Hero Alert: Little Woman

Sgt. Kimberly Denise Munley, the woman who downed Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, took him down five minutes after the 911 call went out. She wasn't even on duty.

From this awesome WaPo article (emphasis mine):

Sergeant Munley — a woman with a fierce love of hunting, surfing and other outdoor sports — bolted from her car, yanked her pistol out and shot at Major Hasan. He turned on her and began to fire. She ran toward him, continuing to fire, and both she and Major Hasan went down with several bullet wounds, Mr. Medley said.

Another incident–note that this woman is 5'4":

Her partner in Wrightsville, Investigator Shaun Appler, recalled how Sergeant Munley saved him one night when she wrestled a large man off him after the man had pinned him down and was trying to take his gun. She earned the nickname Mighty Mouse for that, he said.

"In facing down the gunman at Fort Hood, Sergeant Munley was wounded in each thigh and her right wrist," the article says later. But don't worry. She's ok.

Stupid Girl

There are a lot of beautiful liberal women. Why can't Carrie Prejean be one? She was bad enough before those sex tapes surfaced. Ugh.

This demands recalling Pink. (If you're under 16, don't watch this. You're too young.) I know she's almost as bad, but at least she knows it.

Love, Technology, and Elections

Seems like everyone's talking about the big GOP governor wins in the two off-year states: NJ and VA. Another cheer for VA. Good thing McDonnell didn't need my vote, because I'm waiting on the Wisconsin DMV for some records before I can change that part of my residence (and name). With all the chatter, I just want to highlight my favorite lede on the news, from Slate:

President Obama's message of change was so powerful in 2008 that voters held on to it for an extra year.

Well done, Mr. Dickerson; well done. Nice touch of sarcasm—not too wet, not too dry, with a backhand hint at the real story.

Also enjoyed this article from David Brooks in the NYT on how cell phones have changed courtship; although I have to note with chagrin that he labels "courtship" what is really, now, an elaborate ritual for hooking up. Perhaps that's all courtship ever was. :grin: At least I don't believe courtship was once so direct about hooking up as cell phones have facilitated. Perhaps that's because people ostensibly did (and ostensibly some still do) think romance more than a frontgame for sex as an endgame; as in, romance romanced more than the body: also the mind and soul.

A Few Fun Things

I recently attended my very first opera at the Kennedy Center: Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos. Slightly expecting a chorus of caterwauling vibrato, it surprised me with interest and delight. The plot is complex enough, but more in a Shakespearean sort of play within a play silliness rather than confusion. Anway. Here I found a set of short sound clips analyzing the different scenes and voices with surprising clarity and simplicity for something so foreboding as opera. I think anyone would enjoy taking two minutes on that as much as I did three hours on the entire thing.

The most curious thing I found about opera: Arias (the long, musically-complex solos given to main characters) basically involve one main thought and draw it out for several minutes. That allowed me time to digest and compare different points of the plot and characters while watching, which I can rarely manage during plays or movies because they throw plot, plot, plot at you constantly and it takes all my mental energy just to keep up with what's happening.

Anyway. That puts "attending opera" on the list of things I like.

This also amused me: It's a flowchart for Beatles' "Hey, Jude." From tumblr courtesy of Chase.

Lowdown on Brett Favre

Two writers in National Review (why NR? I have no idea) do an insightful and facts-only takedown of Brett Favre's NFL dithering. Favre comes away looking really like a two-timing backstabber at worst, sophomoric philanderer at best. I've been using the intrigue to step into sports a little by starting to actually pay attention to football, and it's fun.

Too Much Interesting

This article discusses why art audiences are much more likely to appreciate postmodernism or "avant-gard"ism in art than in music: The human capacity and penchant for organizing and grouping has an easier time making sense of visual chaos than it does of audio chaos. Read if you can understand simple discussions of musical composition and have at least a slight distrust for 21st century art trends.

This must be the first time I read a news report suggesting that "free perks aren't really free, if you get them from the government." I know. It's a "duh" statement, but not to journalists. The piece seems mostly anecdotal on the pros and cons of Medicare Advantage; and it's a shame the paper takes such a necessary thwack at one of the more-popular and less-grossly-mismanaged government programs since the real reason people feel like criticizing the program at the moment is because public option proponents want to axe it to pay for squandering even more taxpayer money.

And, fascinating news-publishing development: A German newspaper offers customized, self-created newspapers delivered to your doorstep every morning. What a good idea. I'd take that, especially on my daily metro ride.

More thoughts later. It's been the workweek of frenzy, but still they percolate.

Scientology Defaulter Next Martin Luther

So a French court recently convicted Scientology of fraud, canonizing what every sane person thinks when hearing their beliefs (Aliens? Healing energy? That's a Saturday morning cartoon, not religion). Anyway. This writer thinks the French whistleblower in the case may be the next Martin Luther.

Mmm. Maybe not. You see, while both Scientologists and the Roman church are excessive, only one has actually not a shred of basis for beliefs. At least Catholics tether their extrapolated ideas to reality.