Eat your heart out Zeke Emmanuel

Well! I hadn't realized the "lifeboat exercise" had made a comeback. I never had to do it in my mediocre public school and so had made the mistake of assuming that it had gone the way of the dodo. Imagine my surprise then when my high school sophomore Eldest Kidlet is telling me about her day and mentions that in speech they did an exercise where each student had to decide the fate of 22 people in an 18-person "fall-out shelter" (and it was very much "who gets tossed outside" not "how do you make this work").

Given my background (a belief in the value of every human being as loved by G-d who sent his Son to die in atonement) and the fact that *my* immediate value in many situations is not readily apparent, it's hardly surprising that I am not a fan of utilitarianism. Besides being simply immoral, I believe it is very short-sighted and often prevents long-term good from ever developing because whoever could have produced that good was abandoned before their benefit could be realized or became applicable. I got a chance to discuss this with both older kids (two younger weren't home at the time), which is good, but it left Eldest Kidlet feeling very uneasy about how readily she accepted the premise of an assignment that was by it's very nature evil.

RIP Norma Khan.

       RIP Norma Khan. On the plane that hit the Pentagon. My across-the-street neighbor. Is the comment from NaCly Dog at the HQ. When asked he provided more detail. 

"She was Venezuelan, married to a Pakistani who deserted her and her son after she became a citizen. She was vivacious, with a winning smile. 

She kept a well-maintained home and a small flower garden. I remember her always volunteering to help clean up the Reston neighborhood during the annual cleanup day. 

She was a reliable worker, and someone who could be depended upon to help when the local community needed assistance. Her son was well behaved. 

Others had more memories. http://tinyurl.com/nnx3rvv"

It is a small thing to copy that to here, but I firmly believe that the more people who know at least something about each of those who was murdered 13 years ago the more "real" they will stay in our collective memory. It is right that the "normal" people be remembered for the lives that were taken from them by a brutal, cowardly, and ultimately (please G-d) futile attack.

Almost time

To turn in the paperwork to get a CHL. I took the class in February but, due to various rules here in TX, it made the most sense to wait until just after my next birthday which is coming up quickly. I think I know what handgun I want, a 9mm Bersa, and need to start calling around to find out who has the best price. A neighbor has taken Son and myself to his gun club a couple of times since the class, which has been very helpful. I didn't get to go last month because of schedule conflicts and was surprised at how much I missed it.