The Kudzu Files

Of Interest To Database Geeks

Janus Software has an open-source SQL database product which can be run in what they call "Oracle mode", essentially (according to Janus) replacing Oracle. The database product is called Firebird; the Oracle-mode version is called Fyracle. Since it's open source, it's free, or at least has no licensing costs, and apparently is supported on Linux, Solaris, HP-UX, and Windows at least. They even claim to be PL/SQL compatible:

I won't be suggesting this as a replacement for my Oracle production databases anytime soon, but it might be worth looking at for some applications.

Pictures For A Friday Afternoon

This red and yellow tulip (variety unknown) asked to have its picture taken:

And in case you've never seen a picture of hyacinth taken from above...

And last, some young plants that may be larkspur, or maybe just a weed. I planted some larkspur seed early last fall, but forgot where I planted it. Now I have two clumps of these plants growing, but since I've never planted larkspur, I don't know what to look for...

Monday Night Continuum Of The Friday Night Truck Rant

In my Friday night Ranger Rant, I said I had emailed Ford with the question:

"When, when, when is Ford going to give us a new Ranger? When
will we get a true crewcab Ranger? I see crewcab Rangers on Ford websites
from other countries, why isn't it sold in the United States? I've owned
2 Rangers, I'd love to own a third, but you're not making what I need now"

Ford's response came today, and it, I think, hints at why Ford sales are dropping:

"Thank you for contacting the Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center regarding your interest in the new Ford Ranger.

Ford Motor Company appreciates hearing from our customers, especially when customers provide us with valuable ideas and insight. Information of this nature is collected and used in the decision making process by all departments of Ford. We sincerely thank you for taking the time to write to us with your suggestion.

The Sales Department of your local dealership is in the best position to advise you of vehicle pricing or availability. Ford and Lincoln-Mercury dealerships are independently owned and operated and as such, set their own prices for vehicle sales.

To locate a Ford or Lincoln-Mercury dealership, please visit www.genuineservice.com.

You may also obtain Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Pricing (MSRP) for the model and option configuration you are seeking through our Brand web sites. Simply select the site for the model you are interested in, and you will be able to configure and price the vehicle of your choice:

www.fordvehicles.com
www.lincolnvehicles.com
www.mercuryvehicles.com

If you would like to request a complimentary sales brochure, please use the following phone numbers:

Ford: 1-800-301-7430
Lincoln: 1-800-688-8898
Mercury: 1-888-566-8888

Sincerely,
Quentin
Customer Relationship Center
Ford Motor Company"

I don't think any human actually read my question. If they did, it's more evidence that Ford isn't paying much attention to what the market wants. And referring me to my local dealer? They weren't aware that Ford had begun putting 4-cylinder engines in the Supercab Ranger again.

Friday Night Truck Rant

Guess what this is:

It's a new Ford Ranger, being introduced to Thailand, and later in the year, Britain. Will we get it in the US? Nope - Ford plans on selling the current Ranger (which debuted in 1993) until 2010 at least. Obviously they've not read my Rant The First and my Rant The Second. So I have now asked FoMoCo the question: "When are you going to introduce a new Ranger to the US market?"

The Lesson Count

What is it
about us?
That we never learn
what we learn?

Wear your seat belt
Don't do drugs
The count
goes higher

What we know
we tell
to those who
will one day tell.

Don't play
with sharp things
Stay away
from strangers.

The count
goes higher.
What is it
about us?

Reading List Update

Thirteen Books I Fully Intend To Read By Summer
1. The Tears Of Autumn, by Charles McCarry 2. Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller 3. The Essential Earthman, by Henry Mitchell 4. To Rule The Waves: How The British Navy Shaped The Modern World, by Arthur Herman 5. The Color Of Magic, by Terry Pratchett (a friend loaned this book to me well over a year ago, it's about time I read it) 6. From Dawn to Decadence : 500 Years of Western Cultural Life 1500 to the Present, by Jacques Barzun 7. The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis (somehow I've never gotten around to reading this series) 8. The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors : The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour , by James D. Hornfischer (if you've never read about the Battle of Leyte Gulf, particularly the Battle Off Samar, which this book deals with, you should. It's an incredible story) 9. Astronomy Hacks : Tips and Tools for Observing the Night Sky, by Robert and Barbara Thompson 10. Oracle 9i DBA 101, by Marlene Therault et al. Not because I especially want to, but it's been a while since I went through a DBA book cover to cover. 11. Freakonomics, by Steven Levitt 12. The Wine-Dark Sea, by Patrick O'Brian. 13. The Commodore, by Patrick O'Brian. I'm working my way through the Jack Aubrey novels.

(In The) Red State

Sort of gives you a new working definition of red state/blue state, doesn't it? The Democrats may be "tax and spend", but the past 25 years have proven that the Republicans are part "borrow and spend", and part "spend and spend". So which is the more honest, more responsible fiscal policy, one that recognizes the need to actually pay for government, or the one that just shifts the cost to future generations or uses such farcical revenue enhancements such as selling national parks?

Early flags

The first of my early irises...

What Are The Odds?

From the happy folks at the National Safety Council, here's the odds against dying from certain things this year:

-as an occupant in a car: 1 in 17,625
-as an occupant of a truck or van: 1 in 67,182
-as a pedestrian: 1 in 47,273
-as a motorcycle rider: 1 in 89,562 (note this isn't the chance of a motorcycle rider getting killed, because it includes people like me who are not getting on a motorcycle)

-riding on a train: 1 in 10,283,615
-as a passenger in a plane: 1 in 440,951

-falling out of bed or a chair: 1 in 366,804 (so you're safer flying in a plane than going to bed???)
-falling out of a building: 1 in 516,950 (roughly the same as the odds of dying in a plane crash, which lends credence to the theory that it's not the fall, it's the sudden stop that gets you!)

-getting squashed between two big things: 1 in 2,503,837
-getting blown up when a pressurized object explodes: 1 in 10,664,490

-foreign body entering through skin or natural orifice: 1 in 12,519,183 (this doesn't include bullets or sharp objects, so I really don't want to pursue this particular category)

-getting bitten or struck by dog: 1 in 15,966,734 (struck?????)
-bitten by a poisonous snake or lizard: 1 in 95,980,407
-bitten by a venoumous spider: 1 in 28,794,122
-stung by a wasp or bee: 1 in 5,332,245

-drowning in your bathtub: 1 in 818,015
-in a building fire: 1 in 113,676

-zapped by lightning: 1 in 4,362,746
-earthquake!: 1 in 9,288,426
-tornado! hurricane! : 1 in 4,570,496
-flood: 1 in 31,993,469

-death by accidental poisoning: 1 in 16,407

The Reading List So Far

To Rule The Waves: How The British Navy Shaped The Modern World, by Arthur Herman. I realize British naval history isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I found this to be a fascinating book. It covers the period from roughly the 14th century to the beginning of the 20th century, then pulls in the Falklands conflict as an epilogue of sorts. As would probably be expected, Herman takes a very navy-centric view of events, but he's pretty convincing.

Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller. I held off reading this for a while, because a year or so ago, it was the trendy read for teenagers and college kids in this area. It's subtitled "Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality", and at first I wasn't sure where the author stood (Christian or non-Christian). But once you fall into the flow of the book, you begin to understand. He's definitely Christian, although many of his comments and experiences wouldn't make him welcome in some conservative churches. Miller wanders - there's no other way to describe his writing style. It's not stream-of-conciousness, but it's not a book held together by a logical stream of themes. And I found myself laughing out loud, sometimes at the situations he describes, and sometimes at his style of discussing them. But he never wanders far from the path without letting you know why he's where he is. I think this is one I'll re-read at some point. It's a good book if you're a Christian who is willing to examine how you practice your faith, and a good book if you're not a Christian but you want to find a view that isn't owned by the religious right.

Currently reading: The Color Of Magic, by Terry Pratchett. I've always liked science fiction, and much of the fantasy I've read. I'm not exactly sure where this book fits in to that, but so far (about 50 pages) this book just isn't doing it for me.

Spring Haiku

Warm sun, gentle breeze
Azalea blossoms watching
Two swans on water

Seed into flower
Like one thing to another
Flower into seed

Another Dose Of Springtime

Click on the picture to see a higher resolution version...

Spring's Coming!

For those of you in northern climes who are still stuck in winter's icy grip:

The blooms of a crabapple...

The Church And Gays

I recently had an email conversation with a fellow blogger. Part of what I said to him was:

"I'm not gay, I can't say I really understand being gay. I have problems with many of the gay activist groups - but I've found that on a personal level, I don't have a problem with accepting gay friends either as friends or as gay. Does that make sense?... I have conflicts reconciling some of the language in the Bible with how I think I should feel. And yet, I feel strongly that, for instance, you and your partner should be able to have the same legal, medical, societal rights as my wife and I. "

and:

"Yes, Biblical language about homosexuality gives me some trouble. I've read enough through the years to know that what we think the Bible is saying isn't always what it was actually saying. I just haven't been able to settle the debate in my mind. But keeping gay people out of church is, to me, obviously wrong. Even if I take the extreme side and say being gay is a sin, there are plenty of sins mentioned much more often. I used to think being gay was just wrong. I guess most every gay person, at some point, thought of it as wrong. The change in my attitude hasn't come so much from a new understanding theologically, but from knowing gays through the years and understanding they're different in a way I can't quite understand, but like me in so many ways. In other words, people. So I guess what I'm saying is, I haven't found the theological rationale to set aside Biblical language, but I'm aware of the possibility that there may be one. Is that fair enough?"

Tonight, I went to a blog that I read sporadically, far less than I should - Real Live Preacher. And I found an entry that talked of how he reconciled this issue. In that post, he referred to an article written by Dr. Lewis Smedes, a retired minister in the Christian Reformed Church, in which he compared how the church once treated divorced Christians with how they now treat homosexuals. It was, for me, a pretty convincing argument. I can't say it has resolved all my conflicts, but it's given me the basis for a new understanding. In the end, redemption, salvation, justification aren't for us to decide. We are, most of us, doing our best to make it through this life with the light we have. In the end, that's what we have to work with. Peace.

Incompetent, Arrogant Weasels

The latest revelation: a videotape of President Bush being warned ahead of time of the potential disastrous effects of Hurricane Katrina:

"In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, put lives at risk in New Orleans' Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage.

Bush didn't ask a single question during the final briefing before Katrina struck on Aug. 29, but he assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: "We are fully prepared." "

And who was one of the primary people delivering the warning? Then-FEMA chief Michael Brown, who is beginning to look more and more like just another scapegoat for yet another Bush Administration failure:

""I'm concerned about … their ability to respond to a catastrophe within a catastrophe"

Some of the footage and transcripts from briefings Aug. 25-31 conflicts with the defenses that federal, state and local officials have made in trying to deflect blame and minimize the political fallout from the failed Katrina response:

Homeland Security officials have said the "fog of war" blinded them early on to the magnitude of the disaster. But the video and transcripts show federal and local officials discussed threats clearly, reviewed long-made plans and understood Katrina would wreak devastation of historic proportions. "I'm sure it will be the top 10 or 15 when all is said and done," National Hurricane Center's Max Mayfield warned the day Katrina lashed the Gulf Coast.

So the truth wasn't that Bush and Homeland Security were caught off-guard by the magnitude of the storm. The real truth lies somewhere in that vast wasteland between incompetence and arrogance that has become the hallmark of the George Bush presidency. And Michael Brown more and more appears to have been one of the more competent administration officials involved:

""We're going to need everything that we can possibly muster, not only in this state and in the region, but the nation, to respond to this event," Brown warned. He called the storm "a bad one, a big one" and implored federal agencies to cut through red tape to help people, bending rules if necessary.

"Go ahead and do it," Brown said. "I'll figure out some way to justify it. … Just let them yell at me."

And later:

"The Superdome is about 12 feet below sea level…. I don't know whether the roof is designed to stand, withstand a Category Five hurricane," he said.

Brown also wanted to know whether there were enough federal medical teams in place to treat evacuees and the dead in the Superdome.

"Not to be (missing) kind of gross here," Brown interjected, "but I'm concerned" about the medical and mortuary resources "and their ability to respond to a catastrophe within a catastrophe."

So Katrina has become just another in the list of failures by George Bush. When the pre-war cost estimates for the Iraq War were much higher than the token pittance claimed by Bush, the administration official who was unfortunate enough to both know the truth and be willing to say so was shown the door. The war itself was a walk-over, but the aftermath was as bungled as the federal Katrina response, with just as much forewarning, and just as many scapegoats. The Social Security deform plan, the bloated Bush deficits, the illegal warrantless surveillance, the absurd pharmaceutical company payola known as the Medicare prescription drug plan, the bungled port operations buyout fiasco, national and international environmental policy, and dozens of lesser or lesser-known failures - lead to a single conclusion: from the top down, the Bush administration is composed of incompetent, arrogant weasels who are most skilled at shifting blame from themselves to some poor fool standing nearby, depending on their fawning sycophantic supporters to once again buy their blathering explanations. George W. Bush will be the well-deserved millstone around the neck of Republicans for years to come. But Republicans will have gotten past that long before we've paid off the debts run up by this Administration, and quite possibly long before our international standing is restored. Incompetent, arrogant weasels.

Joe Gandelman at The Moderate Voice also reacts to this news. You can watch the video at Crooks And Liars.

Other responses are at FireDogLake and The Mighty Middle.