As you’ve probably seen all over the news, the Olympic torch relay is
coming through this Wednesday, April 9th. San Francisco is the only
city in all of North America to host the torch for the Beijing Olympics.

In recent weeks, Tibetans have been rising up inside of Tibet. The
Chinese crackdown has been outrageous.

Already in London and Paris, people have told China that they can’t use
the Olympics as a political tool to legitimize their illegal occupation
of Tibet. And it’s especially insulting that they’re running the torch
over Mt. Everest in Tibet and all through the occupied areas.

Now San Francisco will be joining the chorus of voices from around the
world calling for a free Tibet.

Please join us on Wednesday, April 9th along the route!

**CALL TO ACTION**
Come stand in solidarity with the people of Tibet!

WHEN & WHERE: Wed, April 9, 2008

1pm torch relay starts - be there early to stake your spot!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/04/01/BA97VU1VT.DTL&o=0

beforehand - 10am - meet up at Ferry Park
(between Washington & Clay streets off of Drum.
Near Embarcadero 4 of the Embarcadero Center)

WHAT: show your dissent by protesting along the route, or even better,
organizing autonomous actions!

TEXT: “sftorch” (no quotes) to 41411 to get updated route and event
information on the day

http://www.sfteamtibet.org/

TIBET WILL BE FREE!!!

The greatest tragedy in mankind’s entire history may be the hijacking of morality by religion.
~Arthur C. Clarke, RIP

I saw “Enter the Dragon” last night at the Parkway Theater. One of my favorite dialogues:

Parsons: What’s your style?
Lee: You can call it the art of fighting without fighting.
Parsons: The art of fighting? Without fighting? Show me some of it.
Lee: Later.

I’ve never really been a fan of following recipes. I usually know what I want to make, put the ingredients I want in, in the order I want, with the proportions that I like, and it usually comes out tasting pretty good. (note: this does NOT work for baking, which is why I suck at it.)

I was making hot chocolate today, and my beliefs were reaffirmed. The directions on the can, even though not a recipe, epitomized my disdain:

Dagoba Organic Chocolate - authentic hot chocolate:

We recommend slow heating one cup of milk or milk alternative on the stovetop till hot, stirring in a continuous clockwise circle eleven times, then eleven counterclockwise stirs. Continue with this stirring cycle until vapors rise. Whisk in 3 tablespoons of our mix and pour into your favorite mug. Cordials may be added to taste to create a wonderful after dinner drink.

Today was the 8th annual Bring Your Own Big Wheel Race. Unfortunately, I missed it, but it seemed like an awesome event from the pictures.

“Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.”
~Helen Keller

“Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”
~Abraham Lincoln

It’s that time of year. The NCAA men’s basketball tournament is here. And at my office (like almost every other large office space in the country), there is a tournament pool. My organization, however, prefers to call it a ‘lake’. From the email, “Others may call their event a “pool,” but, we, er, well, think BIG!” Ironically, it’ll be one of the smallest pools I’ve ever entered.

Scoring-wise, the pool I entered is awarding “1 point for each correct first round pick, 2 for the second round, 3 for the regional semis, 4 for regional finals, 5 for semifinal winners and 6 for the Champion”. Personally, it’s my least favorite scoring system. I think that system where you get 2^round points (1-2-4-8-16-32 points for successive rounds) for each correct pick is slightly better.

However, in the best case, I think you should be awarded for correctly picking the underdog (the lower-seed) to win. Some of the pools I have been part of in the past have awarded seed x 2^round points for each correct pick. With this system, you would get just as many points for correctly picking Mount St. Mary to beat UNC in the first round (16) as if you had picked UNC to go to the finals. I think you deserve those points if you have the guts to pick the underdog.

Which scoring system do you prefer? Or do you have (or have you seen) another scoring formula altogether which you prefer?

Hillary doesn’t have will.i.am making music videos for her, but isn’t this just as good?

If that doesn’t convince you to vote for Hillary, I don’t know what will.

(via wonkette)