Links found around and about these here interwebby things.

1. Of Mr Obama and Mr Trump.
2. Social or geographical structures and people living in them.
3. Cute and effective, which probably means Roger Goddell wasn’t involved, heh.
4. Not held back by Star Trek (bad) doctrine.
5. Yah think?
6. So the clerk arrest is “bad optics” … speaking of which …
7. A drone meets its match.
8. A subtitle for the “Black Lives Matter” crowd.
9. Or your dating methodology suffers a systematic error (like you got the age of the parchment not the text).
10. Ms Clinton’s email problem.
11. Cruz gets it wrong. Look if you call one side hypocritical, don’t turn around and do the “other sides” version of the same hypocritical nonsense.
12. On the county clerk … seems to me if she wanted to do what she is doing and avoid the legal problems, she should have read more Kafka. Bureaucratic runarounds have been around a long time. In some place they are probably an art form (see Havel).

Around and about (from North Las Vegas this week)

1. Trump and verse in the context of the Stasi.
2. “Science” figures out repentence and forgiveness are useful. How clever.
3. But, don’t dismiss science, they give you 6 foot scorpions to dream about.
4. Of word vs deed. Gosh, I hope there is a place to spit when I actually hear someone use a term like “xe” or “zir”.
5. Sometimes I wonder if it is the error of Star Trek and their “Prime Directive” crap that keeps us from actively opposing ISIS with little more than harsh words.
6. This post, reminds me of an anecdote set in British colonial India. A Brit military chap is arresting some blokes for burning a woman after the death of her husband. He is informed by the outraged locals that “we have an ancient custom of doing so”. He replies his people too have an ancient custom of arresting people who burn women. Multicultural-ism is all well and good. It’s useful to understand the ways of thinking of the other guy. Doesn’t mean however, that your way of thinking isn’t actually wrong or even not better.
7. Micro-aggressions noted. Those who promote a “theory” of micro-aggression may want claim that saying “affirmative action is racist” and/or “I believe that the most qualified person should get the job” are racist, wrong and “micro-aggresions”. They’d be 100% completely wrong. If you want to claim something true is false, go right ahead. But you’d still be wrong.
8. Speaking racism of a more obvious sort, one of the main organs of the left gives a good one example of that.
9. I remain confused about the Senate vote/non-vote for the Obama/Iran “deal”. If it isn’t ratified by 67 Senators, it’s not a treaty and isn’t binding. It’s not law and it’s not going to survive a President who doesn’t support it.
10. On the basis of this, I’ve started reading this. Coincidentally I’d also picked up and started reading another book by the same author, Rob Roy.
11. Your President’s (likely racist) legal eagles in action.
12. An “ethical” question. My answer is no. And that the only person you can ethically suggest to sacrifice for her sake is your own.

My excuse these last weeks is my schedule, work about 11 hours, drive (60 minutes round trip) to swim, swim (about 90 minutes total), eat, sleep and so on leaves, will no time for much. Anyhow, I’ve been reading (audio tapes driving to/from Illinois to Ohio has included a Vaclav Havel biography, a Dan Simmons Sherlock Holmes story, and the Zombie book “Warm Bodies” which made for a fun film and an ok book). As for Mr Havel, I might have to read a play or two, but I thought his observation regarding foreign policy apropos for the recent Iran “treaty” (scare quotes required, oddly enough). Mr Havel pointed out that if a government lies consistently to its own people you can’t trust it not to lie to foreign powers, in fact it is less likely to be honest with foreigners. Oh, and Katie Ledecky is completely amazing.

Links?

1. Some guy killed a lion. I think I overheard that lawmakers were suggesting new laws. Wonder if they realize prize hunting in much (most/all?) of Africa normally goes to supporting their habitats, so making that illegal will be less good, not better for lions and such.
2. Convenience is not always your friend … as long as you really trust everyone you come in contact with the unimportant things like continued living.
3. Saving money or not … A question asked and another answered.
4. And our government remains clueless about so so much.
5. Why exercise is necessary.
6. Public schools do indeed waste stupendous amounts of money.
7. Ok. Fine. He wasn’t a “hero” but he was the most interesting character in the story.
8. If this statement “Does the fact that every US ally in the Middle East, Arab and Jew, opposes this deal mean anything ?” is true, the deal should die. (more here)
9. What makes an author great?
10. Ms Clinton and her bad investment advice.
11. Displaced humans, not just in abundance in Syria.

Question? Why do people think this Iran deal is going to be part of Obama’s legacy if, because it is not a treaty, it will only survive on the forbearance of his predecessor (as it is sustained only by Presidential executive order). To be a treaty which would in fact bind future Presidents it would require ratification by two thirds of the Senate.

1. Your feel good story for the day. (HT)
2. Mr Schraub shows is partisan bent … in that it was very partisan of him that he twigged on that and not, say, birth citizenship queries aimed at Mr Cruz (or the somewhat silly NYTimes “expose” pieces demonstrating Rubio had (gasp) some parking tickets a few decades ago).
3. A freaking felony? Truly!! Stupidity squared.
4. I think what underlies this post is one of the things separating the left from right. The left thinks our civilization is robust and strong. The right knows it is not … tell me what caused the decline and fall of Rome? How do you know that won’t happen to us too? Read too the Dominic Flandry novels by Poul Anderson for a vision of life during the decades and centuries of the decline. As goes the predominance of the our Protestant work ethic and our can-do attitude about what is possible so goes our future.
5. Pointing out the problem with we’re not charging you with a crime, but your response to our investigation … that was criminal.
6. Squid farmers on Mars, “so who should have won the Hugo?” Hmm. The Martian never won. That was in the top 3 best sci-fiction novel of the last decade or two. How’d that get missed?
7. To cheer up the conservatives, a reminder … the failure and fall don’t happen over night.
8. Freedom of speech on campus … and a confused girl.
9. The Urkainian conflict as war as UFO.
10. Big data and the government. The author the linked letter has trust in the government. Look, Google and lots of big retailers know lots more than you’d expect about you and so does the government. But for myself, I’d trust Google further with that then the state. I know why Google (as proxy for commerce) wants that data. They want to sell me stuff, but not randomly, they want to be able to sell me stuff that I actually want when I actually need or want it. Just recall the recent IRS partisan attack on conservative groups and ask yourself if you really think our state can be trusted not to abuse their data, haven’t abused that trust already.
11. Considerations of Pacific conflict and geographical implications on the same.

What’s gnu?

1. So. Some possibly ISIS inspired Islamic fellows decided freedom of speech isn’t for them and attacked a group who purposely insulted their religion (which reminds me, if you can’t depict Mohammed with pictures why it both a common name and people with that name have pictures taken and published). Be that as it may, the usual suspects some out with remarks.
   1. A liberal commentator invites the attacked groups leader and declares her interview to be filled with hate. Except alas, said hate is nowhere to be seen. Methinks the accuser self-labels himself as that which he accuses.
   2. A cartoon in response.
   3. And a column on freedom of speech (in which said cartoon was first seen).
   4. more here.
   5. The liberal response in a nutshell. (apparently … you can recall their not-similar reaction to, say, “piss Christ”)
   6. Is this related or not?
2. Grist for the Indiana bakery discussion.
3. An interesting division by sex in the motives of serial killers.
4. A suggestion of a famous art piece’s interpretation.
5. Loss of credibility has consequences.
6. Journalistic malpractice on display.
7. The fine print on Obama/Kerry’s Iran centrifuge deal.
8. A very cool time-lapse sequence.

Snippets?

1. A liberal ponders Baltimore, and while he professes to be optimistic certainly seems not to be. His optimism is founded on “hopefully we’ll have an exceptional leader” is his only hope having found that process and and representational liberal solutions have failed. This is hardly unsurprising as social destruction of the two atomic parent family and those discounted (by liberals) conservative values being lost trump process liberalism and representation.
2. My thoughts on Baltimore mirror what has been said elsewhere (including perhaps badly by the President). Even though liberals and elites think terrorism on the other side of the globe doesn’t sully the message. They. Are. Wrong. In the Middle East and, say, the Chechen mountains murdering civilians rightly invalidates your message. Do you want people to respect your right to self govern in Palestine? Then stop killing women and children with bombs. Do you want police to take more care in their jobs? Then don’t riot, steal, and destroy. One of the complaints of inner city slums is that everything costs more locally than it does in the exurbs. Guess what? You just made it even more expensive. Good work. You just bought the Baltimore police free sympathy, after all, look at what they’ve been dealing with.
3. The other thought on Baltimore is that this is a continuation of a retrogressive civilizing trend that’s been going on for quite some time. In the 19th century wars had a lot more conventions and rules. We’ve gone away from that and it’s not a good thing. It’s a sign of less order, less thought, and less honestly and honor. A fight between individuals (or nations) doesn’t have to be a “until you call uncle” affair, but could … if the combatants be civil decided at a stage significantly sooner. More akin to a duel, which is sometimes but less frequently, “to the death” but decided by an agreement to hold to the outcome of a symbolic struggle. Nations too could struggle via proxy, if they could honorably and honestly hold to the outcome of said proxy contest. Alas, men aren’t by and large honest anymore. Certainly not our world leaders at any rate.
4. Well, the liberal elite certainly have no sympathy for it. And a law to be challenged I’d offer.
5. In light of the NRO article about DA Chislom using his office to quash political opponents. He’s not backing down, but upping the ante. In the absence of any liberals coming to his defense, which seems to imply his position isn’t defensible, where are the cries from the left against him?
6. Tasting the winds of change. Mr Fernandez is not optimistic about the crises in education as typified in the recent failure of a chain of colleges in California, which if Baltimore hadn’t irrupted we’d be talking about today.
7. At least my kids did some free running. Those in authority which went against that Maryland couple who let their kids walk from parks to home … should be tarred and feathered and run out of town on a rail.
8. Actually I’d like to see more of this in general in the hospital systems, inviting friends and family to help in the care seems like a great idea.
9. So. Get out of Jersey when you can, I guess.
10. A great lady noted.
11. What the climate models have demonstrated very well. A succinct way of putting it, is that these models all operate under the principle that CO2 is a driver of global warming. They they all fail, demonstrates the converse, CO2 is not the driver of climate.

Haven’t done a links post in a while.

1. Exhibit A, why ivory tower eggheads get ignored. Want to stop it, stop suggesting stupid things.
2. Answer, … confiscation.
3. So, GPS mistakes have in the past, by saying “turn now” convinced people to drive into lakes and such. Doctors and nurses sometimes don’t ask “is this reasonable” when a computer error occurs either. Consequences can be deadly to ignoring common sense.
4. Not fossils.
5. Guns and society. If you think you can’t trust your neighbor with guns, why trust the state? The state is comprised of people like your neighbors.
6. Hard to believe.
7. A statistic to start a conversation.
8. “Vampire Squid”
9. Why? Seriously? Answer: Unions.
10. This is making the rounds (here too). Comparisons to Hitler’s Germany are not apt. But then if the motivations are political then there is also no defense. And … what the heck? You can’t talk about this! That doesn’t sound legal. More importantly, it doesn’t sound ethical and ethics trumps law.
11. Well that’s because the slaves aren’t homosexuals.

Well, post swim lactic acid and endorphin levels have ruined my chance to offer a intelligent essay. So … on to links.

1. A middle ground?  You mean like where people who want guns can get them and those that don’t don’t. Sounds like a middle ground to me.
2. So the left has been full frontal attack mode on Mr Walker. They’re making him a more and more attractive candidate from where I sit. I mean, for example, when you demonize a guy for “gosh he’s making it illegal on Wisconsin campuses to report rapes and assaults” … uhm, dig just a little bit and you find he’s doing that at the effing request of the University (not a hotbed conservative place, btw). And the whole, “he’s clearly unqualified” after giving reasonable responses to stupid/unreasonable questions. Uhm, no. That’s not unreasonable, but hey, the questions were.
3. On speaking truthfully, unless you are a politician. (for a prime example see our President), in which case (to borrow from Shania Twain) as we know politicians only lie when they’re breathing.
4. On the IRS and Obamacare.
5. On the IRS and their breathing thing, or lying thing .. whatever.
6. Tech for the plant floor.
7. Cool image.
8. Evil and consequences.
9. Zoom.
10. A school (down under) getting it all wrong.
11. Left wing boorish bullying, an example.
12. So, Obama vetoed Keystone, because he things rail is much cleaner safer way to transport oil. Teh stupid, it burns.
13. So, will the Rubicon be crossed in the next decade or two? Wonder if anyone is laying odds.

Links?

1. It is indeed winter. See? Nature can impress, eh?
2. The are spreading … and it is a religious movement. And not extremists, alas. The President’s strategy of denying their religious origins/basis is, to put it kindly, “a well intentioned but dishonest campaign”. Hmm. Well intentioned and dishonest, sounds like our President’s modus operandi for many many things.
3. Security and technology, or asking a high school kid to hack a car.
4. Hmm. Who’s job was it to stop the Balrog? Somebody had to, apparently, put their foot down and say, “You shall not pass!”
5. How post-modern scholarship gets it (being it = history) wrong.
6. I wonder how unintentionally ironic that headline is, after all “insane and unbalanced” is a pretty good self-portrait of that particular site. Well, insane might be too strong, unbalanced however is constant as the stars.
7. Nanotech in nature.
8. Some verse.
9. A book now in my inbox. Looks good.
10. Heh.
11. I hadn’t realized most outdoors hiking/camping/mountain climbing deaths are by the very experienced not the reverse. Makes sense though. Doesn’t really sound like anything anyone needs to do anything about though.
12. Regulation. So, is that a generalization principle? That regulation needs to establish both (a) the need for said regulation and to (b) establish that proposed regulation is feasible at a sufficiently low cost. Low. Cost. !!!! Grrr.

So, what have other people been talking about, eh?

1. Well, that’s true, … but actually just about everyone toward the top of the world-class game is effing hard core. The exception is the few who are not.
2. Hmm. (if true) Don’t worry that’s matched by the liberal intellectual and political elites who underestimate it.
3. There is a serious problem when people who give voice to the cry of “teh racism” don’t bother to deny the actual fact that there was cheating involved. Is your race supposed to give you license to cheat? Or what?
4. Now that’s very cool. On the not-very-cool and not completely unrelated news, my Christmas present for my daughter (glow in the dark plant seeds which were (supposed to be) genetically modified with jellyfish DNA to glow) … haven’t arrived.
5. Speaking of very cool. Bet you could shoot planes with that. Somewhere recently I read that many many inexpensive drones with explosives would make tanks and capital ships like the one carrying ordnance linked obsolete, forget both sides have drones. You’re going to have a bloody war (as it always) with defensive and offensive drones fighting. That is just another front. You’re still going to need ships to carry troops, ships to protect those ships, tanks to protect infantry, and as always … infantry. I don’t think that’s changed yet.
6. Speaking of unrestrained power in motion. This is interesting to watch.
7. What passes as liberal labor theology is just out of my site racism. Until the minimum productivity/wave fanatics stop talking about US wage laws and start pushing for global wage standards … it’s just racism of a different sort.
8. A very strange architectural wonder. My sweet wife has a fascination for very small houses (I think there is a movement, but don’t recall the phrase). I think the about 100 sq foot houses require a warm climate where you can do much of your living outdoors. Which is nice. It just isn’t where the thermometer reads single digits for much of the year (if at all).
9. So, Mr Obama opened a can of stupid and declared that the Crusades were a Christian war of aggression in which atrocities were committed. Here’s as close as an even handed look at that point of view as you’ll find. I mean, if “because it was war and all wars contain atrocities” and Christianity was involved (just as Islam is involved in ISIS, which he denies (keeping that can open)) therefore … uhm. Isn’t this supposed to be a “smart” President. Why such a simplistic shallow view of the Crusades? Hmm?
10. University budget cuts and how it is pointed out how an argument of this hardship is not made correctly.
11. If true … the President should be excoriated for many lifetimes.
12. Who is paying for ISIS/ISIL? (who is playing their video?) Answer should be nobody. Why isn’t it nobody?
13. An economic indicator of hard times ahead. So, optimists, ‘xplain why that’s not a problem.

So. Back to work tomorrow.

1. Carnegie-Mellon puts PV=nRT to the test.
2. No prejudice in the alteration of data.
3. Methane for vehicular fuel, exhibit a and exhibit b.
4. School hi-jinks.
5. Corruption in (a) government noted.
6. Someone on the right praises Ms Obama.
7. With the common practice of security free medical devices, do you think security will be a primary concern for its use.
8. Very cool. Wonder what it would be like to play with that on at the same time.
9. 200 million? That seems not very much, it’s likely they lost more than twice that from employees borrowing pencils and office supplies.
10. Unemployment and welfare.
11. Military aid for families takes an ironic turn.

Linky link.

1. Still seems like mental illness to me. The dysphoria <->BIID comparison seems to make that clear. It might be that the best available treatment is to live with it, but that doesn’t make it not a mental illness.
2. Not unrelated, Mark Daniels on addiction.
3. Toyz.
4. Nutt’n better to do I guess than pretend to know about that which you don’t.
5. “Digitally faked”. Now that’s just wrong (and embarrassing to own up to I’d think).
6. An animal with a backpack.
7. A use for old hard drives.
8. “Everywoman” … isn’t.
9. Extra-terrestrial taking a leak.

26 days to (Western) Lent. 31 Days for the Eastern Church (for which there are 10 days to the Triodion … this Sunday is Zacchaeus Sunday).

New Tablet … an attempt to see how android 5.01 works with WordPress for creating links posts.

1. Oh. It’s a race!
2. Color me unsurprised.
3. I am not unsympathetic to the notion that at some point in end of life, end is inevitable and pain and loss of dignity is the only thing left. However, I also think euthenasia should be illegal and a likely jail term in the offing. That isn’t to say, if push came to shove and the hard choice was mine to make, I think if you love your parent or spouse, isn’t that love great enough to go to jail for your beloved? *That* will prevent abuse. It is often the error that illegal=immoral (hint: it isn’t. And furthermore, when given the choice, moral wins, not legal).
4. I use LastPass. How ’bout y’all?
5. Fiction, Fact, stranger than … Raiders of the Lost Arc edition.

Well, that wasn’t impossible. I need to figure out how to create enumerated list in the android wordpress app.

And nonsense.

1. Heh. A history lesson of sorts.
2. The sooner people figure out that human value is uncorrelated with salary, the better.
3. Conservative vs Liberal Supreme Courts (by a paint by numbers metric) measure with respect to freedom of religion.
4. Seems I grew up in a transition period. I think A grades are exceptional, but that as well, Failing means you were also exceptionally unexceptional.
5. Church and men.
6. Snipers and public perception.
7. Heh.
8. Security and Progressive. In a word, yikes.
9. If Picketty is right (capital trumps salary) then gosh, you’d think the President would be proposing policies that encourage investment in markets. Not the reverse, ah, our moron-in-chief.
10. Great muscular strength helps sometimes.

Links?

1. Ms Warren (is probably not running).
2. Macular degeneration and a possible cause.
3. Bake your own energy bars, with some help.
4. State solvency and some suggestions for the basket case states. (earlier post here)
5. Snail poisons.
6. Almost sounds like the “cafeteria Christianity” heresy is enshrined in American common law.
7. Damned lies and statistics.
8. So. We all try to empathize and understand those on the other side of the aisle (or we should). But I completely strike out here. I have no idea why anyone in their right mind would utter the phrase “That is irrelevant”. Because, no. It! Is! Not! I fail to understand any circumstance in which that would not be the only relevant factor.
9. Somebody else here mistakenly assumes the result of the Habermas/Ratzinger debate. Uhm, the argument isn’t as cut and dried as you pretend.
10. Bang for beginners. (if you have bucks)
11. Backwoods epicurean delight?
12. And .. I bought the book. Haven’t read it yet though.