Tig went out for all of fifteen minutes. He headed straight for the water dish when he got inside, and I expect he’s going to stay indoors until the heat breaks. The Magical Maine Coon Cat Coat doesn’t work in all weathers. It can’t defeate humidity.

I’m not planning to go out until much later myself. I have a wireless thermometer that now says it’s 97.9 degrees in the shade of my patio. It’s fluctuating about half a degree or so every few minutes. But really—the difference between 97 and 98 degrees Fahrenheit is, well, negligible. Hot it hot. And today, it is very hot in Richmond.

Update: And less than an hour later, it’s twenty degrees cooler. A front moved through, bearing nasty thunderstorms.

Do any of my readers follow the Dr. Who show on Sci-Fi Network?

Would you be willing to record the next three episodes and send the tape/DVD to me? My niece is a big fan, but she’s at Interlochen for the next three Fridays, and her father is one of those people who can’t figure out how to make a VCR work with his TV/cable setup. No chance of taping from that end. And as I don’t carry digital cable, I can’t do it for her.

If you can tape the show, please send me an email. Sorena will be very happy to come home from music camp to three Dr. Who episodes.

Update: Thanks, I’ve got someone helping me become the Best. Aunt. Ever.

Wait ’til she comes home from camp and I give her the episodes. She’s going to be so happy.

A disturbing report from an IDF source:

Hamas, the officer went on to say, had established a full-fledged army, consisting of four brigades, corresponding to the different sections of the Gaza Strip. The brigades were made up of a number of battalions and platoons. In addition, Hamas had smuggled in the past two months over the twenty tons of explosives via the Philidelphi Corridor from the Sinai into the Gaza Strip.

Furthermore, the officer claimed that the group had obtained anti-tank missiles, as well as an unknown number of anti-aircraft missiles. Hamas also reportedly possessed old models of Katyusha rockets, and they were working to improve the range of their cache of Kassam rockets, he said.

‘They have an organized military,” the officer said, adding that the total number of infantry had reached some 13,000 recruits. “They have the manpower, they have the training, they have the motivation; the principle is creating a balance of deterrence against Israel,” he said.

The officer also noted that over the past two years since the disengagement, several hundred Palestinians had traveled from Gaza to Iran to receive training. In one case, the officer said, a Palestinian who trained in Iran was responsible for training 400 Palestinians upon his return to Gaza.

That’s the bad news. The good news, the officer says, is that Israel can take out Hamas—if she does it soon.

Claiming that Hamas has jumped light years since Israel’s disengagement from Gaza, a high-ranking IDF officer said that there was currently a limited window of opportunity for Israel to confront the Hamas threat in the Gaza Strip.

“There is an opportunity today since the world has not yet become accustomed to the new Hamas entity, and Hamas has not yet fully completed strengthening it’s military capabilities,” the officer said, adding that Israel was on a “collision course” with the Islamist group.

“The Gaza Strip is a boiling pot, the fire underneath is fueled by [a poor]economy and [an Islamist ideology] and the lid over it is Israel,” the officer was quoted as saying by Israel Radio. “Hamas is currently not acting against Israel because it is not in the group’s interests, but one must not mistake this with the organization’s ultimate goals,” he added.

[...] According to the officer, the IDF has the necessary capability to stop Hamas, and all that was needed was the go-ahead from the government.

Of course, the worse news is that the world will consider any move against Hamas a “disproportionate” “incursion” into Palestinian territory. But the worst news, of course, is that Israel is led by Ehud Olmert. Don’t count on the IDF taking out Hamas anytime soon.

The Protocols, a song by, well, an Elder of Zion.

You should read the comments. They’re filled with remarks by morons who think this song isn’t parody.

You know, sometimes, I don’t even care anymore about what used to get me apoplectic. Like the addition of an old prayer (sanitized for the modern day) to the Catholic mass. The one where they pray for the conversion of the Jews.

ROME - The most senior official in the Vatican after the Pope on Wednesday suggested that a highly controversial prayer for the conversion of the Jews could be dropped from the re-introduced Latin-language rite.

Speaking at a news conference, Holy See Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone was asked about Pope Benedict’s recent decree allowing a wider use of the old Latin missal, or prayer book, that was phased out after the reforms of the so-called Second Vatican Council which sat between 1962 and 1965.

Some Jewish leaders have sharply criticized the decree, which revived the possible use of a passage from the old Latin prayer book for Good Friday calling for Jews to be converted.

[...] The Good Friday prayer asks that God remove the “veil” from Jewish heart so that they would recognize Jesus Christ.

Bertone said the prayer that many Jews have found offensive could be substituted with one introduced into church rituals in the 1970s and which makes no reference to conversion of Jews.

“This could be decided and this would resolve all the problems,” said Bertone, who was speaking near the northern Italian area where the Pope is on a mountain holiday. His news conference was televised live.

I just can’t seem to bring myself to care what Catholics pray about during mass. Nobody listens to the whole thing, anyway. I seriously doubt most Catholics are even going to notice what the priests are saying by the time they get to that one. I’ve been to several Catholic weddings, complete with full mass, and I have to say, they were the most boring weddings I ever attended. In fact, by my third one, I’d figured out how late to arrive to miss the mass altogether and get there in time for the wedding ceremony. I never told the bride and groom, just slipped in near the back while they were busy with their vows. And believe me, I’d do the same again if I ever got invited to another Catholic wedding.

Fastest wedding I ever attended? My cousin’s. Jewish. Second-fastest? My brother’s. He was married by the mayor of his town. In his own living room.

Besides, I’ve started trying to think of a way to start a new, modern, evangelical Judaism movement. I think it’s time I started actively soliciting my readers to convert to Judaism. We effing rock, man. We’re Number One. The parent religion! Before there was Islam… before there was Christianity… there was… JUDAISM!

Talk about your classic formula! Convert to Judaism! Our weddings are cooler and not at all boring! Plus, you get to ride in a chair during the reception!

Once you’re in, we teach you the secret handshake and let you into the club that rules the world. Membership fee required.

Oh, and by the way, your Popeness? Go ahead and keep on praying for my conversion. Three words: Never. Gonna. Happen.

Update: Here’s a great site on converting to Judaism. It has guidelines, anecdotes, and is a fair beginner’s guide to Judaism as well.

Hey. Some of my best friends are converts.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad says they’ll stop sending suicide bombers into Israel. You can stop rolling your eyes now.

The Islamic Jihad may stop initiating suicide bombings inside Israel, according to Walid Abeidi, commander of the group’s military wing, the al-Quds Brigades.

[...] Abeidi, also known as Abu al-Qassam, said that “the organization is considering halting the suicide bombings in order to help bring both sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to a mutual calm and ceasefire.”

According to Abeidi, the Islamic Jihad has no intention of thwarting the efforts to reach a truce between Israel and the Palestinians, as the calm will bring about an ease of restrictions on the Palestinian population, will relieve the residents’ suffering and will resume the financial aid, which will also be used to pay the salaries of hundreds of government workers.

“We are not interested in hindering an improvement in the situation of the Palestinian population. We hope this will be made possible as part of an agreement honoring the Palestinians’ rights and will take place as part of a mutual ceasefire and calm,” he said.

But of course, they left themselves the usual vaguely-worded out.

The al-Quds commander added that he hoped Israel would stop pursuing Palestinians and hurt innocent people.

“This is not said from a point of weakness, but from deep concern to the Palestinian situation and interest. The Islamic Jihad will decide on its stance in accordance with the developments, and any stance it decides on will be in favor of the Palestinian people.”

[...] “Israeli violations will be met with harsh responses by the organization’s fighters and the Palestinian resistance. This is our decision and it proves that all the talks in Israel on an external Iranian influence are nonsense,” Abeidi said.

So once again, PIJ says they “might” stop suicide attacks, but only if Israel stops trying to stop them from launching attacks on Israelis. In other words, don’t hold your breath.

You can start rolling your eyes again.