tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post6324521516118520832..comments2024-03-18T17:09:55.964-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Four Reflections On PatriotismDavid Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-65455951256320307202008-07-14T18:51:00.000-07:002008-07-14T18:51:00.000-07:00As I said, it's jumped the shark. I hope that Zorg...As I said, it's jumped the shark. I hope that Zorgon and others are right, and peaceful direct action will suffice, but I suspect that it's going to come down to a fight, and quite soon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-79692764688676907702008-07-13T19:42:00.000-07:002008-07-13T19:42:00.000-07:00Some thoughts on patriotism and 4GW:The militariza...Some thoughts on patriotism and 4GW:<BR/><BR/>The militarization of America appears to be progressively corrupting our society, creating an "us against them" mentality which filters down to the lowest small-town level of police who get grants to use military technology (like the new <A HREF="http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=9955" REL="nofollow">LRAD sonic crowd-control weaponry </A> and the <A HREF="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-482560/Run-away-ray-gun-coming--We-test-US-armys-new-secret-weapon.html" REL="nofollow">military "active denial system" microwave pain ray</A>) and <A HREF="http://munchkinwrangler.wordpress.com/2008/01/16/playing-seals-and-robbers/" REL="nofollow">military tactics (SWAT) against civilians.</A> When civilians get treated by their government as the enemy, they begin to think of themselves that way. <BR/><BR/>This ironically plays into the very trend <A HREF="http://www.d-n-i.net/creveld/naming_a_new_era.htm" REL="nofollow">Martin Van Creveld</A> and William S. Lind have remarked upon, namely, that the 21st century is the era of the loss of legitimacy of the modern nation-state. A citizen on a bike <A HREF="http://bikeportland.org/2008/06/11/man-on-a-bike-is-tackled-then-tasered-by-portland-police/" REL="nofollow">tackled, tasered, handcuffed and arrested by a police officer for a non-working bicycle light</A> becomes a citizen with growing doubts in the legitimacy of state authority. <BR/><BR/>That's just one example. More to the point, when drug asset forfeiture (which legally sieze a citizen's money or property without requiring police to file criminal charges or produce evidence of wrongdoing) become <A HREF="http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/2006/02/whats-difference-between-pirate-and.html" REL="nofollow">the sole source of funding of a police organization, the line twixt highway robbers and cops gets blurry.</A> And when you get extreme examples of injustice, like the DEA using asset forfeiture laws to <A HREF="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE7DA1431F933A2575AC0A963958260" REL="nofollow">confiscate a grandmother's house because her grandson hid a couple of marijuana plants in the basement</A>, citizens start to lose faith in their government entirely.<BR/><BR/>Nowadays I like to play a little game and take the latest announcements of Pentagon technology, like <A HREF="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2006/oct/26/guardianweeklytechnologysection.robots" REL="nofollow">UAVs armed with remote-controlled sniper rifles</A>, or <A HREF="http://gothamist.com/2008/04/14/pain_ray_humvee.php" REL="nofollow">active denial pain rays</A>, or <A HREF="http://www.defensetech.org/archives/003710.html" REL="nofollow">shaped-charge antitank weapons designed to take out reactive ablative armor on modern tanks</A>, and ask myself: What happens when this stuff gets used on the street by the Crips and the Bloods against the LAPD? Or by the Mexican drug cartels against the border patrol? <BR/><BR/>You know it's coming. There's nothing exotic about a UAV -- it's just a cheap lightweight fuselage with easily-available remote controls built in. Putting a remote controlled camera and gun in it isn't that hard, given today's technology.<BR/><BR/>So what happens when the Mexican drug cartels start assassinating DEA administrators using UAVs? What happens when the MS-13 gang starts taking out police cars and SWAT tanks with shaped-charge antitank IEDs as retaliation for gang crackdowns? What happens when street protesters aim teraherz pain rays back at the police who are trying to shove the protesters into a caged-in designated free speech zone? <BR/><BR/>Nobody seems to be asking these questions. Especially the armchair warriors calling for more militarization of American society. <BR/><BR/>A bloated military budget accelerates the militarization of all aspects of society, as REAL ID and other Orwellian laws have shown, leading to incidents like <A HREF="http://abcnews.go.com/theLaw/Story?id=4537765&page=1" REL="nofollow">this</A> and <A HREF="http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/07/25/no_fly/index.html" REL="nofollow">this</A>. This in turn only serves to accelerate the collapse of legitimacy of the American government, as <A HREF="http://yourdailychum.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/california-initiative-seeks-to-legalize-marijuana-for-everyone-willie-nelson-and-snoop-dogg-vow-to-tour-california-indefinitely/" REL="nofollow">increasingly defiant local laws</A> which <A HREF="http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0312/p03s02-ussc.html" REL="nofollow">contravene federal edicts</A> have shown. <BR/><BR/>What's especially striking to me is the remarkable fact that the 3 tactics William S. Lind identifies for 4GW groups, namely, <B>(1) destroying infrastructure, (2) chronic crime and coercion, and (3) government destablization by means of decimation of the national guard & intimidation of anyone critical of the guerillas,</B> are all now being done by the U.S. state and federal government domestically.<BR/><BR/>Think about it: <A HREF="http://news.thomasnet.com/IMT/archives/2008/04/united-states-infrastructure-failing-global-investment-opportunity-increasing.html" REL="nofollow">U.S. state and federal governments are destroying our infrastructure</A> by <A HREF="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/c54f4258-1c5f-11dd-8bfc-000077b07658,Authorised=true.html?_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2Fc54f4258-1c5f-11dd-8bfc-000077b07658.html%3Fnclick_check%3D1&_i_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fdigg.com%2Fbusiness_finance%2FU_S_infrastructure_The_Pot_Holed_Highway_To_Hell&nclick_check=1" REL="nofollow">letting it fall apart.</A> U.S. government agencies now <A HREF="http://www.topix.com/forum/state/or/T28H3PFE1DV3KBJSR" REL="nofollow">routinely break the law and violate the constitution</A>, acting like <A HREF="http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/04/yoo-torture-mem.html" REL="nofollow">criminals themselves</A>. Meanwhile, the Iraq war is <A HREF="http://www.antiwar.com/lind/?articleid=3651" REL="nofollow"> destroying the U.S. national guard.</A> And any American citizens who protest get <A HREF="http://www.internationalist.org/oaklandcopsshoot0403.html" REL="nofollow">brutalized </A> or <A HREF="http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/6/30/20643/6006" REL="nofollow">intimidated and forced into caged areas out of public view.</A> It's almost as though the U.S. government has decided to act like 4GW guerillas against its own citizenry, albeit in a kinder gentler way. <BR/><BR/>Almost enough to make you believe in Brin's Manchurian Candidate scenario.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-12974623684129358742008-07-13T19:28:00.000-07:002008-07-13T19:28:00.000-07:00Imagine windows that not only provide a clear view...Imagine windows that not only provide a clear view and illuminate rooms, but also use sunlight to efficiently help power the building they are part of. MIT engineers report a new approach to harnessing the sun's energy that could allow just that.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.physorg.com/news134917794.html" REL="nofollow">Researchers open new 'window' on solar energy: Cost effective devices expected on market soon</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-86559581534293431802008-07-13T17:15:00.000-07:002008-07-13T17:15:00.000-07:00Cost is, indeed, a major driver for the uptake of ...Cost is, indeed, a major driver for the uptake of solar power (and the rest)<BR/><BR/>Not having a huge amount of home space available for mounting solar panels, I was mulling the prospect of owning a few cubes in a 'farm' in the remote outback, but being able to paint a few shingles has some definite attractions.<BR/><BR/>Still, why not dream of a cheap PV paint with 100% efficiency?<BR/><BR/>Whilst we're dreaming of turning every artificial surface into a powerhouse, another question which occurs to me is: how exotic and toxic are the component materials?Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-15334323748367601372008-07-13T14:01:00.000-07:002008-07-13T14:01:00.000-07:00The more clever solar power techs coming of age no...The more clever solar power techs coming of age now are cool, no doubt. SunCube looks like a good commercialization.<BR/><BR/>However, what gets me excited is the less efficient but much much cheaper (and simpler) technology suitable for small scale (distributed) installations. Right now printed solar photovoltaic tech is quickly becoming way cool. I don't think it is long before we have PV paints... more precisely, the ability to paint 3 or 4 different layers of paint onto a surface which collectively form a PV.<BR/><BR/>I'd be happy with 10% efficiency so long as it is very cheap and very easy to apply. If the material is cheap enough (and durable, which is a bit of an open question right now), there is no reason for it not become ubiquitous. (Win on scale even with relatively low efficiency.)Travchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12790548845692414891noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-70163318522993116762008-07-12T17:40:00.000-07:002008-07-12T17:40:00.000-07:00Back to Chicken Little: I've gotten some informati...Back to Chicken Little: I've gotten some information I consider credible that indicates that we may be looking at a timetable of weeks. But I'm unable to verify it absolutely, only to establish that it is possible. <BR/><BR/>If it's true, it would be impossible to keep concealed after the end of this month/beginning of the next. So we would be looking at something big happening in the next 2-3 weeks or so.Dave Rickeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02567136316289610947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-32361553786183354522008-07-12T17:15:00.000-07:002008-07-12T17:15:00.000-07:00The tax simplification idea sounds like a big line...The tax simplification idea sounds like a big linear algebra problem. It shouldn't be too hard once someone assigns the variables meaningfully.<BR/><BR/>My problem with this is that we use some of those variables to provide incentives for certain behaviors. Don't we remove that incentive when we zero it out? I think we do, so the 'no losers' boundary condition is a bit too simple for me.Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-90704792331236185172008-07-12T14:07:00.000-07:002008-07-12T14:07:00.000-07:00The downside of a Stirling-based system is that it...The downside of a Stirling-based system is that it requires a lot of moving parts (not just for the engine itself, but a gimbal system and controls to track the sun). It's also much more visually intrusive than panels, I think it would tend to draw complaints from the neighbors. My local Homeowners Association won't allow satellite dishes larger than 18 inches, and they have to be mounted below the roof line. They would flip right the hell out if I started putting up a dish farm with a total area of 10+ M^2.<BR/><BR/>For people in more rural areas, certainly an option. But since the price of fuel is probably going to drive a flight back to urban centers and "walkable" planned communities, this may simply be a generation too late. Which is too bad, since this technology has been feasible since the 80's (the control circuitry having been the problem before then).<BR/><BR/>--DaveDave Rickeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02567136316289610947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-83329496957474505402008-07-12T13:58:00.000-07:002008-07-12T13:58:00.000-07:00Z is at his best right now. A good netizen and br...Z is at his best right now. A good netizen and bright guy. Attaboy. Positive reinforcement. Bzzzzz<BR/><BR/>Hancock was weird. Highly uneven. But Akiva Goldsman is one of the better scenarists around and this one was at least original. Not a remake of any damned thing.<BR/><BR/>----<BR/><BR/> Discover Magazine Exec. Editor Corey Powell is asking for ideas to advance science in america:<BR/><BR/>>"So I would like to put to you a crucial,<BR/>> straightforward question: What<BR/>> > are the three most important things the next<BR/>> president can do to<BR/>> > positively impact scientific research in the<BR/>> United States?*<BR/><BR/>Here are suggestions I just sent in.<BR/><BR/>1) Restore the independent scientific panels that used to advise Congress on scientific and technological matters. <BR/><BR/>Going much further, let each member of Congress select one scientifically or technologically qualified person, to serve both as an advisor and as his or her representative on a "shadow scientific Congress" to thrash out complex matters of fact -- so that Congress itself can concentrate on policy solutions.<BR/><BR/>2) While pushing for better science education and more research funding, don't forget the rising trend of the 21st Century -- amateur science. More and more fields of professional research have found use for part-timers, who are sometimes knowledgeable, skilled and surprisingly well-equipped. This trend will advance with or without encouragement from government or academe. Some investment should be given to endeavors like the Society of Amateur Scientists. Nothing else is more likely to help generate the excitement among young people that leads, ultimately, to many of them choosing scientific careers.<BR/><BR/>3) Develop trustbuilding tools... methods for assessing risk and reducing unpleasant consequences, so that we again become a people willing to take on big and daring projects. So long as much of the political right despises science, and the far-left despises engineering, the pragmatic heart of America will keep being stymied.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-80446763419548367202008-07-12T07:59:00.000-07:002008-07-12T07:59:00.000-07:00Tony -- remember the solar cell produces DC power....Tony -- remember the solar cell produces DC power. You have to feed it to an inverter to get usable AC. I betcha the loss in the inverter runs around 20%. 0.8 * 750 watts is in the ballpark of the 420 watts from the Sandia Stirling-engine solar electric setup. You're right, though, fun to see this kinda horse race. Didja know <A HREF="http://www.lanl.gov/mst/engine/news.html" REL="nofollow">acoustic Stirling engines with no moving parts can also be used to run acoustic refrigerators?</A>Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-26439776708327420342008-07-12T07:19:00.000-07:002008-07-12T07:19:00.000-07:00Hey, looka here! If it's wacked-out alternate-real...Hey, looka here! If it's wacked-out alternate-reality pseudo-science fiction you're looking for, check out <A HREF="http://www.walrusmagazine.com/articles/2008.07-fiction-the-eagle-has-landed-jm-kearns/" REL="nofollow">this story in which Al Gore wins the 2000 prez election and Cheney and Dubya cook up a crazy sci fi conspiracy to worm their way into power anyway.</A> In this alternate-reality 2008, Rush Limbaugh OD'd on painkillers, Al Gore foiled the 8/11 plot, Karl Rove wound up in prison, and Cheney got shot by his hunting partner instead of the other way around, and nobody watches Faux Noose. This stuff is a scream!<BR/><BR/>I betcha even Dr. Brin will get a giggle from this one.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-76537514871018861302008-07-12T07:08:00.000-07:002008-07-12T07:08:00.000-07:00I'm weighing into this conversation late, but a co...I'm weighing into this conversation late, but a couple of things...<BR/><BR/>Zorg, wrt Sandia estimate of 30% efficiency, it's good news for Stirling engines, but the PV's are fighting back: Green and Gold Energy's <A HREF="http://www.greenandgoldenergy.com.au/" REL="nofollow">Solarcube</A> has measured 30.1% efficiency in March (and is estimated to deliver DC 700-750 KwH per m2 per year in Adelaide)<BR/><BR/>They're in production too!<BR/><BR/>I can live with this type of competition!<BR/><BR/>Speaking of which, who's interested in <A HREF="http://www.openthefuture.com/2008/07/superstruct_play_the_game_inve.html" REL="nofollow">Jamais' little dinner proposition?</A>Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-31204620232134616762008-07-12T01:23:00.000-07:002008-07-12T01:23:00.000-07:00The eucharist taken outside the context of the rit...The eucharist taken outside the context of the ritual is just a cracker (no, blessing it does not magically transform it in any observable way.) The original 'insult' was an asshole thing to do... but the ridiculous outraged response is so worthy of ridicule, derision, and more insults.<BR/><BR/>People have received death threats for goodness sake... that totally unjustified. And the delusional idiots who think it is a reasonable response should be called out and shown the utter insanity of it, or else put in an institution with nice padded walls.<BR/><BR/>On a bit of a lighter angle... I imagine a nice work of art, 'the symbol of the body of Christ' constructed entirely of eucharist crackers. A companion piece 'the actual body of Christ?' would be a bit more difficult to make, since it would have to be constructed from the feces resulting from attending a whole bunch of masses.<BR/><BR/>Yeah, the entire transubstiation thing is completely bat-shit insane... but apparently a large number of people actually think it is reality in some important way.<BR/><BR/>--<BR/><BR/>On punishing the congress-critters who vote for the FISA abomination... Damn straight! Though voting against them in Nov isn't (in many cases at least) a wise move. Much better to vote against them (or even better, run against them) in the next round of primaries. The 'lesser of two evils' difference is far to big. And anyone who thinks all the candidate options are 'the same' should dunk their heads in ice-water and get a grip on reality.Travchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12790548845692414891noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-40561186277440705182008-07-11T23:47:00.000-07:002008-07-11T23:47:00.000-07:00Violent revolution is not the answer to the direct...Violent revolution is not the answer to the direct assault on the constitution or to the rule of law. That would involve answering the abandonment of the rule of law with concomitant abandonment of the rule of law; far better to answer with <I>satyagraha</I>.<BR/><BR/>Non-violent direct action has seldom been tried in America, but when it has been tried (sufragettes chaining themselves to the front gates of major newspapers, MLK's peaceful marches) the results have proven spectacular.<BR/><BR/>If tens or hundreds of thousands of people simply surrounded the homes of every congressman and senator who voted for the FISA sellout, and blocked their path until they changed their position and voted to repeal it, things would change very rapidly. No violence; no outrage -- no verbal attacks or threats. Just people standing or sitting or lying down. And the congressmen wouldn't be able to drive their cars because people would be in the way. And the congressmen wouldn't be able to get into their chambers because people would line the hallways. And the more people capitol hill police arrested, the more would appear, quietly, non-violently refusing to move and refusing to leave.<BR/><BR/>There are also a lot of other simple practical alternatives to violent revolution. Obama has asked for public participation in creating the Democratic platform. Everyone on this forum should chip in -- make plank Number One the repeal of this disgraceful FISA sellout, with plank #2 a "truth and reconciliation" commission to investigate and publicize the full range of crimes committed by this maladministration, with amnesty for any White House insiders who come clean and provide hard documentary or eyewitness evidence of felonies or violation of the constitution.<BR/><BR/>Then there's the awesome power of the vote. Simply vote against every senator and every congresscritter who voted for the FISA abomination.<BR/><BR/>As well, talk to young people. 70% of people over the age of 45 vote in presidential elections...but in the 2006 election, which saw recording-breaking numbers of young people voting, only 34% of people under the age of 25 voted <B>at all</B>. If 70% of young people voted, America would be transformed overnight into a progressive highly enlightened society. Talk to every young person you know and <I><B>stress the crucial importance of their vote in November.</I></B><BR/><BR/>Too, there's the matter of convincing disillusioned conservatives to vote in their own self-interst and throw the neocons & theocons out. Use classic conservative values and right-wing language to point out how thoroughly the neocons & theocons have betrayed true conservatism, as Dr. Brin has repeatedly suggested.<BR/><BR/>All these options promise far more impact than a revolution, violent or otherwise.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-53984550099605359102008-07-11T23:12:00.000-07:002008-07-11T23:12:00.000-07:00The flood of good news continues:New robot learns ...The flood of good news continues:<BR/><BR/>New robot learns to use tools by shoving 'em around on a table. The robot literally <B>learns</B> on the fly, it doesn't know what the tools are until it starts fiddling with them.<BR/><A HREF="http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/21027/?a=f" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope discovers a galaxy 12.3 billion light-years away that seems to be pumping out 40 times as many new stars as the typical galaxy does today. Since the universe was only 1.3 billion years old when we view a galaxy that far away, this has upset lots of theories about star formation in the early universe.<BR/><A HREF="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080710142942.htm" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>FCC announces sanctions against Comcast for its selective blocking of P2P applications (remember that P2P does not serve only to pirate software -- P2P offers the maximally efficient distribution method for popular free open source software, including Firefox 3, the latest Ubuntu linux distro, or a free open-source movie like <I>Elephant's Dream</I>.).<BR/><A HREF="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/timothy-karr/internet-users-stop-comca_b_112153.html" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>Drs. Currie and Mapel have found a way to make solar cells 10 times more efficient (though Dr. Brin is as usual correct that a large parabolic solar mirror aimed at an efficient Stirling engine is 3x more efficient than any other current solar technology. <A HREF="http://www.sandia.gov/news/resources/releases/2004/renew-energy-batt/Stirling.html" REL="nofollow">The net efficiency of Sandia's new solar-electric Stirling powerplant testbed is expected to reach 30%.</A> Since the solar flux on the earth is 1400 watts/meter^2, the Sandia setup could theoretically harvest 420 watts/meter^2. It doesn't take a lotta square meters to get some serious wattage out of that kind of power plant, assuming it scales cost-effectively.).<BR/><A HREF="http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11703131&fsrc=RSS" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/><I>The automobile industry, in the main, has not embraced disruptive technology. It has been waiting instead for batteries to improve until they can allow electric cars to enter the marketplace with the same driving range as gasoline-fueled cars. Battery developers, in turn, have been waiting for demand from the automobile industry to develop before fully committing the resources required to do the job. The generation and transmission infrastructures have not been built up to service the potentially explosive demand from transportation. The wait has gone on for some time. (..)<BR/>We must accelerate conversion to electricity in a major way. (..)<BR/>Estimates show that Estimates show that converting [SUVs, pickups and vans] to dual-fuel operation, even with electricity providing no more than 50 miles of driving range between daily recharging, could cut petroleum imports by 50 to 60 percent—a stunning opportunity.</I><BR/><A HREF="http://www.american.com/archive/2008/july-august-magazine-contents/our-electric-future" REL="nofollow">"Our Electric Future," The American, A Magazine Of Ideas</A><BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/07/top_goper_concedes_that_party.php" REL="nofollow">Top GOPer concedes that Party has NO Safe Senate Seats</A><BR/>Let's hope this November sees such an historic rout of the Repubs that the culture war ends and the Repubs find themselves forced to return to the "reality-based" community.<BR/><BR/>An increasing number of <B>conservative</B> commentators are talking about how America's military-industrial complex has warped our foreign policy and our society out of all recognition.<BR/><A HREF="http://www.d-n-i.net/dni/2008/07/04/prisoners-of-our-own-delusion/" REL="nofollow">Prisoners of Our Own Delusion</A><BR/><BR/>By the way, for enlightened conservatives who've stopped drinking the neocon Kool-Aid and started a ferocious fight to return their party its modern Goldwater-Eisenhower roots, I highly recommend these sites:<BR/><A HREF="http://www.d-n-i.net" REL="nofollow">Defense In the National Interest</A><BR/><A HREF="http://www.balloon-juice.com" REL="nofollow">Balloon Juice,</A> run by John Cole, who voted for the lunatic in the Oval Office not once, but <B>twice</B>, but has since come to his senses with a vengeance;<BR/><A HREF="http://www.amconmag.com" REL="nofollow">The American Conservative,</A> a print magazine launched by (of all people!) ueber-polarizing far-right ultra-conservative Pat Buchanan, who designed Nixon's "positive polarization" campaign on the Viet Nam war and who also wrote Spiro Agnew's most venomous speeches.<BR/><BR/>Excellent article about American's bizarre foreign policy stance toward Iran.<BR/><I>At a moment of serious challenge, battered by two wars, ballooning debt, and a faltering economy, the United States appears to have lost its capacity to think clearly.</I><BR/><A HREF="http://www.nybooks.com/articles/21592" REL="nofollow">"Iran: The Threat" in The New York Times Review Of Books</A><BR/><BR/>"The McCain campaign has not only failed to enthuse Republicans, but left many conservatives depressed and ready for a November defeat, said Richard A. Viguerie, Chairman of ConservativeHQ.com."<BR/><A HREF="http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Viguerie_McCain_campaign_depresses_conservatives_0711.html" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>Of course, we need to remember that at this point in the 1988 campaign, Michael Dukakis was up 15 points over his Republican opponent...so it ain't over till it's over.<BR/><BR/>Largest-ever flash mobs in South Korea offer new model for public protests and direct democracy.<BR/><I>Protesters equipped with laptops and videos cameras have been often witnessed during the rallies over a month. Some of them even donning headsets with microphones to anchor their coverage.<BR/><BR/>They sometimes work in teams of two to four, allotting each other different tasks; one in charge of gaining footage, the other sending it out via the internet.</I><BR/><A HREF="http://www.onthecommons.org/content.php?id=2053" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>Plenty of bad news, too, involving the destruction of the constitution and the abandonment of the rule of law in America, but everyone knows about that stuff, so no point in dwelling on it.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-75011899570933885712008-07-11T17:02:00.000-07:002008-07-11T17:02:00.000-07:00As usual, Z tries to cram a simplistic, strawman r...As usual, Z tries to cram a simplistic, strawman reflex into my mouth, when this thing has as many dimensions as a twisted N-space wormhole.<BR/><BR/>Level One: The guy was an asshole for deliberately insulting people without reason. <BR/><BR/>Level two: The Cannibalism aspect is a valid theological point, especially as Jesus himself would have abhorred the concept of ritual cannibalism, which is absolutely forbidden to Jews. So, by the way, is human sacrifice and the Creator made clear that he would never ask for it, back in the days of Abraham and Isaac. These doctrines clearly came from the Cult of Mithras, in Greece, where Paul adopted them whole cloth.<BR/><BR/>In any event, at the last supper, anyone can tell that Jesus was speaking metaphorically, of having been used up or consumed by his followers.<BR/><BR/>And yet, Judaism does its own theological exaggerations - extrapolating "do not boil a calf in its mother's milk" - clearly a preaching never to add insult to injury -- into a blanket ban on mixing meat and dairy products. Still, the human sacrifice and cannibalism stuff Jesus would NOT have gone for.<BR/><BR/>Level three: These are things that people used to kill each other over. The rage that Z is actinic over is a pale shadow of what it would have been 40 years ago. Self-righteousness has its uses... in fighting racism, for example. But SR junkies have been JUST as responsible for the disemboweling of liberalism as a populist force in america, by getting in-your-face over PC or personal matters that were entirely unnecessary.<BR/><BR/>Level Four. Don't you frigging DARE to tell a man whose ancestors were murdered over eucharist-related Blood Libels, what to feel about this issue. Z doesn't have a clue and never will. Bright $%$# dopes.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-79748914722796752142008-07-11T16:53:00.000-07:002008-07-11T16:53:00.000-07:00I don't feel oppressed enough to risk the civiliza...I don't <I>feel</I> oppressed enough to risk the civilization I have on the roulette table of revolution. You'll get no argument from me that many of those charges may be applicable to George Bush (but you may want to be careful how you phrase things, because I thought you were talking about Obama till the end of your post and couldn't figure out how you thought those charges applied to him)sociotardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11697154298087412934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-31078390568565874472008-07-11T15:28:00.000-07:002008-07-11T15:28:00.000-07:00Sorry -- no can do. America has now officially jum...Sorry -- no can do. America has now officially jumped the shark, with the telecom immunity bill. No, don't you dare go interpreting that as a blow for transparency; it's quite the opposite, in fact, as it will stifle any investigation into the surveillance. Inability to watchdog the watchers is as anti-transparency as it gets.<BR/><BR/>And you can quit backing Obama. He voted "yes" to the telecom immunity bill. McCain's no better; just savvy enough to abstain from voting either way.<BR/><BR/>It's revolution time.<BR/><BR/>"...let Facts be submitted to a candid world.<BR/><BR/> * He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.<BR/> * He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.<BR/> * He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.<BR/> * He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.<BR/> * He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.<BR/> * He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.<BR/> * He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:<BR/> o For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury<BR/> o For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences<BR/> o For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies<BR/> o For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments" <BR/><BR/><BR/>- Excerpt charges against King George from the Declaration of Independence <BR/><BR/>Time to send King George II packing, doncha think?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-31901079607348239952008-07-11T14:52:00.000-07:002008-07-11T14:52:00.000-07:00With all due respect Zorgon, no. This wasn't just...With all due respect Zorgon, no. This wasn't just a guy smuggling a cracker. This was an insult.<BR/><BR/>Put another way, if this was just a cracker, then the N-word is just a word.sociotardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11697154298087412934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-41679118826246828562008-07-11T14:21:00.000-07:002008-07-11T14:21:00.000-07:00That's an interesting excerpt as well, but not the...That's an interesting excerpt as well, but not the one I was aiming for. In case I still cannot get this posting system to recognize a link, the abstract for the article I was trying to put up goes:<BR/><BR/><I>The Internet is on the cusp of its next major evolution: Web3D. Within five to seven years, Web3D will deliver an interactive, immersive experience much richer than the static, text-oriented or even interactive graphical interfaces of today's Web. In the new world of work that Web3D will enable, people will be represented visually by avatars that can move in space and will be able communicate with others and interact with objects and information -- making the digital world seem more like the real world. Yet Web3D won't leave the old world behind; it will integrate with the Web technologies we use today as well as existing and not-yet-invented business applications. Workers will use Web3D to teach and learn, innovate collaboratively, communicate and network, interact with and present information, and manage real-world systems. </I><BR/><BR/>Here's the link to the article, with luck:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.forrester.com/Research/Document/Excerpt/0,7211,45257,00.html" REL="nofollow">Web3D: The Next Major Internet Wave</A><BR/><BR/>It seems like they're still looking for what Holocene could be. I understand the feeling--if you've been knocked down, dusted off, knocked down again over and over, pretty soon you begin to gauge whether it's worth it. But if the industry suddenly declared it time for collaborative representation technologies and they do it <B>wrong</B>, that would compound the regret just a bit.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-18688938986793561712008-07-11T11:57:00.000-07:002008-07-11T11:57:00.000-07:00Zorgon, with due respect, you're wrong. The corre...Zorgon, with due respect, you're wrong. The correct term should be "zombie-worshiping cannibals", not "cannibal zombie worshipers".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-38416754631299230532008-07-11T09:23:00.000-07:002008-07-11T09:23:00.000-07:00Not remotely on topic...Latest evidence that a mas...Not remotely on topic...<BR/><BR/>Latest evidence that a massive wave of irrationality currently inundates the first world, as well as the middle east:<BR/><A HREF="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/07/its_a_goddamned_cracker.php" REL="nofollow">Link.</A><BR/><BR/>Actually, according to strict Christian lore, a eucharist once consecrated gets transubstantiated into the body of Christ. This means that Christians claim to be engaging in cannibalism. And, since Christians worship a dead guy who came back to life, they're zombie worshippers.<BR/><BR/>Cannibal zombie worshippers are not people you want to mess with.<BR/><BR/>Dr. Brin will retort that this offers yet another example of how folks like us with Enlightenment values act all superior and snotty toward those who do not share our views. Not true. Personally I have no problem with cannibal zombie worshippers, even if they conduct their rituals in public. I only comment on the antics of the cannibal zombie worshippers when they begin to act like lunatics in public and try to impose their cannibal-zombie-worshipping beliefs on me or on other people who are not impressed with cannibal zombie-worship.<BR/><BR/>That's not being snotty. It's telling people to get a grip.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10994509912655287453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-18349194096330078232008-07-11T01:07:00.000-07:002008-07-11T01:07:00.000-07:00In other news: When life gives you rising ocean le...In other news: When life gives you rising ocean levels, divert the ocean into canals to irrigate salt-loving plants?<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-seafarm10-2008jul10,0,3389394.story" REL="nofollow">http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-seafarm10-2008jul10,0,3389394.story</A><BR/><BR/>Actually, I'm cynical as to how valuable this idea is (and how damaging it could be), but it is interesting. I'd never heard of salicornia before. And hey, maybe they can start farming it at sea. Just think of all those unused acres!sociotardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11697154298087412934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-9281001611816431142008-07-10T22:36:00.000-07:002008-07-10T22:36:00.000-07:00I think praxcelis was trying to link to:http://www...I think praxcelis was trying to link to:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.forrester.com/Research/Document/Excerpt/0,7211,38772,00.html" REL="nofollow">http://www.forrester.com/<BR/>Research/Document/<BR/>Excerpt/0,7211,<BR/>38772,00.html</A>sociotardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11697154298087412934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-21533356042324657502008-07-10T22:17:00.000-07:002008-07-10T22:17:00.000-07:00correction: Soc Sec contributions *should* be sca...correction: Soc Sec contributions *should* be scaled the same as general tax burden.<BR/><BR/>Sorry, exactly the opposite of what I wrote. I shouldn't decide to change sentence structure mid stream.Travchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12790548845692414891noreply@blogger.com