Maggie's Farm

I had always believed Archimedes spent a certain amount of time running through the streets of Syracuse shouting "Eureka, I have found it!"  Perhaps believed is a strong word, after all, it was so long ago it's unlikely anyone knows for sure just what occurred.  What we know for sure is Archimedes was a great mathematician and provided the world great insights leading to the progress of humankind.  

This breakdown of what may likely be the real story surrounding Archimedes' discovery of the measurement of volume is actually more interesting, though less entertaining, than the original.  The site isn't too bad, either, even if it does have a slight pro-AGW slant to some of the articles. 

I'm sure it won't be long before that actually happens.  Putin has history on his side.

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King Digital Entertainment (makers of the Candy Crush Saga mobile game) is planning to launch an IPO valuing $7.56 billion, which is worth more than 15 percent of S&P 500 companies. Each of King's 22.2 million shares would be priced between $21 and $24, and is expected to debut the trading on March 26. Fox Business reports King would command a market value worth more than other major tech companies like AOL, Lions Gate Entertainment and even 2.8 times more than struggling J.C. Penny. Last month, King revealed that its fourth quarter revenue hit $602 million, and $159 million in profits.

It's cheap at the price - roughly a one to one price to (annualized) earnings ratio. However, this is a gaming company, and gaming companies are notorious for their price fluctuations.  Very few companies which make standard XBox or Playstation games have remained at reasonable price levels, the competition is fierce and consumer tastes are fickle.  Less standard gaming companies, such as Zynga (based almost entirely on Facebook registrations) have suffered mightily after going public.

King Digital has been very profitable, but I've had experience with firms like this.  Typically, when they are privately held, they are fast, nimble, and aggressive.  When they cash out, they become bloated, lazy and unresponsive.  Can they break the mold?  Since it's my view the market is artificially overpriced, my guess is this is a stock that will jump quickly and far early in its trading life, and then slip back down as reality hits home.

I can't blame the stakeholders for wanting to cash out, and perhaps this is the best time for them to take what they can get.  

On the other hand, maybe investing in really useful stuff like this might be a better option. 

The point Obama makes here is valid, but begs a larger question, because it impacts his argument in support of a higher minimum wage.

The caller on this program made $36,000 per year, more than double minimum wage (and likely due to multiple household earners).  However, if minimum wage is so low, can people on minimum wage who have cable and a cell phone (and many do) make the same choices?  Minimum wage is providing enough for certain 'luxuries' which, in the grand scheme of things, are really just trade-offs for what we consider important in our lives.  Obama's response indicates even the most leftish of liberals recognize this.

The discussion on minimum wage is much larger, of course.  Most people earning it are not Head of Household, and most live in larger family groups with several earners.  Regarding the president's response, however, we exposed to insight on the man's psyche.  He realizes that managing your life is a series of choices, some better and some worse.  But he's unwilling to allow people to make most of those choices on their own.  It must be on his terms.  His healthcare, his minimum wage, his regulations must all be in place before you or anyone else is allowed to make the necessary choices needed to run your life.

Me? I'd rather have health care than a cell and cable when my finances are strained. But you may not. Right now, Obama's argument to raise minimum wage is that you shouldn't have to make this choice. But we all make choices, Mr. President. It's how an economy works.

This is just how far off the rails the unions, the city of New York, and most Democrats are these days.

Money from the Koch Brothers is not welcome, even if it brings jobs and saves lives.  That's not good enough.

Clinton, however, is acceptable because he takes money and jobs away.  It's not optimal, but it's close enough to optimal. 

As the author notes, at least the artist isn't calling for state intervention.  However, this mindset is why I think so many artists have messed up political views.  Childish, immature, idealistic views - these all lend themselves to producing art, at times.  He chose a profession, then got angry when people liked what he made and were willing to pay him for it.  But he couldn't produce for them.  So he broke his contract.

Being a parent is difficult.  I enjoyed every second of raising my kids so far, including the difficult times, the fights, the punishments.  The rewards are far greater than the stressful moments.

Yet a case like this seems - I say seems, because we can't ever know all the details - to be indicative of many things that are wrong in American society today.  Entitled kids?  Maybe, that's very common.  Abusive parents?  We've seen that, so it's possible.  Litigation to solve something which should be worked out privately?  I have no idea why this is in court, but there are plenty of cases in the courts which have no reason being heard.  These people need counseling, not lawyers.

I believe in a 'my house, my rules' environment. Children, even some young adults over 18, often don't understand why rules exist, don't want to know why they exist, and want only what they want.  Furthermore, once a child turn 18, and particularly if they decide to leave home permanently - for any reason - they have to accept responsibility for themselves. As a parent, if my child left on good terms, I would offer and provide assistance when it was needed and requested.  If they left on bad terms and immediately made demands on me and the rest of the family, let's just say things may not work out as well.  The child should expect and understand why that might happen.  If they were willing to take steps to remedy the situation, they would always be met with welcome arms.

I can't say Rachel Canning is entitled, I don't know.  The superficial information seems to indicate she is and simply isn't happy living within her parents' somewhat strict governance.  But that's part of the the parent/child dynamic.  I don't put limitations on who my boys can hang out with or date, but I have had long, and often difficult, discussions with them about the types of kids they spend time with.  Other parents take a much more active role.  We all have a different approach, and it's my opinion that the house makes the rules regardless of how I make my own house rules.  If the child lives in the house and relies on the parents, then that is part of the package.

I can see a situation where Rachel may deserve something, but it would have to related to abuse above and beyond just tough parenting.  She makes some allegations, but apparently has no evidence.  There seems to be plenty of evidence of bad manners and lack of respect.  I can't see her winning this suit.  Whether she does or not, the concept of being 18 and 'owed' something by your parents is far from assured.  As parents, they did spend 18 years of time and money getting her ready to go out on her own, and Rachel seems pretty qualified to do that based on her performance in school.  On the other hand, the ACA does require we insure our kids until they are 26 (as one commenter noted, if they are claimed on parents' taxes), so maybe coddling is the government's way of providing for the next generation.

Recently, while Bird Dog was lounging in the Caribbean, I was sent to do a presentation at a conference in Palm Desert, California.  Since I was a featured speaker, the conference was paying for my hotel, and as these things are typically boondoggles held at high-end resorts, I asked my wife to join me and she reluctantly agreed.  It took a tremendous amount of arm-twisting, two lines of text at a minimum.

My presentation meant a day in a ballroom with 200 of my closest industry competitors.  It provided a great opportunity to discuss issues at the heart of my business and I managed to deliver a 30 minute presentation in what seemed like 5 minutes.  I'm still learning to present well, though I was pleased to hear my work referenced several times by the speakers who followed me.

Once I got past the fun part, it was 'boondoggle on' and the wife and I availed ourselves of the surrounding region.  We took a bike tour of Palm Springs, headed out to Joshua Tree National Park and did an hour's hike up Ryan Mountain for some spectacular views.  I highly recommend a visit to Joshua Tree, if you're ever in the area.  It has a beauty which is very hard to describe.  It may not be for everyone.  I found it fascinating.  I also wanted to visit the Salton Sea, but time didn't permit.

As we were preparing to leave, my wife noticed an article about Mid-Century Modern architecture in a local magazine.  What caught her eye was a house owned by the Kaufmanns, a family I recently wrote about.  Apparently, this family was rather innovative in their tastes.  Successful in the business of retailing, they expanded the American cultural landscape by contracting with ground-breaking architects, in this case Richard Neutra.  Success really does breed success.  Their home in Palm Springs is considered the premiere example of the Mid-Century Modern home.

I haven't asked Bird Dog if our government researcher has been embedded yet.  It's been quite a while since Zachriel showed himself around here, and he's the closest thing to an enforcer we've ever had.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised to read this is how far we've sunk.  Obama's true colors continue to show as the economy slumps further.

Can you say Pravda? 

It isn't often a sport gets a complete makeover.  Singular moments are rare, but over time the impact of certain individuals and how they play create indelible memories.

In college basketball, this was best exemplified by the Larry Bird/Magic Johnson NCAA Final in 1979.  The NBA had Bill Russell and the Celtics in the 50's and 60's.  When a reboot began with Bird and Johnson, Michael Jordan joined them and created an era of his own.  Football experienced a similar revitalization with the arrival of the West Coast Offense and Joe Montana.  Baseball has gone through multiple reboots recently, though few have had a positive spin.  Steroids and strikes have had bigger impacts on the face of baseball than the arrival of a dominant player or a new method of playing the game.  Sabermetrics have been a net positive, and even my interest in the sport has grown over the last 15 years because of the new math which opens a window onto what real productivity is in the sport.

I haven't watched much of the Olympics, but I've been fascinated with Ted Ligety for some time.  In a sport which is usually decided by hundredths of a second, Ligety crashes down slalom courses with seeming abandon and winning by what can only be called massive margins.  His dominance is of the type rarely seen in any sport, let alone skiing.

Ligety is one of those people who has reinvented his sport.  I did a limited amount of downhill racing in my youth, and I remember the coach telling us the point was to find the fall line and make the course as short and fast as possible.  For years, that was the formula for reaching a victorious finish, often by slim margins of a second.  Giant Slalom, in particular, was usually a visual of tight turns around the gates and keeping as close to a straight downhill line as you could accomplish.

Ligety, on the other hand, takes wider turns and gets as parallel to the ground as he can.  This approach has turned the US team into a powerhouse.  Ligety creates power on short portions of the course where others coast briefly, and as a result he is able to smash the competition by moving rapidly, and effectively, from turn to turn.  Long ago, someone told me Beckham was a geometry genius because he could figure out how to get a ball from Point A into a goal around the wall.  I doubt he understood much about geometry at all, but he certainly understood how to make a ball do what he wanted it to do.  Ligety, by the same measure, is a physics genius.  He's determined how to turn portions of his run from potential to kinetic energy and power himself faster than others are able.

Most of the Olympics has been a bore, outside of hockey and Ligety.  

Yesterday most of us here in the Northeast spent the day digging out of yet another big snow pile.  I grew up with snow, in the mountains of Pennsylvania, then four years of Syracuse nastiness.  It doesn't bother me in the least, and I'm more than happy going out with a snow shovel to dig, dig, dig.

I figure you need at least 4+ inches to call off school, and at least that much to prevent me from heading in to NYC and the office.  Yesterday was one of those days, with my younger son having yet another snow day and me staying home for probably the fifth time this winter.

But Bill de Blasio was having none of it.  His point of view was to get the kids into school at all costs.  

This is a mayor who is slowly destroying any popularity he has with voters by making decisions which are difficult to support in any way.  I couldn't believe NYC schools were open yesterday, until I heard the press conference.  Bill's words go far in explaining how important he feels school is.  It hasn't got anything to do with education, it has everything to do with having daycare so parents can work. 

"It's always a tough decision based on imperfect information."

Really?  The Weather Service had said, with regularity, that it was going to be a minimum of 6 inches, Bill.  They warned of potential for a foot or more.  Sure, the Weather Service may be wrong about climate change, but you believe that, so surely you must have some level of trust in their observations?

 "There are huge number of parents for whom the consistency of the school schedule is absolutely necessary," de Blasio said. "They are going to work, they have no choice. If they can't get their kid to school, they don't have another option. There are huge numbers of parents for whom their kid getting to school also means their child will have a good meal, and in some cases, two meals. And so, the fact is, it's a very big deal to some parents."

Ohhhh...OK, now I get it.  You just wanted to make sure daycare was in session.  Fine, everything is understood and all is well.  I'm sure the teachers will be happy to know they are part of your daycare plan.

State Department upset that a private conversation was intercepted and recorded.  They were shocked this is happening.  I was too.  Just kidding.  Ever heard of the NSA?

What were they concerned about?  US involvement in unrest in the Ukraine.  Because we don't do that stuff anymore now that Barry is in charge. 

As the Olympics is about to begin, I can only imagine this phone call ended with chants of "USA, USA!" 

Not that there is any reason to assume the CBO is 'impartial'.  It likely is not.  It's probably not any more impartial than a host of other predictive organizations out there.  However, the CBO does have a larger veneer of impartiality than, say, the president's Council of Economic Advisers.

But today's release, by the CBO, about how Obamacare will impact the workforce is possibly the most insightful look into the potential damage this legislation will wreak on workers in the United States. 

But wait!  There's more!  Spin, that is.  After all, what good is an administration if it can't get the gullible masses to believe the CBO didn't say what it did say?  I'm curious to see how this plays out (or doesn't, as is more likely) in the media over the next few days.

Government subsidies and grants lead to misallocation of resources regularly.  This is one of the primary reasons the Austrian School of Economic Thought opposes government support for businesses.  Long ago, I was taught Economics isn't about getting rich or achieving a goal.  It's about managing process.

"While Austrian economists acknowledge some institutions are helpful to the individual economic process, they tend to view most institutions and regulations as inhibiting individuals from reaching their goals. Therefore, they tend to support a free market and laissez-faire governance. They believe government intervention hinders the process and decision making of market participants, resulting in suboptimal economic conditions."

This author explains why the problem isn't the government, but the entrepreneurs looking for money.  I'd say she's incorrect.  People are frequently distracted by shiny objects.  Government offers of cash are usually rule-bound and inflexible. meaning we alter our decisions to get 'free stuff'.  If you told me that you'd pay 1/2 of the price of a car, but I had to buy a $70,000 Tesla (costing me $35,000) as opposed to a $25,000 Mini which I have the cash for, chances are I'm going to scrounge for the extra $10,000 even though I could use that $10,000 to repay a loan or take a vacation.  We always tend to try and 'trade up' in the world, and if the incentive seems too good to be true, we'll usually take it.  Unfortunately, Sky Masterson's wisdom regarding an offer which is too good to be true:

One of these days in your travels, a guy is going to show you a brand-new deck of cards on which the seal is not yet broken. Then this guy is going to offer to bet you that he can make the jack of spades jump out of this brand-new deck of cards and squirt cider in your ear. But, son, do not accept this bet, because as sure as you stand there, you're going to wind up with an ear full of cider.

Yes, the entrepreneurs should be more thoughtful and careful.  It says much about their ability to run a business if they deviate from their business plan for less than optimal reasons.  But what does it say about the government that is encouraging them to deviate from the business plan?  Sky Masterson likely recognized the government as the biggest con running. 

The government comes up with the money?

Count me in with those who believe Social Security is a Ponzi scheme.  After all, many Ponzis start with a surplus and garner interest, but over time the payouts exceed incoming revenues.  All Ponzis are based on paying dividends to "investors" out of active money incoming from new "investors".  But even Ponzis don't pay out additional money to people who petition for someone else's funds.  If they did, I presume they would lower one person's payout to cover the person making the petition.

I'm not sure how long Social Security can last.  A friend of mine who is dyed-in-the-wool liberal/progressive believes the upper range limit for SocSec payments should be eliminated and it should be handled the same way as an income tax.  That is probably the first step that will be taken.  Soak the Rich.  This will extend the scheme for a few more years.  Then they will undoubtedly implement means-testing, which will extend it a bit longer.  At some point, all the financial engineering will fail.  Until then, keep kicking the can down the road.

Man Posts Epic Missed Connection After Seeing Woman He Was Married To For 3 Days In 1989 On NY Subway

At first, I was interested in the story about someone who could be married for 3 days on a subway.  

My cousin forwarded this to me as a "true love" and/or "true love lost" story.  I'm not sure it's anything at all like either of those.  Sounds like a lonely guy trying to reconnect with his past.  We all do that in different ways.  Not sure I'd use Craigslist, though.

Chris Christie may harbor dreams of winning the presidency in 2016, and for the last few years he has done a moderately good job acquitting himself.  Sure, he's got the persona of a bully, but in New Jersey that's a positive trait if you want to get things done.  Christie has gotten many things done.  However, his road to the White House is starting to his some snags.

For the record, I have no issues with Christie calling a reporter an "idiot".  Most of them are idiots.  Unfortunately, they are the heralds of his public personality.  It would help if he managed his tongue a bit.

No, it's unpossible.  But it could be Bill has himself a minor scandal less than 2 weeks on the job.

Horse-drawn carriage bans wouldn't seem to be the kind of thing a new mayor would care to endorse, unless there's money in it for him.  This isn't out of the realm of possibility. 

It's still early in Billy-boy's tenure, so if this is just smoke and no fire, there will be plenty more to come.  I'm sure he likes money.  Most people do.  I just prefer it be earned the old-fashioned way, not through political power-brokering.  In most cases like this, all you have to do is follow the money.

Many stars took it upon themselves to head to New Orleans post-Katrina.  They hoped to provide comfort and assistance to the unfortunate people impacted by the storm.  As I've noted here, I have no quarrel with people giving their time and effort to a worthy cause.  I respect those who put their time and money on the line.

I also respect trying to be 'green', if that's what you're into.  I'm 'green', though not in a manner Ed Begley, Jr. would approve.

However sanctimonious some Hollywood stars may be, it's disturbing to see well-meaning organizations get swindled.

Going overboard on the green express will undoubtedly lead to more problems such as those Brad Pitt's Make it Right Foundation has experienced.  A new, but untested, method of treating wood which avoids toxic chemicals was used on portions of New Orleans homes.  The wood is now rotting.

Some claim the problems were due to New Orleans' humidity.  I have to wonder, since they ran into issues up north.

Yesterday a former NFL punter, Chris Kluwe, wrote an article for Deadspin that intimated he was released due to his advocacy in support of gay marriage/gay rights. I doubt very much his outspokenness led to his release.  He had other tryouts and didn't make those teams.  My guess is his performance was declining, which Kluwe suggests when he mentioned his knee surgery.

Kluwe had, or has, a monster leg.  He is well known for out-kicking his coverage toward the end of his tenure.  In the NFL, this is indicative of being a poor punter.

Kluwe hoped someone in management would tell him what to do, be quiet or speak up.  Management never does that, because formally telling someone to keep their mouth shut can lead to lawsuits.  Best to hint it's not a good idea and let the speaker fill in the blanks.  Kluwe, a player well-known for his intelligence, failed to connect those dots. 

Others doubt he was let go for his comments.  However, if the choice came down to him and someone of equal skill, it's doubtful his comments improved his chances of play.  Better to have a less highly visible player doing as good a job for a much lower salary.  I used Kluwe's story to provide a life lesson for my boys.  Understand that saying what you believe is right and just, and shouldn't necessarily be punishable, but sometimes it's better to say nothing.  Unless you are your own boss, you should consider yourself replaceable.

The Vikings have said they will look into his allegations.  However, the primary statistic for punting success, pinning opponents inside the 20, had dropped to a new low his final season.

Did someone in the organization say or do something 'wrong'?  Probably, in today's world we're all guilty of this at some point.  Is that meaningful?  Not really.  I don't support anti-gay slurs, but everyone is allowed to have a point of view.  More importantly, when you work for any firm, you need to be careful to not put them at risk, particularly if they make it clear you're stepping on some toes.  My guess is Kluwe's skills were in decline, and he didn't help his own case.  He certainly doesn't make himself look better as a bitter, petulant complainant.  If anything, my respect for his willingness to speak up on issues (even some I disagree with him on) has dropped because he has become so self-serving with this article.

Indeed, I've seen some people suggest Tim Tebow can't find a home in the NFL because of his beliefs.  I doubt that is any more true than Kluwe's claims.  Even if it is true, Tebow has the good sense to not say anything about it.

Long ago, Paul Shaffer and The World's Most Dangerous Band performed a brief songlet which caught my ear.  

What can be more fun during Thanksgiving break than shooting a gun with family and friends?  It can be the best time of year to get some target practice.  I will usually grab my father-in-law and my boys and head out to a local range.  This year, we didn't go.  However, we typically visit family on Fire Island the following weekend, and they provided a surprise.  Skeet shooting off the deck into the Great South Bay.  12 gauge pump actions and a 12 gauge over/under were the tools available.