Converted lounge cars

Today, on the northbound Silver Star, I saw what I presume was one of Amtrak's lounge cars converted into a diner or diner/lounge. I didn't get that good a look inside, though.

The overall effect was reminiscent of the Metroliners where there were two cafe cars--one with the first class section, and the second actually serving as a lounge.

Debunking nothing...

You knew I couldn't leave well-enough alone if I encountered an article entitled "Debunking Ayn Rand's Objectivism." I posted this comment ("Bemused," BTW, was a commenter who wrote, "Gosh, the Rand-ites do come out of the wood work when anyone critcizes [sic] Mother Ayn." and then complained about another comment's length.):

Regarding Bemused’s point:

I wouldn’t say I’m coming out of the woodwork. I set up a search in Google News for “Objectivism” to try and confirm something a Randroid said in an article about Objectivism receiving positive mentions in the news every day. (Closer to every week, if that, would be my impression. I’d tend to chalk that up as a symptom of what’s wrong with the world, but we’re straying from the point.) That’s how I found this article.

A title like “Debunking Ayn Rand’s Objectivism” was bound to pique my curiosity—I’ve picked up some Objectivist memes over the years. I wondered whether someone had found solid reasons to attack Rand’s philosophy, or whether this was a flawed argument I could pick apart for intellectual exercise.

I didn’t bother to read Prof. Gimbel’s blog based on the summary provided here. The only two quotes by him provided were “If you take the writings of Nietzsche and remove everything insightful, interesting, and funny, ... what’s left are the writings of Ayn Rand.” and “narcotic to the upper-middle-class white male of above-average means and intelligence.” I know the former to be untrue from reading Rand; Rand wasn’t funny (she didn’t try to be), but she was VERY interesting and often insightful. The latter seemed mainly designed to equate Rand with religion in the minds of Marxists by echoing the famous “opiate of the people” quote, and strongly implied that the Objectivism was irrational and a system of evasion. (I would think philosophic ideas that appeal to people of “above-average … intelligence” would merit closer scrutiny, not dismissal. Maybe that’s just my bias from being a member of Mensa and it’s sloppy of me to try and argue from authority on that ground.) Neither quote substantially attacked Objectivism; both were more ad hominem attacks—against Rand in the former and the “average objectivist” in the latter. I took Mr. Goldstein’s selection of these quotes to be indicative of Prof. Gimbel’s piece as a whole. The previous comments seemed to bolster this view. It’s possible this article and its comments mischaracterized his views; however, while the cosmos may be infinite, my time is not.

In short, I think I agree with Allison W. Land’s comment.

It’s been fun. I’m moving on to other things.

— John ... Jul 27, 09:00 PM

Well, my reply was killed. Why? Because I was mildly obnoxious and/or verbose? (I was--but not as bad as some of the other comments.) Because I didn't number my comment like everyone else did? (Mine would have been 11--I didn't because I thought the computer did that automatically.) Because Mr. Goldstein correctly predicted I wouldn't move on? (I went back to look for replies, and checked out the Gimbel blog before posting this; it pretty much confirmed my instinct--though there was a somewhat meatier attack on excellence there.) Who knows? I tried posting the comment again, just in case the disappearing comment was due to technical reasons. (It'll be #13 now--we'll see if this one sticks. If it does, then I was an idiot and the computer was the co-conspirator.)

Rand was an elitist; so am I. I do believe the great artists, the great scientists, the great businessmen do more for society than the average joe. (I also think most "average joes" have much more potential than they realize. I don't think I've tapped my full potential either, and I keep hoping to find that better side of myself, and the sooner the better. But I digress.)

I suppose the real irony is that someone who purports to debunk Rand has strengthened my regard for her. A subsequent commenter, Rajendra Lakhotia, wrote, "ironical that ayn rand has described mentality of such commentators in such detail." (Sic; he didn't even use caps in his own name.) He's dead-on. I'd always thought Ellsworth Toohey was a little unrealistic in his attacks on excellence. Prof. Steve Gimbel and his defender Evan Goldstein convinced me otherwise--there really are some Tooheys out there.

This time, I think it really is time to move on to other topics. Of course the last time I said that was before this blog.

In defense of violent video games

In a study that seems to have gotten surprisingly little coverage, researchers have found that violent video games, "help teens deal with their emotions like stress and anger." They also said that the games don't cause violence.

At the risk of saying "I told you so," I've been citing this as a benefit of video games for some time. It is also consistent with my experience as a video game player. I'm glad someone seems to have found some proof for the idea.

Hanging around with lanyards...

OK--question for all my readers: how do you define the word "lanyard?"

Somewhere, I'd heard that "lanyard" was a term for a badge that hangs from the neck. The "badge-holder"--as the convention organizers called it--seemed to fit my understanding of he term perfectly. The thing in question is a pouch, the front pocket designed with a window designed to display your name tag; the whole thing is worn dangling from your neck by a cord.

I noticed that no one else was using that term, and it made me wonder whether I might be misusing the term. Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary--my usual online source for definitions--says that the term might apply to the cord holding the badge-holder, but not the whole badge-holder (cord included) itself. Another free online dictionary and Wikipedia both also back up this idea--though the former it was less certain that the term could be applied to the badge-holder's cord. (The definitions are consistent that it's a term for the cord suspending a knife or whistle.)

So, my questions for the Internet is simply these: Has anyone else used/heard he term "lanyard" (or "laniard," as it sometimes seems to be spelled) applied to a hanging badge/name tag? Also, is there a better term for such an object than "badge-holder?"

So charge me with battery...

I know the problem with my laptop's battery is not that it produces irregular voltage, but rather that it won't hold a charge anymore; that said, I still don't think it's living up to its potential.

And the lightbulb goes on...

As long as I'm blogging about the Sheraton, how about this?

Don't take this as badmouthing the hotel--there has been some griping within Mensa because of a mess relating to some plans for homemade food that the hotel feared would violate the health code. Not knowing the local health codes, the exact contract with the hotel, or what else may have happened behind the scenes within Mensa, I have a poor idea of who's right or wrong--though I do tend to think National handled things badly, if only because the official information was cryptic and really uninformative. The hotel, for its part, does have to worry about these sorts of things--if something did go wrong, they'd wind up getting sued for something that wouldn't be under their control or their fault (if anybody's). But I digress. In any event, at least from my standpoint, the hotel's service was good.

However, there was one quirk of our hotel room (1110) that bears comment. Not counting the bathroom, there are five lights in the room--a ceiling light by the door, a desk lamp, a floor lamp, a wall-mounted lamp over the dining/reading table, and a wall-mounted lamp over the nightstand. Of those five lamps, no two are turned on the same way--you use a light switch, a rocker switch on the cord, a knob by the bulb, a rocker switch on the bottom of the lamp, and a push button on the bottom of the lamp respectively.

I think this hotel was chosen for the AG because the room's lights are an IQ test in and of themselves.

...But it's free at the motel.

Why is it that fancier hotels charge for in-room Internet access, but cheaper hotels don't?

I have stayed in 17 different hotels (I think--I may need a recount) since I've gotten my laptop computer. Of those, I believe all but four had free, in-room, high-speed Internet access. (At least in theory--some of them had Wi-Fi that didn't work, and there were a couple where I stayed for one night on the road and never even took the computer out of its bag.) Most of those were chain motels--Sleep Inns, Comfort Inns, a Best Western. Of the four that lacked in-room high-speed 'net access, one had no Internet access of their own--a stand-alone, non-chain motel in NJ--and they had free local phone calls, so I could call my dial-up ISP for free without problem.

Of the four "luxury" hotels I've stayed in since I've had my notebook, one--a boutique hotel in Great Neck, NY, had free Ethernet-based service. The other three--a Marriott in New Orleans, a Disney Resort, and the Sheraton in Birmingham--are the only ones that charge for the service. And, the least expensive of those three, the Sheraton, at least offered free Wi-Fi in the lobby (I'm writing my blog from there now). Perhaps worse, those same three hotels were among the minority in charging for local phone calls--meaning that my dial-up approach wasn't a free option, either.

I'd just love to hear an explanation--other than "they figure you can afford it"--of why the expensive hotels charge for what the cheap ones give away.

Yeah, I'm talking about my trip.

The Mensa Annual Gathering--the main point of our Birmingham trip--was fun. If you're in Mensa and haven't gone to an AG, go to one. If you're not, talk a Mensan into taking you to one or join and go on your own. They're addictive.

However, if you're in Birmingham at any time, I have two suggestions for attractions to visit. The first is the Aldrich Coal Mining Museum in Montevallo. The genteman who runs it was kind enough to open for my father and myself on Tuesday--usually, they're closed Tuesdays; though their website does say they'll open by appointment, we didn't give them much lead-time on the appointment, calling about 45 minutes before we arrived. The museum is in an old company store and office/workers' recreation hall/school building--the former housing a collection of town history artifacts and pictures and the latter housing some more of the collection, but being closer to a building restored to its period appearance. It's a small museum, and hard to find, but I think it's worth a look.

The other attraction is the Irondale Café. This restaurant--the inspiration for the novel Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café and the movie based on it--offers some great trainwatching. And the food is good, too.