Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!inter2.interstice.com!news.ironhorse.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!news.inc.net!news.us.world.net!ns2.mainstreet.net!news.PBI.net!usenet ~From: The Polymath ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 23:10:55 -0700 Organization: Polymath Enterprises ~Lines: 13 Message-ID: <3223E2EF.75C7@pacbell.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223D796.455B@pacbell.net> ~Reply-To: polymath@pacbell.net NNTP-Posting-Host: ppp-206-171-250-86.vntrcs.pacbell.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b6Gold (Win95; I) I've passed the word about StM to Soprano, who's been too busy to be much of a presence here of late. She sends her condolences and will check in as soon as her computer is set up again (she just moved to a new apartment). She wanted to know if anyone had heard anthing about funeral plans. Some of us in the area who knew Carl personally would want to attend. -- The Polymath (aka: Jerry Hollombe, M.A., CDP) polymath@pacbell.net <<<===PLEASE NOTE NEW E-MAIL ADDRESS http://www.babcom.com/polymath <<<===AND NEW HOME PAGE URL (818) 882-6309 Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!netnews.nwnet.net!news.u.washington.edu!homer30.u.washington.edu!bastet ~From: "K. Ohanlon" ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 02:27:26 -0700 Organization: University of Washington ~Lines: 40 Message-ID: ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <4vu4r8$3ai@babylon5.babcom.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: homer30.u.washington.edu Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII NNTP-Posting-User: bastet In-Reply-To: <4vu4r8$3ai@babylon5.babcom.com> Crow blinks for a moment when she wanders back into the Place. There seem to be more folks in here than she's used to. They aren't staying long, and all seem to have rather sad expressions on their faces, as do many of the regulars. As she passes by the bar, she discreetly asks Mike what's going on. The big Irishman is looking less than completely jolly himself. As he shares his distressing news, Crow's eyes widen and she goes slightly pale for a moment. "Oh, no," is all that she can manage to whisper, before she orders a small Bacardi and Coke. She stands back for a moment, listening to all the other patrons, past and present, who make toasts to honor the controversial kzin. She hesitates for a moment, then also steps forward to say her peace. "I only knew Carl Lydick as Speaker-to-Minerals. I never met the man face to face, and the first time he and I ever 'spoke' was during a flamewar I inadvertantly started by dumping a bunch of rum on him as a joke, and then had the bad grace to get scared about the infamous kzinti's temper and apologize." Crow smiles wryly. "Twas for the apology that I got flamed." "Can't say as I always agreed with Speaker. Sometimes his posts made me mad enough to snarl, but even then I couldn't deny that the guy did stand up for himself. That he had exacting standards for everyone, including himself. I may not have necessarily liked him, but I did have a great deal of grudging respect for him." "I had been gone from here for awhile because of various things in RL, and when I finally returned, it was to an alt.callahans lacking Speaker. Oddly enough, i missed seeing his posts. Yes, even the ones that made me furious. It saddens me more to learn that he won't be posting here ever again." With that, Crow drains her glass, and sends it over to settle amid the flames. 'It seems fitting enough, since that was generally where StM was to be found most times anyways.' -Kelley, aka Crow. Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!agate!ames!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.io.com!io.com!not-for-mail ~From: glo@io.com (Gareth L Owen) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 03:50:33 -0500 Organization: Illuminati Online ~Lines: 55 Message-ID: <50118p$i8k@bermuda.io.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> <32238039.4E1E@rand.nidlink.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: bermuda.io.com In article <32238039.4E1E@rand.nidlink.com>, Looking Wolf wrote: > >The wolf steps out of his corner and accepts a drink from Mike. > >"I did not know Speaker-to-Minerals well, nor did I know his Real Life >self at all. However, I have read enough of his posts to know that he >was a good, if troubled, soul. > >"There is a truly profound sense of loss that accompanies this news, one >that, for me, is greater than can be explained by the passing of one >whom I knew all too little. > >"In his absence, Callahan's was changed. With his death, Callahan's is >diminished." > >The wolf pauses for a moment, and looks at the chalk line beneath his >feet. When he raises his head again, the right side of his face has >been painted black. > >"Carl Lydick, Speaker-to-Minerals, had I known you better, I think that >I would have called you friend. You are missed." The wolf's empty >glass joins the many shattering into the fireplace. > >"Be well, my friend. May your path lead you to the happiness you seek; >may your spirit be always in beauty. May your spirit be always in >beauty." > >...Looking Wolf The Stranger descends silently from the rafters, places a single coin on the bar in exchange for a Bacardi and Coke and walks to the chalkline. "It's been a long time since I've been able to post here, I'm sorry my return has come to such bad news." He drains the glass "Looking wolf has said it all, I guess. We are lessened for his loss. He had intellectual integrity of a magnitude I've rarely seen." "Wherever you are, I hope you've found the Truth that was so important to you. goodbye Speaker-to-Minerals. Goodbye Carl." The Stranger places his glass, unbroken, on the fire. The Stranger -- Gareth L Owen |\_/| Roleplayer, karate man, shadowrunner glo@io.com (o o) Itinerant mountaineer and cynical idealist finger for PGP key \_/ http://www.io.com/~glo/ "Think for yourself - that means YOU citizen!" Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!newsfeeder.servtech.com!news1.io.org!not-for-mail ~From: deirdre@zap.io.org (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 05:05:18 -0400 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 30 Message-ID: <50124e$og8@zap.io.org> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <5006er$pss@starman.rsn.hp.com> <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: zap.io.org X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: New to Usenet? Subscribe to news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On Tue, 27 Aug 1996 21:41:32 -0700 in alt.callahans, The Polymath said: : Richard A. Schumacher wrote: : : >He'll be back. God will grow weary of Carl loudly pointing out all : >of His mistakes. : : ROTFL through tears! (-; : : Thanks. I needed that. Leslie, still laughing at an image of StM *demanding* answers from God, seconds Polymath's thanks. "StM said, not too long ago, that his idea of a perfect afterlife would be a place where 'you get to keep learning!'--a place where there are always new questions to find answers to, always new challenges. (Not that he believed in an afterlife at all, or the idea of a 'soul.' Strictly as an exercise in imagination.) "What do you suppose the world would be like, if God said, 'okay, you think *you* could do better? Be my guest...'" Leslie. We'd all have to learn calculus, *that's* for sure... -- Just the FAQs--If you need info about alt.callahans, I've got the FAQs! *** || ftp.io.org/pub/users/deirdre *** Sometimes the light's all shining on me--other times I can barely see-- Grateful Dead * If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane. J. Buffett Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!hunter.premier.net!netnews.worldnet.att.net!uunet!in3.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!nntp.earthlink.net!usenet ~From: BetNoir ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 08:41:22 -0700 Organization: BetNoir Pirate Wenching Academy ~Lines: 22 Message-ID: <322468A2.42A6@earthlink.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <500gb1$29f@nntp.crl.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: max4-vgd-ca-58.earthlink.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0 (Win16; U) I wish I could say that I KNEW Carl/Speaker....but I can't. Hell, I can't even claim that I was one of his flamees - I never did get to the exaulted level of 'asshole,' 'moron,' or 'shit-for-brains.' I even actually once wrested a public apology out of him for a posting he made in error that I corrected him on. So all that is left is that I must wonder why Carl and StM were such diametric opposites. StM was the one who ranted and raved, and yet I always had the feeling that the apology post was from Carl instead. Nevertheless....he DID believe in one thing that I wholeheartedly agree with. Get yer facts straight before posting! And if we can all do that, mayhaps StM's rants will not have been for nothing... BetN --- "I am a virus....and I am unclean.... I am not part of God's well-oiled machine...." - D. Elfman Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.patriot.net!news ~From: Lady Cheron ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 09:20:03 -0700 Organization: Wargamers, Sterling VA ~Lines: 13 Message-ID: <322471B3.4A3@patriot.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: th-0-7.patriot.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.01KIT (Win16; U) Lady Cheron, arriving belatedly, hears this announcement second-hand. She awaits her turn at the chalk line. Raising her glass, she toasts "Carl Lydick, and Speaker to Minerals. Gone, but not forgotten. The Place will be quieter and a bit sadder without you. May you find peace." Her glass joins the row of others on the fireplace tiles. -- Lady Cheron ------------------------------------------------------------------- Wargamers Website is up and running! Visit us at http://www.patriot.net/users/wargamer Say "HI" to Cody! -------------------------------------------------------------------- Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!tezcat!news.sprintlink.net!news-chi-8.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!news-chi-13.sprintlink.net!newsfeeder.servtech.com!news1.io.org!not-for-mail ~From: deirdre@zot.io.org (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 06:45:44 -0400 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 56 Message-ID: <50180o$3sr@zot.io.org> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: zot.io.org X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: New to Usenet? Subscribe to news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On 27 Aug 1996 19:06:49 -0400 in alt.callahans, David P. Murphy said: : PhaseOfTheMoon quietly walks in and leans against a wall unnoticed. Not so unnoticed... : He watches and listens, astonished, to the many people who mourn : the apparent passing of Speaker. Phase has never been here before, : never even known the place existed, until he heard voices inside : as he was passing by, discussing "Carl Lydick". "He posted to comp.os.vms under the address carl@sol1.gps.caltech.edu." Leslie notes. "Try searching DejaNews for his other address, lydick@sol1.gps.caltech.edu also," she adds, her voice faltering to realize that she'll never see either name on a post again... He is impressed : by the maturity of the bar's inhabitants, and is not quite sure : what to do. The only thing certain in his mind is that this was : not the desired outcome. He hesitantly clears his throat and : asks, to no one in particular, "Who knows what really happened : about his job at CalTech?" "As far as I am aware, there was only the rumor that he'd been fired, but no direct confirmation of anything. Apparently they kept the lid on it pretty tight, whatever it was." : He waits for an answer, wondering . . . did his letter to the : staff at GPS have anything to so with Carl's termination? "It seems...highly unlikely, to me, but who knows? I read a post in c.o.v. once where someone said that when he joined a VMS mailing list back in '87, about the first thing he saw was a debate over Carl's language. He's been flaming people on the net since there WAS a net. Why, suddenly, should his language become an issue major enough to fire him over, and without warning, at that? His...last...email to me spoke of things he planned to say in an upcoming post to a.c.. Whatever it was, it was not expected. "And you were scarcely the first, nor would you have been the last, to complain to his higher-ups, surely--? And besides, the rumor that we heard said it was more like 'he was spending too much time posting when he ought to have been working,' and not anything to do with his flames, anyway. And yet even that doesn't quite add up, since he's been posting like this for years and years. He told me he'd made the Top Ten by Volume of Posts to Usenet list before, and that was two years ago... "Perhaps, now that he's gone, someone will let the real story out..." Leslie. -- Just the FAQs--If you need info about alt.callahans, I've got the FAQs! *** || ftp.io.org/pub/users/deirdre *** Sometimes the light's all shining on me--other times I can barely see-- Grateful Dead * If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane. J. Buffett Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!sdd.hp.com!col.hp.com!fc.hp.com!news.lvld.hp.com!news ~From: Randy Martens ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 09:50:24 -0700 Organization: The Vectra at the End of the Universe ~Lines: 22 Message-ID: <322478D0.4CA4@lvld.hp.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <4vu4r8$3ai@babylon5.babcom.com> <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU> NNTP-Posting-Host: hplvlrm1.lvld.hp.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0 (Win16; I) Wayne S Garmil wrote: > > In article <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU>, > Sailor Jim wrote: > > > >P.S. Shipmates, do the man proud and hang that plaque on the back wall > >of the fireplace (on the inside, of course, to remember him every time > >you see the flames). > > You know, I *like* this suggestion. Yes, Carl's name deserves to be > added to the plaque on the moon, I'm not saying it shouldn't go there. > But having a second plaque for him, hung by the fireplace so when we > see the flames we think of Carl, that just seams VERY appropriate. I second this notion. Lets carve a plaque of a suitable fireproof matierial and put it up inside the fireplace. Perhaps we could even find a picture of Carl scowling and engrave it on the plaque! Randy -- | "Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no | | basis for a system of government" ----------- M. Palin | Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!news.sgi.com!sdd.hp.com!col.hp.com!fc.hp.com!news.lvld.hp.com!news ~From: Randy Martens ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 10:14:30 -0700 Organization: The Vectra at the End of the Universe ~Lines: 80 Message-ID: <32247E76.5DA1@lvld.hp.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvstr$28t@boris.eden.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: hplvlrm1.lvld.hp.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0 (Win16; I) A little net fishing has produced this. I think it's Carl's last post. If anybody's got anything else, please let me know. BTW, you can see that Carl is in fine form below ;-) Randy --- B E G I N S --- ~Subject: Re: BLACK BODY RADIATION INSIDE ALL BOXES CARL. ~From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) ~Date: 1996/06/23 Message-Id: <4qih5c$qlc@gap.cco.caltech.edu> Distribution: world ~References: <4qekct$hnh@lll-Winken.llnl.gov> <4qhaj6$9sb@gap.cco.caltech.edu>, Organization: HST Wide Field/Planetary Camera ~Reply-To: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU ~Newsgroups: sci.physics,alt.sci.physics.new-Theories,sci.astro,sci.skeptic In article , Keith Stein writes: =>=>, Keith Stein writes:- =>=>|> It seems to me therefore, that the =>=>|> background radiation is more naturally explained as the remnant of =>=>|> Olbers' radiation, rather than as a remnant of the Big Bang. = =>= "William S. Lawson" writes =>=>The problem with this is that the wavelength distribution is not =>=>right. The wavelength distribution is measured to be a blackbody =>=>spectrum to within the experimental accuracy. If the radiation were =>=>a superposition of many blackbody (stellar) spectra at different =>=>temperatures, as it would be in the Olber's scenario, we would see =>=>a very different distribution. = => Keith Stein writes:- =>=I can't see why you say that Bill. All stars give a good approximation =>=to Black Body radiation, but even if they didn't, when you shut one up =>=in a box, which is effectively what the visible universe is, then the =>=spectrum inside the box must be a be a 'perfect black body spectrum'. = = Carl J Lydick writes =>Clearly you've got a problem understanding what black body radiation is. = =IT'S YOU'VE GOT THE PROBLEM UNDERSTANDING,CARL. THE RADIATION INSIDE ANY = AND EVERY ENCLOSURE IN EQUILIBRIUM IS 'PERFECT BLACK BODY RADIATION'. So tell us, please, o magnificent moron, just what is the "enclosure" you're postulating here? Please note that this "enclosure" must have the properties that: 1) It absorbs all radiation coming from the inside, and reradiates that energy; and 2) It allows some radiation to pass through unimpeded, allowing us to observe the structure of the galaxies that are inside the enclosure. =(If you don't beleive this please look it up in a physics text book). =Now you can't show me any enclosure that's had longer to get to =equilibrium than the universe . Hence as i said, i would expect the =cosmic background radiation to be 'perfect black body radiation', =and i do know what that is, =thank you Carl. Sorry, shit-for-brains, but your analysis requires that something somewhere absorb and reradiate the energy, and you've yet to tell us what you think that something might be. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL Disclaimer: Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS. That's what I get paid for. My understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below). So unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my organization responsible for it. If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it. --- E N D I T --- -- | "Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no | | basis for a system of government" ----------- M. Palin | Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!tezcat!news.sprintlink.net!news-chi-8.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!news-chi-13.sprintlink.net!newsfeeder.servtech.com!news1.io.org!not-for-mail ~From: deirdre@zot.io.org (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 07:18:55 -0400 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 53 Message-ID: <5019uv$659@zot.io.org> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: zot.io.org X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: New to Usenet? Subscribe to news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On Tue, 27 Aug 1996 21:40:09 -0700 in alt.callahans, The Polymath said: : Carl suffered from insulin dependent diabetes and all its attendant : consequences (pick a symptom, any symptom, he probably had it in : spades at some point). "And allergies, and asthma, and high blood-pressure, and was overweight, and smoked, and drank..." He also suffered from congestive heart failure : and was scheduled for 6x bypass surgery early this year, but changed : his mind for reasons likely known only to himself. (Supposedly, the : operation would have prolonged his life, but not improved its quality. : Carl decided it wasn't worth it). "He said that a *BIG* part of the reason for *postponing* (AFAIK) the surgery was that he was very reluctant to burden someone with the responsibility of ordering the plug to be pulled, should the surgery result in his becoming a vegetable. He didn't want to screw up the lady's life, even if it perhaps cost him his." Tears and the memory of tears fill Leslie's eyes. "Fatheaded noble...." she whispers, reliving that email conversation. : I always admired his stubborn refusal to let his infirmities interfere : with his life any more than absolutely necessary -- although it often : worsened his health to do so. He never struck me as the actively : suicidal type. "He'd talked about feeling suicidal in posts to a.c. before, though. I read one from December 1993 saying just that, as (I think?) his brother had just committed suicide. His father also took his own life. But he was a fighter, and always seemed to have an instinct for survival which kept him going..." : All in all, "illness" is the most likely cause of his passing. "If he quit taking his meds, he'd be pretty ill, alright. I can't help but wonder what being cut off from the net did to him. He had other interests outside of the net, but it *was* an integral part of his life. And he did love his VAXen, too..." "But speculation in that direction is useless. In the absence of facts and the presence of conflicting evidence, the only logical thing to do is to withhold judgement. We can't know anything unless they do an autopsy and make the results public." Leslie. -- Just the FAQs--If you need info about alt.callahans, I've got the FAQs! *** || ftp.io.org/pub/users/deirdre *** Sometimes the light's all shining on me--other times I can barely see-- Grateful Dead * If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane. J. Buffett Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!news.math.psu.edu!news3.cac.psu.edu!news.cse.psu.edu!news.cc.swarthmore.edu!netnews.upenn.edu!dsinc!news.acsu.buffalo.edu!news.drenet.dnd.ca!crc-news.doc.ca!nott!bcarh189.bnr.ca!nrchh45.rich.nt.com!news.utdallas.edu!news.starnet.net!spool.mu.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news-res.gsl.net!news.gsl.net!uwm.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 09:47:17 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 65 Message-ID: <501m5l$f0h@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu A small dot climbs the steep stairs. The stairs connect the meadow to the moon. No easy way by starship this time. No speedy trip and a quick return. Linda and Robbie wait patiently near the plaque. The figure moves slowly with his burden. Step by painful step. Exercise hasn't been done by him in years. A trip of this many thousand miles takes a very long time. He appears to be carrying something. What it is, isn't exactly clear. It is heavy, very heavy, but DJ doesn't drop it or put it down for a rest. He could ask for Linda's help, but wont. He could ask for other folk's help, but wont. He would refuse help, if it was offered. Days go by. Weeks. The extremes of outer space. DJ finally arrives at the plaque. He struggles with the object. Its a plaque of gold and bronze. And upon it is written in mithril. "Good-bye Carl Speaker-To-Minerals Lydick. I will miss your friendship Sometimes we disagreed You told some great puns. And I just _know_ that Death had second thoughts by the time you were through with him ! Good-bye to someone I was Proud to call Friend !" The plaque is placed upon the lunar soil. On a small stand by itself, for Carl was one of a kind, and he stood apart, a cat who walked by himself, his wild alone. But I do know he had friends, for I am one of them. A song wanders through DJ's mind: 'softly falls the light, as the sun sits down behind the hills, a new star shines up in the sky, it waxes and wanes, much as the person whom it represents did. I will miss him, Good night my friend, Good night.' >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>CRASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Dreamy Jim, Linda the Starship, and Robbie the Robot. DJ walks back down those stairs, and sits in the meadow, where the green grass grows, by his wild alone. [and if any disagree, tough.] -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!newsfeed.pitt.edu!bb3.andrew.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!bg0l+ ~From: Bruce E Golightly ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 09:01:49 -0400 Organization: Administrative Computing & Info Services, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA ~Lines: 5 Distribution: world Message-ID: ~References: <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: po7.andrew.cmu.edu In-Reply-To: <9608270819.AA00523@192.80.10.188> To Speaker - we are diminished by your loss. Anam Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!netnews.worldnet.att.net!cbgw2.att.com!cbgw3.att.com!news.PBI.net!usenet ~From: The Polymath ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 12:22:55 -0700 Organization: Polymath Enterprises ~Lines: 25 Message-ID: <32249C8F.51DF@pacbell.net> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> <5019uv$659@zot.io.org> ~Reply-To: polymath@pacbell.net NNTP-Posting-Host: ppp-206-171-250-57.vntrcs.pacbell.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b6Gold (Win95; I) Leslie wrote: >On Tue, 27 Aug 1996 21:40:09 -0700 in alt.callahans, The Polymath said: >:He also suffered from congestive heart failure >:and was scheduled for 6x bypass surgery early this year, but changed >:his mind for reasons likely known only to himself. ... >"He said that a *BIG* part of the reason for *postponing* (AFAIK) the >surgery was that he was very reluctant to burden someone with the >responsibility of ordering the plug to be pulled, should the surgery >result in his becoming a vegetable. He didn't want to screw up the lady's >life, even if it perhaps cost him his." ... "The lady" may wish to comment herself when she gets to this post. I can testify she was far more concerned for Carl's health than any inconvenience it might have caused her and repeatedly tried to contact him for details, paperwork, etc. While I admire his motives, I think, at the end of the day, he did her an injustice and a disservice. -- The Polymath (aka: Jerry Hollombe, M.A., CDP) polymath@pacbell.net <<<===PLEASE NOTE NEW E-MAIL ADDRESS http://www.babcom.com/polymath <<<===AND NEW HOME PAGE URL (818) 882-6309 Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.nidlink.com!usenet ~From: Looking Wolf ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 12:26:52 -0700 Organization: NetLink, Inc. ~Lines: 31 Message-ID: <32249D7C.128F@rand.nidlink.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> <4vvd7n$7i9@eagle.ais.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: pm2-25.nidlink.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b6Gold (Win95; I) Roland X wrote: > > > Carl would, if he were truly dead, be rolling over in his grave over the > > self-serving weeping occuring here at this moment. You tip your vain > > and virtual glasses to yourselves: no other. Enjoy your sentimental > > trip. Carl would have none of it. Carl needed help in his present, > > not in this one. Let it be. > > Indeed he would. And if he were alive, he'd come back and roast us > all for mourning him on flimsy evidence. > As for that mourning, I'm quite certain that he knew enough about > the grieving process to know that a funeral is held for the survivors > as much as, if not more than, for the dead. We mourn for his passing > because we are dimished thereby. > And if we wish him well in whatever lies beyond, that is our business. The wolf nods. "Grief is almost always for those left behind, and there is nothing wrong with that. Knowing that one for whom you care is gone, effectively forever, is a painful, empty feeling. Just because someone is large-hearted enough to want no grief at their passing does not mean they would despise those who are hurt by it." ...Looking Wolf Sunset, and evening star, and one clear call for me. And may there be no moaning of the bar when I put out to sea. --Alfred, Lord Tennyson (title of poem and proper scansion regretfully forgotten) Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 11:02:03 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 25 Message-ID: <501qhr$h4b@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu PhaseOfTheMoon: >Phase waits at the bar, wondering if maybe the world sucks because >someone is willing to lose his job and maybe his life to stick to >his principles, wondering if that's what speaker was about, wondering >if he'll ever know the truth about speaker. Last year, he found a job possibility for me at Cal Tech. I asked hiom if I should mention he recommended me for the job. He said he didn't think it was a good idea to mention that to Personnel. Maybe later if i got to the interview stage. So, no Dave, I don't believe you got him fired. I don't know for certain. Join us if you want to. I don't hold that letter against you. He did hold to his principles. Strongly hold to them he did. Hugs, DJ. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!super.zippo.com!zdc-e!news-out.microserve.net!news-in.microserve.net!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 11:07:17 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 13 Message-ID: <501qrl$h7s@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <5006er$pss@starman.rsn.hp.com> <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> <50124e$og8@zap.io.org> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu Leslie: >"What do you suppose the world would be like, if God said, 'okay, >you think *you* could do better? Be my guest...'" thank you Leslie. I can imagine it happening. Hugs, DJ. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 11:19:20 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 25 Message-ID: <501ri8$i98@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> <50124e$og8@zap.io.org> <501gj0$gu2@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu []>Leslie. We'd all have to learn calculus, *that's* for sure... [] [] kitten chokes. "i had the chance to get him to teach me math, and i [] let it slide. the mind boggles at the thought of a speaker-run [] universe....i hope there would be a small corner reserved for us [] bimbos. Of course there would be such a corner. I would have to have a place to sit with you. And we could watch hime arrange things. [] DAMNIT ANYHOW!" yes. i was certain he would outlast me. Now, I outlast him. my health is better than his was, but he was much more stubborn than me. As for my beliefs, I think Death has a black eye, and a couple of broken bones, at the least. Hugs, DJ. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!news.supernet.net!news.magicnet.net!news.sprintlink.net!news-fw-6.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!new-news.sprintlink.net!news.infi.net!imci5!pull-feed.internetmci.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.iadfw.net!usenet ~From: Sam Robinson ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 10:46:25 -0400 Organization: INTERNET AMERICA ~Lines: 13 Message-ID: <32245BC1.14AC@interpath.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: user-168-121-229-113.dialup.mindspring.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.01 (Win95; I) Sam walks up to the line at the line and waits patiently, quietly watching the faces of the rest of the patrons. When his turn comes he says "Carl, or Speaker I didn't ever have the fortune to meet you. But when ever and where ever your name was mentioned there was an immediate reaction. I have heard praise for your intellect, and some criticism of your manner, in your Speaker persona. In any case, you have been a force shaping this place I love, and it would not be the same without your influence. I wish I had known you. -- Sam Robinson Samstuff@mindspring.com ____________________________________________________________ If you don't know what you want, you can never ever have it. Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.io.com!io.com!not-for-mail ~From: leslie@io.com (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 14:24:13 -0500 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 34 Message-ID: <5026ct$j5f@pentagon.io.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <32245BC1.14AC@interpath.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: pentagon.io.com X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: If you're new to Usenet, read news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On Wed, 28 Aug 1996 10:46:25 -0400 in alt.callahans, Sam Robinson said: : Sam walks up to the line at the line and waits patiently, quietly : watching the faces of the rest of the patrons. When his turn comes he : says "Carl, or Speaker I didn't ever have the fortune to meet you. But : when ever and where ever your name was mentioned there was an immediate : reaction. "This is true. Rare indeed was the person who was indifferent to StM entirely--if any such person existed at all. He was a lightening rod for a lot of things; he acted as a polarization factor on most any issue he argued. He brought out both the best--and the worst-- in just about everyone who read his posts. The latter is not so hard to achieve--the former is also rare indeed." I have heard praise for your intellect, and some criticism of : your manner, in your Speaker persona. In any case, you have been a force : shaping this place I love, and it would not be the same without your : influence. I wish I had known you. "You can know him, if you care to--much is archived by DejaNews (http://www.dejanews.com). Set up a filter to search alt.callahans for this year, using the author lydick@sol1.gps.caltech.edu. Also there is the alt.callahans archive maintained by frood, which you can find a link to from my webpage as well as from shadowcat's page at http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html. "Just remember--his net.personna was a deliberate construct; it was only the expression of one facet of his personality. Do not mistake his posts to a.c. or anywhere else as painting a full picture of who he was, because you'll jump to wrong conclusions that way." Leslie. Who saw a whole other side to him in email. Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!van-bc!news.mindlink.net!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news1.erols.com!news ~From: Noel Lynne Figart ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 09:37:50 GMT Organization: Pendragon Dream Factory ~Lines: 24 Message-ID: <50141e$2re@test-sun.erols.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: frd-as1s04.erols.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.22KIT (Windows; U; 16bit) claudia@funster1.student.harvard.edu (Claudia Mastroianni) wrote: >"If I may make a possibly controversial toast about a very controversial >patron..." He probably would have had it no other way! > >"To a loyal friend, a stubborn arguer, an ass, a scientist; someone >people blamed when they left alt.callahans, someone people laughed >to see 'still here' when they came back. I never liked his tactics, >but I came to respect his goals. To Carl Lydick, Speaker to Minerals." > >*CRASH* Noel grins wryly and runs a hand through her hair, "You said it better than I ever could, Claudia. That irritating, grumpy Kzin "did" get me back into studying math." Noel tosses back a Long Island Iced tea and sends it crashing into the fireplace. Alamus trots over to Noel and wraps his trunk around her ankle as she stares into the flames shaking her head and biting her lip -- not knowing whether to laugh or cry. Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.io.com!io.com!not-for-mail ~From: leslie@io.com (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 15:34:05 -0500 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 86 Message-ID: <502aft$lke@pentagon.io.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: pentagon.io.com X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: If you're new to Usenet, read news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On Tue, 27 Aug 1996 11:58:45 -0500 in alt.callahans, Alan B. Combs said: All of a sudden, Leslie realizes the irony...this will be the last time Speaker's name is in the title of a thread... One last time, then, a thread to join all the hundreds of others with your name in the subject line, StM. I promise to try to represent your side in your absence, knowing how much you hated to be misinterpreted. What would you really reply to all this? I don't know. But I'll give it my best, most educated shot... Forgive me if I don't flame anyone you would have flamed... : I discovered alt.callahans about February of this year, at a time when I : really needed it. I lurked for a while before participating and grew to : appreciate Carl's depth of general knowledge and scholarship -- in many, : many areas. After wiping her eyes so she can read the screen again, Leslie says, "Out of curiosity...and I was always nosy and prying...to which he never objected...I once asked him just what all he considered himself an 'expert' in. And he said..." --- [Speaker, circa April 1996] Well, let's see. In engineering and science, there's four years as an undergrad at Caltech. Social sciences? Four years of grad work at Caltech. Actual degrees earned: None. I was one lab course short of a BS in engineering, ran out of financial aid before completing a thesis in economics, and was ill enough at the time that I didn't get around to filling out the paperwork for a terminal MS. Expert level: The VAX/VMS operating system. Very knowledgeable about: Physics, up to but not including general relativity; Electrical engineering; Political science; Microeconomics. With a less stringent criterion: Biochemistry (at least as it applies to diabetes), Mechanical engineering, General chemistry, Mathematics (up to about the level of complex analysis), Carpentry, Masonry, Cooking. ------ [...] : I did not like his anger (or at least what I perceived as anger, though he : said it was not) and his intolerance for the fuzzy, ambiguous, : easy-to-misinterpret nature of words. I do affirm the strong, wonderful, : helpful resource he was. He fought ignorance, diabetes, and congestive : heart failure. I wonder if lack of hope for the future, and similar lack : of hope for the present contributed to the anger we saw at the end of his : postings. Until we are able to walk in his shoes, perhaps, even the anger : and flames should be forgiven. "Don't jump to conclusions. There were a lot of flames then, true, but don't forget that he was involved in defending himself against misinterpretations. And perhaps it was just chemically pure chance that several subjects came up at once that fit his criteria for 'things which deserve to be flamed.' Painting him as being so unself-aware of his own emotional state does him a major disservice." : To Carl J. Lydick, a *man*. The journey is not over. Albeit, you : rejected the concept, may God's grace go with you. "I hope you aren't referring to the God of the Old and New Testament. StM really hated that guy a lot. The God of the Deists, he'd be willing to go along with..." : C R A S H (then hugs and tears around) Thank you. Leslie. Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.io.com!io.com!not-for-mail ~From: leslie@io.com (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 15:48:42 -0500 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 31 Message-ID: <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: pentagon.io.com X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: If you're new to Usenet, read news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On 27 Aug 1996 14:49:45 GMT in alt.callahans, barbara trumpinski said: : kitten comes out of the folx room dressed in flame red. "by all the : gods and goddesses that speaker didn't believe in, let's make merry : and have the best damn wake we can." she lifts the rum and diet coke : that has been handed to her. "to speaker, and to us all...this life : is sometimes not big enough to hold us. let the circle be open but : never broken." "Put the Animaniacs tapes in the VCR. He loved that show. And then a lot of old B movies..." : radio free colorado(tm) starts playing: a medley of swing interspersed : with the grateful dead and other random songs...but not 'suicide is : painless'. "Truckin'. They have to play Truckin'. There was a thread once where people were telling what the theme song to the movie of the story of their life would be, and that's what he said." : (leslie, don't cry) "I can't help it," Leslie says, "I wanted to meet him someday, and give him a real hug, and scratch his ears. I'm sure he knew how much I cared about him, but I still wanted the chance to *tell* him, face to face," More tears spilling down her cheeks, she adds, "This is the first time in my life I've ever lost someone I really cared about." Leslie. I thought he was too stubborn to die... ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!world!wgarmil ~From: wgarmil@world.std.com (Wayne S Garmil) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker Message-ID: Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <4vu4r8$3ai@babylon5.babcom.com> <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 11:37:30 GMT ~Lines: 20 In article <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU>, Sailor Jim wrote: > >P.S. Shipmates, do the man proud and hang that plaque on the back wall >of the fireplace (on the inside, of course, to remember him every time >you see the flames). You know, I *like* this suggestion. Yes, Carl's name deserves to be added to the plaque on the moon, I'm not saying it shouldn't go there. But having a second plaque for him, hung by the fireplace so when we see the flames we think of Carl, that just seams VERY appropriate. Wayne (who expected Speaker to out-last us all here) -- _ __ _ __ Who wants to live forever ' ) / // / / ) / If true love has to die? / / / o // __/ / __. __ __/ - F. Mercury & B. May (_(_/ <_ Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest) X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1] ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 12:06:30 GMT ~Lines: 104 ~Sender: tlsmith@netcom12.netcom.com Ilene H. Morgan (imorgan@umr.edu) wrote: : In article <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu>, kittent@staff.uiuc.edu : (barbara trumpinski) wrote: : >kitten is as white as a ghost as she drops the phone. "i just called : >speaker's bar in pasadena and the man who answered the phone said carl : >was found dead on friday. i don't know any other details. if anyone : >out there can help, please do." : >she raises her glass in a silent toast. : Ilene sadly shakes her head. Usually she likes to be right, but there are : times when she would have dearly loved to have been wrong, and this is one : of those times. : "To Carl. May you have an easier time in the next world, if any, than you : did in this one." : *CRASH* : Ilene I, too, would have preferred to have been wrong. Ilene and a few others will know what I mean; it is not important now. After I first entered alt.callahans, and "noticed" Speaker, I back- tracked and read many of his archived articles. I had respect for his brilliance and knowledge. I did not agree with his tactics, particularly in the last months here in Callahan's. I saw him more and more using logical trickery and the strawmen he warned of himself, to "win" arguments, whether his points were valid or not. As his articles became more and more vituperative, I often wondered if he was somehow proving to himself that he was still living, and was having an effect in the world. Heat and agitation can be signs of life. Several of us worried about Carl, privately. I know that we would have *preferred* that he *have* that operation, and possibly regain some health. It was his choice not to. I do not know why. There were many things I did not understand about Carl. He came to my defense once, even after I had replied (in email) to a letter of his in which he addressed me by a name other than my own by telling him that if he could not pay enough attention to what he was reading to attribute it correctly, then I didn't think I would put much faith in what he was saying about it, either. Shortly thereafter, he *completely* misinterpreted a "fun" post that I made, an obvious intellectual *game* of speculation, as an avowal of my own personal beliefs. At that point, he seemed not to be able to understand the difference between a "Gee...What if..." where folx take an oddball premise and rip it apart for fun, and deep religious beliefs. I tried to explain to him in email, but was unsuccessful. For some time after I once remarked that my NetCom server did not pick up all the alt.callahans articles, he sent me emails explaining the propagation of articles on USENET. A *lot* of emails explaining that. Over and over *again*. I kept telling him that I really did understand it, and he kept sending those articles. I don't understand *that*, either. He did keep me brushed-up on my analytical reasoning. I annoyed me that he expected folx to say "You are right, Speaker," if he made a point in one of the ubiquitous flame fests he indulged in, but would not do the same himself. And I worried about him as his articles became less meticulous, and his reasoning more sloppy. When I told him via email that I was worried, he ignored my letters. No, I did not understand "Speaker to Minerals" or Carl Lydick. I admired his brilliance, and I respected him, when he adhered to his own oft-referred-to logical preciseness and rules of debate. I hope wherever "Carl" is, if anywhere, that it is somewhere *interesting*, and that he is well, and alert, and learning. Perhaps the Library of the Milky Way has just taken on a new assistant. I doubt it will be long before he has it figured out how that place *should* be run... >>> crash <<< "Never insult anyone unintentionally." - Arthur H. Quirmbach (and others) "The One Great Commandment is: 'Thou Shalt Not Waste.'" - Arthur H. Quirmbach (and others) "The saddest thought in the world is that *nothing* lasts forever... The most comforting thought in the world is ... that nothing lasts forever." - Arthur H. Quirmbach - C'mell (M.Q.S. posting courtesy tlsmith@netcom.com) -- *--------------------------------------------------------------------* | M.Q.S. c/o T.L.S | "Don't play with that! You have no idea where | | tlsmith@netcom.com | it's been..." -- Speaker to Elevators | *--------------------------------------------------------------------* Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!newsxfer2.itd.umich.edu!portc01.blue.aol.com!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail ~From: nellibruce@aol.com (NelliBruce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 16:18:10 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) ~Lines: 14 ~Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com Message-ID: <5029i2$es4@newsbf02.news.aol.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~Reply-To: nellibruce@aol.com (NelliBruce) NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com One of the first things I did when I stumbled into The Place last summer was jump head first into an argument with Speaker. (I refer of course to the whole Didi- fest that was going on at the time.) He taught me a few things about myself and about Human Nature in general, and although I couldn't stand the son-of-a-bitch while he was around, I sure will miss him. HERE'S TO YOU, CARL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!CRAAAASHSHSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - The Averageman Path: news2.digex.net!uunet!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 17:19:37 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 11 Message-ID: <502glp$ge5@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU> <322478D0.4CA4@lvld.hp.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu Randy Martens wrote: >find a picture of Carl scowling and engrave it on the plaque! He was seldom angry when he made flame posts. I know that to be true, because he stated over and over he did no such thing. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!tesuque.cs.sandia.gov!sloth.swcp.com!news.ironhorse.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 17:29:00 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 12 Message-ID: <502h7c$i46@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu The Yendi wrote: >post, I *went* to the police station and *SAW* the report. I do not >think that this is flimsy evidence." by 'flimsy evidence' i think they refer to kitten's post. DJ. [ whom some might mistake for Kensie Graeme...] [ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ puzzles even me, so don't ask.] -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!tesuque.cs.sandia.gov!sloth.swcp.com!news.ironhorse.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 17:51:24 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 62 Message-ID: <502ihc$n1a@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <4vvu4g$ik3@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502dit$88j@mozz.unh.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu Kitten, i hope you and Patchmaker don't mind me borrowing that line there 'rage against the dying of the light.' Ode to a Kzin by DJ. Tis not yet sunset where i am, But a light has died, [ A rage against it going out is of no use,] Out there by the Western Shore, The Moon, cold heated orb, orbits 'round the Earth, Saturn spins like a top, Galaxies hiss in the Deep Dark, I travel via my mind's eye across the Universe, But one of those I would share my dreams with, He, Another Friend of mine is Gone, I had hoped to meet him at ConFrancisco, but he did not feel that his bicycle would make it that far, I wanted to travel there, to Cal Tech, But my money ran short, I had hoped to go to L.A. Con III, and make a shorter trip, but no money graced my wallet, There is always next time I said, But now there is no next time, I discovered his emotion when one day he came in here, and announced his brother had committed suicide, I cried with him, I knew he did not care for maudlin woe, So i sent him a polite email, And he thanked me. Twas then I learned forever more, He wasn't just an arguer. A few times we did engage in mock combat, When I called him a vegetable eating Kzin, And he called me monkey-boy, So. From 'monkey-boy' to a 'Kzin', Good Night My Friend ! Tis much too soon for you to go. Jim, aka DJ of alt.callahans. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!EU.net!usenet2.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!usenet1.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!dispatch.news.demon.net!demon!mail2news.demon.co.uk!argus.demon.co.uk ~From: Andy May ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 96 12:52:41 GMT ~Lines: 26 Message-ID: <841236761snz@argus.demon.co.uk> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <5006er$pss@starman.rsn.hp.com> <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> ~Reply-To: Andy@argus.demon.co.uk X-NNTP-Posting-Host: argus.demon.co.uk X-Newsreader: Demon Internet Simple News v1.30 X-Mail2News-Path: argus.demon.co.uk In article <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> polymath@pacbell.net "The Polymath" writes: > Richard A. Schumacher wrote: > > > >>kitten is as white as a ghost as she drops the phone. "i just called > >>speaker's bar in pasadena and the man who answered the phone said carl > >>was found dead on friday. i don't know any other details. if anyone > >>out there can help, please do." > > >He'll be back. God will grow weary of Carl loudly pointing out all > >of His mistakes. > > ROTFL through tears! (-; > > Thanks. I needed that. > "Owwwwww - that hurts" journeyman still has tears in his eyes, but from the pain of laughter rather than sorrow. "I'd vote to print that out and prop it next to Speaker's Plaque." "To Speaker to Minerals - often unappreciated, sometimes diskliked, but usually respected." [journeyman] Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!cdc2.cdc.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!kittent ~From: kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 13:09:08 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 21 Message-ID: <501gdk$gsc@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223D796.455B@pacbell.net> <3223E2EF.75C7@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: ux1.cso.uiuc.edu polymath: >I've passed the word about StM to Soprano, who's been too busy to >be much of a presence here of late. She sends her condolences and >will check in as soon as her computer is set up again (she just moved >to a new apartment). >She wanted to know if anyone had heard anthing about funeral plans. >Some of us in the area who knew Carl personally would want to attend. kitten looks up. "you might call dos amigos. i don't know anything about his RL(tm) family. and if you can remember helen's last name i really would like to know. (she's his librarian friend. the one he vacationed with). if you find out anything, please pass it along." -- kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski /\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" {=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're ~ not anywhere at all?' Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!kittent ~From: kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 13:12:00 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 27 Message-ID: <501gj0$gu2@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <5006er$pss@starman.rsn.hp.com> <3223CDFC.550@pacbell.net> <50124e$og8@zap.io.org> NNTP-Posting-Host: ux1.cso.uiuc.edu >Leslie, still laughing at an image of StM *demanding* answers >from God, seconds Polymath's thanks. > >"StM said, not too long ago, that his idea of a perfect afterlife >would be a place where 'you get to keep learning!'--a place where >there are always new questions to find answers to, always new >challenges. (Not that he believed in an afterlife at all, or the >idea of a 'soul.' Strictly as an exercise in imagination.) >"What do you suppose the world would be like, if God said, 'okay, >you think *you* could do better? Be my guest...'" >Leslie. We'd all have to learn calculus, *that's* for sure... kitten chokes. "i had the chance to get him to teach me math, and i let it slide. the mind boggles at the thought of a speaker-run universe....i hope there would be a small corner reserved for us bimbos. DAMNIT ANYHOW!" -- kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski /\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" {=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're ~ not anywhere at all?' ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!cdc2.cdc.net!news.texas.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uchinews!ap-seans.uchicago.edu!seanr ~From: seanr@fs-gate.uchicago.edu (Starknight) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker X-Nntp-Posting-Host: ap-seans.uchicago.edu Message-ID: ~Lines: 24 ~Sender: news@midway.uchicago.edu (News Administrator) Organization: University of Chicago/Comptrollers Office X-Newsreader: Trumpet for Windows [Version 1.0 Rev B final beta #1] ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vu0ej$r45@herald.concentric.net> <4vv563$r8c@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 13:41:10 GMT In article <4vv563$r8c@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) writes: >>Starknight watches as the others make their contributions, finishing his >>drink all the while. Getting up from his seat, he makes his way to the >>chalk line. >>"To Speaker-to-Minerals: without whom I would not be the man I am today. >>Thank you for your dedication to the truth. You shall be missed." >>The sable-clad Space Ranger tosses his glass into the air and propels it into >>the fireplace with a quick burst of his pressor beam. <<>> The >>glass shatters into fine pieces, like sand, which briefly form the face of a >>Kzintosh before drifting downward through the flames. >>I'm still numb >kitten turns to hug her lover. "you were the first person i told and >you helped me to realize that we are all part of this tapestry called >life... thank you." Starknight mutely accepts the hug, unable to choose words to express his sentiment even were he capable of speech. Starknight It's been a year for thoughts of mortality ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!uchinews!ap-seans.uchicago.edu!seanr ~From: seanr@fs-gate.uchicago.edu (Starknight) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker X-Nntp-Posting-Host: ap-seans.uchicago.edu Message-ID: ~Lines: 24 ~Sender: news@midway.uchicago.edu (News Administrator) Organization: University of Chicago/Comptrollers Office X-Newsreader: Trumpet for Windows [Version 1.0 Rev B final beta #1] ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvstr$28t@boris.eden.com> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 13:43:24 GMT In article <4vvstr$28t@boris.eden.com> rhartman@eden.com (Rachel Hartman) writes: >kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) wrote: >>kitten comes out of the folx room dressed in flame red. "by all the >>gods and goddesses that speaker didn't believe in, let's make merry >>and have the best damn wake we can." she lifts the rum and diet coke >>that has been handed to her. "to speaker, and to us all...this life >>is sometimes not big enough to hold us. let the circle be open but >>never broken." >Rach makes her way to the chalkline, Bacardi and Diet Coke in hand. >"I never met Carl in RL, but on a few occasions, when I needed it, he >sent me some sympathetic e-mail." She raises her glass. "Carl, if >there is indeed an afterlife, and you're in it, I hope you're >somewhere where the drinks are always just right, the debates are >rousing, and tempers are fireproof." >She drinks, then sets the glass gently beside the plaque. >"Mike? The Imperial Treasury of the Court of Chocolate is covering >the cost of Bacardi and Diet Cokes for all who wish." "Oooh, you're in trouble... that just happens to be my RL drink of choice..." Starknight Set me up a double, Mike... It's a wake! Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!ott.istar!istar.net!tor.istar!east.istar!news.nstn.ca!newsflash.concordia.ca!newsfeed.pitt.edu!dsinc!news.acsu.buffalo.edu!newsstand.cit.cornell.edu!newstand.syr.edu!sarkar3.syr.edu!shpark ~From: shpark@sarkar3.syr.edu (Sheeyun Park) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 13:48:04 GMT Organization: Syracuse University, Syracuse ~Lines: 6 Message-ID: <501imk$e75@newstand.syr.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: sarkar3.syr.edu "Rest in peace. I won't miss you, but I hope you rest in peace." shpark -- shpark@mailbox.syr.edu Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!inter2.interstice.com!news.ironhorse.com!news.uoregon.edu!hookup!news.nstn.ca!news.dal.ca!userrusj ~From: userrusj@is.dal.ca (John Barnstead) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 14:12:43 GMT Organization: Dalhousie University ~Lines: 21 Message-ID: <501k4r$as6@News.Dal.Ca> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <4vvu4g$ik3@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: is.dal.ca X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2] Roland X (rolandx@ix.netcom.com) wrote: : I later encountered Speaker-to-Minerals valiantly doing battle with : the Slugs during the Slug Invasion(tm). I learned then not to judge a : person by one aspect of them. He was witty, imaginative, and : generally a blast to be around. The flag over the headquarters of the LIMEX LIBERATION ARMY (tm), somewhere deep beneath Cheyenne Mountain, is lowered to half-staff as General Aloisius Ded and the legions of Tenthredinidae and other Slugs mourn the passing of their arch-foe. No one who saw it could ever forget the image of Speaker-to- Minerals slug-skiing down the slopes of Jezebel's volcano... You can't have a war without an enemy, and Speaker was happy to oblige... giving a great deal of pleasure to many people. Pernicious the Musquodoboit Harbour Farm Cat, remembering how he tried to disarm one of Speaker's favourite epithets anagrammatically, whispers his solution now as an epitaph: "Finish Star Orb, Speaker-to-Minerals... and when you're done, may it be the brightest jewel in the Patriarch's Firmament..." Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!hunter.premier.net!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!das-news2.harvard.edu!fas-news.harvard.edu!course2.harvard.edu!rkadel ~From: rkadel@course2.harvard.edu (Rachel Meredith Kadel) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 15:12:56 GMT Organization: Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts ~Lines: 58 Message-ID: <501nlo$p0q@decaxp.harvard.edu> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: course2.harvard.edu Hey, all, I just pulled into the bar to visit the wake, though I may stop back from time to time. In article <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net>, The Polymath wrote: >Francis A. Ney, Jr. wrote: > >>...without knowledge of his medical >>history, I couldn't even hazard an informed guess. And that guess would >>probably be wrong. It's happened before. > >Carl suffered from insulin dependent diabetes and all its attendant >consequences (pick a symptom, any symptom, he probably had it in >spades at some point). Which makes it particularly ironic that a moron on misc.health.diabetes whose ideas Speaker had ripped up one side and down the other (did a damned sight better job of it than I could, though Goddess knows I tried) finally resorted to claiming Carl (or Karl Lydik, as said moron, may he never darken my door again, insisted on spelling it) wasn't really diabetic, didn't know anything about diabetes, and was just hanging out on m.h.d. to inflate his ego. I guess that his deluded mind actually believed that - Carl rarely aired his (specific) problems in public. Said moron also threatened Carl's life. While I don't believe he followed through, he wouldn't be safe if he ever met me in person. >He also suffered from congestive heart failure Believe it or not, that may be YetAnotherDiabeticComplication(tm). >and was scheduled for 6x bypass surgery early this year, but changed >his mind for reasons likely known only to himself. (Supposedly, the >operation would have prolonged his life, but not improved its quality. >Carl decided it wasn't worth it). > >I always admired his stubborn refusal to let his infirmities interfere >with his life any more than absolutely necessary -- although it often >worsened his health to do so. He never struck me as the actively >suicidal type. > >All in all, "illness" is the most likely cause of his passing. His famed temper was more of an asset than a burden on m.h.d -- the enemies he made there were not the kinds of folks he would have wanted as friends. Mostly his ire was spent on the snake-oil salesmen and other ranters offering false, and therefore dangerous, medical advice. (I only got in range of his blowtorch once -- when he thought I was suggesting giving fluids to someone unconscious in an insulin reaction.) He'll be missed. Rachel "That leaves: shit piss fuck cunt cocksucker mother-fucker and tits (you have to say it with *rhythm*). We could all just add these to our .sigs." - Marco Simons on net censorship Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.inc.net!news ~From: Ager or Persson ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 15:13:39 GMT Organization: Internet Connect, Inc. The Wisconsin ISP 414-476-4266 http://www.inc.net ~Lines: 20 Message-ID: <501nn3$n9c@news.inc.net> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: 206.230.195.75 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.1 (Windows; U; 16bit) The Polymath wrote: He also suffered from congestive heart failure >and was scheduled for 6x bypass surgery early this year, but changed >his mind for reasons likely known only to himself. (Supposedly, the >operation would have prolonged his life, but not improved its quality. >Carl decided it wasn't worth it). Many bypass patients report feeling dull (permanently) after having been on the heart/lung machine....sort of like ginger ale without the fizz. Heart/lung machines aren't as efficient as our own hearts and lungs. I wouldn't blame Carl Lydick one bit for not wanting to blunt the mental acuity he was known for. -- Beth ---------- 73 de NN9E ---------- Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!netnews.com!udel-eecis!cpk-news-feed4.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!uuneo.neosoft.com!insync!news.io.com!io.com!not-for-mail ~From: leslie@io.com (Leslie) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 21:37:34 -0500 Organization: If I had any, I'd be dangerous. ~Lines: 41 Message-ID: <502vpe$3fk@xanadu.io.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <502pa9$ad2@news-central.tiac.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: xanadu.io.com X-Netiquette-Reminder: Save Bandwidth! Edit quoted material down to the minimum necessary for relevance. X-Official-Callahan's-Webpage: http://www.ice.net/~kwalsh/callahans.html X-Advice: If you're new to Usenet, read news.announce.newusers! X-Motto: Ad astra per aspera! X-Disclaimer: Those quotes aren't in my .sig for nothing, you know. On Thu, 29 Aug 1996 00:51:54 GMT in alt.callahans, The Unloved said: : The Unloved pokes his head out from his dark corner. He looks : confused and upset. "I know I've been wrapped up in my own problems, : as of late... and as a result I missed something important. Can : someone please tell about the dear departed... who he was and how it : happened?" Leslie smiles wryly. "A lot of folks...myself included...tended to refer to him as 'that s.o.b.' 'Dear departed...' doesn't *quite* seem to fit Speaker-to-Minerals... "We're not sure yet just how he died...my god, we don't even know WHEN he died, I just realized...we only know he was discovered dead by his landlord last Friday, the 23rd. "As to who he was...ah well, that's not easy. His name was Carl J. Lydick, and he was 40 years old. He was a VAX/VMS god and was the terror and genius of comp.os.vms as well as other groups, like misc.health.diabetes, and alt.callahans. His a.c. personna was that of a Kzin from the Niven _Ringworld_ universe (but I always privately believed he was a Kzin who'd been raised by Vulcans...) "He's listed in the Net.Legends FAQ maintained by Dave DeLaney (in part 4), but it's an outdated entry by now. "He was the original immoveable object, and that inspired many to try to play irresistable force...and a lot of them failed, rather spectacularly. "He was complex and complicated and just plain didn't *think* the same way most other folks do, although most people tried to fit him into a category they were more familiar with, causing them to misunderstand him by quite a wide margin. And often he didn't take the time and effort to explain himself--until he'd started an argument... "He--was a lot of different things, to different people. "He was someone I loved." Leslie. Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!ddsw1!news.mcs.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!newsxfer2.itd.umich.edu!agate!newsgate.duke.edu!news.eff.org!news.apk.net!wariat.org!kf8nh.apk.net!news ~From: bsa@kf8nh.apk.net (Brandon S. Allbery KF8NH) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 20:44:21 -0400 Organization: Brandon's home server in Parma, Ohio ~Lines: 27 Message-ID: <502p55$eb@kf8nh.apk.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: kf8nh.apk.net Also sprach kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) (<4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu>): +----- | kitten is as white as a ghost as she drops the phone. "i just called | speaker's bar in pasadena and the man who answered the phone said carl | was found dead on friday. i don't know any other details. if anyone +--->8 (gasp/shudder/...) As I write this, I find myself feeling --- empty. As I felt when my father died: the pain didn't hit until much later, but the void was there immediately. Which is appropriate, as in many ways I have pictured Carl as being a lot like my father: an intelligent, stubborn SOB who refused to bow to either common nonsense or his own disability (polio, in my father's case). I *know* I argued a lot with them both :-) --- but both of them made me think, a priceless gift. And, even more priceless, demonstrated that you don't have to put up with whatever BS other people want to hand you. If you were still here you'd probably start an argument over this :-) but that won't stop me from saying it and meaning it: may the Witness look upon you, treasure you, and commemorate you in succeeding generations. -- ++brandon s. allbery flying with merlin! bsa@kf8nh.apk.net telotech's "loup-guru" :-) FORZA CREW! bsa@telotech.com Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!news.inc.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in3.uu.net!atmnet.net!usenet ~From: bob@linkline.com (Bob Clevenger) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 23:52:51 -0700 Organization: Not Bloody Likely! ~Lines: 20 Message-ID: <322523be.15797652@news.linkline.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~Reply-To: bob@linkline.com NNTP-Posting-Host: 207.67.165.121 X-Newsreader: Forte Agent .99e/32.227 kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) wrote: >kitten is as white as a ghost as she drops the phone. "i just called >speaker's bar in pasadena and the man who answered the phone said carl >was found dead on friday. i don't know any other details. if anyone >out there can help, please do." > >she raises her glass in a silent toast. I join you in that toast. I tried to think of words, but failed. -=Bob=- in Ontario, Calif. NRA, CRPA, SCA, IOOF, N6MLV I'm a politician's worst nightmare --- A voter with a memory! Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!das-news2.harvard.edu!fas-news.harvard.edu!course2.harvard.edu!rkadel ~From: rkadel@course2.harvard.edu (Rachel Meredith Kadel) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 16:58:17 GMT Organization: Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts ~Lines: 22 Message-ID: <501tr9$pui@decaxp.harvard.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: course2.harvard.edu In article , Terry L. Smith wrote: > >For some time after I once remarked that my NetCom server did not >pick up all the alt.callahans articles, he sent me emails explaining >the propagation of articles on USENET. A *lot* of emails explaining >that. Over and over *again*. I kept telling him that I really did >understand it, and he kept sending those articles. I don't understand >*that*, either. Hmm. May have something tangential to do with an argument he was having with a True Kook on another group who, among other things, excoriated him for not retracting his (rare) errors until the messages pointing them out actually had time to *propagate* *to* *his* *site*. Said kook, of course, didn't *ever* admit error. Rachel "That leaves: shit piss fuck cunt cocksucker mother-fucker and tits (you have to say it with *rhythm*). We could all just add these to our .sigs." - Marco Simons on net censorship ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!netnews.com!uhog.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!spool.mu.edu!news.sol.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.sprintlink.net!news-stk-200.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!new-news.sprintlink.net!eskimo!news ~From: glinda@eskimo.com (g.l.wilson) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker X-Nntp-Posting-Host: tia1.eskimo.com Message-ID: ~Sender: news@eskimo.com (News User Id) Organization: totally lacking X-Newsreader: WinVN 0.93.10 ~References: <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> <9608270819.AA00523@192.80.10.188> <5004hu$od6@parlor.hiwaay.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 17:21:44 GMT ~Lines: 24 >In article <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com>, Randy Martens >writes: > Randy rummages around in his portfolio for a moment, pulls out a > small dilithium crystal and slaps it on the bar. > "Mike, Bacardi & Diet Coke for anyone who wants one, and mix me > one, please." "Mike, one of those for me, please?" ...and finding nothing at all to say... ***crash*** --glinda, thinking of a Kzin in the Summerlands -- glinda@eskimo.com "I have a life; I just don't have time for it." Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!spool.mu.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news-res.gsl.net!news.gsl.net!mcsun!EU.net!usenet2.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!usenet1.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!psinntp!psinntp!portc01.blue.aol.com!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail ~From: slywlf@aol.com (Slywlf) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 22:19:45 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) ~Lines: 16 ~Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com Message-ID: <502uo1$nr7@newsbf02.news.aol.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com X-Newsreader: AOL Offline Reader While I never crossed swords (or pens, or keyboards) with StM, (probably too much of a non-confrontational person), I read almost everything he posted with great interest. While I did not always like him, or, more precisely, his way of expressing himself, I was in awe of his brilliant mind. The occasional (too seldom, imho) flashes of humor were welcome delights, and he always could jump-start my brain even when I was too tired to care. I am truly sorry never to have "met" him properly as StM, or as Carl, and I will miss the 'tang' his presense made in Callahans. So, TO CARL, and his fascinating alter-ego StM >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>CRASH<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Your wisdom, strength of will, and willingness to share them will be sorely missed. Fewer flamewars is too big a price to pay for your loss. ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!hunter.premier.net!news1.erols.com!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!utcsri!info.ecf!news ~From: "LIN KA-MING (Magus Firecow)" ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Sender: news@ecf.toronto.edu (News Administrator) Message-ID: <32249061.7BCC@ecf.toronto.edu> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 18:30:57 GMT X-Nntp-Posting-Host: spark13.ecf Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (X11; I; SunOS 5.4 sun4m) Organization: University of Toronto, Engineering Computing Facility ~Lines: 21 A plaque on the south shore of Radiant Lake in Algonquin Park: "Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid Some heart once pregnant with celetial fire Whose hands the Rod of Empire might have swayed Or waked to ecstasy the living lyre." I don't know whether to wish that StM's resting in peace or that he's warring in the everafter as he seemed to here. I suspect that silence isn't something that StM would want, and I never met or knew Carl Lydick. So... <<>> I can imagine being chewed out even now for posting something I only suspect might be true, with no proof... Magus Firecow. ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!spool.mu.edu!news.nd.edu!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!news.inc.net!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.put.com!main.put.com!silence ~From: Silence and Shadow ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII ~Sender: usenet@news.put.com (The Root) Message-ID: ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32235f17.181655040@news.ukonline.co.uk> Mime-Version: 1.0 In-Reply-To: <32235f17.181655040@news.ukonline.co.uk> X-Nntp-Posting-Host: main.put.com ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 18:58:55 GMT ~Lines: 22 "I feel horrible for asking this," Silence says quietly, "but the beginning of this thread seems to have completely passed me by, and I have a feeling that it's too important to miss. If anyone has saved the articles, I would appreciate them being forwarded." She searches for words and can't find any more. At last, she says helplessly, "I didn't really know Speaker, but I saw some of his posts while lurking on this group and others. I respect a lot of what he said, though not necessarily how he said it, and I know he touched a lot of lives. If anyone needs someone to talk to or a shoulder to lean on, I will gladly give whatever help I can. I wish there were an unawkward way to say this, but there isn't--you all have my sympathy and my commiseration." She lofts a glass towards the fireplace, joining a number of others, and settles back to listen quietly to the eulogies. Silence and Shadow, Freelancers Extraordinaire Sword and claws for hire -- English and HTML writing and editing Mental and emotional healing -- Advice given and taken Reasonable prices and many, many references; email for information ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!fnnews.fnal.gov!unixhub!finch.SLAC.Stanford.EDU!panetta ~From: panetta@finch.SLAC.Stanford.EDU (The Yendi) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker Message-ID: ~Sender: news@unixhub.SLAC.Stanford.EDU Organization: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvd7n$7i9@eagle.ais.net> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 19:04:17 GMT ~Lines: 18 In article , Roland X wrote: > > Indeed he would. And if he were alive, he'd come back and roast us >all for mourning him on flimsy evidence. The Yendi is still hanging around with a NutraSweet headache: "Flimsy evidence? I go to Caltech. I live in Pasadena. After kitten's post, I *went* to the police station and *SAW* the report. I do not think that this is flimsy evidence." --Yendi -- My opinions are mine...not SLAC's...not Caltech's...not DOE's...mine. (except by random, unforseeable coincidences) panetta@cithex.caltech.edu panetta@slac.stanford.edu Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-feed5.bbnplanet.com!mozz.unh.edu!christa.unh.edu!mca ~From: mca@christa.unh.edu (Marc C Allain) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 21:26:53 GMT Organization: University of New Hampshire - Durham, NH ~Lines: 27 Message-ID: <502dit$88j@mozz.unh.edu> ~References: <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <4vvu4g$ik3@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: christa.unh.edu In article <> kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) writes: > >> "Now Kitten. Leslie may cry if she wishes." Patchmaker steps away >>for a moment to call in a request for 'Veteran of the Psychic Wars,' >>then returns. >> "I was thinking we'd do this out by the lake, but that may be to >>melancholy. Shall we dance, beloved Net-Goddess? And then some fond... >>well, intense remembrances?" > >"crying is good for the soul, i know....but i prefer to rage against >the dying of the light!" kitten holds out her hand for a dance with >patchmaker. > As some wonderful Miller tune comes on (Speaker and I shared (share?) a fondness for Glen Miller,) Patchmaker twirls the Net.Goddess out onto the floating dance floor. (He's ever so much better at dancing than Marc could ever dream of being.) "'Rage against the dying of the light.' Well, I see a certain loss of virtual volume, but never doubt that Speaker's legacy will live on. "When this dance is done, I will share some memories, but for now, first things first. (You dance divinely - naturally.)" -- If you need me, I'll be down in the lab, mixing metaphors Patchmaker Marc C. Allain mca@christa.unh.edu http://pubpages.unh.edu/~mca ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!uunet!in3.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.erols.net!netcom.com!jadmire ~From: jadmire@netcom.com (Joseph A. Admire) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker Message-ID: Organization: 5 miles southeast of Manassas Battlefield X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1] ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 21:50:25 GMT ~Lines: 50 ~Sender: jadmire@netcom20.netcom.com David P. Murphy (dpm@access4.digex.net) wrote: : PhaseOfTheMoon looks around the bar. he's not drinking, he's not talking, : and it's a good bet that his eyes aren't focused on anything within the : room. : he shuffles a few pieces of paper in his hands for a while before finally : coming to a decision. the words come out slowly. : "I'm new here, and maybe i'm out of line to do this, but ya'll care about : the guy one way or another, so maybe you'd wanna know about this letter. : i wrote it, i mailed it, and i guess i'd do it again. comp.os.vms was the : best of newsgroups and the worst of newsgroups because of him --- : but i didn't want him fired and i sure as hell didn't want him dead." : he tacks the papers up on the wall at http://www.access.digex.net/~dpm : then just as slowly walks over to the bar. Joe notices the new arrival as he speaks his piece and tacks the letter to the bulletin board, then gets up from his table and reads the letter. : "i just wanted him to lighten up from his 'i can post anything i want' : attitude, 'cuz it made a lot of folks miserable, but he never understood : that there *was* one step i could take. then again, i got no idea : whether what i sent affected him at all." "Welcome, Phase. Sorry if I can't be more enthusiastic, but somehow this just isn't a day for going all hog-wild, I think." He considers a bit. "Several other people have said this already, but I'd also like to say that I don't hold you responsible in the least for Carl's death. The way I see it is, as contentious and sharp-tongued as he was, it was inevitable that someday, somenone, somewhere would finally issue the complaint that would go over critical mass and knock him off the Net. In fact, I'm really not certain your lettter was even a factor - when he disappeared, it was talked about here in a.c. that Carl was already in trouble with his supervisors at Caltech, because of his posting style and, perhaps more to the point, because he was spending so much time posting during what must have been working hours. And our own Jim Pierce has stated that, as long as a year ago, Carl already seemed to have been in bad odor with The Powers That Be, at least in the personnel section. So, I think there's no reason for you to carry on so..." : "Mike, i could really use a six-pack of pepsi, please." Joe digs in his pocket. "If you permit, I''d be glad to buy for you. I could use a refill myself. Mike, another St. Pauli Girl." -- Joe Admire (jadmire@netcom.com) (jadmire@mnsinc.com) (josepha150@aol.com) East Carolina 1985 (Go Pirates!)/GWU JD 1989/legal researcher for hire *Stevie Nicks is _still_ the queen of rock and roll.* Team OS/2 member * Web page now open at http://www.mnsinc.com/jadmire/ Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!jobone!news2.acs.oakland.edu!news.tacom.army.mil!ulowell.uml.edu!tribune.meitca.com!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!spool.mu.edu!daily-planet.execpc.com!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!kittent ~From: kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 23:24:07 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 13 Message-ID: <502ken$guj@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502aft$lke@pentagon.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: ux1.cso.uiuc.edu >All of a sudden, Leslie realizes the irony...this will be the last time >Speaker's name is in the title of a thread... kitten starts giggling and can't stop...suddenly a bearded guy in a robe and sandles, wearing a toolbelt, and leaning on a wooden support comes out of the crowd to give her a hug and calm her down. -- kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski /\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" {=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're ~ not anywhere at all?' Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!spool.mu.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news.bright.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!kittent ~From: kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 23:26:25 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 21 Message-ID: <502kj1$gvi@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: ux1.cso.uiuc.edu >: (leslie, don't cry) >"I can't help it," Leslie says, "I wanted to meet him someday, and >give him a real hug, and scratch his ears. I'm sure he knew how >much I cared about him, but I still wanted the chance to *tell* >him, face to face," More tears spilling down her cheeks, she >adds, "This is the first time in my life I've ever lost someone >I really cared about." >Leslie. I thought he was too stubborn to die... "me, too....and the sonofabitch was supposed to CALL me if he needed anything. i feel like i just lost my brother all over again." kitten wonders if this has been a long week for everyone, or just her. -- kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski /\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" {=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're ~ not anywhere at all?' Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!kittent ~From: kittent@staff.uiuc.edu (barbara trumpinski) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 28 Aug 1996 23:28:05 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 17 Message-ID: <502km5$h04@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <4vvu4g$ik3@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502dit$88j@mozz.unh.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: ux1.cso.uiuc.edu > As some wonderful Miller tune comes on (Speaker and I shared (share?) >a fondness for Glen Miller,) Patchmaker twirls the Net.Goddess out onto >the floating dance floor. (He's ever so much better at dancing than >Marc could ever dream of being.) > "'Rage against the dying of the light.' Well, I see a certain loss >of virtual volume, but never doubt that Speaker's legacy will live on. > "When this dance is done, I will share some memories, but for now, >first things first. (You dance divinely - naturally.)" "thank you...." -- kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski /\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" {=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're ~ not anywhere at all?' Path: news2.digex.net!news1.digex.net!ctd.comsat.com!coral.bucknell.edu!news.cse.psu.edu!uwm.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!aries!miller ~From: miller@aries.scs.uiuc.edu (Kelly Miller) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 00:40:00 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana ~Lines: 19 Message-ID: <502ot0$jjk@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: aries.scs.uiuc.edu The Polymath writes: >Carl suffered from insulin dependent diabetes and all its attendant >consequences (pick a symptom, any symptom, he probably had it in >spades at some point). He also suffered from congestive heart failure >and was scheduled for 6x bypass surgery early this year, but changed >his mind for reasons likely known only to himself. (Supposedly, the >operation would have prolonged his life, but not improved its quality. >Carl decided it wasn't worth it). For what it's worth, Carl was not an insulin dependent diabetic, but a non-insulin dependent diabetic who took insulin. Not a major point, perhaps, but Carl always demanded precision... Kelly Miller just a lurker from m.h.d. Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!mr.net!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.erols.net!netcom.com!netcom.net.uk!ix.netcom.com!dby-ct1-08.ix.netcom.com!user ~From: rolandx@ix.netcom.com (Roland X) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 00:42:23 GMT Organization: Me? Organized? ;^) ~Lines: 57 Message-ID: ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: dby-ct1-08.ix.netcom.com X-NETCOM-Date: Wed Aug 28 5:42:23 PM PDT 1996 In article <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com>, leslie@io.com (Leslie) wrote: > On 27 Aug 1996 14:49:45 GMT in alt.callahans, > barbara trumpinski said: > : kitten comes out of the folx room dressed in flame red. "by all the > : gods and goddesses that speaker didn't believe in, let's make merry > : and have the best damn wake we can." she lifts the rum and diet coke > : that has been handed to her. "to speaker, and to us all...this life > : is sometimes not big enough to hold us. let the circle be open but > : never broken." > > "Put the Animaniacs tapes in the VCR. He loved that show. And then > a lot of old B movies..." "Animaniacs." Roland smiles and shakes his head. "Appropriate...I _hate_ those obnoxious little twits." *sniff* > : radio free colorado(tm) starts playing: a medley of swing interspersed > : with the grateful dead and other random songs...but not 'suicide is > : painless'. > > "Truckin'. They have to play Truckin'. There was a thread once where > people were telling what the theme song to the movie of the story of > their life would be, and that's what he said." "Oh Light, why am I not surprised..." > : (leslie, don't cry) > > "I can't help it," Leslie says, "I wanted to meet him someday, and > give him a real hug, and scratch his ears. I'm sure he knew how > much I cared about him, but I still wanted the chance to *tell* > him, face to face," More tears spilling down her cheeks, she > adds, "This is the first time in my life I've ever lost someone > I really cared about." > > > Leslie. I thought he was too stubborn to die... Oh, why should the spirit of mortal be proud?/ Like a fast-flittering meteor, a fast-flying cloud,/ a flash of the lightning, a break of the wave/ he passes from this life to his rest in the grave. (William Knox-1824) "I remembered half of this from the issue of Crisis where the Flash dies. I reached into one of my boxes, pulled out a comic to see which box it was...and had Crisis 8 in my hand." "Cry if you need to, Leslie. We lose our loves all too soon...we have to honor them." A VR hug, if you want one. -- Truth beyond Paradox. Roland X, Freelance Immortal "Do not become your enemy to defeat your enemy." -epitaph, Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!op.net!news.ironhorse.com!news.uoregon.edu!hunter.premier.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!news-in.tiac.net!posterchild!news ~From: lightlrd@mail.tiac.net (The Unloved) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 00:51:54 GMT Organization: The Internet Access Company, Inc. ~Lines: 10 Message-ID: <502pa9$ad2@news-central.tiac.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: lightlrd.tiac.net X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.0.82 The Unloved pokes his head out from his dark corner. He looks confused and upset. "I know I've been wrapped up in my own problems, as of late... and as a result I missed something important. Can someone please tell about the dear departed... who he was and how it happened?" ------------------------------------------------------------------- "Chivalry is not dead. It just smells funny." -- The Unloved Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!btnet!netcom.net.uk!ix.netcom.com!news ~From: "Lydia M. Uribe" ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 07:51:47 -0700 Organization: Claremont Shelter for Maladjusted Singers ~Lines: 12 Message-ID: <3225AE83.6A7C@ibm.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <4vu4r8$3ai@babylon5.babcom.com> <3223B058.11AE@Titan.SFASU.EDU> <322478D0.4CA4@lvld.hp.com> ~Reply-To: uribe@ibm.net NNTP-Posting-Host: ont-ca11-33.ix.netcom.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-NETCOM-Date: Thu Aug 29 9:56:49 AM CDT 1996 X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b5a (Win95; I) Randy Martens wrote: > Soprano smiles through her tears. "Sorry, I never saw Carl scowling. Despite (or perhaps because of?) his Kzinti persona here, Carl in person was never anything but polite and soft-spoken in my presence." Soprano -- +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ | Lydia M. Uribe, Rancho Cucamonga, CA uribe@ix.netcom.com | | Cats, quilts, and diving: what more could anyone ask? | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!spool.mu.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!gatech!mcsun!EU.net!usenet2.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!usenet1.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!dispatch.news.demon.net!demon!firesong.demon.co.uk!firesong ~From: Firesong ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 00:09:04 +0100 Organization: SPand Enterprises ~Lines: 33 Distribution: world Message-ID: ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: firesong.demon.co.uk X-NNTP-Posting-Host: firesong.demon.co.uk MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Newsreader: Turnpike Version 1.12 Firesong notes that barbara trumpinski spake thusly. >kitten is as white as a ghost as she drops the phone. "i just called >speaker's bar in pasadena and the man who answered the phone said carl >was found dead on friday. i don't know any other details. if anyone >out there can help, please do." > >she raises her glass in a silent toast. > And he reads the other posts before returning here to place his own. Goodbye Speaker, our minds seldom met, our attitudes almost never, but you were right about the facts, you were always that. Hey Mike, have you got a good dark mead? A nice moody drink, mead. You can glower in th corner over it properly. To Speaker to Minerals, not a man to trifle with. > >-- >kittent@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu barbara trumpinski >/\ /\ smotu "my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?" >{=.=} 'how can you be in two places at once when you're > ~ not anywhere at all?' -- "It's not unknown for Men to use sex to get what they want." - Daphne "How can we use sex to get what we want? Sex _IS_ what we want." - Frasier Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!ddsw1!news.mcs.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!betty.bway.net!news ~From: nyjtm ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 08:15:10 -0700 Organization: bway.net, part of Outernet, Inc. in New York City ~Lines: 17 Message-ID: <3225B3FE.3A6A@bway.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: dial12.bway.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.02 (Win16; I) The Tin Woodman sits slumped at a table in the corner, his oil can reassuringly near. rohr@bham.mindspring.com wrote: > > Thinking is always a good thing, and it is always wiser to engage the brain > before applying the fingers to the keyboard. Damn, I wish I could say what I > want, but it doesn't seem to be working too well. It figures. "I think that puts StM's approach to the universe *very* well." > Mike, a bacardi and coke, please. "One for me too, Mike." The Tin Woodman joins the crowd waiting for the chalk line, his visor pulled well down over his eyes. - Jim Mullins Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!news1.radix.net!news ~From: "Chris Barnhart (TechnoPup)" ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 01:16:36 GMT Organization: RadixNet Internet Services ~Lines: 91 Message-ID: <01bb9548$03bca820$22b33ece@cbarnhart.radix.net> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> <4vvd7n$7i9@eagle.ais.net> <32249D7C.128F@rand.nidlink.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: dialin17.annex5.radix.net X-Newsreader: Microsoft Internet News 4.70.1155 A quiet voice begins somewhere at the back of the room CROSSING THE BAR Sunset and evening star, And one clear call for me! And may there be no moaning of the bar, When I put out to sea, But such a tide as moving seems asleep, Too full for sound and foam, When that which drew from out the boundless deep Turns again home. Twilight and evening bell, And after that the dark! And may there be no sadness of farewell, When I embark; For though from out our bourne of Time and Place The flood may bear me far, I hope to see my Pilot face to face When I have crossed the bar. ....those who look see pup wipe a very old tear from his eye as he tucks the yellowed bit of paper with the nicely engraved cursive writing back into the folds of his jacket -- ______________________________________________________________________ _ Chris Barnhart - TechnoPup | "Verbosity leads to unclear, cbarnhart@radix.net | inarticulate things." http://www.radix.net/~cbarnhart | -Dan Quayle ________________________________|_____________________________________ _ Looking Wolf wrote in article <32249D7C.128F@rand.nidlink.com>... > Roland X wrote: > > > > > Carl would, if he were truly dead, be rolling over in his grave over the > > > self-serving weeping occuring here at this moment. You tip your vain > > > and virtual glasses to yourselves: no other. Enjoy your sentimental > > > trip. Carl would have none of it. Carl needed help in his present, > > > not in this one. Let it be. > > > > Indeed he would. And if he were alive, he'd come back and roast us > > all for mourning him on flimsy evidence. > > As for that mourning, I'm quite certain that he knew enough about > > the grieving process to know that a funeral is held for the survivors > > as much as, if not more than, for the dead. We mourn for his passing > > because we are dimished thereby. > > And if we wish him well in whatever lies beyond, that is our business. > > The wolf nods. "Grief is almost always for those left behind, and there > is nothing wrong with that. Knowing that one for whom you care is gone, > effectively forever, is a painful, empty feeling. Just because someone > is large-hearted enough to want no grief at their passing does not mean > they would despise those who are hurt by it." > > ...Looking Wolf > > Sunset, and evening star, > and one clear call for me. > And may there be no moaning of the bar > when I put out to sea. > > --Alfred, Lord Tennyson > (title of poem and proper scansion regretfully forgotten) > ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans Path: news2.digex.net!lynx.unm.edu!jobone!news2.acs.oakland.edu!condor.ic.net!branch.com!aanews.merit.net!imci3!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.erols.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uchinews!esti ~From: esti@haven.uchicago.edu (Paul A. Estin) ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker X-Nntp-Posting-Host: haven.uchicago.edu Message-ID: ~Sender: news@midway.uchicago.edu (News Administrator) Organization: U. Michigan Cognitive Psychology ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223D796.455B@pacbell.net> ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 02:18:56 GMT ~Lines: 53 Paul the Snark, an old-timer long absent (last here regularly in March '93), pops his head into the Place briefly (thanking to Elaine for forwarding the bad news to him)... "I was going to say more, but I saw a couple of Polymath's posts which probably summed up my reaction, so I'll just reiterate what he said..." The Polymath wrote: >I considered Carl Lydick my friend and Speaker to Minerals an occasional >ally and occasional embarrassment. I'm going to miss them both. ... >I wish more of the people who knew Carl only through his net persona >could have met him in person. He still had his faults (a whole >different set), but he was also soft spoken, gentle and polite. I >don't know what it is about the net that brings out the worst in some >people like that, but Carl did have another side. I did have the good fortune to meet Carl in person, shortly before I left a.c (due in some part to the tone in which he posted as StM). Carl was indeed much more pleasant in person that I would've expected, and I'm sorry he's gone from this world. Paul Andrew Estin "Haiku's inventor U. Michigan Cognitive Psychology must have had seven fingers estin@umich.edu on his middle hand." P.S. As an aside: Yes, the net and its anonymity does sometimes bring out the worst in folks, but I think the phenomenon is more general than that-- it's not so much that *people* change as that the entire nature of net *interaction* is different from in Real Life (iRL). It's partly due to missing RL conversational cues, and partly due to having a lack of personal connection (which is not quite the same as "anonymity"). IME, both problems are minimized, to a surprising degree, when the folks interacting are those who *do* already know each other in Real Life, even if only briefly. For example... I didn't start posting on a.c until after I'd been to a RealSpace Gathering, and I retain a sense of civility to anyone I've met there-- even when I think they're full of BS!-- that I'm less capable of with those I haven't met iRL. Similarly, after leaving Callahan's I co-founded a private general-topic discussion list on email; because many of us know each other from RL, interactions tend to be much smoother, for a variety of reasons. However, sometimes we did have people leave the list after repeated disagreements; in all such cases, those leaving and those providing the most pressure to leave were folks who had NOT met each other in RL. Indeed, I was often mystified that there was a problem brewing in the first place, since I'd RL-met both sides of people and was used to "giving the benefit of the doubt" whenever *either* side's remarks were potentially ambiguous. Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in3.uu.net!munnari.OZ.AU!metro!metro!news ~From: alh@Physics.usyd.edu.au (Shonias) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 02:52:32 GMT Organization: School of Physics, University of Sydney, Australia ~Lines: 34 Distribution: inet Message-ID: <5030lg$qmg@metro.usyd.edu.au> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vuvqn$doe@decaxp.harvard.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: suphys.physics.usyd.edu.au In article <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com>, Leslie wrote: >"I can't help it," Leslie says, "I wanted to meet him someday, and >give him a real hug, and scratch his ears. I'm sure he knew how >much I cared about him, but I still wanted the chance to *tell* >him, face to face," More tears spilling down her cheeks, she >adds, "This is the first time in my life I've ever lost someone >I really cared about." Shonias has been quiet listening to others and not knowing what to say, or whether to say anything. She didnt even know why she didn't know what to say, and then this reminded her: > >Leslie. I thought he was too stubborn to die... "I've just been too numb to say anything, or indeed feel anything to inspire any words. My beagle died on Sunday, after a short illness, I thought she was too stubborn to die too. And I loved her more than I've ever loved anyone else. I'm not sure what I'm saying, just that I missed StM when he wasn't here temporarily, I know I will miss him when I've got emotions left to use, amd I'm not ordering a bacardi and diet coke, because I can't stand the stuff." Shonias stands laughing and crying and remembering the souls that have departed recently (three friends of hers, one of someone else's in a two week period.) Shonias Q'Tari -- *********************************** Thunder and lightning in the dark Light up the fires inside my heart. *********************************** Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!ddsw1!news.mcs.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.nidlink.com!usenet ~From: Looking Wolf ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 10:38:23 -0700 Organization: NetLink, Inc. ~Lines: 42 Message-ID: <3225D58F.315D@rand.nidlink.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3223086C.1F8F@lvld.hp.com> <4vvd7n$7i9@eagle.ais.net> <32249D7C.128F@rand.nidlink.com> <01bb9548$03bca820$22b33ece@cbarnhart.radix.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: pm6-5.nidlink.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b6Gold (Win95; I) Chris Barnhart (TechnoPup) wrote: > > A quiet voice begins somewhere at the back of the room > > CROSSING THE BAR > > Sunset and evening star, > And one clear call for me! > And may there be no moaning of the bar, > When I put out to sea, > > But such a tide as moving seems asleep, > Too full for sound and foam, > When that which drew from out the boundless deep > Turns again home. > > Twilight and evening bell, > And after that the dark! > And may there be no sadness of farewell, > When I embark; > > For though from out our bourne of Time and Place > The flood may bear me far, > I hope to see my Pilot face to face > When I have crossed the bar. > > ....those who look see pup wipe a very old tear from his eye as he > tucks the yellowed bit of paper with the nicely engraved cursive > writing back into the folds of his jacket The wolf listens attentively as Pup finishes the poem. "Yes," he whispers at its conclusion. "Thank you." The wolf smiles sadly. "I really wish I had found this Place earlier," he says. "I was waiting anxiously for Speaker's return. I really wanted a chance to argue with him. Now that will have to wait a few decades." He rises and walks out of the bar. The faint sound of mournful wolfsong can be heard from somewhere outside. ...Looking Wolf Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.nidlink.com!usenet ~From: Looking Wolf ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 10:45:59 -0700 Organization: NetLink, Inc. ~Lines: 15 Message-ID: <3225D757.53CB@rand.nidlink.com> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3225B3FE.3A6A@bway.net> <504769$agg@izzy4.izzy.net> <504ca9$il@decaxp.harvard.edu> <504et3$led@xanadu.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: pm6-5.nidlink.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0b6Gold (Win95; I) Gareth L Owen wrote: > > "I reckon there should be a 'Tycho Crater' web page > or something. Something kinda permanent. Somewhere > we can go and remember." "That is an excellent idea. I'm willing to donate both the space for the page and the time for designing it, if someone will but tell me where and how to retrieve all the Plaque posts. "We cannot go to the real Plaque (if there's any justice in the Universe, there's really one up there), but we can build a monument here." ...Looking Wolf Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!chi-news.cic.net!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!news.cse.psu.edu!news.math.psu.edu!ra.nrl.navy.mil!dbriggs ~From: dbriggs@rira5.nrl.navy.mil (Daniel Briggs) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 04:24:30 GMT Organization: Naval Research Laboratory ~Lines: 98 Message-ID: <50361u$4ji@ra.nrl.navy.mil> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: rira5.nrl.navy.mil Dan'l opens the door, and wanders back to Mike. Not too many folks in the bar place the face, but there are a few. He's still as tall and bearded and bespectacled as he ever was, with a tendency to dress in blues, browns and black. A dollar bill goes down on the bar. "The Bacardi & Diet Coke routine is a nice touch, but I think I'll pass, Mike. I never could stand the stuff, and after high school I grew up enough to say so. Carl being the individualist that he was, perhaps it's a better tribute that I drink my own preference. How about a Gin and Tonic? Having foregone the change and stepped towards the chalk line, he's not really sure what he wants to say. *think* "I'm not even sure I can say that I liked Carl. I first showed up in the Place more than 6 years ago, and I think I did then. Or at least I tried to. Certainly we had enough common background that I kept feeling like we *ought* to get on better than we did. I can be a real stickler for precision in language myself, and I've always respected his logical argument and dedication to his ideals. I actually probably got on with him as well as anyone but his close friends, in that I was never personally the object of his flames, but still managed to occasionally exchange civil posts or email with him. But he could be a real *mean* bastard, and I like to think that I am not so by nature. I strive to avoid being mean without the strongest provocation. I suspect that Carl probably felt much the same way, but apparently he found such provocation nearly everywhere. "Will I miss him? Yes and no. Yes I'll miss many aspects of him. And I'm sure that comp.os.vms lost one of its most valuable resources. But frankly, I'll probably also show up here more often than I would have otherwise. Is it just me, or has the character of the flame wars, both from and about Carl gotten hotter in the last couple of years? Maybe I just lost patience with it and nothing has changed but me. But for whatever reason I lost the ability to read past it. I've never liked killfiles. It just seems like looking at the world through blinders to me. I don't like the feeling of not knowing what I'm not seeing. I read news by title, selecting threads, so I don't read most flamewars. But even when I don't choose to read flame threads, they do color the character of the group. So when I got tired of people yelling at each other for the ooompteenth time, I left. I don't hold it against him, though. In the last few years I'd come to regard him as something of an elemental force of nature. He was who he was, in a way that few of us are. But in exactly the same way I might move back from a campfire that is too hot for comfort, I sometimes distanced myself from Carl and the areas he frequented. One doesn't curse a fire for being hot. The obvious difference and counterargument is "Yes, but a person doesn't have a choice about being hot, and a person does have a choice about being mean." Y'know, with Carl I really wonder about that. "I caught him once or twice on quite unambiguous points of astronomy. I don't think he ever admitted he was wrong in so many words, but somewhere along the way he ended up owing me a beer over it. He wasn't very good about admitting he was wrong, certainly. For a couple of years I was looking forward to collecting it, since I was really curious about the man behind the keyboard. But I never got around to it, and as the flame wars around him grew hotter, I lost interest in doing so. The last time I visited Pasadena I didn't look him up. Now I wish I had. "Lest I be thought too crass when talking about Carl, whom after I all I never actually met, I'll comment that I stood up at my own father's funeral, while crying, and called him a bastard in front of maybe 400 or 500 people. I pointed out that he had been an alcoholic, and was sometimes very difficult to live with. I then pointed out that the crowd filling the chapel to standing room only and spilling out into the lobby and more was proof of how much he'd meant to everyone there. How strong were his great good points, to be outbalance his flaws and still mean so much to so many people! I upset some people doing that. But I called it as I saw it for my father, and I can do no less for Carl. I trust the parallel is obvious. "Well Carl, you are gone and the world is a less varied place without you. As annoying as you could be, I think we're poorer for your absence. I hope you're at peace. Dan'l ponders his now empty glass, and the forming tradition of unbroken glasses in the fire place. He turns back to the house. "Folks, I'm sorry. That just doesn't seem like quite the right thing to me. We're building a little shrine of glasses and photos here. That fireplace is meant to be used, and someday soon *someone* is going to have to clean it out and deal with all the clinging emotional baggage we've left stuck to those glasses. I'll not add to that person's burden. All things and all people pass. For me, the plaque is enough. "Carl, if you can hear me, or to your memory if you cannot: I hope you respected me as I did you. I'm glad to have known you. Dan'l hurls his glass into the fireplace, but his juggler's aim is true. The glass sails past the unbroken stack and shatters alone on the bricks behind. *CRASH* | Dr. Daniel Briggs (dbriggs@rira.nrl.navy.mil) [ USPA D-18486 ] | Naval Research Laboratory / US Naval Observatory [ DoD #387 ] | 4555 Overlook Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20375 (202) 767-8474 | Dart: MC Ot+W H 5 Y L+ W C+ I++ T++ A+ H+ S+ V+ P++/P B+ Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 09:25:11 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 10 Message-ID: <504987$hsj@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vv1u9$oiv@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <502bba$m6u@pentagon.io.com> <502kj1$gvi@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu Kitten: >wonders if this has been a long week for everyone, or just her. Its been a hellva week. Hugs, Dreamy Jim. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!op.net!en.com!in-news.erinet.com!ddsw1!news.mcs.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!uwm.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 09:40:46 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 12 Message-ID: <504a5e$nv2@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <4vtgrm$pn0@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <4vvq27$vvu@mozz.unh.edu> <502pa9$ad2@news-central.tiac.net> <502vpe$3fk@xanadu.io.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu >"He--was a lot of different things, to different people. > >"He was someone I loved." Thank you Leslie, you worded it better than I could. Hugs, DJ. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!howland.erols.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!news.new-york.net!news.columbia.edu!news.cs.columbia.edu!bach.cs.columbia.edu!not-for-mail ~From: jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu (Jim M. Pierce) ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: 29 Aug 1996 09:48:44 -0500 Organization: University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park ~Lines: 18 Message-ID: <504akc$j3g@medea.gp.usm.edu> ~References: <32228980.16D6@rmi.net> <3223CDA9.4B5A@pacbell.net> <502ot0$jjk@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <32255bdb.3582036@nntp.ix.netcom.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: medea.gp.usm.edu John Edwards wrote: >shots? I've personally never heard this (although, I'll be the >first to admit, I'm a little out of touch with newer trends of >diabetes care) It was because his blood sugar and insulin level fluctuated. He had to be very careful and check it on a regular basis. A couple of years ago he had to go to the hospital for it. He coughed up blood in the emergency room. He had to keep from passing out as evidently they misdiagnosed him in the er. DJ. -- Jim Pierce jmpierce@medea.gp.usm.edu Disclaimer: Standard. Video: Tom Waits 'Downtown train' Path: news2.digex.net!news.cais.net!nntp04.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!newspump.sol.net!news.inc.net!news ~From: Ager or Persson ~Newsgroups: alt.callahans ~Subject: Re: plaque: r.i.p. speaker ~Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 11:33:35 -0600 Organization: Internet Connect, Inc. The Wisconsin ISP 414-476-4266 http://www.inc.net ~Lines: 81 Message-ID: <3225D46F.6934@di