tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-96823572011-12-14T20:53:29.066-06:00A 'blog is good a way to record my invaluable thoughts on such incredibly important and varied topics as religion, politics, and people who don't use their turn signals. The purpose of this blog is therefore two fold: to prevent my own insanity, and to ensure that the world never again has to endure without my infinite wisdom.Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.comBlogger641100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1167033954074510622006-12-25T02:05:00.000-06:002006-12-25T02:07:20.760-06:00

Sometimes when I'm in the shower, I have crazy brainstorms. Many of my blog posts originated somewhere between soaping my big toe and shampooing my hair. Tonight I had a sudden flashback to a number: 2036997. It's a strange number to have pop into one's head without warning. 2036997. In the span of a quarter-second, I thought the number, realized how absurd it was for this to happen, and

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1154879055996616372006-08-06T10:39:00.000-05:002007-08-13T20:50:04.097-05:00

Here we go again. Same C-SPAN2 BookTV program with Ann Coulter from earlier: Ann says, "If you want to live in a state that sells porno at the corner market, that allows naked dancing, and that let's people drive at 80 miles an hour, then you can live in that state. And if you don't like it, you can move. And at the end of the year we'll compare venereal rates." Well, Ann, I don't

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1154878781101040102006-08-06T10:07:00.000-05:002006-08-06T10:53:17.863-05:00

I've been watching C-SPAN again. Today C-SPAN2's BookTV is replaying Ann Coulter's Q&A session at the National Press Club. Someone asked her a question about becoming a conservative political writer just like Ann. Ann's #1 advice was to avoid law school. She says law school is a liberal waste land and a waste of time. Ann, let me rephrase that to make sure I understand you correctly. If you

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1149776583107855452006-06-08T08:52:00.000-05:002006-06-08T09:24:32.603-05:00

I've been watching a lot of CSPAN/CSPAN-2 lately. This morning they have Gina Cooper, organizer of the YearlyKos Convention for newblogs, answering questions. One self-identified conservative Republican called in to say that Goerge Bush would go down in history as the most selfless and compassionate president ever in the White House. "I think he didn't always tell the truth, but thank God for

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1145166540446563172006-04-16T00:48:00.000-05:002006-04-16T00:49:00.463-05:00

A weekly comic strip by someone in my mom's office. Check it out. It's funny.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1136405995668732472006-01-04T13:37:00.000-06:002006-01-06T11:58:40.780-06:00

What GodHas JoinedTogether?  What God Has Joined Together?: A Christian Case for Gay Marriage by David G. Myers & Letha Dawson Scanzoni Every once in a while you find a book, article, or letter that so clearly expresses how you feel that you wish you'd taken the time to write it yourself. The authors of What God Has Joined Together? make the argument I've always wanted to make for gay equal

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1121697751353722722005-07-18T09:38:00.000-05:002006-01-06T12:26:39.956-06:00

In my Issues & Prinicples in Secondary Education (I&P) class, we were recently given a reading assignment and asked to write a short reflection. As I read the article on ethical decision making for teachers, I had a number of fundamental objections to the author's take on the topic. I don't necessarily dispute his outcomes, but I certainly took a different path to get there. Hoping to keep a

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1119829636738401802005-06-26T18:36:00.000-05:002005-06-27T00:41:06.843-05:00

Today's sermon at Shiloh Community Church was about the importance of Christian fellowship. Fellowship is the time Christians spend together talking, socializing, worshiping, and praying. In the Southern Baptist tradition of which I am a product, fellowship is usually accompanied by food. We do love our potlucks. The pastor, Joe, started out with a great analogy: each person is like a thread

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1119299871087251352005-06-20T15:27:00.000-05:002006-01-06T12:22:32.270-06:00

Mixed-Up Reasonings has been randomly selected to participate in a real life MIT research study. I'm sure this is a great honor, as they only chose everyone they could possibly find. Regardless, I filled out the survey and thought it was pretty silly. The questions were mostly poorly designed multiple choice questions with limited options and rarely one which was applicable to my situation.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1118212253900833512005-06-08T01:30:00.000-05:002005-06-08T01:38:12.896-05:00

TeachingContent toAll  Teaching Content to All: Evidence-Based Inclusive Practices in Middle and Secondary Schools by B. Keith Lenz & Donald D. Deshler with Brenda R. Kissam I mentioned in my last post that I have recently (read: yesterday) started my first graduate class. It is actually an undergraduate prerequisite course, but close enough. The class is "Teaching in Inclusive Secondary

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1118211303530547072005-06-08T01:07:00.000-05:002005-06-08T01:29:25.193-05:00

I said in my very first post that I would post to this blog as long as it suited me as a creative outlet. Over the last several weeks, I've felt quite neglectful of my blog because I haven't had anything to say. On several occasions, I've felt the desire to post for posting's sake. Thankfully, I've resisted the urge to let my blog run my life. If I had, it probably would have been one of

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1116628495301611362005-05-20T17:35:00.000-05:002005-05-20T17:34:55.306-05:00

Over the last several years, the city of Fayetteville has gone to great efforts to make the city bicycle and pedestrian friendly. There's even a proposal in the works downtown for a $7 million network of trails that would connect the trail fragments that currently exist all over town. Now I just wish there were something we could do about the drivers. Exhibit A After I was done at school today

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1116533122752215872005-05-19T15:05:00.000-05:002005-05-19T15:05:33.656-05:00

UK.GAY.COM :: Gay weddings boost funds Apparently we're good economic sense now. The Williams Project at UCLA School of Law and the Institute for Gay and Lesbian Strategic Studies at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst have released a study saying letting gay couples get married will actually benefit the economy, both of local states in the short term when there are few and of the whole

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1116531828817835062005-05-19T14:10:00.000-05:002005-06-08T01:38:53.820-05:00

Just XML  Just XML by John E. Simpson After a decidedly philosophical streak in my reading recently, the pendulum seems to be swinging back to the technical side of things. I've been working on my computer the last few days to set up a decent web content and software development environment, so to go with that the time seems right to brush up on the latest developments in the programming

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1116363715207242232005-05-17T15:19:00.000-05:002005-06-08T01:22:02.283-05:00

The Art ofTeaching  The Art of Teaching by Jay Parini One soon gets used to the fact that an element of artifice is involved in classroom performances. In fact, there is nothing natural about teaching; a good teacher may look natural, much as Michael Jordan always looked natural when he went up for a dunk or fell away from the basket, making an extraordinary shot. The natural look,

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1116361118062376032005-05-17T14:58:00.000-05:002005-05-17T16:02:52.623-05:00

It's been a while since I've written anything new here. Rest assured, my absence from the blogosphere has not been for lack of inspiration (commitment maybe, but not inspiration). In fact, I've got several pages of brainstorms floating around, tucked into different books, left lying on different desks, and stuffed into my briefcase or my backpack as each occasion dictated. Partially to blame

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1115354625800842942005-05-06T00:37:00.000-05:002005-05-06T00:48:39.266-05:00

Who Let theBlogs Out?  Who Let the Blogs Out? by Biz Stone Blogs have brought life to the web. People have discovered that there is an easy way to have their say. Everyone gets a voice, and the strongest voices are not measured by how loud they are; power in the blogosphere comes from the democratic process of other bloggers linking to good content. While I'm blogging about books, Biz

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1114667289549955702005-05-06T00:10:00.000-05:002005-05-06T00:46:58.026-05:00

Star Trek:Deep Space NineMission Gamma:Twilight  Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Mission Gamma: Twilight by David R. George III When the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine series left the airwaves too many years back, several of the more gifted Star Trek novel authors decided to continue the story. The trend has since continued beyond the original two-part relaunch, with a whole small series of novels

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1115186132599516602005-05-04T01:00:00.000-05:002005-05-04T18:52:50.590-05:00

I drove home tonight alternating the radio station between John Tesh's "Intelligence for your Life" and Delilah's request show, I started thinking about the sound track of life. This isn't necessarily the music you are listening to (though it might be) but the music that really relays what's going on in your life. Arkansas Winds, my community band, played a concert of Broadway showtunes last

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1115184549636580722005-05-03T23:15:00.000-05:002005-05-05T17:38:13.086-05:00

This is going to be a long post. The process has been very long and just keeps getting longer. This post won't get any longer. I need to write a letter. Someone at the University of Arkansas needs to understand how incredibly difficult they make it for their prospective students to work with them. In my five years as a student and employee at RIT and my year working at BVU, I never could

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1114958969733549812005-05-01T22:30:00.000-05:002005-05-05T17:39:34.086-05:00

NWANews.com :: Religion :: Some evangelicals say Christianity, environmentalism go well together This article, reprinted from the Raleigh News & Observer in the 30 April, 2005, Religion section of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, makes a great point that I've long thought has been overlooked in church. Though it is not really a political article, author Matt Ehlers subtly leaves the reader

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1114146353247378412005-04-22T00:05:00.001-05:002005-04-22T07:37:02.726-05:00

MetroWest Daily News::There's no 'P' in Marathon I will admit that when I walk my dog, Kita, I don't always scoop the poop. I just don't like the idea of carrying it around with me. But this article from the MetroWest Daily News makes it clear that the town of Hopkinton, Mass. clearly has a bigger problems to worry about. Even our cat, Tiger, will knock on the door and come in from outside to

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1114145558240184522005-04-21T23:45:00.000-05:002005-04-22T00:09:14.026-05:00

Laura over at We Move To Canada had an article about the expectations of pharmacists. She promoted one of my comments into a post of it's own, so I wanted to share it here. I didn't put in the time polishing it that I would have felt obligated to spend before posting it here, but since it was a fairly significant chunk of opinion, I thought I'd share it with my readers as well. Perhaps I'll

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1113456439331249562005-04-14T00:10:00.000-05:002005-04-14T00:46:59.976-05:00

Angels &Demons  Angels & Demons by Dan Brown My reading of Dan Brown's Angels & Demons has come at a time with eery relevance. The story takes place on the even of a Catholic conclave, the election of a new Pope. Two days after I started the book, the Pope John Paul II died. I don't have much to say about the real Pope's death except that he was old and it was hardly unexpected. And

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1112960779988459292005-04-07T23:25:00.000-05:002005-04-08T06:46:19.990-05:00

It's that wonderful time of the year again, and I just finished my taxes. Last year, I walked into H&R Block at 4:30 PM on April 15th with my shoebox full of unopened documents. This year I decided to be a big boy and do the dirty work myself... with a little help from TurboTax. I really shouldn't complain. After all, I am poor enough that the government usually gives most of my money back.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1112880435969728452005-04-07T08:30:00.000-05:002005-04-07T17:02:37.253-05:00

It looks like I missed my chance to hit it big. According to this MSNBC.com article, Smuckers is fighting to patent something I've been making for two decades: peanut butter & jelly sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Of course, even I should give the credit to my mother who came up with the idea to cut the crusts off to make me happy. She's such a smart woman. This, of course, is not the

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1112407324366500532005-04-01T20:00:00.000-06:002005-05-05T17:41:29.973-05:00

Sitting around reading the newspaper tonight, my mom started laughing. She doesn't usually understand the Get Fuzzy comic strips, but this was a good one about a Ouija Board. She made me read it and went on with another section of the commics. Get Fuzzy - 2005 Apr 01 Before I got through the page, she 'hmmm'ed and handed me another page. This time it was FoxTrot. Quite an interesting

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1111388141895808522005-03-21T01:00:00.000-06:002005-03-31T10:07:11.120-06:00

I have to admit, I've been pretty out of the loop on this whole Terri Schiavo issue. I honestly don't know why it is an issue at all. Patients are removed from life support systems on a daily basis when there is no hope of recovery, and Congress doesn't involve itself with each and every one. I suspect this case is different for two reasons: the parents are making a fuss, and there's an

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110071070168540932005-03-20T12:45:00.000-06:002005-04-14T00:33:55.136-05:00

DeceptionPoint  Deception Point by Dan Brown I seem to have become quite the Dan Brown fan. Deception Point differs in one important way from the first two Dan Brown books that I have read. In both The Da Vinci Code and Digital Fortress, the events in the book were potentially earth-shattering, but their timely resolution leave the narrowly prevented calamity unknown to the general public.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110955302109367102005-03-16T00:39:00.000-06:002005-03-18T08:02:47.366-06:00

In my recent classroom experiences, I have noticed a disturbing trend. Students in math classes seem to be terribly dependent on their calculators. They have become so reliant on them as to be rendered incapable of even simple exercises in mental math. I'm not talking about picking up a calculator when they need to graph a confusing polynomial or to divide 783 by 62. These uses I expect. But

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110740943569727902005-03-13T13:09:00.000-06:002005-03-18T08:07:48.466-06:00

The Sunday, 13 March, 2005, issue of the Northwest Arkansas Times included an article about current computer acquisitions in the local public schools. There is an effort underway in the district to have one computer for every child in 1st through 7th Grades. There is a similar push across the country, but I suspect that before it is achieved, we will already have come to regret the electronic

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110684304457066742005-03-12T21:25:00.000-06:002005-03-12T21:37:18.653-06:00

There seems to be a trend on the MSNBC front page tonight. Before the judge let him off the hook, Jay Leno was out-sourcing part of his monologue to other comedians who weren't under the court's gag order so they could tell his Michael Jackson jokes. Not that he stayed out of the fun entirely, of course. His Jackson-esque entrance allowed him some commentary without having to open his mouth.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110296633682418962005-03-08T09:45:00.000-06:002005-03-08T09:46:22.586-06:00

This weekend, I registered for the second in a series of Praxis tests that I will have to take in order to become a certified public school teacher in the state of Arkansas. These tests are administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), the same company in charge of the more widely known SAT, GRE, TOEFL, CLEP, and Advanced Placement tests. Praxis is designed to be a series of general

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110063832060469452005-03-07T22:30:00.000-06:002005-04-14T00:37:56.416-05:00

DigitalFortress  Digital Fortress by Dan Brown When I read The Da Vinci Code I was captivated by both a compelling story and the attempt to stir a controversy. I was knowledgeable enough about the topic matter to understand the story, but ignorant enough to get swept away by the blurred lines between fact and fiction. This can be an exhilaratingly disorienting experience, and is a

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110063442731236002005-03-06T23:45:00.000-06:002005-04-14T00:38:51.930-05:00

Truth andFiction inThe Da VinciCode  Truth and Fiction in the Da Vinci Code: A Historian Reveals What We Really Know about Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Constantine by Bart D. Ehrman After I finished The Da Vinci Code, I found myself asking some interesting questions, as I'm sure many others who read the book did as well. I had already come up with some personal responses to the issues raised,

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110100320070408062005-03-06T03:10:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:22:44.853-06:00

In trying to update my template, I managed to totally screw it up. If you were here during the chaos when the layout was a mess, I apologize. I have spent several hours trying to locate the problem. It's amazing what an impact mixing up } and { can have. It's not all bad, though. All seems to be better now, and I think I managed to clean up a lot of other minor issues while I was looking for

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1110035358955392662005-03-05T19:45:00.000-06:002005-04-14T00:39:55.673-05:00

The Da VinciCode  The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown Apparently this book created quite the controversy when it was first released. I didn't notice. I was pretty out of touch at the time, but I've been told it stirred up some conversation. Now that I've read it, I certainly understand why. Though The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction, it challenges many commonly held historical beliefs

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1109947265479466372005-03-04T08:23:00.000-06:002005-03-05T22:50:01.500-06:00

It is said that cleanliness is next to godliness. It is a reference to inner and outer purity. Well, Gmail keeps my email clean, ergo, Gmail must be next to godliness as well. I recently opened a new Gmail account to replace my Hotmail annoyance. Let me just say, I'm loving it! The difference between folders and topic tags is subtle, but important. Gmail is Google's webmail service and it's

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1109394196548842142005-02-26T02:00:00.000-06:002005-03-06T00:59:37.273-06:00

Warning: Private Property Enter At Your Own Risk Our country is a wonderful example of a [representative] democracy. This 'blog is not. It's actually much closer to a benevolent dictatorship and I'm the one in charge. As the one making the decisions here, I'd like to set out three priorities for the operation this 'blog: 1. Catharsis I established this 'blog for the primary purpose of

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1109402635118996202005-02-26T01:30:00.000-06:002005-03-06T01:02:44.433-06:00

One of my Suggested Reading links last time was to a new weekly writing challenge called Fifty Words. Prior to this 'blog, I was never much of a writer, but I think this might be good for me. The first writing prompt was: Set a timer (5 to 15 minutes) and start writing, using the prompt words “I always …” or “I never ...” Among the topics I covered on my fifteen minute mental marathon: my

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1109006861119563092005-02-22T21:05:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:07:51.256-06:00

Henry Payne - There is no crisis...  No, this isn't about a ship named Solution. It's about a solution to Social Security problem. This editorial cartoon aptly portrays the perils of ignoring the eminent crisis facing Social Security, even if that crisis is a little further down the road. I wish I had a matching Republican cruise ship with the crew loading the rich passengers into

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1108968946587311032005-02-21T23:35:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:14:10.496-06:00

Today's batch of suggested reading links is somewhat eclectic. Though I generally try to keep some sort of theme in mind, I've been collecting these over a period of several weeks and finally feel it's time to unload. I hope you enjoy! Fifty Words It's writing with a short attention span. Gienna has put together a weekly writing assignment modeled after the Photo Friday concept. I hope

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1108509807566859242005-02-15T16:48:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:18:59.806-06:00

Northwest Arkansas This weekend, a friend and I decided to go out for dinner. We have our usual spots here in Fayetteville, but we decided it was time to try something new. So, wanting to take advantage of the wonderful places to eat in Northwest Arkansas, we started running through our list of options from Rogers down through Springdale, finally settling on the small Indian restaurant in

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1108315274535672782005-02-15T16:00:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:23:45.016-06:00

Over the past week, Mixed-Up Reasonings has seen the addition of several new technical improvements. It's nothing fancy, but here are the details: Common Topic Page Links Despite the relative youth of this 'blog, I've already found myself spending several posts on a single topic. Since Blogger doesn't support any type of topical grouping, I've decided to link related posts through a set of

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1107928963182765352005-02-09T13:45:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:25:46.986-06:00

The Hubble Space Telescope and Social Security have a lot in common right now. Both have outlived their usefulness. We have a similar set of three general options for how to deal with them both, and I suggest that what's best for Hubble is also best for Social Security. Option 1: Fix Them Up Hubble: Many nostalgic space enthusiasts have suggested that this wonderful tool has served us well (

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1107838693975579512005-02-09T01:05:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:09:44.776-06:00

There is no crisis? Sorting through the varying claims regarding the life expectancy of the current Social Security system can be very challenging. With George W. Bush running the government propaganda machine, the dire predictions are easy to find. On the other hand, there's no shortage of anti-Bush refutations either. The problem is finding some real numbers that tell the real situation

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1107840264310191252005-02-07T23:24:00.000-06:002005-03-06T03:36:23.666-06:00

An article in today's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette quotes Arkansas State Representative Michael Lamoureux (R-Russellville) as saying: "This transcends the Republican Party. Everybody I go to church with has a different opinion on this issue." This statement definitely rubs me the wrong way, but I can't quite put my finger on why. The topic at question is irrelevant (though if you're curious, he

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1107357160334512692005-02-02T09:08:00.000-06:002005-03-06T03:40:23.930-06:00

NWAnews.com :: Editorials :: Words, Words, Words Dear Inquisitive Reader, It is wholly a pleasure to inform you of a great editorial writer. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, as my local state conglomerate newspaper, has been the source of many of my writing inspirations for this 'blog. I generally tackle the serious topics and either rant against them or cheer in support. Today, however, I'd like

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106339815163095112005-01-30T11:45:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:31:50.946-06:00

In a previous article, Choosing Ignorance: Part 1, I talked about the suppression of scientific ideas by religious forces. Now it's time to take a look at the other side of that coin. The Evolution vs. Creation (or Intelligent Design, as it's now being called) debate has been going on for decades, sometimes hotter than others. Recently a court ruling against a Georgia school district that wanted

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1107047441745388702005-01-29T18:41:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:24:27.520-06:00

Though this post won't have any riveting political commentary or compelling discourse on the human condition, I would like to point out some of the technical improvements I've made to this 'blog in the last couple of weeks. Some of them you've probably already noticed, but some are brand new. News Feeds Thanks to a combination of Feed2JS, FeedSweep, and Moreover, the main page now has

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106888868112247262005-01-27T22:24:00.000-06:002005-03-06T03:49:51.343-06:00

Arkansas has had four governors in my life time: Bill Clinton, who is now infamous for his in-office dalliances with less-than beautiful women; Frank White, a nobody who served two years between Clinton's non-consecutive terms; Jim Guy Tucker, who left office so he could serve his prison term; and currently Mike Huckabee, who is easily my least favorite of the four. Springdale, the city and

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106675028112392132005-01-25T11:42:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:14:59.053-06:00

Perhaps this today's list of links should be titled "Suggested Viewing." My recent surfing has led me to a whole new genre of 'blogdom: The Photo-Blog. If you find my enthusiasm for such a simple concept overwhelming, just remember, I'm new at this. Gienna Writes Another gem revealed by the "Next Blog" button at the top of the page. This Bostonian 'blog is a combination of writing and some

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106635676395987582005-01-25T01:33:00.000-06:002005-03-06T03:53:34.300-06:00

On Jan. 14, state Rep. Bob Adams, D-Sheridan, and Sen. Jim Holt, R-Springdale, filed House Bill 1119. This bill would, in response to the court case I wrote about previously, prohibit any homosexual or person with a homosexual living in their household from becoming a foster or adoptive parent in the state of Arkansas. Where previous Department of Human Services regulations only applied to foster

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106340460627634722005-01-25T01:25:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:30:12.363-06:00

Star Trek often uses the guise of a futuristic sci-fi story to address current-day cultural issues. One episode in particular, In the Hands of the Prophets (the last episode of Deep Space Nine's first season), addresses the rift that often exists between faith and education. The A-plot in this episode involved a conflict between one of Bajor's spiritual leaders, Vedek Winn, and the station's

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106379404529426632005-01-22T01:33:00.000-06:002005-03-06T10:45:15.313-06:00

When I was little, I swore I'd never give up cartoons for the news. When I got to college, I became a news junkie. In the last month, I've migrated largely to editorials, opinions, letters, and 'blogs. This seems to be the only place where you get the truth. News consists of questionable fact presented with a slant that shouldn't be. In the opinions arena, it's all slant, and little fact. The

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106375564230130292005-01-22T01:30:00.000-06:002005-03-06T10:50:07.016-06:00

MSNBC :: Fear not, these CRACKPOTS can be saved Though this is still a young 'blog, you may already have noticed that I enjoy finding articles with which I disagree so that I can rail against their illogic and generally disparage their point of view. Occasionally, I find an editorial or commentary with which I totally agree. To my amazement, this has happened not once, but twice today! One is

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1106186346837755702005-01-19T19:59:00.000-06:002005-03-06T10:51:23.123-06:00

NWAnews.com :: Letters :: Correct Decision Made My first letter to the editor (first printed in this blog post) has been published, albeit in a somewhat butchered state. They removed one of the quotes from the last paragraph and lost several of the paragraph separations in the online version. I'll have to find a print edition at school tomorrow.

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1104766884388661642005-01-17T14:30:00.000-06:002005-03-12T23:17:15.866-06:00

As I surf the web and the number of sites I read regularly expands, I find it helpful to have a library of my commonly used links. Clearly, "Favorites" seems like the best way to go here, but alas, I'm a roaming surfer and being tied to one computer terminal just isn't much fun. Someday I'll probably add a list of links to the side bar of these pages, but not today. Until then, here are some

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1105510042459238702005-01-12T01:07:00.000-06:002005-03-06T10:56:19.553-06:00

Political Compass Finally! A vocabulary for discussing political views that separates the social factors from the economic. I found the Political Compass while surfing another blog that's worth a read. Take a look. Tell me where you fall. This is a little more than your typical "Which party am I?" quiz, so don't forget to read the description after you get your results. It'll save me a lot of

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1105499471738433412005-01-11T20:58:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:00:13.470-06:00

The following letter to the editor, was published in the Tuesday, 11 January, 2005, issue of the Northwest Arkansas Times: Information questioned Judge Tim Fox has ruled that testimony offered in a trial did not show that gay foster parents pose a threat to the health, safety or welfare of children. He wrote that the testimony "has presented us all with an excellent opportunity to replace

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1104616583152091102005-01-01T15:09:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:03:28.236-06:00

The following is an excerpt from a guest commentary by David Holcberg of the Ayn Rand Institute, published in the Saturday, 01 January, 2005, issue of the Northwest Arkansas Times: U.S. Should Not Help Tsunami Victims As the death toll mounts in the areas hit by Sunday's tsunami in southern Asia, private organizations and individuals are scrambling to send out money and goods to help the victims

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1104125416052054312004-12-26T18:30:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:19:41.353-06:00

The following letter to the editor was published in the Saturday, 12 December, 2004, Northwest Arkansas edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Highways go all ways Re the letter from Laura M. Eppes of Russellville: I am one of the many, many ignorant Bible-thumpers of the South who voted to re-elect President Bush. I voted for him because I thought he was the best man for the job because

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1103667281804927202004-12-21T16:45:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:29:41.116-06:00

In order to help you put the future postings of this blog in some sort of context, it's probably a good idea that we, or at least I, have an introduction. So without further delay and in no particular order, I am... I am... Gay. This is by no means the most important identity I will be claiming in this post, though it does seem to be one of the hardest for some people to come to terms with,

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9682357.post-1103423239107085542004-12-18T20:27:00.000-06:002005-03-06T11:31:36.410-06:00

Mixed-Up Reasonings on an Up-Side Down World Is this up-side down world coming to an end? No. Despite my previous claims that this cataclysmic event would occur before I would start a 'blog, it is not the case. So why the 'blog? Recently my mind has been awash with opinions and reasonings with no good outlet through which to escape. Perhaps the recent election, in all its controversial glory,

Kyle Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16774716761634436533noreply@blogger.com3