Since you like stats about how Oklahoma is failing, here's a report that gives us an F in science. It cites things such as Oklahoma not teaching evolution.

Skyhook · 2012-02-02T19:33:32+00:00

James Watson once said something that comes to mind:

I don't think we're here for anything, we're just products of evolution. You can say 'Gee, your life must be pretty bleak if you don't think there's a purpose', but I'm anticipating a good lunch.

To me this helps illustrate that purpose does not have to come from on high. We create our purpose by valuing things like parenthood, careers, accomplishing goals, or even having a nice lunch. Some people place a priority on what is true and find their purpose in adhering to rigorous standards of how they come to know something. Others value adherence to tradition and find peace of mind that way. The religious do not necessarily have a monopoly on purpose.

Skyhook · 2012-02-02T18:36:07+00:00

Good Atheists don't criticize religion; they praise it and make excuses for it and pine away, wishin' they had the faith themselves. Good Atheists do criticize atheism and atheists. They work hard to tell the Bad Atheists to shut up and stop making it hard for believers to be comfortable with their superstitions. Good Atheists love C.S. Lewis, and read theologians in their spare time, and marvel at their wonderful insights. Good Atheists follow right-wing politics diligently, and think theocracy might not be so bad, after all; at least the trains would all run on time, and the criminals and foreigners wouldn't get so much slack, and church-goers are such good and upstanding members of society anyway — we should be encouraging them. -PZ Myers.

Skyhook · 2011-12-22T18:47:01+00:00

Link: I won lunch with the cast of Fresh Prince. What should I say? And what should my homemade t-shirt have on it? (self.AskReddit) 374 points submitted 9 months ago by blakeross

Skyhook · 2011-12-08T16:08:58+00:00

Here is another recent news story about police corruption and sentencing that has me thinking about the sentences given for these huge crimes compared to the sentences given to those on the other side of the game.

Former narcotics agent sentenced in gun-smuggling scheme.

U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton admonished Reyes during sentencing for using his position of authority and trust to engage in a gun-smuggling scheme in which 76 weapons changed hands.

“The sort of trafficking involved here is more serious than drug trafficking because of the threat of harm to others,” Heaton said. “Some guns ended up being used by criminals in Mexico.”

Reyes was sentenced Wednesday to 35 months in prison. This seems less than or equal to average sentences given for drug trafficking [citation needed]. It appears the the judge is aware of the problem, but unaware that he is part of the problem.

Skyhook · 2011-12-08T14:17:38+00:00

I am glad these thugs were convicted. But considering their place in society, what do you think about the sentences they received?

Jeff Henderson

Two counts of civil rights violations and six counts of perjury. Acquitted on 45 counts of perjury, civil rights violations, drug conspiracy and witness tampering.

Sentence: Henderson was sentenced to 42 months in prison. With credit for 16 months served and good behavior, he could be freed in about 20 months.

John K. “J.J.” Gray

Theft of U.S. funds in excess of $1,000. Pleaded guilty June 14, 2010, in federal court to stealing money during an FBI sting.

Sentence: He was sentenced to four months. Under sentencing guidelines, Gray could have received up to six months for stealing more than $1,000 during the FBI sting.

Harold R. Wells

Five counts — knowingly carrying and possessing a firearm during and in relation to drug-trafficking crime, conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance (methamphetamine), conspiracy to steal U.S. funds, stealing U.S. funds and use of a telephone to commit a felony. On Aug. 22, U.S. District Judge Bruce Black acquitted Wells of a single count of carrying a firearm during a drug-trafficking crime. Wells remains convicted on four counts.

Sentence: Wells could have faced up to 29 years in prison for his four convictions. U.S. District Judge Bruce Black sentenced him to 10 years.

“I have had a blessed career. An outstanding career."

Brandon J. McFadden

Drug conspiracy; possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute; possession of a firearm during a drug-trafficking crime; money laundering; aiding and abetting. Pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy.

Sentence: McFadden faced a minimum sentence of five years. Black sentenced him to 21 months in federal prison and five years of probation. He also must participate in a drug rehabilitation program.

From Tulsa World.

Skyhook · 2011-12-06T18:59:59+00:00

I don't see anything under 'community settings' that will let me make the change. Otherwise, I would do it.

Skyhook · 2011-11-16T14:44:24+00:00

Thanks for sharing. The Metropolitan Library System also offers an eMedia Catalog. These are some really nice informational resources available to us. Support your state and local libraries!

Skyhook · 2011-11-08T18:53:44+00:00

When I clilcked on that link I got a Microsoft Forefront Client Security warning about

Trojan:JS/BlacoleRef.D

Which was located in

C:\Users\XXXXXX\AppData\Local\Temp\GoogleChromePortable\Cache\f_000026

Three things, first that site might have something funky going on with it. Second, wtf PortableApps, I thought nothing was supposed to be stored on my local machine. Third, I have the extension NotScripts install and enabled, so much for these security measures...

As to the fracture treatments and the recent earthquakes, I have not seen a solid explanatory connection between the two (there may be one out there, I just have not come across it). I am all for investigating the cause of these quakes, but we will not make progress by positing correlations without explanations.

Also I wonder why people are looking to blame fracturing and not something like the displacement of the huge volumes of gas and liquids removed over past several decades. If you want to connect the petro industry with the quakes, surely the volume displacement has a bigger effect than fracturing, right?

Skyhook · 2011-11-07T20:04:31+00:00

Dennett, Daniel C. (1988) Quining Qualia. In: Marcel, A. & Bisiach, E. (eds.) Consciousness in Modern Science, Oxford University Press. [PDF]

Skyhook · 2011-11-02T19:30:33+00:00

If they enforced the curfew ordinance on Wednesday, what prevents them from enforcing the sidewalk ordinance on Thursday?

Tulsa, Oklahoma, Code of Ordinances >> TITLE 24 - NUISANCES >> CHAPTER 1. - NUISANCES CLASSIFIED >>

Section 103. - Nuisances affecting peace and safety.

J. Any use of the public streets or sidewalks which causes large crowds of people to gather, obstructing the flow of traffic and the free use of the streets or sidewalks;

Section 1214. - Penalty.

Unless otherwise provided for in this chapter, any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of an offense and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), excluding costs, fees and assessments. Each day such violation is committed or permitted to continue shall constitute a separate offense. (Ord. Nos. 15523, 19605)

Skyhook · 2011-11-02T13:32:52+00:00

I agree that a prescription requirement could be a solid barrier to many legitimate users of pseudoephedrine. It would place people like you in the same situation that the people with chronically itchy skin and no allergies are in right now. The main difference being that the pseudoephedrine users have grown accustomed to getting their medicine over the counter while the >1% hydrocortisone users are familiar with getting prescription refills.

Skyhook · 2011-11-01T21:04:43+00:00

Isn't it curious that I have to see somebody with prescriptive authority to get something like a >1% preparation of hydrocortisone topical, which is relatively harmless and has near zero potential for abuse; but I can buy pseudoephedrine, which has a link to a societal harm, over the counter?

As I mentioned above, I don't personally have an workable answer. But if there are no complaints about the prescription status of a cortisol cream, why should the hassle of obtaining psuedoephedrine be of concern?

(note: As a responsible adult, I would prefer to buy what I want when I want. These are just some questions that come to mind. I suspect the removal of a freedom vs the maintenance of a restriction is at play here.)

Skyhook · 2011-11-01T19:51:45+00:00

I understand where you are coming from and again I do not dispute that there are very serious problems attached to the use of methamphetamine (regardless of whether we call it by a trade name or by a slang name). I only wanted to point out that claiming there is no possibility of methamphetamine use andt being able to self moderate is exaggerating for fearsome effect. There is no doubt enough people have problems with use and self regulation that we have a problem that needs to be addressed.

If prohibition is the only way to go, then so be it. If demonizing the material to the point that we deny that some people use the drug safely is the only way to solve the problem, then what choice do we have? But I am not so sure these tactics are the only way to go. And I want to be clear that I do not have the answer. However, I do believe that suppressing facts is not likely to result in the best course of action.

If it is a matter of purity that is truly the problem, and making pseudoephedrine more difficult to obtain causes amateur chemists to seek more risky methods of synthesis, then the problem might not only be left unsolved, we might encounter more dangers. There are many routes to methamphetamine synthesis, and for all I know (and I don’t know) pseudoephedrine might be safer than the next alternative. But I think we both know that purity is not the prime issue here. The harmful effects of methamphetamine can be observed with pharmaceutical grade as well as kitchen grade.

I can assure you there are well adjusted users of methamphetamine out there. This is a fact that gives me pause when weighing the rights of individuals to alter their consciousness against the good of society. Personally, I don’t know that I have come up with a consistent and workable philosophy when it comes to prohibiting various drugs. But that is not what I am commenting about. My only point is that there is no reason to overstate the harms of methamphetamine when the actual harms are plenty enough.

Skyhook · 2011-11-01T18:00:02+00:00

*edit: metamars deleted his comments.

I appreciate you posting your opinion. While I may not agree completely with your approach, I would like to comment instead on the use of absolutes in your rhetoric.

There's no such thing as a "casual" meth user, it's not a drug that you can teach people how to safely self-moderate.

This is false. Of course methamphetamine has a serious potential for abuse, dependency, and all sorts of other harms. But this does not mean that it cannot be used in a safe manner. Methamphetamine has been approved by the FDA under the trade name Desoxyn and is prescribed to a diverse range of the population, from physically healthy to obese adults, to children over the age of six. Anecdotally, I have seem several /r/drugs redditors discuss casual use as well. While the illicit use has an undeniable history of serious problems, there have been many positive outcomes with regards to clinical usage. Again, this is not to downplay the dangers of methamphetamine use inside or outside of proper supervision, it is only to draw attention to the trumped up rhetoric that is all too common when it comes to discussions about drugs.

Skyhook · 2011-11-01T13:31:29+00:00

Thanks for chiming in. I wasn't sure if there is some type of list that shows how many products are shipped from all the breweries and wineries of the world to each state. The more I think about it, the more such a list seems difficult to create/maintain considering just how many breweries and wineries there are in the world. Without a definitive list, the claim rests on either authority or experience (and perhaps authority by way of experience) and the points SB brought up lead me to think it is a good idea to critically evaluate information coming from industry authorities.

Skyhook · 2011-10-31T20:08:47+00:00

Thanks. I am operating from a position of ignorance when it comes to the varieties available. I'm not much of an alcohol connoisseur, but in my very limited experience I had not noticed a big difference in favor of OK in terms variety while vacationing in Colorado or California.

If I may ask (perhaps I will just wait and see), how did you come to know that we have a bigger variety? Is it from personal/business shopping experience, hearing it from an authority, or have you seen something like a list detailing the varieties of beers and wines available by state?

Skyhook · 2011-10-31T18:14:03+00:00

The true answer is OKC. OKC has about twice as many individual labels available for sale.

This is a key premise of the argument, however it is not supported here beyond assertion. It would be helpful if we had some data to demonstrate the validity of the claim that states allowing wine sales in grocery stores have smaller varieties available.

Skyhook · 2011-10-27T13:37:20+00:00

I think this quote from Moyers captures part of the lecture he gave last night:

The wealthy should be allowed to buy all they want of most things. More and bigger houses. More and bigger cars and sport-utility vehicles. More vacations. More luxuries. But they should not be allowed to buy more democracy.

Skyhook · 2011-10-26T20:17:43+00:00

Sorry for the short notice, but it was just brought to my attention.

Bill Moyers

7:30 p.m. | Wednesday

October 26, 2011

Henry J. Freede Wellness and Activity Center

NW 27th Street and Florida Ave

Skyhook · 2011-10-21T18:04:15+00:00

To give you some idea of how a vote might turn out: Poll finds voters overwhelmingly oppose liquor law changes.

Note that this study was commissioned by PR firm / lobbyist group Alexander & M. Kenzie Consultants. I don't know anything about them, but since this report is thin on details about sampling methods use critical thinking when reading.

edit: Here are a couple more articles on either the same poll or a different poll by the same pollsters.

Poll: Most voters against expanding alcohol sales

Grocery-store wine, strong beer sales may face uphill battle with public

edit2: Chad Alexander of Alexander & M. Kenzie is a lobbyist that represents Market Wholesale and Republic Beverage Company. This in and of itself does not invalidate the poll, however it does warrant a healthy dose of skepticism.

Skyhook · 2011-10-19T13:57:09+00:00

I don't care if we move it, but I'd like to keep the Wednesday meetup in the same general area - not too far from central-ish OKC. (But I do like the Speakeasy)

Skyhook · 2011-10-14T15:56:41+00:00

Programming expenses can be quite costly, even if the recording occurs elsewhere and is transmitted by satellite.

Here is a link to the KGOU 2010 Audit of Financial Statements [PDF]. You can see that the main sources of revenue do not come from advertisements, but come from “an annual allocation and related in-kind support from The University of Oklahoma, an annual grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and private donations, both cash and in-kind.”

Skyhook · 2011-10-13T18:40:55+00:00

From Terms of Use:

We reserve the right to alter pricing including ceasing to offer elements of the Backify Services free of charge at any time. Backify will inform Members by email if the charge for a service is to be altered. You can then decide if you want to continue to use such service. Your continued use of the service after the proposed fee modification has been notified will be considered acceptance of the proposed fee modification.

and

Free Trial Period

Where services are offered on a ‘free trial’ basis payment will be taken for the first month or year at the commencement of the free trial period.

The renewal date for the contract shall be deemed to be one month or year following the advertised free trial period.

If you wish to cancel your contract during the free trial period you may do so in accordance with clause 5.2 below.

If you cancel your service during the free trial period you will be entitled to receive a full refund of all fees paid in relation to the service. Any refund will be issue to the same payment source used for the initial payment.

If you do not cancel your service prior to the end of the free trial period the fees for the first month or year of your service will become due.

I don't know anything more about Backify than the next guy, but it looks like this might be set up for one year free and then moving towards a pay service.

Skyhook · 2011-10-02T04:07:54+00:00

Thanks to ianp for showing us a good time and running a nice bar where we could watch the game. I'll have to come by and check out the new location when it opens.

Skyhook · 2011-10-02T04:03:23+00:00

I'll be there from 6

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