Mad About Freecell?

A while back, I created a Yahoo Group, freecell_, for discussion of the Windows game of that name.

Anyone who loves the game as much as I do can join that group, if you wish.

Alternatively, I think I'll see what's available online here and, if necessary, set up a Freecell / Solitaire community myself.

Table

I posted this reply to a question on the preaching of hellfire on the blog of eclective:-

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What we really need is some form of social contract. A code of behaviour towards another which, while not a "law" in that it will involve police, courts, fines, prison etc., nevertheless outlines acceptable vs. unacceptable behaviours.

For example, sexually abusing a child - that is breaking the law. Cops, prison and rightly so. Vile. Murder - the same. Assaulting someone - the same.

Teaching children age four about hell? Sure, but it's ethically wrong and in breach of the social contract which outlines at what age children are allowed to be taught what subjects.

Suggestion for such a social contract:-

Age	Subject one can be taught
4	Avoiding selfish behaviour (selfishness is wrong, share and share alike, play nice, be kind)
5	Everything has its time, and everything dies. But death is something to look forward to after a happy life: it's what you do with your life that counts.
6	People live in communities, and in those communities we know one another and look out for one another, helping out when we can.
7	Some people find solace in religion. Among the religions from which we can choose are the following:- (list choices)
16	Choose a religion, if you wish. Or learn more about what religions mean to you. It's up to you.

Personally, I feel that religions should not be foisted upon children. They should stay clear of it until they're at least old enough to vote, and to choose for themselves as fully grown adults.

YMMV, of course.

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I really only put up this post here because I love what I did with the table. I love HTML, and I just want to keep the basic structure handy in case I need it for a later post.

Diary of a Lojbanist, Part 2

So why Lojban? And wtf is Lojban anyway?

The following explanation comes from the Lojban Home Page:-

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What Is Lojban?

Lojban is a carefully constructed spoken language designed in the hope of removing a large portion of the ambiguity from human communication. It was made well-known by a Scientific American article and references in both science fiction and computer publications. Lojban has been built over five decades by dozens of workers and hundreds of supporters.

While there are many artificial languages, Lojban has a number of features which make it unique:

* Lojban is designed to be used by people in communication with each other, and possibly in the future with computers.
* Lojban is designed to be culturally neutral.
* Lojban grammar is based on the principles of logic.
* Lojban has an unambiguous grammar.
* Lojban has phonetic spelling, and unambiguous resolution of sounds into words.
* Lojban is simple compared to natural languages; it is easy to learn.
* Lojban's 1300 root words can be easily combined to form a vocabulary of millions of words.
* Lojban is regular; the rules of the language are without exception.
* Lojban attempts to remove restrictions on creative and clear thought and communication.
* Lojban has a variety of uses, ranging from the creative to the scientific, from the theoretical to the practical.

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Can't argue with that.

Here's a phrase of Lojban to whet the appetite. It's an imperative command:-

e'osai ko sarji la lojban.

Pronounced "eHOsai koh SARzhee lah LOZHban," it means "Please support Lojban."