February 2009
January 2009
Norn Iron
jhnbrssndn:
The Northern Irish also have some grammatical peculiarities, for example using the past participle instead of the passive infinitive (I hope I’ve got that right): eg That light bulb needs changed, for that light bulb needs to be changed.
Curiously, replacing the past participle with the passive infinitive (which I believe you got right) is not unique to Northern Ireland. It is also...
Catalog Choice - Eliminate unwanted catalogs you... →
When the post office threatened to cut off Saturday delivery, Marco pointed out that most of his mail is unwanted catalogs. As he wrote, “The world would be a better place if we didn’t waste time, money, and natural resources to create, deliver, and throw away all of this junk.”
Or, as Edward Nickens writes in Audubon Magazine, “Retailers, betting that a direct-mail deluge more...
If elected, India opposition would attack Pakistan →
This is no good. India/Pakistan tension has always been pretty high. Even the proposed surgical strikes could make things worse. On the other hand, we’re also attacking people in Pakistan.
Smithsonian requests Aretha’s hat →
I still think the hat should go to the State Department and work for world peace, but the National Treasures collection would be a good choice as well.
David Brooks: Cleaner and Faster - NYTimes.com →
This is the best`criticism of the stimulus I have read.
Strip out the permanent government programs. Many of them are worthy, but we can have that debate another day. Make the short-term stimulus bigger. Many liberal economists have been complaining it is too small, so replace the permanent programs with something like a big payroll tax cut, which would help the working class.
Add in a fiscal...
Smiley faces on utility bills increase energy... →
This is rather amazing. The utility company showed customers how their utility usage compared to neighbors with similar homes. Those who did well got one or two smiley faces. Those who did poorly initially got a frowny face, but people got up set about the frowny faces, so they were discontinued. Apparently the program worked. Apparently we are so competitive by nature that a desire to beat the...
Supreme Court Weakens the Exclusionary Rule →
The exlusionary rule is the one that says that evidence obtained through police misconduct cannot be used at trial. This is a huge check against police misconduct. It also means that seriously guilty people (like Bill Ayers) may go free over relatively minor misconduct.
This case, Herring v. United States, holds that the exclusionary rule does not apply in cases of “isolated...
“This is not a good orange. I think it started out as a good orange then it spent...”
– Carolyn
Katon Dawson, the runner up to lead the RNC, apparently was a member of a whites-only country club until a few months ago.
“Is it “new” to acknowledge Muslim interests and show respect to the Muslim...”
– Charles Krauthammer - Obama Distorts America’s Stance on Muslims - washingtonpost.com
robot-heart-politics writes: “Liberation.” *snort*
To put Krauthammer’s point about how much we respect the Muslim world differently:
Come on, baby, you know I respect you. That’s why I do it. But...
“If you somehow take that bonus out of the economy, it really will create...”
– Rudy Giuliani, who seems to have just defended exorbitant Wall Street bonuses as a welfare for the super rich. Afterall, if the super rich run out of money, they’ll have a hard time being super rich—which means that businesses that cater exclusively to the expensive whims super rich will...
Michael Steele elected RNC chairman →
I don’t know a whole lot about him. In this case, that’s probably a good thing. It means he hasn’t recently done anything absurd enough to capture national headlines.
Blaming the Trial Lawyers
I keep reading articles on how the trial lawyers are the source of all our problems. Clearly, the justice system should be faster and more efficent, though its unclear what changes would make it so without compromising other things. And there are good arguments to make about how incentives are aligned in class-action cases. But arguing that there are too many lawsuits filed by trial attorneys is...
“How is it an impeachable offense to protect low-income parents from losing their...”
– Rod Blagojevich has been impeached by unanimous vote, just days after I learned how to spell his name. He spent an hour defending himself, in which he invoked. Here is a video of the Senators voting on his fate:
My favorite moment is in the middle when the heavy-set guy pauses before voting as...
Some banks are turning down bailout money →
A number of smaller banks that did not invest heavily in risky assets are turning down millions in bailout money. The bailout money comes with a set of strings—and the banks (reasonably) concluded that the money isn’t worth it if they don’t need it. I think this is a reasonable thing.
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Rush Limbaugh's "Bipartisan Stimulus"
Rush Limbaugh wrote an editorial in the Wall Street Journal on the stimulus bill. I think he’s wrong on the facts of the recession, the cure for the recession, and the utility of cutting taxes. As much as I think Limbaugh’s full of hot air (and as much as this sentence is going to hurt my readership), his central point is worth discussing.
Fifty-three percent of American voters voted...
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Raw foods?
AZSpot has linked to 10 Reasons Eating Raw is Healthier For You and the Planet. With all due respect to Mr. Spot (who does not always agree with everything he links to,) a raw foods diet is not better for you and the planet. It will lead to weight loss because you can’t eat anything—and the stuff you can eat is generally pretty good for you. Let’s look at the claims.
1. Live...
Iraq denies Blackwater an operating license -... →
Blackwater is our largest mercenary force in Iraq. At one point, they maintained that they were not answerable to any law.
Every Second Counts →
dailymeh:
Test your sense of time: this game challenges you to hold a button for 0.2 seconds, then 0.4, then 0.6, 0.8, and so on. You’re allowed 100 milliseconds of leeway either way of the target. 0.2 and 0.4 are easy, but how do you time 1.8 and 2.0? I got to 2.2, but no further. (via kottke)
This is really quite cool. I failed epically the first few times, then made it to 4.6 seconds. And now...
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For the Presbyterians and those who know them
The Presbyterian Church, USA, like most mainstream Protestant churches, is trying to figure out how to fully include people of all sexual orientations—and like many churches, is having a rough time with it. They got off to a bad start in 1997 when the added this language to the Book of Order:
Those who are called to office in the church are to lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in...
Obama Disappointed Cabinet Failed To Understand... →
“The commander in chief is reportedly intent on keeping the comics in pristine condition for their eventual inclusion in his presidential library.”
“This is not authorized by us. The Simpsons’ does not, and never has, endorsed...”
– Quote of the Day: Simpson’s executive producer Al Jean, reacting to Bart Simpson voice actor, and big-time Scientologist, Nancy Cartwright using her character’s voice to promote a Scientology event.
The matter of whether Cartwright violated the terms of her contract is currently being examined....
Stimulus passes House without single Republican... →
robot-heart-politics, notthatkindagay
Partisan politics: my favorite!
Somebody screwed up here. I don’t know who. The end result is that the regardless of what happens over the next few months, the Republicans will insist that the stimulus is a disaster while the Democrats will insist it is working. There will be ample evidence to support either position. Unfortunately, it will be very...
Two truths on the stimulus
It will pass. The votes are there. Hopefully it won’t be the largest pork barrel ever. Since the democrats are supporting it and they have a large enough majority, there shouldn’t be too much need to cram in specific bits of pork to win votes.
The “why didn’t it work?” articles will start about a week after it goes into effect. This will be incredibly...
Stimulus Politics
Southpol asks what strategy Republicans should follow regarding the stimulus. They don’t want to look like a rubber stamp. They also don’t want get caught on the wrong side of Obama’s immense popularity. I would think the answer should be obvious.
Republican legislators should vote for what they think is best for the country. This bill is not a piece of political circus. The...
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The New Tone,The Old Tone
Sds links to this article that argues that Obama’s approach to the Middle East does not differ materially from Bush’s. It points out that 1) Bush said many of the same things Obama has said, 2) Bush gave interviews to some of the same people Obama did, and 3) Obama wants to shift focus to Afghanistan. I’ll set Afghanistan aside for a bit and talk about why Obama’s tone...
In-flight confrontations can lead to charges... →
It turns out that there aren’t a lot of actual terrorists on airplanes—but enforcing anti-terror laws against unruly passengers gives the airlines some pretty extraordinary powers.
“None of the funds provided by this Act may be made available to the State of...”
– The Stimulus Bill
Seven Stanzas at Easter
By John Updike (March 18, 1932 – January 27, 2009)
Make no mistake: if He rose at all it was as His body; if the cells’ dissolution did not reverse, the molecules reknit, the amino acids rekindle, the Church will fall.
It was not as the flowers, each soft Spring recurrent; it was not as His Spirit in the mouths and fuddled eyes of the eleven apostles; it was as His Flesh: ours.
...
Blagojevich Claims Behavior Was Just Elaborate... →
The Onion - America’s Finest News Source
“And I will point out, that when that language was used, there were no women on...”
– Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
He’s like the gift that keeps on giving. Except he’s more of a catastrophe than a gift. He’s like the train that keeps on crashing—even as you think the flaming pile of metal can’t get any larger, more train cars coming around the bend...
After receiving bailout funds, former Merrill... →
Under pressure, he’s agreed to personally repay the cost of the renovation. But seriously—aren’t these guys supposed to be smart people? Didn’t he pause for a moment to think that just maybe this wasn’t going to go over well?
IDF adds antelope to its arsenal in fight against... →
From lowlife, who once again brings us the latest in military technology. The article explains:
“The antelope have been stationed in the zone between the security fence and the international border to clear problematic foliage that distorts views of the Lebanese side and within which Hezbollah guerillas could hide.”
Predicting health and mortgage expenses
Jeff Miller, responding to Olivia regarding the relative costs of healthcare and morgages, wrote,
[U]niversal healthcare has less of an internal check to keep down costs. People can alter their lifestyle to minimize risks—by quitting smoking, say—in exchange for lower rates. But people can’t alter their lifestyle to rid themselves of all risks. When Olivia says that health is fundamentally...
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Pin the context on Blagojevich
Rod Blajogevich, who alleges his innocence, insists that the various incriminating things he was recorded as saying will look much less incriminating when the full context is seen. This leads to a delightful new game. Put these (and other!) alleged quotes from Rod Blagojevich in context to show the man is innocent. The complaint alleges Blagojevich will put a certain Canddiate in the Senate...
Health Care and Banking
jeffmiller links to this article, which argues that “health care reformers should look to the banking collapse as a cautionary tale.” Mr. Miller claims it gets the analogy all wrong and offers this analogy instead:
Our government was upset that banks wouldn’t lend money to people who were bad credit risks, so it established policies and institutions that incentivized banks to lend to people that...
“This was compassionate assistance. It was to help him move forward, not a...”
– Rev. Brady Boyd, of Ted Haggard’s New Life Church, regarding enough money for “college tuition, moving expenses, and counseling” paid by the church’s insurance company to a man who had a relationship with Ted Haggard in exchange for keeping the relationsihp quiet. Other gems...
Thailand (might have) killed a bunch of refugees →
Or rather, set them adrift in a boat far from land with no propulsion and limited food and water.
Those nonexistant Guantanamo Files
Robot-heart links to another discouraging article on the lack of any organized files for those held without charge at Guantanamo Bay.
I don’t understand something about this. If you’re the one designing this whole Guantanamo Bay fiasco, you have to know you’re compromising some important values. I can see why somebody might think this was justified due to some overwhelming...
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Success and Partisanship
I’ve seen a lot of discussion about this line in Obama’s inaugural address:
The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works—whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end.
Some...
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Free markets and bailouts
Our best economists don’t know whether one variety of gigantic stimulus or another will work. They cannot properly value all the high-risk assets that caused some of the initial problems. I think this is a legitimate criticism of stimulus spending. We don’t know enough to know what will happen. We may not know enough to even assign reasonable probabilities to various possible...
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More stimulus plans
Looking over debate about the stimulus plan, two things are abundantly clear.
Almost everybody agrees that something is necessary before things get worse.
Nobody really knows what will work. In fact, nobody seems that clear on what it would even mean for something to work.
Bearing those two in mind, it looks like we’ll almost certainly have a very large, very expensive stimulus bill that...
Which way in Palestine?
Jhnbrssndn and I disagree on Hamas. Just as I don’t see Israel as being credibly able to justify its actions in the name of self-defense, I don’t think Hamas can justify launching rockets at Israel.
This article argues that Israel should not have a monopoly on violence. In other words, Hamas should not have to admit defeat in its war in Israel as a precondition to negotiating an end...
“Several former Bush administration officials agreed that the files are...”
– Guantanamo Case Files in Disarray
As sad as this is, the article explains some of the reasons the Bush administration was so hostile toward habeas corpus. It’s easier to let people sit in prison without trial than it is to track down information on why they are in that prison in the first...
She wanted cream and sugar.
Marco: [made wonderful vacuum-pot coffee]
Marco: Want some?
Tiff: Yeah... will you ruin it for me?
Marco: [sigh]
Tiff: At least I asked you the right way.
Carolyn and I have had remarkably similar conversations, except we use "adulterate" instead of "ruin." Carolyn, for a while, wanted not just milk and sugar, but a great quantity of it. The first time I tried to adulterate it for her, apparently adding too much milk and sugar--and she called it a parody of the way she liked her coffee.
Can we make a rule that nothing Joe Biden says should be taken too seriously? The poor man has no internal monologue. When Biden talks publicly, it’s like Obama’s shoulder angel and shoulder demon are giving a joint press conference. Selecting Biden was like a guarantee of transparency. The stream-of-conscious candor is refreshing—but I can’t shake the feeling that this...
Chris Matthews: Can Palin read? →
Chris Matthews needs to set aside his crush on Obama and do his job. Or at least pretend to try. Palin may have had some inarticulate moments. She may have some confusion about how various government elements interract with eachother. But she’s not illiterate.
I like Obama. I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid. I’ve served it to others. But even I get nervous when prominent members of the...
