The wit & wisdom of our worst president

• "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?" January 11, 2000
• "I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family." Jan. 27, 2000
• "I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully." Sept. 29, 2000
• "They misunderestimated me." November 6, 2000
• "Families is where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream." Oct. 18, 2000
• "I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace." June 18, 2002
• "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." Aug. 5, 2004
• "The question is, who ought to make that decision? The Congress or the commanders? And as you know, my position is clear--I'm a commander guy." May 2, 2007
• "There's an old saying in Tennessee--I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee--that says, fool me once, shame on--shame on you. Fool me--you can't get fooled again." September 17, 2002
• "I heard somebody say, 'Where's (Nelson) Mandela?' Well, Mandela's dead. Because Saddam killed all the Mandelas." Sept. 20, 2007
• "Goodbye from the world's biggest polluter." July 10, 2008.His parting words to fellow G-8 leaders at a summit meeting.
• "And they have no disregard for human life." July 15, 2008, speaking about Afghan fighters.

From Gene Stone's "The 12 Step Bush Recovery Program"

Bush is a four letter word

He's going to do it. Against the votes of the Republican congressional delegation, against a majority of the opinion of the public at large, against all economic logic (people even Joe Stiglitz says bankruptcy is the way to go for the beggy 3), W is gonna give the most undeserved christmas present ever. I can't wait to see the "tough conditions" that will be attached.

While I have already noted my sympathy and support for the beggy 3 work force, those management teams simply cannot get any more support or money. They have pissed away hundreds of billions of dollars of value.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about all this was Cheney's "Herbert Hoover time" remark. People, the Bush administration is way way way down looking up at Hoover in the presidential rankings.

Hoover didn't topple a foreign leader only to let the conquered country sink into years of violent anarchy. Hoover wasn't commander in chief of troops that heaped vile abuse on prisoners in the very prison where the previous leader committed some of his atrocities. Hoover didn't push for torture. Hoover didn't sign anything nearly as sickening as the Patriot Act. Hoover didn't kill SCHIP expansion on cost grounds only to throw $15 billion into a complete and total rathole the next year (I am not saying SCHIP is a good program, I am just saying it's way more worthy that a 15 billion sop to the beggy 3).

Has any alleged free market, small government, personal liberty person ever done more to hurt the causes of free markets, small government and personal liberty?

I truly think W is one of the very worst, if not the absolute worst, president of all time.

It's Time I'm Walkin' to New Orleans

A note from a friend, after s/he read the hunting post:

For the last two months I've been tutoring a [history student]. Her class is up to the Civil War now, and we were discussing the Union's original plan to attack the South down the Mississippi River to New Orleans.

"New Orleans is in the South?" she asked. "I didn't know that."

"Um, yeah," I said, showing her a map of the US. "See? All the way down there."

"Oh...so, like, that's where Katrina happened, right?"

"Yeah..."

She looked confused. "But didn't Katrina happen in Los Angeles?"

I stared at her.

"It wasn't in Los Angeles?"

"Umm...no. See, it came up through the Gulf like this, and Los Angeles is...all
the way over here."

"Oh...so then why did everyone say it happened in New Orleans, LA?"

Luckily, though, I don't think she's the hunting type.

(with apologies to Fats)

Noonan on Blago

right here:

Rarely has there been such a case in which the sin is perfectly represented by the physical presence of the sinner. I had never seen him until the news this week, and there he was, a lipless, dull-featured, wig-wearing moron with a foul-mouthed harridan of a wife. (Oh, maybe it's not a wig, but I think Chicago should know everyone in New York thinks it is.) The minute I saw him I thought: That's exactly what a guy like that would look like! And then I thought: Oh, God bless him, because it's kind of a gift when things look as they are. Not all is shade and shadow, some things are hearteningly obvious. He really was abusive. He really was selfish. He really gives you something to react against, a sense of "That's what not to be."

amen, Peggy

There will always be m**********rs

In case you missed it, as I did: John Stewart and John Oliver discuss the events in Mumbai. (Nod to CP, btw)

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Mumbai Tragedy

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

There are, as a matter of probabilities, essentially zero Muslims who are terrorists. Hundreds of millions of Muslims practice their religion peacefully. They may not endorse the actions of the U.S. (neither do I, btw), but they don't act violently or advocate violence.

But a disturbingly high proportion of terrorists invoke a bizarre version of Islam to justify being psychopaths.

Now, sure, Christians have done, and still do, the same thing. But if I ate a bug, would Marwan eat a bug, too, just to spite me? It's the non sequitur part that is som remarkable, and John Oliver points out: "We hate everything you stand for, and want to kill all your women and children. Join us."

I did have an interesting conversation, on the campaign trail, with a Muslim guy who is a prominent engineering prof at a local university. He cited the conversation between that nut woman and John McCain.


She said, "He's an Arab." McCain takes back the microphone, and so, "No, he's not. He's a decent man, a family man."

Now, I had to give McCain some credit for doing that. But I missed the point a little, as my engineering prof friend convinced me. The "He's not an Arab, he's a decent man" is in fact a problem.

The real answer is, "No, Obama is not an Arab. But what if he were? Arabs are decent people, family people..."

So, let's be careful to soft-peddle the "Islamic terrorist" thing. It's more like "Terrorists who are motivated by a distorted and illogical version of Islam."

Holly makes excellent barf!

fa la la la la, la la la LAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!

This is just freaky

Has anyone ever seen Jeff Sachs and Blago in the same room at the same time??






Do you think Sachs has embarked on his mission of saving the world to atone for the deeds of his evil twin??

Hat tip to Mrs. Angus!!

Carolina Guy confirms his conversion

Carolina Guy, right after the fox urine incident is reported, also sends another link.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - A community activist who ran for Congress from prison, where he had been sent for warning that a judge could be tortured by God, can post bond while he appeals his conviction, an appeals court has ruled.

After being convicted and sentenced to probation in 2007 for paying people to vote in a Benton Harbor recall election, Edward Pinkney wrote an article in a small Chicago newspaper saying the judge who handled the case could be punished by God with curses, fever and "extreme burning" unless he changed his ways.

Another judge considered the article a threat and sentenced Pinkney to three to 10 years in prison for violating his probation. Pinkney, who says he's a Baptist minister, and his attorneys say he was only paraphrasing some Bible verses from the book of Deuteronomy.

Carolina Guy's comment: "And this? No wonder there is overcrowding in the jails! Isn't Michigan broke? How much this this cost? I'm going back to bed for I get arrested."

My comment: Specific incitements to violence should be illegal. But inciting God to violence is okay, I think. Not likely to work, and if it does work then I think that it would prove that God found your cause worthy.

How did he get the fox to pee in a cup?

WILLMAR, Minn. — A 50-year-old man who told authorities he was fed up with teens toilet-papering his house decided to defend his property - with a squirt gun filled with fox urine. Now, Scott Wagar is in trouble with the law.

Wagar pleaded not guilty on Wednesday in Kandiyohi County District Court to misdemeanor assault and other charges. He was released on personal recognizance.

According to police, Wagar was on his property Sept. 16 when he used night vision goggles to see 15-20 people running toward his place. He told police that he told them to leave, swore at them and sprayed them with the fox urine. He also allegedly struggled with one of the teens.

A phone message left at a home listing for a Scott Wagar was not immediately returned to The Associated Press. (Link)

(Nod to Carolina Guy, who notes, "He was arrested for this?? Where I grew up they might have been sprayed with a shotgun full of rocksalt!" Carolina Guy agrees that he is now a Libertarian)

Flying Heads and Weak Knees

I went to NC Hunter Safety School for ten hours this week, and took my exam last night. Managed to pass, and now am certified to be able to kill things safely.

One of the Game Officers used the breaks to tell some stories of Bart, the decoy deer. Bart is a decoy that the Game Officers in Granville County use to catch idiots.

They put Bart up by the side of road, in a field, not near a house. Firing from a road, and especially firing from a vehicle, and hunting after 1/2 hour past sunset....all illegal.

And yet folks see Bart and just go a little nuts. Two stories I remember:

1. Guy in an SUV, wife in passenger seat, baby asleep in car seat in the back. Sees Bart. Apparently very excited. Opens passenger window, reaches around for rifle (apparently in back seat). Leans across wife, props gun on passenger window. Shoots Bart twice. Baby starts screaming. Idiot shoots Bart twice more. Bart, being made of wood and foam, with a deer skin covering, does not fall.

Game Officers come out of ditch on all sides. Wife is slapping at the guy, who is actually trying to get off just one more shot.

Game Officers approach. Guy says, "But, you have to understand. I have never shot a deer before. This would be my first."

Game Officer: "Well, I guess this is your big night for firsts, then. Have you ever been handcuffed?"

2. Bart is just the latest in a long line of Barts. The previous version of Bart was mechanical, and actually moved its head up and down and could wag and lift its little white tail. But earlier Bart had been shot so many times that the gears in the head-moving mechanism were broken. About every ten minutes or so, the gears would catch, and Bart would throw his head. Not very far, mind you, about six inches up and two or three feet to the side; the head would land a little ways from the body. Not something you see very often in a deer in the wild.

Anyway, an idiot drove by one night. He slowed down, drove ahead two hundred yards, and then stopped, presumably to get the rifle out of the trunk and load it. Then back he comes, and parks. Gets out of the car. Jumps down in the ditch, 20 feet from where the Game Officers are hiding, comes up out of the ditch on the other side. Lines up, and gets ready to fire.

And then the gears catch and Bart's head flies off, landing three feet in front of him.

The idiot backpeddles, trips, and falls on his butt at the top of the ditch, slides down headfirst on his back. The gun goes off, but no one is hit.

The Game Officers get up, to try to prevent death-by-moron.

BUT THE GUY DOESN'T HAVE ONE OUNCE OF QUIT IN HIM, NOT WHEN IT COUNTS. He crawls back to the top of the ditch, and TAKES A SHOT AT THE HEADLESS STANDING DEER. IT HAS NO HEAD. WHAT DOES HE THINK HE IS SHOOTING AT?

Mercifully, he was taken into custody. The officer claimed that he believed that not just deer, but also beer, may have been involved in this incident.

Now, I have no doubt that both these stories are in fact urban legends, repeated in the "I was there" fashion that improves their quality. But still, not bad as stories go. Thanks, Officer!

UPDATE: Frequent commenter and KPC pal Tom points out the following similar event. heehee....

A Moral Hazard Monster

People, please believe me when I say I feel bad for the employees of the Big 3. I have been a factory worker and a union member and I am not anti union. In my view the problems with the Big 3 are not mainly or even substantially due to the UAW.

Instead, I ascribe them to horrifically bad management and the history of government meddling / subsidy / intervention that apparently created a moral hazard monster.

It's probably good to remember that the vaunted $73 /hr labor cost of the Big three does not measure the wages and benefits of current workers.

However, I do not favor this bailout and I am happy it failed. I can also find ironic humor in statements like those made by the mayor of Lansing MI, Virgil Bernero:

"Due to this colossal failure by the U.S. Senate, now it's up to the president and the Treasury secretary.."

"Working Americans will appreciate the president stepping in — and pull us back from the precipice, pull us back from the economic cliff."

People, the big 3 auto industry and its political henchmen never believed the government would actually let them fail. That's moral hazard and that to me is a big part of the story of why these firms were run so incredibly and horribly into the ground.

They are not in this position because of the crisis so much as they are here because of 20+ years of bad behavior. For some simple evidence supporting this claim see this post. That is the real colossal failure and it was aided and abetted by the government but not in the way that mayor Bernero thinks.

All this said, I think there is a decent chance that the Bush administration WILL do something to bail out GM and Chrysler thus moving itself even further up (down??) the list of worst presidencies ever.

Why is it surprising that tax cuts have a bigger effect than spending increases in the real world?

Tax cuts put money into the hands of people who will spend or invest it on things that are economically valuable. The money goes into the market system directly or indirectly.

Spending increases divert money out of the market system and into the sausage factory. In this world, swimming pools and tennis centers are "infrastructure", companies that have been failing for 20+ years are given billions of dollars and a mandate to undertake even less profitable business plans, bridges are built "to nowhere". We're lucky if the "multiplier" on this crap is as big as 1.0.

People, our government produces mass quantities of a particular product: pork. And every time it increases output, the arteries of our economy get a little bit more fatty and clogged.

On average tax cuts free up more money to go toward more highly valued uses (at least if they reduce spending or are given to non-Ricardian agents).

If you are wondering what I am ranting about check out this, this, and this.

I guess I'd rather give my money to people who are going to use it to try to make more money (i.e. save/spend it in the market system) than give it to people who are going to use it to try and get re-elected.

Hat tip to Tyler for getting me wound up on this subject.

Will Makes a Sound Point

Will W thinks about l'affaire Blago.

And cites Ed L as the voice of reason here. (Ed the voice of reason? Just THAT fact frightens me a little).

Will does pose the interesting question: do we need BETTER government, or LESS government? And would less government always, be definition, be better? (For what it is worth, even I think the answer to the last question is "no.")

I do not advocate ZERO government. But I do think less government IS better government, on most grounds. Drugs, war, privacy, ag subsidies....Stop it.

But, it is fair to interpret my earlier screed as a call for no government, even though I would not defend that position. I'm not sure this is really a fight worth having, though. We don't generally ask "liberals" what their nirvana would look like. We are satisfied with a direction: more government, more redistribution. The "Libertarian Vice" only exists because people look at the reductio ad absurdum version, not the direction.

Anyway, Will is, as always, worth reading in full.

UPDATE: I have no idea what I was doing with the all-caps words above. Sorry. And, Will's use of the word, "Neener" made me spit coffee. Nicely done, lad.

Same song, second verse

Mrs. Angus & I ventured out to see the Thunder again. Last time they blew a 17 point lead and lost to Phoenix. This time they blew a 21 point lead and lost to the Grizz.

Some observations:

Thunder don't know how to use Durant. At this point, he's a catch and shoot guy and is good in transition. They keep running isolation plays and post ups for him. He is no good with his back to the basket. Since they have absolutely no inside presence (take THAT Chris Wilcox), they can't go inside out at all and it hurts them.

Thunder are hurting at point guard. Earl Watkins just cannot stop himself from driving the lane, jumping into the air and then trying to decide what to do with the ball. Russell Westbrook takes way too long to get the offense started and seems uncomfortable running the show.

OJ Mayo is GOOD. Mrs. Angus commented that he had a super smooth shot and that the ball always seemed like it was going to go in. He's not flashy but he is the real deal. I really like his game.

Mayo and Rudy Gay appear to hate each other. They were fussin' at each other during the game, after which Gay appeared unwilling to pass the ball to Mayo and we could see him grimacing and rolling his eyes when Mayo got the ball in the half court set.

Marc Iavaroni has a strange rotation. He played down the stretch (last 8 or 9 minutes) with one starter, Gay, in the lineup. Kyle Lowery started at the point but Mike Conley finished there and absolutely destroyed the Thunder in the fourth quarter, just like Steve Nash did in the forth quarter of the Phoenix loss.

It's gonna be a long year but we have tickets to see the Cavs, Jazz, Spurs, Lakers (twice) and Wizards, so that should be fun!

Lets tell it like it is!

(click image to read the fine print)

Hat tip to Mark Perry!

In All His Glory

Lord above. The Blago, in all his glory. Nice comparison to Nixon. He's right, actually.



Here's my question: why would ANYONE think is unusual? This is not a pathology of government action. Blago is the ESSENCE of government action. This is how government "works." Corruption, payoffs, thuggery. As Edmund Burke put it:

"In vain you tell me that Artificial Government is good, but that I fall out only with the Abuse. The Thing! the Thing itself is the Abuse!"

And, as I put it:

Instead of teaching our children to be moral, and to care about social opprobrium, parents and schools abdicate their roles as shapers of minds and rely on the state to punish misbehavior after the fact. Children naturally conclude that if there is no punishment from the state, there must have been no misbehavior. But the state cannot fulfill this function, for reasons of simple competence and resource constraint. And the state would fail to carry out the function correctly, even if it were competent, because power corrupts and breeds malevolence. The abuse and the thing are the same. The conviction that we can harness Leviathan is the most dangerous conceit of our age.

I really think Blago sincerely believes he has done nothing wrong, except get caught. Voters don't care how bad politicians are. All voters care about is how much politicians promise. We get the government we deserve. (Except for Angus and me; we deserve much better government, because WE are the Cognescenti)

(Nod to EL)

Is Joe Dumars still a Genius?

With the Pistons, AI is shooting 39.5% averaging 17.6 points 5.6 assists and 3.7 turnovers and Detroit is, I believe, under .500 since the trade. Billups is shooting 43.6%, averaging 18.8 points, 6.8 assists, and 1.7 turnovers and Denver is 12-5 with since the trade.

Ouch?

I know it's supposed to be all about getting cap room, but I just do not see LBJ in Motown, if there even still is a Motown in 2010.

Even More Blago!

complements of Ben Smith:

"The tapes reveal a two-term governor who no longer wants his job, badly wants cash and is determined to leverage a financial benefit out of his appointment powers.

He also appears to think little of the president-elect, whom he calls a "motherf***er" at one point.

“F**k him,” Blagjoveich says of Obama during a lengthy call with top aides and his wife recorded on November 10th, “For nothing? F**k him.”

In another section of the complaint, Blagojevich expresses exasperation that Obama and his team aren't willing to offer him an inducement in exchange for appointing an aide, apparently Valerie Jarrett, to the Senate.

Blagojevich "said he knows that the President-elect wants Senate Candidate 1 for the Senate seat but 'they’re not willing to give me anything except appreciation. F**k them,'" says the complaint."

Not for nothing, right Lola?

Does This Mean I Don't Get the Senate Seat?

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was captured on tape saying that unless he received “something real good” for the appointment of a top adviser to Barack Obama to fill the president-elect’s Senate seat he would appoint himself, according to the criminal complaint.
...

"'Unless I get something real good [for Senate candidate 1], shit, I'll just
send myself, you know what I'm saying,' Blagojevich was taped saying on
November 3rd, the day before Election Day. Blagojevich added that the Senate
seat: 'is a fucking valuable thing, you just don't give it away for
nothing.'" [Politico]

Wow. Just....wow.

WaPo story. Just read those quotes. A truly remarkable story. Even for Illinois, that guy is really something.

(Nod to KL)

Barbara Boxer breaks down the "Big 3" crisis

Right here:

“One of the reasons [automakers] are in trouble is they’re fighting us all the time,” Boxer told reporters Monday.

Yes Barbara, if everyone would just pay more attention to the US Senate we really wouldn't have any problems at all.

Australia gets ahead of the curve

People, this is just about the best idea I've seen in quite a while:

"CANBERRA (Reuters) – Politicians in Australia's most populous state could be breath-tested for alcohol before voting on laws after a series of late-night incidents that have embarrassed the center-left government."

Money quote:

"Honestly, if you are going to have breathalyzers for people driving cranes you should have breathalyzers for people writing laws,"

Credit Where Credit is Due

Two predictions on crude oil prices:

1. Me, September 2007, driving car pool to school for my son--"There is no fundamental reason why crude oil prices should be above $45/barrel. It makes no sense, given production costs and the difficulties of enforcing cartel discipline. Prices will come back down, mark my words."

2. Shawn Tully, of Fortune Magazine: "Why the Boom Will Eventually Bust."

The current price of crude oil: $43.40/barrel

The current credibility of those "peak oil" morons: Zero, same as always.

Garbage 1, Recycling 0

As discussed in my little essay at Lib Fund's "Econlib", problems can arise when one ignores markets and economics in a market economy.....

From the NYT:

The precipitous drop in prices for recyclables makes the stock market’s performance seem almost enviable.

On the West Coast, for example, mixed paper is selling for $20 to $25 a ton, down from $105 in October, according to Official Board Markets, a newsletter that tracks paper prices. And recyclers say tin is worth about $5 a ton, down from $327 earlier this year. There is greater domestic demand for glass, so its price has not fallen as much.

This is a cyclical industry that has seen price swings before. The scrap market in general is closely tied to economic conditions because demand for some recyclables tracks closely with markets for new products. Cardboard, for instance, turns into the boxes that package electronics, rubber goes to shoe soles, and metal is made into auto parts.

One reason prices slid so rapidly this time is that demand from China, the biggest export market for recyclables from the United States, quickly dried up as the global economy slowed. China’s influence is so great that in recent years recyclables have been worth much less in areas of the United States that lack easy access to ports that can ship there.

The downturn offers some insight into the forces behind the recycling boom of recent years. Environmentally conscious consumers have been able to pat themselves on the back and feel good about sorting their recycling and putting it on the curb. But most recycling programs have been driven as much by raw economics as by activism.

Cities and their contractors made recycling easy in part because there was money to be made. Businesses, too — like grocery chains and other retailers — have profited by recycling thousands of tons of materials like cardboard each month.

But the drop in prices has made the profits shrink, or even disappear, undermining one rationale for recycling programs and their costly infrastructure.

(Nod to Mr. Overwater)

A Pretty Cool Final Project

Here is the audio / powerpoint to a final project for an indep study a student did with me this semester.


Thanks and props to Kuppa-Mo, for doing a nice job on the project. Pretty good stuff there. It is 34 mins long, though.

(UPDATE: No link in original post. But, as Lola Grynovski would have said, "You not geet for free. You not geet for pennies. You PAY for good theengs. Not for PENNIES!" And at that point John Jarosz would sneak out the back way, rather than take her to the grocery)

Can't Get Enough of the Minsky Stuff

For those who want the entire history of Minsky Commentary on this blog....this will take you to the list of posts (including this one, which is confusing; just scroll down.

Experience Goods....or Bads?

False advertising and experience goods: The case of political services in
the U.S. Senate

Franklin Mixon, Rand Ressler & Troy Gibson
Public Choice, January 2009, Pages 83-95

Abstract:
This study uses the voter-shopping construct to analyze signaling of moderateness in the U.S. Senate. We compare legislator-provided signals (advertising) - such as membership in the U.S. Senate's Centrist Coalition - with actual voting histories in order to characterize these types of advertising cues as sincere or insincere. Following recent research indicating that moderate legislators receive greater financial support, we test whether or not Political Action Committees (PACs) are willing to support financially those who send false signals of moderateness. Our results show that the mean level of real PAC contributions garnered by non-moderate Democrats who send false signals exceeds that of the non-moderate Democrats who do not do so by $182,078. This figure is about 74% of mean level of real PAC contributions for those non-moderate Democrats who do not send false signals.

Minsky and me

Mungowitz and I were in grad school at Wash U during the Minsky era. I was doing a field in money so that meant I had to take Minksy's grad class. He was big in Europe, especially in Italy. The resident PhD students (myself included) were not real interested in his stuff, but people did come from all over the world to sit at his feet. These people came in two main flavors: Ones who wanted to talk about Pierro Sraffa (to this day I have no idea why) and those who felt they had found a way to "test" Minsky's hypothesis.

Minsky despised both of these groups of people. To him Sraffa was a worm (to this day I have no idea why), and there was no need to test his theory (alas to Minsky, his theory could explain any outcome, and was thus in reality untestable and more religious than scientific in its nature).

In his class, for some unknown reason, he tacitly appointed me to be his hitman. Some visitor would start talking away, getting more and more excited about his/her chance to impress the great man. Minsky would start slowly shaking his head, then start holding his head in his hands, then he'd extend an arm and slowly shake his finger at the visitor until they stopped (this could take quite a while at times). Then he'd point to me and I would sphincter the speaker, invoking some semi-relevant Minsky-ism I'd picked up over the years. Then Minsky would restore himself to his full height and carriage and beam approvingly my way.

There are, I believe, a small group of middle aged Italians who hate me to this day.

Why an economist is unlikely to be President

Good article in the NY Times about the odd couple that is Barack and Larry.

Money quote:

But they are also an odd couple: the serene, slender politician who seems to win people over effortlessly and the impatient, acerbic bear of a man who seems to offend them just as easily.“Barack thinks with his mind open,” said Charles Ogletree, a law professor at Harvard. “Larry thinks with his mouth open.”

Boomer F. Sooner

62-21. Wow. 3 straight Big XII titles and quite likely another appearance in the national championship game. Stoops is clearly the best coach in the land from August - December. Let's see how he does in January, where he has been less than dominant.

Mrs Angus and I arrived here in the fall of '99, just like Stoops. We have been treated to a great run of very entertaining ball.

Getting ready for the deluge

Universal Grade Change Form

To: (professor/teacher/instructor)________________________

From:_____________________

I think my grade in your course,_________________, should be changed from___to___for the following reasons:

1. ____The persons who copied my paper made a higher grade than I did.
2. ____The person whose paper I copied made a higher grade than I did.
3. ____This course will lower my GPA and I won't get into:

   __Med School __Dental School __Chiropractic School
   __Acupuncture school __Grad School __Mickey Mouse Club

4. ____I have to get an A in this course to balance the F in ___________.
5. ____I'll lose my scholarship.
6. ____I'm on a varsity sports team and my coach couldn't find a copy of your exam.
7. ____I didn't come to class and the person whose notes I used did not cover the material asked for on the exam.
8. ____I studied the basic principles but the exam wanted every little fact.
9. ____I studied the facts and definitions but the exam asked about general principles.
10. ____I understood the material; I just couldn't do the problems.
11. ____I can work the problems, but your exam expected understanding.
12. ____You are prejudiced against:

    __Males __Females __Protestants __Chicanos
    __Jews __Catholics __Muslims __People
    __Blacks __Whites __Minorities __Jocks
    __Students __Young people __Old people
    

13. ____If I flunk out of school my father will disinherit me or at least cut my allowance.
14. ____I was unable to do well in this course because of the following:

    __mono __acute alcoholism __drug addiction
    __VD __broken finger __pregnancy __fatherhood
    __I have allergic reaction to brain work __I am intellectually challenged.
    

15. ____You told us to be creative but you didn't tell us exactly how you wanted that done.
16. ____I was creative and you said I was just shooting the bull.
17. ____The lectures were:
    • __too detailed to pick out important points
    • __not explained in sufficient detail
    • __too boring
    • __all jokes and no material
    • __too serious--not enough entertainment to keep me awake.
18. ____All my other profs have agreed to raise my grades.
19. ____I don't have a reason; I just want a higher grade.
20. ____This course was:
    • __too early, I was not awake.
    • __too late, I was tired.
    • __at lunchtime, I was hungry.
21. ____My (dog, cat, gerbil) (ate, wet on, threw up on) my (book, notes, term paper) for this course.

From Donald Simanek, hat tip to John Palmer.

And here I thought rock was the Devil's music

People, from beyond the grave, John Denver continues to stalk this planet wrecking mayhem:

"A gunman in Thailand shot-dead eight neighbours, including his brother-in-law, after tiring of their karaoke versions of popular songs, including John Denver’s Country Roads.

Weenus Chumkamnerd, 52, put his gun to the head of a respected female doctor and seven of her guests as they partied at her home in Songkhla Province, South Thailand....

A neighbour said that the karaoke group normally sang Thai pop and southern Thai ballads, but one particular western tune could be heard often - John Denver’s ‘Country Roads’.

Country Roads is a hugely popular song in south east Asia and the neighbour said the revellers had been singing it over and over again."

For more karaoke issues in Asia see here.

Hat tip to LeBron.

Okies got Wings!

Both Hanky and Panky

This is pretty bad stuff.

This is not the first time a Republican administration has tried to block the emergency withdrawal provisions; in the early 1980s, a federal judge rejected a challenge brought by Interior Secretary James G. Watt.

Asked why the new rule was necessary, Chris Paolino, another department spokesman, said that the law had been dormant since the early 1980s, but that “it has again come forward and that makes this an appropriate time to address this sticking point in our regulations.”

The Bush administration is not unique in seeking to put its stamp on rules in the final days of its term. The Clinton administration, for example, did, too.

This week another rule made it easier for coal companies to dump rock and dirt from mountaintop mining operations into streams and valleys.


Anonyman has the red ass, a little. From an email:



I know I've opined on the danger of ignoring democracy to pursue ideological goals. But with the recent actions in Canada, which essentially has established a dictatorship for the next 2 months, and our spending a few trillion in Iraq to teach them about how a democracy works, I think these pale in comparison to an federal agency actively rewriting rules so that Congress cannot conduct oversight claiming a procedural flaw in a law. I was bemoaning the state of Rs to a friend, who's a D, he thought it was hilarious and said I was the last republican standing. Too bad they broke both my knees on the way out.

The Juice is no longer on the loose

Not after a Big Gulp swiggin' Judge threw the book at him in his sentencing hearing today. He got 15 for kidnapping (parole eligible after 5 years) an open ended enhancement for using a gun (to be served consecutively) and another open ended consecutive sentence for burglary. I am not a lawyer, but it seems like about 10 years minimum for OJ.

I was shocked to see Ron Goldman's parents in the audience for the sentencing. Maybe that is why the Judge made a lengthy speech about how this sentence was exclusively for this case and had nothing to do with past history.

Canada is Closed; Citizens Feel Safer

Reminds me of the old, possibly apocryphal, story about the laconic border guard on the Canadian side. American tourist asks if they can get back across the border, even if it is after midnight. Border guard tells her, "Yes ma'am; Canada never closes."

Well, yes it does. If the Parliament were open, there would be a vote of no confidence. So....close the sucker. The Iraqis, and other people whom we tell so condescendingly that they should have "democracy"...they must be so PROUD right now.

(Nod to Anonyman)

Women Should be Tools of Change?

Will Wilkinson, as always, makes some very fine points.

TruthThroughAction is not content to communicate merely that Republicans are a disgusting caste apart, but suggests that men with the right politics deserve to be sexually rewarded, or should at least be encouraged to believe that, not only will they escape painful shunning for registering Republican (or Green or Liberartian), but that the chances are good that they will be sexually rewarded for registering, voting, being Democrat. Implicit in this message is that the bodies of faithful Democratic women are tools for securing the success of Democratic politicians and their clients. For what is the sexual life of a young woman if not a means to the greater glory of the Service Employees International Union? What is casual fornication if not a Duty to the Party.



Lagniappe: Why oh why is "Gordon Tullock Sucks" the most common search over on widget on the middle right?

Poor Mrs. Angus

According to the calculator at Divorce360.com, here are my chances of becoming divorced:

People with similar backgrounds who are already divorced: 14%
People with similar backgrounds who will be divorced over the next five years: 2%

Looks like she is just plain stuck with me at least for another 5 years, I guess.

Hat tip to Justin Wolfers.

Phil Gramm Comes Up Big

Phil Gramm, in the NYT:

“Some people look at subprime lending and see evil. I look at subprime lending and I see the American dream in action,” he said. “My mother lived it as a result of a finance company making a mortgage loan that a bank would not make.”

Two differences, though:

1. Phil's mom actually tried to pay the thing back. No bailouts. If we get into the bailout business, why would ANYONE actually suck it up and pay back? Much easier to blame those "predatory" bastards whose money you borrowed, and wasted on a now worthless house.

2. More people seemed to understand that there is a positive relation between "risk" and "interest charges." Lending institutions have been under so much pressure to make loans (1) to people who can't afford to pay back, and (2) at rates that don't account for risk differences.

Now, was private greed complicit, or worse, in the subprime debacle? Sure. But you can't blame dogs for eating out of the garbage. FNMA and the rest of the clownish illiterate fellows who "manage" mortgages laid out a garbage buffet, all you can eat, free, come back for more.

(Nod to Neanderbill, who pays cash for everything)

Dems standing down in Minn?

As foreshadowed here yesterday. Incitatus, ooops I mean Al Franken, is withdrawing a boatload of challenges to ballots in the Minnesota Senate race. So maybe it's 42 people to read out loud from the phonebook for the next two years.

The Animals Strike Back

Oh, and don't use elk urine as a mouthwash. Deer HATE that.

(Nod to GameBill)

Gridlock lives!

Well, kind of, anyway. The Republicans managed to capture the runoff in Georgia, denying the Dems a filibuster proof majority in the World's Greatest Deliberative Body. Maybe now that the dream is gone the Dems will ease up in Minnesota. They can't really want Al Franken in the Senate can they? Isn't that eerily close to Caligula making his horse a Senator?

Meet my neighbor

No joke, people, Barry lives right across the street!!

Thanks, Marc!

Back at ya, Marc! And thanks for the ink.

Theory Theory

My little entry on the poliscijobrumors, on the thread:

Do political science depts even care about normative political theory anymore?

My response:

This is certainly a legitimate question, though wading through the dross and cleverness of many posters is difficult.

Economics went through something of the same debate, though there it was cast more in terms of the (non)centrality of "History of Thought." And with the exception of the a few rearguard actions (including Duke, at the History of Political Economy program), History of Thought has been relegated to something outside economics, simply a part of intellectual history.

I think that the place of Theory in Poli Sci is something more than intellectual history. At least, it should be. Ideas matter, or they MAY matter. Even the most doctrinaire Marxist historian thinks that the particular ideological superstructure erected around evolving economic relations matters for how the society functions. So, even if self-interest and materialist forces of weather, resources, and population movements are the driving forces behind history, ideas matter.

Grad students at Duke have to take at least one Theory course. Sometimes it works (students feel it is valuable), sometimes it doesn't. But I certainly find it useful to have a Theory group of faculty to talk to. (Two of our theory faculty are formally joint with our very good Philosophy Dept., btw, for those who think Political Theory is Philosophy, Poor Done). There are many questions that have troubled human societies for thousands of years. Sure, we have no definitive answer, but knowledge of the history of the arguments is something any educated person should have.

And, the consideration of the basis, and validity, of rights claims lies at the heart of many of the key questions in economics and political science. What is the dividing line between what is mine, and what is ours? How might we decide? How could we think of deciding such questions without a knowledge of Rousseau, Marx, Hume, Locke, Rawls, Nozick, and (I could obviously go on, but....)

I do think that the growing irrelevance of Theory that many here seem to perceive results from the willful, and self-conscious, distancing of SOME Theorists from the social choice literature, and the formal theory of institutions. Claims about good, or just, or moral, political institutions have to be founded on a set of principles of what is possible, and how institutional features interact. Unguided speculation about outcomes one finds appealing, on some abstract justice claim, are not very interesting as guidance for designing a constitution.

Many (not all, not even most, but many) Theorists are proud of their ignorance of the institutions literature. And, frankly, they have a lot to be proud of. So, Theory would be more relevant to Poli Sci if all Theorists would actually STUDY Poli Sci.

To me, the Political Scientologist who has never heard of Rawls, or Walzer, is no better than the Poltical Theorist who has never heard of Arrow, or Zaller. A pox on both of you.

Mike Munger
Duke University

The funniest sentence I've read this month

Ok it's still early but this is gold, people:

"Oh, how the letters UN must strike mortal fear into the hearts of Liberian squirrels."

from the irrepressible Chris Blattman

Starbury gets Keyshawned

After again failing to agree on a buyout, Stephon Marbury has been told "not to participate in practice or attend games until further notice,” by GM Donnie Walsh.

Steph had (allegedly) recently refused to play for the now undermanned Knicks and has been scorching his teammates and coach in the press (see the article linked above).

For those who don't get the title of this post, check here.

This is an ugly situation, people.

Older Blacks Appear To Perceive Their Overall Health Differently Than Whites With Same Abilities

Science & Medicine | Older Blacks Appear To Perceive Their Overall Health Differently Than Whites With Same Abilities, Study Indicates
[Nov 26, 2008]
Elderly blacks are more likely than their white counterparts to rate their health as poor, even when they are in good physical health, according to a study in the January issue of the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, Reuters reports. Lead researcher Melinda Spencer of the University of South Carolina hypothesized that older blacks were more pessimistic about their health than whites and likely would rate themselves more poorly. According to Reuters, self-reported health can predict a person's risk of dying over the next few years, as well as whether the person will need care in a nursing home.

For the study, researchers examined the self-rated health of 2,729 people ages 70 to 79. About 41% of respondents were black. Researchers also tested participants' ability to stand from a sitting position, balance in different standing positions and walk on a narrow path. They recorded participants' walking speed as well.

Both whites and blacks were "functioning extremely well," according to the study. Black participants had worse scores on the physical function tests, were less educated and were less satisfied with social support. The study found that 27.3% of blacks and 8.2% of whites rated their health as fair or poor. Among whites, 17.6% said they were in excellent health and 34% rated their health as very good, compared with 8.7% and 25.3% of blacks, respectively. Researchers found that the racial disparity was greater among those who tested highest in the physical function tests.

Spencer said, "It didn't seem that physical functioning was really responsible for the overall rating of health. We saw that as an indication that definitions of health are very much culturally constructed." She said it also is possible that the accumulated affects of racism could influence elderly blacks' perception of their health.

"Fundamentally a person knows that what's going on in their life, what's going on in their body is true to them," Spencer said, adding, "It really takes a life course perspective to understand how health is at any given snapshot in time" (Harding, Reuters, 11/25).

(Nod to Carolina Guy)

The Internet is for....Pups!

I have said, in the past, that the internet has really one primary purpose.

But, perhaps not. The internet is for pups!

The NYTimes take on things.

(nod to Anonyman, who is en fuego, or "esta in llamas," in actual Spanish, rather
than ESPN Spanish)

Rules are GOOD, if they are OUR rules

A moderately disgusting development.

The Bush administration had promised not to pass any last-minute, hurry-up-for-political-reasons, new rules.

But, here we go.

Anonyman sends along a little ob. dicta:

The point at which I realized I could no longer be part of the new R party that W created was when I argued that as Rs, we should not be giving more power to bureaucrats to create rules (that have the force of law) just because we agree with the rule. We are essentially feeding the beast and undermining the R party as well as democracy. The reaction was a room full of blank faces and horror. I was seen as the apostate. Obviously, the people that thought I was nuts are still there (for now), I'm not.

The particular rule proposed here makes some sense. But I am worried about future NONsense, if this keeps up.

The other shoe drops

"Chavez no ira!" which being translated is "Chavez will not go!", which is what Chavez his ownself told his supporters at recent rally in the capital:

"President Hugo Chavez asked supporters Sunday to petition for a constitutional amendment that would let him seek indefinite re-election and buy more time to build a socialist economy in Venezuela.

Chavez, who was first elected in 1998, is barred from running again when his current term expires in 2013. He sought to abolish term limits last year, but Venezuelan voters rejected the bid, voting down a package of proposed constitutional changes.

"Last year, when we lost the referendum, I said I should accept the majority's decision," the former paratroop commander told a crowd of red-clad government supporters at a rally in Caracas. But now, he added, "I say you were right: Chavez will not go."

Any new attempt at a reform, which must be approved in a nationwide referendum, would open a new front for tensions between government-backers and their rivals — many of whom warn that Chavez wants to be president for life."

Wow a Latin American president trying to amend the constitution to stay in power, who could have seen that coming?

The Abomination has spoken

The Sooners have pushed past Texas in the BCS standings with their 61-41 victory over OSU in Stillwater. This breaks the 3 way tie for first in the Big XII South and puts OU into the Big XII title game against Missouri.

If the Sooners win, they'll likely be in the national championship game against the winner of the SEC title game, which features #1 Alabama vs. #4 Floriday.

People, Texas beat OU and Texas Tech beat Texas. Here's how OU got the nod:


Big 12: Oklahoma (fifth tiebreaker)

1. The records of three teams will be compared against each other (all are 1-1)

2. The records of three teams will be compared within their division (all are 4-1)

3. The records of three teams will be compared to next highest placed teams in their division (all beat Oklahoma State, Baylor, Texas A&M)

4. The records of three teams against common opponents (all beat Kansas, only common North opponent)

5. Team with top BCS ranking (No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Texas, No. 7 Texas Tech)

Is anyone up for a Borda count or something?

The Candy Man is back

I love the powder tossing Lebron commercial. The music is fantastic and seemed very familiar, so I looked it up and yes, it's Candy Man by Cornershop from their great late 90s album "When I was born for the 7th time". Cornershop is one of the all time favorites at Chez Angus.

Cool beans.

The spot also features the incredible Jaime Nared doin' her thing.

It's Lebron's world people and we are lucky to be living in it.

Some Things Never Change

The "Political Science Job Rumors" blog seems awfully hateful, and petty.

But....it turns out this generation of grad student is not so bad, after all! I happened to look at the "Need to Vent" thread on the blog, and found the following 14 posts:


Need To Vent (14 posts)

* Started 5 days ago by Anonymous
* Latest reply from anonymous

1. Anonymous Unregistered
The sociology rumor mill has a "Need To Vent" thread for frustrated candidates to vent. In addition to giving candidates a venue to express their frustrations, and thereby reducing it in other threads, you also find some really funny posts like this one:

"Yesterday at school, I took the biggest dump ever. I must have expelled at least 7 lbs worth of food and other bodily debris and fluids. I kid you not. A coincidence in this economic climate? I think not. I also think it may be suggestive of my job prospects."
Posted 5 days ago #

2. Anonymous Unregistered
Every once in a while I take a dump and stand in awe at the fact that I was able to make something so large and powerful.

With my ass.
Posted 5 days ago #

3. Anonymous Unregistered
Yep, I guess you would indeed need to vent after that.
Posted 5 days ago #

4. Anonymous Unregistered
With us? The entire blog is the vent site...
Posted 5 days ago #

5. Anonymous Unregistered
Its good to see that political scientists are more mature than sociologists.
Posted 5 days ago #

6. Anonymous Unregistered
Grow up and get a life.
Posted 5 days ago #

7. Anonymous Unregistered
"Grow up and get a life."

OP here. Yes it is totally immature but it made me laugh. RIght now I think lots of people reading this blog need a good laugh. No need to be so uptight....It can give you an ulcer!
Posted 5 days ago #

8. Anonymous Unregistered
Seriously, there's no harm in a cheap, totally immature laugh. I and a lot of other people are on the ledge right now.
Posted 5 days ago #

9. Anonymous Unregistered
Well, take a dump or take a jump.
Posted 5 days ago #

10. Anonymous Unregistered
http://www.marcstober.com/blog/2008/11/21/family-financial-memo/

For some humor that is finanically related, but not poop-ish.
Posted 5 days ago #

11. Anonymous Unregistered
I try to vent in healthy ways. You know, things like smashing the palm of my hand against my forehead. The only drawback is that I'm finding myself doing it in public. You can imagine the looks I get.
Posted 5 days ago #

12. Anonymous Unregistered
My house smells like an egg!
Posted 5 days ago #

13. Anonymous Unregistered
My crotch smells like an egg.
Posted 5 days ago #

14. Anonymous Unregistered
No wonder you have no offers. You all are a disgrace.
Posted 5 days ago #

Now, I swear that this is a near verbatim transcript of conversations Angus and I had ...well....pretty much every day for four years in grad school. Along with John Jarosz and Tom Gilligan and Brian Roberts.

Clearly, all these folks on the blog are destined for greatness. GREATNESS, I tell you. And the guy who said "My crotch smells like an egg," (and, yes, I'm sure it was a guy)...that guy should be given tenure, and the job of Dean, right now. We need more like him.

Poster #14, almost certainly female, is of course entirely correct, in every unimportant respect.

Risk and Action

Foregoing the Labor for the Fruits: The Effect of Just World Threat on the Desire for Immediate Monetary Rewards

Mitchell Callan, Will Shead & James Olson
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, forthcoming

Abstract:
Previous theorizing and research suggests that the need to believe in a just world develops when children begin to understand the benefits of foregoing their immediate gratifications for more desirable, long-term outcomes. Drawing on this previous work, we propose that an extant just world threat may induce a desire for smaller, immediate rewards at the expense of larger, delayed rewards. Participants were exposed to the suffering of an innocent or non-innocent victim and then, in a different context, completed a temporal discounting task that assessed, across 6 time delays, their preferences for smaller, immediate monetary rewards versus a constant, larger, delayed reward. Consistent with our reasoning, participants exposed to the suffering of an innocent versus non-innocent victim more steeply discounted the value of the delayed reward — that is, they were willing to accept smaller immediate rewards in place of the larger, delayed reward. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.

--------------------

Risk Loving after the Storm: A Bayesian-Network Study of Hurricane Katrina Evacuees
Catherine Eckel, Mahmoud El-Gamal & Rick Wilson
Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, forthcoming

Abstract:
We investigate risk preferences of a sample of hurricane Katrina evacuees shortly after they were evacuated and transported to Houston, and another sample from the same population taken a year later. We also consider a third sample of resident Houstonians with demographics similar to the Katrina evacuees. Conventional statistical methods fail to explain a strong risk-loving bias in the first Katrina-evacuees sample. We utilize Bayesian Networks to investigate all relevant conditional distributions for gamble choices, demographic variables, and responses to psychometric questionaires. We uncover surprising results: Contrary to prior experimental evidence, we find that women in our sample were signicantly more risk loving in the first Katrina sample and only mildly more risk averse in the other two samples. We find that gamble choices are best predicted by positive-emotion variables. We therefore explain the risk-loving choices of the first Katrina-evacuees sample by the detected primacy of negative emotion variables in that sample and explain the latter by traumatic and heightened-stress experiences
shortly after the hurricane.

(Nod to KL)

Sooners in short pants

OU hoops is off to a good start, winning the NIT tip-off tourney and running their record to 6-0.
Blake Griffen, who perhaps might be the number one pick in next years NBA draft, is averaging 27 points (on 75% shooting) and 18.8 rebounds.

Please step away from the tomato, ma'am.....

From SSFC....

This story from England.

Excerpt:

"I wondered what on earth was going on. I opened the door and they more or less barged past, saying that I was growing cannabis on the windowsills.

"I started laughing because I knew they were tomato plants but it wasn't so funny when they frisked me and then started tearing the house apart."

Mr Matheson said he was held in the bedroom while officers searched the furniture and under the mattress..."They even 'arrested' Zac, our black labrador, and Moby, our Jack Russell, putting them in the back of one of the cop cars," Mr Matheson added.

"And I just couldn't believe it when they brought sniffer dogs all the way from Alness, which is about two hours away."

He went on: "Despite leaving with their tails between their legs, the police didn't even apologise."

Mr Matheson, a keen gardener, grows tomatoes in the south-facing bedroom window.

He said: "We always enjoy having a juicy home-grown tomato with our dinner and I've had fine crops this year."

Mr Matheson is now making a formal complaint to Northern Constabulary.

A police spokesman said: "We can confirm that, acting on information, we attended at an address in the Shieldaig area.

"No drugs were found as a result of the search."

Acting on "information"? What possible information could Deputy Fife have been acting on? Here is useful information, Barney:

Tomato Plant--

Cannabis Plant--


(A note, to the police: I did NOT take that picture of a tomato plant. I have no idea where it came from. So, please don't search my house for tomatoes. I don't have any. And when I use tomatoes, it's just social. I don't inhale, ever.)

Pwnd

There is just no other term for what happened to the Thunder Tuesday night. Mrs Angus and I were in attendance, looking forward to seeing my favorite player of all time, the Big Cactus. However, he was in civvies sitting out the first game of a back to back to be fully rested for the Suns' big game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Ouch.

I guess that's what happens when you have one W for the season. You aren't anyone's priority.

The game itself was by turns exciting and infuriating. New coach Scottie Brooks is somehow sickly in love with Damian Wilkens. I created a fair stir in the stands reaching out to Scottie, telling him if he didn't really want the job he should just quit rather than torture all of us.

The rotation finally worked it's way around to Durant (who had a great game), Green, Westbrook, Watson, and either Wilcox or Collison (it really helped that Shaq wasn't dressed out) and the Thunder opened up consistent 10 - 15 point lead.

Then Steve Nash woke up and took over.

Oh, the Suns with a rested Shaq also did manage to post the W over the vaunted Timberwolves on Wednesday as well.

Oh, NOW I understand.....

You may have seen that Loyola (MD) held my man Stephen Curry to 0 points in a game where he started, and played almost the whole time.

But you may not have seen WHY it happened.

Turns out the Loyola coach, Jimmy Patsos, decided that "Curry is NOT going to beat us tonight!" and played a triangle and two, with the two playing solely on Curry.

It does seem there is a problem with this strategy, however. While Curry did not beat Loyola, Davidson DID....by 30.

Why not box and 1, with the zone sagging to defend Curry? Or, better still, try to play basketball?

Two quotes from Patsos:

“We had to play against an NBA player tonight,” Patsos explained. “Anybody else ever hold him scoreless? I’m a history major. They’re going to remember that we held him scoreless or we lost by 30?”

“I know the fans are mad at me, but I had to roll the dice as far as a coach goes. I’m not some rookie coach,” said Patsos, a former longtime assistant at Maryland. “I won a national title as a top assistant coach to Gary Williams. For 13 years I spent on Tobacco Road. I coached a couple of No. 1 picks in the draft. And we scored 48 points. That’s the problem that Loyola basketball had today.”

So, Patsos IS a history major, but NOT a rookie coach. Here's my thought: the "problem that Loyola basketball had today" was that the kids were embarrassed, and angry, at playing a humiliating gimmick defense for the entire game, even after they were down by more than 25. If you go in thinking, "we can't beat this guy, he's too good," then you just shut down.

(Nod to Anonyman)

How Do They Know These Were Iowa Fans?

Iowa fans cited for restroom sex during Gophs game

Posted: Nov. 26 3:17 p.m.

MINNEAPOLIS — While the Hawkeyes were stomping the Gophers on the Metrodome field last weekend, police said two Iowa fans were having a romp of a different kind in a restroom. Both events, police say, had their share of cheering fans.

A 38-year-old woman and a 26-year-old man turned to a handicapped stall for their tryst Saturday evening.

On the field, the Hawkeyes were on their way to 55-0 trouncing of the Gophers. In the restroom, a crowd of intoxicated fans gathered to cheer the off-the-field event.

Eventually, a security guard tipped off University of Minnesota police. Officers had to interrupt the couple to cite them for indecent conduct, a misdemeanor.

Police Chief Greg Hestness said the woman initially gave a false name to officers. She was released to her husband and the man was released to his girlfriend.

Both people in the stall were intoxicated.

Some Q's, because KPC readers want to KNOW....

1. How do they know these folks were Iowa fans? Was the guy wearing an "Old Gold and Black" prophylactic?
2. "She was released to her husband and the man was released to his girlfriend." Another story we'll never know the end of. But I'll bet the conversation on the way home, in both cars, was interesting.
3. The Iowa fight song does mention making the "walls and rafters ring." That's all these two were doing.

Finally, nod to Carolina Guy, who sent the link. He says, "If Libertarians are opposed to police (i.e. state) interference of this type, I'm signing up." It IS hard to say that these two were harming anyone. And given the events outside at the time, this was pretty tame.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Attention Apollo 13: How's it going up there?

Does it make sense to encourage credit card spending?

Hank n' Ben are at it again, rolling out another 800 billion salvo, this time with the goal of getting more mortgage and credit card debt into the hands of the public.

Am I the only one who thinks this is borderline lunacy?

People, our country is poorer. The bursting of the housing bubble lowered national wealth by trillions of dollars. We are going to have a recession because of that, financial crisis or no financial crisis.

I do agree that the Fed has an important job to serve as lender of last resort and protector of the viability of the overall financial system. Several of the previous 500 billion plus salvos were more or less aimed at accomplishing that goal.

This latest to me just seems like a badly misbegotten stimulus package. House prices need to find bottom, not be propped up by subsidized mortgage lending. Consumers need to be using less credit, not be enticed into further debt by government subsidies.

Isn't this eerily similar to what got us into this mess to begin with?

Hate Speech, and Fighting Words

A new addition to the KPC blogroll: Social Services for Feral Children. A fine young blog.

And, some questions I want to raise about a post on SSFC, this one.

It is about the graffiti on the NC State "Free Speech Wall," graffiti that attacked BH Obama after the election, suggesiting “Hang Obama by a noose” and “Let’s shoot that n****r in the head”. (News Story, for background) (Yes, the idiot who wrote that stuff has apologized, publicly, but has not been identified by the University. An interesting twist, no? Protect the student from the hate that is the response to his own hate....)

Excerpt from Social Services for Feral Children post:
...William J. Barber, the President of the North Carolina NAACP and a member of the national NAACP board...is perhaps best known for advocating the continued prosecution of certain students at nearby Duke University when even Mike Nifong had thrown in the towel...[He] wants these students prosecuted as well, and he wants them expelled from the state-run university. For what? Well he doesn’t know, but there ought to be a law. Why not “hate speech”?

In a news release today, Barber said: “It is not clear whether these [university] officials fully understand the problem. Their decision to permit four students, with race-hatred spilling out of their hearts, to continue taking classes and engaging in social affairs on campus, by definition creates a racially hostile learning environment for students of color.”

Barber said he and other NAACP leaders planned to: … Ask for a meeting with Wake District Attorney Colon Willoughby to get an explanation of why the graffiti was not in violation of the state’s hate crimes law. The NAACP will take the information to the General Assembly, Barber said.

To save the District Attorney some valuable time, I’ll answer Barber’s question. My answer isn’t as authoritative as the DA’s, but it’s correct: Hate speech, or any speech no matter how offensive unless obscene or an imminent incitement or threat of violence, is not and cannot be a crime under the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech. A state university, such as North Carolina State University, cannot discriminate against students for constitutionally protected speech by expelling them.

Well....

1. It is called the "Free Speech Wall." Stuff that is offensive gets painted over. The remedy to paint you disagree with is more paint.

2. If the kid had said this stuff in class, then there would be cause for action by a professor. The "noose" and the "n" word are both strongly racist, and therefore attack a class of people, for an ethnic or racial feature (whether "race" is real or imagined, it is meaningful here). So, a prof would clearly be justified in calling a student out who used this language in class. But even THEN it would not be a crime, just an act of unacceptable behavior in a classroom.

3. But, is there really NOTHING that could be written that would violate (a) state law, or (b) university policy?

You know my answer; being in a free society means you have to have a thick skin. Being offended doesn't mean the offender has committed a crime.

I do feel obliged, however, to point out the "fighting words" exception to 1st Amendment speech protections. Isn't the indignant Mr. Barber right about THAT? Aren't these "fighting words," and therefore not subject to 1st Amendment Protections?

Well, no, not really. As this interesting article from FIRE argues, "the Supreme Court has effectively limited the [Fighting Words] exception to only include abusive language, exchanged face to face, which would likely provoke a violent reaction."

So, if the kid had held out a noose, or used the n-word, in a crowd, or a classroom, he has no 1st Amendment protection. But if he writes it up on a "Free Speech Wall," you paint it over, tell the kid he is an idiot, and then talk about the incident as a chance to raise the issue of racism and racist attitudes. No crime was committed. In fact, there is no such THING as hate crime. End of story.

I will admit one thing: I think less of the kid for hiding his identity. If you want to take a stand, even an asinine, racist stand like this, then go for it. Sign your handiwork, and own up to it. Saunder's Law: "The 1st Amendment means you can say what you want. But then you have to take the ass-whuppin'."

Barry didn't mean a physical ass-whuppin', though that might happen. If you want to say something hateful, to make a political point, make sure you don't apologize as soon as you get caught, son. Stand up for your bigotry, and take the ass-whuppin'. Or don't say stupid shit in the first place.

Pretty Darned Funny

From the Grey Lady of Newsprint:

And on the seventh day, there was no rest for married couples. A week after the Rev. Ed Young challenged husbands and wives among his flock of 20,000 to strengthen their unions through Seven Days of Sex, his advice was — keep it going.....

Others found that, like smiling when you are not particularly happy, having sex when they did not feel like it improved their mood. Just eight months into their marriage, Amy and Cody Waddell had not been very amorous since Cody admitted he had had an affair.

“Intimacy has been a struggle for us, working through all that,” Ms. Waddell said. “This week really brought us back together, physically and emotionally.”

It is not always easy to devote time for your spouse, Pastor Young admitted. Just three days into the sex challenge he said he was so tired after getting up before dawn to talk about the importance of having more sex in marriage that he crashed on the bed around 8 p.m. on Tuesday night.

Mrs. Young tried to shake him awake, telling her husband, “Come on, it’s the sex challenge.” But Mr. Young murmured, “Let’s just double up tomorrow,” and went back to sleep.

Supply and Demand for Lobbyists

For lobbyists, turnover.

Excerpt:

After eight years of the so-called K Street Project — the effort by Republican lawmakers and operatives to pressure companies, trade associations and lobbying firms to hire their fellow Republicans — the tasseled loafer is on the other foot. Companies and interest groups are competing to snap up Democrats. And scarcity has added to their value because so many well-connected Democrats are angling for jobs in the Obama administration, which has promised ethics rules that may block lobbyists from certain jobs. Meanwhile, recently passed Congressional ethics rules restrict the ability of departing Congressional staff members to lobby as well.

“The Democratic market is kind of frozen, while the Republican market is about to be engorged” with former Bush staff members, said Tony Podesta, founder of the Podesta Group, a major lobbying firm.

The starting salaries for former officials tell the story. An assistant department secretary leaving the Bush administration three years ago, with Republicans in control of the House, Senate and White House, might fetch as much $600,000 to $1 million a year in the influence business, recruiters and lobbyists said. But the same person might now expect less than half as much.

“Don’t be the last guy off the train,” said Peter Metzger, vice chairman of the recruiting firm CT Partners, recalling his advice to government officials considering other work in Washington.

What is the implication of all that lobbyist turnover?

For taxpayers? Congress says, "BEND over; I'll drive."

Nod to Anonyman

Minsky Rising?

KPC BFF Der-zoo sends this link, a paean to absent friends.

One friend in particular, Hyman "Hy" Minsky. Check the abstract:

Recently, national newspapers all over the world have suggested that we should reread John Maynard Keynes, and that Hyman P. Minsky provides a valuable framework for understanding the world in which we live. While rereading Keynes and discovering Minsky are noble goals, one should also remember the mistakes that were made in the past. The mainstream interpretation and implementation of Keynes's ideas have been very different from what Keynes proposed, and they have been reduced to simple "fiscal activism." This led to the 1950s and 1960s "Keynesian" era, during which fine-tuning was supposed to be a straightforward way to fix economic problems. We know today that this is not the case: just playing around with taxes and government expenditures will not do. On the contrary, problems may worsen. If one wants to get serious about Keynes and Minsky, one should understand that the theoretical and policy implications are far-reaching. This paper compares and contrasts Minsky's views of the capitalist system to the tenets of the New Consensus, and argues that there never has been any true Keynesian revolution. This is illustrated by studying the Roosevelt and Kennedy/Johnson eras, as well as Keynes's reaction to the former and Minsky's critique of the latter. Overall, it is argued that the theoretical framework and policy prescriptions of Irving Fisher, not Keynes, have been much more consistent with past and current government policies.

Some thoughts:

1. Minsky's "model" predicted 11 of the last 3 recessions.
2. Angus and I used to mimic what we called the "Minsky Curve." Let's just say it hangs down rather limply, and is only policy-exploitable in the EXTREMELY short run. Ten seconds, max.
3. From the abstract: "If one wants to get serious about Keynes and Minsky...."? I don't, actually.
4. There's a Cal State Fresno? Really? Are Cal States like Circle K's; you can just buy a franchise, and put it up on a vacant corner lot? Ah, I see it is also called Fresno State. Okay, THAT I have heard of.
5. From the abstract: "Just playing around with taxes and government expenditures will not do." Amen.
6. There is such a thing as a "Minsky moment,"* apparently. I had a class from Hy, in grad school. For me, "Minsky moments" were times when I thought he was actually going to lecture, and say something about economics. Minsky moments of that sort were EXTREMELY rare. But this is an interesting article; have to give ol' Hy some credit, I think.

*A Minsky moment is the point in a credit cycle or business cycle when investors have cash flow problems due to spiraling debt they have incurred in order to finance speculative investments. At this point, a major selloff begins due to the fact that no counterparty can be found to bid at the high asking prices previously quoted, leading to a sudden and precipitous collapse in market clearing asset prices and a sharp drop in market liquidity.

(Nod to Art)

Some Links, and Thoughts, on the Bailout

Interesting post from old friend Chris Lawrence, on the bailout.

Leeson and Sobel--Corrupt Weather?

"Weathering Corruption"

Peter Leeson & Russell Sobel
Journal of Law and Economics, November 2008, Pages 667-681

Abstract:
Could bad weather be responsible for U.S. corruption? Natural disasters create resource windfalls in the states they strike by triggering federally provided natural-disaster relief. By increasing the benefit of fraudulent appropriation and creating new opportunities for such theft, disaster-relief windfalls may also increase corruption. We investigate this hypothesis by exploring the effect of disaster relief provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on public corruption. The results support our hypothesis. Each additional $100 per capita in FEMA relief increases the average state's corruption by nearly 102 percent. Our findings suggest notoriously corrupt regions of the United States, such as the Gulf Coast, are in part notoriously corrupt because natural disasters frequently strike them. They attract more disaster relief, which makes them more corrupt.

(Nod to KL)

Hedging: yer doin' it right!

Way to go, Mexican government. You have shown that you know how derivatives are supposed to be used and have used them very wisely to protect oil revenues in 2009:

"The world's sixth biggest oil producer hedged almost all of next's year oil exports at prices ranging from $70 to $100 at a cost of about $1.5bn (£961m) through derivatives contracts, according to bankers familiar with the deal."

Oil is trading right now in the low $50s so it seems like a wise move indeed. Even if prices rise above the contracted selling price in the puts, the loss is limited to the price of the options and $1.5 billion is not a bad price for a comprehensive insurance policy on such an important asset.

Maybe the Mexican Treasury department can give lessons to these guys.

Don't Peep on Me

The Bishop sends this email:

In an afternoon of solidarity with the Munger campaign, my son, son-in-law, grandson and I went up the canyon Saturday afternoon and each shot about 50 rounds through our shotguns and 100 through handguns. We killed lots of clay pigeons although some got away. We hunted those down with the handguns. A 9mm handgun is really nice, although I am not too good with it. Alas, we had no automatic rifles. Noah, my 4-year old grandson, had his 15-shot elastic band shooting rifle. A very libertarian/liberating afternoon. Enjoy yours.

The Bishop goes on to note that this video concerns a relative of his. I should not that the Bishop's relative is the gun owner, and peep-ee, not the peeper.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com