Tuesday, August 21. 2007
 W. F. Deedes died. He was an inspiration to all of us reporters, and an inspiration, supposedly, for Scoop which, as Barone notes, is the best novel about reporting. I refuse to use the word "journalist" - we reporters are mere scoop-artists, snoops, voyeurs, and the highly-curious but flawed by a passive temperament - like academics are. Good reporting should be ego-free. I contribute to Maggie's as my outlet for my own thinking - such as it is, and keep my own opinions out of my paid work. We reporters aren't special. But everything written by Evelyn Waugh is special.
Dhimmitude, personified. They would offend a Christian or a Jew in a second without a second thought. Fred Barnes on Immigration Overkill. His political scheming may be correct, but there is a principle here. As Surber says, You want to be Mexican, stay in Mexico. You want to be an American, fill out the paperwork, pay the money and walk in through the front door.
The burdens of Petraeus, by VDH. h/t, Dinocrat. How can you help people who are so hell-bent on killing each other? Clearly, many of them find doing that to be more fun and satisfying than getting a job and doing something useful for their community. Murdering idiots, who need to be shot. Heartbreaking photo. Hope it worked out for them in the end. Flood insurance. I say no more issuing of government subsidized flood insurance. It's a rip-off of the taxpayer, and a subsidy for developers. No sane person would live in a flood zone without that subsidized and govt-guaranteed insurance. Why should I pay for that? Thank you for not voting. Prelutsky. I agree. If you are ignorant of, or indifferent to, the issues - stay home. Blackballing in Academia. Finally, the right word for it. Cinnamon What happened to church and state in NYC? Atlas What happened to church and state in San Francisco? Rhymes with Right. Ireland's population. I'd say a good place to invest in real estate. But good-bye to the Ireland of yore. Belgium is disintegrating. Of course. It isn't a nation, and never was one. I am in favor of a separate third-world Waloonistan in the south, and let the EU take a flying flip at a whole-wheat donut. Maybe Jon Bovi or Bon Jovi or whoever could help Walloonistan. Exactly right. The Peace Racket, at Insty. And, speaking of rackets, the Eco-Millionaires.
 Ours are in bloom now, and will continue through September. These small trees will survive up through Zone 6, but in Zone 6 they prefer some shelter from the winter winds, and they are slow to emerge from dormancy (they look dead).
They are common in the South, but up here people are stunned by such a brilliantly summer-blooming tree and don't know what it is. They like to be pruned properly, and heavily mulched, and need full sun to produce those blooms. A little fertilizer, too. This is a young plant, with three main stems. I much prefer them with multiple stems rather than with a single trunk. The exfoliating bark is interesting too. 51 varieties here, with photos. Most of our cultivars are of Asian descent, but there are native species. More photos, and how to grow them, here. Growing plants on or above their zonal limits is always an interesting challenge for us gardeners. A fully-rational person would not bother.
Monday, August 20. 2007
Physicists ask whether existence is a virtual reality. Neurophilosophy. Of course it is. I think, therefore I am a confused SOB. But existence sure feels real when you have a sore hip, or when you are 21 and your girlfriend dumps you, or when you can't pay your bills. No need to drop a little acid before reading the links: reality is strange enough on its own.
Bernanke's "rookie mistake", at Bloomberg. The guy is a rookie? Yes, he is a rookie in the real world: he is an academic.
 Some buddies were fishing in Ontario last week, mainly for Small-Mouth Bass, which I did not know was a Canadian fish.
They fished out of Lake Herridge Lodge, about 5 1/2 hours north of Toronto, which they liked very much. There is a chain of five large lakes, with portages or channels between. The largest is about 5 miles long and a mile wide.
 Do not, under any circumstances, miss Gerard Van der Leun's photo essay on the "Hempfest" in Seattle, Washington. American Digest --Stoned to Death in Seattle: Hempfest 2007 Comes to Town The United States Government wastes a lot of money, time, and effort composing dreadful anti-drug messages that they broadcast on AM radio right after Art Bell goes to sleep, and on television in the wee hours just before the test pattern comes on. Gerard should be given all the money, and we could all gather our kids around the computer, point at his pictures, and tell them: "I don't care if you become an alcoholic, a pederast, a serial murderer, or god forbid, a State Senator; but under no circumstances will I allow you to end up like these people." The 9/11 Truthers lend a touch of verisimilitude to the proceedings, too. Just say...um... wait... What?
 Immigrants for the jobs that Swedes won't do? Gates. And in Norway, go to jail - but only if you want to show up.
Do conservatives write blog comments as wacky and angry as these at Crooks and Liars? Cavemen are people too. S,C&A The banning fad just won't quit. Betsy. I am in favor of banning banning. Leave us alone. This illegal Mexican immigrant definitely doing a job Americans wont do. Profits of moonbat-inspired movies vs. normal movies, compared. Right Wing Nation. Thanks to him for taking the time. The Press Hall of Shame. Am. Thinker A fine rant from Jules about stay-at home fathers. First rant I've seen from Jules - he's finally getting into the blogging thing now. He is loosening up. Mugged by reality at The Guardian, from Protein. A quote: In the end I reached the conclusion that 11 September had already brutally confirmed: there were other forces, far more malign than America, that lay in wait in the world. But having faced up to the basic issue of comparative international threats, could I stop the political reassessment there? If I had been wrong about the relative danger of America, could I be wrong about all the other things I previously held to be true? I tried hard to suppress this thought, to ring-fence the global situation, grant it exceptional status and keep it in a separate part of my mind. I had too much vested in my image of myself as a ‘liberal’. I had bought into the idea, for instance, that all social ills stemmed from inequality and racism. I knew that crime was solely a function of poverty. That to be British was cause for shame, never pride. And to be white was to bear an unshakable burden of guilt. I held the view, or at least was unprepared to challenge it, that it was wrong to single out any culture for censure, except, of course, Western culture, which should be admonished at every opportunity.
Whole thing here.
 I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution or that have failed their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is 'needed'' before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents 'interests', I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can.
Barry Goldwater. Quote borrowed from Samizdata. I hope they don't mind.
We brushwack each half of this meadow only every other year, for the benefit of the wildflowers and the wild critters. It is full of milkweed, goldenrod, daisy, Black-eyed Susan, Queen Ann's Lace, Indian Paintbrush, asters, etc. It is also full of large protruding boulders which which make mowing a challenge. It is best to have somebody march in front of the tractor to spot boulders, turtles, stumps, and other hazards. I am gradually planting junipers, apples, Chinese Chestnuts, etc. next to each serious boulder, to mark them. If it were fenced, it would make a decent cow pasture or, as the yougest daughter opines, a good llama pasture. Our next project in this meadow is to push back the White Pines which were invading the meadow like Burnham Wood during a period of lazy mowing a while back. At this point, it's a big chain-saw job: probably need about 50-100 trees down to restore the meadow's original edges. 
Sunday, August 19. 2007
 From Indians to Pilgrims to Yankee fishermen to Portuguese fishermen to artists to tourists to gays, Provincetown has seen a lot over the years.
Maybe the yuppies will be next, and gentrify it like they did to the Hamptons and Nantucket. My favorite restaurant there: The Lobster Pot. Lots of Portuguese stuff, like Kale Soup with linguica, baked stuffed Haddock with molho tomate (strong cumin) and onion, and Squid Stew. They also do a great job with tuna belly (toro) on the grill, when they can get it: it's the best - burnt on the surface, rare on the inside, and dripping with fat. My Mom, proper and refined Yankee lady that she is, likes to schedule our annual drive up from Wellfleet to P-town and the Lobster Pot to coincide with the Gay Carnival Parade. She thinks it's a hoot. P-town in the 1940's: Sippican
You can sign up for a Shakespeare Sonnet A Day. Sure beats USA Today.
 A dumb blond. Cute photo from Theo, but if her fingers are on the triggers then she had better intend to fire those things. There is one right way, and there are many wrong ways, to display a handgun. Scary-dumb, even if she had the brains to check the chambers - unless they are squirt guns. She can hold my squirt gun any way she wants.
Happy 60th Birthday to Larry Kudlow (yesterday) And Chuck Berry turns 80. God bless him. There's no cure for stupid. VT school to heat with trees. Polls on affirmative action depend on how the question is worded. Duh. I happen to believe that affirmative action is an expression of contempt for the abilities and self-determination of "people of color." The folly of light rail. Synthstuff. Sometimes governments need to subsidize public amenities - but it should only be done where there is strong demand. The new light rail from downtown NYC to JFK airport is a fine thing, and long-overdue. Brit private schools do a better job than Brit public schools. So, for equality's sake, let's punish the successful. Worstall Also, stab-proof school uniforms for the UK. Maybe they should issue them to tourists too. Knife street crime soaring in the UK. Is Brussels part of the Caliphate now? Michelle Poof. No more insurgents. Video at Theo. Appeasement finds a home in the academy. Stillwell in Am. Thinker. It's nothing new: they have been like that for a long time. Life can kill you. Betsy. No... it will kill you, it's just a matter of when. A science-impaired press got hysterical about the breaking of the speed of light - but it didn't happen. Getting on the apology bandwagon. "I'm sorry we ate your missionaries." Yeah, I'll bet they are sorry. It is said that grilled human tastes like barbecued pork, hence the cannibal term for it: "long pig." Recipes to follow. Race and education. LaShawn. It's about culture, not race or money. White House to propose gradual troop reductions. NYT The Big Bang: Myth, Theory, or what? American Scientist. I would just consider it to be the "cosmos du jour." Shut up and send money. Mr. Free Market on Mugabe Coulter, the She-Devil. Gateway. I think she just likes the publicity, plus she has some fun with saying what she thinks. She's not stupid. Man, did our post on The Diversity Cult attract a lot of comments. I think quite a bit of them came via the Salon link. We are hurt by the accusations of racism. If anyone knew us, they would know how untrue that is. We are simply free to think straight by being unencumbered by White Guilt. I have plenty of guilt, but it's about my own past actions only. Historical guilt is BS. And I do not give a damn what color anybody is.
 Trickled home last night and found an alarming, sulfurous odor in the office wing of the house.
Electrical fire? Sniffed all around the place. Noticed it was strongest where the windows were wide open. Stepped out into the backyard. Aha! The powerful rotten-egg odor of skunk discharge had been wafting in the windows. I should have known. We enjoy our local Striped Skunks. We have watched Mom, with her kits, dancing and prancing in the spotlight on the lawn out back. Skunks were thought to be members of the Weasel family, but there is doubt about that now. Probably related to the European Polecat. Ours are nocturnal, omnivorous, and solitary except with their kits. Their main predators around here are probably Great Horned Owls. I think we have two local skunks: One lives under a small outbuilding, and one in an abandoned woodchuck hole. They are good neighbors if you leave them alone. And yes, the dog did get skunked. His first time, and probably his last. He did not sleep on my pillow last night, and, if it's still bad today, he will get the traditional tomato juice shower/bath.
Jeremiah 23: 23-29 23Am I a God near by, says the Lord, and not a God far off? 24Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them? says the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the Lord. 25I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, “I have dreamed, I have dreamed!” 26How long? Will the hearts of the prophets ever turn back—those who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart? 27They plan to make my people forget my name by their dreams that they tell one another, just as their ancestors forgot my name for Baal. 28Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let the one who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? says the Lord. 29Is not my word like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?
Saturday, August 18. 2007
 Sorry about those Viking raids! Hey - I'm sorry to the Romans for the unkindess we Celts showed them when they immigrated to invaded Britain.
A bad case of Bush Derangement Syndrome. Powerline. What's the cure? There is none known yet to medical science. The Queen of New York City. Bill Buckley on Brooke Astor. Does that include installation? Viking Rebuilding New Orleans is ridiculous. Surber. I agree. Let it be a little tourist place that will disappear at any moment - which it will. It is Gatorville, masquerading as human habitation. Since when can you build on wetlands anyway? Is vitality a central value? One Cosmos Fred to Go Bold. RWNH . It will be interesting. I still like Rudy, but I like 'em all. Fred looks old for his age. Reagan was much older, but looked and acted vigorous. Image: La Tene era Celtic warriors
How much does happiness depend on money and opportunity? Or is happiness just a fortunate state of mind? I tend to think the latter. Money provides choices, which are wonderful things, but choices do not make people happy. Indeed, I believe that many would be happier with fewer choices in our choice-intoxicated America. Arthur Brooks in City Journal on What Really Buys Happiness? It's mostly about income. A quote: Edwards is one of a group of liberal politicians, policymakers, and social activists who want to reduce economic inequality through greater taxation and redistribution of wealth. And their plan draws inspiration from a particular academic theory: that inequality is socially destructive because it makes people miserable. As a scholar working in the field of public policy, I have long witnessed hand-wringing about the alleged connection between inequality and unhappiness. What first made me doubt this prevailing view was not some new scholarly study but rather that when I questioned actual human beings about it, few expressed any shock and outrage at the enormous wealth of software moguls and CEOs. On the contrary, they tended to hope that their kids might become the next Bill Gates.
Read it all. It appears that liberals and the left tend to be unhappier people in general. Perhaps we conservatives just are genetically blessed with sunnier dispositions.
Friday, August 17. 2007
 Kudlow on why the Fed should ease rates today. No, it's not to rescue the hedgies. h/t, Driscoll. And voila - they did. Is Kudlow God?
The toll of tolerance in Iraq. The Globe, via Viking Why I am having doubts about Fred: The Hammock Campaign Beefcake Photo of the Day. If five put him to sleep, is he a real man? Hey Hollywood! Take your next vacation in Venezuela! Saved by a salesman. Synthstuff James Hansen goes stupid. Worstall Very cool: The fall of Rome and the US Comptroller. h/t Jules
 "People like to say today that 'diversity is our strength.' It's almost like a State Religion. But diversity isn't our strength: freedom is our strength. Uncontrolled cultural diversity is the story of the Tower of Babel."
Tom Tancredo, as heard (paraphrased) on the Monica Crowley radio show on WABC a few weeks ago. We have often addressed "diversity" and "tolerance," words which in their pomo incarnations represent appalling if not insane ideas. (For a few examples, No Lux, No Veritas, Scared by His Own Research, Trust Cues and Tribalism, and Steyn on War, Demographics, Multiculturalism, Tolerance, and the Masochism of the West.) From Daniel Henninger in the WSJ yesterday, The Death of Diversity, a quote (h/t, Loyal Reader): Diversity was once just another word. Now it's a fighting word. One of the biggest problems with diversity is that it won't let you alone. Corporations everywhere have force-marched middle managers into training sessions led by "diversity trainers." Most people already knew that the basic idea beneath diversity emerged about 2,000 years ago under two rubrics: Love thy neighbor as thyself, and Do unto others as they would do unto you. Then suddenly this got rewritten as "appreciating differentness." George Bernard Shaw is said to have demurred from the Golden Rule. "Do not do unto others as you would have them do unto you," Shaw advised. "Their tastes may not be the same." No such voluntary opt-out is permissible in our time. The parsons of the press made diversity into a secular commandment; do a word-search of "diversity" in a broad database of newspapers and it might come up 250 million times. In the Supreme Court term just ended, the Seattle schools integration case led most of the justices into arcane discussions of diversity's legal compulsions. More recently it emerged that the University of Michigan, a virtual Mecca of diversity, announced it would install Muslim footbaths in bathrooms, causing a fight.
Read the whole thing. There's a video too. (Too bad he got the "Do unto others..." bit wrong - it sorta spoils a good piece, but you get the point.) Image: I get a kick out of that old Benetton ad. which was on all of the busses when I lived in NYC.
 Dr. Roy Spencer on the growing numbers of AGW deniers, at TCS:
Little damage was done by the Gore-Newsweek assault, though, since the attack amounted to little more than a verbal "Well, your mama wears Army boots!" It didn't help matters that the magazine's own columnist, Robert Samuelson, published a follow-up article saying the allegation of bribes offered to scientists "was long ago discredited" and that "the story was a wonderful read, marred only by its being fundamentally misleading." Next, I'm happy to report that we skeptics have been getting a steady stream of new recruits. In the last year or so, more and more scientists have been coming out of the closet and admitting they've had some doubts about this whole global warming thing. In fact, chances are that your favorite TV weather person is a closet skeptic (unless it's Heidi Cullen). But please observe the "don't ask - don't tell" rule. Most broadcast meteorologists are not ready for the public embarrassment that would accompany their outing. And lastly, I have been heartened by new scientific intelligence that we skeptics have been gathering. I can predict there are more surprises to come, with some pretty powerful tactical weapons yet to be deployed. Climate scientists are beginning to question long held assumptions - which is almost always the first step toward a major scientific discovery. So stay tuned. Oh, and by the way, in the interests of a fair fight, the next time someone sees Al Gore, could you ask him to stop calling us "global warming deniers"? I don't know of anyone who denies that the Earth has warmed. I'm sure this has just been an honest misunderstanding on Mr. Gore's part, and he'll be more than happy to stop doing it.
Girding for a vigorous debate. That is good for science. Read the whole thing.
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