It's not that not wearing a bicycle helmet is a bad idea... it's that wearing one is not a bad idea. It's probably far safer to ride a bike helmetless than to...say...talk on a cell phone while driving.
Mildly aside: I've just moved to lovely Setauket, NY. The bike commute to work is great, 5 miles, no hills -- but what do people do out here (aside from garage sales)?
Giacomo @ #29:
I've found that cycling clothes, which wick away the sweat from your body, help both to cool you and to keep you from getting drenched. Doesn't hurt to towel off before changing into work clothes either.
Heresiarch @ 72:
I think we're basically on the same page here. I agree that modern social networking tools can be extremely useful for organizing social movements, and -- like I said in #26 or so -- I'm sure China's watching Iran carefully. I just don't think a good tool is the same thing as a motivations, so I tend to look for economic explanations. Obviously, economics isn't the be-all-and-end-all of human motivations, but it seems like a reasonable first guess.
I don't think the Iranian rulers are that confident of their support among the populace. In addition to all their efforts at information control, they've been photoshopping additional crowd into photographs of their rallies.
Earl @ 15:
I think the fizzling of the Tienneman Square movement had more to do with the ludicrous economic growth China had in the two decades after it. I'm sure China is watching what's going on in Iran very carefully.
Jaydee,
Maybe you get more dog biscuits in the mail than I do...
About Dushku's acting: Some of the other actors on the show are better. But the most common complaint I've heard -- that she's supposed to be a different person every week, and why does the same persona keep bleeding through? -- doesn't entirely make sense. That pattern is sort of the point of the show.
Seems like New Hampshire might become Number Six before too long. Anyone know whether the governor there is actually going to sign the law?
At #49, janetl wrote:
Clifton Royston @ 48: You must never, ever read the comment thread on a newspaper. I forget occasionally, and reel away in horror.
Yeah, really. The comments in the editorial section of most US newspapers make Youtube's commenters look reasonable.
Tom Whitmore @ 157:
Ah, TomB, but Senators are a highly renewable resource.
A good thing, too, since they seem to spoil easily...
it's been a slow, steady creep.
It has been. But social norms can change faster when the realm of acceptable discourse broadens. It wouldn't surprise me if popular sentiment on these topics was changing a bit faster now than, say, 10 years ago.
There does seem to be a quiet movement towards a more sensible drug policy in the U.S. I don't think major change will come quickly, but you can see little changes all over the place. Decriminalization in Massachusetts & Michigan. Articles like Cafferty's. Jim Webb's National Criminal Justice Commission Act. Even Obama's response to that town hall question about marijuana and the economy was ususual. He didn't use it as an opportunity to grandstand. Instead he made a joke.
The smartest thing I've heard about the markets was the warning that when the market (an up market) becomes front-page news, it's time to scram.
Or, if you're feeling slightly less conservative with your investments, get out the moment you see someone proclaiming that this bull market is different from all the previous ones.
AJ: Wall street, the financial markets, and most financial companies will presumably continue to exist whatever we do.
I'm not disputing that; capitalism seems to have survived well enough so far.
I think I should have used milder language than "Wall St. falls", since I failed to communicate clearly. What I was attempting to say -- and this, also, is one of the main points of Simon Johnson's article -- is that Obama's advisors probably believe that the financial industry is so central to our economy that another major shock there will have exaggerated effects on the rest of our economy. This view is partly correct -- e.g., if the credit markets get much tighter, a lot of people will lose their jobs -- and it's partly misleading. We can survive without Citibank and Bank of America. The question basically is where lies the tipping point between short term pain and long term gain.
I do share your suspicion that your option a) is not going to be enough in the end, and that we'll have to face option b) at the least. But I'd like to see the unwinding done slowly and deliberately. I'm more afraid of the consequences of a panic or another crash than I am of decade of slow growth. This leaves me thinking that option a) is worth a shot, on the grounds that it ought to lessen the pain when we get to b). (If nothing else, it's easier to leave the counterparties more or less whole if they've already been paid by the time their creditees declare bankrupcy.)
It appears that Obama's advisors think if they can prop up Wall Street, though, everything else will follow along with it.
I'm under the impression that Obama's advisors think that if they can't prop up Wall Street, every else will follow along with it.
I suppose it's possible that Wall Street falls and something else replaces it eventually. But I'd rather avoid finding out how long "eventually" is.
I saw the movie last weekend.
It is just slightly more violent than the comic books. They slightly altered a few scenes and then dwelt on the additional violence in a way that the comic books didn't.
On the whole, I agree with the assessment that it's about as good an adaptation as one could hope for. It has all the Easter eggs and gets the characters and story right. Even slightly improves the "main villain"s evil plot. But it's not a story that's really meant for film. It's just too damned much in too short a time.
If you don't have time to go the farmer's market, consider signing up for a farm box. Fresh fruit and vegetables delivered every week or two to your front door. It's really nice. You eat better and have to shop less.
"What, you can't see the barcodes on the water? That's because they're printed with water!"
I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but the printing isn't done with water. It's done with fluoride. Two birds with one stone, if you follow me.
Sweet!
Still, it's a pity that Neil had to xvyy bss Obq'f qbt before they gave him a medal. But maybe that was meant as a kind of parody/reference.
| Year | Number of comments posted |
|---|---|
| 2009 | 21 |
| 2008 | 42 |
| 2007 | 29 |
| 2006 | 3 |
| 2005 | 1 |
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