Get Cynical

From MySanAntonio.com:

A speeding pickup rear-ended a woman’s sedan on the South Side on Friday morning and sheriff’s officials say the driver said it was Jesus’ will because the other motorist was not “driving like a Christian.”

The bizarre incident that shut down southbound U.S. 281 above the Medina River happened about 7:25 a.m.

“He just said God said she wasn’t driving right, and she needed to be taken off the road,” said Lt. Kyle Coleman of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.

The driver of the pickup was identified in a Sheriff’s Office news release as Michael E. Schwab, 52, of Blooming Grove.

Schwab told first responders at the scene that “the other vehicle was not driving like a Christian and it was Jesus’ will for him to punish the car,” according to the release.

And it sounds like the officer on the scene agrees!

“God must have been with them, ’cause any other time, the severity of this crash, it would have been a fatal,” Coleman said.

(via Reddit)

Secrets to how Barack and Michelle keep the flame going in their marriage.

From MSNBC:

WASHINGTON – On Day Two of his administration, President Barack Obama began overhauling U.S. treatment of terror suspects, signing orders to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center, review military trials of suspects and ban the harshest interrogation methods.

With three executive orders and a presidential directive signed in the Oval Office, Obama started reshaping how the United States prosecutes and questions al-Qaida, Taliban or other foreign fighters who pose a threat to Americans.

The centerpiece order would close the much-maligned U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, within a year — a complicated process with many unanswered questions that was nonetheless a key campaign promise of Obama’s. The administration already has suspended trials for terrorist suspects at Guantanamo for 120 days pending a review of the military tribunals.

What’s the last show you’ve seen performed live? (ie a play, music, standup comic, etc)

I saw the Boston Symphony Orchestra perform the Elgar Cello Concerto in early December and had front row seats which normally are not really that great for a symphony since they’re too close up but we happened to be sitting right in front of the soloist, Lynn Harrell, which made it a remarkable memory.

I’m headed to Vegas in a few weeks and I’ll undoubtedly catch another live show there but we’re kind of up in the air as to what to see next. (We’ve seen most of the standard shows that have been there for a few years now like Penn & Teller, Jubilee, O, Mystere, etc etc…. ) Thinking about going to see Le Reve or Ka.

From the NY Times:

WASHINGTON — President Obama moved swiftly on Wednesday to impose new rules on government transparency and ethics, using his first full day in office to freeze the salaries of his senior aides, mandate new limits on lobbyists and demand that the government disclose more information.

Mr. Obama called the moves, which overturned two policies of his predecessor, “a clean break from business as usual.” Coupled with Tuesday’s Inaugural Address, which repudiated the Bush administration’s decisions on everything from science policy to fighting terrorism, the actions were another sign of the new president’s effort to emphasize an across-the-board shift in priorities, values and tone.

“For a long time now there’s been too much secrecy in this city,” Mr. Obama said at a swearing-in ceremony for senior officials at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, adjacent to the White House. He added, “Transparency and rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency.”

From AllVoices.com:

According to a lip reader, the first African-American president of the United States, just after the ceremony, asked George W Bush: “You OK?”

As to what was Bush’s reply, according to The Sun, the lip reader said: “So relieved.”

The 43rd president had later informally handed over his former White House residence to Obama saying: “It’s all yours now – good luck.”

And while thousands cheered the hope brought about by their new leader, seven-year-old first daughter Sasha was said to have told her president-dad: “That was a good speech, perfect.”

From Wikipedia:

The Spotnicks are an instrumental rock group from Sweden, who were formed in 1961. They were famous for wearing “space suit” costumes on stage, and for their innovative electronic guitar sound. They have since released 42 albums, selling more than 18 million records, and still tour.

PCL Linkdump has a roundup of some of their album covers.

Woohoo. I love me some virals. Especially when the virals include news footage of Doctor Manhattan:

(via SF Signal)

From Courthouse News Service:

ALBUQUERQUE (CN) – A clinic nurse first removed her intrauterine birth-control device without permission, says the patient in a federal action, then told her that “having the IUD come out was a good thing,” because “I personally do not like IUDs. I feel they are a type of abortion. I don’t know how you feel about abortion, but I am against them.”

The patient sued Presbyterian Health Services Rio Rancho Family Health Center and nurse practitioner Sylvia Olona in Federal Court.

The plaintiff says she went to Rio Rancho to have the strings on her IUD shortened.

The complaint states: “As soon as Defendant Olona began speaking to (the plaintiff), she questioned her about her choice of contraception.

“As Defendant Olona began the procedure, (the plaintiff) felt Olona pull on the strings of the IUD. (The plaintiff) felt a distinct pulling on the strings followed by a sharp pain in her uterus similar to a very strong menstrual cramp.

“As that happened, Defendant Olona stated, ‘Uh oh, I accidentally pulled out your IUD. I gently tugged and out it came.’ She then explained, ‘I cut the string than went back and gently pulled and out it came. It must have not been in properly.’

“Defendant Olona stated, ‘Everyone in the office always laughs and tells me I pull these out on purpose because I am against them, but it’s not true, they accidentally come out when I tug.’

“At this point, Defendant Olona advised that (the plaintiff) needed to take a pregnancy test. (The plaintiff) did, and the test was negative.

“Defendant Olona told (the plaintiff) that is was better that she did not have the IUD because she could now use a “non-abortion” form of contraception. Defendant Olona suggested the deprovera (depo) [sic] shot or the pill, and made clear that she would not insert a new IUD.”

(via delicious.com/WCityMike)

Religion does not, and cannot, contemplate man as free. She accepts only the homage of the prostrate, and scorns the offerings of those who stand erect. She cannot tolerate the liberty of thought. The wide and sunny fields belong not to her domain. The star-lit heights of genius and individuality are above and beyond her appreciation and power. Her subjects cringe at her feet, covered with the dust of obedience. They are not athletes standing posed by rich life and brave endeavor like antique statues, but shriveled deformities, studying with furtive glance the cruel face of power.

Robert Green Ingersoll – “Individuality” (1873)