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Wednesday, March 7. 2018

How Modern Art Serves the Rich

More art is being produced and sold than ever before, at ever higher prices.

What is most art "for"? Well, it's to be decorative or at least interesting. It can be social signalling or status-seeking. It can be used for investing or money-laundering. I suspect all of these things have applied since the Renaissance.

Posted by Bird Dog in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 15:02 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)

Mental illness and art

An isolated chronic schizophrenic connects with people through her creativity. Interesting that her speech is similar to Milton in Office Space.

Thanks to Ann Althouse for finding this:

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 12:56 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0)

Wednesday morning links

Snowy day here in Yankeeland. They used to call it "snow", but now they call them "Snowstorms" and give them names. Dramatizing ordinary weather. What's the matter with Yankee people these days? The timidity. Mrs. BD ain't askeered. She's off to Philly this morning, weather be damned.

Fitness for the elderly: 91-year-old Sydney man walking every street in town

'Super Monster Wolf' a success in Japan farming trials

Was King David the greatest songwriter of all time?

A Jewish-themed Disney Park is Coming to Israel!

Gender Reassignment Surgeries (And Regrets Over Same) Are On The Rise

Medical malpractice. Ask Hippocrates.

Stanford adds male-focused gym hours following complaint about women-only hours

All adult gyms are co-ed. What's the issue? Guys look at gals, and vice-versa. Very natural.

Mental illness: GRAVE CONSEQUENCES OF THE DEINSTITUTIONALIZATION MOVEMENT - Another leftist-created failure.

How PragerU Is Winning The Culture War Five Minutes At A Time

The Corporate War on Free Speech

Justice Department suing California over sanctuary laws

Women’s March Flies Into Damage Control Over Farrakhan Ties

Why Left-Wing anti-Semitism Matters

THE CLINTONS’ TENTACLES: THEY’RE EVERYWHERE

Trump Isn’t Starting A Trade War, He’s Trying To Win The One We’ve Been Fighting

Pat Buchanan Asks "Why Is The GOP So Terrified Of Tariffs?"

Gary Cohn is a free-trader. So are most economists. What if they're wrong, or only half-right?

THE ITALIAN EARTHQUAKE

Ukraine’s hybrid war

HOW RUSSIA TRIED TO BLOCK US ENERGY PRODUCTION

Report: Polish president not welcome at the White House

Sweden's mess: The Gray Lady's Baby Steps

Their naivete and sanctimony are products of their isolation. No more proud Vikings.

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 07:05 | Comments (27) | Trackbacks (0)

Balloon decor

Took Mrs. BD to the Balanchine/Stravinsky program with the New York City Ballet last weekend. One of her Christmas presents. I thought it was a heck of a show, even though I am neither a balletomane nor a Stravinsky fan (Mrs. BD is a dance fan, regardless of style or tradition.) I do find Balanchine's style more accessible to me than classical ballet or modern dance.

NYC is the world center of dance for a good reason - tons of fans, and not all gays by any means. NYCB is almost always sold out, and there are ways to get reasonably-priced tickets.

The lobby of the David Koch theater last weekend, with cool balloon decor:

Posted by Bird Dog in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 05:00 | Comments (3) | Trackbacks (0)

Tuesday, March 6. 2018

Magic weight loss pill

People looking for magic for fat loss and people looking for magic in muscle weight gain are often suckers for magic diets and magic elixirs. Steroids work for the latter, but it's a bad idea.

I have had enough success with patients who want fat loss over the past 12 months with Contrave to feel that it is worth a mention. It's a magic elixir of Wellbutrin and Naltrexone. Both seem to have a measurable effect of reducing cravings of all sorts. No, it's not quite magic but it can reduce greed and take some of the burden from self-restraint.

I have posted in the past about how subjective hunger (aka "false hunger") is common in the overweight who have no caloric needs at all but who tend to desire more intake and to eat more avidly, more rapidly, than normal-weight people. It may have something to do with the loss of satiety signals, or ignoring them. Insulin sensitivity plays a role, for sure, and that is produced by poor or excessive eating habits. Psychological factors too. All we really know is that, if you are overweight and hungry, something is out of whack because you do not really need any food at all.

(As I have asserted in the past, exercise does nothing meaningful for fat loss. I'll make one exception to that: compulsive exercisers who work out for hours daily, but they usually are living on organic lettuce from Whole Foods too. One other factor: for most people, heavy-duty cardio and weights do tend to reduce appetite. People in rigorous daily fitness programs therefore need to follow nutritional programs to make sure their intake is sufficient to support their efforts or they can risk losing muscle while their bodies are undergoing renovation. This only applies to body renovation projects, not maintenance)

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in Medical, Physical Fitness at 17:30 | Comments (7) | Trackbacks (0)

Compelling book

Historical fiction (I still do not know how much of it is historically accurate) about the legal and commercial battles between Westinghouse and Edison during New York's Gilded Age: The Last Days of Night: A Novel by Graham Moore. (The youthful Moore has made quite a varied writing career for himself.)

I do know that Paul Cravath played a major role in the battles, and that Westinghouse promoted alternating current while Edison preferred DC. A good story with mythic underpinnings.

Posted by The Barrister at 15:49 | Comments (3) | Trackbacks (0)

QQQ

"So please don't ask me why I write about God. Ask me why I ever write about anything else."

Matt Walsh

Posted by The Barrister in Quotidian Quotable Quote (QQQ) at 14:59 | Comment (1) | Trackbacks (0)

Younger Next Year for Women

A book (h/t Dr. Helen at Instapundit): Younger Next Year for Women: Live Strong, Fit, and Sexy - Until You're 80 and Beyond

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in Physical Fitness at 12:42 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0)

Tuesday morning links

Photo - another pic from a pal in Killington. To be up on a mountain in the cold and snow is a great joy.

At what age can kids do weight-training?

Sports and calisthenics are best for growing kids

You didn't need to kill the Porkie

Dogs leave them alone after their first encounter. Mine did, anyway.

Flippy the Burger Flipping Robot Is Now Cooking at the CaliBurger Fast Food Chain

The Navy's most advanced submarines will soon be using Xbox controllers

John Adams and the Jewish State

How James Fenimore Cooper Redefined “Pioneer”

NCAA: The World's Last Bastion of British Aristocratic Privilege

Harvard backtracks, yanks ‘bridge’ program, forces female groups to go co-ed

Smart people can be deeply foolish

Georgetown student calls for Ben Shapiro to be disinvited from speaking — on free speech

College physics course requires 'Decolonization' project

What's the equation for that?

Snowflake protesters hold sing-along to shut down factual feminist Christina Sommers

SCHOOL MASS SHOOTINGS A NON-ISSUE SAY... GUN CONTROL ADVOCATES

Jimmy Kimmel Urges Oscar’s Viewers to March for Gun Control as Academy Awards Is Protected by Armed Guards

Disarm the peasants

Victimhood Culture Only Getting Worse, Professor Warns

Feeling like a victim is a cool but cowardly way to avoid confronting one's shortcomings

Professor Tim Wu Should Get Down On His Knees To Thank Creators of Convenience

"There is nothing biological about biological sex, it is all “perilous colonial lenses”."

Colonel House: The man you don't know who ruined your life

The latest medical malpractice: blaming “climate change” for heart attacks

"Private Sector Stasi" - Should Facebook, Google, And Twitter Be Public Utilities?

How Silicon Valley went from ‘don’t be evil’ to doing evil

Uncle Sam must rein in retirement benefits or we’re headed for economic disaster

Just gradually increase the government retirement benefits age to 70 or 72.

Klavan: Two Op-Eds Draw a Stark Portrait of Left vs. Right

With Levin, NIGHT THOUGHTS WITH NUNES

Judicial Watch Sues Justice Department For Documents On Bruce and Nellie Ohr Related To Steele Dossier

Mueller’s Leaked “Hit List” May Indicate He’s Treating Trump’s Team Like A “Criminal Enterprise”

"Don’t look now but Donald K. Trump has won his war with the traditional media, the Hollywood luminaries – and left the Democrats gasping for breath [and a missing program for action]."

London Mayor caught faking celebrity endorsements in anti-knife campaign

First they came for my guns...

Haley to AIPAC: Our push to end UN anti-Israel bias is really a demand for peace

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 07:28 | Comments (19) | Trackbacks (0)

Monday, March 5. 2018

What is "toxic masculinity"?

I don't know. If it means abusing and exploiting women, then I'm against it. Student calls for 'revolution' against 'toxic masculinity’

If it means letting males off the hook for the arduous task of becoming manly gentlemen with the accompanying virtues that the world (and women) expect, then I would see it differently. Developmental arrest is not a thing to encourage.

Posted by The News Junkie in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 18:48 | Comments (15) | Trackbacks (0)

Another pylometric calisthenic: Jumping Lunges

An excellent calisthenic. Switch legs quickly in air during the jump, use the rear leg only for balance, swing your arms in natural running motions, and keep the front knee over your ankle or toes.

Start with 30-60 second sets.

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in Physical Fitness at 15:57 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

THE WEIRD CAMPUS CULTURE

Peter Wood: YES, THE WEIRD CAMPUS CULTURE POLLUTES THE WHOLE NATION NOW

Posted by The Barrister in Education at 15:31 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Monday morning links

Roger Bannister, first to run mile in under 4 minutes, dies

Athlete-hero. Then became distinguished physician

Stephen Hawking Says He Knows What Happened Before the Big Bang

Was he there at the Creation of time and space?

Did Homo erectus speak? Early hominins who sailed across oceans left indirect evidence that they might have been the first to use language

How Billy Graham made Israel kosher to evangelicals

Prozac: Pro and Con

David Brooks: How Progressives Win the Culture War

Political Bias on Guns: Gap between movie review and audience scores is huge for Bruce Willis’ “Death Wish”

COWARDICE IN THE UCLA FACULTY LOUNGE

" There's nothing like the government. It doesn't just deprive us of our freedom. It also breeds ridiculous levels of corruption, incompetence and dysfunction. Meet the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument Authority."

Dear California: Call Me When the Commies Leave

California Dems’ hard-left turn could be the whole party’s future

Facebook Co-Founder: Government Should Pay $500 a Month to Workers Making Under $50K

Public-Sector Unions Deserve to Be Destroyed - Mandatory fees are an assault on free association.

Normalizing Insanity: Lessons from California’s Crazy, Crazy Politics

Andrew Cuomo’s war on energy

Mike Pence, Nancy Pelosi, Jared Kushner — Nobody Was Spared From Trump’s Jokes Last Night

A few jokes on himself and his family too

Trump wants to change the trade rules

Trump and our pop culture

A Week Of Policy Surprises Leaves Even Trump’s Supporters Confused

The media continues to ignore Trump’s presidential leadership

NYT REPORTS SWEDEN CRIME PROBLEM IT CRITICIZED TRUMP FOR DISCUSSING

From Poland, Democracy Won’t Defend Itself; We Have To

Steyn and Tucker: Decadence and Neo-Apartheid

France's Marine Le Pen Charged Over Islamic State Tweets

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 06:36 | Comments (25) | Trackbacks (0)

Sunday, March 4. 2018

Honest Film Awards

For those of you sick and tired of being abused by empty-headed film celebrities -- many of whom you've never heard of and never will again -- imposing their narrow monolithic partisan views, and the films they love even though in many cases the audiences didn't, here's a more honest film awards show.

Posted by Bruce Kesler at 20:08 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)

Fun with guns: High bird shooting

I promise you that I would have no chance with these high driven pheasants. For one thing, it's not a game we play in the us. A delightful tradition, though.

I recommend the movie The Shooting Party.

Posted by The Barrister in Hunting, Fishing, Dogs, Guns, etc. at 15:55 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0)

Our Search for Meaning and the Dangers of Possession

Beliefs that eat people alive.

Posted by Dr. Joy Bliss in Religion, The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 15:06 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (0)

Loveliest hikes in each of the US 50 states

Here. Their selections are debatable but they are all good.

Posted by Bird Dog in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 14:31 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0)

A Lenten thought: Only God can see your envy

Envy is diabolical. It is also human, however sinful. I am learning to identify it in myself, and then to address it when I see it. Nobody likes to identify it in themselves. My red flag is when I feel like putting other people down. Sure, other people can be jerks, idiots, mercenary, lazy, and character-flawed in a multitude of ways, but so am I. It's fair that I try to use discernment when assessing others, but that is different.

I used to deny it, or rationalize it. A bit of that came from wanting to boost myself up by mentally putting down others. That is not only sinful, but a complete and futile waste of mental energy. I recommend prayer, with humor, as an approach to malignant envy. My preaching to myself this Lenten season is to confirm that Christ is my rock, not my damn self.

The proper response to observing goodness or excellence in another is joy and zeal.

Posted by The News Junkie in Religion at 13:26 | Comments (8) | Trackbacks (0)

An American place

Costco on a Saturday morning is an American place. I made my every 5-6-month pilgrimage yesterday. Of course it was busy, and filled with people of every size (including an obese woman in an electric cart whose equally-obese aide could barely keep up with the cart), age, class, color - and every language known. Lots of cute little kids or all sorts of cute races.

All filling their baskets with their preferred products of American abundance at reasonable prices and in high volume. It's a kick to go for staples, but 2-3 times per year is enough for me. Mrs. BD gives me a list, but I do whatever I want.

Heard at the cheese place there, a mom to a little girl: "Honey, let's get Dad some good cheeses. He loves cheese. He's like a mouse." Of course I make some impulse buys, like their Kerry Gold Irish cheese. Good stuff, like cheddar but better than cheddar. And a pack of their amazing ribeyes of course. $50 for a 5-pack of thick and fatty ribeyes? Since Mrs. BD and I share one ribeye for a supper, that's a $5 delicious and protein-packed supper for this couple which lifts weights and exercises daily. If you exercise hard, you need that nutritional fat. Nothing to do with that silly cholesterol nonsense.

Word to the wise: their house brand (Kirkland) extra virgin olive oil is as good as anything anywhere.

Posted by Bird Dog in The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 12:38 | Comments (15) | Trackbacks (0)

Venezuela has achieved economic equality

Desperate Venezeulans Flee Their Country To Survive

Everybody is a millionaire

Posted by The News Junkie in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 07:56 | Comments (4) | Trackbacks (3)

From today's Lectionary

Exodus 20:1-17

20:1 Then God spoke all these words:

20:2 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery;

20:3 you shall have no other gods before me.

20:4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

20:5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me,

20:6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.

20:7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.

20:8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy.

20:9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work.

20:10 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work--you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns.

20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.

20:12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

20:13 You shall not murder.

20:14 You shall not commit adultery.

20:15 You shall not steal.

20:16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

20:17 You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

Posted by Bird Dog at 06:03 | Comments (5) | Trackbacks (0)

Saturday, March 3. 2018

QQQ

A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for.

John A. Shedd

Posted by The Barrister in Quotidian Quotable Quote (QQQ) at 16:40 | Comments (11) | Trackbacks (0)

Calisthenic du Jour: High step-ups

High step-ups (14-20 inches - or maybe even 24" depending on fitness level and your height) are plyometric in some ways because, even though they do not involve jumping, the step should involve explosive movement. It almost has to. It is calisthenic, not weight-lifting. It is tough to get up there repeatedly.

It's good to do them forward and also sideways on a box. It they are too easy for 20 reps with each leg, raise the height or grab a hand weight or kettlebell to raise the intensity.

3 sets of 15-20 on each leg is good leg exercise - quads, glutes, and hammies. With exercises like this, use a 30-40-second plank as a recovery before the next set so you aren't just standing around. These step-ups will help with your box jumps too - not to mention your mountain hiking which is the important thing because fitness may be made in the gym (and with nutrition) but it is for living life vigorously rather than being a lazy book-reading and internet-surfing slob like I used to be.

Posted by Bird Dog in Physical Fitness at 14:47 | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0)

Two fallacies

The Damore panel we posted yesterday mentioned two related fallacies, "Is-Ought" and the naturalistic fallacy.

"Is-Ought" generally is used to refer to the mistaken assumption that a statement of fact is some sort of moral endorsement of the fact. This assumption often lies behind efforts to suppress or ignore unpopular facts.

"The term "naturalistic fallacy" or "appeal to nature" may also be used to characterize inferences of the form "Something is natural; therefore, it is morally acceptable" or "This property is unnatural; therefore, this property is undesirable."" (Wiki). "Natural," however, is near-impossible to define in human terms because formation of culture is natural for humans.

Posted by The Barrister in Fallacies and Logic at 14:05 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Saturday morning links

Photo: A pal was skiing at Killington this week. Pic of a favorite pub: The Inn at Long Trail

Mary Shelley's remarkable creation, 'Frankenstein,' at 200

Stone Age Statue Was Too Racy for Facebook

Study: Luck Matters More To Success Than Skill

OK - but you have to make the most of whatever luck you have

Mother, Daughter in Gun Fight with Shotgun-Wielding Robbery Suspect

THE ATHEIST’S IMAGINATION

Pushback Against Political Correctness Saves Racist Gorilla

Proof that Minnesota's schools are racist

Facebook Threatens Satire Site Babylon Bee over CNN Story That Snopes Rated 'False'

Supreme Court decision to have a profound impact on the future of unions

Women’s March Co-Founder Defends Herself Against Charge Of Ignoring Anti-Semitism With Anti-Semitism

Lawsuit: YouTube Stopped Hiring White And Asian Males To Improve Corporate Diversity

Dem staffer: You Won’t Believe What CPAC Taught Me About Conservatives

For one thing, the people were kind and welcoming. Nobody yelled at her, to her surprise.

Dreher is feeling fed up: Enemies of the people

I suspect those Czechs and Slovaks would understand very well the mentality that got those two food service workers at NYU fired. We don’t even know if those fired workers were conservatives or not. All we know is that they were denounced by this middle-class black daughter of a Chicago administrative judge, and now they are jobless, with the scarlet letter of Racism staining their resumés forever.

The private Trump: Trump Does The Unthinkable

Insider Ed Butowsky: Seth Rich’s Father Confirmed His Son Was the Wikileaks Leaker

Xi Jinping and the Perils of One-Person Rule in China

Merkel says Germany has ‘no-go areas;’ gov’t won’t say where

US Combat troops have been complaining about the M4 and M16 for years — now the Pentagon is doing something about it

What Prevents School Shootings from Happening in Israel?

What’s happening in India?

Don’t Be Fooled: Russia is Weak and Dying

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 05:15 | Comments (35) | Trackbacks (3)

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