Dave’s Guide to the Best of the Web

“Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed.”
- Dwight D. Eisenhower.

War. The war is so civil and hides behinds its mask an ugly monster. Humans, individuals normally united by common bonds and interests are split apart and become driven by man’s most basic instincts. Thrust, slash, run, shoot, dig, kill, die. Blood pours upon the ground and fathers, sons, brothers, mothers, daughters, sisters die. The statistics are easy to press into the back of our mind. What does a thousand mean? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand? Millions? Bar charts, graphs, numbers - impersonal, till a loved one never returns.

“War is hell.” - William Tecumseh Sherman.

In spite of its horror it is still something which draws the focus of our minds. We have made some of our greatest artistic works about it - consider Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace or Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan. Our heroes are oftentimes those whose greatest achievement is the role they played in a deadly conflict - George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchhill. As a little child I know I picked up my wooden gun and for hours and days I would embark on grand battles against imaginary enemies with my siblings and friends. It would take some years before I would come to realize that there was nothing so grand about war.

Still, as adults many of us engage in a practice known as wargaming. In this practice it is usual to simulate historical (as well as fantasy or science fiction) warfare. What is it that attracts the human mind to such a practice? I do not think it is a love for violence or death, but rather an interest in conflict and competition. But, I will not too long indulge in the reasons for our interest in wargaming, it is beyond the scope of this article. Rather, my purpose is to acknowledge this interest and point towards one of the best resources on this subject - The Wargamer.

The Wargamer is the most prestigious website dealing with wargaming currently on the internet, though Grognard holds a close second place (mainly limited by its focus on more hardcore wargaming). It was established in 1995 and over the years has seen significant growth and expansion. To briefly note, here are a few of its key features:

• Daily News - The Wargamer provides daily updates on the latest developments on the wargaming front, letting you know ahead of time what is happening in the world of wargaming and providing reports after important conferences, events, etc.
• Reviews & Articles - The Wargamer is a vast repository of reviews on wargames. While the games are mainly computer wargames there are also a number of board and card games as well. Whether you are looking for a review of a recent game or one that came out ten years ago - The Wargamer is a good place to look. They also offer interesting historical articles on various battles and historical events.
• Forums - The Wargamer has very active forums where you can discuss all aspects of wargaming as well as chat with those of similar interest about casual topics.
• Downloads - There are also a large number of scenarios and campaigns hosted by The Wargamer. These can be downloaded at no cost and offer significant additions to the built-in capabilities of many games.
• Opponents - If you have mastered your computer opponents, The Wargamer can help you find an unlimited number of human opponents to test your mettle against.

The Wargamer is a great place to learn about wargames and extend your current wargaming experience. I would encourage those (such as myself) who partake in this hobby to ensure that this gaming is never done without a ready acknowledgment of the horrific nature of the actual conflicts…That computer pixels or miniatures have no life and come back to combat another day, but that mere mortal humans have no such luxury.

Thanks to The Quote Cache for the quote by Dwight D. Eisenhower.

For philosophy students, those interested in philosophy, or those who are forced to learn about philosophy, The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy may be a great starting resource. Hosted by the University of Tennessee it was founded by Dr. James Fieser (UTM Department of Philosophy) who currently also serves as a general editor. He is joined in his endeavors by a wide number of philosophy professors in composing and editing the articles such as Dr. Bradley Dowden (California State University), Dr. Ed Grippe (Norwalk Community College), and Dr. Stephen Schneider (Harvard University).

As one can quickly see from the credentials of those who work with and submit to The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, this site maintains high academic standards and would be considered a valid source for most scholarly papers. They only accept materials written either by Professors at institutions of higher learning (e.g. colleges, universities) and on rare occasions from A.B.D. graduate students. All documents are peer-reviewed and edited given a high quality of work.

So what exactly does The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy cover? Well, it is an encyclopedia so it would be difficult to summarize all of its contents. But to briefly sum up, it covers individuals (e.g. Aristotle, Francis Bacon, Cicero, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Thomas Aquinas), concepts (e.g. time, fallacies, and humor), and philosophies (e.g. humanism, middle platonism, and relativism). From simple to complex, the encyclopedia offers in-depth articles written by qualified authorities on philosophical topics and offers additional bibliographies to point students in the right direct for further study. So what are you waiting for? Go read up on Jean-Jacques Rousseau or open theism.

    For the last three days or so I’ve been decently ill. Nothing serious, just one of those colds (or flus) that hits me once or twice a year. Unfortunately this has reduced the time I can spend on all my desired projects - including this one. My reflexes have slowed, my mental capacities are a bit foggy and pained. So tonight, here is just a quick article to satisfy your hunger.

LiveScience has an interesting article by Heather Whipps entitled, “Stone Age Settlement Found Under English Channel.” Okay, the title isn’t killer - but the article is pretty interesting and the new discovery will hopefully help us understand more about our past.

There is a key term currently in use amongst tech-heads, web 2.0. This term is used to mean many things, one of which is its acknowledgment of new technologies in the website design field. Whereas in the past most websites where written in HTML, PHP, or ASP today a new set of languages and technologies have come onto the field. One of these new technologies (okay, so a repackaged, renamed, old technology) is the mashup. A mashup is when someone takes an already existing technology (generally from a large, well-established company) and overlays it with their own data. This data is usually of such a niche character that the big company would not be interested in developing it. One such example of a mashup is BibleMap.org.

BibleMap.org is currently in beta, but already shows tremendous promise. It is a mashup of Google Maps with the Christian Scriptures,* particularly with geographic locations mentioned in those Scriptures. So, if you happen to be reading Acts 18 and see mention of locations like Athens, Corinth, Pontus, Rome, Macedonia, and Achaia - instead of simply glossing over the words without any understanding of how their location affects the story - you can quickly and easily view them using BibleMap.org. The site includes the text of the chapter you are reading in either the King James Version or English Standard Version as well as pictures and dictionary type descriptions of the locations. Clicking on a location in the text will bring up a balloon with additional information about that location on the map.

BibleMap.org is a great way to understand the geography of the Bible…Even if you are only reading it for its historic/literary value. Can one really understand a text without understanding the geography? Think of the difference between saying, “I walked from Albany to New York City” and “I walked from Albany to Santa Fe.” Big difference that can affect the way we read the story, yet we oftentimes overlook these significant hints in the storyline as we read the Bible.

*While it is particularly the Christian Scriptures which are enumerated it may be of interest to those from Jewish and Islamic backgrounds. The Old Testament of Christians is the Scriptures of the Jews and much of the New Testament takes place in the context of Israelite history and in relation to Judaism. Meanwhile, while Islam does not recognize the Bible as holding the same authority as Christians do, they do recognize it as an authority besides the Q’uran.

I sit back to relax and watch another movie. He pushes his children behind him, willing for the Janjaweed to depart. I stop by a fast food restaurant to buy some food. She screams as they strip her naked. Publicly raping her. I sit impatiently in traffic - frustrated I have to commute to work every day. A little boy gasps for breath, dehydrated, ill, malnourished - he will join the many that have died before him.

As a tween (yes, I am that young) I remember hearing about the Rwanda Genocide. I wonder how those who were in positions of power - the adults of my time - had allowed this to happen. Inside, I swore to not allow it to happen when I had anything to say about it. Yet now, Darfur still exists and people still die.

What is this Darfur I speak of? Darfur is a region in western Sudan. Traditionally Sudan has been divided between north and south. In the north was the official government, mainly Islamic in belief. In the south were rebels - mainly Christian and Animist. This conflict ended after decades of warfare, but another conflict began. This conflict is between the official government in Sudan, mainly consisting of Arab Muslims and the rebels in Darfur, mainly consisting of African Muslims. The rebels had been soundly beating the Sudanese government in regular warfare so the Sudanese government partnered up with the Janjaweed - local militia. These militia, with the military backing of the Sudanese government, have rained death and destruction not only upon enemy combatants - but upon innocent civilians.

How many? The counts are extremely rough, but the number of dead is somewhere between 200,000 and 400,000. Don’t let those numbers become abstractions. Focus on their reality. Consider your entire family dead, your extended family dead and you have not even begun to put a drop in the bucket of these deaths. Consider your entire town decimated and you have not begun to count the deaths. Furthermore, the deaths are only the beginning of the suffering. Around 2,500,000 Darfurians have been displaced from their homes, many of them have been displaced for several years. Their lives have stopped, now they can only wait. Many women have been raped - it is a systematic form of warfare against the innocents.

The Sudanese government refuses to allow a robust United Nations peacekeeping force into the region, despite the continued insistence of many governments around the world. More pressure is needed. SaveDarfur.Org is a catalyst for this action. This organization is “an alliance of over 170 faith-based, advocacy and humanitarian organizations” (e.g. American Jewish World Service, American Society for Muslim Advancement, National Association of Evangelicals, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops).

The site includes a variety of methods for becoming involved in advocacy for the people of Darfur. To mention just a few methods:

• Join the email newsletter. You will be regularly updated on individuals to email or otherwise contact in order to pressure for intervention.
• You can donate financially to the campaign in order to support awareness and advocacy efforts.
• You can become aware of the situation yourself by reading their news and blog articles.
• You can purchase clothing and similar items that promote awareness of the Darfur crisis.
• You can join a local group that seeks to raise awareness.

To learn more about the history of this situation, Wikipedia has an excellent summary article. I also highly recommend watching the film Hotel Rwanda, it is an eye-opening and heart-breaking experience.