An Update on the Government Spending Numbers

Here is a nice column from Jacob Sullum, Entitlement Mentality, that covers all the earmarks in the recent spending bill, and also reminds us of the ridiculous economic crisis that the big three entitlement programs represent.

Postmodern Art Has Its Sokal Affair Moment

This is classic. So-called "postmodern art" has its version of the Sokal Affair that struck postmodern writers a decade ago. It seems a two-year old's paintings (sometimes using paint, sometimes using ketchup), along with his mom's over-the-top-but-typical blather as descriptions for each piece, have fooled some "art critics". This is so funny, because it is so pathetic. As Pink Floyd once said, "nearly a laugh, but really a cry."

When will postmodernist writing and postmodern art go away as fads? Now wouldn't be soon enough.

Government Should Not Promote Home Ownership

Government should not have policies that "promote home ownership". The very idea implies interference in the free market. Yaron Brook wrote a very good piece, Predatory Legislating, for Forbes in December, attacking the ridiculous "Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of 2007", legislation passed in the House in response to the "subprime mortgage crisis". The entire commentary is worth reading, but here are the two paragraphs on the fundamental point that is so often missed in the press when folks are talking about how the subprime mess arose:

The government does not need to crack down on lenders. It does need to take responsibility for its role in promoting irresponsible lending and borrowing practices through its myriad interventionist programs to "promote homeownership." The very concept of the government having such a goal means that it facilitates borrowing and lending that would not occur on the free market--i.e., a market in which people are held fully responsible for their decisions.

One example of this is the Community Reinvestment Act, which literally forces banks to lend to people with high credit risk. Another is the Federal Reserve's policy of creating artificially low interest rates, which encouraged financial institutions to lend out more money for mortgages than they otherwise would have--and which helped artificially bid up housing prices and fed the fervor that buying a home at any price is a can't-miss investment that all Americans should make. The government's promotion of home-buying was a recipe for irresponsibility--and that's exactly what it produced.

Ice Sculptures and Snow Flakes

Courtesy of the Amazing Things blog, here are some impressive ice sculptures, and photos of snowflakes.

One Way to Slow People Down

Here is a neat and funny idea from the folks at Amazing Things: Speed Limit Device.

On Ron Paul

The rise of Ron Paul during this 2008 presidential primary season has been a fascinating phenomenon to watch. As someone who believes in small government, there obviously are moments when I find myself in agreement with his positions and views. He is more of a "Libertarian" than a typical "Republican" -- indeed, a couple of decades ago he ran for president on the Libertarian Party ticket.

That said, I don't support Ron Paul for president. I don't support him for many of the same reasons I don't call myself a "libertarian": that word is both too vague and generally represents a position that starts at the political level --rather than more fundamental philosophical levels. And then not surprisingly, I disagree with the views of "libertarians" on many specific and important issues of the day (while agreeing on a superficial level on some issues).

My friend Shawn Klein has summarized why he doesn't support Ron Paul, on an issue-by-issue basis, drawing on Paul's own campaign website. See also his followup to clarifiy non-interventionism points, I generally agree with Shawn's assessments. Apparently, since he wrote that post, the Paul site has been changed and now lists 16 issues, so I hope that Shawn can offer his views on the new ones sometime. If I find time and inclination, I might take a closer look at the current "isseus" section at Paul's site and comment as well.

For now, as an aside, I'll note that I find it particularly odd that the 16 issues include what I would generally consider "big issues" -- except one of them is "No taxes on tips", which is about exactly what it sounds like, the position that "tips" such as waitressing tips should not be taxed. I agree with Paul on that, but is that really worth mentioning on the same level as "Education" and "Health Care"? Obviously not. I wonder if the webmaster for the Paul campaign works as a waiter/waitress in his/her spare time, and got this issue inserted as part of their pay for work on the site? LOL

Robert Bidinotto has also done some good blogging on the Paul candidacy, focused mostly on the foreign policy area. Check out his post Ron Paul's "non-interventionism" fraud. And then the magazine Robert is the editor of, The New Individualist, has a cover story about Ron Paul (here is Robert's blog post about this issue of the magazine, with provacative cover scan).

The Pink Floyd Story: Which One's Pink?

Tonight I watched a great documentary about my favorite music group, Pink Floyd. It is available split up into six parts on YouTube, with this being the first part (see links here for the other parts). Although I'm not a Pink Floyd expert, I am pretty knowledgeable about the group, and I consider this to be a well-done 1-hour documentary. And of course it is chock full of great old video clips and photos of the group.

The Need for an Organ Market

I meant to blog about this weeks back, but it slipped through the cracks. A great letter to the editor was published in the Chicago Tribune in November about the need for a market for organ donors. It doesn't get much more succinct and powerful than this:

Thousands have died through the years waiting for transplants because the National Organ Transplant Act forbids the sale of human organs. To significantly decrease the shortage of organs, this murderous law must be repealed and the trade in organs decriminalized. If the law recognizes our right to give away an organ, it should also recognize our right to sell an organ. And if the law recognizes our right to pay for a life-saving medical treatment, it should also recognize our right to pay for a life-saving organ for transplant.

Those able to pay for organs would benefit at no one's expense but their own. Those unable to pay would still rely on charity, as they have done to this day. Moreover, those able to buy organs would drop out of the waiting list, increasing the chances of those remaining to obtain the organs they need.

If the legitimate rights of potential buyers and sellers of organs were protected, many of the 95,000 people waiting for organs would be spared much suffering and escape an early death. How many? Let's find out.

ESPN's Hotstove Pages

For fellow baseball fans out there, be sure to check out ESPN's well-done "hotstove" section. Here you can easily go through each team and see their predicted starters for 2008, with tabs for players gained, lost, and current free agents. This is a great way to keep up with all the offseason moves, and prepare for fantasy baseball leagues next year.

Favorite Songs from the 1990s

I've recently been watching the five-part VH1 countdown of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s. The complete list of 100 is available online here. I'm not entirely sure, but I think each artist could only appear once in this list, as there are no duplicates -- which would seem hard to believe if that wasn't a rule. So if I'm correct about that, this isn't a true top 100 list of songs, but it was still a fun thing to think about. Although they tried to build up some suspense during the countdown, I considered fairly obvious what song would be #1: Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

I was able to recognize most of the songs from this top 100 -- though some not by name alone. I can't say I like most of them. Here are the ones from this top 100 that I like enough to have in my playlists:

• 01. Nirvana "Smells Like Teen Spirit
• 10. Sinéad O'Connor "Nothing Compares 2 U"
• 11. Pearl Jam "Jeremy"
• 12. Alanis Morissette "You Oughta Know"
• 18. Metallica "Enter Sandman"
• 22. Beck "Loser"
• 25. Soundgarden "Black Hole Sun"
• 37. Green Day "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)"
• 49. Jewel "Who Will Save Your Soul"
• 50. Alice in Chains "Man in the Box"
• 62. Live "I Alone"
• 76. Blues Traveler "Run-Around"
• 86. The Cranberries "Linger"
• 91. Sarah McLachlan "Building a Mystery"

I kinda like "Shine" by Collective Soul, but I much prefer their "The World I Know", so if they had listed them with that song, then they'd be in the listing above. Also, there are a few songs from the Black album that I like better than "Enter Sandman", most notably "The Unforgiven", but I understand why that one gets listed. And ditto for Live, where I much prefer "Lightning Crashes" to the one listed for them.

There are many other fine artists from this top 100, who I like a couple of songs from each, but that I don't really listen to very often: U2, REM, Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc.

I guess I was kinda surprised that Smashing Pumpkins and Stone Temple Pilots didn't make this list anywhere! And I like several songs from Ozzy from the 1990s... too bad he isn't included. And what about No Doubt's "Don't Speak"? And Creed's "My Own Prison"? And Queensryche's awesome 1990 hit "Silent Lucidity"! Oh the injustice! These are songs that I really like a lot, as they are included on my top favorites listing page. Oh well... I know I'm far from being an expert on 1990s music... I just know what I like.

Peter Jackson is doing The Hobbit

Wow... what a wonderful Christmas present for me... the news that Peter Jackson and New Line have reconciled, and he will therefore be producing The Hobbit. Awesome.

Windows Home Server -- Latest Marketing is Kinda Funny

Not hugely funny, but not bad either. Here is some new Microsoft marketing videos for Windows Home Server. On the left there are four videos, a brief intro and three themed videos. Then on the bottom right check out the fake children's book that explains about home servers -- a clever idea. My favorite line is about the uncle who smells like bark.

I haven't yet bought my Windows Home Server, but I will be doing so very soon, as I've been waiting all year for them to be released.

Amazing Doghouses and Roads

Two of the most recent posts over at Amazing Things are worthy of note. First, we have several amazing doghouses. And then we have some amazing roads -- my favorite is the complicated junction.

Kant Attack Ad

Here is a funny parody of modern day presidential attack ads: an attack ad against German philosopher Immanuel Kant.