Namesnik

A nice reflection on a great life. At least part of the world noticed.

This I did not know

Of all the places, The AutoProphet has some interesting details about who owns Caribou Coffee and how they run their business. Apparently, they require Caribou to operate under Shari'ah law. As you might guess, I'm not a big fan; however, they seem to implement Shari'ah in ways that do little damage. For instance, the company's financial dealings are their own to decide, and I'm not sure I care to have pork in my coffee anyway (though they may lose my business to Bruegger's for their bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on an Asiago cheese bagel; man is that good). However, there are aspects of Shari'ah law with which I vehemently disagree, and though they don't announce it, perhaps these are followed or to be implemented given the chance. That, mainly, is why I may not spend my money there. If a Muslim found out that my business practices offended him (due to his religion or, really, for any other reason), I would not be surprised if he didn't want to fund the enterprise. Therefore, Starbucks it is.

Kaus and design

Mickey Kaus may know a lot, but clearly his automotive styling tastes run counter to the majority of humans. Many people think the Challenger, or even the Mustang, is a better looking car. But with the Camaro concept winning awards like this, no one seems to be calling it "horrid". I for one prefer the Camaro concept's look to that of the Challenger and Mustang. It has a modern treatment of the classic Camaro lines baked in, and I see that as preferable to a basic Xerox of the original shape, e.g. the Challenger. I think the Camaro makes the other two look old and dated, but of course they are supposed to look old and dated. However, I'm not old, so why would I want an old looking car? I could always buy an original (or, at least, a copy) in any event; you might retort that safety, emissions and interior design have come a long way in the last forty years. You would be right, and that's why people don't buy the old cars and why there's a market for these retro machines. But I figure, if you're going to update the safety, emissions, reliability, ergonomics and interior design, why would you want to mate that with forty year old styling? Thus, the Camaro concept is victorious.

May he rest in peace

My favorite swimmer of all time, and a man I have always held in the highest regard, passed away recently. Eric Namesnik swam at the University of Michigan for a number of years, won two Olympic silver medals and took second place in what I would call the most exhilarating race ever. He inspired me in my short swimming career; the story always went that he was the straight arrow hard worker, while Tom Dolan had the natural talent. Despite all the hard work, it seemed to end up that Dolan always came out on top. I identified with that, and it helped me keep striving even when things didn't go my way, both in and out of the water. More than just a phenomenal swimmer, it turns out Eric was a stand up guy as well, coaching in the years after his retirement and loving his wife and two kids. I pray that his family can hold together through this, that his wife can grieve and yet be comforted, and that his children would indeed have a strong father figure in their lives. The world should mourn when good men like this are taken from us. It doesn't of course, but it should.

Coup d'état?

This wasn't my first choice, but, I'll admit, this may prove a better move in the long run. At least GM is in the game.

Graduate Student Waves

I found out recently, since my current line of work keeps me far from quantum mechanics, that I do indeed have a wave associated with me. (The de Broglie matter wave, apparently. If I'm misguided in some technical way about this, feel free to correct me. Also feel free to use your obviously considerable intellect to better mankind rather than correcting a mere engineer like me.) This is in stark contrast to the position I took in a offhand discussion with a friend a few weeks back. My point was: "Look! Do you see any waves? Exactly." Now I realize they are just too small to see, even with some really cool scientific instruments. Thus, I'm not entirely sure how to experimentally confirm all this, but since we do seem to have extraneous graduate students lying around, we could atleast attempt the two slit trick with them. With a little funding I'm sure I could find few willing souls.

Intuition and Zygotes

Check out this post by Ross over at The Daily Dish. I find this an interesting discussion of the pro-life point of view, with points I haven't heard elsewhere. My view is likely similar to Ross's "pro-life position", so this (and similar) discourse encourages me that a realistic and rational "pro-life" change can be made to American law. What that change would specifically be, I don't know. There are so many issues surrounding abortion (cultural, political, logical and practical) that no simple solution exists. Maybe I'll be inspired and think of a good one someday, but regardless of who is the impetus, I hope to see that change soon.

Pontiac and Credibility

If there's one thing that Pontiac needs these days, it's credibility. You may call this by many names: desirable product, buzz, an identity. But what it all boils down to is getting people to understand who Pontiac is and believe it's true. And it's not too hard to figure out who they want to be; they are "Driving Excitement", remember? Who believes it though? I've driven some Pontiacs; I wasn't excited.

But I'll tell you this, they have a couple serious cars to back up that claim. In particular, the GTO and Solstice. One has 400 HP, a wicked interior and a price you would expect from Hyundai. The other is a frontal assault on the sport roadster market that Mazda's Miata has dominated since time immemorial. Both of these are great cars that hit right at the heart of what sports cars can be. But these are not enough. Pontiac needs more, and by more I mean another car (or two or three) that hits at its core reason for existing. Here's my next move.

I suggest another body blow to the sports car market: a fighter for the WRX and Evo. What would this take? Seriousness, for one. GM loves to be everything to everyone and end up mediocre, but to compete in the market today you just cannot do that, especially not with a brand like Pontiac. The vehicle must not only fight the two behemoths, it must win, and it must win rally races. This will take a focused, almost niche, vehicle, but credibility is paramount, remember? Nothing is more credible than being able to buy a car that is, in large part, raced insanely down back roads through forests. Simply film some races and your marketing is done. Moreover, it must be an in your face, no compromises all-wheel drive beast with styling and attitude. Make it ugly for all I care, but make it functional and fast. Body cladding and fake hood scoops are a joke. Nostrils and duct work to cool massive rotors, diffusers and ground effects to divert atmosphere and huge gauges with minimalist interior finishing to aid racing are functional and respectable. Besides that dusting the competition makes just about anything cool in this world.

Finally, this will open the possibility of selling the car in detuned mode, Subaru Impreza style. The mass of cars will move in this trim, but the reason for it will be the beast up the price ladder. A move into this market would make Pontiac one heck of a car company. Who else produces a trio of cars like the Solstice (quite nearly the best roadster on the market), the GTO (is there even a competitor for this muscle car? Ok, maybe the Mustang) and this WRX fighter? All they need now is a name. It could be the G4 (to go along with the G6, since it would have a blown four-cylinder as opposed to the 6's in the G6). Have a better name? Let's hear it.

Unfortunately, none of this will likely happen. GM is spent just from the Solstice, and they would need this car now. A surprise attack at the NAIAS would be magnificent, and its that sort of work that is needed at GM these days. Perhaps they are applying themselves somewhere else and another coup is imminent in a different division. I hope so, but I doubt it.

Japan and missiles

Though the Japanese are decimating the United States auto industry and some are upset over their trade practices, Japan is still a staunch ally of the United States as whole. So it comes as no surprise, considering this and Japan's proximity to North Korea, that we are helping them with missile defense. The project seems a good idea to me, for both the United States and Japan. Neutralizing the threat of North Korea is a good thing; they've had carrots offered for years with little positive response. This a "big stick" that we (and Japan) can carry that is merely defensive, and it will help encourage positive movement by North Korea (and possibly other such countries).

Yes. We need this.

Ross, again, has insightful commentary on Christianity, this time with respect to our culture. A must read. I'm interested to see what else he has in store for his stay at The Daily Dish.

A magnificent clarification

Check out this post by guest blogger Ross at The Daily Dish (Sullivan). I may disagree with the Catholic Church on some things, but in this arena I think we stand side by side. And this little post seems to get it, the reason why science and a faith in God are compatible. It also is one of the few posts on any blog that acknowledges one of the significant driving forces that keep people from being comfortable with evolution: the evolutionary biologists themselves. I don't see how proving evolution disproves God any more than all the previous scientific advances disproved God (and yes, he's still alive and well). But these biologists think otherwise, and they often fail to separate their science from their beliefs. One I accept. The other I don't.

Apparently...

...I'm not a real man. At least now I know.

Chrisitans on torture

An interesting series of commentaries on torture by various American Christian figures can be found here. I don't know much about any of the authors, but the commentaries themselves seem thoughtful. Take a look; the more we think about this issue, the better. Clearly, our national urge is to employ any tactics available, and if we are to keep ourselves clean of immoral actions we must have clear heads and reasoned thoughts with which to fight.

(Via Sullivan.)

Finally...

...Bush is giving some real speeches. I think we're doing good work in Iraq, and I'm encouraged to hear the President supporting the troops with solid rhetoric. I do believe that we need to win this war, and though things have gone terribly wrong, there is really no choice now. Regardless of what else may have been a mistake, it is not a mistake to finish this. The President needs to express this and convince the people that they should get behind him. That's his job, and I'm glad to see he's beginning to do it well.

Ahmadinejad: no comment needed

Read. And read. How do you respond to something so obscene?

Safest of 2006

The IIHS has recently released its list of the safest 2006 cars. The list and an explanation of the criteria can be found here. Some have noted that vehicles from manufacturers such as Toyota, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz etc. are not represented. Judging from this paragraph

"A number of automakers requested early tests, and based on our discussions with the automakers we believe no other 2006 models would meet our Top Safety Pick criteria," O'Neill says. A number of major automakers including BMW, Mercedes, Nissan, Toyota, and Volvo aren't represented in the first set of winners.

it seems that no other models would have won if they had been tested. Thus, the ones shown are the best of the model year.

Sullivan Responds

I have to say, this response is better than I expected. (Sorry for the required registration.) Take a look for yourself. The essential result of this essay, as I see it, is an admission that torture may be used in the highly improbable scenario of massive imminent death with a known source of information to disrupt it, but it should still be outlawed and should never be used in any other case. The person in power (the President most likely) would have to break the law to stop the massacre, but if it was appropriate Sullivan assumes pardons will be applied as necessary. I like it. In the situation when torture is morally justified, it is still used; however, every possible means of containing torture is implemented, including perilous legal repercussions for those who employ it. If someone is willing to sacrifice a person to torture, they better be willing to sacrifice themselves to the law and the mercy of the courts. Again, I like it.

Saturn

Here's an interesting article regarding Saturn, and Mickey Kaus has fantastic commentary. A must read is his "Chatterbox" piece from years ago.

It's a terrible idea...

to impair motorists' ability to control their cars in the name of safety. In some circumstances, you need all the speed you can get to avoid a catastrophe, and making it difficult to summon whatever power your car has is not smart. Besides the fact that I don't like this whole class of ideas, this one has fundamental conceptual flaws. What does "significantly exceed the speed limit" mean? Many cars have top speed governors anyway, but they are set so high as to not impose on normal driving (at least here in the U.S.). It seems to me any system like the one proposed that is set to intervene at a speed where it will make a difference will also cause safety problems. The alternative given in the article, a speed warning system linked with GPS, is fine with me; sometimes I just don't realize the speed at which I'm traveling. But that gives the choice, and full control, to the driver. And that's a good thing. Now, if we would just train our U.S. drivers properly...

Rally Racing

This is why my wife would never let me drive race cars. But hey, they both walked away.