Miami Finally Gets It...

Exactly what they've deserved, that is. With no last minute heroics by Brock Berlin this time, the Canes finally fell, and this Auburn fan is rejoicing!

Speaking of Auburn, tonight they beat Ole Miss 35-14 and clinched the SEC West. Our offense had their worst first half of the season, but put 28 points on the board in the second half while the defense took care of business as usual, keeping Ole Miss to 14 points.

Thanks to Miami's fall and our decisive win, we should at least hit #3 in the BCS and both polls. Personally, I'd bump us ahead of Oklahoma after their close call tonight, but the voters have a big love for the Sooners, so I doubt it'll happen.

MacPhisto Jack-o-Lantern

Just in time for Halloween weekend, a MacPhisto Jack-o-Lantern:

The pattern is available on ZombiePumpkins.com if you subscribe.

You're the Reason I Sing

Is it weird to read the lyrics to an album full of songs you haven't heard yet? I don't know, but I'm sure glad I did. Somehow, a German fansite was leaked the full lyrics from How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and if you're at all a fan of U2, you absolutely must check them out. "Sometimes You Can't Make it On Your Own," the song Bono wrote and sang for his father's funeral, is just stunning. And I really don't even know what to say about "Yahweh" other than I love it.

HTDAAB Track by Track

Remember when The Edge's copy of the new U2 album was stolen from a photo shoot in the south of France? Blender magazine was there. In fact, they spent several days with U2 and it made for a nice read. Even better is a track by track guide to How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb narrated by U2, also at this link.

There's another track by track by U2 in this month's Q magazine.

Go Louisville!

For Auburn to move up past #4 in the polls, one of the three remaining teams ahead of them need to drop. Our best hope is Miami, who was a mere 40 points ahead of us in the AP poll. For Miami to drop, we'll probably need a little bit of help from their opponent this week, Louisville. As The Birmingham News reports, it's a little odd to root for Louisville:

You can safely assume that feeling won't come naturally - given the fact [that Louisville's] Petrino was courted for the Auburn job while Tuberville was getting ready to play archrival Alabama last November. But things have changed. Petrino's Louisville Cardinals have a chance to knock off Miami before ESPN cameras on Thursday night, and that gives Tuberville reason for pause. Miami (4-0) is one of only three teams ranked higher than Auburn, and the Tigers would like to see a couple of them fall to have a shot at a national title.

All Convictions Come From Worldviews

John Piper answers the question "Why do you impose your religious conviction on the whole culture?":

All laws impose convictions on a culture. And all convictions come from worldviews. They don’t come out of nowhere. People argue for laws on the basis of a certain view of the world. What needs to be kept clear is that voting for a law (a prescribed or proscribed behavior) does not mean voting for the worldview behind it. (via Aaron)

This quote is just what I needed to hear today. With all the talk about the debates, Bush's religious views often get mentioned in a negative light with regards to certain divisive issues like abortion and gay marriage. This is exacerbated by Kerry who says he believes one thing, but doesn't believe it's right to impose that belief on others. In my opinion, Kerry's convictions either aren't very strong or he doesn't really have some of the convictions he claims to have. The separation of church and state does not mean that people must leave their convictions at the door simply because they align with or are rooted in religious ideals.

Controlling the Flow of Information

Doug Wilson offers up a good rhetorical argument against government control of schools, making a good analogy to the idea of a government controlled press:

I am willing for the government to control the flow of water, and I am willing for them to control the flow of traffic. I am not willing for them to control the flow of information.

I Have a Hunch (about Apple and U2)

The big U2 article in this month's Vanity Fair mentioned that U2 were in talks with an "information technology" company about sponsoring their tour, and there's a new article on MacCentral about the iTunes tv ad featuring "Vertigo" (it'll hit tv tonight) which includes this little teaser: "You will hear more about Apple and U2 working together in the coming weeks."

Could Apple be sponsoring the next U2 world tour? And if so, might U2 be contemplating releasing some, or even all, of the concerts on iTunes? Remember a couple of years ago, Pearl Jam released cds of all their US concerts. It would be even more profitable, and in keeping with their pro-technology stance, for U2 to release concerts exclusively to iTunes. These would naturally be high quality versions, and if they are going to have more varying set lists on this tour (as is also rumoured), fans would be enticed to buy several different concerts from the tour.

Personally, I'd love it. There is nothing musically on this earth that compares to live U2, and having such easy access to high quality concert bootlegs would be a dream come true.

I Can('t)

The Obscure Store has a funny article about an enterprising BYU student and the t-shirt business he's taking a lot of heat for:

Critics of the t-shirt say that it sounds like the wearer wishes they could (sin), but can't because of their religion. Fans of the shirt (rightly?) say that the critics are far too easily offended and have no sense of humor. You can imagine the reaction if I were to sell t-shirts that said "I can't. I'm Baptist." Jerry Falwell would be ranting about it on television.

The shirt I'd really like to sell is "I can. I'm Presbyterian."

Bailey Wouldn't Like These

McSweeney's offers up a list of Really Boring Books for Children. Good stuff. Right now her favorite books is her Baby Einstein bath book Water, Water, Everywhere! It's her favorite because it's waterproof, and therefore, we let her chew on it if she wants to.

For the more theologically inclined, another great offering from McSweeney's: A List of Five Favorite Heresies of the Roman Catholic Church, Disguised in the Form of Unused Episode Titles for the Hit Situation Comedy Friends, and Their Dates.