---SPSmith
Friday, March 16, 2012
Do C.D.O.'s Have Social Value? - NYTimes.com
http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/27/do-c-d-o-s-have-social-value/
The main lesson here is that financial innovation is dangerous and
often of no social value. This lesson might seem new, but it's not.
The main lesson here is that financial innovation is dangerous and
often of no social value. This lesson might seem new, but it's not.
---SPSmith
How can we justify science?: Sokal and Lynch debate epistemology « Why Evolution Is True
Here Lynch is getting near my solution: we justify science rather than faith as a way of finding out stuff not on the basis of first principles, but on the basis of which method actually gives us reliable information about the universe. And by "reliable," I mean "methods that help us make verified predictions that advance our understanding of the world and produce practical consequences that aren't possible with other methods". Take a disease like smallpox. It was once regarded as manifestations of God's will or displeasure. Indeed, inoculation was once opposed on religious grounds: that to immunize people was to thwart God's will. You can't cure smallpox with such an attitude, or by praying for its disappearance. The disease was cured by scientific methods—the invention and testing of inoculations—and completely eradicated on this planet by the use of epidemiological methods. Science gets us to the Moon; religion can do no such thing.
Scientific understanding advances with time; religious "ways of knowing," even by the admission of theologians, don't bring us any closer to the "truth" about God. We know not one iota more about the nature or character of God than we did in 1300, nor are we any closer to proving that a god exists! In what sense, then, has religious epistemology brought us any closer to truth?
---SPSmithArticle: When Did the Catholic Church Endow Sperm With Inalienable Rights? | Digg Science
When Did the Catholic Church Endow Sperm With Inalienable Rights? | Digg Science
http://digg.com/newsbar/Science/when_did_the_catholic_church_endow_sperm_with_inalienable_rights
---SPSmith
Judea Pearl Wins ACM A.M. Turing Award for Contributions that Transformed Artificial Intelligence — Association for Computing Machinery
Judea Pearl Wins ACM A.M. Turing Award for Contributions that Transformed Artificial Intelligence — Association for Computing Machinery: "Developed Novel Framework for Reasoning under Uncertainty that Changed How Scientists Approach Real World Problems"
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
The NSA Is Building the Country's Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say) | Threat Level | Wired.com
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/03/ff_nsadatacenter/all/1
The breakthrough was enormous, says the former official, and soon
afterward the agency pulled the shade down tight on the project, even
within the intelligence community and Congress. "Only the chairman and
vice chairman and the two staff directors of each intelligence
committee were told about it," he says. The reason? "They were
thinking that this computing breakthrough was going to give them the
ability to crack current public encryption."
The breakthrough was enormous, says the former official, and soon
afterward the agency pulled the shade down tight on the project, even
within the intelligence community and Congress. "Only the chairman and
vice chairman and the two staff directors of each intelligence
committee were told about it," he says. The reason? "They were
thinking that this computing breakthrough was going to give them the
ability to crack current public encryption."
---SPSmith
Check out: 'Hemingway' on Slate
I thought you might find this Slate article interesting:
Hemingway
By Nathan Heller
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/assessment/2012/03/ernest_hemingway_how_the_great_american_novelist_became_the_literary_equivalent_of_the_nike_swoosh_.html?wpisrc=sl_ipad
---SPSmith
Thursday, March 15, 2012
California's dark legacy of forced sterilizations
Hey, check this out from CNN:
California's dark legacy of forced sterilizations
http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/15/health/california-forced-sterilizations/index.html
California's dark legacy of forced sterilizations
http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/15/health/california-forced-sterilizations/index.html
---SPSmith
Christopher Hitchens, Romantic - Reason Magazine
Christopher Hitchens, Romantic - Reason Magazine: " “On examination, and to my own surprise and pleasure, it turned out be exhilaration. Here was the most frightful enemy—theocratic barbarism—in plain view.” The passage virtually replicated a section in Evelyn Waugh’s novel Officers and Gentlemen, in which the main character, Guy Crouchback, an anti-communist Catholic, reacts with elation to news of the Soviet-German Pact of 1939."
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Lawrence M. Krauss: Does Conservatism Have to Be Synonymous With Ignorance?
But it is Mr. Santorum whose vehement opposition involves not only emerging reproductive technology but also almost any form of medical intervention in reproduction, positive or negative. It would be tempting to chalk up Mr. Santorum's medieval views to a devout Catholic fundamentalism, but that is unfair to Catholicism. Mr. Santorum instead represents the very epitome of many among the modern breed of conservative Republicans: Ignorant and proud of it.
Mr. Santorum has steadfastly maintained throughout his career an almost perfect record of opposing the well-known evidence of empirical reality. When he was a political footnote this fact was at best amusing. Now that he has managed to win so many primaries, the more general question of why Republicans are so willing to take a giant step backward in the face of modern science to support such ignorance is of more concern.
Santorum has argued that evolution, the basis of modern biology, has no firm basis in fact. He has arguedthat climate change is a conspiracy among scientists who want to either ensure that government quashes free enterprise, or else who elevate, in his words "the Earth above Man." It is hard to know how to interpret this language in any way but to suggest that we do not need to develop new technologies to deal with emerging global challenges, and that somehow things are 'destined' to turn out OK.
Even these remarkably ignorant statements about the natural world pale when compared to his utterances regarding women's reproductive health, however. In 2005 he demonstrated confusion regarding the stages of human fetal development, describing the 50-ish cell microscopic blastocysts from which embryonic stem cells can be extracted for therapeutic purposes as a "person."
---SPSmith
The Fiscal Conservative's Case for Spending More Money on Birth Control - Max Fisher - Business - The Atlantic
Spending just $235 million to expand access to Medicaid family planning services would save $1.32 billion, Brookings projects. That's an amazing rate of return: 560%. And that's just the spending on a government health care subsidy. Paying your private health care premium is an even more efficient way to invest in female contraception because there's no new government bureaucracy to set up; the framework is already there. It's a private-sector solution that grows the economy and makes us all wealthier. It reduces the abortion rate and cuts down on the number of unmarried mothers. If that's not a conservative-friendly idea, what is?
---SPSmith
Bathtubs for Beginners | The Baseline Scenario
"They will have no realistic proposal to reduce the debt or sustain the welfare state. Even if you tax away 50 percent of the income of those making between $1 million and $10 million, you only reduce the national debt by 1 percent, according to the Tax Foundation. If you confiscate all the income of those making more than $10 million, you reduce the debt by 2 percent. You would still be nibbling only meekly around the edges."
This is incoherent to begin with. Tax policy directly affects flows, not stocks, so its impact on the national debt (a stock) is indeterminate unless you specify a length of time for the policy to be in place.
If you look at the Tax Foundation report, it says that those two policies would increase taxes by $306 billion. The Tax Foundation doesn't even say in what year that would happen, but they link to a series that ends in 2009, so let's say they're using 2009 data. In 2009, GDP was $14.1 trillion, so $306 billion is 2.2 percent of GDP.
Now let's apply that to the CBO baseline. Right now, my updated CBO-style baseline shows national debt at 61 percent of GDP in 2021 and 59 percent in 2035. If you add 2.2 percent of GDP to revenues in every year beginning in 2012, those numbers fall to 44 percent in 2021 and 5 percent in 2035 (a reduction in the debt of 54 percentage points, or 92 percent). In other words, the entire long-term deficit problem goes away.
---SPSmithTuesday, March 13, 2012
Article: 98 major advertisers say no to Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity and other right wing radio shows
98 major advertisers say no to Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity and other right wing radio shows
http://boingboing.net/2012/03/10/98-major-advertisers-say-no-to.html
---SPSmith
Article: Rush Almost stands Alone: 140 companies Jump ship, Syndicate suspends his show | Digg Politics
Rush Almost stands Alone: 140 companies Jump ship, Syndicate suspends his show | Digg Politics
http://digg.com/newsbar/Politics/rush_almost_stands_alone_140_companies_jump_ship_syndicate_suspends_his_show
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Monday, March 12, 2012
Alabama gets basic facts wrong...
Ah, Alabama...
Q22 Do you think Barack Obama is a Christian or a
Muslim, or are you not sure?
Christian 14%
..........................................................
Muslim 45%
............................................................
Not sure 41%
..........................................................
Q23 Do you believe in evolution, or not?
Believe in evolution 26%
.........................................
Do not
60%
.............................................................
Not sure 13%
Q22 Do you think Barack Obama is a Christian or a
Muslim, or are you not sure?
Christian 14%
..........................................................
Muslim 45%
............................................................
Not sure 41%
..........................................................
Q23 Do you believe in evolution, or not?
Believe in evolution 26%
.........................................
Do not
60%
.............................................................
Not sure 13%
Nothing in Their Heads | Psychology Today
Nothing in Their Heads | Psychology Today: "The stereotype priming of behavior effect has been widely replicated already and is also consistent with other established findings in psychology and neuroscience. As for the stereotype priming effect itself, there should be no doubt by this point. It is well established in a variety of research domains. Stereotype priming effects are the cause of the well-established "stereotype threat" effect (see, for example, Notes 5 & 6) in which activating a person's racial or ethnic or gender group identity has deleterious effects on that person's subsequent academic or athletic performance. Stereotype threat effects have been documented, disturbingly, even in 5 year old children; when Nalini Ambady and colleagues (Note 7) primed preschool girls (in a Harvard day care center) with their female identity they do worse on math tests than they would if that identity (which contains the stereotypic belief that "girls can't do math") was not primed. Priming effects on behavior, as in the elderly-priming study, have now been demonstrated in infants as young as 18 months old (Note 8)."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
‘Doonesbury’ creator Garry Trudeau discusses divisive strips about abortion - The Washington Post
Texas's HB-15 [bill] isn't hard to explain: The bill says that in order for a woman to obtain a perfectly legal medical procedure, she is first compelled by law to endure a vaginal probe with a hard, plastic 10-inch wand. The World Health Organization defines rape as "physically forced or otherwise coerced penetration — even if slight — of the vulva or anus, using a penis, other body parts or an object." You tell me the difference.
---SPSmith
Article: The Weekend Interview with Michio Kaku: Captain Michio and the World of Tomorrow - WSJ.com
The Weekend Interview with Michio Kaku: Captain Michio and the World of Tomorrow - WSJ.com
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203960804577239852155894014.html
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Article: Pandaemonium
Pandaemonium
http://kenanmalik.wordpress.com/2012/03/07/abortion-infanticide-humanity-free-speech/
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Ohio Bill Would Require Men Submit Affidavit From Sex Partner Confirming Impotence Before Receiving Viagra | ThinkProgress
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/03/11/442208/affidavit-confirming-impotence-viagra/
Erectile dysfunction is Gods gift to remove from the gene pool old men
who should not procreate. Why does Rush have Viagra?
---SPSmith
Article: Bill Maher on Rush Limbaugh, Freedom of Speech, and Misogyny
Bill Maher on Rush Limbaugh, Freedom of Speech, and Misogyny
http://freethoughtblogs.com/camelswithhammers/2012/03/11/bill-maher-on-rush-limbaugh-freedom-of-speech-and-misogyny/
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Article: Defending Science: An Exchange
Defending Science: An Exchange
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/defending-science-an-exchange/
solipsism and radical skepticism [2] are irrefutable, as far as I can see, but that does not mean there is any reason to take them seriously. In practice no human being does — even philosophers stop being solipsists or radical skeptics when they are shopping for dinner
---SPSmith
Article: Defending Science: An Exchange
Defending Science: An Exchange
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/defending-science-an-exchange/
MICHAEL LYNCH: There are some things we have in common — including some principles — just because we are human. As the Scottish philosopher David Hume pointed out, you can doubt induction or observation all day long, but you'll still end up trusting them later that night. As he put it, it is just part of our "natural instincts" to trust our senses most of the time. That is how we are built.
---SPSmith
Migration Blog » Blog Archive » An Underappreciated Email Pioneer: Einar Stefferud, 1930-2011
Migration Blog » Blog Archive » An Underappreciated Email Pioneer: Einar Stefferud, 1930-2011: "inar Stefferud was a brilliant, insightful, and warm human being whose virtues were sometimes hidden behind a somewhat argumentative exterior. But he deserves to be remembered as one of the fathers of the Internet, and perhaps its leading contrarian thinker. And he will be greatly missed."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Walking through MIME fields: Snubbing Steve Jobs to Star Trek tech • The Register
Walking through MIME fields: Snubbing Steve Jobs to Star Trek tech • The Register: "It was through Andrew that Borenstein met email pioneer Einar Stefferud, active in internet standards and credited with inventing the first internet mailing list, at a conference where X.400 - rival to SMTP email - had dominated discussions.
Stefferud was impressed by Borenstein and hooked him up with the person who was to become his MIME collaborator, Ned Freed. Borenstein's interest was in the exchange of multimedia content while Freed's interest lay in building a gateway between different email systems. By the time MIME went to the Internet Engineering Taskforce (IETF) for discussion, people had piled onto MIME's third aspect - sending non-English without it becoming gibberish.
"I was the only person with a paper not on X.400. I ran into these people who believed email can't do what I've already made it do [with Andrew]," Borenstein said of the X.400-heavy event. "Einar made a beeline for me."
Getting MIME accepted internationally at the IETF was a matter of politics"
'via Blog this'
Stefferud was impressed by Borenstein and hooked him up with the person who was to become his MIME collaborator, Ned Freed. Borenstein's interest was in the exchange of multimedia content while Freed's interest lay in building a gateway between different email systems. By the time MIME went to the Internet Engineering Taskforce (IETF) for discussion, people had piled onto MIME's third aspect - sending non-English without it becoming gibberish.
"I was the only person with a paper not on X.400. I ran into these people who believed email can't do what I've already made it do [with Andrew]," Borenstein said of the X.400-heavy event. "Einar made a beeline for me."
Getting MIME accepted internationally at the IETF was a matter of politics"
'via Blog this'
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Article: Requiem for Rush
Requiem for Rush
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/sns-201203081330--tms--bpresstt--m-a20120308mar08,0,3042985.column
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Friday, March 09, 2012
Papers move, scrap "Doonesbury" abortion law strip - CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57394699/papers-move-scrap-doonesbury-abortion-law-strip/
The comic strips feature a woman who goes to an abortion clinic and is
confronted by several people who suggest she should be ashamed. Among
them is a doctor who reads a script on behalf of Texas Gov. Rick Perry
welcoming her to a "compulsory transvaginal exam," and a middle-aged
legislator who calls her a "slut."
---SPSmith
Article: Dangerous Minds | Farewell, Dear Friend: Peter Bergman (1939-2012)
Dangerous Minds | Farewell, Dear Friend: Peter Bergman (1939-2012)
http://www.dangerousminds.net/comments/farewell_dear_friend_peter_bergman_1939_2012
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Goodreads | Eric_W Welch (Forreston, IL)'s review of The University: An Owner's Manual
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/135016618?utm_medium=email&utm_source=updates
Rosovsky delivers an impassioned plea for a liberal education as
opposed to merely training for a task. "General education means the
whole development of the individual, apart from his occupational
training. It includes the civilizing of his life purposes, the
refining of his emotional reactions, and the maturing of his
understanding about the nature of things according to the best
knowledge of our time." This liberal education should be enable the
student to:
1. Think and write clearly; to communicate with precision and force.
2. Develop a critical appreciation for the manner in which we gain
knowledge. This means teaching historical and quantitative techniques
of analysis.
3. View personal experience within a wider, multicultural context.
4. Gain experience ín thinking about ethical and moral dilemmas.
5. Achieve some depth of knowledge in a particular field (i.e. the "major".)
Rosovsky delivers an impassioned plea for a liberal education as
opposed to merely training for a task. "General education means the
whole development of the individual, apart from his occupational
training. It includes the civilizing of his life purposes, the
refining of his emotional reactions, and the maturing of his
understanding about the nature of things according to the best
knowledge of our time." This liberal education should be enable the
student to:
1. Think and write clearly; to communicate with precision and force.
2. Develop a critical appreciation for the manner in which we gain
knowledge. This means teaching historical and quantitative techniques
of analysis.
3. View personal experience within a wider, multicultural context.
4. Gain experience ín thinking about ethical and moral dilemmas.
5. Achieve some depth of knowledge in a particular field (i.e. the "major".)
---SPSmith
The Unchained Woman - WSJ.com
Brooklyn Must Smell Even Worse Than We Remember
"Last month, after immersing myself in Brooklyn's artisanal-food scene, I felt the need that many in my home borough have these days: to get out on a farm and smell the manure."--Adam Davidson, New York Times magazine, March 11 issue
Check out: 'The Aspirin Strategy' on Slate
I thought you might find this Slate article interesting:
The Aspirin Strategy
By William Saletan
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/human_nature/2012/03/rush_limbaugh_sandra_fluke_and_college_sex_does_contraceptive_insurance_change_sexual_behavior_.html?wpisrc=sl_ipad
---SPSmith
Thursday, March 08, 2012
James Hansen on TED.com
Check out this amazing TED Talk:
James Hansen: Why I must speak out about climate change
http://www.ted.com/talks/james_hansen_why_i_must_speak_out_about_climate_change.html
Sent from TED iPad app
http://itunes.com/apps/tedconferences/ted
---SPSmith
Right's claim that Rush is losing freedom of speech
Do you actually think that the mendacious prattle of your posts actually "makes your case"?
If so, then your scrofulous mind really can assert the reality-bending proposition that Rush is both intelligent and witty . Since you need facts stretched out into propaganda to have them pass your ideological filter, how about this:
As usual the Right is wrong. In this case you have misinterpreted the meaning and history of the phrase "freedom of speech."
The porcine junkie sex-tourist Rush Limbaugh continues to get fisted by the invisible hand of capitalism as advertisers flee his show based on their customer's disgust.
However, taxpayers still pay the tab as his excrement slimes our military broadcast network. So, sign the petition to remove public funding for Rush's sick commentary http://bit.ly/Rush-Petition
Nothing more clearly describes the impact on society of Rush, and the other media celebrity gods you so unthinkingly worship, than Gore Vidal's send up of Bill Buckley:
"This mingling of opinion and fiction has undone a media never devoted to truth. Hence, the ease with which the Republican smear-machine goes into action when they realize that yet again the party’s permanent unpopularity with the American people will cause them defeat unless they smear individually those who question the junk that the media has put into so many heads. Anyone who says “We gotta fight ‘em over there or we’re gonna have to fight ‘em over here.” This absurdity has been pronounced by every Republican seeking high office. The habit of lying is now a national style that started with “news” magazines that was further developed by pathological liars that proved to be “good” Entertainment on TV. But a diet of poison that has done none of us any good...no society so marinated in falsity can long survive in a real world."
If so, then your scrofulous mind really can assert the reality-bending proposition that Rush is both intelligent and witty . Since you need facts stretched out into propaganda to have them pass your ideological filter, how about this:
As usual the Right is wrong. In this case you have misinterpreted the meaning and history of the phrase "freedom of speech."
The porcine junkie sex-tourist Rush Limbaugh continues to get fisted by the invisible hand of capitalism as advertisers flee his show based on their customer's disgust.
However, taxpayers still pay the tab as his excrement slimes our military broadcast network. So, sign the petition to remove public funding for Rush's sick commentary http://bit.ly/Rush-Petition
Nothing more clearly describes the impact on society of Rush, and the other media celebrity gods you so unthinkingly worship, than Gore Vidal's send up of Bill Buckley:
"This mingling of opinion and fiction has undone a media never devoted to truth. Hence, the ease with which the Republican smear-machine goes into action when they realize that yet again the party’s permanent unpopularity with the American people will cause them defeat unless they smear individually those who question the junk that the media has put into so many heads. Anyone who says “We gotta fight ‘em over there or we’re gonna have to fight ‘em over here.” This absurdity has been pronounced by every Republican seeking high office. The habit of lying is now a national style that started with “news” magazines that was further developed by pathological liars that proved to be “good” Entertainment on TV. But a diet of poison that has done none of us any good...no society so marinated in falsity can long survive in a real world."
Hate Map | Southern Poverty Law Center
All hate groups have beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.
---SPSmith
Article: Moral beliefs don’t motivate much | The Uncredible Hallq
Moral beliefs don't motivate much | The Uncredible Hallq
http://freethoughtblogs.com/hallq/2012/02/08/moral-beliefs-dont-motivate-much/
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Article: Don’t donate to Kony 2012, donate to GiveWell’s top charities instead
Don't donate to Kony 2012, donate to GiveWell's top charities instead
http://freethoughtblogs.com/hallq/2012/03/08/dont-donate-to-kony-2012-donate-to-givewells-top-charities-instead/
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Wednesday, March 07, 2012
The Scorched-Earth Politics of America’s Four Fundamentalisms - Truthdig
http://www.truthdig.com/report/page2/the_scorched-earth_politics_of_americas_four_fundamentalisms_20120307/
A number of powerful anti-democratic tendencies now threaten American
democracy and at least four of these are guaranteed to entail grave
social and economic consequences. The first is a market fundamentalism
that not only trivializes democratic values and public concerns, but
also enshrines a rabid individualism, an all-embracing quest for
profits and a social Darwinism in which misfortune is seen as a
weakness, and a Hobbesian "war of all against all" replaces any
vestige of shared responsibilities or compassion for others.
Free-market fundamentalists now wage a full-fledged attack on the
social contract, the welfare state, any notion of the common good and
those public spheres not yet defined by commercial interests. Within
neoliberal ideology, the market becomes the template for organizing
the rest of society. Everybody is now a customer or client, and every
relationship is ultimately judged in bottom-line, cost-effective
terms. Freedom is no longer about equality, social justice or the
public welfare, but about the trade in goods, financial capital and
commodities.
---SPSmith
Gore Vidal: Gore Vidal Speaks Seriously Ill of the Dead - Gore Vidal's Essays - Truthdig
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080320_gore_vidal_speaks_seriously_ill_of_the_dead/
The unique mess that our republic is in can be, in part, attributed to
a corrupt press whose roots are in mendacious news (sic) magazines
like Time and Newsweek, aided by tabloids that manufacture fictional
stories about actual people. This mingling of opinion and fiction has
undone a media never devoted to truth. Hence, the ease with which the
Republican smear-machine goes into action when they realize that yet
again the party's permanent unpopularity with the American people will
cause them defeat unless they smear individually those who question
the junk that the media has put into so many heads. Anyone who says
"We gotta fight 'em over there or we're gonna have to fight 'em over
here." This absurdity has been pronounced by every Republican seeking
high office. The habit of lying is now a national style that started
with "news" magazines that was further developed by pathological liars
that proved to be "good" Entertainment on TV. But a diet of poison
that has done none of us any good.
---SPSmith
The Most Astounding Fact (Neil DeGrasse Tyson)
Check out this video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D05ej8u-gU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
---SPSmith
Remove Rush from Armed Forces Network. He is a slut on public funds.
Remove public funding for the broadcasting of Rush's sick commentary
http://bit.ly/Rush-Petition
http://bit.ly/Rush-Petition
---SPSmith
Adultery Dating Website Wants To Buy Rush Limbaugh's Abandoned Ad Space
Rush Limbaugh is one of the greatest examples of the modern day Sugar Daddy," said CEO Brandon Wade, in a statement. "We wouldn't feel right if we didn't come forward and support him in his time of need."
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/pro-adultery-dating-website-wants-to-buy-rush-limbaughs-abandoned-ad-space-2012-3#ixzz1oUEswou5
---SPSmith
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/pro-adultery-dating-website-wants-to-buy-rush-limbaughs-abandoned-ad-space-2012-3#ixzz1oUEswou5
---SPSmith
Adam Gopnik on Favourite Essay Collections | FiveBooks | The Browser
There are no absolute lines in this. But there does seem to me a real difference between the things Empson – who is an absolutely wonderful writer and an amazing companion – is trying to do in his critical articles and the things Jarrell is trying to do in his. Jarrell conceives of criticism poetically. That is, that it should have some of the surprise and delight of personal revelation: "I felt this then, and I passed through the prism of a work of writing" rather than "this is a general truth of literature".
With essayists, we feel we're reading their first names rather than their honorifics. We're reading Clive and Virginia and Randall rather than James and Woolf and Jarrell, in a way we never feel we're reading William and Wystan rather than Empson and Auden.
You have written that the essay has an implicit politics to it, and that the job of the essay is "to drain the melodrama from overwrought debate and replace it with common sense and comedy".
---SPSmithRush Limbaugh Advertiser Exodus Continues as 22 Companies Pull Ads - ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/03/the-rush-limbaugh-advertiser-exodus-continues-as-22-companies-pull-ads/
But while dozens of companies are trying to distance themselves from
Limbaugh's incendiary comments, one company has flocker to the
conservative commentator. The online dating website
SeekingArrangement.com, whose mission is to match subscribers with
wealthy "Sugar Daddies," said Tuesday that it has made a new ad buy
specifically during Limbaugh's program.
But while dozens of companies are trying to distance themselves from
Limbaugh's incendiary comments, one company has flocker to the
conservative commentator. The online dating website
SeekingArrangement.com, whose mission is to match subscribers with
wealthy "Sugar Daddies," said Tuesday that it has made a new ad buy
specifically during Limbaugh's program.
---SPSmith
Dead Boy - Poem by John Crowe Ransom
http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/john_crowe_ransom/poems/21159
The little cousin is dead, by foul subtraction,
A green bough from Virginia's aged tree,
And none of the county kin like the transaction,
Nor some of the world of outer dark, like me.
---SPSmith
Exercise and life expectancy : The Lancet
Exercise and life expectancy : The Lancet:
'via Blog this'
he risk of mortality is an absolute. The risk can be postponed, but it cannot be reduced, as Wen and colleagues claim, and nor can it be eliminated. In other words you can run faster, but you arrive later....
We contend, therefore, that the risk of mortality for everyone—prophets included—is 1·0
'via Blog this'
he risk of mortality is an absolute. The risk can be postponed, but it cannot be reduced, as Wen and colleagues claim, and nor can it be eliminated. In other words you can run faster, but you arrive later....
We contend, therefore, that the risk of mortality for everyone—prophets included—is 1·0
Uncensored John Simon
But what about its interference with our rights? To consensual sex, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, freely available contraceptives and, above all, abortion. The chances of forced parenthood benefiting an unwanted child are slim, and even adoption by the right people is an iffy proposition. Whatever doesn't harm other people, not mere embryos, should be allowed.
Uncensored John Simon
All schemes for improving humankind appear to be hopeless. The masses are definitely not kind and, I fear, barely human. Where even quite ordinary individuals manage to rise above ordinary callousness, the moment they merge into a crowd, they become intolerant and intolerable.
---SPSmith
Uncensored John Simon
I myself find The Artist disgraceful. It is a perfectly silly, sentimental story, told almost entirely without sound and in black-and-white, to resemble old-time flics. This is like trading in your car for a horse and buggy, or like reverting to babytalk. especially considering the paltry quality of those by-gone movies meant to be replicated. Monochrome may be suitable for dark doings, as in Agnieszka Holland's current In Darkness, about a group of Polish Jews in World War Two hiding from the Nazis in the Lwow sewers. But using it merely for nostalgia I consider lack of both good taste and sound judgment.
---SPSmith
Fox News: Obama Could Lower Gas Prices Now If He Wanted, Unlike Bush
Fox News: Obama Could Lower Gas Prices Now If He Wanted, Unlike Bush: "The FauxNews editorial philosophy is lifted straight from Alice in Wonderland. "If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary-wise; what it is it wouldn't be, and what it wouldn't be, it would." Very simple."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Birth Control, and Why I’m Proud of Americans Right Now | Greta Christina's Blog
http://freethoughtblogs.com/greta/2012/03/06/birth-control-and-why-im-proud-of-americans-right-now/
when Rush Limbaugh, and Susan G. Komen, and Congress, all tried to get
in the way of birth control, Americans of all ages refused to let it
happen. They refused to be shamed into pretending that they don't have
the sex lives they actually do
when Rush Limbaugh, and Susan G. Komen, and Congress, all tried to get
in the way of birth control, Americans of all ages refused to let it
happen. They refused to be shamed into pretending that they don't have
the sex lives they actually do
---SPSmith
Article: What do you want to ask the candidates?
What do you want to ask the candidates?
http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2012/03/what_do_you_want_to_ask_the_ca.php
What organization(s) or individual(s) is/are your primary source(s) for scientific information?
With the overwhelming body of evidence for both evolution and climate change, why do you still not believe that both are true?
Why do you oppose drug decriminalization when science and practical experience in Portugal support it?
How can we use research, science and technology to help reduce the costs and improve the quality of health care?
---SPSmith
USA TODAY: Editorial: After Super Tuesday, count only on the delegates
http://usat.ly/yaSQt5
Sad that a majority of GOP primary voters in Tennessee, Oklahoma, and
North Dakota would vote for the scientifically ignorant Dominionist
Santorum. I guess fecal material runs high in those states.
---SPSmith
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
HEALTH AND ETHICS POLICIES
The viability of the fetus and the time when viability is achieved may vary with each pregnancy. In the second-trimester when viability may be in question, it is the physician who should determine the viability of a specific fetus, using the latest available diagnostic technology.
Attorney General Holder Defends Targeted Killings Of Americans : The Two-Way : NPR
Attorney General Holder Defends Targeted Killings Of Americans : The Two-Way : NPR: "Holder laid out some rationales, including:
— The person has to be overseas.
— The person has to have a senior position in al-Qaida.
— The threat has to be imminent.
— The target must be in a place where the foreign government can't or won't capture him.
— The person has to be actively taking up arms."
'via Blog this'
— The person has to be overseas.
— The person has to have a senior position in al-Qaida.
— The threat has to be imminent.
— The target must be in a place where the foreign government can't or won't capture him.
— The person has to be actively taking up arms."
'via Blog this'
Again, For The Willfully Ignorant: Atheism Is Not A Religon | Al Stefanelli
http://freethoughtblogs.com/alstefanelli/2012/03/05/again-for-the-willfully-ignorant-atheism-is-not-a-religon/
Defining atheism as a religion is embellishment and bad philosophy.
Atheism has no dogma, no rites, no holy books, no places of worship
and no clergy of any description. It offers no moral guidance, no
political opinions and no world view.
Defining atheism as a religion is embellishment and bad philosophy.
Atheism has no dogma, no rites, no holy books, no places of worship
and no clergy of any description. It offers no moral guidance, no
political opinions and no world view.
---SPSmith
Monday, March 05, 2012
A Look Back at Single-Threaded CPU Performance
The red line is meant to represent mainstream CPU performance. I drew it manually, using the less-than-scientific method of eyeballing the points for Pentium, PowerPC, Athlon and Core. If you're willing to trust this line, it seems that in the eight years since January 2004, mainstream performance has increased by a factor of about 4.6x, which works out to 21% per year. Compare that to the 28x increase between 1996 and 2004! Things have really slowed down.
Article: Lawrence Lessig & Friends - Free Culture Audiobook ()
Lawrence Lessig & Friends - Free Culture Audiobook ()
http://www.archive.org/details/free-culture-audiobook
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Morals: Our great moral decline | The Economist
Morals: Our great moral decline | The Economist:
'via Blog this'
When considering America's moral decline, my first instinct was to look at the crime rate. If Satan is at work in America, he's probably nicking wallets and assaulting old ladies. But over the past several decades the crime rate has fallen dramatically, despite what you may think. The homicide rate has been cut in half since 1991; violent crime and property crime are also way down. Even those pesky kids are committing less crime. There are some caveats to these statistics, as my colleague points out, but I think we can conclude that crime is not the cause of America's moral decline.
So let's look elsewhere. Abortion has returned as a hot-button issue, perhaps it is eating away at our moral fiber. Hmm, the abortion rate declined by 8% between 2000 and 2008. Increases in divorce and infidelity could be considered indicators of our moral decay. There's just one problem: according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the divorce rate is the lowest it has been since the early 1970s. This is in part due to the recession, but infidelity is down too.
Other areas that might indicate declining virtue are also going against the perceived trend. For example, charitable giving is up after a decline during the recession. The teenage pregnancy rate is at its lowest level in 40 years. And according to Education Week, "the nation’s graduation rate stands at 72 percent, the highest level of high school completion in more than two decades." So where is the evidence of this moral decline?
'via Blog this'
When considering America's moral decline, my first instinct was to look at the crime rate. If Satan is at work in America, he's probably nicking wallets and assaulting old ladies. But over the past several decades the crime rate has fallen dramatically, despite what you may think. The homicide rate has been cut in half since 1991; violent crime and property crime are also way down. Even those pesky kids are committing less crime. There are some caveats to these statistics, as my colleague points out, but I think we can conclude that crime is not the cause of America's moral decline.
So let's look elsewhere. Abortion has returned as a hot-button issue, perhaps it is eating away at our moral fiber. Hmm, the abortion rate declined by 8% between 2000 and 2008. Increases in divorce and infidelity could be considered indicators of our moral decay. There's just one problem: according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the divorce rate is the lowest it has been since the early 1970s. This is in part due to the recession, but infidelity is down too.
Other areas that might indicate declining virtue are also going against the perceived trend. For example, charitable giving is up after a decline during the recession. The teenage pregnancy rate is at its lowest level in 40 years. And according to Education Week, "the nation’s graduation rate stands at 72 percent, the highest level of high school completion in more than two decades." So where is the evidence of this moral decline?
Naiads
The Naiads were nymphs of bodies of fresh water and were one of the three main classes of water nymphs - the others being the Nereids(nymphs of the Mediterranean Sea) and the Oceanids (nymphs of the oceans). The Naiads presided over rivers, streams, brooks, springs, fountains, lakes, ponds, wells, and marshes. They were divided into various subclasses: Crinaeae (fountains), Pegaeae (springs), Eleionomae (marshes), Potameides (rivers), and Limnades or Limnatides (lakes). Roman sources even assigned custody of the rivers ofHades to Naiads classified as Nymphae Infernae Paludis or the Avernales.
---SPSmith
---SPSmith
Sunday, March 04, 2012
Article: Assorted shit Sunday!
Assorted shit Sunday!
http://open.salon.com/blog/sacrob/2012/03/04/assorted_shit_sunday
The bombastic, uber-type-A Breitbart was a tightly wound asshole, to put it mildly, and if such men in their 30s have heart attacks — and they do — then it's no huge shock that Breitbart died and went to hell at age 43.
---SPSmith
Proverbs 18:2 A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights in airing his own opinions.
| |||
---SPSmith
Article: Harakiri (1962)
Harakiri (1962)
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20120223%2FREVIEWS08%2F120229987
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Article: Oh, Kirk.
Oh, Kirk.
http://moviecitynews.com/2012/03/oh-kirk/
He's absolutely right on that point, of course. Everyone's entitled to their beliefs. It becomes an issue when people's personal moral beliefs become a part of controlling the right of other people to live their lives according to their own values, which is what the religious right wants to do. They don't want to just be free to live their lives the way they want to, they want to control how you live YOUR life, too, to force you to live (outwardly at least) in the way that makes THEM comfortable, which is where I call bullshit.
---SPSmith
Article: 12 Famous Book Titles That Come From Poetry « PWxyz
12 Famous Book Titles That Come From Poetry « PWxyz
http://blogs.publishersweekly.com/blogs/PWxyz/2012/02/29/12-famous-book-titles-that-come-from-poetry/
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Friday, March 02, 2012
Article: Mitt Romney Wins Coveted Ted Nugent Endorsement?
Mitt Romney Wins Coveted Ted Nugent Endorsement?
http://open.salon.com/blog/rogerf1953/2012/03/02/will_mitt_romney_flip_flop_on_ted_nugent_endorsement
Mitt Romney won the highly sought after endorsement of (mediocre) rocker-asshole Ted Nugent. (Apparently Charles Manson is going with Ron Paul).
---SPSmith
Article: Andrew Breitbart, Cocaine and Hypocrisy
Andrew Breitbart, Cocaine and Hypocrisy
http://moronwatch.net/2012/03/andrew-breitbart-cocaine-and-hypocrisy.html
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Article: 55 Free Philosophy Courses
55 Free Philosophy Courses
http://www.openculture.com/2012/03/55_free_philosophy_courses.html
(Sent from Flipboard)
---SPSmith
Andrew Breitbart: Death of a Douche | | Rolling Stone
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/taibblog/andrew-breitbart-death-of-a-douche-20120301
You know you lack credibility when no one believes you died because
your own site reported it.
---SPSmith
Barack Obama on Secularism: Does Barack Obama Believe in a Secular Government? Obama Expresses Both Pro-Secular and Anti-Secular Ideas in Speeches
Democracy demands that the religiously motivated translate their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific, values. It requires that their proposals be subject to argument, and amenable to reason. I may be opposed to abortion for religious reasons, but if I seek to pass a law banning the practice, I cannot simply point to the teachings of my church or evoke God's will. I have to explain why abortion violates some principle that is accessible to people of all faiths, including those with no faith at all.
---SPSmith
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