Classical Liberalism vs. Modern Liberalism and Modern Conservatism
"In the history of politics, there is only one fundamental, abiding issue: It is individualism vs. collectivism... [Yet] American political debates tend to be dominated by modern liberalism and modern conservatism — approaches to politics that are properly called “sociologies” rather than “ideologies.”
Modern liberalism is not completely collectivist; nor is it completely individualistic. It has elements of both doctrines. The same is true of conservatism. Neither view provides a coherent approach to politics, built up from first principles. Instead, they both reflect a process that is akin to picking items from a dinner menu. What is chosen is a matter of taste rather than a matter of thought...
All forms of collectivism in the 20th century rejected the classical liberal notion of rights and all asserted in their own way that need is a claim. For the communists, the needs of the class (proletariat) were a claim against every individual. For the Nazis, the needs of the race were a claim. For fascists (Italian-style) and for architects of the welfare state, the needs of society as a whole were a claim. Since in all these systems the state is the personification of the class, the race, society as a whole, etc., all these ideologies imply that, to one degree or another, individuals have an obligation to live for the state.
One of the difficulties in describing political ideas is that the people who hold them are invariably more varied and complex than the ideas themselves... To even try to use words like “conservative” and “liberal” when describing them is more likely to mislead than to shed any useful light...
Liberals are not advocates of special interest legislation per se. But they are apologists for it in the sense they believe that economic regulations should be decided by democratic political institutions, not by court-enforced rights to freedom of contract. So if butchers, bakers and candlestick makers succeed in obtaining special interest favors from government at the expense of everyone else, that is a legitimate exercise of political power.
The New York Times believes that you have a right to engage in almost any sexual activity in the privacy of your own bedroom. But the Times does not believe you have a fundamental right to rent your bedroom (or any other room) to your sexual partner – or to anyone else for that matter. Indeed, the Times is fully supportive of the principle of government regulation of who can rent to whom, for how long, under what circumstances, and at what price.
The liberal’s view of rights is closely connected to the issue of trust. The editorial page of The New York Times does not trust government to read our mail or listen to our phone calls — even if the caller is talking to young Arab males behaving suspiciously. Yet the Times editorial writers are completely comfortable with having government control their retirement income, even though Social Security has been managed like a Ponzi scheme. They are also willing to cede control to government over their (and everyone else’s) health care, including the power to make rationing decisions about who lives and who dies!...
Many conservatives, given a free hand, would impose additional government restrictions on our noneconomic liberties. In the past, conservatives were quite willing to control the books and magazines we read, the movies we watch, etc. These were the same people who believed that what went on in the workplace was none of the government’s business...
The U.S. Supreme Court has increasingly sided with the liberal view of rights over the conservative view... you have today an almost unrestrained constitutional right to say whatever you want to say... On the other hand, you have virtually no constitutionally protected rights to acquire and own property or engage in voluntary exchange...
The case for freedom of thought is not stronger than, weaker than, or any different from the case for freedom of contract. Just as there are externalities in the world of commerce, so there are externalities in the world of ideas. Just as public goods exist in the economy, so there are public-good type ideas in the culture...
This helps us understand why consistent classical liberalism makes no distinction between freedom of thought and freedom of commerce. Both are subsumed under the general notion that people have a right to pursue their own happiness in any realm.
Any attempt to argue for differential rights fails on close examination. As noted, most liberals favor minimum wage laws that prevent common laborers from working if they cannot produce goods and services worth, say, $7.25 an hour. Yet these very same pundits would recoil in horror at the idea of a law which prevents people from being authors, playwrights and artists unless they can produce a minimum annual income. On what basis can one argue for economic freedom for musicians, painters and novelists while denying it to everyone else? There is no basis...
Freedom of speech is a meaningless right without the economic right to acquire space, buy a megaphone and invite others to hear your message. Freedom of press is a meaningless right if one does not have the economic right to buy paper, ink and printing presses. Freedom of association is a meaningless right if one cannot own property or rent property or otherwise acquire the right to use the premises where a group can assemble.
The idea that political rights are meaningless without economic rights was made abundantly clear in recent presidential elections in Russia, where international chess star Garry Kasparov sought to challenge President Vladimir Putin’s hand-picked successor. Russian law requires that each candidate be endorsed at a meeting of at least 500 citizens. Yet under pressure from Putin, every landlord in Moscow refused to rent Kasparov’s group a hall where they could hold a meeting. Unable to acquire the economic right to exercise his political right, Kasparov was forced to withdraw from the race...
A variation of modern liberalism is popular among faculties at college campuses. Its adherents reject not only the idea of individual economic rights, but also the idea of individual rights as such. Instead, they believe that people enjoy rights and incur obligations as members of groups...
Adherents of this view believe there is no such thing as an individual right to freedom of speech or expression or association. What rights or privileges you have depend on what group you are a member of, and the state may properly enforce such distinctions. For example, speech that is permissible if the speaker is black might be actionable if the speaker were white, Asian or Hispanic, depending on how the speech affects the sensibilities of other blacks. Or if blacks or Hispanics, say, form groups and exclude others, that is generally permissible; but the same actions by a group of whites or any of the European ethnic groups would probably be proscribed.
Assigning rights and responsibilities to groups rather than individuals is at the heart of collectivism. Political correctness is a sort of barnyard version of collectivism. In this sense, the type of liberalism that is popular on college campuses is far more consistent than mainstream liberalism. This version of liberalism rejects individualism as such.
Such consistency, however, exists only in the abstract. In practice, politically correct liberalism is anything but consistent. For example, the standard justification for giving group A more rights than group B is some injustice committed by B’s ancestors against A’s ancestors. Yet among the black students at Harvard University (all of whom presumably qualify for racial preferences), only one-third are unambiguous descendants of slaves. More than half are immigrants! Harvard and many other prestigious universities are assigning privileges to students not based on past grievances but on skin color alone...
Conservatives who hold [protectionist] beliefs view the world from the right in exactly the same way as some trade unionists view the world from the left. They believe that people are entitled to their jobs for no other reason than that’s what they happen to be doing. They are entitled to their current incomes for no other reason than that’s what they happen to be earning...
[Pat] Buchanan actually has a lot in common with the politically correct crowd on college campuses. He believes, for example, that Christians, Muslims and Jews should not have to tolerate irreverent insults to their beliefs and has even hinted that it may be permissible to outlaw blasphemy...
In American politics these days, it is increasingly common for those on the left to call themselves “progressives” rather than “liberals.” The term is apt in the sense that much of modern liberalism has its roots in the Progressive Era, which flourished in the first several decades of the 20th century. Interestingly, much of contemporary conservatism also finds its roots in that era. In fact it’s probably fair to say that while the best of modern liberal and conservative ideas are extensions of classical liberalism, their worst ideas are products of progressivism.
To many people, the term “Progressive Era” evokes fond caricatures of Teddy Roosevelt and such reforms as safe food, the elimination of child labor and the eight-hour work day. Yet real progressivesm was much more profound and far more sinister. Here is how Jonah Goldberg describes the World War I presidency of Woodrow Wilson:
The first appearance of modern totalitarianism in the Western world wasn’t in Italy or Germany but in the United States of America. How else would you describe a country where the world’s first modern propaganda ministry was established; political prisoners by the thousands were harassed, beaten, spied upon, and thrown in jail simply for expressing private opinions; the national leader accused foreigners and immigrants of injecting treasonous “poison” into the American bloodstream; newspapers and magazines were shut down for criticizing the government; nearly a hundred thousand government propaganda agents were sent out among the people to whip up support for the regime and its war; college professors imposed loyalty oaths on their colleagues; nearly a quarter-million goons were given legal authority to intimidate and beat “slackers” and dissenters; and leading artists and writers dedicated their crafts to proselytizing for the government?...
The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) — our first federal regulatory agency — was dominated by, and served the interest of, the railroads. Similarly, the regulatory apparatus created by the Meat Inspection Act of 1906 served the interests of large meat packers. Safety standards were invariably already being met — or were easily accommodated — by large companies. But the regulations forced many small enterprises out of business and made it difficult for new ones to enter the industry...
In general, there is nothing truly progressive about modern progressives. That is, nothing in their thinking is forward looking. Invariably, the social model they have in mind is in the distant past. Many explicitly admit they would like to resurrect Roosevelt’s New Deal.
In this sense, most people on the left who use the word “progressive” are actually reactionaries. And the problem is not only on the left. In general, the greatest intellectual danger we face is from reactionaries on the left and right.
Reactionaries (mainly on the left, but sometimes also on the right) want to freeze the economy — preserving the current allocation of jobs and the incomes that derive from those jobs. Although their current focus is on opposition to globalization and international trade, consistency requires them to oppose virtually all of the “creative destruction” that Joseph Shumpeter said was inevitable in any dynamic, capitalistic economy.
Reactionaries (mainly on the right, but sometimes also on the left) want to freeze the culture. They see new ideas, different religions and different cultures as threats to their world view. Rather than allow ideas, religions and mores to compete in a pluralistic, tolerant society, they want to use the power of government to force their ideas on others.
Against these threats to liberty, the basic classical liberal understanding of rights is a powerful defense"
L'origine de Bert
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Links - 7th September 2011
"Those who talk most about the blessings of marriage and the constancy of its vows are the very people who declare that if the chain were broken and the prisoners left free to choose, the whole social fabric would fly asunder. You cannot have the argument both ways. If the prisoner is happy, why lock him in? If he is not, why pretend that he is?" - George Bernard Shaw
Sounds like National Slavery
***
Keeping quiet allows intolerance to thrive - ""The trouble with us in the west is that . . . we succumb to a pious paralysis where we can't even say that we're superior to the Taliban"... Atheist Foundation members, invited to debate the existence of God with the Muslim Students Association, found the room segregated, men left, women right... An ex-Muslim, Hossain Salahuddin, remembers the audience as "very hostile . . . pretty nasty". A heckler shouting, "Islam will conquer the world", was cheered and a couple of the looser canons were ejected. The atheists were later escorted by security not just from the room but also from the campus... This stuff is not tolerable. To tolerate it is not pluralism but hypocrisy. Silence does not asphyxiate it, but lets it grow unchecked"
Headgear ban at NY amusement park sparks scuffles - "A ban on religious and other head coverings on rides at a suburban amusement park on Tuesday sparked scuffles leading to 15 arrests... Disputes broke out after women wearing traditional Muslim scarves called hijabs tried to get on rides that prohibit any head coverings for safety reasons, Westchester County officials said. The women were offered refunds. But then male and female visitors started to argue among themselves... Two park rangers who intervened were injured and were hospitalized... The tour operator, the Muslim American Society of New York, had been advised of the rule numerous times... He said scarves can become entangled in mechanical parts, choke riders or fly off and land in a ride's tracks
""She just wanted to get on a ride. That was it," Dena Meawad was quoted as saying. "It's clear, this all happened because we're Muslim""
Yo, Yenta! » Kippot Revolution - "When the powerful governing body of Florida’s high school athletics informed Weinbaum Yeshiva basketball coach Jon Kaweblum that the bobby pins Jewish athletes use to keep their yarmulkes pinned to their heads during games would be suddenly be considered a safety hazard... he could have called “foul!” The Yeshiva certainly had a case for religious discrimination, but instead of raising a big stink and threatening to secede from the organization, 26 year-old Kaweblum put his keppe to work to find a solution that wouldn’t punish the players."
'Harvard' Is Now Code for 'Effeminate' - "Harvard grad Mitt Romney took a shot at President Obama's foreign policy for being too ideologically compatible with "that Harvard faculty lounge." Romney must not have hated the faculty too much -- he graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School and in the top five percent of his class from Harvard Business School. It's tricky running a campaign knocking your opponent for being a well-educated rich person when you are also a well-educated rich person. So what can Romney do? Call Obama effeminate."
‘Torchwood’ Gives Glimpse of Eternal Life - NYTimes.com - "The problem is that our culture is based on our striving for immortality. It shapes what we do and what we believe; it has inspired us to found religions, write poems and build cities. If we were all immortal, the motor of civilization would sputter and stop... when faced with reminders of mortality, people would cling more fiercely to their beliefs and be more negative about those who threatened them"
Freedom For Yvonne, Germany's Runaway Cow: Search Is Called Off : The Two-Way - "Here's a rundown of the tools used to track this savvy cow: Hunters on a shoot-to-kill mission (since called off); Search parties of volunteers trying to find the cow before the hunters did; Helicopters using thermal imaging cameras; A reward of 10,000 euros ($14,533), offered by Bild, a German tabloid; Entreaties delivered via animal psychic, who relayed that Yvonne "didn't feel ready" to return to the world of humans. Bovine lures, including an (allegedly) attractive bull ox, her "sister cow" Waltraud, and Yvonne's calf, Friesi."
The freefall of Japan’s anime industry
So You Want to Be an American: 5 Circles of Immigration Hell
Daily Commutes Tougher on Women - "Even though women on average commuted fewer minutes each day than men, more commuting equated to lower well-being scores. Among both sexes, though, people with more active forms of commuting (driving versus taking the bus) had lower well-being scores."
I could see how one can claim that making women drive is sexist
Do nice guys finish last? They certainly are a distant second when it comes to earnings - ""Men who are one standard deviation [roughly 20 percentage points] below the mean on agreeableness earn an average of 18.31% ($9,772) more than men one standard deviation above the mean on agreeableness. Meanwhile, the 'disagreeableness premium' for women was only 5.47% ($1,828). Thus, the income premium for disagreeableness is more than three times stronger for men than for women.""
Unusual: Boy dies after masturbating 42 times
'PE showed strong support for PAP' - "Dr Yaacob disagreed with suggestions that Dr Tony Tan's razor-thin winning margin of 0.34 per cent reflected a political divide among Singaporeans. Pointing out that the combined vote share for Dr Tony Tan and Dr Tan Cheng Bock - both former PAP MPs - was about 70 per cent, Dr Yaacob said: "There's strong support for the party in that sense""
Tony Tan runs as independent presidential candidate - June 23rd
Why opposition MPs can't be advisers to grassroots bodies - "Grassroots advisers are required to help the Government connect with people and help promote government policies and programmes such as anti-dengue and active ageing. Hence, the Government has to appoint grassroots advisers who support its programmes and can play this role well. Opposition MPs cannot be expected to do this and thus cannot become advisers to GROs... Chief Executive Director People's Association"
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
Devise a more robust process - "I was very concerned that the outcome [of the Presidential Election] would be anything other than what it was eventually. If things had turned out differently, it could well have spelt the beginning of the end of Singapore's success story. Singapore's president must have the right motivation, personal values, integrity, character and courage. Much as it is almost impossible to ensure that all eligible candidates have these desired qualities, we should at least try by putting in place a more robust process. I would dread to go through another election of this nature if the process remains as it is - there is just too much at stake"
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... (the other letters are also as FAIL)
One comment: "the results shows that majprity singaporeans are sensible and vote with their heads & not hearts. it's easy for someone to pop-up once every 4 or 5 years and promise goodies which they may not be able to fulfill. what have TJS done for the people before the May GE & Aug PE? and yet he got 25% of the vote. it's a dangerous sign for singapore. we need to protect the future of our childrens.
i am glad that most singaporeans were wise enough not to be swayed by comments in social media made by unknown and faceless beings. it's easy for our enemies to spread dissent and chaos through irresponsible postings.
if you have a problem go see your MP!!! i hope the good will always previals against the evil or else singapore will be doomed." (this came from an anonymous account)
It's Time To Kill The Electric Car, Drive A Stake Through Its Heart And Burn The Corpse - "Any alternative that can't be deployed at relevant scale isn’t an alternative at all. It’s merely an expensive distraction for the masses, a bit like the circus in ancient Rome. Once you understand that metal supplies are far more constrained than energy supplies, every evaluation of electric drive becomes a simple exercise in optimizing the fuel savings from each unit of metal used... Using batteries to enable energy efficiency technologies like recuperative braking is sensible conservation. Using batteries as fuel tank replacements is a zero-sum game that consumes huge quantities of metals for the sole purpose of substituting electricity for oil. Since roughly 45% of domestic electric power is from coal fired plants and that percentage will decline very slowly, the only rational conclusion is that electric drive is unconscionable waste and pollution masquerading as conservation"
Camp To Be Held For Young Virgins To Have ‘First Experience’ - "The camp will run for two days and three nights and is directed toward virgin college students who wish to learn about, and experience, an adult sex life. During the camp attendees will be randomly partnered up with a participant of the opposite sex to have their first experience with... Up until now, the focus of White Hands’ activities has been to provide ‘ejaculation assistance’ to patients with cerebral palsy and other disabilities who are unable to properly masturbate for themselves"
"old and bullshit news
a scam that never happened"
Chickens Suit
The Paradox of Meritocracy in Organizations - "When an organization is explicitly presented as meritocratic, individuals in managerial positions favor a male employee over an equally qualified female employee by awarding him a larger monetary reward"
German city introduces "tax meters" for prostitutes
Interview with James Ong from Frolick - "We were Chinese High boys and not very creative"
Intensive farming is found to be better than organic methods for protecting the environment - "Farming systems such as organic that seek to share land between crops and wildlife inflict greater damage on biodiversity than conventional approaches that maximise crop yields, a major study has revealed. Such “land-sharing” methods typically deliver lower yields than intensive farming and they require much more land to produce the same amount of food, scientists at the University of Cambridge and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds found. This means that important wilderness habitats must be destroyed to create extra farmland, which easily outweighs any small benefits of making fields friendlier to wildlife."
A broken heart for the social media community - "My friend Trey Pennington, one of the most popular figures on the social web, committed suicide today... Trey was simply one of the nicest and most generous people on the planet. Even when the chemicals in his brain were relentlessly pushing him into overwhelming depression he was thinking of others. They say that suicide is a selfish decision. It doesn’t make sense. It’s totally confusing. Trey? Selfish? No, Some of his last Facebook posts and tweets didn’t make sense either. They were not messages from a man about to kill himself, were they?... I’m angry that the chemicals won. That they wouldn’t let him alone long enough to get one moment of clarity"
Attributing decisions that you agree with to Free Will and Clarity, and decisions that you don't to Chemicals is not just inconsistent but insulting to the person concerned
Sounds like National Slavery
***
Keeping quiet allows intolerance to thrive - ""The trouble with us in the west is that . . . we succumb to a pious paralysis where we can't even say that we're superior to the Taliban"... Atheist Foundation members, invited to debate the existence of God with the Muslim Students Association, found the room segregated, men left, women right... An ex-Muslim, Hossain Salahuddin, remembers the audience as "very hostile . . . pretty nasty". A heckler shouting, "Islam will conquer the world", was cheered and a couple of the looser canons were ejected. The atheists were later escorted by security not just from the room but also from the campus... This stuff is not tolerable. To tolerate it is not pluralism but hypocrisy. Silence does not asphyxiate it, but lets it grow unchecked"
Headgear ban at NY amusement park sparks scuffles - "A ban on religious and other head coverings on rides at a suburban amusement park on Tuesday sparked scuffles leading to 15 arrests... Disputes broke out after women wearing traditional Muslim scarves called hijabs tried to get on rides that prohibit any head coverings for safety reasons, Westchester County officials said. The women were offered refunds. But then male and female visitors started to argue among themselves... Two park rangers who intervened were injured and were hospitalized... The tour operator, the Muslim American Society of New York, had been advised of the rule numerous times... He said scarves can become entangled in mechanical parts, choke riders or fly off and land in a ride's tracks
""She just wanted to get on a ride. That was it," Dena Meawad was quoted as saying. "It's clear, this all happened because we're Muslim""
Yo, Yenta! » Kippot Revolution - "When the powerful governing body of Florida’s high school athletics informed Weinbaum Yeshiva basketball coach Jon Kaweblum that the bobby pins Jewish athletes use to keep their yarmulkes pinned to their heads during games would be suddenly be considered a safety hazard... he could have called “foul!” The Yeshiva certainly had a case for religious discrimination, but instead of raising a big stink and threatening to secede from the organization, 26 year-old Kaweblum put his keppe to work to find a solution that wouldn’t punish the players."
'Harvard' Is Now Code for 'Effeminate' - "Harvard grad Mitt Romney took a shot at President Obama's foreign policy for being too ideologically compatible with "that Harvard faculty lounge." Romney must not have hated the faculty too much -- he graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School and in the top five percent of his class from Harvard Business School. It's tricky running a campaign knocking your opponent for being a well-educated rich person when you are also a well-educated rich person. So what can Romney do? Call Obama effeminate."
‘Torchwood’ Gives Glimpse of Eternal Life - NYTimes.com - "The problem is that our culture is based on our striving for immortality. It shapes what we do and what we believe; it has inspired us to found religions, write poems and build cities. If we were all immortal, the motor of civilization would sputter and stop... when faced with reminders of mortality, people would cling more fiercely to their beliefs and be more negative about those who threatened them"
Freedom For Yvonne, Germany's Runaway Cow: Search Is Called Off : The Two-Way - "Here's a rundown of the tools used to track this savvy cow: Hunters on a shoot-to-kill mission (since called off); Search parties of volunteers trying to find the cow before the hunters did; Helicopters using thermal imaging cameras; A reward of 10,000 euros ($14,533), offered by Bild, a German tabloid; Entreaties delivered via animal psychic, who relayed that Yvonne "didn't feel ready" to return to the world of humans. Bovine lures, including an (allegedly) attractive bull ox, her "sister cow" Waltraud, and Yvonne's calf, Friesi."
The freefall of Japan’s anime industry
So You Want to Be an American: 5 Circles of Immigration Hell
Daily Commutes Tougher on Women - "Even though women on average commuted fewer minutes each day than men, more commuting equated to lower well-being scores. Among both sexes, though, people with more active forms of commuting (driving versus taking the bus) had lower well-being scores."
I could see how one can claim that making women drive is sexist
Do nice guys finish last? They certainly are a distant second when it comes to earnings - ""Men who are one standard deviation [roughly 20 percentage points] below the mean on agreeableness earn an average of 18.31% ($9,772) more than men one standard deviation above the mean on agreeableness. Meanwhile, the 'disagreeableness premium' for women was only 5.47% ($1,828). Thus, the income premium for disagreeableness is more than three times stronger for men than for women.""
Unusual: Boy dies after masturbating 42 times
'PE showed strong support for PAP' - "Dr Yaacob disagreed with suggestions that Dr Tony Tan's razor-thin winning margin of 0.34 per cent reflected a political divide among Singaporeans. Pointing out that the combined vote share for Dr Tony Tan and Dr Tan Cheng Bock - both former PAP MPs - was about 70 per cent, Dr Yaacob said: "There's strong support for the party in that sense""
Tony Tan runs as independent presidential candidate - June 23rd
Why opposition MPs can't be advisers to grassroots bodies - "Grassroots advisers are required to help the Government connect with people and help promote government policies and programmes such as anti-dengue and active ageing. Hence, the Government has to appoint grassroots advisers who support its programmes and can play this role well. Opposition MPs cannot be expected to do this and thus cannot become advisers to GROs... Chief Executive Director People's Association"
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
Devise a more robust process - "I was very concerned that the outcome [of the Presidential Election] would be anything other than what it was eventually. If things had turned out differently, it could well have spelt the beginning of the end of Singapore's success story. Singapore's president must have the right motivation, personal values, integrity, character and courage. Much as it is almost impossible to ensure that all eligible candidates have these desired qualities, we should at least try by putting in place a more robust process. I would dread to go through another election of this nature if the process remains as it is - there is just too much at stake"
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... (the other letters are also as FAIL)
One comment: "the results shows that majprity singaporeans are sensible and vote with their heads & not hearts. it's easy for someone to pop-up once every 4 or 5 years and promise goodies which they may not be able to fulfill. what have TJS done for the people before the May GE & Aug PE? and yet he got 25% of the vote. it's a dangerous sign for singapore. we need to protect the future of our childrens.
i am glad that most singaporeans were wise enough not to be swayed by comments in social media made by unknown and faceless beings. it's easy for our enemies to spread dissent and chaos through irresponsible postings.
if you have a problem go see your MP!!! i hope the good will always previals against the evil or else singapore will be doomed." (this came from an anonymous account)
It's Time To Kill The Electric Car, Drive A Stake Through Its Heart And Burn The Corpse - "Any alternative that can't be deployed at relevant scale isn’t an alternative at all. It’s merely an expensive distraction for the masses, a bit like the circus in ancient Rome. Once you understand that metal supplies are far more constrained than energy supplies, every evaluation of electric drive becomes a simple exercise in optimizing the fuel savings from each unit of metal used... Using batteries to enable energy efficiency technologies like recuperative braking is sensible conservation. Using batteries as fuel tank replacements is a zero-sum game that consumes huge quantities of metals for the sole purpose of substituting electricity for oil. Since roughly 45% of domestic electric power is from coal fired plants and that percentage will decline very slowly, the only rational conclusion is that electric drive is unconscionable waste and pollution masquerading as conservation"
Camp To Be Held For Young Virgins To Have ‘First Experience’ - "The camp will run for two days and three nights and is directed toward virgin college students who wish to learn about, and experience, an adult sex life. During the camp attendees will be randomly partnered up with a participant of the opposite sex to have their first experience with... Up until now, the focus of White Hands’ activities has been to provide ‘ejaculation assistance’ to patients with cerebral palsy and other disabilities who are unable to properly masturbate for themselves"
"old and bullshit news
a scam that never happened"
Chickens Suit
The Paradox of Meritocracy in Organizations - "When an organization is explicitly presented as meritocratic, individuals in managerial positions favor a male employee over an equally qualified female employee by awarding him a larger monetary reward"
German city introduces "tax meters" for prostitutes
Interview with James Ong from Frolick - "We were Chinese High boys and not very creative"
Intensive farming is found to be better than organic methods for protecting the environment - "Farming systems such as organic that seek to share land between crops and wildlife inflict greater damage on biodiversity than conventional approaches that maximise crop yields, a major study has revealed. Such “land-sharing” methods typically deliver lower yields than intensive farming and they require much more land to produce the same amount of food, scientists at the University of Cambridge and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds found. This means that important wilderness habitats must be destroyed to create extra farmland, which easily outweighs any small benefits of making fields friendlier to wildlife."
A broken heart for the social media community - "My friend Trey Pennington, one of the most popular figures on the social web, committed suicide today... Trey was simply one of the nicest and most generous people on the planet. Even when the chemicals in his brain were relentlessly pushing him into overwhelming depression he was thinking of others. They say that suicide is a selfish decision. It doesn’t make sense. It’s totally confusing. Trey? Selfish? No, Some of his last Facebook posts and tweets didn’t make sense either. They were not messages from a man about to kill himself, were they?... I’m angry that the chemicals won. That they wouldn’t let him alone long enough to get one moment of clarity"
Attributing decisions that you agree with to Free Will and Clarity, and decisions that you don't to Chemicals is not just inconsistent but insulting to the person concerned
Post ID: 8814710924262803328
France/Spain 2011 - Day 4, Part 7 - Paris
France/Spain 2011
Day 4 - 20th March - Paris (Part 7)
Fontaine des Innocents
The fountain reminded me of Rome
Skateboarding around Fontaine des Innocents
Fontaine des Innocents
A wonderfully muddy photo at ISO 100, 1/105 from the Fuji FinePix F300EXR
Side of Fontaine des Innocents
"Mona Lisait" bookstore (it's a pun meaning "Mona Read")
"Prix Massacrés"
A very colourful expression
I don't know why I took this. It seemed a good idea at the time.
Semi-elaborate métro entrance of Étienne Marcel
Tour Jean Sans Peur: this lone house is another remnant of medieval Paris (15th c.)
Fuzzy dog
"Euro Fried Chicken Halal"
In one sense they're right: Turkish food *does* unite Europe
Eglise Saint Leu Saint Gilles
"les chaueeures confortable qui vous permet de marcher mieux"
At first I thought this was a welcome call for comfortable footwear. Then I noticed the glaring grammar and spelling mistakes. Perhaps this is a commentary on one of the many follies of women?
I was going for a concert, so I popped into a restaurant for dinner.
Soup aux légumes maison (House Vegetable Soup) 5,8€ (it wasn't worth it), Kir à la pêche 4€
The bread was definitely not crusty and a little stale (this was not the first or even second time a bistro had given me non-crusty bread; it'd happened the previous night but I hadn't been so hungry then). The soup was alright
Moules Marinières (white wine mussels)
The portion was very generous for 11€ (despite the small mussels). The taste was okay (though the liquid was like brine) but there was a bit of sand (I told the waiter and he said "quelquefois, ça arrive". It doesn't happen even sometimes if you're a Kualit Establishment!). Of course I asked for mayonnaise and was charged an amazing1,5€ for it.
At first I ordered a Charlotte à la mangue (Mango Charlotte) which was recommended but since the mussels were disappointing and more importantly I was quite full despite lunch being 500ml of Coke (I didn't finish my food) I managed to cancel it.
The restaurant, "Au P'tit Boulevard", was not crowded but it was a bit early (before 7) and it was on the way to the concert so I had risked it. It dind't look like a tourist restaurant (e.g. the name).
Tour St Jacques at night
Pillar just after bridge near Conciergerie and Notre Dame
My concert was at Sainte-Chapelle. It was a really tiny concert with few rows (7 rows of 6 seats each - I was in row 6), the tiniest I'd been to there (well, I'd been there maybe twice). Bach's Cello Suites were not popular. On the upside, this meant the 25€ ticket was no different from the 40€ or 35€ (or 30€, I forget) one. Actually in reflection that was still quite expensive, but I took it as a contribution to the arts and the upkeep of Sainte-Chapelle (and hopefully not so much the pockets of the event management company).
Pre-concert atmosphere
Extract 1 from Bach's Cello Suites
The acoustics worked. I think because there was less stone than in a normal church.
Extract 2 from Bach's Cello Suites
He used the famous prelude for his encore. Somehow I was expecting that.
I was intending to go to another concert the next day, but I realised I couldn't keep it up 3 days in a row - whether for concerts or other nocturnal activities. Also I had a spot of flu.
Pillar just after bridge near Conciergerie and Notre Dame
Returning to the Latin Quarter I noticed everyone was congregating at "Aup'titgrèc" (a presumably Greek place).
Aup'titgrèc
On closer inspection the menu wasn't so Greek. Notice also the Halal options (given that they serve pork and alcohol, though, this is presumably not a "100% Halal" outlet. Maybe it's a 50% Halal one)
My favourite part of it all was that it was just beside a Turkish shop.
Normally I am wary of any place the Japanese endorse, but Routard endorsed this place also (albeit in 1994/1995). It also closed at 12:30am. Ahh, the student crowd!
Lonely eating
A very cheap set menu of a restaurant along the street. The restaurants there were all very cheap.
About Rue Mouffetard
"No peeping"
When I got back to the hostel I found out that they were out of linen. Which didn't really bother me that much, but it was a good excuse to run out in pyjamas, sandals, a fleece and a jacket for a crêpe.
While there I asked one man at the counter if they had Souvlaki and Gyros and he said they didn't. He said he was not of Greek origin, and that people preferred crêpes to gyros.
Banana Nutella (1€ for the banana)
It was not freshly made (a premade one was used) but the edge was still slightly crispy and the Nutella was very generous. I suppose compromises must be made to accommodate student budgets (maybe that's why Routard never returned to endorse it).
There's a 183€ fine for not clearing dog shit. Very good.
Apparently African people don't eat fruit traditionally.
There were a helluva lotta PRCs (or people with PRC accents) in Paris. I think they were the largest non-French speaking linguistic population, outnumbering even Americans.
Day 4 - 20th March - Paris (Part 7)
Fontaine des Innocents
The fountain reminded me of Rome
Skateboarding around Fontaine des Innocents
Fontaine des Innocents
A wonderfully muddy photo at ISO 100, 1/105 from the Fuji FinePix F300EXR
Side of Fontaine des Innocents
"Mona Lisait" bookstore (it's a pun meaning "Mona Read")
"Prix Massacrés"
A very colourful expression
I don't know why I took this. It seemed a good idea at the time.
Semi-elaborate métro entrance of Étienne Marcel
Tour Jean Sans Peur: this lone house is another remnant of medieval Paris (15th c.)
Fuzzy dog
"Euro Fried Chicken Halal"
In one sense they're right: Turkish food *does* unite Europe
Eglise Saint Leu Saint Gilles
"les chaueeures confortable qui vous permet de marcher mieux"
At first I thought this was a welcome call for comfortable footwear. Then I noticed the glaring grammar and spelling mistakes. Perhaps this is a commentary on one of the many follies of women?
I was going for a concert, so I popped into a restaurant for dinner.
Soup aux légumes maison (House Vegetable Soup) 5,8€ (it wasn't worth it), Kir à la pêche 4€
The bread was definitely not crusty and a little stale (this was not the first or even second time a bistro had given me non-crusty bread; it'd happened the previous night but I hadn't been so hungry then). The soup was alright
Moules Marinières (white wine mussels)
The portion was very generous for 11€ (despite the small mussels). The taste was okay (though the liquid was like brine) but there was a bit of sand (I told the waiter and he said "quelquefois, ça arrive". It doesn't happen even sometimes if you're a Kualit Establishment!). Of course I asked for mayonnaise and was charged an amazing1,5€ for it.
At first I ordered a Charlotte à la mangue (Mango Charlotte) which was recommended but since the mussels were disappointing and more importantly I was quite full despite lunch being 500ml of Coke (I didn't finish my food) I managed to cancel it.
The restaurant, "Au P'tit Boulevard", was not crowded but it was a bit early (before 7) and it was on the way to the concert so I had risked it. It dind't look like a tourist restaurant (e.g. the name).
Tour St Jacques at night
Pillar just after bridge near Conciergerie and Notre Dame
My concert was at Sainte-Chapelle. It was a really tiny concert with few rows (7 rows of 6 seats each - I was in row 6), the tiniest I'd been to there (well, I'd been there maybe twice). Bach's Cello Suites were not popular. On the upside, this meant the 25€ ticket was no different from the 40€ or 35€ (or 30€, I forget) one. Actually in reflection that was still quite expensive, but I took it as a contribution to the arts and the upkeep of Sainte-Chapelle (and hopefully not so much the pockets of the event management company).
Pre-concert atmosphere
Extract 1 from Bach's Cello Suites
The acoustics worked. I think because there was less stone than in a normal church.
Extract 2 from Bach's Cello Suites
He used the famous prelude for his encore. Somehow I was expecting that.
I was intending to go to another concert the next day, but I realised I couldn't keep it up 3 days in a row - whether for concerts or other nocturnal activities. Also I had a spot of flu.
Pillar just after bridge near Conciergerie and Notre Dame
Returning to the Latin Quarter I noticed everyone was congregating at "Aup'titgrèc" (a presumably Greek place).
Aup'titgrèc
On closer inspection the menu wasn't so Greek. Notice also the Halal options (given that they serve pork and alcohol, though, this is presumably not a "100% Halal" outlet. Maybe it's a 50% Halal one)
My favourite part of it all was that it was just beside a Turkish shop.
Normally I am wary of any place the Japanese endorse, but Routard endorsed this place also (albeit in 1994/1995). It also closed at 12:30am. Ahh, the student crowd!
Lonely eating
A very cheap set menu of a restaurant along the street. The restaurants there were all very cheap.
About Rue Mouffetard
"No peeping"
When I got back to the hostel I found out that they were out of linen. Which didn't really bother me that much, but it was a good excuse to run out in pyjamas, sandals, a fleece and a jacket for a crêpe.
While there I asked one man at the counter if they had Souvlaki and Gyros and he said they didn't. He said he was not of Greek origin, and that people preferred crêpes to gyros.
Banana Nutella (1€ for the banana)
It was not freshly made (a premade one was used) but the edge was still slightly crispy and the Nutella was very generous. I suppose compromises must be made to accommodate student budgets (maybe that's why Routard never returned to endorse it).
There's a 183€ fine for not clearing dog shit. Very good.
Apparently African people don't eat fruit traditionally.
There were a helluva lotta PRCs (or people with PRC accents) in Paris. I think they were the largest non-French speaking linguistic population, outnumbering even Americans.
Post ID: 1422422032478984638
Monday, September 05, 2011
Links - 5th September 2011
"It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." - John Andrew Holmes
***
Evidence On The High-income Laffer Curve From Six Decades Of Tax Reform - "A burgeoning literature in public finance seeks to estimate the impact of marginal tax rates on the behavior of the rich. This literature argues that by leading people to shift income out of taxable form when rates rise, high marginal rates and progressivitiy in the tax code can create a substantial deadweight loss while raising little revenue, even if the elasticity of labor supply is zero. The literature has used natural experiment methods on data from the tax cuts of the 1980s and estimated a large behavioral response of high-income taxpayers. In this paper, I use the same methods as this literature but examine tax changes from previous decades that generated the same type of tax variation as the tax cuts of the 1980s but with potentially fewer, or at least different, problems of spurious correlation. The evidence from both aggregate cross-sectional data on tax returns and panel data on executive compensation indicates that the responsiveness of high-income people seems to be relatively modest in almost all time periods except the 1980s. The lowest estimates of the elasticity based on the 1980s data exceed even the highest estimates from data on any previous tax change"
Translation: The evidence from the 1980s is that tax cuts did spur the rich to work more (or at least to declare more income on their tax returns), but that's because the marginal tax rates were really high in the 1980s
Homeless man who befriended banker begs to pay for her hotel after she loses her job and house - "Curtis Jackson is paying for the woman to stay in a hotel whilst she gets her life back together because she once showed him kindness. Every day he trawls the streets of Chicago begging for money just so she can have a bed - whilst he sleeps on the streets. Over the last five months he has raised $9,000 (£5,300) and given it all to his new friend. Until December, the 39-year-old woman, who has not been named, had a steady job at a bank and a suburban home, where she would regularly give Mr Jackson some food and spend time with him"
EpicStep › SWAAY's Sex Work Definition Billboard - "In response to increasing pressures from anti-sex worker campaigns this summer, SWAAY would like our friends and allies to help us put up what would be the first sex workers' rights billboard in America. We're starting with answering the first question: what is sex work?"
Obama revealed: A moderate Republican - "President Obama, if you look closely at his positions, is a moderate Republican of the early 1990s. And the Republican Party he’s facing has abandoned many of its best ideas in its effort to oppose him."
Canadian Woman Hits Moose, on Way to See Sister, Who Hit Moose
Many Health-Care Workers Have Turned to Alternative Medicine - US News and World Report - "Three out of every four U.S. health-care workers use some form of complementary or alternative medicine or practice to help stay healthy, a new report shows. What's more, doctors, nurses and their assistants, health technicians, and healthcare administrators were actually more likely than the general public to use any number of wide-ranging alternative medicine options, including massage, yoga, acupuncture, Pilates or herbal medicines... "These results are not surprising, as in fact we've had similar findings looking at health-care practitioner attitudes and uses regarding dietary supplements""
High-speed rail: Tres grand vitesse, tres grand cost overrun | The Economist - "Major infrastructure projects around the world, whether they involve rails, roads or "fixed-links" (airports, bridges, tunnels, etc), usually run way over budget... if we were going to cancel infrastructure projects when they start to run more than 25% over budget, we'd never build any infrastructure"
$1.5 billion cost overrun on Expressway. Sinkie Taxpayers have to pay - at least no one commented "uniquely singapore" or "only in singapore"
Star Wars Meets Disney? The Muppets? This Continues To Please Me.
Don't Piss Off the Judge - "An actual judicial order issued last week by a federal judge in Austin, Texas...
You are invited to a kindergarten party on THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 2 of the United States Courthouse, 200 W. Eighth Street, Austin, Texas.
The party will feature many exciting and informative lessons, including:
How to telephone and communicate with a lawyer
How to enter into reasonable agreements about deposition dates
How to limit depositions to reasonable subject matter
Why it is neither cute nor clever to attempt to quash a subpoena for technical failures of service when notice is reasonably given; and
An advanced seminar on not wasting the time of a busy federal judge and his staff because you are unable to practice law at the level of a first year law student."
The 5 Most Depraved Sex Scenes Implied by 'Harry Potter' - "#5. Dolores Umbridge Gets Gang Raped by Centaurs
#4. Magical Date-Rape Drugs Are Legal and Sold in the Open
#3. Polyjuice Potion and Temporary Gender Reassignment
2. Dumbledore's Brother Got Busted for Bestiality
#1. Hagrid's Father Banged a Giant"
World survey links religion and happiness - "In societies under stress, those who are religious outnumber – and are happier than – their nonreligious counterparts. Where peace and plenty are the norm, however, religious participation is lower and people are happier whether or not they are religious"
S’pore’s private education in a tizzy - "“They are just about regulations and not about quality education,” quipped a US citizen turned PR who once taught in various private schools in Singapore before throwing up her hand to quit the private education industry in the republic... Many legitimate, “bona fide schools” – those seemingly dubbed as “above board” – FMT learns, have yet to receive word from the body over the outcome of their EduTrust or Enhance Regulatory Framework (ERF) applications (ERF is only issued to schools that want to recruit local students). Just as unfathomable, is the “unhindered” manner in which EduTrust and ERF were awarded to those who have had police reports and other reported acts of malfeasance preferred against them"
cable 09SINGAPORE61, JOURNALISTS FRUSTRATED BY PRESS CONTROLS - "Singapore journalists say they are increasingly frustrated with GOS-imposed limits on their domestic reporting. Political leaders put pressure on the Straits Times (ST) staff to ensure that the paper's domestic coverage follows the government line. Reporters say they are eager to produce more investigative and critical reporting, but they are stifled by editors who have been groomed to tow the line"
Time for Chua Chin Hon to find a new job (Lynn Lee already has). Way to go Wikileaks, sabotaging dissidents! I hope someone leaks a sex video of Julian Assange and all his private details and information
Unredacted WikiLeaks Cables Published - WSJ.com - "The fracas has put WikiLeaks in the position of decrying what it called the "reckless" and "negligent" disclosure of information—something WikiLeaks' critics have long accused it of doing itself"
Freakonomics » Congratulations, You’ve Lost! How Slot Machines Disguise Losses as Wins
Products With Unintentionally Vulgar Sticker Placements
Mr Brown: (I assure you, as a former retail staff, these were not unintentional)
SINGAPORE AIRPORT "CORPORATIZED"; LEE FAMILY AND TEMASEK INFLUENCE STRENGTHENED - "Singapore has "corporatized" Changi International Airport in a move that will consolidate control of the domestic aviation sector in the hands of sovereign wealth fund Temasek and the Lee family"
PROMOTING MAINSTREAM ISLAM: THE SINGAPORE MODEL - "Muslims MPs told us members of the community will report to them when Islamic clerics deviate from the official Friday sermon, and MUIS officials will then remind the imam to deliver the prepared text... Many Muslim journalists and community leaders have told us that this monitoring makes them reluctant to criticize the government. They fear government reprisals, such as a defamation suit or detention under Singapore's Internal Security Act (ISA) for fomenting racial tension. The immediate past-president of MUIS told us that he feared being "blacklisted" after he argued at a closed-door session that the GOS deters Muslim challenges to the government by keeping the Muslim elite busy with social welfare work; a listener reported his comments to the GOS, which then "requested" a written text of his presentation... This GOS effort to promote its version of "progressive" Islam that supports the existing social and political order is an example of the PAP government's top-down social engineering. This approach seeks to ensure the PAP's continued dominance"
Maintaining racial-religious harmony hurts religion
Odd Numbers are Male Even Numbers are Female
Recruitment controversy: More to hiring staff than just eye candy - "Mr James Ong, director of local frozen yogurt chain Frolick, said it is a 'coincidence' that his front-line staff - made up of women aged between 17 and 22 - are generally young and pretty."
This is 1 Nation, Most Expensive Liquid - "Ink costs more than human blood"
Will Kate Winslet's Anti-Cosmetic Surgery League catch on? - "It is all very well when you look like one of the founding members of the British Anti-Cosmetic Surgery League, but not every woman glances in the mirror and sees Rachel Weisz staring back at them"
Download.com wraps downloads in bloatware, lies about motivations
Effects of Toxoplasma on Human Behavior - "Up to 80% of the population may be infected, depending on eating habits and exposure to cats... the men were more likely to disregard rules and were more expedient, suspicious, jealous, and dogmatic... [Women] were more warm hearted, outgoing, conscientious, persistent, and moralistic. Both men and women had significantly higher apprehension (factor O) compared with the uninfected controls... oxoplasma-infected subjects have a 2.65 times higher risk of traffic accidents than Toxoplasma-free subjects... Humans are dead-end hosts for T. gondii, because the chances that a human being will be eaten by a feline are infinitesimally small"
What do I say? Cats are evil
***
Evidence On The High-income Laffer Curve From Six Decades Of Tax Reform - "A burgeoning literature in public finance seeks to estimate the impact of marginal tax rates on the behavior of the rich. This literature argues that by leading people to shift income out of taxable form when rates rise, high marginal rates and progressivitiy in the tax code can create a substantial deadweight loss while raising little revenue, even if the elasticity of labor supply is zero. The literature has used natural experiment methods on data from the tax cuts of the 1980s and estimated a large behavioral response of high-income taxpayers. In this paper, I use the same methods as this literature but examine tax changes from previous decades that generated the same type of tax variation as the tax cuts of the 1980s but with potentially fewer, or at least different, problems of spurious correlation. The evidence from both aggregate cross-sectional data on tax returns and panel data on executive compensation indicates that the responsiveness of high-income people seems to be relatively modest in almost all time periods except the 1980s. The lowest estimates of the elasticity based on the 1980s data exceed even the highest estimates from data on any previous tax change"
Translation: The evidence from the 1980s is that tax cuts did spur the rich to work more (or at least to declare more income on their tax returns), but that's because the marginal tax rates were really high in the 1980s
Homeless man who befriended banker begs to pay for her hotel after she loses her job and house - "Curtis Jackson is paying for the woman to stay in a hotel whilst she gets her life back together because she once showed him kindness. Every day he trawls the streets of Chicago begging for money just so she can have a bed - whilst he sleeps on the streets. Over the last five months he has raised $9,000 (£5,300) and given it all to his new friend. Until December, the 39-year-old woman, who has not been named, had a steady job at a bank and a suburban home, where she would regularly give Mr Jackson some food and spend time with him"
EpicStep › SWAAY's Sex Work Definition Billboard - "In response to increasing pressures from anti-sex worker campaigns this summer, SWAAY would like our friends and allies to help us put up what would be the first sex workers' rights billboard in America. We're starting with answering the first question: what is sex work?"
Obama revealed: A moderate Republican - "President Obama, if you look closely at his positions, is a moderate Republican of the early 1990s. And the Republican Party he’s facing has abandoned many of its best ideas in its effort to oppose him."
Canadian Woman Hits Moose, on Way to See Sister, Who Hit Moose
Many Health-Care Workers Have Turned to Alternative Medicine - US News and World Report - "Three out of every four U.S. health-care workers use some form of complementary or alternative medicine or practice to help stay healthy, a new report shows. What's more, doctors, nurses and their assistants, health technicians, and healthcare administrators were actually more likely than the general public to use any number of wide-ranging alternative medicine options, including massage, yoga, acupuncture, Pilates or herbal medicines... "These results are not surprising, as in fact we've had similar findings looking at health-care practitioner attitudes and uses regarding dietary supplements""
High-speed rail: Tres grand vitesse, tres grand cost overrun | The Economist - "Major infrastructure projects around the world, whether they involve rails, roads or "fixed-links" (airports, bridges, tunnels, etc), usually run way over budget... if we were going to cancel infrastructure projects when they start to run more than 25% over budget, we'd never build any infrastructure"
$1.5 billion cost overrun on Expressway. Sinkie Taxpayers have to pay - at least no one commented "uniquely singapore" or "only in singapore"
Star Wars Meets Disney? The Muppets? This Continues To Please Me.
Don't Piss Off the Judge - "An actual judicial order issued last week by a federal judge in Austin, Texas...
You are invited to a kindergarten party on THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 2 of the United States Courthouse, 200 W. Eighth Street, Austin, Texas.
The party will feature many exciting and informative lessons, including:
How to telephone and communicate with a lawyer
How to enter into reasonable agreements about deposition dates
How to limit depositions to reasonable subject matter
Why it is neither cute nor clever to attempt to quash a subpoena for technical failures of service when notice is reasonably given; and
An advanced seminar on not wasting the time of a busy federal judge and his staff because you are unable to practice law at the level of a first year law student."
The 5 Most Depraved Sex Scenes Implied by 'Harry Potter' - "#5. Dolores Umbridge Gets Gang Raped by Centaurs
#4. Magical Date-Rape Drugs Are Legal and Sold in the Open
#3. Polyjuice Potion and Temporary Gender Reassignment
2. Dumbledore's Brother Got Busted for Bestiality
#1. Hagrid's Father Banged a Giant"
World survey links religion and happiness - "In societies under stress, those who are religious outnumber – and are happier than – their nonreligious counterparts. Where peace and plenty are the norm, however, religious participation is lower and people are happier whether or not they are religious"
S’pore’s private education in a tizzy - "“They are just about regulations and not about quality education,” quipped a US citizen turned PR who once taught in various private schools in Singapore before throwing up her hand to quit the private education industry in the republic... Many legitimate, “bona fide schools” – those seemingly dubbed as “above board” – FMT learns, have yet to receive word from the body over the outcome of their EduTrust or Enhance Regulatory Framework (ERF) applications (ERF is only issued to schools that want to recruit local students). Just as unfathomable, is the “unhindered” manner in which EduTrust and ERF were awarded to those who have had police reports and other reported acts of malfeasance preferred against them"
cable 09SINGAPORE61, JOURNALISTS FRUSTRATED BY PRESS CONTROLS - "Singapore journalists say they are increasingly frustrated with GOS-imposed limits on their domestic reporting. Political leaders put pressure on the Straits Times (ST) staff to ensure that the paper's domestic coverage follows the government line. Reporters say they are eager to produce more investigative and critical reporting, but they are stifled by editors who have been groomed to tow the line"
Time for Chua Chin Hon to find a new job (Lynn Lee already has). Way to go Wikileaks, sabotaging dissidents! I hope someone leaks a sex video of Julian Assange and all his private details and information
Unredacted WikiLeaks Cables Published - WSJ.com - "The fracas has put WikiLeaks in the position of decrying what it called the "reckless" and "negligent" disclosure of information—something WikiLeaks' critics have long accused it of doing itself"
Freakonomics » Congratulations, You’ve Lost! How Slot Machines Disguise Losses as Wins
Products With Unintentionally Vulgar Sticker Placements
Mr Brown: (I assure you, as a former retail staff, these were not unintentional)
SINGAPORE AIRPORT "CORPORATIZED"; LEE FAMILY AND TEMASEK INFLUENCE STRENGTHENED - "Singapore has "corporatized" Changi International Airport in a move that will consolidate control of the domestic aviation sector in the hands of sovereign wealth fund Temasek and the Lee family"
PROMOTING MAINSTREAM ISLAM: THE SINGAPORE MODEL - "Muslims MPs told us members of the community will report to them when Islamic clerics deviate from the official Friday sermon, and MUIS officials will then remind the imam to deliver the prepared text... Many Muslim journalists and community leaders have told us that this monitoring makes them reluctant to criticize the government. They fear government reprisals, such as a defamation suit or detention under Singapore's Internal Security Act (ISA) for fomenting racial tension. The immediate past-president of MUIS told us that he feared being "blacklisted" after he argued at a closed-door session that the GOS deters Muslim challenges to the government by keeping the Muslim elite busy with social welfare work; a listener reported his comments to the GOS, which then "requested" a written text of his presentation... This GOS effort to promote its version of "progressive" Islam that supports the existing social and political order is an example of the PAP government's top-down social engineering. This approach seeks to ensure the PAP's continued dominance"
Maintaining racial-religious harmony hurts religion
Odd Numbers are Male Even Numbers are Female
Recruitment controversy: More to hiring staff than just eye candy - "Mr James Ong, director of local frozen yogurt chain Frolick, said it is a 'coincidence' that his front-line staff - made up of women aged between 17 and 22 - are generally young and pretty."
This is 1 Nation, Most Expensive Liquid - "Ink costs more than human blood"
Will Kate Winslet's Anti-Cosmetic Surgery League catch on? - "It is all very well when you look like one of the founding members of the British Anti-Cosmetic Surgery League, but not every woman glances in the mirror and sees Rachel Weisz staring back at them"
Download.com wraps downloads in bloatware, lies about motivations
Effects of Toxoplasma on Human Behavior - "Up to 80% of the population may be infected, depending on eating habits and exposure to cats... the men were more likely to disregard rules and were more expedient, suspicious, jealous, and dogmatic... [Women] were more warm hearted, outgoing, conscientious, persistent, and moralistic. Both men and women had significantly higher apprehension (factor O) compared with the uninfected controls... oxoplasma-infected subjects have a 2.65 times higher risk of traffic accidents than Toxoplasma-free subjects... Humans are dead-end hosts for T. gondii, because the chances that a human being will be eaten by a feline are infinitesimally small"
What do I say? Cats are evil
Post ID: 3263853654473044953
TODAY has achieved parity with the Straits Times (UPDATED)
"When it is not necessary to make a decision, it is necessary not to make a decision." - Lord Falkland
***
PA to be applauded for sticking to its policy
Letter from Yee Jun Xian
I COMMEND the People's Association for assiduously ensuring that the grassroots organisations will continue to work closely with the Government.
When I first saw the angry retorts to the PA's explanation on why Opposition Members of Parliament cannot be grassroots advisers, I was bemused and a little disturbed.
Now, I applaud the PA for sticking with its policy despite the public pressure. It has to carry out the important task of connecting people with the Government, a process that cannot be compromised by having Opposition MPs as advisers.
Writers write. Teachers teach. Opposition MPs oppose. The logic is simple and irrefutable.
Opposition MPs are meant to be an alternative voice, but that voice should be restricted to Parliament. Otherwise, they have no other duty and, indeed, cannot be trusted with any other duty.
Perhaps certain members of the public are offended that their MPs, simply because they are from the Opposition, are not allowed to be advisers and represent their interests in the PA. But these people will have to live with their vote at the recent General Election.
Important Addendum: The original version of the letter puts a VERY different spin on the writer's intent:
"The simple truth is that these people have no one to blame but themselves. They did not vote wisely, and this is what they deserve.
Ladies and gentlemen, please repent."
Comment on TODAY: "When will people learn! Do not write forum letters in satirical prose!"
***
PA to be applauded for sticking to its policy
Letter from Yee Jun Xian
I COMMEND the People's Association for assiduously ensuring that the grassroots organisations will continue to work closely with the Government.
When I first saw the angry retorts to the PA's explanation on why Opposition Members of Parliament cannot be grassroots advisers, I was bemused and a little disturbed.
Now, I applaud the PA for sticking with its policy despite the public pressure. It has to carry out the important task of connecting people with the Government, a process that cannot be compromised by having Opposition MPs as advisers.
Writers write. Teachers teach. Opposition MPs oppose. The logic is simple and irrefutable.
Opposition MPs are meant to be an alternative voice, but that voice should be restricted to Parliament. Otherwise, they have no other duty and, indeed, cannot be trusted with any other duty.
Perhaps certain members of the public are offended that their MPs, simply because they are from the Opposition, are not allowed to be advisers and represent their interests in the PA. But these people will have to live with their vote at the recent General Election.
Important Addendum: The original version of the letter puts a VERY different spin on the writer's intent:
"The simple truth is that these people have no one to blame but themselves. They did not vote wisely, and this is what they deserve.
Ladies and gentlemen, please repent."
Comment on TODAY: "When will people learn! Do not write forum letters in satirical prose!"
Post ID: 4039577636478020373
Sunday, September 04, 2011
Teens are...
Violent, horny & poor. And living in musicals.
(Seen at SCAPE)
Keywords: youth are horny, kids are horny
Post ID: 4681414370532326801
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Observations - 3rd September 2011
"Boxing is just show business with blood." - Frank Bruno
***
A possible reason for German wage restraint - the unions have seats on company boards, so they can see the company financial accounts and know that the fatcats aren't shafting them. Though I am cautioned to add that "this only works in some situations. Labour owned a considerable amount of shares in United Airlines but they resisted management all the way because they were not afraid of the consequences -- the government would bail them out. It also helped that the German government topped up loss of wages."
Trying to decide which parallel universe is the most wacky: [Fundamentalist] Christian, [PRC] Chinese or [Modern] Liberal. Some suggested all 3, but all of them are inimical to each other, so that'd be the mindfuck to top all mindfucks. Another point to note is that not all PRC Chinese live in the PRC Chinese alternate universe (and ditto for the other 2), but that doesn't change the universe's character.
Everyone talks about pursuing your dreams, but what if 2 people want to become the best golfer in the world? Some people claim it's all about the journey, not the destination, but besides being convenient hand-waving (why not choose a more realistic goal? is there a point doing something you know won't work - among other things is it healthy to lie to yourself?), this is suspiciously reminiscent of some of the justifications for prayer if it can't change the mind of the God of Traditional Theism - that prayer improves the supplicant, rather than changes what actually happens.
Wondering how many Singaporean group buying sites have closed down. Each representing a failed dream.
American produces brilliant students not because of but despite its pre-College educational system. The only thing worse than standardised tests is not having standardised tests; there is a reason why the SAT has been a staple of US college admission applications for decades (another interesting thing to note - Finnish students do great on the PISA, but no one would say that their school system fails to prepare them for higher education and the knowledge economy).
[On the hype over Elite Schools] "I have friends in University who survived [neighborhood] schools..they will never allow their children to go to such schools"
It doesn't seem many male radiographers exist. They presumably have problems when x-raying women's chests.
Banner on wearing jewelry - 'Flaunt it, lose it'. This is VICTIM BLAMING!!! Reminds me of this feminist line: "Rape is the only crime in which the victim becomes the accused"
RT @edchng i hate Singapore, because i still care for it. i wish i didn't care, then i won't hate nor feel anything. #happyNationalDay
RT @yarnybarny Because we're not Malaysia. Qed. #whyiloveSingapore
My contributions to #whyiloveSingapore were: Our police are so efficient, they harass civil society long before it can effect change and
I never have to think for myself because the government always tells me what to do
RT quietriot_girl: Feminist blog bingo: 'Mansplaining' 'Derailing' 'Troll' 'Anti-Feminist' 'You're Banned' 'Enemy' 'male privilege' 'Julie BIndel' - BINGO!
"asked her student if he had given a depressed friend of his some advice on how to deal with his maladie, to which the student responded "we will go to tsutaya ( video rental store) to rent pornography". Classic!"
RT @shianux: I tell you what I think the true curse of LKY's legacy is: everyone thinks they are LKY, even those against LKY. the PAP has created a nation of whinging interfering nosey autocrat wannabes happy to fuck around with other ppl's lives.
***
A possible reason for German wage restraint - the unions have seats on company boards, so they can see the company financial accounts and know that the fatcats aren't shafting them. Though I am cautioned to add that "this only works in some situations. Labour owned a considerable amount of shares in United Airlines but they resisted management all the way because they were not afraid of the consequences -- the government would bail them out. It also helped that the German government topped up loss of wages."
Trying to decide which parallel universe is the most wacky: [Fundamentalist] Christian, [PRC] Chinese or [Modern] Liberal. Some suggested all 3, but all of them are inimical to each other, so that'd be the mindfuck to top all mindfucks. Another point to note is that not all PRC Chinese live in the PRC Chinese alternate universe (and ditto for the other 2), but that doesn't change the universe's character.
Everyone talks about pursuing your dreams, but what if 2 people want to become the best golfer in the world? Some people claim it's all about the journey, not the destination, but besides being convenient hand-waving (why not choose a more realistic goal? is there a point doing something you know won't work - among other things is it healthy to lie to yourself?), this is suspiciously reminiscent of some of the justifications for prayer if it can't change the mind of the God of Traditional Theism - that prayer improves the supplicant, rather than changes what actually happens.
Wondering how many Singaporean group buying sites have closed down. Each representing a failed dream.
American produces brilliant students not because of but despite its pre-College educational system. The only thing worse than standardised tests is not having standardised tests; there is a reason why the SAT has been a staple of US college admission applications for decades (another interesting thing to note - Finnish students do great on the PISA, but no one would say that their school system fails to prepare them for higher education and the knowledge economy).
[On the hype over Elite Schools] "I have friends in University who survived [neighborhood] schools..they will never allow their children to go to such schools"
It doesn't seem many male radiographers exist. They presumably have problems when x-raying women's chests.
Banner on wearing jewelry - 'Flaunt it, lose it'. This is VICTIM BLAMING!!! Reminds me of this feminist line: "Rape is the only crime in which the victim becomes the accused"
RT @edchng i hate Singapore, because i still care for it. i wish i didn't care, then i won't hate nor feel anything. #happyNationalDay
RT @yarnybarny Because we're not Malaysia. Qed. #whyiloveSingapore
My contributions to #whyiloveSingapore were: Our police are so efficient, they harass civil society long before it can effect change and
I never have to think for myself because the government always tells me what to do
RT quietriot_girl: Feminist blog bingo: 'Mansplaining' 'Derailing' 'Troll' 'Anti-Feminist' 'You're Banned' 'Enemy' 'male privilege' 'Julie BIndel' - BINGO!
"asked her student if he had given a depressed friend of his some advice on how to deal with his maladie, to which the student responded "we will go to tsutaya ( video rental store) to rent pornography". Classic!"
RT @shianux: I tell you what I think the true curse of LKY's legacy is: everyone thinks they are LKY, even those against LKY. the PAP has created a nation of whinging interfering nosey autocrat wannabes happy to fuck around with other ppl's lives.
Post ID: 9027314056279793877
Friday, September 02, 2011
One for the "audiophiles"
"General high-quality compression can be achieved by MPEG-2 AAC standard, with certain improvements, within the MPEG-5 tool set. In verification tests under rigorous conditions, this high quality codec has been found to be able to provide 'indistinguishable quality' when working at 64kbit/s/channel or even higher bit rate"
--- High-fidelity multichannel audio coding / Dai Tracy Yang, Chris Kyriakakis, C.-C. Jay Kuo
"MPEG AAC is a very powerful audio coding method. According to careful tests, it achieves quality indistinguishable from the original at 64 kbps per mono channel"
--- National Association of Broadcasters Engineering Handbook (2007)
--- High-fidelity multichannel audio coding / Dai Tracy Yang, Chris Kyriakakis, C.-C. Jay Kuo
"MPEG AAC is a very powerful audio coding method. According to careful tests, it achieves quality indistinguishable from the original at 64 kbps per mono channel"
--- National Association of Broadcasters Engineering Handbook (2007)
Post ID: 1733435149851548393
Links - 2nd September 2011
"In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." - Thomas Jefferson
***
After 27 years, man cuts off hair for charity - "A man who has been growing his hair for 27 years had it hacked off for a good cause Thursday morning. He's donating his ponytail to Locks of Love, an organization that makes wigs for people battling cancer... McGuinness had to get the major trim for a new job. When he heard the position required short hair he was going to turn it down but when he realized that long mane could help someone else he decided to go for it"
Aliens may destroy humanity to protect other civilisations, say scientists
'My callous lover gave me herpes so no one else would want me'... and now he's in prison for it - "Nigel Scott, spokesman for the Herpes Viruses Association, compared the case to prosecuting children for 'giving their friends chicken pox'"
BBC favours Muslims, complain Hindus and Sikhs - "An analysis of programmes from the BBC's Religion and Ethics department claims that since 2001, the BBC has made 41 programmes on Islam, five on Hinduism and one on Sikhism."
Manchester United voted 'most hated company in Britain'
Gaza flotilla participants created war atmosphere before confronting Israel - "On the day before the Gaza flotilla confronted the Israeli navy, Al-Jazeera TV documented the pre-battle atmosphere created by men on board the flotilla, who chanted a well-known Islamic battle cry invoking the killing and defeat of Jews in battle: "[Remember] Khaibar, Khaibar, oh Jews! The army of Muhammad will return!"... Al-Jazeera also reports that before the confrontation, flotilla participants announced that they would use "resistance" against Israel. Mukawama (resistance) is the Arabic term used by Palestinians to refer to all violence against Israel, including suicide terror"
From Wikipedia: "The flotilla was reported to be carrying ballistic vests, gas masks, night-vision goggles, clubs, and slingshots... Two-thirds of the medicines delivered by the flotilla expired between six and fifteen months prior to the raid, and were found to be useless. Some other medicines found on the flotilla were due to expire soon. Additionally, Israel said that much of the cargo, including sensitive medical equipment, was found to have been scattered in the ship's holds, and put in piles rather than packed properly for transport, and consequently damaged. Operating theater equipment, which was supposed to be kept sterile, was carelessly wrapped"
It's telling how people ignore all this evidence
Belief in Witchcraft in Africa - "Unfortunately, most texts, studies and reports on witchcraft in Africa avoid evaluating or ascertaining the veracity of witchcraft claims. Last year, UNICEF published a report, Children Accused of Witchcraft: An Anthropological Study of Contemporary Practices in Africa. The objective of the study was to ‘reveal and analyze the diversity and complexity of these phenomena – often falsely associated with ‘African tradition’- related to beliefs in witchcraft and the “mystical” world.’ The document carefully avoided doing a critical evaluation of claims or accusations associated with witchcraft. The study did not come out with a position statement as to whether witches exist or not or whether claims associated with witchcraft are true or false. This report did not do justice to the topic and phenomenon of witchcraft accusation because it did not provide answers to questions that have been boggling the minds of Africans for ages, such as: Is witchcraft science or superstition? Is witchcraft myth or reality? Do witches actually exist or are they imaginary entities? The report could not let us know if indeed human beings can bewitch one another as most Africans believe... People can suspect anyone of engaging in witchcraft, it is mostly vulnerable members of the population who are openly accused, confronted and persecuted"
The Yale Journal of Medicine & Law blows it big time on alternative medicine - "It's always frightening when lawyers delve into the realm of medicine. It's even worse when pre-law students and political science majors do the same... it's obvious that she didn't even bother to do a bit of research into the relevant law and regulations, which is the sort of thing you'd think--oh, you know--writers for a law journal would do. You'd think that a Yale student publication such as the Yale Journal of Medicine & Law could attract better student authors, capable of less sloppy, ideologically motivated work. You'd think wrong, apparently. Even though the Yale Journal of Medicine & Law is an undergraduate journal, presumably its authors are interested in going into--oh, you know--medicine or law or related fields"
The new definitions of Halal | Unscientific Malaysia - "Somehow, the simple process of choosing what’s halal and what’s not using observation has evolved into a complex, almost paranoid approach to declare suspected ones as haram... “This kit will pick out traces of pork anywhere, even from dishes which have been washed!” claimed the exhibitor with excitement... What are the chances of pork traces floating around somewhere in the vicinity of some eateries? At times, it will be quite high. When before this, one can continue eating in a halal restaurant situated beside one that sells pork, now one will probably avoid it based on a test that picks up what should be negligible traces. And even after samak — an act considered to cleanse one out from pig’s traces — is found to be haram by this method, what hope is there for Muslims?... Lest we forget, the Quran mentioned: "He has only forbidden to you dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah – Al-Baqarah (The Cow) [2:173]". We do not see any mentions of RNA, DNA nor protein of swine."
Malaysia Boleh!
Singapore, Curry Day and scapegoating - "We were told quite proudly by the agent that there were “no Indians” living in the block. By now, J and I were completely stumped. “What’s wrong with Indians?” we asked.“Their food is very smelly,” was the reply. “We don’t like renting to Indians.” Every single one of these comments came from Singaporean Chinese... Singaporean Chinese were discriminating against Indians and complaining about the smell of their food long before one million mainlanders flooded the country. But I do applaud them for a neat sleight of hand. Now none of this is their fault At All. Well played, Singaporean Chinese. Well played."
Addendum: The comments are telling
Do Romantic Thoughts Reduce Women's Interest in Engineering? - IEEE Spectrum - "A new study suggests thoughts of romance can reduce college women's interest in science and engineering"
I can't wait to see what the feminists say in response; I would imagine that since the Arts are coded as feminine, men would be similarly disadvantaged in an equivalent reverse situation
Charlie Wilcox: 'Smoking thousands of cigarettes was GOOD for my unborn daughter' - "Charlie Wilcox, whose daughter Lilly is now 14 weeks, reckoned that smoking would make her unborn child’s heart stronger by restricting her oxygen supply and forcing her heart to work harder... Miss Wilcox, who had hoped to join the police but currently lives on benefits, even claims giving up smoking caused a friend’s miscarriage"
The fetal alcohol crisis - "In addition to the tragedy caused, the cost of women binge-drinking while pregnant now exceeds that of the national debt... [a] 1997 Supreme Court ruling that a pregnant Manitoba woman addicted to glue sniffing could not be forced to get treatment. “Women’s rights groups heralded this decision as a major triumph,” Ms. Buxton says. “All I could think about was whether that child’s life would turn out to be as heartbreaking as our daughter’s.” She is in complete agreement with the two dissenting judges who wrote: “When a woman chooses to carry a fetus to term, she must accept some responsibility for its well-being, and the state has an interest in trying to ensure the developing fetus.” “The question,” Ms. Buxton points out, “is how can the state make sure the baby is born healthy without forcibly incarcerating women?”"
When it comes to politics, is ignorance bliss? - "The more informed people get, the more dogmatic they tend to become. “It might even be better to be ruled by the relatively ignorant public, because they tend to be more open-minded”... The web helps to fuel dogmatism. His studies have found that, on average, people who use the Internet more than newspapers “are interested in fewer subjects and have more extreme views on those subjects.”"
AI vs. AI. Two chatbots talking to each other - YouTube - "Well, that was exactly what I expected. The woman was irrational and didn't make any sense. She also lied."
Moon cake tax proposal stirs debate - "Employees will have to pay a personal income tax on moon cakes offered by their employers this Mid-Autumn Festival, which has caused public dissatisfaction, but analysts said Sunday it's a type of fringe benefit tax that is reasonable, and could cut down on waste"
retired doc's thoughts: The problems of Evidence-based medicine widely accepted hierarchy of evidence - "It seems that the elephant's cloak of invisibility was torn away when a number of small clinical trials allegedly found that such things as homeopathy and reiki ( the most improbably absurd of the improbable methods of CAM) seemed to work or at a minimum the claim was made that larger trials were needed... The message of "trials trump basic science" seemed to have taken to heart by the folks at Cochrane."
Are Crunches Worth the Effort? - NYTimes.com - "The researchers had expected that the volunteers with the sturdiest cores would outshine the others on the tests of physical performance. But they did not. There was little correlation in this study between robust core muscles and athleticism"
Tax burden and migration: a political economy theory and evidence - "We show, somewhat against the conventional wisdom, that low-skill immigration can lead to a lower tax burden and less redistribution than would be the case with no immigration, even though migrants (naturally) join the pro-tax/transfer coalition. Data on 11 European countries over the period 1974–1992 are consistent with the implications of the theory: a higher share of low-education immigrants in the population leads to a lower tax rate on labor income and less generous social transfers."
***
After 27 years, man cuts off hair for charity - "A man who has been growing his hair for 27 years had it hacked off for a good cause Thursday morning. He's donating his ponytail to Locks of Love, an organization that makes wigs for people battling cancer... McGuinness had to get the major trim for a new job. When he heard the position required short hair he was going to turn it down but when he realized that long mane could help someone else he decided to go for it"
Aliens may destroy humanity to protect other civilisations, say scientists
'My callous lover gave me herpes so no one else would want me'... and now he's in prison for it - "Nigel Scott, spokesman for the Herpes Viruses Association, compared the case to prosecuting children for 'giving their friends chicken pox'"
BBC favours Muslims, complain Hindus and Sikhs - "An analysis of programmes from the BBC's Religion and Ethics department claims that since 2001, the BBC has made 41 programmes on Islam, five on Hinduism and one on Sikhism."
Manchester United voted 'most hated company in Britain'
Gaza flotilla participants created war atmosphere before confronting Israel - "On the day before the Gaza flotilla confronted the Israeli navy, Al-Jazeera TV documented the pre-battle atmosphere created by men on board the flotilla, who chanted a well-known Islamic battle cry invoking the killing and defeat of Jews in battle: "[Remember] Khaibar, Khaibar, oh Jews! The army of Muhammad will return!"... Al-Jazeera also reports that before the confrontation, flotilla participants announced that they would use "resistance" against Israel. Mukawama (resistance) is the Arabic term used by Palestinians to refer to all violence against Israel, including suicide terror"
From Wikipedia: "The flotilla was reported to be carrying ballistic vests, gas masks, night-vision goggles, clubs, and slingshots... Two-thirds of the medicines delivered by the flotilla expired between six and fifteen months prior to the raid, and were found to be useless. Some other medicines found on the flotilla were due to expire soon. Additionally, Israel said that much of the cargo, including sensitive medical equipment, was found to have been scattered in the ship's holds, and put in piles rather than packed properly for transport, and consequently damaged. Operating theater equipment, which was supposed to be kept sterile, was carelessly wrapped"
It's telling how people ignore all this evidence
Belief in Witchcraft in Africa - "Unfortunately, most texts, studies and reports on witchcraft in Africa avoid evaluating or ascertaining the veracity of witchcraft claims. Last year, UNICEF published a report, Children Accused of Witchcraft: An Anthropological Study of Contemporary Practices in Africa. The objective of the study was to ‘reveal and analyze the diversity and complexity of these phenomena – often falsely associated with ‘African tradition’- related to beliefs in witchcraft and the “mystical” world.’ The document carefully avoided doing a critical evaluation of claims or accusations associated with witchcraft. The study did not come out with a position statement as to whether witches exist or not or whether claims associated with witchcraft are true or false. This report did not do justice to the topic and phenomenon of witchcraft accusation because it did not provide answers to questions that have been boggling the minds of Africans for ages, such as: Is witchcraft science or superstition? Is witchcraft myth or reality? Do witches actually exist or are they imaginary entities? The report could not let us know if indeed human beings can bewitch one another as most Africans believe... People can suspect anyone of engaging in witchcraft, it is mostly vulnerable members of the population who are openly accused, confronted and persecuted"
The Yale Journal of Medicine & Law blows it big time on alternative medicine - "It's always frightening when lawyers delve into the realm of medicine. It's even worse when pre-law students and political science majors do the same... it's obvious that she didn't even bother to do a bit of research into the relevant law and regulations, which is the sort of thing you'd think--oh, you know--writers for a law journal would do. You'd think that a Yale student publication such as the Yale Journal of Medicine & Law could attract better student authors, capable of less sloppy, ideologically motivated work. You'd think wrong, apparently. Even though the Yale Journal of Medicine & Law is an undergraduate journal, presumably its authors are interested in going into--oh, you know--medicine or law or related fields"
The new definitions of Halal | Unscientific Malaysia - "Somehow, the simple process of choosing what’s halal and what’s not using observation has evolved into a complex, almost paranoid approach to declare suspected ones as haram... “This kit will pick out traces of pork anywhere, even from dishes which have been washed!” claimed the exhibitor with excitement... What are the chances of pork traces floating around somewhere in the vicinity of some eateries? At times, it will be quite high. When before this, one can continue eating in a halal restaurant situated beside one that sells pork, now one will probably avoid it based on a test that picks up what should be negligible traces. And even after samak — an act considered to cleanse one out from pig’s traces — is found to be haram by this method, what hope is there for Muslims?... Lest we forget, the Quran mentioned: "He has only forbidden to you dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah – Al-Baqarah (The Cow) [2:173]". We do not see any mentions of RNA, DNA nor protein of swine."
Malaysia Boleh!
Singapore, Curry Day and scapegoating - "We were told quite proudly by the agent that there were “no Indians” living in the block. By now, J and I were completely stumped. “What’s wrong with Indians?” we asked.“Their food is very smelly,” was the reply. “We don’t like renting to Indians.” Every single one of these comments came from Singaporean Chinese... Singaporean Chinese were discriminating against Indians and complaining about the smell of their food long before one million mainlanders flooded the country. But I do applaud them for a neat sleight of hand. Now none of this is their fault At All. Well played, Singaporean Chinese. Well played."
Addendum: The comments are telling
Do Romantic Thoughts Reduce Women's Interest in Engineering? - IEEE Spectrum - "A new study suggests thoughts of romance can reduce college women's interest in science and engineering"
I can't wait to see what the feminists say in response; I would imagine that since the Arts are coded as feminine, men would be similarly disadvantaged in an equivalent reverse situation
Charlie Wilcox: 'Smoking thousands of cigarettes was GOOD for my unborn daughter' - "Charlie Wilcox, whose daughter Lilly is now 14 weeks, reckoned that smoking would make her unborn child’s heart stronger by restricting her oxygen supply and forcing her heart to work harder... Miss Wilcox, who had hoped to join the police but currently lives on benefits, even claims giving up smoking caused a friend’s miscarriage"
The fetal alcohol crisis - "In addition to the tragedy caused, the cost of women binge-drinking while pregnant now exceeds that of the national debt... [a] 1997 Supreme Court ruling that a pregnant Manitoba woman addicted to glue sniffing could not be forced to get treatment. “Women’s rights groups heralded this decision as a major triumph,” Ms. Buxton says. “All I could think about was whether that child’s life would turn out to be as heartbreaking as our daughter’s.” She is in complete agreement with the two dissenting judges who wrote: “When a woman chooses to carry a fetus to term, she must accept some responsibility for its well-being, and the state has an interest in trying to ensure the developing fetus.” “The question,” Ms. Buxton points out, “is how can the state make sure the baby is born healthy without forcibly incarcerating women?”"
When it comes to politics, is ignorance bliss? - "The more informed people get, the more dogmatic they tend to become. “It might even be better to be ruled by the relatively ignorant public, because they tend to be more open-minded”... The web helps to fuel dogmatism. His studies have found that, on average, people who use the Internet more than newspapers “are interested in fewer subjects and have more extreme views on those subjects.”"
AI vs. AI. Two chatbots talking to each other - YouTube - "Well, that was exactly what I expected. The woman was irrational and didn't make any sense. She also lied."
Moon cake tax proposal stirs debate - "Employees will have to pay a personal income tax on moon cakes offered by their employers this Mid-Autumn Festival, which has caused public dissatisfaction, but analysts said Sunday it's a type of fringe benefit tax that is reasonable, and could cut down on waste"
retired doc's thoughts: The problems of Evidence-based medicine widely accepted hierarchy of evidence - "It seems that the elephant's cloak of invisibility was torn away when a number of small clinical trials allegedly found that such things as homeopathy and reiki ( the most improbably absurd of the improbable methods of CAM) seemed to work or at a minimum the claim was made that larger trials were needed... The message of "trials trump basic science" seemed to have taken to heart by the folks at Cochrane."
Are Crunches Worth the Effort? - NYTimes.com - "The researchers had expected that the volunteers with the sturdiest cores would outshine the others on the tests of physical performance. But they did not. There was little correlation in this study between robust core muscles and athleticism"
Tax burden and migration: a political economy theory and evidence - "We show, somewhat against the conventional wisdom, that low-skill immigration can lead to a lower tax burden and less redistribution than would be the case with no immigration, even though migrants (naturally) join the pro-tax/transfer coalition. Data on 11 European countries over the period 1974–1992 are consistent with the implications of the theory: a higher share of low-education immigrants in the population leads to a lower tax rate on labor income and less generous social transfers."
Post ID: 8206972504453443975
Thursday, September 01, 2011
France/Spain 2011 - Day 4, Part 6 - Paris: St Jacques Tower
"A cucumber should be well-sliced, dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out." - Samuel Johnson
***
France/Spain 2011
Day 4 - 20th March - Paris: St Jacques Tower (Part 6)
Street outside Musée des Arts et Métiers
"Restaurant Chez Shen ?里香" ("Shen's Restaurant ? Inside Fragrant")
At first I thought this was the first Asian Restaurant I'd noticed where the name in Chinese translated to French, but on further thought I'm not so sure
The hideous Centre Georges Pompidou
Video game relief & mosaic
"BUFFET A VOLONTE
NO LIMIT"
Here are examples of the pictures my Fuji FinePix F300EXR took that I was very unsatisfied by. I will return to this topic at the end of this post.
"pelouses au repos hivernal du 15/10 au 15/04"
("The grass is taking a winter rest from 15th October to 15th April")
You can lie on the grass half the year!
St Jacques Tower (16th c.), one of the few remains from Medieval Paris
Plaque on the tower and its significance for the Pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela (more)
Looking up
Statue inside. Wikipedia informs me that it's of Blaise Pascal.
Tower
Stitch from my camera. Actually it's not so bad (there is no fishbowl effect unlike my own stitches), but the resolution isn't very good.
Stitch
Love knows no barriers
This was very touching. As you can tell they were kissing for a very long time.
Love in the Time of Spring
3 PDAs in a row?! But then, this is France (see, I'm not joking - it's true!)
And yes, this is the same park where I documented that touching display of love above
Fuji FinePix F300EXR
Returning to these pictures, even at ISO 100 the pictures seem grainy (almost smudgy)
I'd wanted a Canon Powershot, but at the March IT Fair it'd been sold out, since I'd gone on the last day, and I wasn't willing to shell out more than $200 for the model that was a rung higher.
I'd visited many stores and it was sold out everywhere, since all the stock had been saved for the IT Fair.
A salesman had recommended the Fuji FinePix F300EXR, and he seemed sincere (and more importantly a trustworthy-looking review site online had highly recommended it), so I got it.
It would've been better to test the camera before really using it in the field so I would know its idiosyncracies and how to maximise its features, but I'd bought it only a few days before I'd left. Furthermore, these wouldn't have been real field conditions (i.e. an overseas holiday). Perhaps more importantly, I was lazy to do the necessary testing (I've never bothered doing it).
So, while the preview on the camera's LCD had showed that the pixellation for pictures was acceptable (even on zooming to the lowest level), when I viewed them on my computer it was often... awful (at 100% - 50% is acceptable). I guess you can't get something for nothing, so I should've been wary of fast shutter speeds in low light while in the black box "EXR" mode.
Worse, then the pictures were often not sharp - at 100% many pictures are not sharp and crisp (across a wide range, and even at a fast shutter speed for still objects - it cannot be handshake because I don't have Alzheimer's, and pictures on other cameras I use are good), and some are even quite blocky. Some pictures aren't even in proper focus. The Stitch was especially unreliable and often horrible.
Ironically, I'd gotten a new camera because I'd been unsatisfied with the pictures taken by the Nikon Coolpix S550 I'd been using, but the ones taken with the new camera turned out even worse. In future I'm sticking with Canon.
Fuji: F stands for "Fucked Up"
Someone: fuji is actually alrite
except under low lighting
mebbie u got a bad unit
like me and my casio
everything blur also
if sharp..somehow looks v flat
hard to explain
also got rave reviews
***
France/Spain 2011
Day 4 - 20th March - Paris: St Jacques Tower (Part 6)
Street outside Musée des Arts et Métiers
"Restaurant Chez Shen ?里香" ("Shen's Restaurant ? Inside Fragrant")
At first I thought this was the first Asian Restaurant I'd noticed where the name in Chinese translated to French, but on further thought I'm not so sure
The hideous Centre Georges Pompidou
Video game relief & mosaic
"BUFFET A VOLONTE
NO LIMIT"
Here are examples of the pictures my Fuji FinePix F300EXR took that I was very unsatisfied by. I will return to this topic at the end of this post.
"pelouses au repos hivernal du 15/10 au 15/04"
("The grass is taking a winter rest from 15th October to 15th April")
You can lie on the grass half the year!
St Jacques Tower (16th c.), one of the few remains from Medieval Paris
Plaque on the tower and its significance for the Pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela (more)
Looking up
Statue inside. Wikipedia informs me that it's of Blaise Pascal.
Tower
Stitch from my camera. Actually it's not so bad (there is no fishbowl effect unlike my own stitches), but the resolution isn't very good.
Stitch
Love knows no barriers
This was very touching. As you can tell they were kissing for a very long time.
Love in the Time of Spring
3 PDAs in a row?! But then, this is France (see, I'm not joking - it's true!)
And yes, this is the same park where I documented that touching display of love above
Fuji FinePix F300EXR
Returning to these pictures, even at ISO 100 the pictures seem grainy (almost smudgy)
I'd wanted a Canon Powershot, but at the March IT Fair it'd been sold out, since I'd gone on the last day, and I wasn't willing to shell out more than $200 for the model that was a rung higher.
I'd visited many stores and it was sold out everywhere, since all the stock had been saved for the IT Fair.
A salesman had recommended the Fuji FinePix F300EXR, and he seemed sincere (and more importantly a trustworthy-looking review site online had highly recommended it), so I got it.
It would've been better to test the camera before really using it in the field so I would know its idiosyncracies and how to maximise its features, but I'd bought it only a few days before I'd left. Furthermore, these wouldn't have been real field conditions (i.e. an overseas holiday). Perhaps more importantly, I was lazy to do the necessary testing (I've never bothered doing it).
So, while the preview on the camera's LCD had showed that the pixellation for pictures was acceptable (even on zooming to the lowest level), when I viewed them on my computer it was often... awful (at 100% - 50% is acceptable). I guess you can't get something for nothing, so I should've been wary of fast shutter speeds in low light while in the black box "EXR" mode.
Worse, then the pictures were often not sharp - at 100% many pictures are not sharp and crisp (across a wide range, and even at a fast shutter speed for still objects - it cannot be handshake because I don't have Alzheimer's, and pictures on other cameras I use are good), and some are even quite blocky. Some pictures aren't even in proper focus. The Stitch was especially unreliable and often horrible.
Ironically, I'd gotten a new camera because I'd been unsatisfied with the pictures taken by the Nikon Coolpix S550 I'd been using, but the ones taken with the new camera turned out even worse. In future I'm sticking with Canon.
Fuji: F stands for "Fucked Up"
Someone: fuji is actually alrite
except under low lighting
mebbie u got a bad unit
like me and my casio
everything blur also
if sharp..somehow looks v flat
hard to explain
also got rave reviews
Post ID: 8060015516442032538
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
