Ramblings, v.2

I get my car’s windows tinted today! Can’t wait. Appointment is at 1pm. Florida’s max is 28% front sides and 15% rear sides & rear window. I’ve been searching around to see what the various levels look like, and I think I’m going to get as close to 28% all over. I don’t like the stepped look that’s common on vehicles around here, and I don’t need to be pulled over for illegal tint, considering my employer.

In other news, I was one of the thousands of people who lined up in Titusville, FL to see Endeavor off last night. Fail. *sigh*

iPhone Push Notifications need fixing. I have 3 apps that receive push notifications – AIM, Star Defense, and Prowl. I got them in that order. After each one, I noticed that my battery seemed to drain just a bit faster. Now it’s to the point that my phone won’t even last a day with light actual usage. Example: 10% drop in a half hour. Fail. [For those playing the home game, that's 2 - count them - 2 fails for the price of one post!] Turned off Push, and I’m back to reasonable battery usage. Apple: please light a fire under your developers’ & testers’ asses and get 3.1 out (but only if it fixes battery usage with Push).

ross sweet action Apple, audi a4, car, fail, iPhone, nasa, tint, travel

Here’s my take on the right-to-lifers and, somewhat by extension, folks who rally against selecting egg/sperm pairs based on (a) genetic compatibility, (b) physical characteristics, and (c) penchant for disease.

The whole argument is that you’re denying life. Right-to-lifers say that life starts at conception. Anti-genetic filtering-ers essentially say that life starts before conception.

Ok, taking those two pieces of information and assuming them as truth for purposes of a thought experiment, riddle me this [batman]. How many counts of murder should we charge an assailant with who kills a person (man or woman)? If the victim is a man, how many sperm could be created by that man that, by Anti-genetic-filtering-ers standards, is already life? And if the victim is a woman, the same question for her eggs. Now, extend that one step further. If even a single sperm or egg matures and becomes a living, breathing, walking human, how many sperm/eggs will that human create? And so on. We quickly see that the assailant should be charged with essentially infinite counts of murder. (For those who are confused and believe that there is a finite number, look up the mathematical term “limit” in your nearest pre-calculus book.)

This is wholly ungainly. Sure, the assailant has committed murder either way, and will face the stiffest penalty of the jurisdiction.

I do agree that the view held by some segments of our population – that looks at abortions like going to the dentist – is horrifying, but I also see that, in certain cases (rape, terminal illness, etc.) the parent(s) should be allowed a choice – assuming they pass a proper psychological screening and such.

As for genetic filtering, I think that selecting out certain genes – cancer (if determined), chrons, etc – is valuable and necessary for the survival of humanity.

So there. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

ross rant-o-matic batman, hypocrite, politics, rant