The news media insists on reminding us that Princess Diana has been dead for ten years.
Really, who gives a rat's ass?
People are being blown up every day in Iraq, Cheney is pushing us towards another disastrous war (with Iran this time), our government is in meltdown, opium production is at record highs, the ice caps are melting, the standard of living is declining...
Who has the time to care that some privileged princess died in a car crash a decade ago?
I hope the media can get a clue as to what deserves coverage and what is yesterday's news.
8/31/07
Good news from Texas
I try not to think about the more controversial death-penalty cases in Texas, because paying attention always leads to a bout of profound depression when the sentence is carried out. But I couldn't help myself: I've been following the news of Kenneth Foster, who was to be excecuted even though he didn't commit, or even meaningfully participate, in murder.
So, this is a relief:
Baby steps are all one can hope for in Texas right now, and this was a baby step. But for Foster, it means life. For those who aren't as familiar with Texas-style justice, George Bush would not have commuted the sentence if he were still governor, and he might have even mocked Foster to boot.
So, this is a relief:
The state proceeed to execute its 400th offender, as well as two more this week. The 403rd, Kenneth Foster, was set to be executed today—just a few hours from now—but Mr Perry has just announced that, on the parole board's recommendation, the sentence will be commuted to life. Close call, Mr Foster.
Baby steps are all one can hope for in Texas right now, and this was a baby step. But for Foster, it means life. For those who aren't as familiar with Texas-style justice, George Bush would not have commuted the sentence if he were still governor, and he might have even mocked Foster to boot.
8/30/07
Quote of the morning
You know ... I don't know anymore who's going to win the Republican nomination. But I *do* know it will be a really old mean-looking dude in a really bad tie.
link
8/29/07
Noted for future discussion
Bishop is spot-on, and I’m always puzzled that people think that if Democrats win in red states that they necessarily did so because they converted the red portions of those states. As I have written for the Prospect, though Steve Jarding and other good consultants like him deserve credit for improving the margins for Democrats in rural areas, there just aren’t enough votes there. All these supposed “rural Democrat” winners like Mark Warner and Webb won because thanks to improved support and turnout from urban and inner suburban areas. If the “rural renaissance” is a useful rhetorical fiction for Democratic candidates and their consultants, fine, but it is a fiction nonetheless.Link
8/27/07
Ireland's biggest secret!
While slaving away in the pleasant Irish summer, my colleagues and I happened across Ireland's biggest secret. It concerns this new skyscraper going up in central Cork:
Across the base of the skyscraper are some silly advertisements:
But the final panel revealed the secret!
Across the base of the skyscraper are some silly advertisements:
But the final panel revealed the secret!
8/24/07
8/23/07
Bots still don't get irony
Researchers recently announced that through the use of data mining techniques, they've taught a computer program to recognize wordplay and simple jokes.
Which reminds me of the time a priest, a rabbi, and a computer programmer walked into a bar...
"The ability to appreciate humor is an enormous increment in subtlety," said researcher Tom Mantei from the University of Cincinnati's College of Engineering in a statement. "You need to know a lot to 'get' humor — a computer does not find it easy."
That's what UC doctoral student Julia Taylor and professor Larry Mazlack have discovered in their project on data mining. They reported on their progress with the project at the American Association for Artificial Intelligence conference in Vancouver this week... |New robot thinks knock-knock jokes are funny - Ars Technica|
Which reminds me of the time a priest, a rabbi, and a computer programmer walked into a bar...
Workplace safety, a fun argument
Honestly, I heard this on NPR. Because I'm a philosonerd, I'll render the argument schematically.
It seems to me that figuring out where this argument goes wrong turns on the question of how best to understand the degree of freedom of the workers. If you think that the choices workers make about where to work and under what conditions are best described as being uncoerced and fully informed, then I think you have to say that the first premise is false. Which is to say that if you hold the view that becoming a coal miner is the sort of thing which might be freely chosen by someone who understands the risks, then you ought to acknowledge that people sometimes freely choose to do unsafe things. If, on the other hand, you tend to think that the choices made by workers are subject to coercion or are not made in full knowledge of the facts, then the second premise falls under suspicion.
- No mine worker would willingly enter a mine unless it were operating safely.
- The miners in Utah willingly entered the mine.
- Hence, the Utah mine was operating safely.
It seems to me that figuring out where this argument goes wrong turns on the question of how best to understand the degree of freedom of the workers. If you think that the choices workers make about where to work and under what conditions are best described as being uncoerced and fully informed, then I think you have to say that the first premise is false. Which is to say that if you hold the view that becoming a coal miner is the sort of thing which might be freely chosen by someone who understands the risks, then you ought to acknowledge that people sometimes freely choose to do unsafe things. If, on the other hand, you tend to think that the choices made by workers are subject to coercion or are not made in full knowledge of the facts, then the second premise falls under suspicion.
8/21/07
I saw the best minds of my generation do what now?
Luc Sante has a short and interesting review in the Times of the 50th anniversary release of Kerouac's On the Road. The new release reprints the text from the original scroll Kerouac hammered out. There are edits of course, but fewer commas and literary pretensions, apparently.
There are two links to original reviews in the Times , as well as a photo gallery of foreign editions of the book. This is from a 2000 Chinese edition. What the hell? Beats as Brat Pack, is that what I'm seeing? China's funny.
The once and future king
Here:
That's funny... I have a general sense that if Reagan were in office today, there would be more OMFG RUN IT'S ZOMBIE REGAN BACK TO EAT OUR FUCKING BRAINS!!!
The current disillusionment with Bush is directly linked to the fact that he has not governed as effectively as Reagan. There’s a general sense in this country that if Reagan were in office today, the Iraq War would have been handled more effectively, our economy would be even stronger than it currently is, and more Americans would feel optimistic about the nation’s future.
That's funny... I have a general sense that if Reagan were in office today, there would be more OMFG RUN IT'S ZOMBIE REGAN BACK TO EAT OUR FUCKING BRAINS!!!
8/20/07
Now I'm all alone with just my shadow in front
Item: The other day I came across the entry for 'wetback' in my 1986 edition of Webster's College Dictionary. Everything was pretty much as you'd expect until the end, where the dictionary noted that the term is, "sometimes considered offensive." Sometimes? Seriously?
Item: When I bought my hair clippers a decade or so ago they came with a one ounce tube of mineral oil for use as a lubricant. It only takes about one drop every third haircut, so I've only just now run out. Last night I went to my local Walgreen's to buy another one ounce tube but the smallest size they sold was 16 ounces, so I figure I'm set until about 2117. Except that, according to the label on my new bottle, mineral oil is actually a laxative. That's what I call dual use! Still, 16 ounces works out to 32 doses which, at my current rate of use should last at least through 2117. So.
Item: Apparently the Democratic presidential candidates had a debate yesterday before I even got out of bed. This shit has got to stop.
Item: My quest to understand the hostility toward Bose speakers among self-styled audiophiles continues apace. Part of the answer, I think, is that Bose has a better rep than most audiophile brands, but doesn't actually make better speakers. Fair enough, but to hear audiophiles talk you'd think that Bose made aggressively bad speakers, which they don't. Anyway, here's a clue lifted from Stereophile's 1975 review of the Bose 901. It's the manufacturer's comment on the review, and it isn't exactly friendly:
Item: When I bought my hair clippers a decade or so ago they came with a one ounce tube of mineral oil for use as a lubricant. It only takes about one drop every third haircut, so I've only just now run out. Last night I went to my local Walgreen's to buy another one ounce tube but the smallest size they sold was 16 ounces, so I figure I'm set until about 2117. Except that, according to the label on my new bottle, mineral oil is actually a laxative. That's what I call dual use! Still, 16 ounces works out to 32 doses which, at my current rate of use should last at least through 2117. So.
Item: Apparently the Democratic presidential candidates had a debate yesterday before I even got out of bed. This shit has got to stop.
Item: My quest to understand the hostility toward Bose speakers among self-styled audiophiles continues apace. Part of the answer, I think, is that Bose has a better rep than most audiophile brands, but doesn't actually make better speakers. Fair enough, but to hear audiophiles talk you'd think that Bose made aggressively bad speakers, which they don't. Anyway, here's a clue lifted from Stereophile's 1975 review of the Bose 901. It's the manufacturer's comment on the review, and it isn't exactly friendly:
Our technical analysis of the theory behind the 901 differs from Stereophile's in a number of respects. Since the final test of a speaker is in its sound with actual program material, we urge Stereophile readers to audition the Bose 901 and then judge for themselves whether Stereophile or the 15 other US and foreign reviews, which draw completely different conclusions, is correct. |link|
8/19/07
Hearts, Minds and Video Games
Hezbollah's internet division has developed a video game called Special Force 2: Tale of the Truthful Pledge |Wikipedia| CNN|MSNBC|. The video game allows players to re-fight the 2006 War in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah.
The Anti-Defamation League takes a dim view of this video game (as you might imagine) and points out that the same open-source game engine was used by a white supremacist group to create a video game called Ethnic Cleansing.
The United States Army has a video game called America's Army |Wikipedia| which simulates life as an infantryman in the U.S. Army.
The fact that governments and terrorist groups both use video games to influence young people illustrates the influence of video games in the modern world.
Below is a movie of Hezbollah's first video game from 2003, a trailer for the new game is available here, which dramatizes the kidnapping of the Israeli soldiers which started the hostilities in 2006.
Cross-posted at the Fireside Chat.
The Anti-Defamation League takes a dim view of this video game (as you might imagine) and points out that the same open-source game engine was used by a white supremacist group to create a video game called Ethnic Cleansing.
The United States Army has a video game called America's Army |Wikipedia| which simulates life as an infantryman in the U.S. Army.
The fact that governments and terrorist groups both use video games to influence young people illustrates the influence of video games in the modern world.
Below is a movie of Hezbollah's first video game from 2003, a trailer for the new game is available here, which dramatizes the kidnapping of the Israeli soldiers which started the hostilities in 2006.
Cross-posted at the Fireside Chat.
8/16/07
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