Hostage takers.

President Obama made a huge mistake by introducing the phrase "hostage takers" into his rhetoric. In reference to the Bush-era tax cuts that are due to expire at the end of the year, President Obama said this:

"It's tempting not to negotiate with hostage takers unless the hostage gets harmed... In this case, the hostage was the American people."

The President sought to indict House Republicans with the label. However, the President's own liberal peers are now quickly taking on the mantle of (you guessed it) hostage takers.

House Democrats have rejected a compromise between Republicans and the President in order to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for two years. Democrats argue that the compromise gives too much away to the already wealthy. This would be the norm for the federal government, but the problem for Democrats is that they are putting President Obama's bid for reelection on the line.

If Democrats continue to play the part of obstructionists and the Bush tax-cuts expire on January 1, Americans won't look at the Republican party as the ones who screwed up and allowed yet another blow against the economy- the blame will lie squarely with Obama and the Democratic party.

Friendly Neighborhood Hairdo.

Spiderman only got the novel spider powers: webs, crawling on walls, and super strength. But he didn't get the awesome powers. He missed out on venom (every spider species is poisonous), the huge intelligence of the Portia genus, the ability to live underwater like the diving bell spider, and most importantly- urticating hairs.

In all fairness, Peter Parker hasn't changed his hair since 1960.

Now, you might be asking "What are urticating hairs?". If you're not asking that, I'm going to pretend you did! Urticating hairs are basically barbed, stinging hairs. They are a defense mechanism used by many different species of both plants and animals. But possibly the most impressive utilization of these hairs is found in a number of New World tarantula species.

When the tarantula feels threatened, it will kick these hairs off of its legs, aiming at the eyes and skin of its assailant. These hairs can embed themselves in the other animal's skin or eyes and produce physical irritation.

Here is where things get interesting- not every hair on the tarantula is created equally. There are up to six known types of urticating hairs on tarantulas, classified from Type I to Type VI. They are all different sized and shape. What role does that play? Scientists believe that each type of hair targets different kinds of animals. For example, Type III and IV hairs are most irritating to mammalian predators.

You'll never look at hair the same way again.

A somewhat more serious condition, called Opthalmia nodosa, an irritation and inflammation of the cornea, can be caused when urticating hairs are lodged in the eye.

So, yes, Spiderman can crawl on walls and shoot webbing from his wrists, but ask yourself this:

Wouldn't all of Spidey's enemies be dispatched much quicker if he'd just shoot some hair into their eyes?

But then you'd ruin this awesome do.

Crotalinae

That lovely specimen above is Crotalus adamanteus, or as it is more commonly known- the eastern diamondback rattlesnake. It is a snake in the family Viperidae, and, more specifically, a member of the subfamily Crotalinae. The snakes in the subfamily Crotalinae are what we commonly refer to as pit vipers. Pit vipers are all venomous snakes distinguished by the presences of heat-sensing pit organs in between the eye and nostril on either side of the head.

Here is the awesome thing about pit vipers- they're basically Mother Nature's version of Predator. Y'know- the movie with Arnold "Bankrupt California" Schwarzenegger? Well, if you recall, this is how the Predator aliens saw their prey:





[Predators hate rainbow people]

Well, pit vipers do the same thing thanks to those aforementioned pit organs (the name "pit vipers" starting to make a bit more sense now?). When prey gets in range of the snake, infrared radiation falling onto the membrane of the snake's pit organ allows it to determine the prey's location. Not only can the snake tell that prey is near, but it can also hone in on the direction and distance of the prey. Experiments have shown that, when deprived of their senses of sight and smell, these snakes can strike accurately at moving objects that are less than 0.2°C warmer than the background.

Sure, pit vipers are loaded to the brim with neurotoxins (c'mon- who doesn't have neurotoxins these days? Remember that garter snake you used to see in your back yard as a kid? Yup. Neurotoxins.), and proportionately have bigger fangs than any other snake in the world (other snakes would have you believe that is meaningless, quoting the oft-used "Its not the size of the boat, but the motion of the ocean". Whatever helps you sleep at night spitting cobras), but the real reason they're so awesome is because of their heat sensing pit organs.

Mother Nature must have been experimenting with some serious stuff during Woodstock to think it all would be fair in the food chain when she started handing pit organs out.


[Pictured: Mother Nature and Father Time, circa 1969]

Be still.

September 11, 2001 is a day that, for Americans, will forever be engraved into our minds. Thinking back to where I was on that morning seems to take away from the magnitude of what was actually going on.

Sitting at my desk in my 6th grade science class, not much of what the teacher was saying made sense. World Trade Center? Possibility of "terrorists"? None of this meant anything to me. On the classroom's TV (which was too small to actually see much), I could hear the reporter on CNN describing the unfolding scene. A plane had crashed into one of the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. At the time, at least, we all still thought it was a crash. An accident. None of us would dare believe it was a premeditated attack.

But then, the second plane hit the second tower. At that moment, I think, the gravitas of what was happening sunk into everyone. We were under attack. America. The land of the free. Under attack. Being rather simple minded middle schoolers, none of us really understood how far reaching the consequences of that notion were, but we weren't too dim to read the teacher's faces. The worried look of a parent.

Looking back on that day, I realize how thankful I am for being a sixth grader. Had the same things happened today, I can't imagine the panic, the anger, and the fear that would have swept over me. I can fully understand the patriotism that swept the nation on that day now. And looking back on it, my resolve that our government acted in accordance with what should have been done is strengthened further.

Music.

As I write this, I am selecting my song list for my youth group this coming Friday. I'm set to lead our youth band in seven praise and worship songs. As I listen to prospective songs on iTunes, I am surprised at the shift in my mood from a mere half an hour ago when I wasn't listening to music.

Having scanned through eight or nine songs, I am find myself in a state of "pre-worship" (for lack of a better term). My heart is much more prepared to submit to God and worship Him in this instant.

This leads me to wonder though- what is it about music that can affect our emotions on such a deep level? The mood of a song can be like a wave that floods our own feelings. Words are powerful, but when set to the right soundtrack, they can be a wrecking ball. They can bring even the hardest of hearts down to their knees.

Summer

It feels almost a little cliche' to be writing about what I did over the summer, but I figure: an assignment is an assignment.

Here's the thing. My past few summers haven't been that memorable. Not that my summers lacked memorable things, they were just any old day(s) to me. When you're in school, summer is a big deal because, at that point, you're not in school. You get seven days a week to do whatever you'd like to do, and there is no obligation to be at school. I graduated from American Senior High School in 2008, and have been out of school until now. That's two years I've been sitting on my hands, not doing school.

My summer of 2010 was spent doing some of the same things I've been doing for a while. Working at my church mostly. The one gleaming silver lining to my summer was getting to surprise my girlfriend with a trip up to Disney for the day. This was a one day trip where we (meaning I) drove up and back the same day, leaving a pretty tight window to fit the following:

A visit and lunch at Animal Kingdom. Riding our favorite rides at Magic Kingdom. A trip to and dinner at Downtown Disney.

But, with a little extra pressure on my gas pedal, we were able to make it to all of our desired destinations with time enough to get home and wake up the next morning for church.