Leviathan Slayer

where is jmc?

2009-03-01T09:07:00.003-06:00

As you can see, this blog has been comatose since December 2007. I may some day start it up again, but for now all my active blogging can be found on my personal twitter page as well as my wine twitter page. Please follow me there if you are interested. I also do some blogging at my Campaign for Liberty page. Thanks for reading!

thomas sowell: establishment hack

2007-12-26T09:42:00.001-06:00

In his rundown of all the Presidential candidates in his NRO article today, Dr. Sowell doesn't even mention Ron Paul. Yet this supposedly libertarian conservative has this to say about Fred Thompson:

"Fred Thompson seems to have the best policy positions and the best political track record among the Republican candidates"

I guess this bit at the end is his cowardly way of attacking Ron Paul without mentioning his name:

"As for the other candidates in both parties, the big question is why anyone takes them seriously as candidates to lead the nation at a time of huge dangers that terrorists will end up with nuclear weapons, whether from Iran or Pakistan."

Uhm...maybe because Dr. Paul will remove the main incentives for any attacks while securing our borders at the same?

Dr. Sowell can't see the Ron Paul Revolution freight train coming right at him - maybe his trademark glasses need some new lenses. Rather than offering any reasoned arguments about why Ron Paul should not be President, he childishly ignores the good doctor's candidacy. Despite his scholarly contributions in the defense of laissez-faire economics, I'm afraid Dr. Sowell's efforts at political commentary have exposed him as just another establishment hack.

going back to the gold standard

2007-12-16T16:20:00.001-06:00

I had a discussion earlier today with my co-blogger, jmc, about the gold standard. We were both wondering how a transition from our current fiat standard money to a commodity-based money might be managed. I pointed out that passing the Honest Money Act (HR 2756), introduced by Congressman Ron Paul, would be a good start. There's a good explanation of the bill over at Downsize DC:

Congressman Paul has hit upon the easiest way to end inflation, and the booms and busts that follow in its wake. Simply repeal the legal tender monopoly enjoyed by FRNs, and allow monetary competition. Not only would this help to end inflation and recessions, it would also limit the ability of politicians to hide the true cost of government through the inflation tax.

Text of the law can be found here and as Congressman Paul's website summary states, it would simply repeal section 5103 of title 31, United States Code.

Of course, that's only the beginning. Once Legal Tender laws are abolished, people would be free to use whatever medium they wanted for exchange. But what would happen to all the Federal Reserve Notes in circulation? I fear that the transition would be pretty painful because the currency has been so badly inflated over the years. I think that if the Fed slowly reduced the amount of money circulating, it could ease the pain, but that assumes the Fed could do a good job of it.

At the very end of The Case Against the Fed, Murray Rothbard spends several pages suggesting how the Fed might be abolished with a return to the gold standard. Basically, Rothbard argues that the Fed should be treated as a bankrupt corporation and be liquidated, with its gold stock being revalued to pay off its "debts". Using Rothbard's 1994 figures, this means that an ounce of gold would be worth $1555. Rothbard's plan is so simple it's hard to believe, but it's also hard to believe that his plan wouldn't cause massive financial disruption.

Frankly, I just don't see how we can move to a gold standard without a lot of pain.

not my kind of town

2007-12-13T20:45:00.000-06:00

I always have fun when I visit my co-blogger in Chicago, but sometimes the Windy City makes me sick. Radley Balko discusses the wretched state of the police in Chi-town:

An eight-month Chicago Tribune investigation of 200+ police shootings going back 10 years found that within hours of a police shooting, the police department convenes hastily-assembled, wagon-circling “roundtables” of law enforcement officials where police and witnesses are questioned but not sworn or recorded, where the officers involved are allowed to confer to get their stories straight before being questioned, and where the inevitable conclusion is always that the shooting was justified. From there, broader, show-investigations begin. Key witnesses go uninterviewed. Forensic evidence is ignored. And the shooting officer is inevitably exonerated.

Kudos to the Chicago Tribune for doing the legwork on revealing and compiling the details on this horrible state of affairs.

Congrats!

2007-11-25T12:57:00.000-06:00

My co-blogger and his wife just had their third daughter today! Expect his blogging to be even lighter than usual.

quote of the day

2007-11-05T18:59:00.000-06:00

From "Don't Enlist":

So why do thousands of people continue to join the military? In most cases, the decision is a financial one – just like the decision to sell crack or become a prostitute.

At least the hookers and crack dealers are providing a service that people want.

the fatal conceit (paul krugman edition)

2007-11-03T12:44:00.000-05:00

Brian Doherty catches a telling admission by Paul Krugman in the November 15th issue of Rolling Stone. Doherty notes:

Asked to name his great inspiration, [Krugman] says: Isaac Asimov's Foundation series--a tale of super social scientists who can accurately pinpoint laws of mass social behavior that allow them to predict, and manipulate, all of human civilization and future history. "That's always what I wanted to be," saith the economist turned pundit. Good luck with that project, Dr. Krugman.

Yikes.

war is peace

2007-10-13T12:14:00.000-05:00

Jesse Walker has the best take on Albert J. Gore, Jr.'s Nobel Peace Prize win over at reason.com:

In 1973, the Nobel Peace Prize was shared by Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. Kissinger's CV included the "secret" bombing of Cambodia and the "Christmas" bombing of North Vietnam; just a month before his prize was announced, he was complicit in the coup that installed a brutal dictatorship in Chile. So why did he win? Because he and Tho had reached a truce to end the Vietnam War. Tho wasn't a particularly peaceful man either, but at least he had the common courtesy to refuse the award.

Great company to be in, Al!

strippers for ron paul

2007-08-20T20:59:00.000-05:00

One stripper, at least, supports him:

Since my main interest in politics these days is financial, I’m a fan of Ron Paul. I believe he would be good for the economy and (most importantly) for my wallet...If Ron Paul gets elected I will be able to put off my plan of eventually fleeing to Malta for at least four years. That’s a chance worth taking, in my estimation.

Read the rest here.

an interesting fact

2007-08-12T19:08:00.001-05:00

I've never read much about health care issues and it's always made me squirm that socialized medicine seems to work. E.g., countries with nationalized healthcare seem to have higher life expectancies than the U.S. How could the free market fail us? Well, apparently, it didn't. In a blog post over at Cato At Liberty, Michael Cannon points out that "once one controls for fatal injuries and homicides, our life expectancy stats come out better than all other advanced nations’".

This is only one measure of a healthcare system, but it's important to carefully examine each stat before rushing headlong into a Cuba-style healthcare system, especially since we are quite far from a free market in medicine right now.

more on hiroshima

2007-08-08T20:47:00.000-05:00

Justin Raimondo has a good column today on the continuing relevance of the murderous attack on Hiroshima. In "Hillary, Hiroshima, and Hubris", Raimondo notes:

Hillary's blanket statement about never making blanket statements regarding the use (or "non-use") of nukes is in line with the policy of American presidents stretching all the way back to Harry Truman. The U.S. government has never rejected the first use of nuclear weapons. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has followed a similar policy, and this is the default position of the "responsible" sectors of the foreign policy commentariat: Hillary is merely following in the footsteps of husband Bill and his postwar predecessors.

I'm often stumped as to why the Democrats feel the need to be even more murderous than the Republicans. In what fevered imagination is America put at even the tiniest risk of attack merely by forswearing a nuclear first strike?

thomas sowell: anarcho-capitalist?

2007-08-07T08:35:00.000-05:00

I'm a big fan of Thomas Sowell's work, but sadly he has been using his gifts over the past few years to defend the awful Bush administration, no matter how awful it gets. Today, however, Sowell turns in an excellent column on privatizing bridges:

A company that has to get the money to build and maintain bridges or other infrastructure through the voluntary actions of people in the financial markets, instead of being able to extract money from the taxpayers, is going to find financiers a lot more finicky about what is being done with their money. People who are putting their own money on the line are going to want to have their own experts taking a look under the bridges they finance, to see where there are rust, cracks or crumbling supports.

When people know that the lawsuits that are sure to follow after a bridge collapses are going to drain millions of dollars of their own money -- not the taxpayers' money -- that keeps the mind focussed.

Those who like to think of the government as the public interest personified may be horrified at the idea of turning a governmental function over to private enterprise.

If only Sowell would turn his critical eye to the Bushies instead of defending the War Party at all costs!

the monster truman

2007-08-06T21:41:00.000-05:00

It was sixty-two years ago today that the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. I've posted on this the last two years as well, but it was such a monstrous act that it's worth remembering every year. Antiwar.com reprints last year's column by economist David Henderson, "Remembering Hiroshima". It's an excellent column that deserves to be re-read.

the simpsons movie

2007-08-06T19:34:00.001-05:00

The girlfriend and I went to see "The Simpsons Movie" last night and I give it a big thumbs up. It was very funny and had some great anti-state moments. Anthony Gregory gives a good libertarian overview of the movie in "The Federal War on Springfield":

In terms of both rough yet classic comedy and roughly classical liberalism, The Simpsons movie delivers as well as the series’ best. In the movie, the federal government stars as the chief enemy of the Simpsons family and their beloved town Springfield. We might concede that our antihero Homer, in all his bad judgment, is Uncle Sam’s one indispensable ally. But the evil and heartless federal bureaucracy overreacts to Homer’s admittedly terrible shortsightedness with calculated cruelty and heartlessness.

My only beef with the movie is that a key plot turn that some might interpret as the key message of the movie is unabashedly collectivist. The good news is that leftists are unhappy with the movie. Ben Adler from Campus Progress whines that it's "disappointing to see the hilarious new Simpsons movie engage in some weirdly illiberal gags."

The Simpsons takes aim at all authority and leftists can't bear that. How dare anyone question the wonder that is the FedGov?

presenting...the octosquid!

2007-07-06T09:08:00.000-05:00

This cute little bugger was found off Keahole Point on Hawaii's Big Island, in a pipeline that runs 3,000 feet below the surface. I'm sure it's just one of many wonderful and mysterious creatures that will be discovered in that dark and once unreachable realm as technology advances. Found via Drudge.

what a bunch of crybabies!

2007-06-29T11:12:00.000-05:00

Listen to these whiners! Prince has decided to gave away his new album as a freebie inside of a Sunday newspaper (The Mail on Sunday), and the record store industry is throwing a hissy fit:

One music store executive described the plan as "madness" while others said it was a huge insult to an industry battling fierce competition from supermarkets and online stores. Prince's label has cut its ties with the album in the UK to try to appease music stores.

The Entertainment Retailers Association said the giveaway "beggars belief". "It would be an insult to all those record stores who have supported Prince throughout his career," ERA co-chairman Paul Quirk told a music conference. "It would be yet another example of the damaging covermount culture which is destroying any perception of value around recorded music.

"The Artist Formerly Known as Prince should know that with behaviour like this he will soon be the Artist Formerly Available in Record Stores. And I say that to all the other artists who may be tempted to dally with the Mail on Sunday."

Translation: "Boo hoo hoo!! Mommy, the big bad Prince and The Mail are bypassing our expensive plastic disc distribution system!! Make them stop, Mommy! Waaaaa!!...."

Paul Quirk's "threat" has all the validity of the arrogant boss who "fires" an employee after he already quit the job.

ron paul rocks on colbert!

2007-06-13T23:29:00.000-05:00

First off, apologizes for taking such a long break from the blog - I really didn't intend to. But I organized the Greater Chicago Ron Paul Meetup Group 3 1/2 weeks ago, and it's been consuming just about every minute of free time I have. We've swelled to 217 members as of right now, second largest of 301 groups worldwide. We reached thousands at the Chicago Blues Festival this past weekend, and we're ready to hit all the major summer summer festivals throughout the city and the burbs. You've no doubt noticed the banner ad on the blog - if you're a Ron Paul fan, please join us or whatever Ron Paul meetup is local to your area. And speaking of Ron Paul...

Man, he kicked ass on Colbert's show tonight! I was a little concerned how he would do with a phony persona host like Colbert, but Ron was in great form and handled it like a pro. I am very impressed with how he handled each question. In an earlier post I mentioned how, after watching him in the first debate, I thought he really had to be a little more optimistic and lose his angry edge so he can connect with the American people more. I am pleased to report that he has done so in spades.

Go Ron Paul!!!

book review: bully boy

2007-05-20T17:13:00.000-05:00

I recently finished reading Bully Boy, by Jim Powell. It's the third president bashing book by Mr. Powell and the second one I've read. As a biography of Teddy Roosevelt, it's very weak, but as a libertarian survey of that era, it's worth a read. The main problem with the book is that the author spends pages upon pages describing the history of something (like railroads) with little reference to Teddy and then adds a few paragraphs describing Teddy's statist involvement.

There is also a major gap in the narrative. The author barely mentions Roosevelt's failed run for President in 1912, surely one of the most destructive acts of his egotistical life. Roosevelt's third party run allowed Woodrow Wilson to get into office and eventually drag America into World War I, with disastrous consequences for the twentieth century.

The other major flaw is the attempt to pin so much blame on one man. In the last chapter, Powell details much of the loss of freedom in the twentieth century and traces the beginning back to Teddy himself. Isn't it a bit of a stretch to blame TR for legislation in the fifties and sixties that gave more power to the FDA?

All in all, I give the book a thumbs up, a worthy addition to any libertarian's bookshelf. The Progressive era is one that deserves more scrutiny and this book is a good intro even if it is not a great bio of Teddy Roosevelt.

it's ok to blame america for 9/11, as long as you support the war

2007-05-20T17:00:00.001-05:00

Over at Liberty Belles, Anastasia puzzles over conservative hypocrisy:

When the Reverend Falwell got up on his bully pulpit to blame gays, People for the American Way, the ACLU, and secularists for bringing the terrorists’ wrath upon the United States, he was in essence blaming Americans for causing 9/11. . . And yet, very few of the Republicans’ core demographic spoke out against Falwell’s traitorous cowardice. Ann Coulter even published a glowing column in Human Events a few days ago celebrating Falwell’s life and defending his invective as pious patriotism.

Yet when Ron Paul dared to suggest that our actions in the Middle East have consequences and that the terrorist attacks cannot be viewed in a vacuum independent of the last 50 years of American foreign policy, he was immediately shouted down.

The answer is simple, my dear! Ron Paul opposes war and the state, Falwell embraces both.

karen kwiatkowski: ron paul rocks!

2007-05-19T23:15:00.000-05:00

Karen Kwiatkowski has a very good piece entitled Ron Paul Rocks! up on LRC this weekend. Her feelings about Dr. Paul and his campaign are very similar to my own. Excerpt:

...I am pleased to be humbled by each new day of the Ron Paul campaign – to witness the raw power of ideas and debate – after such a long hiatus of ideas and debate from the American political game.

The Greek concept of happiness, eudaimonia, keeps coming to mind whenever I think of Ron Paul as President. It is about faithful and right action, not human exultation or social extremes. It is about the happy and fulfilling marriage of knowledge and virtue. It is about reality over fantasy, faith over existentialism, doing good over doing evil.

In other words, Ron Paul rocks!

the whore is in denial of her fate

2007-05-19T20:36:00.000-05:00

Check out this outrage from MSNBC.

The latest version of their bi-weekly Republican presidential candidate rankings shows Ron Paul "last" and 12th in terms of electability, including 2 undeclared candidates (Fred Thompson and Newt Gingrich). Under Ron Paul's description they simply state "Just please stop e-mailing us. Thanks."

Those poor media whores, their condition is terminal but they just can't seem to progress from the "denial" stage to "acceptance". Perhaps another few thousand e-mails in support of Ron Paul will do them some good.

ron paul wins debate! hannity's an idiot!

2007-05-15T23:08:00.000-05:00

Ron Paul clearly won this second round of debates. Yes, he could have been a bit smoother, but the truth trumps all. As for Sean Hannity, no matter how many times he utters his vacuous phrase "Ron Paul did not win this debate", the fact is, Ron Paul won this debate, and Hannity can't stand it! The neocons are reduced to childish contradiction, since they have no actual arguments to offer. How pathetic (and predictable).

the evil rick perry admits defeat

2007-05-10T10:24:00.000-05:00

The Texas governor and apparent agent of Merck admits defeat on his plan to force Texas schoolgirls to receive Merck's Gardasil HPV vaccine. No, he doesn't admit he was wrong, just that he can't beat the legislature with a veto.

AUSTIN (Reuters) - Texas Gov. Rick Perry said on Tuesday he is backing down in his effort to require that pre-teen girls be vaccinated against a virus known to cause cervical cancer after the state's legislature overturned his order.

The February order would have made Texas the first U.S. state to require that girls receive the Merck & Co. Inc.'s vaccine against human papillomavirus (HPV) so they can enroll in sixth grade, when most students are 11 or 12 years old. But social conservatives opposed it, saying it would lead to sexual promiscuity.

The Republican-majority Texas Legislature passed a bill last month contravening the order by preventing the vaccination program for at least four years. Several other states are also considering requiring the vaccine.

Perry announced on Tuesday he would not to veto that bill, meaning it will become law. Perry said a veto was futile because the legislature would vote to override it. He blasted the legislature for its decision...

Read the rest of the article here.

on ron paul's performance in the republican debate

2007-05-04T00:39:00.000-05:00

Well, overall I am happy. I think Dr. Paul was able to get his message across, and now a lot more people know who he is and what he stands for. I think he is in a good position going into the next debate, however...

I think he really needs to find a way to connect with the average American voter a bit more. I'm afraid Joe Sixpack was probably a little confused when Dr. Paul talked about the "inflation tax", even though it was an excellent point. I'm sure Paul would do much better in a debate with fewer candidates where he had more time to elaborate on his points, but all the other candidates face the same problem and some of them were able to do a much better job. Mitt Romney, although full of shit on many of the issues, always seemed to be able to smoothly get his points across in the allotted time. (What kind of name is "Mitt", anyway?)

I also believe that Dr. Paul would be able to reach more people if he came across a bit more optimistic. Frankly, he comes across a little on the angry side. True, I'm the same way if not more so, but I'm not running for President!

We have a rare and historic opportunity to actually advance a heroic, freedom-loving candidate through this ridiculous nomination thing, so we can't afford to blow it! Hopefully Dr. Paul will get a little bit of coaching to smooth out the rough edges before the next round.

go ron go!

2007-05-03T11:21:00.000-05:00

As I write this, Ron Paul's smiling mug is up on the Drudge Report - probably the most exposure he's ever received. Good luck to you sir in tonight's debate - knock'em dead!

kidney communism kills

2007-04-03T10:35:00.000-05:00

People are dying because governments prohibit one person from selling his kidney to another. Some are calling for an end to this insanity.

"It is morally wrong to continue to let patients suffer and die on dialysis when we can do something to prevent it," Arthur Matas, a University of Minnesota transplant surgeon, told a conference in Rotterdam on European transplantation policy.

Those who defend these bans "are sentencing some of our transplantation candidates to death," he argued in a plea for a regulated market in organs to help meet the growing demand....

...When the United States banned kidney sales in 1984, about 8,500 patients were on a transplant waiting list of about a year. Now they are estimated at 70,000 and the waiting time is five years or more, Matas said...

I think the numbers speak for themselves. Read the whole article here.

the revolutionary candidate

2007-03-26T18:19:00.000-05:00

Tom Woods has an excellent article with that title about Ron Paul on LewRockwell.com today. I love this part especially:

His conduct, moreover, is beyond reproach. Lobbyists don’t even bother going to his office. If their scheme doesn’t fall among the federal government’s enumerated powers under the Constitution, they know perfectly well that there is no chance Ron Paul will support it.

I suspect that I'll be devoting many posts in the coming year to coverage of Ron Paul's candidacy. OK, let me rephrase that: I suspect that I'll be devoting a large percentage of the little posting I actually manage to do in the coming year to Ron Paul's candidacy.

Ron Paul is the only politician I've ever supported financially in my life (and repeatedly at that). I think we have a once in a lifetime chance here where one of the good guys is actually in the race, and I think any progress we can make in getting his message out, even if he loses the nomination, is well worth the effort.

I've thought that for his campaign theme he should use the old Chambers Brothers (and later Ramones) song "Time Has Come Today". Other than the title there is nothing in the lyrics relevant, but just the title is good enough.

re: what can congress do to stop the war?

2007-03-25T12:50:00.000-05:00

A.W., I really think you are throwing up a strawman here.

You quote this line From Dr. Paul's speech: "Voting no also makes the legitimate point that the Constitution does not authorize Congress to direct the management of any military operation – the president clearly enjoys this authority as Commander in Chief".

Then you go on to imply that that means the president "has free reign to do whatever he wants". Sorry, but how does that follow? He still must follow all the laws of the country. This includes laws that forbid our armed forces from raping and murdering civilians, for example.

Specifying a timeline for withdrawal of troops falls into micromanagement. Dr. Paul is questioning where the authority for such a thing lies in the Constitution, and I don't think Epstein has found it. I would like to see a precedent where Congress ever passed a law specifying a timeline for troop withdrawal during a war - if anybody has that information please leave a comment.

The war in Iraq was a huge mistake (as I've been saying since before it started). Dr. Paul is telling Congress that if they take their actual, enumerated powers seriously, e.g. the power to declare (or not declare) war and to pass (or not pass) laws that fund wars, they could yet pull us out of this debacle right now.

what can congress do to stop the war?

2007-03-25T07:57:00.000-05:00

Congressman (and Presidential candidate) Ron Paul argues, not much other than cutting off funding. In a recent speech before the House of Representatives, Paul discussed why he was voting against a $124 billion supplemental appropriation that also included a weak Congressional mandate about the war in Iraq:

If one is unhappy with our progress in Iraq after four years of war, voting to de-fund the war makes sense. If one is unhappy with the manner in which we went to war, without a constitutional declaration, voting no makes equally good sense.

Voting no also makes the legitimate point that the Constitution does not authorize Congress to direct the management of any military operation – the president clearly enjoys this authority as Commander in Chief.

I find this hard to believe. Is Congressman Paul really saying that once the declaration of war is given, the President has free reign to do anything he wants? I'm not the only one who is skeptical of this position. University of Chicago professor Richard Epstein, in a recent debate, made the following point:

And remember Congress has, and the president does not, an explicit power "to make the rules governing land and naval forces," which is not written in any "narrow fashion." Third, the president has duties that go along with his powers and other functions. Thus "he shall take care that the Laws be faithfully executed," which hardly speaks of vast discretion to choose which to follow and which to disregard.

Looking at all these provisions together, I think that it is possible to answer David's hypotheticals. There is nothing in the text that distinguishes the power of Congress to regulate in peace and in war, but its power "to make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces" covers both indifferently. If it says that our military forces can only use rubber bullets so be it. But of course it will not, and we don't need to invent some new-fangled presidential power to allow the president to use real weapons in wars.

I have little faith that the current Democratic Congress will do anything meaningful to limit the President, but Epstein makes it clear that it does have the power to do so.

jim rogers predicts massive real estate crash

2007-03-16T12:33:00.000-05:00

From this Reuters report, spotted on Drudge.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Commodities investment guru Jim Rogers stepped into the U.S. subprime fray on Wednesday, predicting a real estate crash that would trigger defaults and spread contagion to emerging markets.

"You can't believe how bad it's going to get before it gets any better," the prominent U.S. fund manager told Reuters by telephone from New York.

"It's going to be a disaster for many people who don't have a clue about what happens when a real estate bubble pops...
"Real estate prices will go down 40-50 percent in bubble areas. There will be massive defaults. This time it'll be worse because we haven't had this kind of speculative buying in U.S. history," Rogers said...

The article also mentions that he is still bullish on China and that he plans on moving to Asia.

the u.s. commerce department, china, and hypocrisy

2007-03-15T14:22:00.000-05:00

From this Reuters report:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Thursday it is prepared to change a policy more than 20 years old and impose countervailing duties on non-market economies like China if the situation warrants.

Many U.S. manufacturers and lawmakers are frustrated by the Commerce Department's long-standing policy of not applying the duties to offset government subsidies in non-market economies like China and Vietnam.

The U.S. never subsidizes its exports, nosiree! Sheesh.

By the by, you may be wondering where the heck I've been. More on that later.

300 review

2007-03-13T09:52:00.000-05:00

The girlfriend and I went to see “300” Saturday night. I had been looking forward to seeing the movie for many months as I am quite the fan of Frank Miller, the comic book artist/writer who created the graphic novel that the movie is based on. I was also looking forward to the movie as, I hoped, a piece of great libertarian art. 300, of course, is a fictional account of the Battle of Thermopylae, where King Leonidas defends ancient Greece against the imperial aims of Xerxes and his Persian hordes. As a pure action movie, I give it a big “thumbs up”. It has a great style to it and is a wonderful visual feast. As a piece of libertarian art, it doesn’t fare so well. While the basic premise of an independent city-state engaging in a defensive war against an aggressive leviathan is sound, once one gets into the details, it starts to falter.

The film has three basic problems. First and foremost is that it glorifies war, death and service to the state. And in the case of Sparta, it’s a pretty evil state as well. The movie doesn’t hide the fact that imperfectly born children are left to die in the wilderness and that at the age of seven, they are taken from their parents and forced to undergo military training until adulthood. But even with that nastiness, the evil nature of Sparta is underplayed. The required rite of passage for young men, not seen in the movie, is to kill an innocent slave! Thus, each of the "noble" Spartan warriors seen in the movie, is, in fact, a confirmed murderer!

The second problem is the the deeply distorted picture painted of Athens. In reality, it was Athens that led the call to fend off the Persian army and who contacted Sparta to form an alliance. In the movie, Athenians are depicted as dithering philosophers and "boy-lovers". The reality is that the Spartans would have failed miserably without the support of the Athenian navy. In the movie, the Persian navy is depicted as being wiped out by weather, not by Greek ships led by Athenian commander Themistocles. Indeed, it is Themistocles who later causes the Persian forces to withdraw. Where's his movie?

The last problem is in the larger context of the war. The Persian attack is depicted solely as imperial expansion, but there is good reason to believe that Xerxes, the Persian King is motivated, not by empire, but by revenge. Decades earlier, the Athenians had supported the Ionian revolt in Persia and sacked the city of Sardis, burning it to the ground. If only Athens had pursued a non-interventionist foreign policy, it could have avoided completely the Battle of Thermopylae and the earlier battle at Marathon as well!

Naturally, simplifications of real events are necessary in any movie that aims to describe such a sweeping event in history, but all the simplifications in this movie favor the militaristic Spartans.

I know some libertarians see this as a great story about freedom, but I just can’t recommend it as a truly pro-freedom movie.

bad fish zin

2007-02-06T22:34:00.000-06:00

I have a new favorite under $10 bottle of zinfandel to add to my rotation - Bad Fish 2004 Reserve. Talk about fruit bombs! Deep red color and a heavy nose, full mouth feel, medium finish. In the Chicago area, it only seems to be available at Sam's Wine and Liquors. $8.99/bottle, though I picked up a case for $6.99/bottle on sale (with a Sam's Wine and Liquors rewards program card). If you've tried this wine please leave a comment - I can't seem to find any reviews on the web.

american fool idol

2007-01-16T21:09:00.000-06:00

I admit it, I like "American Idol". I just expended two valuable hours of my life watching the premiere for this season, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The judges were absolutely hilarious. Simon's best line: "Your future involves not singing". Randy had a good line too; after one particularly horrible performance from a kid who attempted to juggle while singing, the kid said "I can dance too". Randy replied something like "Great. Why don't you do a little dance on your way out the door".

This one covered the auditions in Minneapolis. Natives of that city are about the nicest people in the world - how can the judges be mean to them, even when they were as pathetic as they were? Of course, many contestants were from elsewhere.

One thing every season seems to have is the young military reservist or enlistee, complete with a two-minute profile depicting how brave and selfless he (or she) is, and this season is no exception. This time it is a young woman of 21 who was quite the mediocre singer. I can't remember her name - it doesn't matter, she won't last too long. Predictably, they let her through to Hollywood. You just know she never would have made it if it wasn't for the uniform. Does Fox require a patriotic twist to every show which broadcasts from its towers?

She seems like a nice, innocent young woman. Her husband is currently on active duty in Iraq. She was quoted as saying something like "After 911, I thought joining the reserves was the best thing I could do to protect my country". It really pains me to see the youth of this country duped into becoming cannon fodder for foreign adventures, believing all the while that they are "protecting" us. I watch American Idol for escapism from this troubled world, but alas, even this silly little show is tainted by the reality of the warfare state.

little miss sunshine

2007-01-16T20:46:00.000-06:00

I recently watched "Little Miss Sunshine" on DVD, after hearing many good reviews, including a recommendation from my parents. Boy, was I disappointed. LMS is truly one of the most over-rated movies ever. I thought I was the only one who thought so, but the very perceptive Gene Healy agrees with me:

Look, I know a lot of quirky, maladjusted people. I know quirky people related to other quirky people and/or married to them. I am a goddamned expert on quirk. So believe me when I tell you that LMS is Phony Quirk. In LMS, like Garden State and Napoleon Dynamite before it--and unlike in real life--the quirks are randomly selected, as if the movies' producers developed a computer program to weird up a nothing script.

The phony quirkiness was bad, but what really bothered me was the fact that several key plot points hinge on the fact that one or more characters doesn't know something obvious. I see this in movie after movie and it really destroys a plot for me. In this movie, the climax depends not only on the parents (and son) having never seen a child beauty pageant before, but also never having seen the routine that the daughter has been practicing for ages with her grandpa. Isn't that just a teensy bit implausible? A second plot point hinges on the fact that fourteen-year-old son (and entire family, actually) is unaware of a physical condition that he's had since birth. How is that possible?

Big thumbs down.

review of "rising son" soundtrack

2007-01-14T22:40:00.000-06:00

The official soundtrack to the film "Rising Son, The Legend of Skateboarder Christian Hosoi" (I loved the film; see my review here) doesn't contain a single song that was actually used in the film. Instead it contains a selection of rock and hip-hop songs that were "inspired by" the film. This is a pity, as many of the songs in the film were quite good and are actually from the time period (mainly 80s) that the film is set in, and I think it would have been nice to have those collected onto a single album. However, the actual soundtrack album contains some great high-energy tracks. It also contains some mediocre and some pretty lame ones, too.

The tracks I find myself repeatedly listening to are:

The high-energy rap of "One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven" by The Transplants, the ska-tinged "Cheyenne" by Fishbone, the kick-ass rap-rock of "Pot of Rain" by Optimus, Lexicon's none-too-serious hip-hop take on the Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated" entitled simply "Sedated", and "Transitions of a Rider" by Murs, which seems to be the only track that lyrically has anything to do with skateboarding.

Also worth listening to:

A very stipped down version of "Mexican Radio" by Charlie Early and "Standing in the Way of Control" by The Gossip.

I find the rest of the songs mediocre to not worth bothering with, although there is such a range of styles on this album I'm sure other reviewers disagree with this assessment. Being somewhat of a Foo Fighters fan, I wanted to like the album-opening Dave Grohl track entitled "Vile", but I found its high-speed thrash with screaming vocals boring and monotonous.

One other thing: the Parental Advisory on this album is well worth heeding. I don't really have a clue what The Transplants track is all about, but the lyrics are definitely violent and not for kids.

`

beware the ihandcuffs

2007-01-14T13:32:00.000-06:00

Good article by Randall Stross about the iPhone and Apple's crippleware. (Spotted via slashdot). The article points out the ridiculousness of Apple's iTunes songs only being playable on iPod portable devices, and conversely, of iPods only supporting iTunes copy-protected files (and not Windows crippleware, for example).

It also mentions (old news at this point) the fact that Microsoft's Zune supports a different copy-protection standard than Microsoft's earlier PlaysForSure crippleware, something that would-be Zune purchasers who own large PlaysForSure collections will find annoying for sure.

Stross makes a very good point (which I have been saying to anyone who will listen for quite a while) that crippleware is going to die an early death anyway, as evidenced by sites which already sell non-protected music files. He specifically mentions eMusic, a site which I have been using on and off for over a year. It's a great site where you simply download a plain old mp3 file that you can do whatever the heck you like with.

Among the artists who can be found at eMusic are Barenaked Ladies, Sarah McLachlan and Avril Lavigne, who are represented by Nettwerk Music Group, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. All Nettwerk releases are available at eMusic without copy protection.

But when the same tracks are sold by the iTunes Music Store, Apple insists on attaching FairPlay copy protection that limits their use to only one portable player, the iPod. Terry McBride, Nettwerk’s chief executive, said that the artists initially required Apple to use copy protection, but that this was no longer the case. At this point, he said, copy protection serves only Apple’s interests .

He doesn't mention the fact that it's a whole lot cheaper to buy stuff on eMusic, too - 33 cents a song at regular prices. That's not counting all the free downloads you get when you sign up (25 freebies if you go through their homepage, but you can find better deals through 3rd-party links if you look; try fatwallet.com).

Finally, Stross quotes Dave Goldberg, head of Yahoo! Music, who makes a prediction which I too have long subscribed to:

IN the long view, Mr. Goldberg said he believes that today’s copy-protection battles will prove short-lived. Eventually, perhaps in 5 or 10 years, he predicts, all portable players will have wireless broadband capability and will provide direct access, anytime, anywhere, to every song ever released for a low monthly subscription fee.

I think this will apply to movies and television shows, too. We should soon be able to watch any show or movie that was ever made on demand, either through monthly subscription fees or small pay-per-view fees. This is one reason I don't go crazy trying to purchase movies and television shows on DVD to build up a "library", since it may all become quite worthless with such a model (not to mention the improvements in PQ, as we are seeing now with Blu-Ray and HD-DVD; pity the person who spent thousands of dollars building up a movie library in standard DVD format...)

In sum, despite all the crippleware silliness currently going on, the future looks quite bright for consumers of entertainment!

go ron paul! go ron paul!

2007-01-11T22:47:00.000-06:00

I've long been hoping that Dr. Paul would give it another go for President, and as the Star-Telegram is now reporting, that is in fact happening. He ran for president in 1988 as the Libertarian Party candidate. I saw him speak that year at Northwestern, invited by the libertarian student group which I later headed.

If there was ever a man deserving of this job, who is seeking it not because he wants power but because he loves his country and wants to restore the republic, he's the man. Godspeed to you, sir!!

craven democrats pretend to be anti-war

2007-01-10T16:12:00.000-06:00

So now, from Drudge, I see the link to this New York Times story about how the Democrats are planning "symbolic" votes against President Bush's plans to escalate the war on Iraq.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 9 — Democratic leaders said Tuesday that they intended to hold symbolic votes in the House and Senate on President Bush’s plan to send more troops to Baghdad, forcing Republicans to take a stand on the proposal and seeking to isolate the president politically over his handling of the war.

Senate Democrats decided to schedule a vote on the resolution after a closed-door meeting on a day when Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts introduced legislation to require Mr. Bush to gain Congressional approval before sending more troops to Iraq...

...“If you really want to change the situation on the ground, demonstrate to the president he’s on his own,” said Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. “That will spark real change.”...

Hey Joe, where were you back in 2002, when the Iraq War Resolution was on the table? Oh that's right, you and a significant number of other Democrat warmongers were voting "yea", that's where. That vote had the potential to make some difference, before all hell broke loose, unlike this "vote", which is all about posing in front of the people that voted them in so they can say "Look at me! See, I'm anti-war!"

These pathetic, hypocritical, whining, posing Democrats are really making me sick. (To his credit, Kennedy voted "nay" on the Iraq War Resoltion - despite his other flaws, Kennedy does seem to have inherited some real anti-war principles from his papa).

woo hoo! go, cindy, go!

2007-01-03T23:41:00.000-06:00

This story made my day.

House Democrats tried to unveil their lobbying reform package today, but their press conference was drowned out by chants from anti-war activists who want Congress to stop funding the Iraq war before taking on other issues.

Led by Cindy Sheehan, the mother of a slain soldier, the protesters chanted "De-escalate, investigate, troops home now" as Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., began outlining the Democrats' plans to ban lobbyist-funded travel and institute other ethics reforms. The press conference was held in the Cannon House Office Building in an area open to the public...

This is so perfect - the Democrats rode a crest of anti-war sentiment into office, and now they are forgetting all about why they are there, just like I knew they would. And it couldn't happen to a more deserving bastard, Rahm Emanuel. Not only did he take undue credit for all the Dems success in the election, but he favored the pro-war wing of the party during the primaries.

As I've said before, I don't know why Sheehan has to take so much grief from libertarians and antiwar conservatives. No, she isn't perfect, but she's doing exactly what she should be doing - reminding those asses why they were put in office in the first place.

review of "rising son" dvd

2006-12-19T18:00:00.000-06:00

I recently viewed the DVD of "Rising Son: The Legend of Skateboarder Christian Hosoi". (I had previously posted the press release here.) I knew absolutely nothing about Hosoi before watching this film, but I found the story riveting. At an easy running time of 98 minutes, it is able to tell a complete story without ever dragging.

I felt that I really got to know Hosoi, a half-Asian native of Hawaii whose family relocated to California, where he began to show promise at a very young age. It's interesting how the film shows the continuity between the already established Z-Boys (such as Jay Adams and Tony Alva) and the much younger, yet-unknown Hosoi, whose lives crossed during the late 70s.

Hosoi rose to fame concurrent with the rise of "vert" skating in the 80s, where the skaters would launch themselves straight into the air off of the half-pipe ramps, perform various tricks, turn around, then do it again on the other side. As his fame and fortune grew, Hosoi formed his own skateboard company, and it seemed he could do no wrong. Hosoi was a natural for the public eye, loving the attention as much as the fans loved him. Wild hair, wild clothes, and wild life, he helped define not only the vert style of skateboarding but also the skateboarding culture of the 1980s.

When the the vert style began to wane and the "street" style began to take over, he was able to adapt on a professional level and continue to compete effectively. However, it was clear that he was no longer the star he was, and as pressures mounted, both financially and emotionally, he turned to methamphetamine for escape. Without saying much more about the plot, the film chronicles his downward spiral into drugs, his incarceration, and his eventual redemption as he found Christ.

The film contains many on-screen interviews with his friends, fellow skateboarders and parents. It becomes clear that his Asian father, an interesting character in his own right, made some pretty bad choices which certainly didn't help Christian during his dark period. Skateboarder Tony Hawk, who rose to fame during the same period, provides a lot of interesting feedback and commentary during his screen time as well. He was able to weather his newfound fortune and fame much better than Hosoi, probably due in large part to a much stronger family support system.

The archival skateboarding footage is certainly a treat to watch, and the film does a great job of balancing this with the interviews and the narrative commentary (Dennis Hopper does the narration). It all comes together quite well, never drags, and will hold your interest throughout.

The soundtrack, mostly 80's punk, fits perfectly with the movie. Strangely, none of the songs on the soundtrack appear on the released CD soundtrack for the movie; those songs on the CD were recently recorded by current artists and were "inspired" by the movie. I will be reviewing that CD soundtrack in a separate post.

My only real complaints about this movie, minor as they are, relate to the audio and video quality. Neither of them were bad, but they could have benefited from an anamorphic transfer and 5.1 audio. On my HDTV widescreen TV, the picture appeared letter-boxed on all four sides. Although the picture quality was quite acceptable, I find this 4-sided letterboxing an annoying inconvenience.

I should also point out there are a few extras on this DVD, but I have not had a chance to view them yet. Once I do, I'll update this part of the review.

If you enjoyed the documentary "Dogtown and Z-Boys", you will certainly enjoy this film as well, as it provides the next chapter in the history of skateboarding. If you haven't seen "Dogtown and Z-Boys", I recommend watching that first then watching "Rising Son" to complete your coursework for Skateboarding History 101.

suburban chicagoans defend themselves with handguns

2006-12-05T23:34:00.000-06:00

This 16 year old punk messed with the wrong 56 year old woman!

(ZION)-- A Zion woman fired two shots at a 16-year-old home invader Friday night, killing him, police said. The suspected robber, Gerrall N. Davis, had forced open the back door of the home on Jethro Ave., shattering the doorjamb. This according to a press release from Zion police.

Saffiyya A. Darr and her husband told police they heard knocking at their front door, yelled out to see who it was and shortly thereafter the back door of their home was forced open. Police say Mrs. Darr retrieved a 9mm handgun from her bedroom and fired two shots at the armed and masked invader.

Both shots hit Davis, who was on juvenile probation for aggravated battery at the time, the release said. When officers arrived at the home at 10:17 p.m., they found Davis lying on the kitchen floor of the home, wearing a black ski mask, black knit gloves and with a .22 caliber rifle next to him. He was taken to Victory Hospital in Waukegan, where he was pronounced dead. Police did not reveal if Mrs. Darr faces any charges for the shooting.

As reported in this Lake County News Sun story from a few days ago.

Isn't it funny how handguns are the great equalizer, giving a middle-aged woman a fighting chance against a 16 year old male hoodlum? I take no pleasure in anyone's death, but innocent life deserves to be defended, and that is clearly what happened here. If this couple had relied on the police to defend themselves they could very well have ended up dead, with the punk moving on to his next victim.

See also this Trib article for more details on the story.

And about a month ago, a comic book shopkeeper in Roselle defended himself and his store against an armed parolee from St. Louis, as reported here by WBBM 780:

ROSELLE, Ill. (WBBM) -- A 40-year-old parolee from St. Louis was shot dead during a gunfight with the owner of a Roselle collectibles store, who was wounded.

WBBM's Bob Roberts reports.

A digital surveillance video caught the shootout that occurred inside the Westlake Cards, Comics and Coins store, at 1234 W. Lake St., in Roselle. After reviewing the video, DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett declined to press charges against the 49-year-old shopkeeper, a resident of Hanover Park, in the death of ex-convict Geoffrey Webb.

“The question is whether or not this store owner had the right to protect himself and to have a weapon,” Birkett said. “He does. He has a (Firearm Owners Identification) card. He's got that right under Illinois law.”

Roselle Police Chief James Kruger said the surveillance video shows Webb entering the store just before 10:30 a.m. Friday, placing a black bag on the horseshoe-shaped counter and speaking for several minutes with the shopkeeper, whom authorities refused to identify.

Kruger said Webb suddenly pulled a gun from the bag, in which duct tape and handcuffs were later found, and vaulted the counter.

“There was clearly an imminent threat to the store owner's life, and clearly the intruder was in the commission of a forcible felony,” Birkett said...

Of course, here in Chicago the mayor and the council long ago decided that residents of this great city have absolutely no right to defend themselves, as only cops can be trusted to keep handguns within the city limits. We can always count on them to be there in time, can't we? And they never abuse their power, either...

rising son: the legend of skateboarder christian hosoi

2006-12-04T19:53:00.000-06:00

I like films about skateboarding. I think skateboarding, film and rock music combined can make for some ripping high-energy entertainment. In the past I posted a review of "Lords of Dogtown", and mentioned that I would post a review of the documentary "Dogtown and Z-Boys" when I got around to it. In fact I did rent that DVD but never got around to posting a review, which is too bad because it really was a good film. I still plan to post a proper review of it later.

Both of those movies focused on the Venice Beach origins of modern skateboarding back in the early 70s, but now there is a documentary DVD out about 80's skateboarder Christian Hosoi called "Rising Son: The Legend of Skateboarder Christian Hosoi". The DVD was released a couple of weeks ago by Vision Films for Image Entertainment, Inc. The promotional company, M80, was kind enough to send me a copy of the DVD and the soundtrack for review, so check back for my reviews of both items in the near future. In the meantime, I leave you with the press release for the DVD and soundtrack:

Press Release

``Rising Son: The Legend of Skateboarder Christian Hosoi'' to Screen at Cannes Film Festival; Vision Films, Image Entertainment, QD3 Entertainment and Quiksilver Join Forces to Market and Sell Rights to Christian Hosoi Feature

Vision Films, an independent, worldwide distributor of youth-oriented and music-related feature films and documentaries, has just been awarded the exclusive sales agency rights to RISING SON: THE LEGEND OF SKATEBOARDER CHRISTIAN HOSOI by Image Entertainment, Inc. (Nasdaq:DISK), a leading independent licensee, producer and distributor of home entertainment programming in North America.

"Rising Son" was produced by QD3 Entertainment in association with consumer lifestyle brand Quiksilver. The film was directed by Cesario "Block" Montano and is narrated by acclaimed actor Dennis Hopper.

"Rising Son" is the true story of skateboard superstar Christian Hosoi. The film chronicles Hosoi's beginnings as an athletic renegade to his fall-from-grace stint in Federal prison for drug trafficking and finally his rebirth and miraculous recovery that has inspired millions of young adults. Using never-before-seen home movies of Hosoi, from childhood through his release from prison in 2004, the film features interviews from friends and family, including Tony Hawk, Tony Alva, Jay Adams, Jason Lee and others.

Image will handle North American broadcast, theatrical, video and soundtrack rights, and Vision Films will handle foreign rights and distribution. The film will be available to be released on home video in the international market on October 3, 2006, day and date with Image's domestic release.

Vision Films will be screening "Rising Son" at the Cannes Film Festival on May 22 and 23 at 8 p.m. on both dates. Hosoi is expected to attend both screenings, as well as appear at the Quiksilver bus that will be located at the festival. Vision Films can be found at the Cannes Film Festival at the Palais Level 01, Stand 21.01.

"This film truly captures the spirit and determination of a person who has influenced millions of people to improve their lives," said Barry Gordon, senior vice president of worldwide programming of Image Entertainment. "We're pleased to be working with Christian, QD3, Quiksilver and Vision on this project, and are looking forward to a warm reception at Cannes ."

About Vision Films:
Founded in 1997, and based in Sherman Oaks, CA, Vision Films is an independent, worldwide distributor of Feature Films, Documentary Specials, Series, Music, and Reality Programming. Vision Films licenses all available television, video/DVD, and new media rights to both the international and domestic markets. Vision Films currently has a library of over 300 feature films, and over 300 documentaries. On the feature side, Vision represents top-of-the-line independent film and music producers and some prestigious Film Libraries such as The Kushner-Locke Company, World International Network, Xenon Pictures, CodeBlack Entertainment, Flashpoint UK Ltd., City Block Productions, EDI/Dastar, STS Media, Sinclair Institute and Istituto Geografico De Agostini. For more information of Vision Films, Inc., please go to www.visionfilms.net.

About Image Entertainment:

Image Entertainment, Inc. is a leading independent licensee, producer and distributor of home entertainment programming in North America , with approximately 3,000 exclusive DVD titles and over 200 exclusive CD titles in domestic release and approximately 300 programs internationally via sublicense agreements. For many of its titles, the Company has exclusive audio and broadcast rights and, through its subsidiary Egami Media, Inc., has digital download rights to more than 1,500 video programs and over 150 audio programs containing more than 2,000 tracks. The Company is headquartered in Chatsworth , California , and has a domestic distribution facility in Las Vegas , Nevada . The Company's subsidiary Image Entertainment (UK) maintains a content acquisition office in London , England . For more information about Image Entertainment, Inc., please go to www.image-entertainment.com.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 relating to, among other things, our goals, plans and projections regarding our financial position, results of operations, market position, product development and business strategy. These statements may be identified by the use of words such as "will," "may," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other terms of similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance. All forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties, including factors that could delay, divert or change any of them, and could cause action outcomes and results to differ materially from current expectations.

These factors include, among other things, our inability to raise additional working capital, changes in debt and equity markets, increased competitive pressures, changes in our business plan, and changes in the retail DVD and entertainment industries. For further details and a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, see "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K. Unless otherwise required by law, we undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE: Image Entertainment, Inc. Rising Son / The Soundtrack

The soundtrack for RISING SON, THE LEGEND OF SKATEBOARDER CHRISTIAN HOSOI, boasts music from such artists as Queens of the Stone Age, Gnarls Barkley, Murs and The Gossip. The soundtrack also includes several unreleased tracks, such as Dave Grohl's "Vile", Slightly Stoopid's "Still Be You", and Fishbone's " Cheyenne ". The powerful musical lineup helps the film chronicle the colorful life and career of CHRISTIAN HOSOI, one of skateboarding's most talented and adored superstars, whose meteoric rise to superstardom was matched only by his spiraling descent into a federal prison sentence for drug trafficking. To accompany a film that emphasizes high-energy action sequences and dramatic turns, 21 cutting-edge artists from the hip-hop and rock genres have been selected to make for a non-stop, feel-good compilation.

1. "Vile" - Dave Grohl
2. "Transitions Of A Rider" - Murs
3. "Sedated" - Lexicon
4. "Standing In The Way Of Control" - The Gossip
5. "One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven" - The Transplants
6. "The Place Where We Dwell" - Wajeed & Invincible
7. "Cheyenne" - Fishbone
8. "America's Most Blunted" - Maddvillian featuring MF Doom
9. "Tainted Love" - The Peakshow
10. "Pot Of Rain" - Optimus
11. "No More Weapons" - Steel Pulse & Damian Marley
12. "Little People" - The Procussions
13. "Kuruption" - Kurupt featuring Everlast
14. "Mexican Radio" - Charlie Early
15. "Mexicola" - Queens Of The Stone Age
16. "Just A Thought" - Gnarls Barkley
17. "Still Be You" - Slightly Stoopid
18. "Antaraxia" - Team Sleep featuring Chino of the Deftones
19. "Revolution" - Mark Bell
20. "Dr. Aura" - Brant Bork and the Bros
21. "No Family" - Second Coming featuring Jay Adams (of Sucidan Tendencies)

monday morning weigh-in: week 3

2006-12-04T10:37:00.000-06:00

Well, the good news is that I'm just about back on track, weighing in at 173 lbs. today (I should be at 172.5). The bad news is...

...I experienced a series of unfortunate events this weekend culminating with a trip to the ER early this morning. My 3 year old Sofia has had better weekends, too...

...On Saturday I brought her to the doctor because she started getting hives every night since a couple days before Thanksgiving. They mostly go away during the day, but Friday night they were particularly bad so I brought her to the doctor. The doc said there was no obvious cause, but it could be a symptom from an earlier viral infection. (We had elimated food as the likely cause). If viral, they would probably go away in another couple of weeks, but no matter the cause, they weren't anything to worry about. (I myself had a bad case of hives when I was about 12 years old. After slicing my finger with a pocket knife while whittling a stick, I was stitched up and given a shot of pennicillin. I soon broke out in hives all over and man did they itch! (That's when I found out I was allergic to pennicillin). It was really bad for several days. I went on antihistamines which kept them under control, and after a couple of years I never got them again. During those hive years, though, every time I got scratched my skin would puff up into an itchy welt.)

Then, Saturday afternoon Sofia got her big toenail mangled by a slamming door. I'm not sure if she slammed the door or her little sister Lucia did (she claims the latter), but in any event it bled quite a bit and the nail was traumatized enough that it looked like it might fall off. The doctor's office told us to just keep it well bandaged, but expect the nail to fall off, and give her foot baths twice daily with antibacterial soap. Eventually the toe should scab over and a new nail should grow in.

So last night, her hives were keeping the poor thing awake in the middle of the night and she was scratching at them like crazy. (I'm in charge of putting her to sleep,and keeping her asleep, while my wife handles daughter number 2). At Sofia's request, I let her watch television; I figured it would get her mind off the itching while we were waiting for the Zyrtec to kick in (which her doctor had given us). At that time, about 3:30 AM, I decided to bring some of the dirty glasses which had been collecting upstairs down to the kitchen. Somehow I slipped on the first step, with a glass in each hand, one of which broke on the way down. I slid all the way down, my butt making contact with each and every stair, and my slipper-clad feet violently knocking down the safety gate at the bottom of the stairs for the finale. My wife woke up in horror, but I assured her it was just me, not the kids (a relief to both of us!). I knew the gash on my left thumb would require stiches, and the gash on the right hand was questionable but worth looking into as well. With towels to stop the bleeding, I called 911 while my wife had the unenviable task of cleaning up the glass (and blood) while keep the kids at bay (our 17-month old had woken up by that time and was running around like crazy.)

Since my wife was quite busy I rode the ambulance to the hospital, got stiched up (6 sutures on the left hand and one on the right), then waited over an hour for a frickin' cab to show up at the hospital to take me home. (It was cold, and cabs were scarce). I've never seen a bruise like the one on my right buttock before. I'm going to take a picture of it for posterity (don't worry, I'm not intending to post it...)

The really ironic part is, we just spent big bucks to replace the carpeting in the place with hardwood, including the stairs, which seem to be about 10X more dangerous now with the hardwood. We were planning to put a carpet runner down the middle, now we may need to speed that bit of decorating up a bit.

shocking!

2006-11-27T21:40:00.000-06:00

Here's another entry for the "no shit, Sherlock" file...

monday morning weigh-in: week 2

2006-11-27T16:31:00.000-06:00

I blew it. 174.5 lbs., up 2 lbs. from last week, and 19 lbs. from goal. The Love-it sized Sweet Cream ice cream mixed with chocolate chips that I consumed at Cold Stone Creamery yesterday probably didn't help.

things aren't always as they seem

2006-11-26T20:37:00.000-06:00

I find it hard to believe that Putin is bumping off his critics in spectacular, newsworthy ways. In light of all the mainstream news articles convicting Putin of murder without a shred of evidence, here's an article providing some interesting counterpoint. Excerpts:

MOSCOW, Russia- Despite a penned letter accusing Russian president Vladimir Putin of murder from the victim himself, poisoned former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, new theories are being presented.

The pro-government media and key emigres outside of Russia are posing the idea that a bitter domestic power struggle also responsible for the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya last month was the culprit.

The theory is gaining in credibility with opponents of President Vladimir Putin living abroad and some of his supporters inside England and Russia.

Reuters reports that "Litvinenko, an ex-KGB spy, died in London on Thursday night after a three-week agony as his hair fell out, his body wasted away and internal organs failed. Doctors found traces of polonium 210, a deadly radioactive substance, in his body."

"We hate Putin. The man is loathsome. But he is not stupid enough to have ordered the death of Litvinenko in such a slow and public way," an influential anonymous Russian emigre told Reuters.

"The people who carried out this killing planned it extremely well," he added. "They knew that Litvinenko would die slowly and painfully and that this would cause a big outcry. If Putin had wanted to kill Litvinenko, do you really believe he would do it like this?..."

..."These are well-orchestrated plans to discredit the Russian state and its leadership."

Read the rest.

monday morning weigh-in

2006-11-20T11:00:00.000-06:00

Well, after the first week of my 20 pounds in 20 weeks project, I'm happy to report that I've lost 3 pounds, down to 172.5. Probably half of that loss is water, but that's the nature of weight loss, at least at the beginning.

I'm basically following the Zone diet, but cheated quite a bit. I thought I would eat one meal a day carb-free to jump-start the weight loss, but I couldn't really do it, which is OK because I don't believe it is healthy to send the body into ketosis anyway.

With Thanksgiving coming up, this may be a rough week...

more on milton friedman

2006-11-16T21:09:00.000-06:00

Over at the antiwar blog, Matt Barganier reminds us in this post about Friedman's strong stand against military conscription, and his non-interventionist, anti-war leanings. Rest in peace, Professor Friedman!

a sad day for liberty

2006-11-16T12:03:00.000-06:00

Milton Friedman has died.

Spotted via Hit & Run.

blues for nicaragua

2006-11-14T23:30:00.000-06:00

A fascinating and very informative article by Richard Wall today on LRC, which covers the history of U.S. intervention in Nicaragua in light of the recent election of Sandinista Daniel Ortega to the office of President.

I remember when the Contras were in their heyday, and I was a big supporter. Foolish me! It was shortly afterwards, around 1987 or so, when I found out the truth about foreign intervention (after endless discussions with a good friend of mine who was a libertarian and a fellow lab-mate in graduate school) and all its ugly ramifications, and I've been a non-interventionist, nay, let's say it, an isolationist (I wear the term proudly) ever since.

From the article:

The problem, as always, is that revenues from agricultural exports and other projects will be allocated in the first instance to payments of interest on international indebtedness. Nicaragua, like so many poor nations, is locked into the cycle of debt repayment to the international banks. One of the primary roles of US diplomatic representatives in this context becomes that of monitoring the political and economic climate, looking out for and possibly "neutralizing" any looming threats to "stability" – the stability of Wall Street and London banking profits in particular.

In plain language this means, as it has always meant, that they must ensure countries like Nicaragua do not fall behind with their debt payments, and in this role they are merely the blander and more acceptable civilian successors of the former military presence. In Nicaragua, that role would be eminently consistent with the long history of US oversight and intervention in favor of Wall Street. In 1935, at the age of 54 and after he had retired from the US military, Major-General Smedley Butler described his period of service thus:

"I spent thirty-three years and four months in active service in the country's most agile military force, the Marines. I served in all ranks from second Lieutenant to Major General. And during that period I spent most of my time being a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers….I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers and Co. in 1909–1912."

And so it goes. Even Ortega, according to an Associated Press report a shadow of his former revolutionary self, seems to be bending over backwards to provide reassurance: "His speeches have focused on reassuring skeptics that he plans no radical changes and will embrace free trade, job creation and close US ties."

where the hell have i been?

2006-11-14T23:19:00.000-06:00

Well, I'm back. I've just been too danged busy lately, but things are settling down and I should be able to resume posting somewhat regularly. The trip to China back in September put me way behind all my other responsibilities when I got back, and work's been abnormally hectic as well, so there you have it.

One thing I've been doing during this absence is EATING - this became glaringly obvious when I hopped on the scale yesterday and noticed I weighed 175.5 lbs - that's one hundred seventy-five point five frickin' pounds! A new record for me. I have since committed myself to a weight loss program, with a goal of losing 20 lbs in 20 weeks. I believe it is achievable yet difficult. I am going to stick to an Atkins-type lunch, and Zone-type breakfast, dinner, and snacks. I will keep you posted on a weekly basis. Wish me luck.

waikiki swimmers catch deep-sea invader

2006-10-14T17:22:00.000-05:00

Watch the video here at cnn.com.

ernesto the coward

2006-10-08T00:19:00.000-05:00

This is a couple of days old, but Humberto Fontova has a good piece on LRC entitled Che Guevara: 39 Years of Media Hype. In these days of Ernesto "Che" Guevara worship, it's a nice antidote to the media love affair with this cowardly killer. Excerpt:

One day before his death in Bolivia, Che Guevara for the first time in his life finally faced something properly describable as combat. So he ordered his guerrilla charges to give no quarter, to fight to the last breath and to the last bullet.

A few hours later, his "untamable defiance," lack of hypocrisy and "walking of the walk" all manifested themselves. With his men doing just what he ordered (fighting and dying to the last bullet), a slightly wounded Che snuck away from the firefight and surrendered with a full clip in his pistol, while whimpering to his captors: "Don't Shoot! I'm Che! I'm worth more to you alive than dead!"

His Bolivian captors begged to differ.

boom madness

2006-10-03T19:11:00.000-05:00

On Sunday our family got back from a trip to China. More frequent blogging will resume as soon as I recover from jet lag. I'm still living in kind of a twilight zone, with my kids running around until about midnite as their internal clocks try to adjust.

Here's the lead story from today's LRC, written by Doug French, about a Las Vegas couple who thought they could make a quick killing in the real estate market, and are now blaming everybody but themselves as they find themselves drowning in debt.

Those were the days back in 2004. The housing boom in Las Vegas was at a fever pitch. Builders were holding lotteries to see who would gain the privilege of buying their homes. Speculators hit town like a swarm of locus buying up all the homes they could. There were only 2,500 used homes listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), and realtors complained that they couldn’t get sellers to accept bids at listed prices.

But now over 20,000 homes are up for sale on MLS in Sin City and builders are giving away thousands of dollars in incentives to entice homebuyers to take the plunge. And for those who believed the way to riches was buying as many houses as possible with no money down, reality now bites.

Of course taking responsibility for one’s actions is not the current American way. So instead of a trip to credit counseling, at least one Las Vegas couple has engaged legal counsel in suing a multi-tasking realtor/mortgage lender/leasing agent and his wife who allegedly caused their financial pain and suffering.

In a complaint filed recently in Clark County, Nevada, a husband and wife are suing a Las Vegas realtor and his wife for "fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, bad faith, and unfair dealings, as real estate professionals, mortgage brokers and failing to provide suitable renters for each of the properties."

According to the complaint, our would-be real estate moguls were earning a combined income of $60,000 a year at the time: the husband as a self-employed painter, the wife as a hairdresser. Back in October of 2004, with the Las Vegas real estate market rocking, as fate would have it, the hairdresser was doing a client’s hair one day and mentioned that she was interested in real estate investing.

The client had just the person for her stylist to talk to: her husband happened to be a real estate salesman. The salesman urged the hairdresser to buy as many homes as she could with 100 percent financing using loans that require interest-only payments monthly.

The realtor projected that the homes would rise in value to generate equity of nearly $1,350,000 in five years, with very little risk. The novice investors had good credit so obtaining the loans would be no problem. In November of 2004, the painter and his wife purchased two properties and the following month they bought five more. In January 2005, they bought their dream home to live in...

You can see where this is headed, but read the rest for the gory details. I'm sure the realtor is a sleazebag, but come on, what was the couple thinking?

ted turner

2006-09-20T08:24:00.000-05:00

One article link currently up on the DrudgeReport reads as follow:

Ted Turner says Iraq war among history's 'dumbest moves of all time'...

So far, so good. Maybe Turner is smarter than I thought. Here's the next article link:

Touts Gore for President...

Oops, I was wrong - Turner is still an idiot.

in defense of sean penn

2006-09-17T17:59:00.000-05:00

For the life of me, I can't understand why so many libertarians hate Sean Penn. Yes, he's a Hollywood liberal, but the issues he really seems to care about are ones that libertarians are also supposed to really care about. Here's a guy who's been against the Iraq war from the beginning, and to me, that's one of the most important issues of the day. Shouldn't libertarians be rallying behind him and supporting him?

A couple of days ago, he got grief for smoking at the Sutton Place Hotel during the Toronto International Film Festival, in defiance of Canadian law. Here's how the Toronto Star put it:

Sean Penn has left a bad taste in a lot of mouths for his behaviour at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The 44-year-old so-called Hollywood bad boy puffed on cigarettes at two separate news conferences this week at the Sutton Place Hotel in open defiance of Ontario law.

Let us not protest that he didn't know better. Penn pulled the same stunt two years ago at the film festival and was roundly criticized for it.

But Penn is a Hollywood movie star and seems to think he is above the laws that govern regular people, such as those who pay to see his films.

David McKeown, Toronto's chief medical officer of health, says Penn won't be charged under the new Smoke-Free Ontario Act, unlike hundreds of other smokers who lit up illegally in recent months.

Gimme a break. It's not Penn's fault that the police charged hundreds of other smokers in violation of the Smoke-Free Ontario Act. Where do they get off saying he thinks he's above the law governing regular people? I'm sure he'd have no problem with some guy walking in off the street and puffing up in the same place. He's protesting an unjust law, ladies and gentlemen. It should be up to the property owner whether or not smoking is allowed in a hotel, and libertarians should be supporting him in this act of civil disobediance.

Sure, Penn's done some stupid things in his life - like marrying Madonna, for example - but who hasn't? (Done stupid things, that is - there's plenty of us who haven't married Madonna).

It galled me that he even got grief for going down to New Orleans last year to help with Katrina rescue efforts. Lots of people laughed when his boat sank; OK, that was pretty funny I have to admit, but he still deserves our praise for taking action and going down there to help out.

On top of all this, he's a damn good actor. I'm sure I'd disagree with him on many issues, but of all the liberals in Hollywood, Penn seems to be one that libertarians should be able to find some common ground with. So fuck you, Trey Parker and Matt Stone!

you don't mess with nurse kuhnhausen

2006-09-16T13:05:00.000-05:00

PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) -- When Susan Kuhnhausen returned home from work one day earlier this month, she encountered an intruder wielding a claw hammer. After a struggle, the 51-year-old nurse fended off her attacker by strangling him with her bare hands.

Neighbors praised the woman for her bravery, and investigators said they believed the dead man -- Edward Dalton Haffey -- was burglarizing Kuhnhausen's home.

But after an investigation, police now say the intruder Kuhnhausen strangled was apparently a hit man hired by her estranged husband -- Michael James Kuhnhausen Sr. -- to kill her.

The 58-year-old husband was taken into custody Thursday and charged with conspiracy to commit murder and attempted murder. He was ordered held on $500,000 bail...

...There was no sign of forced entry into the home, but according to the affidavit, Susan Kuhnhausen offered an explanation for the lack of evidence of a break-in: Her estranged husband had the security codes for the home's alarm system, and would have been able to disarm it...

This is one tough nurse! But, Nurse Kuhnhausen, you might want to think about changing those security codes... You can read the rest of the story here.

go kinky!

2006-09-14T23:51:00.000-05:00

As reported here, Kinky Friedman would legalize pot in Texas and clear all the non-violent pot users out of the prisons should he be elected governor.

Kinky Friedman says he favors legalizing marijuana to keep nonviolent users out of prison. If Texas elects him governor, he says, he'll try to get locked-up pot users released to make room for more violent criminals.

"I think that's long overdue," Friedman told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday. "I think everybody knows what (U.S. Sen.) John McCain said is right: We've pretty well lost the war on drugs doing it the way we're doing it. Drugs are more available and cheaper than ever before. What we're doing is not working."

I'm sure I'd disagree with him on a number of issues, but when a would-be governor of Texas speaks out against drug prohibition, you gotta give him some respect.

octopus kills shark

2006-08-29T14:13:00.000-05:00

Now this is a cool video (although the narrator is pretty corny, and he incorrectly says "octopi" to mean the plural of octopus - "octopuses" is correct).

my respect for milwaukee has greatly increased

2006-08-24T16:02:00.000-05:00

Here's why.

the heroic weird al yankovic strikes again...

2006-08-22T22:07:00.000-05:00

...this time taking on the monstrous RIAA! His new single, from his forthcoming album "Straight Outta Lynwood", is called "Don't Download this Song". Naturally, it's available for free download, at his myspace site as well as at dontdownloadthissong.com.

Sample lyric:

Oh, you don't wanna mess with the RIAA
They'll sue you if you burn that CD-R
It doesn't matter if you're a grandma or a 7-year-old girl
They'll treat you like the evil, hard-bitten criminal scum you are

the "freedom agenda"

2006-08-22T21:47:00.000-05:00

Thinkprogress.org has this article, which quotes Bush responding to questions by reporter Ken Herman:

BUSH: The terrorists attacked us and killed 3,000 of our citizens before we started the freedom agenda in the Middle East.

QUESTION: What did Iraq have to do with it?

BUSH: What did Iraq have to do with what?

QUESTION: The attack on the World Trade Center.

BUSH: Nothing. Except it’s part of — and nobody has suggested in this administration that Saddam Hussein ordered the attack. Iraq was a — Iraq — the lesson of September 11th is take threats before they fully materialize, Ken. Nobody’s ever suggested that the attacks of September the 11th were ordered by Iraq.

The site contains a video clip of this exchange.

William Norman Grigg has more to add, commenting on the thinkprogress.org piece over at jbs.org:

The president's comments came just after he reiterated a talking point he has worn down to a blunt stub: "The terrorists attacked us and killed three thousand of our citizens before we started the freedom agenda in the Middle East." In other words: Iraq and 9-11 are intimately connected. Immediately queried by a journalist as to what Iraq had to do with 9-11, Mr. Bush promptly, and with some asperity, said, "Nothing."

This is a museum-quality specimen of that type of politically inspired dishonesty Orwell called "double-think." The president's use of the tin-eared expression "freedom agenda" to describe the metastasizing violence and sectarian fanaticism in Iraq also provides a useful example of the product of a mind thoroughly clotted with ideological cant. Presumably by baptizing this catastrophe with a name involving the word "freedom," it is somehow transformed from a debacle into an unfolding triumph.

well red: organic, sulfite free, and damn tasty

2006-08-21T23:48:00.000-05:00

I've seen organic wines in the stores for years, but I never ventured to try one. I figure it's hard enough to get all the variables right to make a good wine, that if you restrict yourself to organically-grown grapes, you're certain to handicap the quality of the results. However, while cruising through the wine aisles at Trader Joe's yesterday, I happened upon a $5.99 bottle of "Well Red" from HeartsWork Winery, which claimed to be organic and sulfite free, so I took a chance.

Oh man, this is tasty and flavorfull stuff! It reminds me of the Cabernet wines I would make with my father in the basement, which were definitely sulfite-free, though those California grapes we used were not organically grown as far as I know. We'd begin to enjoy those wines at less than one year of age, and this Well Red stuff reminds me a lot of those delicious young wines.

Well Red is a light-to-medium colored and somewhat cloudy red. The label doesn't list the grape varieties used, but the web site has this to say:

A blend of Grenache, Sangiovese and a kiss of Syrah, this wine was left on oak a little longer to strengthen its overall structure. You'll find a dark rich blend with full mouth feel, subtle earth notes, traditional Sangiovese tannins and a soft oak and vanilla finish.

On my next visit to TJ's, I'm stocking up on this unassuming little red beauty.

screw the shampoo: conclusion

2006-08-21T23:17:00.000-05:00

Well, I planned to go 6 weeks without washing the hair - in fact, I only went 5.5 weeks. That is because I let it grow longer than I normally do, and all of the sudden I really needed to get it cut. It seemed kind of limp the morning of my haircut, so I shampooed it (with Pantene) to make sure I got a good cut, and the day after as well (always irrationally worried it's not "clean" after being clipped by the same shears 1,000 other heads are being clipped by). That was about a week and a half ago. Since then, no shampoo.

I think for the indefinite future, I'll shampoo at each haircut time, once before and once after. I do believe that overall my hair is in much better condition than when I was shampooing/conditioning three times per week, and I'm saving a lot of time in the shower. Plus, it looks consistently good - no more of that puffy, less puffy, flat cycle that I had before. I do have a bit of flaking, but it's very minor. Barring any drastic changes, that's all I'll be posting about this topic. If you have any doubts about the necessity of regular shampooing, I encourage you to give shampoo abstinence a try. I'm glad I did.

how to order wine

2006-08-14T21:59:00.000-05:00

This article entitled Smooth moves for a vintage first date is written as a lesson for you single folks out there, but it contains a lot of good info for anybody who finds himself or herself ordering wine in a restaurant, regardless of marital status. I especially like the advice on "pairing":

Pairing rules are for fools. OK, you probably should opt for a "big" red wine (cabernet, syrah/shiraz, zinfandel) if you're having slabs of red meat. Otherwise, go with something you know, or your best instinct. If the two of you select markedly different dishes, lean toward something that seems like a match for your date's order. Blessedly, there are several wines that have an affinity for virtually everything on any menu: dry riesling, pinot noir, Champagne and other sparkling wines and rose (but not Boone's Farm).

Well said; ordering a decent wine that you enjoy is the important thing, so don't sweat the pairing.

how they hate martha

2006-08-13T15:54:00.000-05:00

The Associated Press is running this story today. They're apparently tickled to death that Martha Stewart's home in Westport has been up for sale for TWO WHOLE MONTHS and it hasn't sold yet:

WESTPORT, Conn. - Six years after Martha Stewart said she was leaving Westport, the domestic diva really is bidding farewell to this wealthy seaside town — if only someone will buy her house.

Stewart has been trying for more than two months to sell her early 19th century federal-style farmhouse for $9 million. Real estate experts say it's not unusual for luxury homes to take at least a few months to sell — even those with Martha's famous touch.

"It's the most beautiful property I've ever seen," said Eileen Hill, president of the Mid Fairfield County Association of Realtors. "Every blade of grass stands at attention."

The town, which is also home to actor Paul Newman and singer Michael Bolton, is taking Stewart's departure with a stiff upper lip.

"There was certainly no real sense of loss," said Cristin Marandino, editor of Westport Magazine. "I think 70 percent of the people who live in Westport have a Martha story. She just wasn't very easy to live with."

The hateful and envious press, who can't stand the fact that somebody with talent and a true media entrepreneur who has made thousands of times more than they ever will, will take any potential jab at Martha no matter how trivial the subject matter. They even admit in the first few sentences that it is not at all unusual for a luxury home to take several months to sell, but nonetheless, it's BIG NEWS. (Think about it - how many people do you know who've recently sold their homes in less than two months?)

Then, these talentless drivel-spewers can't help but quote one person in the neighborhood who doesn't like Martha as if that establishes a pattern of resentment towards her. Screw you, AP.

sore loserman and the state of conservatism, 2006

2006-08-11T00:25:00.000-05:00

Pat Buchanan discusses the meaning of Joe Lieberman's defeat and the strange "conservatism" of The Weekly Standard in this article on today's LRC.

...But this week has also provided a glimpse into the character and convictions of our neo-conservatives, who claim direct descent from Ronald Reagan. In a lead editorial, The Weekly Standard called on Bush to fire Rumsfeld and make Joe Lieberman secretary of defense. And the Pentagon is only to be a stepping-stone...

...Last year, Joe's rating by Americans for Democratic Action was 80. The ACLU gave him an 83, the NAACP an 85, the AFL-CIO a 92, LULAC a perfect 100. In 2004, Joe got a 100 rating from the National Abortion Rights Action League and a zero from National Right to Life. His American Conservative Union rating was zero. His Christian Coalition rating was zero. The National Rifle Association, which grades by letters, gave Joe a big, fat "F."

But as long as you support war in Lebanon, war in Iraq and a "war-fighting Republican Party," in The Weekly Standard's phrase, you get a pass on everything else. Beat the drum for permanent war for global democracy and against Islamo-fascism, and all other sins are forgiven you.

Such is the state of conservatism, 2006.

politics

2006-08-10T22:52:00.000-05:00

I don't know who Earnest Benn is, but this quote by him on today's Quotes of the Day from The Quotations Page applies perfectly to our busy-body congresscritters:

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy.

lllllllooooooooooooooooooser!!!!!

2006-08-08T21:28:00.000-05:00

Well, it looks like the Iraq War albatross hanging around old Joe's neck was too much for him to bear. The New York Times is now reporting that Ned Lamont has narrowly defeated Lieberman in the senatorial race in the Connecticut Democratic primary.

As I said earlier, I'm not yet convinced that Lamont will really take a principled and committed stand against the Bush administration's wars, should he manage to go on to win the general election...but, nonetheless...a definitely pro-war freedom-hater went down in flames because of his pro-war stance, and dammit, that feels good! Thanks, Connecticut voters!

ned lamont: principled antiwar candidate or opportunistic high-class phony?

2006-08-07T23:49:00.000-05:00

I can't stand Senator Joe Lieberman. He's your typical liberal eastern establishment political elite, but worse. Worse because this gun-grabbing little weasel is a neocon hawk on foreign policy, endorsing every step toward global conquest made by the Bush administration. So at first I was heartened to see his opponent in the Connecticut primary, the super rich Ned Lamont, beating him in the polls. Lamont, you see, has made his opposition to the Iraq war a cornerstone of his platform. What could be better than to see Joe Loserman get booted out on his ass by an antiwar candidate? But then I began to look into this Lamont character, and I fear he may not be what he seems.

First of all, make no mistake - the Phillip Exeter/Harvard/Yale educated Lamont is another socialist eastern establishment elite, even more socialist than Lieberman in some ways. But even if we ignore all that, can he really be trusted to provide any real resistance to the neocon effort at global hegemony? As much as a single senator from Connecticut can do, anyway?

Lamont never held any office higher than city councilman in Greenich, CT. In general, I view that as a good thing, but how did he get the momentum to get where he is in the polls today? He failed his one bid to run for state senator in 1990. It seems odd that all of the sudden he's providing such a strong challenge to Lieberman. Are there forces behind the scenes with an agenda unknown to us? Talk of a three-way race, with Lieberman running as an independent should he lose the Democratic nomination make such speculation more confusing...and intriguing.

It's all seems eerily similar to the Howard Dean run for the presidential nomination. Dean was somebody the antiwar liberals latched onto as their great white hope. Alas, this Yalie was a nothing but a high-class phony. Dean certainly didn't have a great anti-war track record. In 1995, for example, he urged President Clinton to take take unilateral action in Bosnia against the Serbs. And we haven't heard him say anything against the Iraq war, or proposed attacks on Iran, since his failed presidential bid. It seems like he was raised up as a magnet to attract the liberal antiwar crowd, then he was quickly shot down, with his followers mostly switching to the status-quo Kerry, whom Dean endorsed.

And whether Lamont is sincere, I don't know. This whole post is mere speculation with no real evidence with which to draw any conclusions. It just seems like somebody cut from the same cloth as Bush, Kerry, and Dean isn't likely to change things for the better. That said, I hope he beats Lieberman and proves me wrong. As to whether or not he wins, we should know soon!

the new cannibalism

2006-08-07T17:33:00.000-05:00

Thanks again to The Drudge Report for the links to this Daily Mail story entitled "A barbaric kind of beauty", although I kind of wish I never read it. Wealthy British and American women are spending thousands of dollars to allow themselves to be injected with fetal stem cells in the dubious hope that it will make their skin look younger. Where do those stem cells come from? The article tells us where one clinic in Moscow called The Cellulite Clinic gets them:

RUSSIA and the Ukraine currently top the world abortion league, with more of the operations carried out here than anywhere else on earth. Evidence gathered by the Moscow police department has shown a growing black market in aborted foetuses, which are smuggled into Russia from the Ukraine and Georgia.

Here, poverty-stricken young women are paid 200 U.S. dollars to carry babies up to the optimum eight to 12-week period - thought to be best for harvesting stem cells. They are then sold on to cosmetic clinics.

Here we have the truly hideous specter of widescale harvesting and slaughtering of the unborn so that some of their cells might be injected into other human beings...for vanity. This is truly a new cannibalism. Unlike the victims of the traditional variety of cannibalism, these victims don't scream, run or fight back.

Dr Stephen Minger, director of stem cell biology at King's College in London, doesn't like this development one bit:

"But what this clinic is doing raises serious issues. For a start, it is not regulated by any medical board and there is no documented evidence or controlled clinical trials to back up their claims. More worryingly, there is no proof that the tissue is obtained from truly elective abortions rather than financially induced ones.

"Research shows that they openly import foetuses from poverty-stricken provinces in Ukraine and Russia, preying on the financially desperate to treat vain Western women."

I'm glad Dr. Minger has a a problem with it, but isn't he being a bit hypocritical? He's allowed to destroy the unborn for research, because he's a member of the proper board and he fills out the proper forms. Well, these freelancers are just taking this whole business to its logical conclusion. And what's all this about "elective" abortions vs. "financially induced" ones? If a woman aborts a baby so that she and hubby can continue to make those payments on their two BMWs and their second home in Hawaii, doesn't that qualify as financial inducement? Are the stem cells from that fetus any more morally obtained that the stem cells from the Russian peasant girl who was paid $200? Sure, the BMW couple aren't being paid by the harvesters, but their abortion's payoff is much greater than that of the peasant girl.

There's a lot more in the article, so I recommend reading whole grisly thing.

this just in: raunchy song lyrics cause teens to have sex

2006-08-07T12:33:00.000-05:00

A new study published today in the August issue of Pedicatrics,which might be filed under the "No shit, sherlock" file, shows that listening to songs with raunchy lyrics prompts teenages to have sex. (See this local6.com story, spotted via The Drudge Report)

...Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as were teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

Among heavy listeners, 51 percent started having sex within two years, versus 29 percent of those who said they listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

Exposure to lots of sexually degrading music "gives them a specific message about sex," said lead author Steven Martino, a researcher for Rand Corp. in Pittsburgh. Boys learn they should be relentless in pursuit of women and girls learn to view themselves as sex objects, he said.

"We think that really lowers kids' inhibitions and makes them less thoughtful" about sexual decisions and may influence them to make decisions they regret, he said...

I'm sure all the modern liberals and left-libertarians will make the usual bullshit excuses and deny that popular culture could ever have any effect on behavior (or admit it but not care, as the case may be), but they look more and more pathetic thanks to studies such as this. One 17-year old is a lot smarter than these excuse-makers:

...Natasha Ramsey, a 17-year-old from New Brunswick, N.J., said she and other teens sometimes listen to sexually explicit songs because they like the beat.

"I won't really realize that the person is talking about having sex or raping a girl," she said. Even so, the message "is being beaten into the teens' heads," she said. "We don't even really realize how much."

"A lot of teens think that's the way they're supposed to be, they think that's the cool thing to do. Because it's so common, it's accepted," said Ramsey, a teen editor for Sexetc.org, a teen sexual health Web site produced at Rutgers University...

I think that's the key thing - the repetition and prevalence of a message being pounded into the brain day after day, that it becomes the new norm, the new standard. This is similar to the way people have been told over and over about all the good things that government supposedly does, that their brains are now incapable of imagining a society working without one. It's hard to believe that anyone really thinks that all the hours spent in front of television and movie screens, playing video games and plugged into iPods is not going to have any influence. Not that any of these things are bad, of course - they can all be healthy and entertaining, providing the content is chosen wisely.

As the article goes on to state, the RIAA has nothing to say about all of this:

...The Recording Industry Association of America, which represents the U.S. recording industry, declined to comment on the findings...

Of course not: they don't give two shits about what kids are listening to, as long as they obtain the music legally like good little citizens, insuring that the RIAA members get their cut. That's the only sin that matters in their minds: thou shalt not violate copyright law! Let the culture go to hell, but pay us our tribute!

Should the government ban sexually explicit and degrading music? Of course not! But parents would be foolish to not take an interest in what their kids are listening to. And we'd all be foolish to pretend that the morally repugnant product churned out by the entertainment industry has not been a factor in the decline of our culture.

deception point

2006-08-06T17:12:00.000-05:00

At the insistence of the girlfriend, I have just finished reading Dan Brown's Deception Point, written in 2001, a couple of years before he wrote The DaVinci Code. Verdict? If you can get past the wildly pro-government, anti-free market bias, it is a decent thriller/conspiracy/page turner of a book.

the monstrous truman

2006-08-06T11:22:00.000-05:00

Sixty-one years ago today, an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, killing approximately 80,000 people. An additional 60,000 people would die within the next year from the effects of the fallout.

These days, Truman is hailed by both Democrats and Republicans as a great president, but why isn't he remembered as one of our greatest war criminals? It's hard to take most left-wing criticisms of Bush seriously when they give such a pass on a much greater villain.

stopping even more violence

2006-08-05T09:28:00.000-05:00

As I've said before, ending the war on drugs would be the best way to lower America's murder rate, but there's even more violence that can be ended by repealing the idiotic war on drugs. Ezra Klein has a harrowing post on prison rape and quotes from an article in The Nation:

It took about half an hour for the Thorazine they'd spiked his drink with to hit. Suddenly Parsell couldn't think straight. He couldn't understand what was being said to him, and he couldn't understand why he couldn't understand. It was, he says, like watching a film with pieces of blank tape spliced into it: "skips, like mini-blackouts," flashes followed by darkness.

Then he was back in one of the dormitories. Four inmates were waiting for him. It was only then that Parsell began to understand what was happening. But by the time the panic hit, it was too late. Ron shoved Parsell onto one of the bunks and another two inmates tore off his pants. Even if Parsell hadn't been half their size, with the Thorazine he didn't have a chance. Ron pushed himself on top of Parsell and raped him, forcing Parsell's head into the pillow to muffle his screams as his rectum was ripped open. His cries were so desperate that they almost suffocated him trying to keep him quiet. But Ron didn't stop. Parsell felt like he screamed for an eternity.

How can we end this horror? The rest of the article is behind a pay wall, so I don't know the author's recommendations, but how about ending the war on drugs? It wouldn't cost an extra dime of taxpayers' money and not only would it spare non-violent criminals from the horrors of prison rape with no escape, but it would undoubtedly reduce the number of violent criminals/potential rapists in prison as well, since the drop in black market violence would lead to less people entering the brutal and murderous trade of illegal drug markets.

Read the whole thing if you can, but Ezra Klein is dead wrong about one thing: "we" are not complicit in this at all. The guilt lies completely on the monsters who do the raping and the thugs and hooligans running the political machines that create and help populate these hellholes.

P.S., am I the only one who is baffled as to how the inmates could get ahold of thorazine? Was it smuggled in or did the steal it from the prison infirmary?

lobbying for armageddon

2006-08-04T18:54:00.000-05:00

That's the title of this AlterNet piece by Sarah Posner. She describes the Christian Zionists' push for war with Iran in order to bring about the End Times, after which the righteous (i.e. themselves) will reign, and how this just happens to dovetail with the neocons' foreign policy agenda. At the heart of it all is one Pastor John Hagee. The article is long but worth reading. Here's an excerpt:

In a perfect world, a reporter at last week's press conference with George Bush and Tony Blair would have asked Bush, in the presence of his principal European ally, if he believes the European Union is the Antichrist.

Although it sounds like the kind of Pat Robertson lunacy that makes even the wingnuts run for the nearest exit, it's a question Bush should be forced to answer. Bush and other leading Republicans have lined up behind a growing movement of Christian Zionists for whom a European Antichrist figures prominently in an end-times scenario. So they should be forced to explain to the rest of us why they're courting the votes of people who believe our allies are evil incarnate. Could it be that the central requirement for their breathlessly anticipated Armageddon -- that the United States confront Iran -- happens to dovetail so nicely with the neoconservative war agenda?

At the center of it all is Pastor John Hagee, a popular televangelist who leads the 18,000-member Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas. While Hagee has long prophesized about the end times, he ratcheted up his rhetoric this year with the publication of his book, "Jerusalem Countdown," in which he argues that a confrontation with Iran is a necessary precondition for Armageddon and the Second Coming of Christ. In the best-selling book, Hagee insists that the United States must join Israel in a preemptive military strike against Iran to fulfill God's plan for both Israel and the West. Shortly after the book's publication, he launched Christians United for Israel (CUFI), which, as the Christian version of the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee, he said would cause "a political earthquake."

hilarious post by stephan kinsella

2006-08-03T23:49:00.000-05:00

Here, on the LRC blog. I'm referring to the wording of the part in the parentheses, not the actual content of the post. It's clever and I wish I had said that.

screw the shampoo: week 4

2006-08-03T20:49:00.000-05:00

(Note: if you've been following this intriguing thread, and I have no doubt that you have, you should note that there is no "week 3" post; this is the first one since week 2.)

Well, yesterday marked the end of my fourth week of sticking it to Big Shampoo! (Or Small Shampoo, for that matter.) Neither cleanser nor conditioner has made contact with my rebellious scalp for all this time, just a daily rinse with warm water during my morning shower.

I have to say, the results are even better than I expected. I no longer experience any itching. My hair feels extremely well conditioned, but not excessively oily. On the downside, there is still a bit of flaking when I scratch my head. At this point, though, I am highly motivated to go the full six weeks, and likely well beyond that point.

One other note: my hair is about two weeks past the point where I would normally have it cut. In the past, it would start to get a bit unruly at 5 or 6 weeks and that would be my cue to schedule an appointment. It hasn't reached the unruly point yet, another plus.

As an aside, I apologize for my lack of posts lately. I've been frantically busy at both work and home, and I've barely had time to read any blogs let alone post. Hopefully things will calm down soon.

another reason not to see miami vice

2006-07-30T17:57:00.000-05:00

The girlfriend wanted to see "Miami Vice", but I suspected it was a paean to the "heroes" of the drug war, so I talked her out of it and we went to see the hilarious "Clerks II" instead. MV has not been getting good reviews and I just found out today that there is another good reason not to drop one's money on this stinker:

The movie did have one thing that was extremely interesting though, the next campaign from the DRM infection folk. They are now starting to equate piracy, or their version of it, with all the things that are bad in the world. Remember the 'piracy funds terrorists' laugher a few months ago? They learned, and are doing it through the back door now, the front door got them nowhere.

Now, they are slipping the message in through 'blowoff' lines, trying to infect modern culture. There was a scene in Miami Vice where they were discussing the big bad drug dealers, and how international they were. The good guys listed all the thing the bad guys were capable of bringing into the US, Cocaine, Heroin, etc etc. They listed it as coke from Coumbia, heroin from Afganistan, X from Y and A from B. Pretty normal stuff. At the end, they added 'pirated software from China'.

Spotted via Boing Boing.

stopping the violence

2006-07-30T16:11:00.000-05:00

I've long believed that the best way to reduce America's (and Mexico's) huge homicide rate(s) would be to end the war on drugs. Over at Alternet, Norm Stamper lays it out in "How Legalizing Drugs Will End the Violence":

Illegal drugs are expensive precisely because they are illegal. The products themselves are worthless weeds -- cannabis (marijuana), poppies (heroin), coca (cocaine) -- or dirt-cheap pharmaceuticals and "precursors" used, for example, in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Yet today, marijuana is worth as much as gold, heroin more than uranium, cocaine somewhere in between. It is the U.S.'s prohibition of these drugs that has spawned an ever-expanding international industry of torture, murder and corruption. In other words, we are the source of Mexico's "drug problem."

I have one quibble with the article, though. The author says:

Using the Brady Bill "loophole" (and congressional and presidential failure to extend the ban on assault rifles), all it takes is a phony stateside driver's license and a handful of cash to walk out with semi-automatic Uzis, AR-15s and AK-47s.

This is a myth, there is no gun show loophole. The laws that apply at a gun show are the exact same that apply everywhere else. The assault weapon ban was a feel-good law for left-wing gun haters, nothing more. See here and here for more.

Spotted via Drug War Rant.

doot doot

2006-07-25T22:17:00.000-05:00

Wow, the stuff you can learn from Wikipedia. I've always kind of liked the electronic music band Underworld, since first hearing them in the mid to late 90's. I've also always remembered the song "doot doot", by a group called Freur, since first hearing it in the early 80's (and never hearing it again, except from my own homemade cassette tape). I never knew until yesterday, while surfing around on Wikipedia, that the two main guys from Underworld, Karl Hyde and Rick Smith, were the same two guys who formed Freur. I'm sure most true Underworld fans already knew this, but since I've been more or less a casual fan of the band, it had eluded me all these years.

By the way, Freur was a name the group came up with under pressure, because they were originally known as just an unpronounceable squiggle symbol. This was years before Prince pulled the same trick with his unpronounceable symbol. You can see the video for "doot doot" here, not that the video is anything special, but it is a cool song.

It's things like this that make me wonder how many other connections between various people and things am I unaware of, even though I'm aware of the individual things themselves.

never peace when a war will do

2006-07-25T18:36:00.000-05:00

How repellant and evil can the Bush administration be? Pretty evil, I think. Justin Logan points out that Dubya had a chance to gain an ally in the war on terror, but turned it down:

Finally, one is hard pressed to...explain away the reckless and shameful incompetence of the hawk faction in the Bush administration as described by the Washington Post. The Iranians approached the Bush administration directly in 2002 (after the ridiculous “axis of evil” speech!) and proposed cooperating against al Qaeda, informing the US of the identities of 290 members of al Qaeda that Iran had captured and sent back to their countries. The Iranians proposed further cooperation against al Qaeda.

Now the Neo-cons are proposing bombing Iran!

Be sure to read Logan's full post to get a taste of the attack-happy attitude of this administrations defenders.

krugman approves the killing of innocent people

2006-07-24T19:58:00.000-05:00

Here's Paul Krugman defending the African National Congress:

the A.N.C. ... did pursue violent resistance, in which some innocent people were killed, but was remarkably restrained considering the situation

So killing the innocent is OK, as long as it's done in support of something noble, like ending Apartheid? I did not know that.

Spotted via Economist's View.

warmongering "christians" and ecclesio-leninists

2006-07-22T22:24:00.000-05:00

William Norman Grigg has a great post about the State-worshipping, warmongering Evangelical Christian movement and its Rockefeller-funded origins during the years prior to World War I. Excerpt:

America's might, invested in the European conflict, would be used to build a “united world,” predicted Edward Everett Hale, and “the united world is to be one empire of the Living God.” To that end, preached G. Sherwood Eddy, a world-renowned evangelist and Asia secretary for the YWCA, the generation then living had to learn to sacrifice themselves on behalf of abstractions.

The “challenge to our generation,” insisted Eddy, is “sacrificial and heroic, like the crusaders of the Middle Ages, like the battle-charge of Islam, or the communism-or-death alternative appealing to Lenin and his revolutionary followers.”

Mohammedans and Leninists strike me as the least commendable examples for Christian youth.

But then again, I've always understood that Christians worship Jesus, not the State, and I've always believed that feeding young people into the maw of the war machine was a form of child sacrifice every bit as satanic as that practiced by those who worshiped Molech.

World War I represented, in many ways, the triumph of a religious class we could call the “Ecclesio-Leninists”: Clerics who preached submission to the state and support for its wars, as the essence of Christian patriotism. The following poem published by Rev. William P. Merrill in the Christian Century just shortly after US entry into World War I could be used as the Ecclesio-Leninist creed:

The strength of the State we'll lavish on more
Than making of wealth and making of war;
We are learning at last, though the lesson comes late,
That the making of man is the task of the State.

Unfortunately, it isn't limited to Evangelical Christians; the warmongering, state-worshipping mentality has infected many members of the Roman Catholic faith, as well as other non-evangelical Christian denominations.

I know many catholics and protestants that support Bush and his wars without question (as well as many that don't). It boggles the mind that someone can profess to support life and the commandment "thou shalt not kill", unless we're talking about Iraqis and the all-mighty Bush says that killing them is the right thing to do. The fact that civilians are accidentally slaughtered by the thousands is "unfortunate".

It's one thing for the flock to be mistaken, but what about the shepherds? At the sermons in the RC churches I attend, I regularly hear the priests speak about the evils of abortion (as well they should), but the priests are silent regarding anything about war and just-war theory. This is despite the fact that JPII spoke in no uncertain terms throughout his long tenure as Pope about just that, a holy thorn in the side of both Bush's (and ultimately ignored, of course). Don't get me wrong; the priests aren't whooping up hysteria for Bush's wars, and for all I know they may be against them. But their silence on the issue is deafening.

screw the shampoo: week 2

2006-07-20T17:33:00.000-05:00

Well, yesterday marked the second week since I stopped shampooing and conditioning my hair. The only thing I've washed it with is the warm, fresh Lake Michigan water issuing forth from my shower head.

Nobody has recoiled in horror upon seeing me (well, no more so than usual); in fact, my hair looks and feels good, and behaves quite well. It definitely feels more "conditioned" than it ever did before, I guess because I'm no longer stripping out the natural oils.

I still have some flaking that falls off when I scratch my head, but nothing visible on the head itself. It itches less than after week 1, almost not at all. I especially like the way it looks and behaves consistently from day to day, whereas before it could be quite inconsistent between the shampoo and the non-shampoo days.

Since it's going well, I'll wait until the 4 week point before my next post about this, unless there is some major development.

reelin' in a giant humboldt squid...

2006-07-15T22:22:00.000-05:00

...off the coast of San Diego. See the video here.

screw the shampoo: week 1

2006-07-12T19:58:00.000-05:00

Well, I've gone my first week without shampoo! I know what you're thinking: jmc, what the heck are you talking about? Did I miss the first post about this intriguing topic?

I confess that I deliberately did not mention it until now. I wanted to make sure I could make it a week before I blabbed about it.

Here's the deal: I've recently read several different accounts of normal people (i.e. who have lives and don't live on the street) who went for 6 weeks or longer without washing their hair. See here and here, for example, and for a truly hilarious account, see this piece by Jason Headley. Most of the reports are positive. After a rough start, the natural oil production adapts to the new routine and the hair looks great every day without anything touching it except water.

It's not that I spend a lot of money on the small quantities required to wash my short hair, but the routine of lather, rinse, condition, and rinse again does take valuable time in the morning, time that I could be sleeping. Plus, why should I be a slave to Procter & Gamble, forcing me like a drug addict to carry around a supply of their magical potions everywhere I go?

So my plan is simple: I will not wash my hair for 6 weeks, and report on the progress. If it works out, I'll continue the experiment indefinitely...

I will be rinsing it with water whenever I shower (which is normally once per day), but no shampoos, conditioners, gels, creams, etc. will be applied to my dome. I should point out that my usual routine has been to wash my hair about 3 times per week with Pantene shampoo, then condition with Pantene conditioner each time. My hair is only about an inch to an inch and a half long, and I get it cut about every 6 weeks or so. I'm about midway between haircuts now, so if I follow through on this thing that means I'll be getting one haircut before it's over.

How do I feel after one week as a shampoo teetotaler? I think my hair actually looks slightly better than usual. All the hairs seem to be getting along well with each other and falling into place perfectly, and they even seem a bit shinier than usual. On the downside, my scalp is a little bit itchy, and I've seen some flaking come off onto my shirt when I scratch my head. I cannot see any flakes in my hair, though. As for smell, my wife took a direct snort this morning and confirmed that there is no smell whatsoever.

I'm encouraged so far; hopefully the flaking thing will work itself out over time. Who knows, maybe the change of environment will encourage those lazy slacker follicles on my bald spot to kick into action, recolonizing the dead zone with a fresh crop of sproutlings? Ridiculous, of course, but I can dream, can't I?

british banker connected with enron scandal winds up dead

2006-07-12T18:59:00.000-05:00

The police are treating his death as "unexplained" according to this BBC report. A little weird, don't ya think? And there's more details from this TimesOnline story:

THE body of a senior banker who was expected to give evidence at the trial of the NatWest Three was found yesterday hours before his former colleagues were due to be handed over to US marshals.

Supporters of the three former bankers said that Neil Coulbeck, who was found dead in parkland six days after he disappeared, had been under immense pressure and hounded by American investigators. The discovery came as MPs staged an extraordinary protest at Britain’s extradition arrangements with the US by voting to adjourn the Commons early.

Both Tony Blair and Robert Tuttle, the US Ambassador, tried to defuse the row by insisting that extradition terms between the two countries were roughly the same, despite the US failure to ratify a treaty agreed in 2003 and implemented by Britain.

The three men are accused of conspiring with executives of the collapsed US energy giant Enron to cheat the bank that once employed them out of £11 million. David Bermingham, Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby are due to fly to the US today at 9.30am from Gatwick...

great news

2006-07-12T18:44:00.000-05:00

"Bush: Florida crime rate down to lowest level since 71":

Florida's crime rate dropped for the 14th straight year in 2005 to its lowest mark since 1971 because of tougher laws, increased financial support from the Legislature and law-abiding citizens with guns, Gov. Jeb Bush said Tuesday.

"This report shows that staying tough on crime works," said Bush. "Law abiding citizens that have guns for protection actually probably are part of the reason we have a lower crime rate."

Jeb Bush is one of the few Republicans that are not so bad. He's signed some great laws for Florida, including the recent "stand your ground" law and he's got the balls to say that guns in private hands are good. Two cheers for Jeb!

syd barrett, r.i.p.

2006-07-12T12:49:00.000-05:00

The crazy diamond shines no more, having succumbed to complications from diabetes on July 7. See this Slate article about his life.

I guess the news of his death came out yesterday, but I missed it somehow. When I was a kid my brother purchased a copy of "The Madcap Laughs", and some of those songs, recorded when Syd was half crazy (at least), have stuck with me all this time. You never know what's going to get absorbed into your musical psyche.

wow, now it's space ballet!!!

2006-07-10T19:51:00.000-05:00

In a new article entitled "Discovery astronauts perform spacewalk 'ballet'", again linked to from Drudge (with a picture), we get treated to more drama from the current shuttle mission. It's pathetic, really, how they feebly try to garner interest in the same old same old:

... [Astronauts Piers] Sellers and [Mike] Fossum, who a day earlier said the spacewalk would be "quite a ballet," moved to another spot on the ISS to install a spare pump module to an external stowage platform...

...The astronauts then moved to the shuttle's payload bay to make a tricky equipment swap. With his feet secured on a strap on the cargo bay, Sellers at one point held the old and new cable reels simultaneously during a handoff with Fossum, who was held horizontally by the ISS's robotic arm.

Before replacing the part, the astronauts took a moment to admire the view about 350 kilometers (220 miles) above Earth.

"It's like standing in an all-around Imax (3D movie theater). It's just beautiful," Sellers said...

Glad you like the show, Piersy-boy! It's only costing about a billion dollars a year to keep these space jalopies running, so you damn well better appreciate it.

Sincerely yours,

a fellow American who gets reamed in the ass every April 15 by Uncle Sam so that you can be in the space ballet

matthew yglesias agrees with me

2006-07-10T18:58:00.000-05:00

Matt Y. writes:

But a lot of people seem to think that American military might is like one of these power rings. They seem to think that, roughly speaking, we can accomplish absolutely anything in the world through the application of sufficient military force. The only thing limiting us is a lack of willpower.

As I wrote in 2004, over at Brooke Oberwetter's old blog:

Alas, I doubt that the neocons who are so keen on national greatness will ever learn. The above brings to mind a pet theory I've had for a few years: that when it comes to the military, conservatives sound just like leftists: it's always a lack of money or will that causes the failure, not any intrinsic flaw in the ideas behind it.

Spotted via Hit & Run.

a tiny victory

2006-07-09T19:31:00.000-05:00

Over at The Volokh Conspiracy, Dave Kopel enthusiastically reports "U.N. Conference Ending, Freedom Winning!!":

As of 6 p.m. eastern time, the word from the United Nations small arms conference is that the conference is concluding with NO final document, and NO plans for any follow-up conference.

Who's responsible for this wonderful outcome? Why, Bush, of course:

If a few hundred votes had changed in Florida in 2000, or if 60,000 votes had changed in Ohio in 2004, the results of the 2001 and 2006 U.N. gun control conferences would have been entirely different. There would now be a legally binding international treaty creating an international legal norm against civilian gun ownership, a prohibition on the transfer of firearms to "non-state actors" (such as groups resisting tyrants), and a new newspeak international human rights standard requiring restrictive licensing of gun owners.

While I'm as glad as anyone that this foolish conference flopped, it is simply not that case that if Al Gore had won in 2000, we would be inexorably on the path to gun confiscation. Any treaty would still have to be passed by the U. S. Senate, which has more than enough Republicans to vote it down.

While it's nice to have a president who is very pro-gun, this result is a tiny drop of goodness in a vast sea of evil that is the Bush Administration. The evil and unnecessary war in Iraq, the non-stop encroachment on the rest of the Bill of Rights, outweigh anything good Dubya has done by a long shot.

Why are they so good on this issue and so bad on everything else? Is it just because of the NRA? Stuff like this seems to throw the thuggish behavior of this administration into sharp relief because it makes it clear that they can stand up for rights when they want to, they just don't want to.

spacewalking? no way!

2006-07-08T09:33:00.000-05:00

Drudge's current headline, complete with photo, links to this AP story, as if it's some sort of new scientific breakthrough here in the year of 2006.

Astronauts Piers Sellers and Mike Fossum climbed out of an airlock on the international space station Saturday, starting a spacewalk to fix the complex's rail transporter and test whether a boom can be used to make repairs to the space shuttle.

The 6 1/2-hour jaunt, which began as the space station passed over Asia 220 miles below, was to be the first spacewalk for Fossum and the fourth for Sellers.

Golly gee, you mean to tell me that men are actually floating around...in space...outside of the craft!? Let's increase NASA's budget...this is TOO COOL!

Men have been spacewalking since 1965, starting with cosmonaut Aleksei Leonov. This is what the space program has boiled down to...repeating events done decades ago, or performing worthless experiments in space that no company in it's right mind would even consider spending money on. And all the while, the compliant press (like Mr. Drudge) plays up every stupid event as if it's happening for the first time.

nature conservancy buys out fishermen

2006-07-07T15:24:00.000-05:00

As reported in this SanLuisObispo.com article:

SAN FRANCISCO - For four generations, Geoff Bettencourt's family has fished the waters off Half Moon Bay by dragging heavy nets across the ocean floor to scoop up the sole and cod that feed there.

But the 35-year-old may soon sell his right to trawl the sea - not to another fisherman, but to environmentalists.

The Nature Conservancy, an international environmental group best known for buying development rights from farmers, is looking to strike similar deals with fishermen along the coast in a pilot program that it said could be repeated elsewhere.

The group has bought six federal trawling permits and four trawling vessels from fishermen in Morro Bay, about halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The tactic is designed to reward fishermen for forgoing fishing methods that can damage sensitive marine ecosystems.

Financial details weren't disclosed, but each fisherman received "several hundred thousand dollars a piece," said Chuck Cook, director of the group's California coastal and marine program. Rather than punishing fishermen, Cook said, "you try to provide economic incentives for treating the habitats and fisheries well."

The Conservancy said its acquisitions represent the nation's first private buy-out of Pacific fishing vessels and permits for conservation purposes. The buy-outs are also part of its new, cooperative approach to protecting the ocean. Fishermen saw some past campaigns as financial burdens.

The heroic Nature Conservancy is the only environmental group I've ever had any respect for, taking a commendable private property-based approach to protecting natural resources.

massacre at farmhouse in iraq

2006-07-07T06:46:00.000-05:00

Read this L.A. Times story, if you can stomach it.

"Never in my mind could I have imagined such a gruesome sight," Abu Firas Janabi said of the day in March when his cousin, Fakhriya Taha Muhsen; her husband, Kasim Hamza Rasheed; and their two daughters were slain and their farmhouse set ablaze.

"Kasim's corpse was in the corner of the room, and his head was smashed into pieces," he said. The 5-year-old daughter, Hadel, was beside her father, and Janabi said he could see that Fakhriya's arms had been broken.

In another room, he found 15-year-old Abeer, naked and burned, with her head smashed in "by a concrete block or a piece of iron."

"There were burns from the bottom of her stomach to the end of her body, except for her feet," he said.

We're going to constantly hear about how this is just "a few bad apples", so it's nothing to worry about. I believe the vast majority of our soldiers would never behave like this, but this is what Bush's war has wrought. The entire war was unjust from the beginning. Thousands of innocents have been slaughtered since it started, and that is the fact we must always keep in mind. Those who steered us toward war are 1000 times more guilty than the sickos who committed this farmhouse atrocity.

catwoman

2006-07-05T10:52:00.000-05:00

My wife and I watched "Catwoman" last night, which we had recorded from HBO-HD. The critics hated it, and it bombed at the box office, but this was an HD version, man, so I had to see it!

Well, believe it or not I actually enjoyed it. The special effects are good - they really get the cat movements down well (some sort of CGI I assume). As for Halle Berry, I don't think anyone would have looked as good in the Catwoman getup as she did. I should also mention that there are also some real cats in the story that are used quite effectively.

The story isn't that great - evil comsmetics manufacturer resorts to murder in order to cover up a seriously defective new product they're about to launch. Seriously, how long do they think they can get away with selling a product that will destroy the skin of its users (or worse...) as soon as they stop using it? The same product gave the arch-villain her super-powers, too; suffice it to say the parts of the story don't add up very well. By the way, the story has absolutely nothing to do with any of the DC Catwoman incarnations; it's not set in Gotham City (it's set in some other fictional city), and even Catwoman's secret identity is different. With a little effort I think they could have set the story within the DC universe. I have no idea why they chose not to.

happy independence day!

2006-07-04T19:52:00.000-05:00

Just had to say it.

i'll be impressed when they can get michael moore to fast

2006-07-04T07:44:00.000-05:00

One of my theories about political activism is that it's often done to make the activist feel good about himself rather than to accomplish anything useful. This usually manifests itself on the left in the form of meaningless, publicity producing stunts. The latest antic is to go on an anti-war fast. Most of these fasters are only going on a one day fast!

Why don't these overpaid entertainers do something useful like donate to antiwar.com or some other organization that is doing real work exposing and documenting the fundamental problems of war? Do these hijinks convince anyone who isn't already on the loony left?