Stumbling along like we always do

It's true—Apple is shaking off AltiVec and the PowerPC for a move to x86-based hardware. And listening to some people, you'd think that was the death of apple. So far the death knell is at 46 times in the last decade, according to MacObserver. (This is in the press, in regular life I'm sure it's much, much higher than that. By a million or so.)

John Rogers (of Kung Fu Monkey) pointed me to a very interesting blog called Clusterfuck Nation. A sample:

I was in Tallahassee, Florida, last week talking to a large room full of planning officials. My message was pretty straightforward: every new housing subdivision, every new strip mall, every parking lagoon and big box chain-store pod that you issue approvals for from this point on will lead your country deeper into tragedy.

The response was apathetic, as though I were giving a class in Chinese algebra.

Florida is one of the multiple epicenters of a hypertrophic suburban growth machine that has taken the place of the US economy. Reforming it is unimaginable because without the business generated by a cancer-like replication of car infrastructure, the economy would consist of little besides hair cutting, fried chicken, and open heart surgery. In places like Florida (and California, and northern Virginia, and Las Vegas, and Dallas), all citizens are complicit in the drive toward tragedy because all want business-as-usual to continue. The idea that any set of circumstances might put a stop to it is laughable to them. What can you do for such a people determined to commit civilizational suicide?

I live in a fairly liveable city, but I remember growing up in the sprawl of the Midwest. My family drives for half an hour or more just for shopping or work, which is insane. I don't even want to think of how most cars on the road are only slightly more fuel-efficient than the Battle Buick that I drove to work in high school.

We'll muddle along, but between this and the thought of avian flu and our complete lack of health infrastructure, it's the stuff of nightmares.

In other news... um... hang on... KITTENS!

Maybe Kevin has the right idea. What lurks in the heart of Namor? Time to fire up GIMPshop... I like the GIMP, but my fingers are so used to Photoshop key commands. Now it's the best of both worlds!