Odysseus.com?

People try to bind themelves to the mast, as Russ and I discussed recently.

There are people who try to "sell" will power, or at least a contracting arrangement that helps people commit. A pitch:

We all have goals... Yet, most of us struggle to achieve our goals. 
That’s because there’s a big difference between having a goal and achieving a goal—stickK works by helping people eliminate this gap by using, what we call, a Commitment Contract. A Commitment Contract is a binding agreement you sign with yourself to ensure that you follow through with your intentions—and it does this by utilizing the psychological power of loss aversion and accountability to drive behavior change. 
By asking our users to sign Commitment Contracts, stickK helps users define their goal (whatever it may be), acknowledge what it’ll take to accomplish it, and leverage the power of putting money on the line to turn that goal into a reality.

Aherk calls itself a "self-blackmailing service."  Interesting.

(Nod to Mark S for the find)

What Would Angus Do?

Have you ever wondered what Angus might sound like if he were a Brit?

Well, I hadn't.  But Angry Alex answers questions no one is asking.  And for t (ehat, we thank him.  Here you go.... (Especially for Tommy the Intemperate Brit)

The edited volume blues

"Dr. Karen" has a few thoughts on the topic of "Should I do an edited collection". I reproduce it verbatim here as I have nothing to add to its towering awesomeness and truthfulness.

No.

Let me say it again: No.

 Let’s put it a different way:

 You: But, it’s just the papers from a conference panel. Is it ok then?

 Me: No.

 You: But, I’m co-editing it, so I don’t have to do all the work. Is it ok then?

 Me: No. And, please, co-editing? Are you kidding me?

 You: But all I have to do is collect and edit the papers and write an Intro. Is it ok then?

 Me: No. And you’re doing all this and don’t even have a chapter in it? Are you kidding me?

 You: But I’ll have a book for tenure. Me: No, you won’t. Edited collections don’t count.

 You: But it’ll get me a job.

 Me: You want to know what’ll get you a job? A REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLE IN THE TOP JOURNAL IN YOUR FIELD. Write that! Write two of them! Hell, you can write a whole effing monograph in the time you are going to waste fighting with your contributors, waiting for the external reviewers, arguing with your lame press, agonizing over the copy-editing, and trying to market the book because your lame press doesn’t spend a dime in advertising.

 You: Really?

 Me: Yes.

 You: An editor from a really great press I never heard of actually got in touch with me! And asked me to do it! Is it ok then?

 Me: No, and never, ever, ever accept an offer of publication from someone from a press you’ve never heard of. Or even a press you have heard of, if they come chasing after you. It’s the prom, sweetheart. Don’t go with the first person who asks you (unless they’re the dream date you’ve been waiting for). Do the work, and get yourself into position to get the date you really want.

 You: But I am already committed.

 Me: Get out of the commitment.

 You: But it’s my friends.

 Me: Have drinks with your friends. Go to Vegas with your friends. Do not waste your precious writing and research time gathering up and, god forbid, editing, your friends’ questionable essays and volunteering unpaid, uncredited time to get your friends a publication. And by the way, their chapter in your edited collection is barely going to do them any good either.

 You: But I’m going to go ahead and do this edited collection.

 Me: It’s your funeral.

Helping the private sector in Argentina

Argentina has now passed a decree allowing the government to direct both the amount and the type of investment behavior of private insurance companies. Here's the scoop from the AP (via Fox News so you KNOW it's true):


she (President Christina Kirchner)  decreed that insurance companies must invest up to 30 percent of their holdings in "productive activities" to improve Argentina's infrastructure. "This decree links the insurance industry with the development of the actual economy," said the decree published Tuesday. 

With her government redirecting resources toward "projects that have a clear productive and social purpose," insurers will "encounter new possibilities of investment that that will feed a virtuous cycle of development with social inclusion," it said. The decree, effective Wednesday, puts Deputy Economy Minister Axel Kiciloff and Commerce Secretary Guillermo Moreno in charge of a committee that will decide where the insurers can invest their holdings. 

The list begins with projects already sponsored by the nationalized pension system and other government-run funds, but also can include whatever the committee decides is "productive, according to the objectives of the political economy." 

Economy Minister Hernan Lorenzino said Argentina's insurers are sitting on $13 billion but put only $18.5 million in what the government considers productive projects. The government hopes to raise that to $1.5 billion by mid-2013. This "will be good for the national economy and for the insurance sector as well, since these investments have proven to be the best in terms of profits and security in recent years," Lorenzino said in a radio interview. 


That's right, private money decreed to go to either "infrastructure" or projects with a "clear social purpose".

Gee this sounds like a great idea. Win-Win-Win. I wonder what  other Argentine investors think?

Argentina's Merval stock market index dropped more than 3.5 percent Tuesday after Fernandez made the surprise announcements Monday night.

Uh, oh, more people making bad decisions with their money.  Sounds like La Penguina has some more work to do!

Hat Tip to NC