Confessions of a Liberal Puritan

Yes, that is a sideways tribute to the late Don Adams (Maxwell Smart, agent 86, on the 1960's Mel Brooks comedy series Get Smart), who died this past week.

However, it's primarily intended as a way to mourn the fact that I only just learned yesterday morning that a tenth planet in our solar system had been called "Xena", and that its recently discovered moon was now being called "Gabrielle" (naturally!). I was appalled not to have been aware of this previously, but thrilled to think that Xena: Warrior Princess was actually getting the respect it deserved from the culture at large.

And now, today, a friend sent me the full news item, revealing that "Xena" and "Gabrielle" are just informal nicknames for these heavenly bodies, and that a bunch of scientists are setting out to find some "real" names for them. Bummer!

Okay, end of whine, or I'll start to sound more like Rodney Dangerfield than Don Adams. Instead, I should be hearing the voice of Xena in my head, telling me with delightful menace to "Be nice!"