Good morning.

1. Why does Communist chic survive?
2. This is not unrelated to the prior link.
3. Feminist victory, Pyrrhic?
4. Privacy, laws broken, and consequence.
5. Money wasted is money wasted.
6. You might have a drinking problem when …
7. A “disconnect between rhetoric and reality” … when it is intentional we call that lying.
8. Food for thought (HT).
9. Tobacco, harm, and common misconceptions amongst MDs.
10. Military promotions.

Another day, another ???

1. Coming soon, to a watercooler discussion near you.
2. “much more lavish” … another plug for small businesses, which certainly have none of that lavish crap.
3. Syria and stop digging.
4. A homily … and a cherished gospel story.
5. When the proud papa is an artist.
6. A poll in the UK.
7. Economics and …, a quote.
8. Rules.
9. Your President in action … or is that inaction.
10. Of government spending and debt.
11. The left’s anointed spokesperson and his foot in mouth disease.
12. Freedom of speech in Wales.
13. That’s very funny … other funny videos by the same guy can be found as well.
14. Witness and evidence in the Pakistan.

Good morning.

1. Averages.
2. A interesting prototype for a toy.
3. A quote … which is not unlike the phrase I occasionally tell my kids when the utter the “I’m bored remark” (which oddly enough rarely comes to my ears now). My reply invariably is that “your boredom is a problem with you not the universe which you inhabit.”
4. Warming and causes … a suggestion.
5. Nuptials to remember.
6. Regarding visiting Mars.
7. Frequent visitor noted.
8. Mainstream education moving online?
9. Experts they are not.
10. Fishing the adage, “Give him a fish …” which brings to my mind the always humors Christopher Moore addition “turn him into a fish and his family eats for a week” from Lamb.
11. Mad skillz.
12. Time after time (HT).
13. Post boomer?
14. For the burn your money crowd.

Monday Mr Burgess-Jackson posted a short ethics question:

You are a doctor. You have five patients, each of whom is about to die due to a failing organ of some kind. You have another patient who is healthy.

The only way that you can save the lives of the first five patients is to transplant five of this young man’s organs (against his will) into the bodies of the other five patients. If you do this, the young man will die, but the other five patients will live.

Is it appropriate for you to perform this transplant in order to save five of your patients?

I’d like to propose a variant, because I don’t think the doctor (“do no harm”) should ever consider this as given. (below the fold) Read the rest of this entry

Yo.

1. The tip/top of the iceberg.
2. Holder and the lying game … in a word, weak tea … supported here and here.
3. More on Holder here.
4. A commencement address of note without inappropriate jokes (HT: Mr Burgess-Jackson).
5. Yikes.
6. Put that same metric on Mr Obama and Mr Kerry (the last two Democrat Presidential) and they too “did nothing”.  But I doubt Mr McElwee would say they did nothing. Why might that be?
7. Brendan points out some of the real failings of consequentialism. I might add that a wise friend of mine equated asceticism with prayer.
8. The capstone of the liberal media not doing so well.
9. Coming to a zoo near you in a decade or so.
10. Fine tuning.
11. Marriage, France and a speech.
12. So will that end the homicide bombers terror trend?
13. A lock.
14. A quote.
15. Another.
16. Twitter travels in time.
17. A short film, beware the dust in the air.
18. Academic mediocrity and our President.
19. A film noted.

Tonight I return the Internet black hole, I’m trying the third hotel (and final) in the area to see if they, unlike the others, have “high-speed” internet that is faster than dialup.

1. An ethics question.
2. “Other weapons systems” … equals drones?
3. Fur yur amoozment.
4. Not a co-conspirator.
5. Fine tuning comes to inflation.
6. 13 years ago, Honda sold a 1 liter three cylinder inline powered car … still waiting.
7. And you tell the wife, parents, and children of the dead patient you “did no harm”? This isn’t an ethical dilemma.
8. Of names and men.

OK. Remember today, first off … do no harm.

I hope everyone had a good memorable Memorial day. If you want to read something patriotic, I often recommend the first chapter or two or the Book of Ruth. Ruth’s declamatory statement to Naomi strikes me as the essence of patriotism.

1. I have to confess, unlike many readers, I find the likability of the protagonist important, for example that was a reason I couldn’t stand the Thomas Covenant series. The protagonist doesn’t have to be likable I guess, but it really really helps if there is someone who is likable.
2. Legal-like moonshine.
3. Law and drones continued.
4. Academic failings.
5. Theodicy and Presidential statements … so do you think Presidents and other politicians actually read the context of the verses they choose? Did this President do so?
6. Liberal hack and … uncivil as well? Don’t worry the liberal hack thing will keep him is moonlight job as a NYTimes pundit and liberals stapled to the cause will never believe he might say or do wrong.
7. Scandal in India.
8. Future’s so bright and all … maybe.
9. Star Trek, sliced and diced (spoilers aplenty) (HT Ms (slightly) Mad Minerva).
10. Bars of the uneven kind.
11. PEDs and a mountain.
12. So … you’re in Nashville. Where to go? What do do? How about this?
13. Benghazi the narrative in local context.
14. Not a lot of running on warships, eh?
15. A very bad day.

Henry II had a stalwart friend and assistant in Thomas Beckett his chancellor. When there was a chance to elevate Thomas to a position of arch-Bishop of Canterbury Henry did so, thinking he’d have a close ally in the Church. What he didn’t realize was that Beckett was loyal not to him as his chancellor but the office … and when he was head cleric … he was likewise loyal to his office and no longer a close friend and ally of the King. In a frustrated rage (and Henry had a temper) Henry famously hollered  “will someone not rid me of this meddlesome priest” … and two knights took him at his word, rode forth in the night to Canterbury and slew the Bishop in cold blood at the altar, an act which shocked and horrified both England and their King who never actually intended this act to be carried out.

The left in general and the left elite in particular see themselves as the faithful guardians and representatives of the people. A popular movement arising naturally belongs within their party, not the opposition. When this occurs it is an affront to their long held assumptions that the ordinary folk are their constituents and this movement is a betrayal (just talk to a gay conservative as to how liberals treat with them … for a party that thinks that harsh words against oppressed groups are harmful, they are mighty quick to use them themselves).

Mr Obama has joked about using the IRS as a political tool, he’s remarked how Tea Party members were nefarious, he’s publicly called out persons and groups to be targeted by liberal pressure. Low and behold a few knights ride out to do his bidding. Actually more than a few, but who’s counting. Apparently we are to believe there was no connection between his attitude, the atmosphere he encouraged in his administration and its behavior. History if I remember, finds Henry culpable for the consequences of his remarks. History likewise, will likely find Mr Obama culpable for the spate of government overreach and partisanship it demonstrates …

On the other hand, it seems calls for “impeach the bum” keep coming from the right. Uhm, a few points to this remark:

• Biden? Geesh
• The President is tried in the Senate, by Senators not a few of whom have Presidential aspirations and for which a majority share the same political party as the President.
• Which means, the only actual good that would come of impeachment is … that it would shut down the federal government for a month or so.
• and finally, Biden? If that doesn’t frighten you, nothing will.

Oh, wait. Point #3 might be the actual point. Impeachment even without conviction would be likely to hamstring the President during and afterwards … and he’s not going to be convicted so the Biden threat isn’t very real.

Busy morning for me. You?

1. If our plan holds, this is the next “family” car after the kids move out … or the equivalent in 2017.
2. A few years in the cellar.
3. “Mystical” … what does that mean to ABC I wonder.
4. The standards … they are double, eh?
5. An aesthetic is a method for evaluating art. By what aesthetic is that worth that much? Not one I might fathom.
6. Some games and a photo-essay.
7. Two very different posts on exercise, here and here.
8. While you’re thinking about the IRS.
9. Ink on skin meets religion in the Middle East.
10. OK liberals … defend this! or this.
11. School and men.
12. Frakking and the obvious.
13. He calls it “inexcusable” and is right glad his Chicago training taught him how to have no tracks back to himself on this one … at least as long as those losing their jobs keep their mouths shut.
14. And we end with a discussion of a fictional figure in popular media.

Moving on

1. Do drones work?
2. More on the same.
3. Researching for the government. Heh.
4. The liberator and open source.
5. First there was lather rinse repeat now we find eat, pray, drink.
6. Liberty. Three notions of liberty (freedom to choose, loving neighbors/community, and now … freedom to make laws). Do they differ at the core or just the edges?
7. Cheating.
8. Multi-culturalism and its claims … a test lab.
9. The last weeks scandal that was lost.  Another list. A prediction … I’m not convinced he’s lost them yet.
10. Dogs and medical methodology and recommendations.
11. “We don’t rush in half cocked” …  of course we do, if we have to. Remember McClellan  and the Civil war … responding too much to the fear of losing and the unknown leads merely to just plain losing.
12. Biden-the-knucklehead takes credit for the White House promoting fracking. Promoting fracking? What is he smoking?
13. Danger danger Will Robinson!!!

G’day

1. Seems like a good thing.
2. Well, time is probably something they have on hand.
3. More things than are dreamed of in your books, perhaps.
4. Bravo.
5. Hey! That’s an old standard “dad” line.
6. Privacy or “market research”.
7. ad hoc gun show.
8. Number 6 is Mr Obama who appointed them, eh?
9. Alienated, young, and male.
10. To quoth the President a few days after the Benghazi incident “a shadowy figure behind the video sparked the attack” … “nothing new was learned” … yep. Nothing new, except that doesn’t mean what you think it means.
11. Mali watch.
12. Classical education and what that used to mean.

OK. Take a few

1. Colorado oversteps. Would local zoning laws do it?
2. All that sex talk makes Lucy a duller girl.
3. A set of odd wheels for bikes.
4. Devil(s) … impersonal or not?
5. Why? Maybe they were wearing swim suits not sweaters. More on that IRS thing here.
6. Touche.
7. Purple prose.
8. Great apes and swimming … and the resultant map.
9. Heh.
10. A mom reflects on mother’s day.
11. Losing the left on the Benghazi kerfuffle.
12. A good question, after all most of the research was supported by your taxes. And is arXIV sufficient to ameliorate the problem?
13. Famousness.

The White House talking point on Benghazi is that the hearings “told us nothing new”, which I think isn’t exactly what they were hoping for. You’d think that they would be wanting those hearings to exonerate them, instead of confirming what we already knew, i.e., that they were scoundrels.

G’day

1. One thing you don’t have to worry about shopping in the Midwestern ‘burbs.
2. Yah, that will work. So, does that mean the state department is completely ignorant of how difficult stopping a 2 megabyte zip file from being disseminated might be. I mean, why even bother. Setting aside the point that there is no actual reason for them to try to stop it in the first place.
3. Diversity and USC.
4. Modern atheism, likely flash in the demographic pan.
5. Modern reason takes a turn to the dark side. (in which dark implies ignorance and such)
6. Uhm, Ms Pelosi is grandstanding … let’s see “sequestration” is keeping a very very wealthy woman from “visiting the troops” … does that mean sequestration is keeping her from buying a plane ticket? Nope. Making phone calls? Nope. So how is sequestration stopping here. Answer,  Uhm, no … it’s not and … Ms Pelosi … you are flat out lying.
7. Impeachment. Although there is no reason to impeach Mr Obama … the Senate has Democratic majority, there is no point.
8. Fear the duck.
9. A danish writer of some renown compares Easter/Pascha celebrations in Rome and Greece.
10. Short answer, no.
11. A book list.
12. Used weather, dirt cheap.

Well, then …

1. A little honesty … to bad we don’t get more of that in politics.
2. Speaking about things needed in politics … we can dream, eh?
3. Space and fire.
4. About the WDML.
5. Spin backfires.
6. Actually it’s not a “game changer”. Zip guns have been around for a long time and this is just another zip gun.
7. And on that topic … you do realize there is no actual need to reinforce the notion that the left is completely ignorant when it comes to firearms.
8. Apparently Ms Clinton had an accurate accusation.
9. Fracking comes to Asia.
10. Well, duh.
11. Yikes.
12. Boots on the ground, costs, and performance … works for military performance and applies to lots of other things too.
13. A confession.

Yah, links?

1. Well, that’s to be expected. That arab “spring”  is a thing to behold.
2. Actually, I think the motive or at least the logic of “what did he want to achieve by that” is not very clear.
3. “The most callous thing” which means  Mr Biden completely lacks any imagination at all. Or has led an incredibly sheltered life to not realize that there are hundreds (thousands) of “more callous” things that man has done to man than that.
4. Girlfriend?
5. Doing the treadmill right.
6. Very very pretty. This too.
7. Archaeology underwater.
8. Pesky trends for the gun control = emergency crowd.
9. Where it’s not cold when it rains.
10. Apparently the “is not welcome” at Church is a recent lefty meme, alas … not true.
11. The Paschal (Easter) 2nd homily from the Russian patriarch (the first was the original by St John Chrysostom spoken at every Orthodox Paschal celebration for many many centuries … when something is done right … why change?).