Yet More on the Heritability and Malleability of IQ

Yet More on the Heritability and Malleability of IQ: "So: Do I really believe that the heritability of IQ is zero? Well, I hope by this point I've persuaded you that's not a well-posed question. What I hope you really want to ask is something like: Do I think there are currently any genetic variations which, holding environment fixed to within some reasonable norms for prosperous, democratic, industrial or post-industrial societies, would tend to lead to differences in IQ? There my answer is 'yes, of course'. I've mentioned phenylketonuria and hypothyroidism already, and many other in-born errors of metabolism also lead to cognitive deficits, including lower IQ, at least in certain environments. More interestingly, conditions like Williams's Syndrome, Downs's Syndrome, etc., are genetically caused, and lead to reasonably predictable patterns of cognitive deficits, affecting different abilities in different ways. In many of these cases, it seems very likely (but is not yet established) that these variants cause problems with the signaling pathways which set how gene expression responds to environmental cues. Manipulating those signaling pathways during the right time windows would change what kind of mind the organism has later. The fact that different genetic disorders lead to different patterns of cognitive deficits, rather than just generally making people duller all around, suggests ways of disentangling which ge"

Microsoft Office heads to the Web | CNET News.com

Microsoft Office heads to the Web | CNET News.com: "SEATTLE--In another clear sign that Microsoft sees the threat posed by its traditional business moving online, the company is readying a rival to Google's Documents and Spreadsheets. The software maker is announcing Office Live Workspace, a free online tool for viewing, sharing and storing--but not editing--Office documents online. (It's existing Office Live efforts will be rebranded as Office Live Small Business.) It's not quite ready--starting Monday customers will be able to put in their name to be part of a beta testing program expected to begin later this year."

How Uganda Became an Anglican Haven - TIME

How Uganda Became an Anglican Haven - TIME: "Wearing a slightly ill-suited, printed Ugandan shirt, Bishop Guernsey earnestly calls Uganda his 'spiritual home.' Guernsey is the most recent in a series of American bishops pledging allegiance to African churches that have strong anti-homosexuality stances. In September alone, Americans William Atwood and William Murdoch were also consecrated by an African church, the Anglican Church of Kenya. Anglicans worldwide have been divided since the U.S. Episcopal Church, the Anglican Church's American branch, consecrated Gene Robinson as Anglicanism's first openly gay bishop four years ago."

Local News | Associate pastor at Seattle Methodist church announces she's gay | Seattle Times Newspaper: "The associate pastor of a Methodist church in Seattle's Beacon Hill neighborhood has told her congregation she is gay and has known since childhood. The Rev. Kathleen Weber has served at Blaine Memorial United Methodist Church for four years. She made the announcement today, and many in her congregation surrounded her with a prayer of support. The United Methodist Church prohibits 'self-avowed practicing homosexuals' from being ordained or appointed to serve in the United Methodist Church."

BillO by Piechart

Mike Hood just published this chart .. an a anslysis of Bill O'Reilly's comments about African Americans.

Jena, O. J. and the Jailing of Black America - New York Times

Jena, O. J. and the Jailing of Black America - New York Times

The Harvard Crimson :: News :: Report Warns of Nuclear Threat

The Harvard Crimson :: News :: Report Warns of Nuclear Threat: "The possibility that terrorists could steal nuclear materials remains a “real and urgent danger” despite the significant progress that has been made to restrict access to those materials, according to a report released Wednesday by the “Managing the Atom” project at the Kennedy School of Government. The report says that the essential ingredients needed to make nuclear weapons exist in over 40 countries and that terrorists are actively pursuing these dangerous materials. “The threat of nuclear terrorism is a continuing one,” said Matthew Bunn, author of the report and the project’s senior research associate."

L.A. County calling for lights-out hour - Los Angeles Times

L.A. County calling for lights-out hour - Los Angeles Times: "Led by Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke and City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel, the proposed effort asks Angelenos to simultaneously go dark between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 20, as San Franciscans do the same. Local officials are expected to vote on the plan next week. At the original event in Sydney, Australia, in March, 2.2 million people cut the lights, causing a 10% drop in electricity use. The so-called Earth Hour reduced 25 tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to taking nearly 49,000 cars off the road for 60 minutes, organizers said."

Revealed: Giuliani Skipped Black Voter Debate To Campaign With Bo Derek - The Huffington Post

Revealed: Giuliani Skipped Black Voter Debate To Campaign With Bo Derek - The Huffington Post: "Revealed: Giuliani Skipped Black Voter Debate To Campaign With Bo Derek"

A Colleague's Son is in this Brogade

With all the yelling to the right and left, few have paid much attention to the men on the ground. As it happens two of my friends are .. well .. rather patriotic . Their homes are conservative enough to have sons who feel drawn patriotically to serve in Iraq. One son is in country now. This article is about his brigade.

G.I.’s in Iraq Ready for Rest, but Hardly at Ease - New York Times: "This is Iraq for the 3,300 soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division’s Second Brigade, and many have come to the unfortunate realization that it now feels more like home than home. No brigade in the Army has spent more days deployed since Sept. 11, 2001, and with only a few weeks to go before ending their 15-month tour, the soldiers here are eager to go. But they are also nervous about what their minds will carry back, given the psychic toll of war day after day and the prospect of additional tours."

What strikes me is the basic goodness of the brigade. I developed the same feeling of respect for the military when I served in the USN. These good people deserve a better leader. Once more, what strikes me about our Republican leaders is, to be blunt, a lack of patriotism. They KNOW that Bush is incompetent. They know that these soldiers are being misused. They MUST have heard the silence when General Petraeus was asked if he knew the long term strategy his country was following or whether the presence in Iraq was making the US safer. General Petraeus is an admirable leader in a horrid position.

Recently, Hillary and Barak have given wise answers to the question of whether US troops would be in Iraq 4 years from now. I won't repeat their comments other than to say these two leaders say that we can not know and will not begin to know until new leadership takes over in 2009 what CAN be done. In its own way, this statement is as sad as the testimony of Ge, Petraeus. How can we wait a year and half while our men suffer? The leading Republicans are worse. They know damn well that Bush's goal, a democratic and friendly Iraq , is a fantasy. Romney, Giuliani, and McCain seem to me to be patriots. If so, they should join their Democratic rivals and begin NOW the debate on a rational Iraq strategy. The men and women in the 10th Mountain Division’s Second Brigade deserve better!

Gingrich on Swiftboating

Freeman Dyson, global warming, biotechnology, evolution, science and religion | Salon Books

Freeman Dyson, global warming, biotechnology, evolution, science and religion | Salon Books: "Sept. 29, 2007 | In his new collection of essays, 'A Many-Colored Glass,' renowned physicist Freeman Dyson turns his thoughts to do-it-yourself biotech and breeding one's own pet lizard, the fallacies of global warming science, science fiction (with a tip of the hat to recently departed Madeleine L'Engle) and the importance of biology to the future of religion. To Dyson, a deeper understanding of the human brain means a better understanding of theology and perhaps more tolerance for those with different beliefs."

"You've mentioned that you believe in God. How would you characterize your religion?

For me, religion is much more about a community of people than about belief. It's fine literature and music. As far as I can tell, people who belong to my church don't necessarily believe anything. Certainly we don't talk about that much. I suppose I'm a better Jew than I am a Christian. Jewish religion is much more a matter of community than it is of belief, and I think that's true of us Christians to a great extent, too."

FOXNews.com - Colorado Students Walk Out During Pledge, Recite Own Version - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News

FOXNews.com - Colorado Students Walk Out During Pledge, Recite Own Version - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News: "'Boulder High has a highly diverse population, not all of whom believe in God, or one God,' said Emma Martens, a senior and president of the club, which has about a dozen members. 'We didn't think it was fair for the whole school to have to listen to it. It's almost religious oppression,' she said. Principal Bud Jenkins told the Camera newspaper on its Web site Thursday the pledge will not be moved, but added he was proud of the students for standing up for their beliefs."

Think Progress » 1992 Cheney: Deposing Saddam not worth very many lives.

Think Progress » 1992 Cheney: Deposing Saddam not worth very many lives.: "If you get into the business of committing U.S. forces on the ground in Iraq, to occupy the place, my guess is I’d probably still have people there today instead of having been able to bring them home…The bottom line question for me was: How many additional American lives is Saddam Hussein worth? The answer: not very damn many."

Burma

The Daily Dish: "Now there are shootings in front of the Innwa tailoring shop. Soldiers are shooting and arresting too. It is at the junction of Anawrattha and Pansodan streets. It happened just now, but I did not see anybody getting hurt. The soldiers fired quite a lot of rounds. Now the protesters are heading towards Pazuntaung Township. The people are not scared. A lot of stones that the protesters threw at the soldiers could be seen scattered in front of the Innwa tailoring and on Pansodan traffic point. From the Pansoda flyover ten military trucks came down. The trucks were filled with arrested people."

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Burmese monks 'to be sent away': "Thousands of monks detained in Burma's main city of Rangoon will be sent to prisons in the far north of the country, sources have told the BBC. About 4,000 monks have been rounded up in the past week as the military government has tried to stamp out pro-democracy protests."

Faith

Pharyngula: "Archbishop Chimoio told our reporter that abstention, not condoms, was the best way to fight HIV/Aids. 'Condoms are not sure because I know that there are two countries in Europe, they are making condoms with the virus on purpose,' he alleged, refusing to name the countries. 'They want to finish with the African people. This is the programme. They want to colonise until up to now. If we are not careful we will finish in one century's time.'"

Pharyngula

Pharyngula: "Archbishop Chimoio told our reporter that abstention, not condoms, was the best way to fight HIV/Aids. 'Condoms are not sure because I know that there are two countries in Europe, they are making condoms with the virus on purpose,' he alleged, refusing to name the countries. 'They want to finish with the African people. This is the programme. They want to colonise until up to now. If we are not careful we will finish in one century's time.'"

The day Burma was silenced - Times Online

The day Burma was silenced - Times Online: "In the Mwe Kya Kan pagoda in the South Okkala district of Rangoon, it began at 2am, but seven hours later the evidence was plain to see – a dozen thick patches of congealing blood and human tissue splashed about the yard. The windows of the monks’ dormitories were smashed jaggedly by the impact of rubber bullets – hard, round spheres fired from green cartridges that the monks had carefully gathered up and put on display."

“Like most people, they thought that it sucks,” he told me. “But not for the usual reason. Burmese wanted to know why George Bush hasn’t invaded their country yet.”

"A boy named Raphael came up to practise his English, as the crowd screamed at the soldiers, and asked for my address so that he could visit me one day. A very small and old but irrepressibly vigorous white-haired man took my hand and led me to safety when he thought that I was too close to the trouble. “I am a teacher,” he said proudly. “PhD!”

Small, human encounters – and yet in these dark circumstances they become almost unbearably poignant. They are based on a very questionable assumption: that the people of Burma are going to be saved."

Who is Your Creator: Welcome

Who is Your Creator: Welcome: "Welcome to Who Is Your Creator Who Is Your Creator uses media, including display advertising, to raise awareness of the serious misrepresentations and lack of scientific proof for the theory of Naturalism and Darwinism. Why Are Evolutionists Afraid of Scientific Information? Read more… Who Is Your Creator was listed under “Threats to Evolution Education” by the American Institute of Biological Sciences (See PDF, scroll to ‘Minnesota’) Scientists and Professors Worldwide Dissent from Darwinism (See PDF)"

The Ghosts of Gandhi, King haunts Burma.

Burma: Inside the saffron revolution - Independent Online Edition > Asia: "Close to the Shwedagon pagoda, the golden gleaming monument in central Rangoon that has been the focus of protest for nine days, at least 10 monks were beaten up by police as thousands once again defied the authorities and tried to enter the holy shrine. Next, the police fired tear gas at them, and scores of the men in saffron robes were arrested and dragged away. From then on things only got worse."

Where are my heroes on this? Jimmy? Barack?

Where is the Pope?

The tolerant Muslims?

Petraeus Deserves a Better Boss!

blatherWatch: Tuesday oddems: dittos betrayus; billo gives it up? loopy livershorts, and the big crapaud: "~ Rush Limbaugh made up the Betrayus joke in the first place! And it was the loyalty of a Republican- he was trying to smear! Rush called Sen. Chuck Hagel 'Senator Betrayus ' because he opposes the war. All that self-righteousness and Mutually Assured Distraction around the Moveon ad that lured earballs so effectively away from real issues like the war and the shambles of the Bush administration, and it was mudhoney from the dastardly and ungrateful Rush Limbaugh all along. Will the prevailing head winds in the teapot ever die down?"

The Bush plan VS. the Petraeus doctrine: "With his new plan for Iraq, President Bush runs the risk of going against the principles of the US army's new doctrine of counterinsurgency. The doctrine was written last year by the man who will command US forces in Iraq, Lieutenant General David Petraeus. Its whole thrust is towards the long-term. The political imperative behind the Bush proposals is that the Iraq war is unpopular and that the US must get results soon, hopefully within a few months, certainly within a few years. 'I've made it clear to the [Iraqi] prime minister and Iraq's other leaders that America's commitment is not open-ended,' he said in his speech."

A Minister's Letter to Atheists

Alternative Reality Syndrom (ARS) a form of group dementia related to paranoia. Victims beliefs in a shared reality which is not supported by science. In severe cases, victims claim to speak to the Deity. Often afflicts members of religous sects and usually leads to violence.

NWAnews.com :: Northwest Arkansas' News Source: "The first danger is the unbeliever himself. He is left with no god but himself, no wisdom but his own (except the wisdom of men ) and no hope of a life beyond this one. Worst of all, he is in danger of facing an eternity devoid of the God he denied. In short, he wanted it that way, and that is the way he got it. A solemn and sad situation. The second danger is that the atheist may be able to persuade others (I knew of one situation like this where an older man concentrated on young people ) that his unbelief is really true. This might consign those he persuaded to the same fate that is in store for him. The third danger lies in what kind of person the atheist may become when he becomes his own god. If he does not recognize God, he may not recognize any of the restraints that a belief in God generates. Thus, without restraint, he may become a pedophile, a murderer, a thief, or any other kind of a deviant you can think of. Or he might just become one who lives inward, with no concern for the people or things around him. There are tragic examples of such people."

White supremacist backlash builds over Jena case -- chicagotribune.com: "McMillin has insisted that his town is being unfairly portrayed as racist—an assertion the mayor repeated in an interview with Richard Barrett, the leader of the Nationalist Movement, a white supremacist group based in Learned, Miss., who asked McMillin to 'set aside some place for those opposing the colored folks.' 'I am not endorsing any demonstrations, but I do appreciate what you are trying to do,' Barrett quoted McMillin as saying. 'Your moral support means a lot.' McMillin declined to return calls seeking comment Monday."

Of course, maybe the real problem is breasts! denialism blog : Support our troops! Don't let them have Playboy!: "They're fighting for our freedoms. And in order to fight for our freedoms, thousands of miles away from home, thousands of miles from their sweethearts and husbands/wives, they must be kept pure and without sin. Therefore, Christian groups demand the military not allow PX stores to sell porn (aka Playboy)."

And G-D is the Shield of Jewish Nuts.: "More recently, this revolt against reason climaxed when a handful of zealots, bitterly disappointed and traumatized by the Gaza withdrawal, made headlines by forging a common front with haredim, rejecting the army and proclaiming that the state did not deserve to survive. These extremists (who should not be confused with those refusing to obey orders to dismantle settlements) expressed confidence that the Almighty would intervene and protect His people without the IDF." BUT President Ahmadinejad meets Jewish rabbis in New York - Irna: "'You understand us and make a distinction between the violent behavior of Zionists and the religious beliefs of Jews,' said the senior rabbi who called President Ahmadinejad 'a pious man who is seeking to restore peace in the world and has humanitarian plans.' Appreciating the rabbis for their gift, President Ahmadinejad said he was happy to visit them. 'All people in the world have now understood that Judaism is different from Zionism,' said the president. He added, 'Zionists are a political group looking for taking advantage of the opportunities while Jews are the followers of the Moses who promoted peace and friendship.' President Ahmadinejad stressed that there was no disagreement between the followers of Judaism, Christianity and Islam as they all pray the same God and are brothers. The president said the future belongs to the monotheist faiths and that liars would be eliminated."

Ahmadinejad: "We Don't Have Homosexuals Like In Your Country" - The Huffington Post: "From Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's appearance at Columbia University: Responding to a question regarding the treatment of women and homosexuals in Iran, President Ahmadinejad said, 'Iran, we don't have homosexuals like in your country.'"

Another example of alternative reality syndrome. See video

Can't we end Bush Fantasies??

NASA aims to put man on Mars by 2037: "We are looking at the moon and Mars to build a civilisation for tomorrow and after that,' Griffin added in his remarks at a conference session attended by heads of the world's space agencies. President George W. Bush in 2004 announced an ambitious plan for the US to return to the moon by 2020 and use it as a stepping stone for manned missions to Mars and beyond"

This is a ridiculous waste of tax money.

Mars Society seeks to rescue crewed mission - space - 29 September 2007 - New Scientist Space: "It is not clear who inserted the banning provision into the House budget, but Dave Obey, the Wisconsin Democrat who chairs the House Appropriations Committee, supported a ban that was outvoted in the Republican-controlled House last year. The Moon-Mars programme was proposed by President Bush in 2004. Democrats now control both the House and Senate."

CHRISTIAN QAEDA!

The Dilbert Blog: A Feeling I'm Being Had: "Ahmadinejad believes his role is to pave the way for the coming of the Twelfth Imam. That's a primitive apocalyptic belief! I thank Jesus I do not live in a country led by a man who believes in that sort of bullshit. Imagine how dangerous that would be, especially if that man had the launch codes for nuclear weapons."

I think the irony is clear enough not to need comment. Bush is not as crazy as Ahmadinejad but th e coomon thread, what I call ARS (Alternative Reality Syndrome) is all too obvious.

I sincerely believe we need some for of blasphemy law, not to interfere with free speech but to focus judgement on those of us demeaning the truths of the real world. As a start, I would favor an anti-Kanssas law .. Blasphemy: making statements that deny the scientifically accepted
or historically accepted knowledge of reality. Teaching Blasphemy without identifying it as such, should be prohibitted in all schools (not just public). I know this does not work but how does one deal with the Dilberts?

Al Jazeera English - News - Pressure Builds On Myanmar Generals

Al Jazeera English - News - Pressure Builds On Myanmar Generals: "Monks leading days of anti-government protests in Myanmar have called on sympathisers to join their marches as pressure builds on the country's ruling generals."

Right Flight XVIII

GOP Senator Hagel: "The Republican Party Has Won Two Elections On...Fear And Terrorism...[It's] Going To Try Again" - Politics on The Huffington Post: "GOP Senator Hagel: 'The Republican Party Has Won Two Elections On...Fear And Terrorism...[It's] Going To Try Again'"

Pentagon okays sale of certain porn magazines at military exchanges (OneNewsNow.com)

Pentagon okays sale of certain porn magazines at military exchanges (OneNewsNow.com): "A Christian advocacy group is encouraging military families, and other concerned citizens, to write letters to the Defense Department expressing concern over the recent decision by the Pentagon that allows the sale of certain adult magazines at military exchanges."

Sgt. in trouble for Playboy photos - Military Affairs - MSNBC.com: "'Drop and give me 20!' is something you might hear Air Force Staff Sgt. Michelle Manhart yell to airmen trainees at Lackland Air Force Base. Drop her trousers is what Manhart did for Playboy magazine, and now it's landed her in trouble with the military."

FOXNews.com - Drill Sergeant Who Posed Naked for Playboy Removed From Active Military Duty - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News: "Whether that amounts to an honorable discharge, as Michelle Manhart also says, is unclear. Manhart, who appeared in a six-page spread in Playboy's February issue, said she got word Friday that she was removed from 'extended active duty' and was also told that she was demoted in rank from staff sergeant to senior airman."

BuyCostumes -- Playboy Bootcamp Babe Adult: "No one will go AWOL while this cutie is at camp! She will definately make your heart a prisoner of war in this military green lycra jumpsuit has front Playboy Rabbit Head imprint, side lacing and camouflage printed bottoms with Playboy Rabbit Head accents, belt with metal buckle, silver dog tags, and coordinating camouflage, military style cap."

Asia Times Online :: Southeast Asia news and business from Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam: "he Islam Defenders Front (FPI, for Front Pembela Islam) leader Habib Rizieq threatened to 'go to war' against Playboy last week, just before white-robed protesters pelted the publication's offices with stones while police watched passively. Muslim extremists returned the next day, but Playboy's office had already moved. FPI and other thugs settled for harassing and intimidating vendors and seizing the few remaining unsold copies with impunity."

Hypocrisy

Romney silent on Blackwater shooting - Kenneth P. Vogel - Politico.com: "The top counterterrorism and national security adviser to Romney’s presidential campaign is Cofer Black, vice chairman of Blackwater USA. The Iraqis died after guards employed by the private security firm opened fire following an alleged attack on a State Department convoy under their protection. Blackwater has a lucrative contract to guard U.S. diplomats in Iraq."

CHRISTIAN QAEDA!

David Vitter Tax Dollars for Creationism: "Sen. David Vitter, R-La., earmarked $100,000 in a spending bill for a Louisiana Christian group that has challenged the teaching of Darwinian evolution in the public school system and to which he has political ties. The money is included in the labor, health and education financing bill for fiscal 2008 and specifies payment to the Louisiana Family Forum “to develop a plan to promote better science education.”"
England Requires Worship in the Schools | EducationGuardian.co.uk: "Dr Paul Kelley, head of Monkseaton High School in Tyneside - the first to join the government's flagship 'trust school' scheme - wanted to challenge the legal requirement in all state schools for pupils to take part in a daily act of worship of a broadly Christian nature. There are only a handful of exceptions at faith schools where the daily worship can be based on a different religion."

The Potlatch Bug

HistoryLink Essay: Seattle's Potlatch Bug (1912): "Seattle was decorated with 250 plaster totem poles which bore the same exaggerated features as the Potlatch Bug. The Bug was the festival’s ubiquitous emblem: a “grotesque from a totem pole,” as the Ad Club put it, “[that] grins and grins and grins, yet always with good nature.” The Bug was produced as an automobile emblem, made of enameled brass, and as a lapel pin, identifying the wearer as a Potlatch Booster. The Bug image appeared on stationery, posters, postcards, and banners -- even on local candy and coffee labels."

Seattle Spirit Soars on Hype

Excerpts from new titles « University of Washington Press Blog: "Between 1911 and 1914 and again in the 1930s, Seattle’s premier urban festival was the potlatch. Like the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (AYPE), the Potlatch drew on symbols of the city’s northern hinterland and trumpeted the unique virtues that assured a great future for Seattle, its residents, and its investors. More than just another example of public relations, though, Seattle’s Potlatch festival was also a way for a certain class of Seattleites—specifically, the city’s new commercial elite—to tell stories about the city and its history. Called a “triumph of symbolism” by one observer, the Potlatch appropriated Native imagery to create a regional vision of civic development. In telling stories about the places that had been linked to Seattle through its imperial networks, Seattle’s Potlatchers crafted a new narrative about what it meant to be not just in this place but in this place that dominated other places: in the premier city of the Northwest Coast."

The Jerusalem Post | CHRISTIAN EDITION

The Jerusalem Post | CHRISTIAN EDITION: "Dear Friends, The Jerusalem Post has been reporting on Israel since before the modern state was founded — covering The Promised Land for 74 years through its highs and lows, its wars and peace agreements, tragedies and celebrations. Throughout this period, the paper has served, and continues to serve, as a bridge between Israel and Diaspora Jewry, a meeting point and source of information. But now there’s something new. Now, after almost 2,000 years of mutual ignorance, often mixed with fear and contempt, the world’s Jews and Christians are beginning to realize how very much they have in common, and to move toward a rejoining of 'root‘ and ’branch.‘ Christian Zionism has become a worldwide phenomenon, ’a sign of the times.' For this reason, The Jerusalem Post has established a monthly Christian Edition, so that lovers of Zion everywhere can follow these epochal events as they unfold. We invite anyone in a position to do so — Christian media, ministers and lay leaders — to help ensure that this new publication, its content tailored specifically to Christians who care deeply about the well-being of Israel and the Jewish people, reaches the widest possible audience. It’s our hope and belief that the Christian Edition will bring Jews and Christians even closer together"

ABC News: Giuliani Faces Firefighters' Wrath

ABC News: Giuliani Faces Firefighters' Wrath: "'The things that we needed to do our jobs even better, we didn't have, because of his administration,' Steve Cassidy, a New York City firefighter from the Bronx and the president of the city's largest firefighters union, says in the video. Cassidy endorced President Bush in 2004. 'On the heroic memory of 343 dead firefighters, he wants to run for president of the United States. It's a disgrace.'

Mime Legend Marcel Marceau Dies at 84

Mime Legend Marcel Marceau Dies at 84
Mime legend Marcel Marceau dies - CNN.com: "When the Germans marched into eastern France, he and his family were given just hours to pack their bags. He fled to southwest France and changed his last name to Marceau to hide his Jewish origins. With his brother Alain, Marceau became active in the French Resistance. Marceau altered children's identity cards, changing their birth dates to trick the Germans into thinking they were too young to be deported. Because he spoke English, he was recruited to be a liaison officer with Gen. George S. Patton's army. In 1944, Marceau's father was sent to Auschwitz, where he died. Later, he reflected on his father's death: 'Yes, I cried for him.' But he also thought of all the others killed: 'Among those kids was maybe an Einstein, a Mozart, somebody who (would have) found a cancer drug,' he told reporters in 2000. 'That is why we have a great responsibility. Let us love one another.'"

Burma march 'largest in 20 years'

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Burma march 'largest in 20 years': "Burma march 'largest in 20 years' Buddhist monks address a crowd at the Shwedagon Pagoda (23 September 2007) Buddhist monks are now calling on civilians to join the protests Burma's largest anti-government protest in nearly two decades has taken place in the former capital Rangoon, led by Buddhist monks and nun"

Theravada promotes the idea that each individual who wishes to achieve peace must seek this from experience and reasoning instead of by blind faith. The goal is liberation (or freedom) from suffering and this means one can n to make others suffer either.

Columbia Won't Cancel Ahmadinejad Speech

Columbia Won't Cancel Ahmadinejad Speech: "

The Belgravia Dispatch

The Belgravia Dispatch: "Now, for the first time, it’s possible to imagine modernization as something independent of Americanization: when people in Paris talk about ambitious kids going to study abroad, they talk about London. (Americans have little idea of the damage done by the ordeal that a routine run through immigration at J.F.K. has become for Europeans, or by the suspicion and hostility that greet the most anodyne foreigners who come to study or teach at our scientific and educational institutions.) When people in Paris talk about manufacturing might, they talk about China; when they talk about tall buildings, they talk about Dubai; when they talk about troubling foreign takeovers, they talk about Gazprom. The Sarkozy-Gordon Brown-Merkel generation is not unsympathetic to America, but America is not so much the primary issue for them, as it was for Blair and Chirac, in the nineties, when America was powerful beyond words."

Israelis seized nuclear material in Syrian raid - Times Online

Israelis seized nuclear material in Syrian raid - Times Online: "Israeli commandos seized nuclear material of North Korean origin during a daring raid on a secret military site in Syria before Israel bombed it this month, according to informed sources in Washington and Jerusalem."

ARS Firmly Infests Cliff's NOtes

Despite Right Flight, Alternative Reality Syndrom (ARS) is alive and well,, deeply embedded in the inhabitants of the radical conservative polity of Sound Politics, Seattle right wing blog.

The following is an example based on on a thread I have had there with Cliff. Over at Sound Politics Without revieweing the total thread, here are a few key points that "Cliff" makes:The issue was my suggestion that there was middle path between Bush;s fiasco and precipitous withdrawal. In a few words, I suggested we needed to rebuild alliances of the interested (no oun on Bush;s misues of the word alliance was intended.

Anyhow, go there if you want to see the whole bizarre thing but just a few excerpts:

The thread included my comment on Ike's decision to extricate the US from the Korean War, I guess I did not understand because Cliff tells me that Eisenhower won the Korean War.

Bush has a strategic goal, the creation of a "a stable, friendly Iraq that isn't a hotbed for terrorists" He says it all the time."

Apparently, based on the above Cliff thinks Iraq used to be hotbed for terrorists? He goes on to say, "Anyhow, we are well on our way to (the goal of a friendly Iraq", and I don't think it will be too long till Iraq resembles, say a young South Korea or perhaps Turkey. Both good allies of ours."

Of course, the Chinese, he says, would not care WHO was at war in Iran or Iraq because the Chinese are immoral. "China has every interest in seeing us fail and seeing the Middle East be given completely over to groups that are not sympathetic to our interests. They would be more then glad to have Iran as a best pal, and thus, an Iraq under Iran's direct influence. It is precisely because they want oil that they want us to fail." Sure! And China is going to sell Mattell toys made with all that oil to Iranians? Oh yeh, and when Iran and Saudi lunch their surrogate war in Iraq, China is going to get its oil from Russia??????? Them dumb Chinese!Of course China is also the evil devil,

Saudi Arabia can not help because he thinks el Qaeda and the Saudi Royals are the same folks and apparently both are friendly to the Iranians.

"Jordan is doing just fine on it's own" Jordan, according to Cliff, is a very peaceful place, the Palestinians have left and there is no tension between the Hashemite rules and the Palestinian people. He is also unware of the role Jordan plays today as an external entity where things can get done because it hyas a functioning government.

Then of curse Cliff is blissfully unaware of the issues on the Turkish/Kurd/Iranan borders. I suggsted we needd to help the Kurds and play a role in stabilizing their relations with Turkey. Cliff's note: "So if you want to save Kurdistan, save the rest of Iraq. Otherwise, it's doing just fine."

And the coda:

"If I didn't think Bush was committed to victory in the WOT, (yes, for all you deniers, that includes Iraq), I'd throw him under the bus so fast it would make your head swim."

I wonder why noone has tried thorazine as a treatment for ARS? The drug works well on paranoid schizophrenia.

Rabbi Daniel Lapin - 05.15.2007 Rabbi Daniel Lapin Mourns Passing

Rabbi Daniel Lapin - 05.15.2007 Rabbi Daniel Lapin Mourns Passing: "Farewell Falwell - Friend or Foe May 15, 2007 Like Noah, Jerry Falwell walked with God and found grace in His eyes. He was a friend to all Americans, he was a friend to the Biblical values that he believed America needed, and he was a wonderful friend to me."

Rabbi Daniel Lapin - Rabbi Daniel Lapin.: Current Commentaries: "3 Spiritual Secrets to Building a Business Building a business is a supremely spiritual enterprise."

Strangers in a Strained Land, by Bill Berkowitz

Evangelical Right: John Hagee Archives: "On Purim, the Jewish holiday that celebrates the day Queen Esther saved the Jews from annihilation, Trinity Broadcasting Network’s flagship talk show, Praise the Lord, featured an appearance by Rabbi Daniel Lapin. A politically conservative Orthodox rabbi, Lapin is best known for crusading with the Christian right against “anti-religion bigotry” and, more recently, for his close association with the convicted super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff. But he was not invited to a nationwide telecast to discuss such topics as the trumped-up war against religion or the better nature of his fallen friend. He had been asked to explain the significance of Purim to Christians, and particularly how the Old Testament’s Book of Esther “serves as a roadmap to reality,” which pinpoints where the next world “hot spot” will be. That soon-to-be-flaming location is where the Book of Esther was set: namely Persia, or in modern parlance, Iran. Seated beside Lapin in the ornately gilded Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) studio was Pastor John Hagee, the author of an incendiary new book purporting to show that the Bible predicts a military confrontation with Iran. By then, Hagee’s book, Jerusalem Countdown, had sold nearly 500,000 copies."

2005 MicroGraph Winners

2005 MicroGraph Winners

Huckabee heaven

Pharyngula: " This is a presidential candidate. He has an audience eating out of his hand with his speech on how much he looooooooooves his guns, how the UN should float away, and other fodder for wingnuts. And of course, with gun love comes the love of Christ. 'watching ducks land on a lake in Arkansas in the winter is about the closest to Heaven as you can find on this earth... and as someone who believes, according to my faith, I will go to Heaven when I die, I am pretty sure that there is duck hunting in Heaven!' Pretty deep thinking there from Mike Huckabee. Shallow, stupid git. But that is what American religion is: wish-fulfillment for the gullible. Besides, as everyone knows"

Right Flight XVII

NRCC chair threatens to resign - John Bresnahan and Patrick O'Connor - Politico.com: "House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) is trying to force out the top two staffers of the National Republican Campaign Committee — leading to a threat of resignation from the NRCC by Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) if it happens, said GOP insiders."

Romney Promises to Restore a Wayward GOP: "Trying to stand out from the crowded field, Romney is bluntly confronting problems plaguing the GOP in his new stump speech, fresh television ads and an open letter to party leaders. He is seeking to tap into anger among Republicans about the country's direction even as one of their own, President Bush, sits in the White House. In a blistering critique of Republicans, Romney argued that Republicans share the blame with Democrats for the nation's woes. He bemoaned excessive spending, insecure borders and ethical lapses. 'When Republicans act like Democrats, America loses,' he said. Even as he sought to distance himself from Bush, Romney gave him limited credit for keeping the United States safe and 'restoring personal integrity and dignity to the White House.' But otherwise Romney rattled off a slew of problems with the government, saying, for example, that the post-Hurricane Katrina cleanup 'didn't look like Republicans were in charge.'"

Ballbuster: Hillary Clinton Nutcracker Teaches Those Republican Nuts a Lesson - Gizmodo

Ballbuster: Hillary Clinton Nutcracker Teaches Those Republican Nuts a Lesson - Gizmodo

Fox edits Hillary so we can all hear her laugh at Chris Walalce.

Hillary weathers Sunday morning grilling - Ben Smith - Politico.com: "Wallace, in the course of asking her about the partisan divide, seemed also to illustrate it, pressing her extensively on her reaction to an advertisement from the liberal group MoveOn characterizing Gen. David Petraeus as “General Betray Us” and at one point asserting that “according to a top Harvard economist, 200,000 people would lose their jobs” under Clinton's health care plan."

Right Flight XVI

Vernon Jordan: The "Whites-Only" Sign on The GOP's "Big Tent" - Politics on The Huffington Post: "This week the four leading candidates--Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney, Rudolph Giuliani and John McCain--added the PBS-sponsored debate at Baltimore's historically-black Morgan State University to their 'I'll-pass' list. That list now includes the National Urban League, Univision, the Spanish-language television network, the National Association of Latino Elected Officials and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. It's getting to be a long list."

Burma monks issue defiant message

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Burma monks issue defiant message: "Leaders of protests by Buddhist monks in Burma say they intend to continue their peaceful demonstrations until the military government collapses."

Where is GBW?

Right Flight XV

CEOs, Bush Rangers Rebuff Republicans on War, Widening Deficit - Yahoo! News: "John Mack, chief executive officer of Morgan Stanley, Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp., and Terry Semel, chairman of Yahoo! Inc., are among some 60 executives writing checks to Democrats such as Senators Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois, a review of U.S. Federal Election Commission records shows. While the vast majority of business leaders still back Republicans for 2008, the stature of some of those donating to Democrats suggests that support may be eroding, seven years into the Bush presidency. Some executives expressed concern over Republican positions on issues ranging from the war in Iraq and stem-cell research to global warming and the fiscal deficit."

Labour Party leader, Kevin Rudd , the man who is strongly tipped to be Australia’s next Prime Minister has drawn up plans to drop the Queen of England as the head of state.

Mr Rudd is described as a staunch republican and wants to see an elected president as head of state as opposed to the Queen and if elected is expected to throw the full weight of government behind this issue.

A spokesperson for Mr Rudd said if successful in the election a referendum would probably be held in 3 years time to decide on the issue

The Sage Speaks

Having access to a great political sage, I asked myself to rank the tasks facing the post Bush president in terms of urgency (not just importance). Then I asked my sage to rate each Demo candidate's skills for that purpose:

1. Declare a strategic objective for Iraq based on some sort of exit that would include regional or international effort sto fix the Bush mess.

Best skills for purpose: HRC, Richardson, Biden, Dodd

2. Reorganize a terribly dysfunctional executive and judicial branch. This is a huge and urgent task,

Best skills for purpose: HRC

3. Tax policy reform

Best skills for purpose: Obama, Dodd

4. Judicial reform

Best skills for purpose: Edwards, HRC, Obama

5. Repair US Image, new alliances

Best skills for purpose: Obama, Richardson

6. Address America's Class Issues:

Best skills for purpose: Obama, Richardson,

7. Convince Americans of Need to Sacrifice

Best skills for purpose: Obama, HRC

8. Re-establish Scientific Apparatus

Best skills for purpose: Obama, HRC,

9. Address the Immigration Mess

Best skills for purpose: Edwards, Dodd,

10. Provide Role Model

Best skills for purpose: Obama, HRC, Richardson, Edwards

Remember, this is a scientifically derived, objective survey.

CHRISTIAN QAEDA!

THE ultimate phrase to describe the Relgious Radical Right Republicans?

CHRISTIAN QAEDA!

Thanks to Alexander over at Sound Politics.

25. Hey, GS ... you are right about Hillary. I wouldn't vote for that duplicitous fool for all the money in the world. If Dems elect her, SHE will be the GOP's best hope of winning the Presidency in 2008. Granted, not much of a hope, but some hope.

Hillary is the one candidate that might be able to get the Christian Qaeda motivated to vote ... on the other hand, she'd be smart enough to run commercials emphasizing Rudy's serial marriages, wife-cheating, cocaine selling friends, trying to convince his wife to let his girlfriend move in with them etc. and that would neutralize the Osama bin Dobson vote, don't you think?

But yeah, the Dems are taking a huge risk by electing Hillary!

Posted by A. Alexander at September 20, 2007 07:55 AM

Post a comment

Right Flight XIV

Dobson Says He Won't Support Thompson - Politics on The Huffington Post: "'Isn't Thompson the candidate who is opposed to a Constitutional amendment to protect marriage, believes there should be 50 different definitions of marriage in the U.S., favors McCain-Feingold, won't talk at all about what he believes, and can't speak his way out of a paper bag on the campaign trail?' Dobson wrote. 'He has no passion, no zeal, and no apparent 'want to.' And yet he is apparently the Great Hope that burns in the breasts of many conservative Christians? Well, not for me, my brothers. Not for me!'"

The oddest thing ... when I posted this Horsey 'toon,
it did not occur to me that it would end up next to the image of Brad Pitt as OJ. Maybe there is a theme here ... maybe OJ would be the ebts candidate for the Republican nomination?? Well, not to get the nomination but just imagine the 9issues this would ride in the Faux newsroomkspinchamber?

I ownder how OJ would have done in this week's Republican poll?

Sept. 14-16, Gallup Poll has Ron Paul at 4% and within MOE with Romney!

OJ, the saga continues.

O.J. Simpson Released From Vegas Jail:Since SJ is not main stream media, I avoid mirroring the stupid fascination with celebrity porn. This story, however, is sufficiently bizarre that I thought a link might be OK. Of course, before anyone suggests otherwise let me make it clear that OJ does not stand for Orthodox Jew.

"Authorities allege that the men went to the room on the pretext of brokering a deal with two longtime collectors, Alfred Beardsley and Bruce Fromong. According to police reports, the collectors were ordered at gunpoint to hand over several items valued at as much as $100,000. Beardsley told police that one of the men with Simpson brandished a pistol, frisked him and impersonated a police officer, and that another man pointed a gun at Fromong. 'I'm a cop and you're lucky this ain't LA or you'd be dead,' the man said, according to the report."

I have no idea how this is all going to turn out but hope I live long enough to see it redone as a movie.

Could be the ultimate prequel(s) to Star Wars. Imagine ...
I The 'hood. A young, idealistic OJ grows up in a remote LA
II Empire and Hero. Triumphant and smiling and wielding a pass as if thrusting with a Jedi light saber, OJ stars at USC. A True Tojan!
III Beyond The Stars, As OJ moves into pro ball and begins to see ...pain and injury and lots of money and women.
IV. The Clone Wars As an older, wiser OJ becomes a clown in grade B movies. People laugh behind his back.
V. The Evil Side. OJ comes acropper, kills his horse and his wife, but goes free because, well because the jury remembers the young Trojan Hero.
VI. The Downfall. The revenge of the force, as the universe tumbles on the once mighty hero.

They may need to hire Aeschylus to write the plot but perhaps the lead could go to Brad Pitt in black face? Having played Achilles, Pitt would be an ideal candidate to play an antiheroic Trojan.

Right Flight XIII

Pope refuses to meet Rice: report: "Pope Benedict XVI refused to meet US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in August, saying he was on holiday, an Italian newspaper reported Wednesday. Rice 'made it known to the Vatican that she absolutely had to meet the pope' to boost her diplomatic 'credit' ahead of a trip to the Middle East, the Corriere della Sera daily reported without citing its sources."

And then there is yet another Repubrican war hawk who didn't show up for duty in 'nam.

Giuliani did not serve in the military during the Vietnam War. He received a student deferment while at Manhattan College and another while at NYU Law. Upon graduation from NYU Law in 1968, he was classified as 1-A, available for military service. He applied for a deferment but was rejected. In 1969, MacMahon wrote a letter to Giuliani's draft board, asking that he be reclassified as 2-A, civilian occupation deferment, because Giuliani, who was a law clerk for MacMahon, was an essential employee. The deferment was granted. In 1970, Giuliani received a high draft lottery number; he was not called up for service although by then he had been reclassified 1-A.

This is getting worse and worse. First, there seems to be a consistent pattern of Republican warharks who have not been willing t give themselves to the effort. Can you spell hypocrisy? Then there is il papa. I find it hard to understand how this upposedly moral man is too busy to endorse peace? I am anything but a fan of this reactionary Pope but when even the Pope refuses to meet with the Bushies prior to a critical summit, things are pretty hopeless. Can you spell hypocrisy?

Health Care Goals

To a Republican:

You may be surprised but you and I are not far apart on this.

I too like the idea of a healthcare safety net, though it needs to extend beyond the poor because the costs of catastrophic care are so high that one nees to be very rich or have unusually great insurance to survive such a challenge.

I also think there is danger in a socialized system that leaves the decision as to what is elective and what is not elective to a political process.

All that said, we come back to a very hard issue. Is it possible in modern emdicine to have a free market. Let me point out that NO civilized country, including the US, today has a free market. You and I would not want the health care in third world nations that come closest to a free market.

So, how could one develop a free market? I really do not know but a few rules seem clear:

1. health care should never be tied to employment. This was a major blunder of WWII. It makes no more sense than tying housing, food, or education to employment.

2. Where a free market can exist, it should be created. The obvious example is th new effort by capitalists to recreate the old time GP now as "doc in a box" clinics in malls and drug stores. This saves hug amounts of money over the big clinic or ER model and seems idelaly suited toi a free market.

3. A safety net must prevent health care form being the cause of bankruptcy AND seperate the issue of long term care from the current rules that require impoverishment to receive etc.

4. recognize some parts of medicine as natural monopolies that need to be socialized or regulated.

5. create the competition, as much as possible, at the vendor level rather than the insurance level. Insurance is a poor level to create a free market because there is too much of a conflict of interest in the insurer. One result of this is an estimate that a third of the health care dollar in the US goes to administrative overhead.

6. We need to distinguish, as we do not now, between insurance and pre-paid health care. A large part of medical need is very predictable. Insurance ofr this makes no more sense than using insurance, rather than a service contract, to fund car maintenance or housing repairs. I would limit insurance to catastrophic issues and develop a service mechanism to deal with predictable health care. The service component might be able to function competitively.

That would be a start. The result would be individual or societal decisions, rather than corporate, as to a lot of the health care $.

My suspicion is that such a system would focus on childhood health care where prevention is essential. We might underwrite basic healthcare for kids in a number of ways but since much of that would be by the doc-in-a-box market, free market forces should work well as long as we provide an incentive to the parents to shop by having appropriate copays.

A the other end, such a system would likely socialize a lot of in hospital care simply because this level has become so expensive that it is a natural monopoly. I see little evidence that private monopolies (e.g. the old Ma Bell) are more efficient or less efficient than socialized entities (e.g. Seattle Light}.

Omics! Omics!

Omics! Omics!: "Omics! Omics! A computational biologist's personal views on new technologies & publications on genomics & proteomics and their impact on drug discovery"

The Scientist : Vote for your favorite life science blogs

The Scientist : Vote for your favorite life science blogs
This is a terrific list.

On Being Not What Others Are

We're not all marking Ramadan | Jerusalem Post: "As an Arab and a Christian, I feel the double whammy of being cast aside not only by Muslims, but also by Americans, who continue to remain naïve about the fundamentals of the Middle East and everything related to the 'war on terrorism,' frequently and mistake me for a Muslim. One Christian American told me: 'I can't believe you abandoned your Christian faith to become an Arab.'"

Great eaasy on being a minority in a Muslim world.

Right Flight XII

Debate No-Shows Worry GOP Leaders - washingtonpost.com: "'For Republicans to consistently refuse to engage in front of an African American or Latino audience is an enormous error,' said former House speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.), who has not yet ruled out a White House run himself. 'I hope they will reverse their decision and change their schedules. I see no excuse -- this thing has been planned for months, these candidates have known about it for months. It's just fundamentally wrong. Any of them who give you that scheduling-conflict answer are disingenuous. That's baloney.'"

Great article. What I find intersting are the quoted from Bush I campers. Analysts have long pointed out that the demographics REQUIRE the GOP to open itself t the browns and blacks. Its approach, appealing to a shared religious POV did not work. I am tempted to say "Thank Hevaen."

Iran | Jerusalem Post

Iran | Jerusalem Post: "We can live with nuclear-armed Iran' By ASSOCIATED PRESS Former US general: Efforts must be made to stop it, but Teheran can be deterred from using weapons. '600 Iranian missiles pointed at Israel' By JPOST.COM STAFF Website: They'll be launched if Iran or Syria attacked; US-affiliated locations in Iraq also targeted. Russia warns West not to attack Iran By ASSOCIATED PRESS Russia FM: No modern problem has a military solution, and that applies to the Iranian nuclear program.. OPINION & ANALYSIS [ more » ] Where's Germany? Berlin is dragging its feet regarding tightening pressure on Iran. Nuclear fungibility There are times when it is better to act than to talk. Former Mossad chief: Only force will stop Iran By AMIR MIZROCH Only military intervention will prevent Teheran from getting nuclear weapons, warns Shabtai Shavit."

Right Flight XI

GOP identification drops - Elizabeth Wilner - Politico.com: "GOP identification drops By: Elizabeth Wilner Sep 18, 2007 07:12 PM EST Woman casting her ballot In the study, Republicans were at rough parity with Democrats in party ID, trailing them by three percentage points. Photo: AP SAVE Digg Shown on del.icio.us del.icio.us See Whos Talking About This on Technorati Technorati I've Reddit reddit SHARE COMMENT PRINT EMAIL RECOMMEND Americans aren’t just having a tough time seeing themselves pulling the lever for Republicans these days. Fewer are seeing themselves as Republicans, period."

ABC News: Park Service: Liberty's Crown Won't Reopen

ABC News: Park Service: Liberty's Crown Won't Reopen: "Utah Rep. Rob Bishop, the ranking Republican on the subcommittee, challenged Wenk, riffing on the statue's origins as a gift from France in 1886: 'So what you're telling me is the French did a lousy job in the design of the statue?'"

ABC News: Obama Economic Plan Includes Tax Breaks

ABC News: Obama Economic Plan Includes Tax Breaks: "Expanding on his anti-Washington theme, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Tuesday that he would take back tax breaks from monied interests to provide $80 billion annually in relief for workers, seniors and homeowners."
What is a pol to do? Kiss babies, eat hot dogs, pat the pig, and promise to cut taxes.
Oh well. At least my man is offering to put the onus on rich folks! And imagine that face on Rushmore!

mashup of BO and the mtn with apologies to Pat Oliphant whose background this is and Steve Greenberg who done drew Barak.

Feds Cut Prime by .5%

Time to refinance!

Hmmmm ..

a Hummer to replace my Ferrari, give Ferrari to son 60
b 52″ flat screen 4
c dinner at Rover’s, have Darryl and Goldy as guests 1
d new Italian Stove 6
e high end NIkon D3 with all the coolest lenses 15
f max out contribution to Darcy 3
g coupla bucks for Goldy -
h new CPU, maybe a Mac with Windows, 8 gigs? 6
i diesels for the yacht 80
j Leica M8 and lenses to phot DL in the dark 18
k coupla more bucks for Goldy and buy him a beer -
l Prious .. to save fuel for the Hummer 3
m Ultra cold walk in refer, wi remodel 8
n air conditioning
o paint the effin house so it looks like it is worth its eval. 15
p trip to Alaska for 2, first class 15
q a pittance for Richard Pope
r slate roof, to impress neighbors 40
s help dotter buy a house
t replace electric service to house 50
u landscaping to keep up with new millionaire neighbors. 20
v add more channels to our Comcast account -
w Tivo -
y iPhone -
z some more beer for Goldy -

total … about $350,000 AND the interest is tax deductible!

Of course in the mean time the dollar is falling vs. the hard currencies. Better buy the imported stuf h=while it is cheap!

What are you sorry about? | Jerusalem Post

What are you sorry about? | Jerusalem Post: "What are you sorry about? Hurt anyone? Disrespected someone you care about? As Yom Kippur approaches, one way to atone for your actions in the past year is to express them here. G'mar Hatima Tova"

Actually, No.

Editorial Cartoons by Nate Beeler

As WW III Incubates, No one cares.

This is my response to a very depressing post at HA on the Petraeus report. The report by Geov Parish extends the MoveOn controversy by painting the genral as no more than a bootlicker.

Petraeus is what he seems to be ... not a flack, but a soldier. He gave a factual report to Congress but refused to answer any questions about strategy, US safety, or long term goals. His silence on those issues was more imortabt than what he did say,

In the meantime, Geov has left out one critical story from last week ... the Israel air strike in Syria. The reports surrounding this event are extremely important. Some folks claim that the Israelis were staging a threat to Iran, others that they took out Syrian nukes. Interestingly, , the Syrians want it covered up much as do the Israelis. In the meantime the Saudis are reluctant to come to Bush's Camp David meetup.

Another story Geov missed was from France. The French foreign minister has said the world needs to prepare for the possibility of war against Iran over its nuclear programme.

This is one more piece of evidence that WE NEED A STRATEGY, Bush's only strategy seems to be handing his damaged goods off to Clinton or Obama so they take the blame. At the other extreme the calls for precipitous withdrawal from the mess WE MADE are at least as simple minded and self serving as anything lil Bush comes up with. Will those same peacniks stand by if Iraq turns into Bosnia or worse into the Blakans of WW I? What do we do if Iran , Turkey and Syria invade?

NOW is the time for real leadership. Obiwan and Athena (sorry I can not resist) seem to me to be trying very hard to walk a razer edge of pacifying the peaceniks while keepijng options open. In contrast Bush does not seem to give a damn and the Repricans are not yet r easy to say they f'd up and now lest MOVEON.

This is a very dangerous game of political chicken.

Is Something GOOD Happening in Iran?

Talking Points Memo | Iranian TV Shows Holocaust Movie Sympathetic to Jews: "Iranian TV Series Sympathetic to Plight of Jews in World War II Holocaust"

Will Bush Be There for His Party?

Abbas threatens to boycott peace summit - Haaretz - Israel News: "Western diplomats who recently visited Saudi Arabia told Haaretz that in their conversations with Saudi officials, they received the impressions that Saudi Arabia will not attend the summit. The sources say the Saudis regard a declaration of intentions as insufficient justification for their attendance."

I have wondered if anyone will show up. Given Bush's demonstrated incompetence and lame duck status, why would Olmert and Abbas come? Who will be the negotiatoor? Bush is likely too stupid. Condi?? She is just now learning her job. Maybe Daddy Bush will come and help out the shrub?

Censoring Sally Field .. and Mothers

Gold Derby by Tom o'Neil - The Envelope: "'If mothers ruled the world, there wouldn't be any god -' Emmy winner Sally Field said before the Emmycast cut off her sound and pointed the camera away from the stage so viewers would be distracted. Chopped off were the words 'god-damned wars in the first place.' 'This belongs to all the mothers of the world - may they be seen and valued,' she added when she won best actress in a drama series for her work as matriarch Nora Walker on 'Brothers & Sisters.' While the two-time Oscar winner already has two Emmys, this was her first nomination for series work, and she bested a field that included favorite Edie Falco of 'The Sopranos.'"

On Narcissism

I wrote this in an email to a science colleague who asked about my work as a photographer.

I am sort of an acolyte of Minor White's. Do you know Minor? He was a very controversial bird. Gay before one was supposed to be. Christian and existentialist when these seemed contradictory. Dada in a medium where there was no commercial value to found art.

But the main issue was that Minor felt photography was a form of narcissism and taught that worrying about how others react to what one sees is destructive of the effort to learn to see, Needless to say, Minor upset the gallery scene because he took this idea to a point wher if you can "see: why do you need to print? I taught "Minor" in socal (UCLA and Orange Coast College) and here in Seattle. The easy part was teaching zone system, printmaking and composition. Minor had a great way of combining zones with zen!

Much harder was figuring out how to critique work while observing Minor's admonition that anything I said to a student might harm her ability to "see" themselves. My biggest success was a wonderful young man who also had a drug problem. One day we got a phine call that Ron had taken his life. I treasure te one image of his I still have.

Right Flight X

Alan Greenspan claims Iraq war was really for oil - Times Online: "In his long-awaited memoir, to be published tomorrow, Greenspan, a Republican whose 18-year tenure as head of the US Federal Reserve was widely admired, will also deliver a stinging critique of President George W Bush’s economic policies. However, it is his view on the motive for the 2003"

Chafee quietly quits the GOP | Rhode Island news | Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal: "“It’s not my party any more,” he said. Chafee’s departure is another step in the waning of the strain of moderate Republicanism that was once a winning political philosophy from Rhode Island and Connecticut to the Canadian border. For the first time since the Civil War, the six New England states combined now have only one Republican U.S. House member, Connecticut’s Christopher Shays."

Welcome to PopeForCouncil.com

Richard Pope for County Council
I dn not vote in Richard's district but I will contribute to his campaign. He is a very atypical pol. Hving shared beer with him, I realize he is sincere and thoughtful .. actually qualified. Something few who run for these offices today can claim.

In a conventional year his candidacy would not occur. BUT, he will be running against a flawed candidate with drunk driving and diploma problems from a Reoublican party that is itself now deeply flawed. These races are so hard to figure out ... the media tell us nothing, so it is hard to find out who anyone is.

OTOH she has lots of endorsements. and her web site does comment on a lot of imortant issues.

I hope Richard runs the kind of campaign that gives us all some facts. It would be good, for example, to know how the county's costs are proportioned amongst the various people in its borders. For example, does the Boeing field enclave pay its way? How does the Eastiside deal with urban sprawl or, for that matter with Seattle's emergence as a bedroom for Eastside jobs? As the unincorporated area of the County shrinks, how will this effect the efficency of the county as a government unit?

A huge issue, IMHO, is the need for true regional transportation. Our economic future depends on North South commericial traffic through a very narrow corridor and the future of that traffic will be via the Eastside because Seattle is maxed out. Do we have a regional transportation plan that looks beyond the RTID?? Why has the County government done such a poor job of helping its citizens determine what the FINAL COST OF THE RTID WILL BE?

Microsoft and its spin offs along with the UW now dominate our local economy. How does this effect our future? Does anyone in the Council meet with the technology leaders to see what the region needs? Interaction of that sort are expected in San Diego, Cambridge and San Jose.

Some Dems oppose Richard because he is a new Dem, switching parties to obtain an opportunity. This would bother me if I felt the Republican party or the Democratic party had shown some consistency of their own. Richard's philosophy, a lot like my own, is not really left or right. It is, however, consistent, honest, intelligent and rational.

If our party can support conservatives like Sam Nunn, Jim Webb and Hillary it can support Richard.

I called him tonite to cheer him on and suggest he take Ross Perot's, hard assed factual approach. IMHO people are hungry for truth. I would love to see him use this as chance ot force a new, open and rational discussion.

Bras Don't Support Bouncing Breasts, Study Finds | LiveScience

Bras Don't Support Bouncing Breasts, Study Finds | LiveScience: "Bras Don't Support Bouncing Breasts, Study Finds"

Wouldn't it be exciting if two wmen were running for POTUS?

Good Link

Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle

Right Flight VIII

Greenspan Is Critical Of Bush in Memoir - washingtonpost.com: "Alan Greenspan, who served as Federal Reserve chairman for 18 years and was the leading Republican economist for the past three decades, levels unusually harsh criticism at President Bush and the Republican Party in his new book, arguing that Bush abandoned the central conservative principle of fiscal restraint. While condemning Democrats, too, for rampant federal spending, he offers Bill Clinton an exemption. The former president emerges as the political hero of 'The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World,' Greenspan's 531-page memoir, which is being published Monday."

Arizona seats show GOP difficulties - Josh Kraushaar - Politico.com: "Republicans have their hands full in Arizona next year as they attempt to hold onto a seat endangered by a scandal-plagued incumbent while staying on the offense against two freshman Democrats."

Snacks Take Big Bite Out of DOJ Budget - Politics on The Huffington Post

Snacks Take Big Bite Out of DOJ Budget - Politics on The Huffington Post: "An internal Justice audit, released Friday, showed the department spent nearly $7 million to plan, host or send employees to 10 conferences over the last two years. This included paying $4 per meatball at one lavish dinner and spreading an average of $25 worth of snacks around to each participant at a movie-themed party. There was plenty, too, for those needing to satisfy a sweet tooth. More than $13,000 was spent on cookies and brownies for 1,542 people who attended a four-day 'Weed and Seed' conference in August 2005, according to the audit by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine. And a 'networking' session replete with butterfly shrimp, coconut lobster skewers and Swedish meatballs at a Community Oriented Policing Services conference in July 2006 cost more than $60,000."

Faux news and BF Skinner

We all may be oversimplifying what is happening at Fox News.

I took a looong bath this morning. Too tired to change the channel, I had a Clockwork Orange Experience .. hours of Faux indoctrination.

The scripting is awesome. Different faces same words. The agenda was the Betray Us ads. Over and over again, with the absurd claim that this is somehow illegal because Move On paid too little for for the ad and isn't this REALLY Hillary's fault? Hypocrisy (and irony) aside, this continual drone of Goebelleseque agitprop MUST be intentional.

Faux' bias is nothing new but the use of Soviet/Nazi era propaganda techniques goes beyond the pale. The image it conveys of mind-blanked listeners being programmed is frightening.

Faux' own polling suggests this tactic is not working, YET.

Yet is an important word here. As a graduate of BF Skinner's class on behaviorism, the methods being used here are right out of the book. I even felt that there was a clever transposition of rewards .. OJ Simpson titillation or such, in juxtaposition just as the classical behaviorist would use opernat conditioning. The pattern is so obvious I have trouble believing that someone at Faux is not intentionally trying to condition the Faux audience.

How intentional is this? There is a website called Brainwashing America that
offers a number of references claiming the administration is using Skinner's methods. I do not believe this. From the glimpses within we have seen, the Bushistas are too unsophisticated to pull it off. But, I have known for years that bug ad firms have beens studying Skinner. My brother told me of classes he took during his MBA at Columbia. Though lacking the rigor of Skinnerian approach, the way he was taught to sell products in the supermarket was as Skinnerian as a pigeon in a box.

The scary thing about skilled behaviorists manipulating the mass media is that there appears to be no legal way to interfere with this. When the First Amendment was written, no one reaized how powerful psychology would become. The line betwee free speech and conditioning is very hard to draw.