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Thursday, December 15. 2011

It's Lutefisk season

Is it like Scandinavian Gefilte fish? Yuk.

Realtors: We Overcounted Home Sales for Five Years

What Do They Call a Tiger Mom in China?

Stumbling across the truth about men and women as just friends

Boys will be boys, despite the prissy schoolmarms. Boys have two brains...

World's Ugliest Public Art

Are Hollywood Stars Enabling Sexual Predators By Not Naming Names?

Act of Valor- a movie you must see

How to destroy tourism in Egypt

That Graduation-Rate Nonsense Strikes Again

I'm not too smart, but it seems to me obvious that, in general, the higher your graduation rates, the lower your expectations, rigor, and demands. Let's face it: Big Education is an industry, and they need to please the buyers. If expectations are too high, buyers will go elsewhere. Does your kid's school require second year calc? Latin? Stats? Plato? If not, it's expensive babysitting. I would have more faith in the integrity and standards of programs with substantial wash-out rates. As an example, it's damn tough to get into the US Navy SEALs program (eg 100 push-ups in a minute) - and they still have an 80% washout rate. Thus graduation has a meaning.

Tim Tebow, Denver Broncos to Usher In Devastating Anti-Semitic Pogrom

Gotta keep an eye on those doggone evil Christians

Why I Stopped Giving to Duke

UK update: Rising tuition fees force students into sex work, says students' union (h/t, Capt. Capitalism)

"Force"? Lots of rich celebs seem to do "sex work" for free, just for grins or the thrills.

New Haven Asks State to Allow Non-Citizens to Vote

Country is going insane

Also insane (re-linked important vid): Your coming changes with Obamacare

This is not "insurance." This is pure control of your darn body. As far as I know, however, you will still be "allowed" to purchase your own help, if needed.

Durban: Climate theatre of the absurd

Well, so they agreed on something practical

The Moral Case For Capitalism - And why it must be made.

What is more moral than God-given freedom?

Fear of Big Government Grows Even Among Democrats

Country is not dead in spirit yet. Between the EPA, Obamacare, and some other things, people are getting nervous about Federal aspirations for control and command. The average red-blooded American person does not desire a Philosopher-King, but wants to be King of his own life - for better or worse. We do not want to be babied European serfs. Perhaps much of the world has servility in their blood.

Obama's Volt administration

Five Lessons for Republican Candidates Courtesy of Herman Cain - Number 1: Every contender must play harsh devil’s advocate with himself before announcing… or prepare for unceremonious roasting.

The Cellulosic Ethanol Debacle - Congress mandated purchase of 250 million gallons in 2011. Actual production: 6.6 million.

Is my Ford supposed to burn hay? It's not a freaking horse. Fact is, I'd like a horse too. Dad first put me on a horse at age 3, and I learned to ride bareback. I have learned that a horse is just a retarded, insane motorcycle that runs on hay.

Mamet: Israel, Isaac and the Return of Human Sacrifice - Why have liberal Westerners turned their backs on the Jewish state?

"By now, it's obvious that adopting the euro was a colossal blunder. It may rank as Europe's worst policy mistake since World War II."

BOOK REVIEW: ‘The End of the Euro’

Regulation Nation

Why not Huntsman?

Dems drop millionaires tax in year-end dispute

Whew. Glad I dodged that bullet.

Surber:

Every time our dear, sweet president gets in political hot water, he gives a speech that his fans in the press box immediately praise as a instant classic — a masterpiece worthy of Martin Luther King and John Kennedy. Every one of these instant classics is pedestrian and partisan.

I'd go beyond "fans." It's Kneepad City.

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 05:19 | Comments (19) | Trackbacks (0)

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Lutefisk! YAK! This one Norkie Badger that does NOT relish fish flavored Jello!

#1 SCOTTtheBADGER on 2011-12-15 05:47 (Reply)

I will repeat my late brother-in-law's anecdote about Lutefisk.

He claimed this was a true story from his ancestral home in Rice Lake, Wisc.

About 100 years ago the local Norwegians ordered a barrell of lutefisk for the Christmas holiday. It arrived by train and they went to the railroad station and picked it up.

A short time later they were back at the depot to file a damage claim. They reported to the depot agent that the lutefisk had spoiled.

The agent rejected their claim with the question, "How can you tell?'

#1.1 feeblemind on 2011-12-15 14:13 (Reply)

Rabbi Joshua Hammerman's screed

Apparently even our friends on the Left thought this was a little too much - imagine that - flushing the whole thing down the memory hole.

It's Lutefisk season

I have said this for years and I continue to say it - lutefisk is an abomination and an assault on humanity. Eating lutefisk should be considered a war crime.

#2 Tom Francis on 2011-12-15 08:51 (Reply)

Lutefisk! That stuff will gag a maggot.

#2.1 Knucklehead (Link) on 2011-12-15 11:09 (Reply)

I've been Reading the Daily Bayonet, and Watts Up With That, with the turmoil over the resent email data dump. Durban was a dismal failure, along with the AGW bandwagon becoming a flaming mess, preping to crash\burn, and the sham this COP17 circus became.

Its amazing how the greenies can jet off to all these remote locales, smooze, live it up, and decry how the rest of the world needs to abstain from jet travel, live a minimal life, and do more for the planet. Sheer hypocrisy, plain and simple....

#3 Fred Zeppelin on 2011-12-15 09:30 (Reply)

I think a male/female friendship is age dependent, as well as looks dependent.

At a younger age, and in certain superficially specific cirumstances, I had a few female friends. At my more advanced age, the superficial part still plays a role, but is less meaningful. Lines (such as marriage) have been drawn, and relationships bear more weight than anything else. As a result, I have many more female friends today.

In college, there was less emphasis on the friendship portion of relationships. You were either with someone, or you weren't. If you knew girls, you weren't friends with them, but you could have conversations that were friendly. Of course, the guys usually only had these conversations with one goal in mind.

#4 Bulldog on 2011-12-15 09:52 (Reply)

There's two reader comments visible below the Mamet essay in the WSJ. Both of them seem at first glance reasonable. But both proceed from the premise that history has only just begun, or is always only just beginning, perhaps forever only at such moments as people such as themselves do lift their fingers and type their letters, that the USA/Israel connection is arbitrarily whimsical and thus insulting to every non-Jew everywhere.

In neither letter can be found even the slightest hint of the reason for the behavior that draws such 'reasonable' ire.

That behavior, the behavior that draws their ire, could be described as a reaction-formation of the trailing century, or an acting to survive, or an unwillingness to accept any extinction consequent to a failure to act to survive.

That behavior bothers the two letter writers.

But how could it? Either they are ignorant of that hundred years, or they aren't. If they are, there's something wrong but a little bit of fact-reading could fix it. But if they aren't so ignorant, then there is something terribly wrong, and probably nothing short of divine intervention could fix it.

#5 buddy larsen on 2011-12-15 10:03 (Reply)

"Kneepad city"? So, it's not just tuition that is forcing liberal arts majors into sex work?

Speaking of which, a fine Liberal Arts education can really enhance your value at the more elite end of the sex work spectrum. There used to be a blog, Post-Modern Courtesan, purportedly by a woman who had her fancy Ivy league degree but left her Wall Street job for the freedom of high-priced call girl and small business operator. From her posts, she used her education as much as her other assets.

#6 JKB on 2011-12-15 10:04 (Reply)

re the ugly public art, our friend Gramsci and the commie Frankfurt School of commie revolutioon via the long march thru the public institutions, was especially big on demoralizing the public with ugly --and large --public art in the commons.

===

...and there's this:

http://vigilantcitizen.com/tag/sinister-sites/

...and this will amaze you:

http://www.cracktwo.com/2011/04/25-abandoned-soviet-monuments-that-look.html

#7 buddy larsen on 2011-12-15 10:40 (Reply)

Re: men & women as friends

It's interesting that all the women thought they could have a platonic relationship with a man, but all the men thought they couldn't have one with a woman. In the sense that I think there is a sexual aspect to every relationship a man has with any woman. That doesn't mean there will be any attempt to pursue sex, though.

I have a dear female friend of well over forty years. There were times I was attracted to her and I suspect that there were times (likely a lot fewer!) when she was attracted to me, but we've remained platonic. Many years ago, I wanted to pursue my attraction and that nearly killed our relationship. I determined that our friendship was far too important to me to screw it up. At one point, she told me she considered our relationship more special than some because we hadn't had sex. At the time, I didn't exactly share her sentiment. I figured we could have had sex and if we broke off that part of our relationship, we could still be good friends. I don't know if I was right or not, but I agree with her now.

We are both married now. She recently married and I went to their wedding (I live several states from her now). The interesting thing was that her (future) husband was jealous of me because he figured I couldn't possibly have a close long term platonic relationship to a woman!

#8 mudbug on 2011-12-15 11:27 (Reply)

Platonic: adjective
1) of, pertaining to, or characteristic of Plato or his doctrines.
2) pertaining to, involving, or characterized by not having jumped in the sack yet.

#8.1 buddy larsen on 2011-12-15 11:36 (Reply)

:-D

Being a man, "yet" is the important word in #2. "yet" can be a long time.

#8.1.1 mudbug on 2011-12-15 11:42 (Reply)

like fine vintage wine, a short pleasure opened, a long treasure not, hey?

#8.1.1.1 buddy larsen on 2011-12-15 13:02 (Reply)

In this case. :-)

#9 mudbug on 2011-12-15 13:17 (Reply)

heh --yep --when virtue is a necessity, downplay the damn necessity --

:-D

#9.1 buddy larsen on 2011-12-15 15:52 (Reply)

To recap: Congress subsidized a product that didn't exist, mandated its purchase though it still didn't exist, is punishing oil companies for not buying the product that doesn't exist, and is now doubling down on the subsidies in the hope that someday it might exist. We'd call this the march of folly, but that's unfair to fools.

(from the cellulosic ethanol link)

Maybe congress hears 'cellulose' and thinks it's hearing 'sell you loss'

#10 buddy larsen on 2011-12-16 00:24 (Reply)

Lutefisk: The Cod that surpasseth all understanding.

#11 Sam L. on 2011-12-16 01:00 (Reply)

And the black Scandahoovians eat lutefisk and chittlins.

#12 Sam L. on 2011-12-16 01:03 (Reply)

Buddy and mudbug ... In case you're interested, friendship between men and women undergoes another sea-change when one grows old past 80. It has a certain grace to it, because the older person has accepted that he/she is in the last stages of life. I know that I wished to have children of my own, and was not lucky enough to have them. But I have accumulated wonderful and affectionate friends whom I view as children of my heart. And they are a deep and abiding comfort to me at this stage of my life. I have at least a dozen 'dear hearts' whose companionship I depend on. Over and over I'm grateful for this blessing.

Marianne

#13 Marianne Matthews on 2011-12-18 09:53 (Reply)

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Thursday, December 15. 2011

Thursday morning links