courtesy of tondar...

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/colb/20070910.html

I think this editorial says a lot about the vick controversy that most peope aren't willing to admit. We are certainly all hypocritical in certain feelings. It can't be avoided, as there's an exception to every rule. It's great to see so many people condemming canine torture, and eating meat doesn't take away from that. However, it's true that if you really want to be consistent in your beliefs, how can you say that dogfighting/killing is wrong at the same time that you eat meat? I'd argue that it greatly matters where your meat comes from. This author seems to generalize all animal killing for meat as torture. While most of it is, and most animals used for meat live in disgusting conditions, aren't allowed to graze, are fed rendered animal fat, pumped full of hormones and antibiotics, and generally mistreated, I don't think that animals who are allowed to live naturally and who are well treated until their death should be considered "tortured" (provided their death is quick and 'humane'). I think this article goes a little far, but it's something people should look at: Is supporting the big-business unethical meat industry really any better than supporting dogfighting?

i hit a car today!

because it came out of a parking garage without looking. i was irate, the girl felt really bad, my bike is ok, and other than this bruise, i'm none the worse for wear and tear. but still, holy shit!

i wanna be an ironman!

So Mary and I decided to go cheer on the finishers during the last 2 hours of the race (that being up to hour 17). The winner finished in just under 9 hours! I have to say, that watching people coming in was SO inspiring! It was just so emotional...I was tearing up a little here and there seeing how happy and proud everyone was. The last one to finish (in the allotted time anyway) was a 78 yr old guy, and pretty much everybody during those hours was a normal person. Some even had beer guts. I came home and looked into registering for '08, but it's already full. Mad City Marathon, here I come!

I just think it's so awesome to see so many people who are pushing their bodies and having healthy habits. You could see their sense of accomplishment in their faces, and to me, competing against yourself, against the pain, and perhaps against all reason is so much more noble than competing against other people. (Obviously, the one's finishing within the first 10 hours were competing against each other...) I guess that these individual fitnessy sports are the ones I can get super enthusiastic about... :) Let's see your average baseball player or offensive lineman swim 2.4, bike 112, and run 26.2!

pic of the day

hobbes does not like moving...