to preserve
a dead hard drive. It isn’t like it’s going to rot and stink like
something biological would. But I had nothing to lose, so I wrapped
the drive in a plastic bag and stuck in the freezer. The next day
I was able to put it in another computer and recover some of the RDBMS
files before the drive failed again. I put the drive back in the freezer,
and the next day I recovered the rest of the database. My PFY saved my job and my reputation. I’m kinda glad I hired him.
Tim a’Musing |
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If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a on-slip grip that makes opening jars easy. - Peggy in Tonawanda, New York |
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Hints:
There’s a great rhyming dictionary at http://www.rhymezone.com/ Submit
Opening Line
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Re: Planks ‘n Platforms I believe that some of the Republican party planks in their platform are there for form and not plat. I don’t think we will ever ban the million or so abortions performed per year in the US . I don’t know why we, as a nation, are more worried about the price of gasoline (which even now is still lower than simply the taxes on the fuel in some European countries) than a million females getting pregnant with unwanted babies. We seem to have lost our moral compass, our ethical sense. As for the Department of Peace and Nonviolence not causing any problems – have you flown recently? When the government tries to help us, things get really bad. The man behind me took his laptop out of its case but put the case on top of the computer. You would have thought he tried to smuggle a bomb into the airport. Some bureaucrat thought four ounces of liquid could be dangerous, so I can’t bring in a bottle of water. I’m not sure why two terrorists, each with three ounces of ‘bad liquid’ can’t meet past the checkpoint and have the total number of ounces that are the dangerous part. The government is keeping me safe from dehydration though. What we need is less government, not more. The government isn’t going to fix the price of gas in this country or any other. Because we are using less gas, they are collecting less fuel tax and the roads need the funds for repairs. What the government is going to do is increase the price by increasing the taxes. Every layer of government interference lowers the level of actual education in the schools. Instead of teaching, paperwork is being filed. Big government is NOT your friend. Asking the government to fix anything is ludicrous. They aren’t there to fix things. - Patti Mike wrote: "But seriously, don’t we as citizens have a right to demand more from our political parties than this? Shouldn’t we all be writing to our delegates to let them know that we expect the platforms adopted at the conventions to address the real problems facing us? Is this a reflection of the apathy that is evident in low voter turnout in state and local elections? Can we expect any improvement in our government if we don’t get involved on a local level by writing letters, attending open meetings, or at the very least voting?" Mike, platform conventions are full of marginal suggestions, as well as substantive ones, because a lot of divergent views are present in both major parties. A few months ago I sat at a dinner next to a woman — I’ll call her Edie — who was a fiscal conservative, an atheist, and a pro-choice Republican. She was complaining that the Oregon Republican Party Platform contained a pro-life plank, and said it should not be in there. She further said that when she talked about it with her (Washington) county Republican Party officers, they would not listen. I explained to her that if she wanted to change the platform, she should present herself as a candidate for delegate, get elected, and show up at the platform convention, ready to present her opinion. I also explained to her that if her county officials wouldn’t help her do that, then she should call the state chairman. Lastly, I told her she had an uphill battle, because the last time a motion was made to delete the pro-life plank, it got three votes out of the 180 or so delegates in attendance. Well, I am a delegate in the Oregon Republican Party, and much to the chagrin of the county officers where she lives, who don’t particularly like her, Evie did in fact run and get elected as a bonus delegate to the platform convention, held a couple weeks ago. I laughed, and reminded her of our extended conversation. I laughed again when she didn’t even get a chance to move to strike the pro-life plank, because by overwhelming voice vote the delegates moved to not modify the family section of the platform, thus ending discussion on the planks it contains. I mean, I did tell her she would have an uphill battle, but that was better than I could have hoped for. If anybody wants to change the way politics works, then get elected as a precinct representative (not usually difficult), and show up to work. Your work should earn respect, and respect means election to more authority, and a bigger voice. Like "Edie", folks should quit complaining and go to work. I hope she shows up next time, too. I will smile and greet her, and tell her to keep trying, because that’s how representative democracy is supposed to work, even when we don’t get our way. - Tom in Oregon City [I agree Tom. All my life I’ve heard my mother say "If you don’t vote, you can’t complain". So I vote and I try to be as involved as I can. I’ve never tried to become a delegate, therefore I don’t have too much room to complain about what my party decides in my state do I? I just get tired of hearing people complain and if you ask who they voted for they say they don’t vote because one vote doesn’t make a difference!] Actually, in Texas the delegates to the convention that decide on the platform are elected starting at the local precinct the night of the primary election. Anyone who voted in the primary for a party may go to the local precinct meeting for that party. That meeting elects delegates to the next level meeting, etc., until the state delegates are elected. So voter apathy in attending these precinct meetings the night of the election is the reason for what you see happening at the state level. Only a very small minority of actual primary voters (which itself is a small minority of registered voters) show up at these precinct meetings and start the process of electing state delegates. So in Texas, if you want to demand more of your political party, you must show up at the precinct meeting the night of the primary election and vote for delegates that will do what you want, or become a delegate yourself. Larry the Math Prof (also a Texas resident) Re: Gay Marriage Mike said, "even two very old gay women to increase the "icky" factor. (Don’t get me wrong, I’m old too. But really, do we need the mental picture of old people having sex?)" Why is it that everytime anyone talks about Gay people all they think of is Sex. Gay people are not just running around having sex, any more than straight people. When some old straight couple gets married in the news (for what ever reason) it conjurs up the "Awwww, how sweet" factor, but when it is two old women who have waited for nearly 50 years to be able to marry you immediately think Sex (and go, "ewww". Gay people love people of the same sex. They share their lives, their beds, the chores, and everything else that straight couples share. No more, no less. Mike went on to say, "It’s time that gays figure out that the more outlandish their public behavior, the more they play to the camera, the more they damage their cause." I think it’s time Mike went on, and let these people alone. If you had been waiting, for weeks, months or even Years to be able to stand up and legally marry your true love, why would you want to wait another few weeks just to be sure there was no camera around? There is an old adage about TV, if you don’t like what’s on, turn it off. You don’t have to watch the parade, but why do you feel it necessary to rain on it? - Faithy in Baltimore [Ouch! OK, if I got under your skin so much I probably did others too. Let me try to explain. I don’t have anything against gays marrying. I voted against the marriage amendment here in Arkansas. But you’ve got to admit that when gays play to the camera they make more enemies than friends. I’m sure this is more of a “news” problem than a gay problem, but the problem exists. It’s like the news focus on violent crime. People who get their news only from TV have the mistaken impression that violent crime is up when in fact the statistics show that it has gone down for some time now. I was just trying to point out that the media circus surrounding the first week of the new marriage laws in California don’t reflect the statistics that Bruce wrote about from Massachusetts. That is, that after the initial rush the number of marriages level off to a fairly low number. That’s not what the media would lead you to believe. I just think that anyone, gay or not, would rather go about their lives in peace without the media making a big deal of it. If there was no “show” to report the news crews would lose interest and go away. Then the public outrage might diminish somewhat. As
for the sex part, married people have sex. Old people have sex. I was
trying to be funny to a point, but I do think that’s what most
people who saw that on TV thought first. I was just saying that I didn’t
think that was the best image for the cause to present to middle America.
I’m sure these women haven’t lived their whole lives making
a public spectacle of their love and while I’m sure they are very
proud of finally being able to marry didn’t the media coverage
cheapen it somewhat?] First, those "attempts" mostly succeed, Mike. California will be interesting to watch in November, won’t it? Second, thanks for characterizing it as a "lifestyle", and not as an innate human trait, though I do not think you intended that interpretation. Lastly,
why do you characterize a position desiring to NOT subsidize or recognize
so-called "gay marriage" as fear? When I hear it talked about
here, it’s not fear that comes out, it’s annoyance at having language
redefined, and institutions upended, to satisfy the latest PC idea of
life. "Gay marriage", CO2 redefined as a "pollutant",
in spite of the fact that it is the ONLY "pollutant" which
is essential for life on earth… the list is much longer than the recent
examples. - Tom in Oregon City I used the term “fear” because I think that a fear of change as well as a fear that gays are out to “get us and our children” is what drives the opposition to gay marriage. People somehow think that allowing gays to marry will destroy all marriage. This is the same logic that created laws against interracial marriage. And
yes, CO2 is natural and needed for life. So is water. But it is possible
to have too much of a good thing. Ever heard of drowning?] But methane
levels are no longer climbing, Sied. Haven’t you been doing your part?
Not enough beer and pickled food, or too big a cork? - Tom in Oregon
City Speculators have little to do with the "high" price at the pump. Buying and selling futures options may add a little bit to the fluctuation in the price of crude oil, but the real price problem is the management of refinery capacity by "big oil" and restricted production by OPEC. Our lame duck President, the Republican candidate for President and the Governor of Florida want to open up off-shore drilling. It is just a red herring. It will not solve the problem. Ok, we can tap into some more of the oil we are pretty sure is there, but why do that when oil ready to pump is not being sent to market because of unused refinery capacity? Exactly who do you think is going to gain access to those off-shore sites? Does anyone believe it will be someone other than an oil company already enjoying monster profits? Whoever ‘wins’ the
off-shore leases will be getting the current price for oil. Why else
would they want to explore and drill? - Mike from Florida |
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Disclaimer- All quotes printed in this publication are believed to be accurately attributed, but no guarantees are made that some incorrectly attributed, or even outright false quotes won’t get in here from time to time. I assure readers that I will do my best to weed out incorrect quotes, and will print a retraction as soon as I become aware of any errors. |
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Click here to see the archives of past issues, or go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/reallygoodquotes/messages. If you run across something really outstanding when perusing the archives, I’d appreciate it if you’d mail me at TheBestOfRGQ@yahoo.com and point it out to me. I’m in the process of compiling an e-book called, not surprisingly, The Best of RGQ, and I’d like to hear from you which pieces impacted you the most. |
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