If You Read One Thing Today...

...it should be Ronald Reagan's address to the nation following the Challenger disaster. The space shuttle Challenger exploded 29 years ago today, killing all 7 astronauts on board. Reagan was supposed to deliver his State of the Union address that night, but instead delivered what is widely regarded as one of the best speeches of the 20th century:
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Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd planned to speak to you tonight to report on the state of the Union, but the events of earlier today have led me to change those plans. Today is a day for mourning and remembering. Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger. We know we share this pain with all of the people of our country. This is truly a national loss.

Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground. But we've never lost an astronaut in flight. We've never had a tragedy like this. And perhaps we've forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the shuttle. But they, the Challenger Seven, were aware of the dangers, but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly. We mourn seven heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik,Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. We mourn their loss as a nation together.

For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy. But we feel the loss, and we're thinking about you so very much. Your loved ones were daring and brave, and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says, "Give me a challenge, and I'll meet it with joy." They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths. They wished to serve, and they did. They served all of us.

We've grown used to wonders in this century. It's hard to dazzle us. But for twenty-five years the United States space program has been doing just that. We've grown used to the idea of space, and, perhaps we forget that we've only just begun. We're still pioneers. They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers.

And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's take-off. I know it's hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It's all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them. I've always had great faith in and respect for our space program. And what happened today does nothing to diminish it. We don't hide our space program. We don't keep secrets and cover things up. We do it all up front and in public. That's the way freedom is, and we wouldn't change it for a minute.

We'll continue our quest in space. There will be more shuttle flights and more shuttle crews and, yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space. Nothing ends here; our hopes and our journeys continue.

I want to add that I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA, or who worked on this mission and tell them: "Your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades. And we know of your anguish. We share it."

There's a coincidence today. On this day three hundred and ninety years ago, the great explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama. In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and a historian later said, "He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it." Well, today, we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication was, like Drake's, complete. The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God."
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Short and sweet - confident and comforting in a national time of need. Audio transcription found at American Rhetoric.

A Conspicuous Absence at the International Holocaust Remembrance Day Ceremonies

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, as well as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. There was a ceremony in Poland - under a tent set just before the gates of the camp - with the theme, "Keep the Memory Alive."

About 300 Holocaust survivors made the trip to Poland, where they attended the ceremony along with the following heads of state:

• Francois Hollande, President of France
• Joachim Gauck, President of Germany
• Heinz Fischer, President of Austria
• Bronislaw Komoroski, President of Poland
• Presidents of Lithuania and Ukraine
• King Phillipe of Belgium
• King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands
• Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark

President Obama, was there, too...right?

Wrong. He was in Saudi Arabia meeting with the new King Salman.


But he had been planning to attend the ceremony, before King Abdullah died...right?

Wrong. Obama's original schedule had him in India today.

So at least he sent Vice President Biden, right?

Nope. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew led the US delegation. Biden was at the funeral for former Democratic Senator Wendell Ford. 

Where was Secretary Kerry?
In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the president.

Think the First Lady could come through for us on this one?
Nope. She was in Saudi Arabia as well.

What about England? They didn't send anybody big, right?
 No...because Prime Minister David Cameron AND Prince Charles both spoke at memorial events today in London, which were organized by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.
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After missing the Paris March for Unity, this is an especially bad move on Obama's part. The statement released today by the White House ended with: "Today we come together and commit, to the millions of murdered souls and all survivors, that it must never happen again."

The President was quite lax about the "come together" part - and it makes people wonder how seriously he takes the "commit" part, too.


Sources:

The Guardian
TheBlaze
White House Statement
The Telegraph

 

Bear2the Miss Universe Pageant - Live Blog!

Put Me in Charge of Davos Next Year

This week marks the meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The WEF is a convention where rich nerds talk to each other about the future of politics, economics, and social issues. Sound insufferable? Lots of people are saying that it is. So - to fix that - here are 7 reasons I think you should put me in charge of Davos next year:

1. Many participants traveled to Davos via private jet. There are few things more hypocritical than having 1,700 private jets show up to a summit where people talk about climate change. I do not need a private jet. I stow neatly in an overhead compartment on most commercial flights.

2. For an event that's all about "swanky," many participants found the swag bags to be underwhelming. Whatever. Everyone needs a practical tote! What they don't need, however, is one that says "my gender is undecided," like this one:

Meh. Source: Business Insider

Swap these for an equally practical, and far more attractive, Vineyard Vines canvas bag for women and a something briefcase-ish for men.

3. The meal pictured below - which appears to be an attempt at a hot dog, or some mulch on a bun - costs $43. That's BS.

Source: CNBC

Under my leadership, whatever this madness is will be replaced by 5 Guys Burgers & Fries. Better food for about $7. 

4. I promise to remind Pharell to bring his giant hat next year.

Pharell, posing with one of his fans.

5. The "Reconnecting to Nature" event will not be a PowerPoint lecture (as it was this year), but instead will involve actual nature. I'll make these people go stare at some Alps or something.

6. No name tags or business cards allowed. Everyone at Davos is, in some way, important - and, if some reporters are to be believed - they LOVE to tell people how important they are. That's gross. Stahp. We'll be reverting back to the summer-camp model of "go make friends like a normal human" in 2016.

7. CNN estimates that accreditation - admission - to Davos costs $20,000 per person. That's all well and good, but if you're going to spend that much to talk about how to fix poverty, some of the proceeds should go to...fixing poverty. There should be some massive checks going to charity when this circus is all done.


These plans have about a negative zero percent chance of happening. But how fun if they did, though? Make this massive conference of wealth and power a little crunchier, a little more in touch with the rest of the world, a little more...normal. Davos bills itself as a conference about fixing the world - but to do that, we should first fix Davos.

A Most Important Super Bowl Bet!

Confession: I don't care about the Super Bowl this year.

However!

I do care about my fake boyfriend, Chris Pratt. (Hi boo.) Chris Pratt cares very much about the Seattle Seahawks.

Enter Chris Evans, another good-looking Chris. He plays Captain America in...Captain America. Evans is a Pats fan. Of course Captain America likes a team called the Patriots.

Witty banter!

And then, they made a bet:

Pratt visits children's hospitals, makes kids smile, is flawless.

Christopher's Haven - Evans' project - provides supportive housing for families with a child fighting cancer.

No matter what happens in Super Bowl XLIX - some little heroes in Boston or Seattle will a very fun hospital visitor. How sweet!

This is Your State of the Union Drinking Game

Tuesday night is the State of the Union, or the Super Bowl for People Who Don't Care About the Actual Super Bowl. I never really followed it before moving here - the president says the same tired stuff every year - but people in DC really embrace this annual political pageant as a reason to get some friends around the TV and drink on a weeknight.

Source

If you're getting nerd-drunk in a bar somewhere, or just want to drown your sorrows over current the State of the Union - here is your 2015 State of the Union drinking game:

• Everyone starts with a full drink (duh).
• Drink once for every person Obama hugs on his way up to the podium.
• "Social Security" - the oldest person in the room drinks out of the youngest person's drink.
• A mention of equality for women - all men drink once. The women take about 77% of a drink.
• "Republicans in Congress" - everybody find a partner, and take a sip from each others' drink. Bipartisanship! And mono...so, waterfall it.
• The camera cuts to the Supreme Court Justices - take a sip for each of the Supremes in attendance.
• "Climate change" - the person who traveled the farthest to get to the bar, drinks once.
• "...the law of the land." - everybody touch the ground, last person to do it has to drink.
• "Undocumented immigrants" - take an undocumented drink!
• "Al-Qaeda" - Radical Islam (and even some forms of mainstream Islam) prohibit the sale and consumption of alcohol. You know what to do...drink. Twice.
• "Let me be clear" - don't drink. Just let Obama be clear.
• John Boehner starts crying - finish your drink.

Remember to drink responsibly, since I still don't know if Obamacare covers alcohol poisoning. Be safe, be smart, be thankful that after this, we only have to listen to Obama do one more of these!

Your Musical Diplomacy Playlist

So this happened: Obama and Kerry both skipped the Paris March for Unity...and then tried to make up for it by flying James Taylor to France and having him sing "You've Got a Friend in Me."

The song goes:

Just call my name, and you know wherever I am

I'll come running to see you again

The Obama administration did not "come running" - and now, almost a week late, tried to apologize for it with a folk song. Folk songs don't fight terror. I don't know if any songs fight terror, except for those Toby Keith songs about bald eagles wearing cut-off jeans at NASCAR races.

But this is where we're at now: Obama and Kerry made a choice not to give any meaningful help to France, and instead gave a folk song. So if Obama and Kerry are gonna stand outside France's room holding a boom box, here are some songs I think they might be better off using next time around:

If you feel it /
Let it happen /
Keep on dancing till the world ends.

From the president who fiddles while Rome burns.

It's too late to apologize...
This is mostly what France should sing back to John Kerry, if we're doing international karaoke here.

I'm kinda . k-kinda busy / 
Stop calling stop calling I don't wanna think anymore...
At this point, this administration is just a very strange performance art project.

Snow Day Favorites

Wednesday might be a snow day - and will almost certainly be a snowy day! I think snow is the only good part of winter weather. It's pretty, and it can swoop in and clear your schedule by forcing the whole city to take a day off. And for snow(y) days, just like anything, it's best to be prepared. Here are my winter weather favorites:

1. An umbrella. Somehow I always manage to forget that snow is water falling from the sky...and end up looking more "soggy raccoon" than "snow bunny." The umbrella is a must-have!

2. Sturdy wellies. The pattern gives just enough "pop" to a bundled-up outfit. Mine are from Target, and if you ever see me wearing them, there's a 100% chance I've got fuzzy socks on underneath.

3. Netflix and popcorn. Because going outside is overrated.

4. Lip balm. I discovered Labello during the Italy trip. It's light and moisturizing and just a hint of color. They don't sell it in the US (thanks, Obama) but I'm gonna see if I can get it on Amazon.

5. A candle or two, or three, or seven...to make wherever you are feel cozy and warm.

6. North Face gloves. I wore a pair like these on a December camping trip (long story) and they were lifesavers!

Wishing everyone a wonderful snow(y) day - be safe & stay warm!

Aw, Crap: ISIS Hacked CENTCOM

This is - to paraphrase our Vice President - a big flippin' deal.

Just a few minutes ago, while President Obama spoke on cybersecurity at the Federal Trade Commission, ISIS hacked CENTCOM.

CENTCOM is government-speak for the United States Central Command. It commands US military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Middle East, and North Africa. That means it has a big role in the US military response to ISIS. (If the name sounds familiar - that may be because David Petraeus used to be its commander before he had to quit commanding because, well, you know.)

The hack was a series of tweets that appear to be ongoing. The first one is in the photo above. Later tweets contained the personal information of members of the military. Another tweet read "ISIS is already here, we are in your PCs, in each military base" - along with a photo taken inside what looks like a base. Most tweets reference "cyberjihad" and a "cybercaliphate."

Whoever is behind this has more than just the CENTCOM twitter password - they've got what they're claiming is classified military information. A second series of tweets, still coming out now, purports to show slides about possible military scenarios in China and North Korea.

This may be the world's first major cyber-terrorist-attack - which means it's an act of cyberwar.

I'll update here as this unfolds further.

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About 40 minutes after the hack, the account is now down. No word yet as to whether Twitter took it down, or CENTCOM shut it down.

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White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest (say THAT five times fast) has claimed that this is just a Twitter hack. Either he has no idea about the personnel information and photo, or he thinks they're fakes...not a smart statement given that this is the "world wide" web we're talking about here, and everybody can see what the hackers were tweeting.
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Update, Jan 15 12:25 PM: The major suspects identified in the hack are a group led by Junaid Hussain. Hussain is a 20 year old British national who moved to Syria to join ISIS. His wife - or maybe ex-wife - is Sally Jones, who is also British. Jones is 45 years old. It will come as a surprise to no one that they met online. They adopted the last name "al-Britani," which literally means "the Briton."

Foreign Policy calls the pair "star-crossed lovers," which would be correct if they replaced "star-crossed" with "creepy as all hell." Jones announced via twitter that Hussain had been killed in a drone strike. The not-dead Hussain then subtweeted about it.

Image from AOL News

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Can we please talk about radical Islam?

In the wake of the Sydney Siege, a parade of public figures came out condemning the attacks and also reminding us that Islam is a peaceful religion. There was the #IllRideWithYou effort to get non-Muslims to take public transit with Muslims, to prevent "revenge attacks." I didn't hear of a single revenge attack against an Australian Muslim, so either the campaign worked, or there weren't going to be any such attacks, anyway.

After the shooting at Charlie Hebdo, we are told to fear the "backlash" against Muslims, the Islamophobia that the media think is going to start pouring out of the walls at any given moment. We have the apologists saying Charlie Hebdo shouldn't have published such offensive content, and some news outlets blurring out the "offending" images - preferring to appease, rather than to take up the banner of free speech that 12 journalists are no longer around to carry. The hashtag, this time around, was #RespectforMuslims.

I get it - "don't make this about religion, lest ye be branded forever as an Islamophobe and a RAAAACIST and probably also a Nickelback fan."

Most Muslims in the world are peaceful people who want nothing to do with the radicals who commit these acts of terror. Good! But it's still worth figuring out why no other religion has so many violent radicals. There are no Buddhists strapping bombs to themselves, no Hindus hijacking planes, no Catholics beheading nonbelievers. As far as I can tell, radical Protestants just have a zillion babies and get reality shows on TLC. Even Scientologists - those weirdos don't seem to be any more harmful than, well...weirdos.

Exactly what kind of unholy hell do radical Muslims have to unleash on us before we're allowed to talk about radical Islam?

This is not Islamophobia - it's terrorphobia. A fear of everyone who has a certain faith or skin color is totally irrational. A fear of terrorism, though - that makes more sense. Terrorism is a scary thing. That's why we call it "terrorism." We should be allowed to be afraid of these attacks without someone crying "RAAAAACIST!" This has nothing to do with race, and nothing to do with mainstream Islam - only its very small, but very radical, offshoots.

We are so stuck in political correctness that we're not even looking into the cause of the problem. Why is it radical Islam - and not radical [insert any other religion] - that manifests itself in so many terrorist attacks?

I won't pretend to know the answer. But watching the news lately, it feels like I'm the only one asking the question.

Buon Anno Nuovo!

So I haven't posted in a long time...because I've been in Italy! Eight solid days of churches and museums and garlicky food. It is incredibly fun to walk into a place that's stood for 600 years, and to celebrate New Years in a big, crowded piazza while fireworks go off all around. I could go on forever about how there is so much to see in Italy, but instead, here are some things I learned that they won't tell you on TripAdvisor:

1. Gelato is WAY better than ice cream, and also lower in fat, calories, and sugar. I'm on #TeamGelato4Ever.

2. Pigeons are not scared of you. This is their turf and they will fly at your head like tiny feathered kamikazes.

3. About those New Years fireworks...it's not organized. This is a "bring your own explosives" event. There isn't a countdown, either, just a lot of indiscriminate yelling. This seems to be how the Italians do things: indiscriminate yelling.

4. There are dogs EVERYWHERE. You always here about the Parisians and their dogs, but I think the Italians take the proverbial cake.

5. Selfie sticks. So many selfie sticks. I went from thinking "those are really cheesy" to "might be kinda convenient, at least for pigeon-swatting" to "they are a scourge upon the earth." The best (read: worst) is when multiple selfie-stick-users try to get the same photo, and all the sticks get tangled and it looks like a jousting match.

6. Really big historical people are buried in the churches. Santa Croce alone has the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo, and Machiavelli. While it's nice that somewhere along the line, we stopped putting dead people in the walls, it's sort of cool that it used to be a thing.

7. Each little street has its own Christmas light motif, all in blue, and strung like a canopy across the street below. I'm not sure how the Italians planned it all out (probably with some indiscriminate yelling), but regardless, it's really pretty.

8. Buon anno is Italian for "happy new year."
    Buon ano is Italian for "nice ass."
    If you think you'll get this wrong - just stick with saying "auguri."

After writing this on a plane, I am home - jet lagged - and so very happy. What a way to start the year. Here's to a fabulous 2015!