Short Cycle

I kind of liked my "Bits and Pieces" post from about a month ago, so I thought I'd do it again: a departure from the usual long-winded (sorry (OK; no, I'm not)) single-themed post, to throw together a few smaller items.

• Giving proof that some religious groups remain politically sensible, the New York Times reports this:

  An interfaith coalition of clergy members and lay leaders announced a petition drive on Monday aimed at blocking a proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.

  According to the article, it isn't that the group is of one mind about same-sex marriage, but that they don't believe that discrimination of any sort should be chiseled into our Constitution. Indeed: We the people.
• Going with the previous item, I'll repeat my mystification by the arguments against same-sex marriage. I can't see how anyone else's choice to marry or not diminishes yours in any way. And we should encourage people who love each other and want to commit to that publicly to do so.
• I don't know whether this one's a goof or not, but according to this item, attributed to Reuters:

  Half of Namibians voting in an informal radio survey believe the day Angelina Jolie gives birth should be declared a national holiday, an honor usually reserved for kings, queens and national heroes.

  If it's true, ya gotta wonder. (And I didn't even know she was pregnant.)
• The Washington Post reports on what's probably the worst idea for a retirement job yet: two women in their mid-70s were caught killing homeless men for insurance money. Words fail.
• The Pioneer Inno looks like a groovy piece of technology, and might be what finally prompts me to get a portable music device. (Then again, maybe not; I think I'd only use it on airplanes (where the XM radio wouldn't work anyway), preferring otherwise to hear the music of the world around me.)
• Seen recently in a health-insurance policy:

  Section Two: Definitions
  [...]
  11. You: The word "you" refers to you, the subscriber.

• Centers u-turn back; as couples hinge.