Orcs are people too

Zinn and Chomsky's critique of the lord of the rings is an entertaining take on the well-known trilogy. Check it out.

Government air

If you've ever traveled on a US Government travel order, you will appreciate April 9th's This American Life podcast. Like all government employees when traveling, space shuttle astronauts apparently have to fill out travel orders when on shuttle missions. Instead of train or commercial air, they check off "government air" and specify "Earth orbit." Their Per Diems are reduced however since their food and lodging is included.

Where are you now Poindexter?

Our devout Muslim driver's 1 year old son was sick in the hospital when we rode off to the hinterlands of eastern Niassa last week. I offered to forward a text message to his other son to let him know about the situation. After typing in the number I realized I did not recognize the country code. The driver informed me that his son was studying in a Madrassa in Saudi Arabia. That night my sleep was disturbed by images of CIA analysts with furrowed brows and cathode rays reflecting off of their spectacles, bent over databases named after birds of prey, attempting to figure out the hidden meanings in "junior is in the hospital, god be with you."