LukPac.org

1.27.2005

The views at the top are pretty cool (even if you've walked the whole way up), but I don't think I'll miss Van Hise that much:

Van Hise Hall, the tallest building in Madison, could be demolished under the long-range campus master plan now being crafted for the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Gary Brown, the director of UW's Office of Planning and Landscape Architecture, told The Capital Times that Van Hise - along with many other buildings that date from the 1960s and 1970s - has such basic problems that it would be cheaper to tear it down than to try to fix it.

"Van Hise has consistently been cited for fire code issues and is a high-rise building without a sprinkler system," he said in an e-mail. "It has very poor heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems. It also has a very poor, inefficient interior layout. To remedy these issues effectively would be too costly."

Ack!

[11:39 AM] post a comment

1.26.2005

More on Rice. Laugh as you might at Ted Kennedy, but I find I agree with much of what he says:

But Sen. Edward Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat, said the war there has become "a catastrophic failure, a continuing quagmire" -- and he called Rice "a principal architect of our failed policy."

Kennedy said he believes Bush should be allowed to choose his Cabinet and that Rice has extensive experience and credentials. But he added, "In these continuing circumstances, she should not be promoted to secretary of state."

But don't worry, Joe Lieberman is there as always to back up the Bush administration:

"Our responsibility is to determine whether the nominee is fit for the position ... and whether the nominee, in our judgment, will serve in the national interest," Lieberman said Tuesday. "Dr. Condoleezza Rice meets that standard at least and much more."

It's in the national interest to distort and lie to gain support for your boss so he can start a war? It's in the national interest to ignore terrorist threats and make up threats that don't exist?

Ugg.

[9:22 AM] post a comment

1.19.2005

So it looks like Condi is going to get the nod for secretary of state. In a response to Barbara Boxer, she had this to say:

"Senator, I have to say that I never, ever lost respect for the truth in the service of anything," Ms. Rice responded, her voice sharpening. "It is not my nature. It is not my character. And I would hope that we can have this conversation and discuss what happened before, and what went on before and what I said, without impugning my credibility or my integrity."

To that I would say *what* "credibility" or "integrity"? This is the same person that "knows" that 75% of al Qaeda leaders have been captured, but yet has no idea how many people that actually is:

RICE: Wolf, I thought he did a fine job. And he did a fine job of showing the American people why he is the leader that he is and why he is the leader to carry us through this war on terrorism.

What he did was to demonstrate that he understands this war on terrorism. The idea that somehow you kill Osama bin Laden and maybe al Qaeda wraps up and then you're done with the war on terrorism could not be further from the truth.

To be clear, we are after Osama bin Laden. He is being chased by Pakistani forces and Afghan forces and American and other forces. We have broken up 75 percent of the al Qaeda known leadership. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia fully...

BLITZER: Well, when you say 75 percent, of how many leaders are we talking -- 75 percent of a quantity of what? 30, 25?

RICE: Of its known leadership.

BLITZER: But how many...

RICE: I would suspect that that's in the tens to hundreds -- tens to 100.

The nods from the Democratic side are especially disheartening:

On Ms. Rice's nomination, all 10 Republicans on the Foreign Relations Committee voted in favor, as had been expected. Six of the panel's eight Democrats also voted in favor, with only Senators Barbara Boxer of California and John Kerry of Massachusetts in opposition.
...
Democrats voting in favor were Senators Joseph R. Biden of Delaware, the ranking minority member; Paul S. Sarbanes of Maryland; Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut; Russell D. Feingold of Wisconsin; Bill Nelson of Florida; and Barack Obama of Illinois.

What happened to fighting?

[1:19 PM] post a comment

1.17.2005

You know, I'm really good at starting a lot of projects and not finishing them. Example: the dining room. So what do we have plans for now? Getting rid of the wainscoting in the living room and wallpaper in the office. Because why have one project in the air when you can have a whole bunch?

[10:08 AM] post a comment

1.12.2005

Please review post from 2.27.2004.

Kevin at work said his dad has a Bobcat. I may just have to make use of that.

[11:14 PM] post a comment

Official: U.S. ends search for WMD in Iraq

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. inspectors have ended their search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq in recent weeks, a U.S. intelligence official told CNN.

The search ended almost two years after President Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq, citing concerns that Saddam Hussein was building weapons of mass destruction and may have hidden weapons stockpiles.
...
Despite intensive searches, WMDs were not found after the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

I think this would be a good time to finally come out and say I TOLD YOU SO.

[11:26 AM] post a comment

1.06.2005

About two years ago Amy and I went on a hunt for a snow blower. I said we needed to get a two stage model; Amy thought we'd be fine with "one of those little ones". I finally convinced her otherwise, and we ended up getting the biggest one Sears had (the headlight is handy!).

With a good 3 feet of packed snow at the end of the driveway, today was a "I told you so" day.

[9:02 PM] post a comment