The Truth Will Out

Like a Phoenix from the Ashes

2005-04-26T12:50:00.000-04:00

This blog is dead....fear not however, I've started a group blog with Rhys and Greg Newburn.

This one's gonna last, I promise

It's been fun

Liberteaser.com Check it out

anti-freedom, anti-porn Right-WIng activist dies

2005-04-12T11:33:00.000-04:00

The anti-porn ordinance was originally drafted for Minneapolis but vetoed by the mayor there. It was adopted by other communities, but later ruled unconstitutional.

"Pornography is used in rape _ to plan it, to execute it, to choreograph it, to engender the excitement to commit the act," Dworkin testified before the U.S. Attorney General's Commission on Pornography in 1986, according to a transcript on her Web site.

blah blah blog

2005-04-08T18:24:00.000-04:00

Paul Allen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wikipedia gets surprisingly little vandalism, for being an openly edited website.

Here is a minor exception

If this is true...

2005-04-07T19:41:00.000-04:00

it's terrible.

I admit blogging has become light and I don't know when that will change.

2005-04-07T17:05:00.000-04:00

That being said, people are sooooo cliche.

Q&A with Byron York on The Vast Left Wing Conspiracy on National Review Online

2005-04-05T19:54:00.000-04:00

What a Joke

Man, get a load of this, so now there's a Vast left-wing conspiracy too? LO and Behold there are a lot of people who don't like the President, and yes, they didn't want to see him elected. Ooh, and I bet they even coordinate some of their strategies--the horror!

I haven't read the book, but if Mr. York goes after George Soros, which it appears he does, he really is a moron. It is the height of hypocrisy when conservatives go after Soros for his currency Manipulations, calling him sleazy. Hellooooo, it's called the fucking free market, assholes.

Conservatives sad move away from an ideology of free markets, is well sad. And Byron York, YOU, are an embarrasment.

Betting on the Pope

2005-04-04T15:57:00.000-04:00

Futures Contracts at Tradesports

Heads up all you Papal Pundits! I made ill bank at this website putting money on GW during the last election. Well now it's election 2005, for the Pope.

I Sorta like the Odds for Arinze

It's Time For a Draft.

2005-04-01T06:49:00.000-05:00

yes it is.
time to dispense with debate--there can be none now for there's no time left.

Baseball Season starts in 2 days, and my fantasy baseball draft starts today.

****

B and I moved into our new home in Greenpoint on Wednesday, and it is fantastic. I love it. I'm soooo done with grungy loft-living.

****

I have a fantasy of making a tribute montage to the Pope with Eminem's "Stan" playing in the back. I think it would be moving and hilarious.

That being said, I'm not religious or catholic but if the time has come for Karol Jozef Wojtyla then I'll be fascinated by the selection of the next one. It's just like our democratic process--just subsitute College of Cardinals for Electoral College. Got it.

****

I'm going to the Auto Show today.
Can't wait

**

Next Tuesday I got ducats to the Yanquis/Red Sox Game. Never been up to Yankees Stadium, beferre.

****

ok

I want

2005-03-31T17:36:00.000-05:00

this job.

Gotta Love that Nationalized Health Care

2005-03-31T17:20:00.000-05:00

damn.

Sorry for the continued light blogging, I'm in the process of moving.

jo

The religious right....

2005-03-28T10:14:00.000-05:00

....are so crazy.

how much you wanna bet that if Terri Schiavo had died on Good Friday, and then arose from the dead on Easter Sunday, I bet they would have been calling it some sorta "miracle" or something like that?

Oh the lengths they'd go to advance their agenda.

More truth

2005-03-27T20:38:00.000-05:00

from Greg Newburn

Happy Birthday

2005-03-27T20:35:00.000-05:00

Norman Borlaug

He's saved more human lives than anybody else in history--QED

yes, more than ralph nader.

Did Use of Free Trade Cause Neanderthal Extinction?

2005-03-26T07:53:00.000-05:00

Oh the lengths those academics will go!

No, I can't read the entirety of this study because, you know, academics aren't interested in sharing their findings with the world--only other academics at conferences.

But read the abstract. These professors are blaming "Free Trade" between the neanderthals and early humans as the reason for the Neanderthal's extinction--citing the Human's many psychological and physical advantages which allowed them to get more resources, etc...

This is just plain silly, and turns the idea of "Free Trade" on it's head. It's clear that it wasn't Free Trade that killed the Neanderthals--it's the fact that a superior species came and beat them to the Mastadon meat!

If an alien species came down to earth and was better than us in every way, then yeah, either we'd become their slaves or they'd kill us off, in all liklihood, whether we "traded" with them for a little bit would make little difference.

Fortunately for humans, we are all one Species and so Homo Sapien Americanus has no inherent physical/mental Advantage over Homo Sapien Vietnamus that would cause such an outcome.

And in case you thought all economic systems were the same, they do admit this:

One of the striking features of the archaeological record is that Neanderthal technology was nearly stationary for many thousands of years whereas technology of early humans experienced many innovations,” Shogren says.

He says the evidence does not support the concept of division of labor and trade among Neanderthals. While Neanderthals probably cooperated with one another to some extent, the evidence does not support the view that specialization arose from any formal division of labor or that inter- or intra-group trade existed, he says. These practices seem to require all the things that Neanderthals lacked: a more complicated social organization, a degree of innovative behavior, forward planning and the exchange of information, ideas and raw materials.

Who the hell reads...

2005-03-25T13:53:00.000-05:00

Tech Central Station?

Seriously, who does? I really think it's sort of like that zine in high school that you write with your friends, and only you and your friends read, but it allows them all to say "look, I got published".

Plus their tagline is derivative of Reason's

But read the above article about Terri Schiavo...it seems right to me.

One last shot

2005-03-25T09:12:00.000-05:00

closein
Originally uploaded by maxlangeattack.

I think it's my favorite

I'm gonna aim for...

2005-03-24T21:45:00.000-05:00

backdetail
Originally uploaded by maxlangeattack.

$250/Pair
Can anyone think of a good name for my design house?

I think...

2005-03-24T21:41:00.001-05:00

asideview
Originally uploaded by maxlangeattack.

11.5s

2005-03-24T21:41:00.000-05:00

11.5s
Originally uploaded by maxlangeattack.

Another one
If Jesus were alive...would he be walking in these?

Yes,

2005-03-24T21:38:00.000-05:00

2views
Originally uploaded by maxlangeattack.

So yeah, I'm getting into the sneaker game.
Here's some pics of my first shoe

Greg Newburn, king of smack...

2005-03-24T14:22:00.000-05:00

layeth the smacketh down on Shannen Coffin.

More good analysis of of conservative's contempt for the Judicial Branch.

And, although Greg is above cheap low-level shot's let me point out that in the offneind post, Ms. Coffin clearly doesn't know how to spell Terri Schiavo

Isn't it funny....

2005-03-24T10:26:00.000-05:00

that the same conservatives who are upset about "rule by the courts" and an our of control judiciary hellbent on subverting democracy are the ones rooting for bush (Jeb or George, take your pick), to sign an executive order putting the feeding tube back into Terri Schiavo?--the ultimate undemocratic exercise.

"But Bush was elected" they'll see, unlike our black-robed masters--as though the constitution makes a distinction--as though direct democracy is a good thing.

And really, it is amazing the way conservatives will drop this whole States' Rights facade as soon as something doesn't go their way.

pathetic.

Red or Blue, Which Are You?

2005-03-24T07:58:00.000-05:00

Red or Blue, Which Are You?"

Alright kids, time for a fun game...play it and post the answers.

(via Paul Katcher

John Derbyshire Vs. The Corner

2005-03-23T17:03:00.000-05:00

The Corner on National Review Online

John Derbyshire the cranky old homophobe of the National Review has suceeded in drawing the ire of his fellow cornerites over his support for pulling Terri Shiavo's feeding tube. Rames Ponnuru, who is ok I guess, and the rest are coming unglued in the face of the Derb's fairly reasonable analysis. YOu should read the last couple days of posts on this subject over there...some decent stuff.

Hi There...

2005-03-23T13:24:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of bloggin' lately--
Been hella busy.

Also, I don't really think the world needs another opinion on the Terri Schiavo case--and really what the hell else is there. Last week, I thought she should be kept alive, I started tilting a little bit though this week when I read more about the cases of the last 15 years. I'm inclined now to say let her go.

****

Last night on the subway I heard a folk singer singing "Cedar Revolution, Cedar Revolution". It was really sweet, and I bought one of his CDs

Then he kept singing more songs but the lyrics were really lame, like "I'm a bird and I fly, I drop Rhymes out of my 3rd Eye"--blech.

Then, I noticed on the back of the CD The song wasn't "Cedar Revolution" rather it was "See The Revolution"--blech blech blech. Oh well, I only wasted 5 bucks.

OK, I'll be back to Reg'lar blogging real soon

Hunger and Poverty and Surveys

2005-03-09T15:23:00.000-05:00

An interesting read over at Mahalanobis.

I have no idea what Mahalanobis means..but it's the economics (mainly) blog of Michael Statsny. That being said I don't know who Michael Statsny is either, except that he's German and brilliant.

It's well known that survey data, like all data and statistics, are to be taken with a grain of salt (you know "lies, damn lies..."), but this entry delves a bit more.

I particularly like what he has to say about hunger in the United States:

One great example of survey data confounding observation is hunger in America. Survey data is the primary reason some people believe there is significant systematic hunger in America, despite the fact that obesity is a greater problem among the poor. Even the Center on Hunger and Poverty, which has a vested interest in finding hunger, notes that while the poor are prone to be more obese, they reconcile this by noting that increases in risk of hunger increase the likelihood of poor food choices. Uh huh. 36.2 million Americans were considered "Food Insecure" (as surveyed by the USDA--another party with a vested interest in finding hunger), which means that in a survey, respondents stated that access to nutritionally adequate and safe foods is either limited or uncertain, or the ability to obtain foods occurs in socially unacceptable ways. So if you ask the poor, they are uncertain as to what their next meal will be, as I assume most people are, which is then translated by helpful hunger do-gooders into "one day away from starvation", though in practice these same people are obese. The fact that there have been no exposes showing pockets of America where children have ribs protruding is also a big datapoint, in that most journalists would love to break that story; if it existed, we would see it. It does not exist.

You know every time people are talking about hunger and someone says "well, then why are poor people so often fat" everyone looks at him like he's some asshole, or that this is such a childish thing to say cause everyone knows the anser. In fact, it's really not that absurd of a question: We DO see a lot more obese people than painfully skinny people among the poor.

Anyway, read the article

I still like Jonah Golberg

2005-03-08T19:09:00.000-05:00

Getting grilled by that fearsome interviewer: Starbucks. Yes, that starbucks.

I really really like his answer to the first question:

Starbucks: Jonah, did you have any other specific “tired clichés” in mind when you wrote your cup?

Jonah: Sure. In addition to the ones I mentioned, I can’t stand it when people say “give peace a chance” as if this was some great insight or suggestion. Imagine you’re sitting around the table in the Situation Room at the White House trying to figure out what to do about, say, China invading Taiwan. Generals are suggesting putting our ships on an intercept course. Diplomats are demanding we go to the Security Council for a resolution. The CIA is insisting there isn’t time as the People’s Liberation Army is already on the move. And some guy yells, “Wait, wait I got it!” Everyone turns to him for a helpful suggestion and he offers “Give peace a chance!”

Another cliché at the top of my list: “I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Uh, thanks. But who really cares.

Btw, keep posting your results to the test mentioned in the previous entry.

This is Fascinating

2005-03-08T15:51:00.000-05:00

Implicit Association Test

I highly encourage you guys to try these tests--it is very very interesting.

The Vagina Dialogues

2005-03-08T14:58:00.000-05:00

sorry.

I found this via the wonderful Dawn Eden.

Leave it to Planned Parenthood to endorse Female Genital Mutilation.

man, I am so confused.

I agree

2005-03-08T14:40:00.000-05:00

The obesity epidemic ain't a thing compared to the eating disorder epidemic.

I've really been getting into Radley Balko's theagitator.com lately, precisely for posts like this. Read.it.now.

Jeff Koyen's Exit Interview : Gawker

2005-03-08T13:58:00.000-05:00

Actually, he is that dumb.

Ok, not to keep harping on this story, it's not really that big of a deal, but y'all should read Ex NY Press Editor's letter to Gawker.com, because it illustrates an interesting point. He tries to make a "free speech" case about this, but really it's anything but. Nobody is suggesting that the NY Press not be allowed to run the piece, or that they broke some law...people are just suggesting that the piece was in rather poor taste, and while there are things that are in worse taste, it turns out that the NY Press has a huge circulation, and so lots of people noticed. Nobody has a "right to be heard" or a "right to get published". The NY Press was under no 1st Ammendment obligation to run the piece just because Matt Taibi wrote it.

If there's anything truly sacred in this country, it should be the 1st ammendment--not the pope. But people like Jeff Koyen do damage to it by using it as a shield for something it isn't meant to protect (Like the job of this fool).

And, for someone who is so radical and such a bad-ass, how cliche is this?

Publisher Chris Rohland is a spineless alt-weekly weenie. I can’t blame him, really. He has a wife and kids, and a nice home in New Jersey. He wants nothing more than to punch the clock and get his paychecks. Owner David Unger, who is the paper’s ultimate owner, is similarly spineless. They want New York Press to be “advertiser-friendly”; they “don’t want controversy.”

That’s their choice. But I don’t need to be party to such weenieness. And I won’t be sent to my room without dessert. Hence, I resigned this morning.

It’s been a great run, and I have nothing but respect for everyone in the editorial department I’ve just left behind. Chris Rohland and David Unger, however, are weak-willed and lackluster men who should not be in control of a newspaper, especially not in these times of editorial restriction by way of advertiser dick-sucking. They’re too vulnerable to the appeal of money.

Get over yourself, Jeff Koyen--hell you weren't even fired, you're leaving on yr. own accord. The only reason that Advertisers might bet spooked is not because they have some love of the pople, but because they depend on readers--and if the readers leave, then there's no paper.

BTW, I don't hold the Pope sacred. For one, I'm Jewish. For two, humor trumps everything, and it's even better when butchering a sacred cow. Not to mention that politically this pope and I disagree on many things. Finally if you wanna an excellent skewering of a Catholic sacred cow I highly recommend this book.

ok, later

'N.Y. Press' Editor Quits in Wake of Pope Cover

2005-03-08T09:01:00.001-05:00

They Offered him a suspension, but then he just up and quit.

The Money Shot:

In a letter published this afternoon on the gossip Web site Gawker, Koyen blasted his publisher and owner for not standing up to the criticism.

“This morning, I was told to accept a two-week unpaid suspension. During that time, I was to ‘think about what this paper should be,'" he wrote.

“Problem is, New York Press already is the paper it should be. We are iconoclastic, occasionally obnoxious but always intelligent. If you see through the nasty Pope jokes, for instance, you will see a well-reasoned political argument. ... I did my best to show this battle to be one of free expression.”

Screw you Jeff Koyen, if you really think that the 52 things were a "well-reasoned political argument" than you're dumber than you thought. But I don't think you are that dumb: Dumbies don't get to be head editor of a newspaper. I think you're guilty of the charge that you level against the NY Press: You're a coward and you should just come out and say that the "52 Things" article was NOT well-reasoned rhetoric, but merely a way to make fun of Catholics with a string of jokes that could have been applied to the death of any old man. Turns out most New Yorkers were smarter than you and can see religious hate when they see it.

Good Riddance.

Now if only something bad would happen to the Brooklyn Rail. Dear Father, how many Hail Mary's and Lord's Prayers do I have to chant before that will happen?

'N.Y. Press' Editor Quits in Wake of Pope Cover

2005-03-08T09:01:00.000-05:00

Boeing Fires CEO For Having an Affair

2005-03-07T07:29:00.000-05:00

I thought they were supposed to fire the chick.

So the CEO of Boeing was having an affair with a female employee and...HE!?!?! got fired. Umm...I thought they were supposed to fire the famale and give her a large settlement. Man, joining the patriarchy sooooo does not offer the rewards it used to--I want my money back.

Blogger Gets White House Press Pass

2005-03-07T07:02:00.000-05:00

Here

Bloggers are utterly delusional, a mon avis, when they claim that the MSM views them as this terrible threat. Sure they can find a few stupid quotes made my executives, but in 2004 all I saw was articles about blogs in every single publication. I got really bored of it, although it wasn't as boring as bloggers writing about themselves. That's why I can't read Hugh Hewitt. He even wrote a book called, get this, BLOG. As far as I know only Bloggers have read it. You know what else I don't like about Hewitt: I saw some interview with him where he discouraged people from investing in media stocks because blogs were gonna put them out of business...umm, respectfuly sir, what the hell do you know about investing and personal finance? Have you ever looked at a media company's balance sheet, or p&l statement. I'm guessing not. Stick to your damn game buddy, and stop giving childish advice.

ok, so back to the story about the blogger I've never heard of getting a White House press pass. Well, here's the money paragraph:

He made 20 phone calls and got nowhere. Bigger blogs picked up on his saga, and traffic on FishbowlDC increased tenfold, he said. But it was not until the traditional media joined in, Mr. Graff said, that the White House relented.

"USA Today started making calls on Thursday. CNN mentioned it on 'Inside Politics,' and Ron Hutcheson, president of the White House Correspondents Association, raised the issue with the White House Press Office," he said. "I think a combination of all of that made the White House pay attention and decide to let me in."

Yeah, whoo...some conflict.

"Bush....

2005-03-06T20:15:00.000-05:00

sends his greetings!!"

That's what the Lebanese were yelling at the the projection screen during a broadcast of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Couple this with the pictures of the Lebanese waving American Flags during the anti-Syria protests, and, um, well, it's obvious that the Arab Street just hates America.

Deal with it.

Unbelievable

2005-03-06T12:48:00.000-05:00

So, guess what!
Magnolia doesn't hold up. Frankly, I thought Boogie Nights was overrated, and, ok, we can be honest Punch Drunk love, was, well, pretty week, apart from a few beautiful visiuals. He used to be my favoritist director, PT Anderson, based solely on Magnolia alone. I even convinced myself that PunchDrunk wasn't a frightful unrealistic bore. But no more.

The twin Anderson Towers, PT & Wes, won't be classics...just relics from an era when clever was more important than being cool. After just 5 short years from the first time I saw'r it Magnolia looked like a collection of dashed together college jokes. The overly sincere and slightly retarded cop who loses his gun--guess what, his gun is a phallic symbol!! The Child wiz kid, that um, signifies nothing, and Tom Cruise, brilliantly acting a part that was only interesting in a pre-Sex & The City era when women might have actually pretended to be threatened by someone who ran a seminar on getting laid called "Seduce and Destroy". Now of course they'd be encouraging their boyfriend's to go there and take some lessons.

The most painful moment in the movie has to be the final monologue told by the cop. It starts off promisingly enough "People think that I judge them, but that's not what I do". You're expecting some sort of meditation on the way we become divorced from the roles we play in the world, but instead he just rambles on, saying nothing at all. The Emperor's new closing monologue.

I still think you can't argue, in general, with the Tom Cruise canon. Minority Report and Vanilla Sky are among the best movies in Recent years, a mon avis. But really this movie just doesn't have it anymore.

Perhaps it's still in my top 75, but barely. It used to be top 10.

BTW, top 10.

1)Trading Places
2)Beverly Hills Cop
3)Coming to America
4)Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
5)Jesus Christ Superstar
6)Hedwing and the Angry Inch
7)Vanilla Sky
8)Minority Report

hmm...not sure on 9 and 10...I'll get back t'ya

Million Dollar Baby, et. al.

2005-03-06T07:18:00.000-05:00

If you have yet to see Million Dollar Baby, just skip this entry, esp. if you don't wanna know the twist at the end...

So basically, yeah, Hillary Swank becomes a boxer, convinces Clint Eastwood to trainer, rises to the top by tenacity and dint of hard work, gets a title shot, and gets paralyzed, and then from her hospital bed convinces Clint Eastwood to euthenize her. Yes, it's a controversial thing, and a I know a lot of Christians were outraged (there they go again!) by it. But it was a movie--not a commercial or a public service announcement extolling the benefits of euthenizing the quadrapalegic.

You just can't get offended by everything that happens in a movie, and then say that the movie is, itself, offensive and immoral. Well, I suppose in a tautological sense, it's unavoidable, but that's not what we're supposed to do when we review.

2005-03-05T21:25:00.000-05:00

Umm...to the commenter who said that Nike's factories only perpetuate a cycle of poverty...how? What is a "cycle of poverty" and why is it that the east asian economies where most multinationals have gone with their jobs have exhibited so much more growth and don't seem to be trapped in a cycle of poverty the way the African economies have, for example--economies that have never seen jobs from multinationals. odd huh?

****

I'm watching Magnolia right now on IFC...I have a weird thought "does t his movie not hold up so well over time?" I'm thinking perhaps...a lot of the lines just seem really campy and pre-2000. Really I'm just waiting for the Aimee Mann montage.

****

Also, I'm not convinced, nor have I in a long long time, that I'm 100% right on anything. I've changed my mind too many times...I do agree w/ the poster that people want different things, for sure, but health being relative? clean water? longevity? money vs. barter? We all bartered at one point...but money is much more efficient and getting the various different things that we want. Yes we all want different things, but I don't believe that some people want those things but with a lot more work and labor and time involved in getting them (as barter requires). If you know of counterexamples then please post them...I have no problem changing my mind on this.

****

Ooh, and I did the batting cages at Chelsea Piers today...rule!

****

Oh, and happy birthday to my best girl.

jo

Quick Shoutout

2005-03-05T09:49:00.000-05:00

My Boy, Prentiss, Rolled a 298 last night bowling at Harmony Lanes.

Two.Ninety.8.

Let it sink in.

wow.

congrats.

The Adapted Blog

2005-03-05T09:13:00.000-05:00

The Adapted Blog

My good friend (for one week of my life), Greg Newburn, has an excellant blog that y'all should read. It's funnier than mine, gramatically sharper, and logically less falacious. So. go. there. now. I guess I should hang it up now. It's been fun.

eh, I'm much too self absorbed to stop now...but really I doubt I'll have many readers.

The Arab Street

2005-03-05T00:34:00.000-05:00

Here's the fearsom Arab Street for y'all...Americans around the world tremble at the site.

The New York Press...

2005-03-05T00:24:00.000-05:00

And their disastrous writeup on the pope.

I've always thought that the New York press was only a small step above the horrendous Brooklyn Rail in the category of Free NYC Weeklies. Now, though I really ain't so sure. I'm sure there are some Maroons out there who find the above cover story funny. Not I, however--and I am not comedically challenged. And it's sad too, because no matter how offensive something is, I'll usually give it a pass if it's funny. Nothing to me is sacrosanct...and so when drudge linked to this article using the word "Outrage" in the title I was sure it was an overreaction by some hypersensitive Christian types. Well, it's not. The New York Press was really dumb to print an unfunny hit piece on the dieing pope and many millions of New Yorkers will rightly be pissed off. I think it would be cool if advertisers started pulling their ads from the old fishwrap...they'd be gone quickly. Certainly, I think people would wise to stop reading it, at least until they print an apology. This is the power of the market...use it.

Housecleaning

2005-03-04T17:20:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I think my hiatus from blogging is over...sorry for how week I've been lately. I'm gonna try to sew up a few loose ends here.

****

It occured to me today that when yr. in college, and suretain of yr. beliefs, it's no use for anyone to argue with you. I know I had some radical/radically dumb ideas when I was in college, and I was %100 convinced they were right. I don't agree with many of them, but even the slickest debater couldn't have budged me back then. I don't know what it is...college is sure a weird time in one's life.

Today I had a convo with a friend of mine in college who is an anthropology major, who was trying to convince me that some people in other cultures don't want to be wealthier, that they don't want to be healthier, that they don't want to live longer, that they don't want to be more educated, etc...and that what they really want is to preserve their indigineous gift-exhange economies: That's pure Hogwash, and if you don't believe me, read yr. Hernando De Soto. For the most part people want the same thing everywhere. QED.

I'm convinced that the differences between most cultures is not nearly as great as it seems. I don't really know if this is a conservative or liberal point of view, but I think basically peopl all around the world are the same, and while different cultures look different they're probably not much. OK the japanese bow and we shake hands. BFD. The Koreans eat Kim-Chi...whoa. It's all the same nonsense to me.

So, talking with this friend, I didn't think it was worth arguing this...She's, I'm sure, read lots of "scholarly" work, and my arguments won't do a thing. One day she'll see, just like I have.

****

On the issue of Striking workers in China my point was simple--when western do-gooders demand something like "less work hours for workers" without knowing anything else, the consequences can be bad. Bob, you pointed out that people shouldn't be forced to decide between working 80 hours a week, or working 40 hours a week and not having enough money. I agree. It's too bad, however it's the nature of poverty, people need to work a lot to get out of there whole. Nike isn't forcing anything...it's giving them an option. You might not want to take it, but a lot of people do. If working there were worse than the non-Nike alternative then they wouldn't be there? This is painfully obvious.

David, you appeared to write something about the problem with multiple currencies which is one of the more confused, and absurd ideas I've heard come from you. Competing currencies is good for economies for many reasons--for one it encourages the printing authority to be disciplined about inflation. Beyond that, it doesn't really make sense that because we have competing currencies that's why 5$ gets you different amounts in different areas---that's obvious to a fool. There are many countries all over the world that use the U.S. dollar as their currency. Do you really think 5$ gets you the same amount in each one of the countries.

Really I wonder where some of you guys get your ideas about economics. I'm presuming you just make them up.

****

So are the neoconservatives correct?
I've never been a neoconservative. Neo-Liberal? yes. Neo-conservative? not so much. I may have had my conservative awakening post 9/11, but I'm not a post 9/11 conservative...oh wait, nevermind. Actually I was a conservative prior to 9/11, just got my timeline mixed up. I've always thought that post 9/11 were a bit of an odd sort...mainly because they're focused about security and terrorism too much. Too much? But 5,000 people died?! True, true...but that doesn't necessitate eroding civil liberties via the patriot act. As Judge Napolitano stated in his recent Reason magazine interview...nobody ever died because someone was exercising their civil liberties. quite true. We also didn't need to torture anyone on international TV, and we also didn't need to make up reasons about going to war in Iraq!--The truth would have worked just fine. But Bush only found the truth after the war, really only found the truth with his 2nd Inaugural address.

Sure, bloggers have known the truth for a while, but for so long it was all about 9/11-Al Qaeda-WMDs-Iraqi Freedom-etc. The real reason to go to war was much simpler. It IS possible to topple a government and create democracy (WWII examples) and when we create one democracy more will follow--as is happening. Yes, democracy is on the march (well, at least maybe), we had the orange revolution, and now we have the Cedar Revolution, and I think Syria will be the next to fall. Yep, we're gettin' the low-hanging fruit. Next Destination Egypt and then Iran--and then maybe Besarrabia. Joke! I don't think war is necessary...I think Iraq may have been enough.

****

ok
more soon...man besides all this Mid East upheaval news has been really slow, no?

Marginal Revolution: China fact of the day: Striking for longer hours

2005-03-02T09:04:00.000-05:00

Marginal Revolution: China fact of the day: Striking for longer hours

Take that you jerks...
Again sorry for the light blogging, all kindsa upheaval in my life, hopefully soon to be settled.

Gannon/Guckert

2005-02-28T17:07:00.000-05:00

Ok, just got back to Brooklyn today after my 2 weeks of traveeling in DC and San Fran...sorry for the light blogging, but now that we're in the midst of a blizzard, what else am I gonna do?

Some people want me to comment on the Gannon/Guckert affair. Frankly, I don't give a damn about it. Ok, they guy was a shill--fine pull his credential. As for the all the stuff about his past as a gay Protitute, well I couldn't care less. I don't mind gays, and I don't mind prostitution. Do you? The real scandal is that a former Gay prostitute is a conservative! If this were the other way around that conservatives were going after someone with this kind of a past, they would be excoriated and called homophobes.

No why does this bother liberals so much? you tell me.

Julian Sanchez...

2005-02-27T20:29:00.000-05:00

...gives Michelle Malkin What-for.

Gawd, I can't stand that woman.

Finally Admits it...

2005-02-24T00:36:00.000-05:00

He's Not an Indian.

Churchill did address the issue of his ethnicity, admitting that he is not Native American.

"Is he an Indian? Do we really care?" he said, quoting those he called his "white Republican" critics.

"Let's cut to the chase; I am not," he said.

I didn't see it, but...

2005-02-21T09:34:00.000-05:00

The 'Simpsons' Animates Gay Nuptials, and a Debate

So I didn't see the episode last night in which one of the characters was revealed to have been gay, I was pukin my guts out after touring Sonoma county wineries, BUT, I'm gonna assume it was typical post 2000 simpsons fair. Funnier than most TV, not-heavy handed, and not quite as good as old simpsons.

So yeah, apparently Marge's sister is gay or something...Big surprise there! What, next your gonna tell me Christine Todd Whitman is gay or something.

I have nothing new to say really, except that at this point it seems pretty clear to me that any serious article that quotes L. Brent Bozell is just doing so to make the cultural right look bad. Although perhaps there isn't anyone better. Recall that Sr. Bozell is the man who is solely resonsible for th 1000 percent increase in FCC complaints in 2004....jerk. Here he's quotes as saying that the simpsons is "delibaretely bucking the mainstream" because polls show that the majority of people don't back gay marraige. Getoveryourself! Criticizing the simpsons for bucking the mainsteam is like, well....eh, no simile is really necessary.

ok, well blogging shall continue to be light for the next week...until I get home.

****

Let me make a quick comment about life in San Francisco. Anyone who criticizes "San Francisco Liberals" should consider the fact that the standard of living here is extremely high, and people are extraordinarily wealthy. There are high-tech headquarters everywhere you turn, etc etc. Of course I'm a hayekian, and I think this area has probably thrived inspite of the local politics, not due to it, but still...this ain't cambodia. The same of course could be said for Western Europe. Conservatives love to bash the quasi socialist politics of Western Europe, but, ummm....yeah, those countries are among the richest in the world, and really aren't going anywhere...perhaps some rethinking needs to be done.

ok

The Summers Transcript is Out

2005-02-18T10:27:00.000-05:00

Remarks at NBER Conference on Diversifying the Science & Engineering Workforce

Sorry for the perfunctory link-blogging of late...I've started a few entries, like one about the fabulous The Gates of Central Park, which I visited a few days ago. BTW, it's fantastic, and it should be checked out. I started writing another entry this morning about my view that both "Safe-Sex" and Abstainance were unrealistic and that the devotees of either view of pollyannaish. I'm not sure when I'll finish that one though.

So to revisit an old controversy, here's the transcript of Larry Summers' (The Harvard President) speech about gender diversity at the academic level in the sciences...now before you read it, I want you to remember one thing: The tempest originally got started because a woman at the speech was moved to nausea (her words) and had to work out--A brave act, demonstrating, that female's fortitude withstanding and dealing with different viewpoints.

So read it, and after every paragraph imagine yourslef becoming nauseated to the point where you can't read on...see how it feels.

Actually, I'd like my leftist readers to find the most odious passage in here and explain it to me...that'll be more fun

Fan....

2005-02-18T02:15:00.000-05:00

...tastic.

Bloggin San Fran

2005-02-17T11:21:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the light posting lately, been travelling and am now in San Fran.
I once read a conservative blogger apologize for having lived in San Franfrancisco, I'm sorry but if your politics prevent you from loving it here, then your politics are seriously fucked up. Hell, this is the home of Michael Savage.

Everytime I go into a store or a cafe or a restaurant I half expect to see Puck or Judd, sadly no such luck yet.

This is a truly slow new period so I have very little to comment on--and my personal stories aren't particularly exciting. I'll be back before too long...probably later today.

What the Hell is wrong with that stat?!

2005-02-15T07:09:00.000-05:00

Florida

Florida is my 2nd least favorite state in the Union after Colorado, which I could explain now, but colorado warrants its own entry. I hate florida despite the fact that Miami is easily one of my favorite cities in the country...but I suppose that Miami is to Florida what my old town was to Texas..que "Austin's not REALLY Texas...."

Anyway, I just hapenned to be looking through Thesmokinggun.com's archive of "foxy female felons" and notiched that 87.5% are from florida, which, well, doesn't surprise me at all...of course there could be many reasons for this, and frankly, the chicks aren't all that foxy (although consider, again, how much worse people usually look in their mugshots). Still, telling, quite...and you might as well add Jennifer Capriati's mughot to the bunch, in your head..

ok...off to San Fran today!!

Joke, real?

2005-02-14T14:03:00.000-05:00

Mary Letourneau and Vili Fualaau's Bon-Macy's
Registry on WeddingChannel.com

Somebody needs to do some sleuthing and figure out of this is a joke.

UPDATE: THESMOKINGGUN.COM's gottit, it's real...I wonder if I'll get a thank you card? I might buy something cheap for them

Shout Out

2005-02-14T13:19:00.000-05:00

My good friend Michael Bluejay is a true ATX Living Legend. On his website he currently has an Expose of the cult known as Aesthetic Realism, based here in NYC, and of which he was a member, with his family, as a child. Check it out, and his whole website, which is endlessly fascinating.

TTWO Goes To The Movies: The Aviator

2005-02-14T11:09:00.000-05:00

**Sorry for the recent lack of posting. Was Away.**

I'll admit it: I gotta thing for Billionaires. But it's not the money itself that appeals to me. Hello, I got no delusions that they'll be sprinkling they shredded chedda' over my taco salad anytime soon. No, I like rich-folk for the same reason that I like geniuses of all stripes--they tend to be unusual and different. I read somewhere that the reason that geniuses are often quirky and awkward is that, well, being a genius is in itself deviant. Being a billionaire is certainly deviant as well.

We live in a time in which the word eccentric serves almost as a prefix for m/billionaire. They do wild things! The get TV shows! They Bungee jump! They play in a rock band! Apparently they've always been this way--ok we knew that, fine. In The Aviator Leo DiCaprio depicts Howard Hughes, who I'd inevitably have to call a forerunner to Richard Branson, CEO of the Virgin Empire. A Film/Aviation/Engineering mogul, Hughes' follows a classic riches-to-more riches story, as the young man parlays an inherited fortune made from dill bits into success.

I've heard many people who aren't billionaires (blech!) say things like "They're so rich, what do they need more money for?" or "Wal-Mart is so big, why do they need to keep building stores". This film answers the question well. When you're the type of person who is briliant and energetic enough to make a fortune, then, well, you're not the type of person who wants to just retire, and rest on your riches. It's cliche, but not untrue, that the kind of drive demonstrated by Mr. Hughes is an embodiment of a certain American can-do spirit--one that, no matter what your ideology, or what the climate is like, deserves to be celebrated.

And that's what this film does well. No, it's not a love-letter but, I think, an honest look at a person whose will to achievement produced great things both for himself and the country. The film also celebrated keeping the customer satisfied and denounced the kind of "crony capitalism"--the buying of political favors from entrenched corporations--which lefists rightly denounce.

Finally, I must say, Leo Dicaprio did a fine job portraying a man going through life, straddling the edge of sanity. This is difficult, I think, for actors, because mental illness (oh yeah, I didn't mention that yet, but Howard Hughes apparently was obsessivly obsessive compulsive) is very much an internal think, and outward portrayals, like that guy in A beautiful Mind, will at best be an orthogonal representation of it.

****

OK, am back for now, but am going to San Fran tomorrough. Although I should do plentya bloggin from the left coast so don't worry. And have a good Valentine's day too. You might be single, or maybe you have a gf/bf that expects too much on this day, but whatever your situation, don't gripe about it. It's one frackin' day. Big Deal.

Holy.fracking.shit.this.is.amazing!!!!!

2005-02-11T08:09:00.000-05:00

The Baby Name Wizard's NameVoyager

I have seen the light and the light is good.

One day this tool will be used by historians to prove my theory that the decline of Western Civilization coincided with when parents decided it was a good idea to name their sons Logan.

ummmm...azing

Like something outta ghostworld...

2005-02-10T21:48:00.000-05:00

Yeah, a kid won a big art prize in Rhode Island for this daring piece of work.

Visionary, brilliant....

2005-02-10T12:44:00.000-05:00

...and a beautiful waste of time.

A good quote found over at pejmanesque

2005-02-10T11:05:00.000-05:00

To find everything profound - that is an inconvenient trait. It makes one strain one's eyes all the time, and in the end one finds more than one might have wished.

--Friedrich Nietzsche, The Gay Science

Hmm...this sounds familiar

2005-02-10T07:16:00.000-05:00

Carrots 1, cancer 0

"A carrot a day helps keep cancer away, scientists have revealed"

Now as someone who has spent a lifetime devouring carrots this is of course welcome news. umm...except that it isn't news. Honestly I'm always amused by the health reporting in Newspapers....I mean who didn't basically know this. Every year they trot out some new study about how vegetables may actually decrease your risk of heart attack, and broccoli may be good for fighting diabetes, and it always seems like they're just writing the same article over and over again, because we've heard it all before haven't we? Or am I missing something.

A Final Word on Ward.

2005-02-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

Oddly, I've recieved comments defending Mr. Churchill and calls for me to bring it back up. I'd think the smart thing to do, among those in the anti-war movement would be to dismiss Ward as a crank, and forget that he was ever an issue. Hey, Whatever.

Let me also say, that despite the fact that I keep bringing this up, I don't really think it's that big of a deal. I don't think those of Ward Churchill's ilk are a huge blight on academia, just a small blight. The other issue is that I really really disagree with and don't like the radical anti-israel/anti-US/ethno-studying/3rd worldist left. I simply disagree with their philosophy which at it's core is anti-capitalist and anti-individualist. We can get into a debate on that any time, however, for now, that's my belief. Ward Churchill is a satisfying whipping boy for me, I must say, because his nonsense is, to me at least, quite obvious.

Ok, so a previous commenter, my good friend Bob posted something of a defense of Ward Churchill to which I will now respond.

I hold my defense of Churchill. By the numbers...

First, you, as usual, pull the most inflamatory statement out possibly his most inflamatory piece of work (but I guess this is what the "money quote" is all about). Yes, I think this piece was insensitive especially on the heals of 9/11. Churchill himself has said that he grieves for those who lost family members in the WTC. However, his point that the CIA offices and military contractors in the WTC were/are facilitors of American atrocities elsewhere is actually not so absurd.

OK, I accept that I may have taken the most inflamatory statement out of possibly his most inflamatory piece of work...so what? He said it. Let's suppose some Middle Eastern Study teacher was quoted as saying "Well if Hitler had just finished the job and killed all of the Jews we wouldn't be in this mess in Israel", could that be defended as just being the most inflamatory thing he said. I'm not saying that that fictitious quote is equivalent to Churchill's words, but, simply, this is not a defense of someone. OF COURSE someone is going to take umbrage with the most offensive statement! Otherwise people would be focusing on the statement that was more offensive.

As for the CIA offices in the WTC, I don't accept this logic, because, well, what about all the people on the planes? or everyone else who works there?

Second, the thesis of his article, that we can expect more 9/11s if we continue to committ atrocities elsewhere in the world, is hardly radical. I'm sure that readers of this blog are familiar with the CIA's blowback theory.

Personally, I think it's a slur on the "oppressed" people of the muslim world to suggest that 9/11 was some sort of retaliation. 2 reasons. The folks who purpotrated this act weren't some poor jihadists, it was Osama Bin Laden, an extremely wealthy member of the nobility which made most of it's money from Saudi Oil. I do accept that many young men in Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan sympathyze with Bin Laden and support him however, they are wrong to, and their hostility is misdirected. I believe it is the Saudi Royal Family and their brutal treatment of women (and everyone else for that matter) that is the root of most of the oppression in that country, not the US. I believe it was The Taliban who caused most of the suffering and humiliation (again, heavily directed towards women) in that country. I'll add Pakistan and a host of other countries to the list of countries most oppressed by their own governments. Oh, and what has the US done to oppress the Saudis/Afghanis/pakistanis/malaysians/etc. etc. Support Israel? aah, that's it. That's what's keeping these countries impoverished, that's what's keeping women in these countries wearing veils and getting stoned to death, that's what's preventing freedom of religion and speech. Umm, just kidding. That's a straw man, and if the Arab Street can't figure it out, you'd think an esteemed academic could.

So, no, I don't by the blowback theory, because the blowback should, theoretically, be against their own governments not the office workers in the WTC.

Third, claiming that Churchill is not a serious academic is ridiculous. I have no idea if he publishes in academic journals or not, but if you've ever picked up any of his books, they are certainly of academic value and intensely documented. Also, I agree with B's analysis of the public intellectual. Churchill is certainly a more prolific thinker and writer than almost anyone else in his field.

I have no idea if this is true, I'll take your word for it, except that much has come to light that he is an academic fraud--distorting his ethnic identity AND MAKING UP HISTORICAL EVENTS THAT NEVER EXISTED!!! Gosh even AIM, the American Indian Movement denies he's an indian, and top notch historical scholars in Native American studies think he has just made shit up--as I linked to in the previous entry. This is seriously damning stuff.

Fourth, Being a militant doesn't mean that you aren't an academic. Should all professors who believe in some form of political violence be thrown out of the academy? That would eliminate a lot of leftists to be sure, but it would also eliminate a lot apologists the U.S. military.

I suppose this is true. Touche!, ahem I mean Two Shits! Ok, point taken.

Fifth, I'd like someone (preferably Joe) to give a standard by which an academic should be able to be kicked out of the university. Is it insenstivity? I remember hearing a UT Government prof at a YCT rally one time be pretty callous in his analysis that the Afghans deserved what they had coming to them.

Well, I'm not interested in firing anyone for insensitivity...I suspect if Universities got into this practice it would come down the hardest on professors who dared speak out against Affirmative Action or other conservative viewpoints. Even if it didn't, I agree with the idea of academic freedom, and it's wrong to be fired for one's own opinions in the academic setting. I think because he is defending violence here, and in other setting encourages violence (see his satya magazine article which I link to in a previous entry), it might be reasonable to see him as a danger and that he should be fired.

****

Then again, perhaps I'm just anti-Ward Because I'm Jewish. At least that's what this indymedia post would have you believe.

Her Mugshot via the Smoking Gun

2005-02-09T09:30:00.000-05:00

Another Teacher Nabbed For Student Sex - February 8, 2005

Ok, she's not quite as attractive in this picture, but consider the fact that's a fracking mugshot, and ever'one looks bad in'em.

Teacher charged with having sex with student, 13 - Feb 9, 2005

2005-02-09T09:24:00.000-05:00

But is it really a crime when your that hot? OK, YES IT IS, well, um, yes it still is, I guess. No really it is. really. serious. ok, I'm serious, buuut, no it is. On the other hand. OK OK! it is. fine.

I made up a new phrase...let the meme start here!

2005-02-09T08:52:00.000-05:00

Google Search: "House Blogga"

Apropos my recent entry about Steve Silver, it appears I've come up with a new phrase: "House Blogga"--A blogger who defends the Mainstream media, selling out the interests of fellow bloggers. Of course, it's a reference to the offensive smear "House Nigga", used by, for example, Leftist cartoonist Ted Rall in describing Condi Rice, or more generally any African-American who is a sell out for being a Republican.

Ok, so House Blogga--Start using it, and credit TTWO!

I agree

2005-02-09T08:48:00.000-05:00

The New SteveSilver.net: In Defense of "MSM"

Steve Silver touchhes on a subject that's interesting to me: The tiresome and ceaseless attacks on the MSM (Mainstream Media) by blogs.

The Money Passage:
Look what happened when CBS’ special task force released its report on the event that launched the anti-MSM movement into the stratosphere, Rathergate. The right-wing Blogosphere almost universally called the report a “whitewash,” and they may have been right. But just as when the scandal first surfaced, they spoke not of the meltdown of CBS, but of MSM. Hugh Hewitt, that day, made this prediction:

“expect a parallel universe to develop within MSM -- a sober toned but nevertheless congratulatory nod towards the "thoroughness" of the Panel's effort and the severity of CBS' response. Thus will the wagons of legacy media circle around Black Rock.”

Those wagons, alas, never materialized. Here’s how the leading institution of ‘MSM,” the New York Times, led their coverage that day:

“Already under duress from years of budget cuts, poor ratings and reduced influence, CBS News suffered a crushing blow to its credibility yesterday because of a broadcast that has now been labeled as both factually discredited and unprofessionally produced.”

Did the other leading news organizations react to Rathergate with horror that their jig was up? No- they were thrilled, because Rather was their competitor. A wounded CBS News only opens the door for more scoops by NBC, ABC, the Times, and yes, the blogosphere.

I believe I can provide some perspective on all this, as someone who’s been a professional journalist for five years and a blogger for almost three, and as someone who consumes massive quantities of both blogs and “MSM” content every day. I have great respect for the blog phenomenon and am proud to be a part of it. And I’ve certainly been known to occasionally criticize- or downright tear apart- examples of bad journalism that have appeared in “MSM” newspapers and magazines. But the blanket denunciations of “MSM” have mushroomed to the point of absurdity.

I’m not here to argue that the mainstream media is perfect, that the emergence of blogs isn’t a major event, that incidents of bias and inaccuracy don’t exist, or that certain frequent targets of blog attacks don’t deserve it. But I can say with complete confidence that the mainstream media does a very good job with the vast majority of the content that it produces, and there is worthwhile, entertaining, and valuable work to be found in the MSM every single day. It’s about time they got a break.

Much like lefties simultaneously bashing George W. Bush as both stupid and cunningly evil, bloggers who bash “MSM” are making two arguments that contradict one another- MSM is effectively and ruthlessly biased, yet they’re also incompetent. How can both be true?

Wait!, is Steve Silver a self-loathing blogger who is stricken with Stockholm's Syndrome, sympathizing with his enemy in an attempt go gain favors! Steve, get back on the reservation you House Blogga!

In Defense of Misspellings

2005-02-09T07:26:00.000-05:00

So yeah, I realize that TTWO isn't the best-edited blog out there. Glenn Reynolds rarely makes a mistake and he has a new entry up every 10 seconds. Same with Lileks, although I did see one typo the other day.

Bust mistakes, particularly Misspellings do have their advantages and rationalizations.

1) Hits: Look who is on the 4th page when you google "Maggie Gylenhall." I've got hits from that. Do you think I'm anywhere to be found via a search for the more accurately spelled "maggie gyllenhaal"? nope. I've also got hits for stories about "Brad and Jenn" as opposed to the couple "Brad and Jen". So you see there is a market out there for targeted spellings, and via the wonders of google the customer can find me.

2) Look you Frog-lovers, this ain't France, and we don't speak French. We don't stand down from a fight, and we don't have a governing body that controls our language. For those of you who don't know, French has an official monitoring body called The Alliance Francaise. Their job is to get together and make up a bunch of arbitrary rules about their language and its spelling and grammer, and what words are allowed, etc. Well, I speak American. And American doesn't have that. We own the language--not some stuffed shirt with a degree and Merriam-Websters commited to memory. When I mispell I'm just exercising the rights that Ol' Francois wishes he has. Deal with it.

3) Efficiency. Look, who's really got time for this tripe. I work full time and when I'm not then I got to watch TV or play ping-pong. What am I gonna do, watch less West Wing so that I can proofread, like I was in 9th grade? Grow Up!

ok, all that being said, I do appreciate my readership which has been steadily climbing since day 1. Keep 'em coming, I'm just getting warmed up.

Umm...Ward,

2005-02-09T06:07:00.000-05:00

remember how you're not actually Indian...nope, not Native American either.

height="165" align="center" border="0"
hspace="1" vspace="1">

Oh, and it turns out his ethnic heritage isn't the only thing he's been fabricating

Ramesh Ponnuru gets a funny letter...

2005-02-08T18:16:00.000-05:00

...about agriculture subsidies.

It begins like this:
"I must say that I am really uncomfortable with free-market conservatives' knee-jerk opposition to farm subsidies..."

Free Market conservatives? I didn't know there was any other kind.

Ramesh, a Kansan (is that relevant, i don't know), layeth the smacketh down.

Slouching Towards Lynchburg: The end of Social Conservatism

2005-02-07T18:32:00.000-05:00

I know there are many, mainly on the left, who think that we live in a time renewed social conservatism and are ~~on the brink of~~ in the midst of neo-theocracy. Of course there are those on the right (and many on the left, for that matter) who think that the culture has slid into somekind of apocalyptic abyss the likeks of which only divine intervention (or perhaps just the FCC) is capable of rectifying. On the former point, as to a reinvigorated social/religious right-wing, I don't see it. Instead I see, what I hope, are the screams of a dieing movement.

Lately, I've noticed a very disturbing pattern among these types. I'll call it, charitably, political stockholm's syndrome-or sympathy with one's oppressors critiques of one's own group. For example, I recently came across the Rabbi Daniel Lapin, founder of a group called Toward Tradition. Take a look around then come back here. First of all the guy comes off as a charlatain right away by the fact that he is selling a book called Thou Shall Prosper, about the "10 Commandments for Making Money" yes. lame. But this group, Toward Tradition seeks to find common ground between Jews and Evangelical Christians to stem the assault on traditional values in this country. Ok, fair enough. But upon further delving you find that Rabbi Lapin is, and one should only use this term very very rarely, a self-loather. Take a look at this vile article on the front page entitled "Our Worst Enemy". In it he repeats the old canard about Jews being responsible for a disproportionate share of the filth in the modern media from Woody Allen, Meet the Fockers, to Ron Jeremy. In perhaps the most shocking thing I've ever seen written by a Jew, he quotes Adolph Hitler's complaint that the Jews were responsbile for damaging the culture in the book Mein Kampf. Let that sink in as to how out-to-lunch this man is. Actually out-to-lunch is a polite way of describing an anti-semite. Ironically he makes the argument that if the depiction of Jews in Woody Allen films were made by a gentile people would call it anti-semitic. It's ironic because he doesn't realize how easily the same could be said about his own writing.

But this kind of shocking logic in favor of social conservatism doesn't end there. I remember finding via Andrew Sullivan's blog some time ago an article written by Chuck Colson in which he basically argues that we shouldn't, say, legalize gay marriage because that might inspire more attacks from the Islamists. In other words, becaus Osamma and Co. don't like social liberalism, neither should we. Shockingly capitulationist.

Here's the Money Quote:
Radical Islamists were surely watching in July when the Senate voted on procedural grounds to do away with the Federal Marriage Amendment. This is like handing moral weapons of mass destruction to those who use America's decadence to recruit more snipers and hijackers and suicide bombers.

I can just imagine the young jihadist saying "Allahdamnit!, I hate any country that blocks amendments on procedural grounds!"

Ironically, there are those on the queer-left who feel that Andrew Sullivan has done the same to them--repudiating gays who are, you know, more sexually deviant than he and his boyfriend are because they damage the cause of gay rights. Perhaps many are guilty of this to some extent.

The fact that so many are willing to implicate the actions of their own group with the clear intent of currying favor with their captors or oppressors is not the sign of a reinvigorated movement, it is a stage before death, and that, in my opinion, is a good thing.

Doing Well by Doing Good

2005-02-07T07:40:00.000-05:00

Yeah my Superbowl prediction was innacurate, whatevs!
Hats off to the Patriots and their fans. Besides at a time of war, wouldn't it have been sorta gauche for the Patriots not to have won. Although if the Eagles had won, we could at least say, well, Philly is the birthplace of American Freedom. Both points are valid.

That being said, did anyone catch the halftime show with Sir Paul McCartney. Well, I've seen my share of Halftime shows, but this one was the best hands down. Sir Paul played four Beatles songs, and assuming he wasn't lypsincing, he. flat. out. rocked. Mccartney was chosen this year to be an antidote to last years kidrocktimberlakejanetjacksonnipslipwardrobemalfunction and critics like Frank Rich were expecting a snoozer. Apparently the show was produced by the guy who produces shows at the Kennedy Center, and this was enough for Rich to declare that the puritans had won, and entertainment and fun had lost. Well, if anyone would rather have seen Kid Rock prancing around in an American Flag shouting something unintelligible into the microphone, I'd like to meet them. Wait, no I wouldn't like to meet them. I know what those kinds of people are like.

Now, hey, I like looking at female flesh as much as the next guy. If any'all saw the Tabasco ad, well all I can say h.o.t.t. I nearly started quivering. dayumn. Clearly sex and violence have a place in entertainment, but too often they are used cheaply as a substitute for anything of substance, at which point they can offend anyone's sensibilities. Same goes for profanity. I happen to use the words fuck, shit, and others in my writing and speaking all the time, and I don't mind when other's do to. But a Comedian who uses said words ad infinitum, as a substitute for, umm, like, actual jokes will bother me.

Last night's halftime show proved that with care and craft (By which I mean performingly 4 awesomely written songs), you can put on a great show without resorting to the crass. I haven't seen it myself, but apparently the movie The Incredibles was like this as well. Genuinely wholesome and still very good. I know the National Review loved it and was impressed to see, yesterday, that it had made the top 10 best films for the Brooklyn Rail (Brooklyn's nonsensical left-wing bi-weekly fishwrap) in 2004.

I don't really think there's any trend or anything going on, nor do I expect there to be. But it's good for both producers of entertainment AND fans of entertainment to know that it is possible (to sell and to find) this stuff.

Super Bowl Prediction

2005-02-06T09:10:00.000-05:00

Who knows? I'm going out on a limb and picking the Eagles 28-14.

If I was still making money at Tradesports. I'd put up a buck (heh, that of course means 100 bucks in layman's terms).

Ok

Tax Free Week.

2005-02-05T21:32:00.000-05:00

I'm watching a Food Network show about Fried Foods. I have to say, they make my soup-in-a-box for dinner, seem, well, underwhelming. Right now they're profiling the patato chip!

****

So I noticed today walking home a sign on a store that said it's "No Tax Week" in NYC. Aah, our once a week experiment in unrestrained capitalism, a week, which, um, er, well, yeah, um everybody really likes! Oh well, back to the mixed economy starting monday.

(BTW, right now they're profiling Churros, or as they say in Barcelona "Xuros")

No Tax Week reminds me of my last day working at the Deli. A customer came in to get a sandwhich all excited that it was a Tax Holiday and I said to her "Wouldn't it be nice if everyday was a tax holiday". Gosh, she looked like she saw a ghost! "But what about everything we love? like Libraries and the Police?" Indeed.

I then got into an argument with a coworker about eliminating sales taxes...our boss told us to "shut up about free market debates"

I quit that day.

****

They just did a segment on the French Fried Onion. The host said "Don't let the name French fool you, these are %100 Red White and Blue" umm...what colors are the French flag?

Oh, and the host of the show is this guy. Remember him?

****
And if you haven't gone yet, you simply MUST go to http://www.20q.net

please keep posting your best games.

My Lord...

2005-02-05T17:20:00.000-05:00

http://www.20q.net, is an absolutely brilliant 20 playing program. Go there, and have fun, and while your at it

Check k this amazing sequence out. Beyond Genius

C-span or not C-span...

2005-02-05T08:23:00.000-05:00

...hmm, that fell apart.

So I'm watching Washington Journal on C-SPAN as I type and they have two correspondents from Arab newspapers as guests--one from Lebanon and on from Egypt. Both of them seem to reflect, from what I can tell, the moderate Arab voice--by which I mean they were skeptical about the war, cautious about relationships with the US/Israel, hopeful about Iraq's fledgling democracy, and sharply critical of the dictators of the Arab World.

Now generally, I'd think that C-SPAN views are a bit more erudite than your typical viewer of, say, CNN or FoxNews, or certainly Sp!ke TV. The callers into the show this morning, however, are terribly obnoxious and they keep correcting the guests about the situation of the Arab World. Sure, the guests may just be Arab propaganda peddlers, but it really doesn't seem so. ok

AH! Finally a caller suggested that the other callers don't know what they're talking about. That's great.

NEXT

****

Whoa!! who knew the CUNY had its own TV channel where they show educational videos, this rules. Right now I'm watching a special on economic history, with a focus on the history of american labor. This rulez.

Generally, labor history is a pretty leftist practice, replete with discussion of terrible working conditions, the Traingle Factory Fire, and the Pinkertons.

They're playing an old song about "The Living Wage" from early in this century. MAN, even then, huh?

NEXT

****

Now, I'm watching what I think is a lebanese channel. I'm watching what at first glance looks like a news show, but all the "NEWS" is about various Furniture stores that are having sales, car dealerships that have good financing, and new Middle Eastern Restaurants in NYC. Hey, it's more useful than most news.

NEXT

****
Damn! the Chinese Channel is blocked on this cable, I didn't even know these channels existed until this morning.

NEXT
****

phew, I get the KoreanTV, but damn, it's in Korean.

NEXT
****
Man, one you get up into the 70's on TV, things get really exotic--hell I just saw a Tae-Bo commerical. eerie.

Alright enough telebloggin, at least nobody reads me on the weekends.

ok.

HolY SHIT!, I just completely lost use of my mouse, and I can't figure out how to press the publish button, or even do anything, this is a total disaster. Damn, I can't see the Mouse indicator at all. Where are you?!. I am soooo freaking out right now.

This has got to change...A computer without a mouse is like a fish without a bicycle.

****

So I just took a shower, came back, and voila, there she is. Ok, well, I guess I can conclude this entry.

"til next time

Ok LAST thing about Ward Churchill...

2005-02-04T13:25:00.000-05:00

...just cause it's funny.

In one of the article's I saw, possibly Volokh's, he is quotes as saying that he's like 1/16th cherokee...HA! That is like soooo 3rd grade when everyone clamed to have some native blood, and it always just happenned to be 1/16th cherokee. Perhaps Mr. Churchill would be better suited as an elementary school teacher's aid...although he shouldn't let his school see that picture of him down below!

More Ward, I know it's tired but hear it out.

2005-02-04T12:06:00.000-05:00

The Volokh Conspiracy - Ward Churchill:

Eugen Volokh is againt the idea of firing Ward Churchill on the grounds that academic freedom, like free speech in general, is important to uphold even for the most vile of perpetrators. I'm not an academic, unlike Eugene, but I Churchill's comments go beyond the limits of supposed "academic freedom".
First of all to a commenter (Bob) in an earlier post who suggested that Ward Churchill wasn't suggesting that those inside the World Trade Center deserved to die, well, that's just wrong.

The Money Passage (quite telling):
Well, really. Let's get a grip here, shall we? True enough, they were civilians of a sort. But innocent? Gimme a break. They formed a technocratic corps at the very heart of America's global financial empire – the "mighty engine of profit" to which the military dimension of U.S. policy has always been enslaved – and they did so both willingly and knowingly. Recourse to "ignorance" – a derivative, after all, of the word "ignore" – counts as less than an excuse among this relatively well-educated elite. To the extent that any of them were unaware of the costs and consequences to others of what they were involved in – and in many cases excelling at – it was because of their absolute refusal to see. More likely, it was because they were too busy braying, incessantly and self-importantly, into their cell phones, arranging power lunches and stock transactions, each of which translated, conveniently out of sight, mind and smelling distance, into the starved and rotting flesh of infants. If there was a better, more effective, or in fact any other way of visiting some penalty befitting their participation upon the little Eichmanns inhabiting the sterile sanctuary of the twin towers, I'd really be interested in hearing about it.

Bob, do you still hold to your idea.

Now, why shouldn't ~~Dr.~~(just kidding he never managed to get a PH.D.) Churchill's views be considered protected academic speech? Read this article in Satya Magazine.

Clearly Mr. Churchill is not really an academic he is a militant. Academic's believe in debate, peer review (By the way he doesn't believe in Peer Review either, just look at his faculty page at UC, and scroll down to his publications. Not one of them appears in a serious academic journal...jeez I can't believe I'm defending our institutions of higher learning), synthesis, discussion, dialectics, diversity, etc. Churchill, according to his interivew has decided that his ideological enemies are guilty and encourages people to rise up violently against them. Although I disagree with him strongly his views are legitimate in some contexts...but a research institution? A place of higher learning? I think it's legitimate to show him the door.

I eagerly awate the readers' take.

AND he's a poseur

2005-02-04T09:57:00.000-05:00

Ward Churchill Just looks like an Indian

Bad Blogger

2005-02-04T07:56:00.000-05:00

I didn't watch the State of the Union or even read the text. I coulda guessed what he was gonna say, and from what others have written, I woulda been right. Perhaps I'm lazy, or perhaps it's just the creeping nihilism of enduring a lonely NYC winter and knowing I'm am an evolutionary dead end.

I have 0 optimism that anything will get done on social security reform in this term. If something does get done, it should cement Bush as one of the greatest presidents of all time. If not, then the ultimate success of the war on terror will seal his fate.

I was thinking of writing an entry about Israel and calling it "A Funny Thing Happenned on the Way to the Peace Process", which is that Sharon's policies are slowly being vindicated. By running out the clock on Yasser, and instituting real tough security measures, suicide bombings are way down, relations are starting to thaw, and pulling out from territories is starting to happen. The old assertion that the PLO was powerless to fight the terrorists is being shown as wrong as the new guy, Abbass, takes strong steps such as the ethically problematic but pragmatic step of confiscating civilians' guns. If I were a Palestinian Libertarian I'd be upset thinking "This is the EXACT time we need our guns, while we're at war for our freedom". But instead I have a more global view. sorry.

I remain cautiously optimistic.

****

Ok, I promised some shout outs down below for blogga's who responded to puzzle challenges. All of them were already on my blogroll, but a formal introduction is a good idea.

PROF$1.50 blogs straight outta H-town Texas and is one of my best friends from back when we used to muck shit up in the River City. She is the blogmother of Austin TX, inspiring many got get into the game, prompting legions of wannabes and copycats. A must read, not for the prudish or faint.

Jessica, I met at a party for my beloved National Review. Her's is another most excellant blog combining sharp wit, unique political observations, and amusing anecdotes about life in this Gomorrah on the Hudson. Another "read everydayer".

B & L, are two more "tied with just a few others for first place best friends" kickin' ATX style. My sense is that they have the "best blog eva" but is written in a language foreign to me. Still very funny if you want to read with a dictionary.

So yeah, that's dispensed with...I'll be in San Fran in 2 weeks, about which I'm hellaxcited. Swaaate.

out

Geogrobloggin'

2005-02-03T15:31:00.000-05:00

Ok, Kids it's Geography time! YESSSS!

The blogosphere's geography crazy, Lawdy so am I!

So check out the game posed above, and try and figure it out without looking at the answer. Working together we were able to do it in about 15 minutes yesterday at the office. After we were done I emailed mister Eugene "Ooh look at me I'm so smart I graduated UCLA at age 15" Volokh to tell him that he missed a couple, and that if he wanted in on some hot Geography action he should visit The Truth Will Out. But all he did was post my answers, down below his, and not gimme any credit. Thanks a frackin' lot Gene. I was sorta looking for a Volokh-lanche!

Still, it's a fun game so don't cheat, and lemme know how you did.

Out for now.

Life

2005-02-02T08:08:00.000-05:00

I used to write a "personal" blog. It was tripe, and and for the good of the world it has been taken down and all the entry's destroyed by the host. This entry will certainly straddle the line between personal and observational blogging. Be forewarned.

I onced dated a girl who was considerably more liberal than me. A big part of our relationship was the many political/philosophical debates that we had. This was made possible by the fact that she was extremely bright, and thus all of her positions were all reasoned. (How then did she end up arguing the liberal position, ha!, I have no idea. Probably had something to do with flawed premises.) There was one area, however, in which she was more "conservative" and that was abortion. I'm pro-choice, and it just drove me nuts that I was out-conservatived in this area. For both political, and, ahem, personal reasons I argued this one with her a lot. Neither of us budged.

I also spend a lot of time stressing out about unwanted pregnancy. The day she got her periods felt like a holiday. I insisted on using, like, 3 forms of contraception. I was nuerotic, dumb, and overly stressed.

Turns out I shouldn't have been. I found out a couple of days ago the most shocking news of my life, so far: I'm infertile. Without going too much into the medical context of why this test was done, I can say, I have 0 sperm count, and treatment is difficult, possibly impossible in my situation. I don't really wanna spend time discussing my personal emotions too much; you can probably imagine: shock, bitterness, despair, but also happines that it's not the worst medical situation (by a long shot), that I'll be able to adopt and have a family, etc. I also have a hard time, of course, grasping the significance at a time when I have no immediate plans to start a family. However, when I do, I imagine I'll feel similarly: yeah, it sucks, but there are worse things, and I can still (will) start a family.

George Orwell became fiercely anti-abortion upon learning of his infertility. The thought that those who could have kids would elect not to have them was galling to him--I think understandably so.

But, of course, the fact that a particular activity makes you angry or pained or sad is not a reason to push for its prohibition.

Kahlil Gibran, in his amazing book The Prophet sums up the sentiment more beautifully than I could hope:
Then a lawyer said, "But what of our Laws, master?"

And he answered: You delight in laying down laws, Yet you delight more in breaking them. Like children playing by the ocean who build sand-towers with constancy and then destroy them with laughter. But while you build your sand-towers the ocean brings more sand to the shore, And when you destroy them the ocean laughs with you. Verily the ocean laughs always with the innocent.

But what of those to whom life is not an ocean, and man-made laws are not sand-towers, But to whom life is a rock, and the law a chisel with which they would carve it in their own likeness? What of the cripple who hates dancers? What of the ox who loves his yoke and deems the elk and deer of the forest stray and vagrant things?

What of the old serpent who cannot shed his skin, and calls all others naked and shameless? And of him who comes early to the wedding feast, and when over-fed and tired goes his way saying that all feasts are violation and all feasters law-breakers?

What shall I say of these save that they too stand in the sunlight, but with their backs to the sun? They see only their shadows, and their shadows are their laws. And what is the sun to them but a caster of shadows? And what is it to acknowledge the laws but to stoop down and trace their shadows upon the earth? But you who walk facing the sun, what images drawn on the earth can hold you? You who travel with the wind, what weather vane shall direct your course? What man's law shall bind you if you break your yoke but upon no man's prison door?

What laws shall you fear if you dance but stumble against no man's iron chains? And who is he that shall bring you to judgment if you tear off your garment yet leave it in no man's path? People of Orphalese, you can muffle the drum, and you can loosen the strings of the lyre, but who shall command the skylark not to sing?

The desire to exert power over a fellow human being is incredibly strong. The endless streams of people willing to take paycuts and endure withering attacks on their character in order to serve the public (do politics) is evidence as such. So too is this exhibited in relationships, violence, parenting (at times), and of course the writing of the law. Liberals often complain that conservatives (particularly the Christian Right) want to impose their morality on others. They're right. So too do liberals want to impose their values as well, usually having to do with environmentalism, egalitarianism, etc.

When one faces personal hardship the temptation becomes even stronger to want to impose one's way on the world, like Orwell did. But, if your looking for a hero, you can have mine: Julian Simon--A man who was clinically depressed his entire adult life yet made a career of demonstrating the constant march of progress the world has made in increasing longevity, fighting disease, lifitng people out of poverty, etc. His problems were his problems, and somehow he found a way to create a career out of being positive.

Frankly, if I hadn't heard of George Orwell, it would never have occurred to me that somehow my infertility should inform my position on the subjects, but because of him, it did make me think. It is difficult that others forgo the opportunities which are unavailable to you, but the test is on me to rise above, and I like tests.

****
ok, more Geography games soon! Those seem to get me lots of hits, and they're waaaay more fun than all this politics nonsense.

A little thing...

2005-02-01T18:05:00.000-05:00

...that I like to call the motherload

Look on the left and try the Africa and SE ASIA quizzes, these give you real scores, so you can post them.

Sam offer applies. Also, I have an entry about abortion and the politics of "life" coming up, stay tuned.

Good luck!

Alright MapKids, le's play

2005-02-01T08:41:00.000-05:00

Drag the name into the proper country.

Click it, play it, post the score...First blogger to post gets a free shout out, and a link in my next entry!!

Sweet

2005-01-31T08:19:00.000-05:00

Jonah Goldber agrees with me.

Dude, his take on Juan Cole is just like mine.

I heart Jonah Golberg

My Turn!!

2005-01-30T18:08:00.000-05:00

Juan Cole is Simply Appalled!

Ok, I'm really nervous about this cause I've ne'er done this before, but I'm gonna trying ripping-to-shreds a Juan Cole blog entry. Fisking, I think, is what it's called. Juan Cole is a relatively easy punching bag, but hey, I'm a beinner.

eeeh, Here goes!

Juan starts off with a startling contradiction.

I'm just appalled by the cheerleading tone of US news coverage of the so-called elections in Iraq on Sunday. I said on television last week that this event is a "political earthquake" and "a historical first step" for Iraq. It is an event of the utmost importance, for Iraq, the Middle East, and the world.

BTW, when he says US news coverage, I suspect he means Fox News, and why he is appaled by the excitement of democratic elections, right before saying that he think's they are of utmost importance if, of course, highly confusing.

Anyway, he goes on make some conjecture about how Bush didn't even want open elections, and that there mere existance is a repudation of Bush, clearly digging himself a surprisingly dry well. And of course the contradictions just keep on coming:

With all the hoopla, it is easy to forget that this was an extremely troubling and flawed "election." Iraq is an armed camp. There were troops and security checkpoints everywhere. Vehicle traffic was banned. The measures were successful in cutting down on car bombings that could have done massive damage. But even these Draconian steps did not prevent widespread attacks, which is not actually good news. There is every reason to think that when the vehicle traffic starts up again, so will the guerrilla insurgency.

What?! You have to stretch really hard to use the word draconian in a paragraph about cracking down on violence to give people a free election. You even have to stretch harder, no wait, have your head in the sand, to claim that the lack of violence is somehow a bad sign.

Here Juan displays ignorance of the multitude of forms which democracy can take

The Iraqis did not know the names of the candidates for whom they were supposedly voting. What kind of an election is anonymous! There were even some angry politicians late last week who found out they had been included on lists without their permission. Al-Zaman compared the election process to buying fruit wholesale and sight unseen. (This is the part of the process that I called a "joke," and I stand by that.)

This thing was more like a referendum than an election. It was a referendum on which major party list associated with which major leader would lead parliament.

Perhaps Juan doesn't know that in many countries, voters vote by party and not by candidate. I'm not crazy about it, but hey I'd rather be able to choose between apples and melons sight unseen (I love apples and hate melons), then get to choose among the ripest of melons.

Finally down the stretch Professor Cole makes a string of odd and unsupported alegations:

Many of the voters came out to cast their ballots in the belief that it was the only way to regain enough sovereignty to get American troops back out of their country. The new parliament is unlikely to make such a demand immediately, because its members will be afraid of being killed by the Baath military. One fears a certain amount of resentment among the electorate when this reticence becomes clear.

Iraq now faces many key issues that could tear the country apart, from the issues of Kirkuk and Mosul to that of religious law. James Zogby on Wolf Blitzer wisely warned the US public against another "Mission Accomplished" moment. Things may gradually get better, but this flawed "election" isn't a Mardi Gras for Americans and they'll regret it if that is the way they treat it.

No it's not a Mardi Gras...no beads, no boobs. And why does he think that people are coming to vote just so that the government can get America to leave? No reason given.

I have no good conclusion here, 'xcept to say that it's sad that University of Michigan wastes tax money on this fool.

soo...how'd I do?

It's all been done before

2005-01-30T09:32:00.000-05:00

OMG, stories about "A Day in New York" can't be anything but cliche.
Let's See...
A man urinating all over himself on the subway: Check
A Celebrity Sighting: Check
A trip to Beard Poppa: Check it.

So what, I'ma tell you 'bout my day anyway.
So yeah, the first part, pretty self explanatory. While on the subway with Maritza, I noticed a surprisingly foul smell emanating from what appeared to be a few feet away. Quickly I darted to the other end of the subway car, and the smell didn't disapate, but seemed to be getting worse. Only then did I notice that a man sleeping on one of the benches had peed all over himself, and it was dripping on the floor! Gross-out! Parents with children started shrieking (Although quietly, god forbid the man wake up, and we have to witness his embarassment!). Anyway, easily the most foul ride, I've ever taken, but forunately it was only between Bedford and Union Square. That's ride readerzz, I ride the L-train. Deal with it!

Then after we got out of the subway we saw this actor whom I remember from the old PSInet commercials (yeah, cause I'm a mad dork like that). Apparently he was also in some show that took place in New York, about, like, sex, or something. I pretended to get excited, but was eactually nonplussed until I saw a group of Japanese girls all screaming "Misteru Bigu, bigu, bigu, bigu". Ha, that made my day.

Then we went to the Mac Store and ogled the new Macs. Yeah, they're ok.

Then before I went home, I brought back a 12-box of delicious Beard Papa cream puffs. A must try, I think they have several locations now around the city. Now you never have to visit Japan again to taste the sublime.

ok, have a good sunday.

To My Austin Homekids

2005-01-30T09:05:00.000-05:00

NCAA Tournament Austin Tickets - NCAA Men's Basketball South Regionals Tickets

Hey, I'm hella jealous, plz plz plz go the the Big Dance dance in my stead.

Is it too early....

2005-01-30T08:48:00.000-05:00

to start talking NCAA Tournament Bracketology!?

damn, probably, but I can't frackin' wait.

The Aussie Goes Down

2005-01-30T08:44:00.000-05:00

Safin stages stunning comeback to win Aussie Open

Last night before I went to sleep, Prentiss asked me who I wanted to win the Australian Open...hastily and in the onset of my slumber I said, well, I guess Lleyton Hewitt, cause it would be good for Australia to have one of their own win the championship for the first time in, umm, like 24 years. To which Prentiss responsed "Since when do you give a damn about what Australia". To which I responded "OMG, did I just say that? Duh, I want the Australian to go down in flames, and so of course I want the Russian Marat Safin to win"

Safin Won.
Flat. Out. Rule.

Umm...to the person Googling lesbo porn...

2005-01-29T18:58:00.000-05:00

Ha, my mention of the film "Diva Dykes Vs. The Lipstick Lesbians" in my entry about lesbian rape got me a search-engine hit. Btw, I haven't seen the movie, but I'm sure that Diva Dykes kick some serious ass and end up playing rugby with the Lipstick Lesbians' spleens.

At least their not wasting our time...

2005-01-29T18:54:00.000-05:00

Researchers Map The Sexual Network Of An Entire High School -- Image

I lied, academics are fools...but isn't Sex beautiful?

Surprise! Another great article form the National Review

2005-01-29T12:07:00.000-05:00

Deroy Murdock on Iraq Elections on National Review Online

An interesting comparison between the anti-democracy terrorists trying to thward the elections in Iraq, and the KKK's intimidation of black voters in the south. Check it.

Easy Targets: Hollywood and Universities

2005-01-29T11:33:00.000-05:00

It's a popular sport on many blogs to find dumb and outrageous quotes said by either actors or professors. While actors are known for their blithe and ignorant anti-Americanism "I'm moving to (insert suspiciously similar Western Nationa Here) if (Something about Christians/Bush Happens)" professors at out elite universities seem to want to outdo each other to shock the sensibilities of almost everyone. Would anyone be shocked to hear that some English-professor at Duke said something like "The world would be more peaceful today if Hitler had exterminated all the Jews". Of course people would be incredibly outraged, but his supporters would say well "Much of the world's violence centers around problems in the middle east/Israel, and if there were no Jews then there would be no Israel...The professor of course abhors genocide, both Hitler's style, and Sharon's, but was simply making a point about historical determinism."

And then of course the controversy would die down until somehow he finagled an invitation to the Whitehouse/Another College/A State Dinner, etc. etc., and everyone would freak out again.

As obnoxious as this all is, I wonder if it's not a waste of time. I mean it's not as though people vote based on the way Richard Gere tells them to. In fact, it probably works in reverse. People are easily capable of enjoying, say, "Red Corner", but not caring inordinately about the Tibetan Buddhists. As for university professors, well, they really don't have that much power, AND, I don't think that the few loud idiots really represent what's going on everywhere.

At my school, The Harvard of the South AKA The University of Texas at Austin, I took several classes in Political Science, Middle Eastern Studies, and get this...The Woman's Studies dept. (uh, er, just to meet chicks of course), and I almost never heard anything that seemed to step outside the bounds of reasonable academic discourse. Sure I'm just one example but I can't help but wonder if we're just (and forgive me because I'm about to Mix metaphors) "cherry-picking fish in a barrel".

It seems to me that Actors and Professors are easy targets, but the relentless assault on them is a bit of a time waster, as much fun as it is. And believe me I love it. Love it. But it doesn't seem to do a whole lot. Perhaps our time would be better spent convincing the world that degrees aren't so important and that you can get a good education outside of the Northeast Ivy Corridor--because as much as conservatives complain, they still are freaking about getting their kids in to Brown and Dartmouth and Vassar. Dudes, just send your kids to Hillsdale, Grove City, and GMU...those schools are great.

So, yeah, there's a lot of obnoxious stuff out there, but not all of it is worhy of so much anger. Me, myself, my blood boils when I hear about the Ward Churchill's of the world. I'm gonna try to be a little better.

A Brutal Fisking

2005-01-29T11:31:00.000-05:00

The Volokh Conspiracy - Juan Cole, not an anti-Semite:

I think I must be getting the hang of this whole blog thing...readers did I use the word fisking correctly in the title? This is new to me, but I think I got it right.

Anyway, read the entry 's good.

The Chinatown Bus

2005-01-28T16:29:00.000-05:00

The Wall St. Journal (sorry, registration req'd so there's no link) has a great article today about the busses that ferry people from Chinatown to Chinatown among the cities of the northeast (NYC, Boston, Philly, DC).

Anyone who has ever been a poor student in New York (not me obviously) knows these bus lines well. Actually, I've rode them too. The Chinatown Buses offer $10 and $15 dollar fares between these cities, seriously crimping Greyhound's style (Aka affecting their margins). It's a great triumphant story of capitalism, and the ingenuity of immigrants.

This article gave me hope because I've been despairing about the state of capitalism after some recent trips down to the local liquor store. It seems that the little Russian Owned liquor store down the block is engaged in the odd behavior of down-selling their sales. Example: On the day of the blizzard, Prent and I stopped in to get a bottle of Bailey's. "Why do you want Bailey's", the owner groused. "Umm...I like it, it seems like a good drink on a cold day". The owner then went on to explain that Bailey's is of no better quality then cheaper alternatives with names like Carolans and Tipperary Irish cream. He insisted that we buy one of those, we did, and were staisfied.

On election night we went in looking for Champagne, and he wouldn't even let us look at the nice ones. Instead he sent us away with something called Opera Sparking Wine, which, honestly, was fine by my unrefined tongue. Still, I can't quite understand the store's almost pathological insistence on seeling cheap stuff...after all they do devote a fair bit of shelf space to the the premium alcohols. The owner insists it's all bullshit. Who am I to disagree. Besides every 7 dollars saved is another plate of eel sushi down the road.

Here in the west we've become spoiled by capitalism, and we don't even notice it anymore. It's a good thing we have immigrants who are out there hustlin', encouraging thrift, and delivering good products to keep the economy hot. In Europe it's the former Soviet States who can't stand the socialist democracies of their western brethren. Germany and France should be really thankful to Poland and the new EU nations, and we should be thankful the Chinatown bus.

Blogs blogs blogs, oh do I love thee.

2005-01-28T12:34:00.000-05:00

The Macintosh Biblioblog

Yes, the Macintosh Biblioblog. Yes, as in bible. Yes as in a blog dedicated to biblical scholarship using a mac.

flat. out. rule

CCR

2005-01-27T22:57:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard a Creedence song, after a long while of not having heard them, and started kicking yourself for wasting your time with grease ball indie rocker drips, when good old CCR own rock and roll. That happens to me all the time...specifically when Bad Moon Rising came on at Barcade the other night. Mon Dieu.

J. Nathan Goes to the Movies

2005-01-27T22:50:00.000-05:00

It was guys night out tonight, as opposed to, well, guys night in. So we did our usual Sushi and a movie starting at the most fabulous of East Village institutions M2M the "Asian Convenient Store" across from Loews Village VII. So after some packages Sushi and a bottle of iced unsweetened green tea, we headed off to see the fabulous Assault on Precinct 13.

Let me say right now...killing has never, never, been cooler. So much death, so many one-shot bullets through the brain, with a clean hole out the forehead style cool. Larry Fishburn is a God amongst men. Calmly doin' a crossword puzzle amidst the carnage around him.

Really, it was an existential triumph. All the cops in the Motor City (Btw, I'm not really a texan, I just play one on blogs, I was born in Detroit, and am an original Motown brawler all the way) cops were bad, except, well, Ethan Hawke, and a coupla hapless souls who met their maker in the first few minutes.

Anyway, just go see it, it's frackin' rule. I clapped at the end of it, althoug I think I even clapped at the end of I, Robot.

Ward, ward ward ward...your crazy!

2005-01-27T22:33:00.000-05:00

So have you heard of this Ward Churchill character?
Check out his faculty page at the University of Colorado. Now I could go on and on about the University of Colorado, and how boulder is truly God's forsaken land, but I won't. Now people saying dumb and offensive things after 9/11 is nothing too new. You've got your Amir Baraka's whose poem, Somebody Blew Up America, besides the insinuation that the Jews were at fault for 9/11 actually has some rhythm to it. But this Ward Churchill, boy he takes the cake. He doesn't see the 9/11 victimes as being innocent, but rather has "Little Eichmanns" who got their just deserts. This kind of thinking clearly forms the philosophical backbone of this tract--One the Justice of Roosting Chickens. A title admirable for it's most utter lack of poetry or prose.

You see it's one thing to say, compare Bush to Hitler. Sure it's offensive, but whatever, Bush can handle it. And it's another thing to say, well, the World Trade Towers are the heart of this evil global capitalist engine, and that's why they were hit...But Ward baby, he outdoes them all-specifically comparing the victims of 9/11 to one of Hitler's most vile henchman. Well done sir.

There's not much point in discussing the sins of academia, they're well known, and thankfully it's a scene hanging itself with its own rope...

Oh why is this guy in the news now. I guess he's speaking at a college or something, and some students are upset. Of course he's been invited because students deserve a diversity of opinion. They shoulda got Ann Coulter.

The Truth Will Out

Like a Phoenix from the Ashes

anti-freedom, anti-porn Right-WIng activist dies

blah blah blog

If this is true...

I admit blogging has become light and I don't know when that will change.

Q&A with Byron York on The Vast Left Wing Conspiracy on National Review Online

Betting on the Pope

It's Time For a Draft.

I want

Gotta Love that Nationalized Health Care

The religious right....

More truth

Happy Birthday

Did Use of Free Trade Cause Neanderthal Extinction?

Who the hell reads...

One last shot

I'm gonna aim for...

I think...

11.5s

Yes,

Greg Newburn, king of smack...

Isn't it funny....

Red or Blue, Which Are You?

John Derbyshire Vs. The Corner

Hi There...

Hunger and Poverty and Surveys

I still like Jonah Golberg

This is Fascinating

The Vagina Dialogues

I agree

Jeff Koyen's Exit Interview : Gawker

'N.Y. Press' Editor Quits in Wake of Pope Cover

'N.Y. Press' Editor Quits in Wake of Pope Cover

Boeing Fires CEO For Having an Affair

Blogger Gets White House Press Pass

"Bush....

Unbelievable

Million Dollar Baby, et. al.

Quick Shoutout

The Adapted Blog

The Arab Street

The New York Press...

Housecleaning

Marginal Revolution: China fact of the day: Striking for longer hours

Gannon/Guckert

Julian Sanchez...

Finally Admits it...

I didn't see it, but...

The Summers Transcript is Out

Fan....

Bloggin San Fran

What the Hell is wrong with that stat?!

Joke, real?

Shout Out

TTWO Goes To The Movies: The Aviator

Holy.fracking.shit.this.is.amazing!!!!!

More gratuitous linkering

Like something outta ghostworld...

Visionary, brilliant....

A good quote found over at pejmanesque

Hmm...this sounds familiar

A Final Word on Ward.

Her Mugshot via the Smoking Gun

Teacher charged with having sex with student, 13 - Feb 9, 2005

I made up a new phrase...let the meme start here!

I agree

In Defense of Misspellings

Umm...Ward,

Ramesh Ponnuru gets a funny letter...

Slouching Towards Lynchburg: The end of Social Conservatism

Doing Well by Doing Good

Super Bowl Prediction

Tax Free Week.

My Lord...

C-span or not C-span...

Ok LAST thing about Ward Churchill...

More Ward, I know it's tired but hear it out.

AND he's a poseur

Bad Blogger