There is an article in Playboy this month entitled “Keeping the Faith” where Matt Taibbi “infiltrates” several religious organizations, particularly the PPT, and exposes some ideas that I had not considered before. I am not sure I approve of the author since (reading between the lines) Matt seems like that guy who lies to people all the time just to see that he can get away with it, and has figured out this is a means to a job as a reporter. I like people who always try to tell the truth, even if it’s harsh, and I see his behavior as a sociopathic response to feeling powerless. That’s a discussion for another day, though, since I am concerned that Bush developed what seems like a good idea on the surface but is actually another theory that fails in real life: FBCI.

Poker is starting to become a socialization staple in our household. Most Sundays after dinner (Am I going to hell?) and occasionally on Friday nights after dinner we pull out the chips and cards, pitch in $3/each and play penny/nickel/dime poker. Here’s a review of the simple standard hands, a few of the standard but complex games, and a couple non-standard insanity games we play. Read through and then pitch us the poker hands you like playing so that we can try them out.

Salon.com runs, not just one, but two articles today about a cutting-edge music scene called “mash-ups”! Techinically I didn’t scoop Salon, but my generic Christmas present this year was a double-CD of mash-ups songs — and while I was making it I felt like the mash-ups fad was already passing it’s prime like a browning avocado.