patosullivan

Applause For Finland: First Country To Make Broadband Access A Legal Right

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 18:38:53 -0400

Applause For Finland: First Country To Make Broadband Access A Legal Right:

Kudos to the Finnish government, which has just introduced laws guaranteeing broadband access to every person living in Finland (5.5 million people, give or take).

Would love to hear the explanation as to why this is a good idea, and that explanation cannot include the hopeful outcome as the explanation.

Fantastic. You’ll wonder why you were never shown this in...

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 07:27:16 -0400

Fantastic.

You’ll wonder why you were never shown this in science class up until about 1:50.

Collectivism fail.

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:03:00 -0400

Collectivism fail.

jpsco: This morning there was a weather ballon over the...

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:40:54 -0400

jpsco:

This morning there was a weather ballon over the Meteorology building at FSU. Which isn’t totally unusual, but it appears to be stuck. I’ve asked around and no one seems to know why…

Fascinating.

I was wondering about this all day, too!

"The End of Poverty?"

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:56:29 -0400

A new documentary with that title is set to be released in the U.S. this November. You can watch the trailer here. I would recommend that you do so, and also take note of the summary provided, and, in it, the phrase “This system was carefully built and maintained by the free market policies…”

I am with the documentarians up until this point.

Yes, poverty is bad.

Yes, this system is a failure.

Here’s where we part ways:

This system is not a free market.

This system is one that denies the free market from performing the tasks necessary to reduce poverty. The IMF is a not a “free market” organization, and instead of promoting free market ideals, they tend to promote corporatism and virtual debt-slavery.

The folks who made this documentary have their hearts in the right place. They can recognize that this system is a failure, but it seems they do not understand the reasons behind the failure well enough to adequately criticize or make suggestions for adjustment. It would seem that they believe the corporatists and the bankers when they tell us that they are the advocates of a “free market,” when in actuality they are advocates of just the opposite: centralization of control. That intelligent and thoughtful people get confused by this doublespeak is a serious and deeply troubling issue. It means that they associate anything labeled “free market” with the “free market” ideas proposed by the thieves, and thus they block out any information relating to true capitalism’s ability to provide for widespread prosperity, and they end up concluding that we must move away from anything with those names (“free market,” “capitalism”). This creates a warped intellectual environment that cannot adequately address social problems (try as we might, we just can’t make these redistribution systems work well for all of humanity), and eventually this only reinforces the anti-intellectual attitude among the population at large.

Moving away from a true capitalist/free market system is exactly what the thieves want, because they are not actually advocating liberty, they are advocating for the centralization of power and calling it “liberty.” When people get behind anti-capitalist ideas (whether they be branded socialism, social democracy, fascism, national socialism, our very own faux-“capitalism,” etc.), these thieves are secretly pretty happy with that, because they are actually anti-capitalist as well.

In this world there are only two real political directions, there is liberty and there is tyranny. One step in either direction is a step away from the other. One step away from liberty is one toward the centralization of power, and the only real power in this world is economic power. The centralization of economic power means just one thing: those with the unfair advantage of control over money and resources (provided to them through the state, in every case, whether they be a political party member, a bureaucrat, a senator, or the owner of a telephone, water, oil, or other protected monopoly) will control us all.

dooeypig: Hulu - FORA.tv Science: Neil deGrasse Tyson: Attack...

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:16:00 -0400

dooeypig:

Hulu - FORA.tv Science: Neil deGrasse Tyson: Attack of the Killer Asteroid (for Pat)

Ah, Neil deGrasse Tyson, you can not scare away my geeky infatuation with you.

This man could talk about trash bags and I would be rapt the entire time.

When I’m his age I hope I’ll still love whatever it is I’ll be doing just as much as he loves what he’s doing.

Gotta love his taste in ties, too.

This is out of control.

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:17:57 -0400

This is out of control.

"The Destruction of the US Empire"

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:11:50 -0400

"The Destruction of the US Empire":

“When you are on the board of a decent corporation, for example, if you have a direct financial interest in a matter under consideration you’re expected to “declare an interest” and absent yourself from the vote. But in a mature democracy, the most self-interested citizens are those most likely to vote.”

That title may be slightly sensationalist, but that quote is gold.

Otherwise, the article is ok.

tomoatmeal: The cool thing about Jesus was that if you didn’t...

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:51:41 -0400

tomoatmeal:

The cool thing about Jesus was that if you didn’t mind waiting in line with a bunch of lepers, you could ask him anything you wanted to about furniture construction and he’d usually offer some pretty good advice.

(via garfieldminusgarfield)

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:37:42 -0400

(via garfieldminusgarfield)

"It is not in the nature of man- nor any living entity -to start out by giving up, by spitting in..."

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:14:48 -0400

“It is not in the nature of man- nor any living entity -to start out by giving up, by spitting in one’s own face and damning existence; that requires a process of corruption whose rapidity differs from man to man. Some give up at the first touch of pressure; some sell out; some run down by imperceptible degrees and lose their fire, never knowing when or how they lost it. Then all of these vanish in the vast swamp of their elders who tell them persistently that maturity consists of abandoning one’s mind; security, of abandoning one’s values; practicality, of losing self-esteem. Yet a few hold on and move on, knowing that the fire is not to be betrayed, learning how to give it shape, purpose and reality. Whatever their future, at the dawn of their lives, men seek a noble vision of man’s nature and life’s potential.”

- Ayn Rand (via dareen)

(assuming this is in response to my post?)

I’m not advocating that we lose that fire and sell out, I am saying that we need to look after our own needs first. What I’m talking about is giving that fire its shape, purpose, and reality. The youths she speaks of in the paragraph immediately preceding the one you provided from The Fountainhead will never get where they want to go in this world without first realizing that they must put their own needs before others.

The best of mankind’s youth start life with an undefined sense of enormous expectation, the sense that one’s life is important, that great achievements are within one’s capacity, and that great things lie ahead.

(Paragraph I was referring to.)

And I agree, there’s a difference between being nice and being spineless. The “nice” that I was referring to in my previous post should be taken to mean “spineless.”

(via patosullivan)

“I’m not advocating that we lose that fire and sell out, I am saying that we need to look after our own needs first.”

Oh yes. I was further supporting your stance, the latter part of the previously quoted statement, via Ayn Rand. Your post reminded me of this quote, which I read last night, because the idea is pretty much in the same vein as Rand’s.

(via dareen)

Oh, well, badass.

"It is not in the nature of man- nor any living entity -to start out by giving up, by spitting in..."

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 21:34:00 -0400

"Nice Guys," listen to those who have gone before you.

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:51:00 -0400

There comes a time when every nice guy finally has the nice beaten out of him.

Keep being a nice guy and you’ll be depressed for the rest of your life.

Don’t fall prey to the misconception that there is something honorable or noble about it, there isn’t. Honor and nobility are ephemeral traits assigned by others; they’ll never be assigned to a “nice guy,” because very few people will ever notice you, nice guy.

Heed my word: You can still be yourself and act kind and polite to other people, but look out for yourself first.

What It Feels Like To Be A Libertarian

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:25:00 -0400

“I’ll tell you. It feels bad. Being a libertarian means living with an almost unendurable level of frustration. It means being subject to unending scorn and derision despite being inevitably proven correct by events. How does it feel to be a libertarian? Imagine what the internal life of Cassandra must have been and you will have a pretty good idea.

Imagine spending two decades warning that government policy is leading to a major economic collapse, and then, when the collapse comes, watching the world conclude that markets do not work.

Imagine continually explaining that markets function because they have a built in corrective mechanism; that periodic contractions are necessary to weed out unproductive ventures; that continually loosening credit to avoid such corrections just puts off the day of reckoning and inevitably leads to a larger recession; that this is precisely what the government did during the 1920’s that led to the great depression; and then, when the recession hits, seeing it offered as proof of the failure of laissez-faire capitalism.”

An excerpt from an essay by Professor John Hasnas, Georgetown University. I would encourage you to read it.

His most important point:

“Libertarians spend their lives accurately predicting the future effects of government policy. Their predictions are accurate because they are derived from Hayek’s insights into the limitations of human knowledge, from the recognition that the people who comprise the government respond to incentives just like anyone else and are not magically transformed to selfless agents of the good merely by accepting government employment, from the awareness that for government to provide a benefit to some, it must first take it from others, and from the knowledge that politicians cannot repeal the laws of economics. For the same reason, their predictions are usually negative and utterly inconsistent with the utopian wishful-thinking that lies at the heart of virtually all contemporary political advocacy. And because no one likes to hear that he cannot have his cake and eat it too or be told that his good intentions cannot be translated into reality either by waving a magic wand or by passing legislation, these predictions are greeted not merely with disbelief, but with derision.”

Depression's Evolutionary Roots: Scientific American

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 22:19:50 -0400

Depression's Evolutionary Roots: Scientific American:

“Two scientists suggest that depression is not a malfunction, but a mental adaptation that brings certain cognitive advantages.”

Read this. This explains an awful lot.

Hearty White teaches us how to play banjo, out of the goodness...

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 22:42:58 -0400

Hearty White teaches us how to play banjo, out of the goodness of his heart.

Holy shit, that’s Alex Key. That’s one of my best...

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 21:51:00 -0400

Holy shit, that’s Alex Key.

That’s one of my best friends shaking the hand of Wayne Coyne, lead singer and songwriter for The Flaming Lips.

(Taken by some random photographer at their recent show at Merriweather Post Pavilion, randomly found on flickr. Click the picture for larger version.)

Loren Cass

Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:26:00 -0400

Loren Cass:

Released in 2006.

Wikipedia summary:

Loren Cass is a feature-length motion picture, directed by 21-year-old independent filmmaker Chris Fuller, about adolescents coming to terms with their lives in St. Petersburg, Florida after the 1996 riots there. The film took ten years to complete.

I just learned of this film’s existence. I checked the website, and the only time it is scheduled to play in this state happens to be tonight through this Thursday, at the Beach Theater in St. Petersburg.

Christine Chubbuck

I found out about the little-known indie feature after reading into the death of Christine Chubbuck, a TV news reporter who took her own life with a loaded revolver during a live newscast on an ABC affiliate in Sarasota in 1974. She was said to have taken issue with the station management’s decision to fill its newscasts with “blood and gore” stories in order to boost ratings.

During the first eight minutes of her program, Chubbuck covered three national news stories and then a local restaurant shooting from the day before. The restaurant was the Beef and Bottle Restaurant at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport on U.S. 41. The filmreel of the restaurant shooting had jammed and would not run, so Chubbuck shrugged it off and said:

“In keeping with Channel 40’s policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts, and in living color, you are going to see another first — attempted suicide.”

She drew the revolver and shot herself behind her right ear. Chubbuck fell forward violently and the technical director faded slowly to black. Camera operator Jean Reed later recalled she thought it had been an elaborate prank, and did not realize she had actually shot herself until she saw Chubbuck’s twitching body.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Budd Dwyer

Researching other televised deaths lead me to the 1987 televised death of Pennsylvania’s state Treasurer, Budd Dwyer. Dwyer had been convicted on corruption charges, and was set to face sentencing. Before he was removed from office, he called a press conference to “provide an update on the situation.”

“I thank the good Lord for giving me 49 years of invigorating challenges, stimulating experiences, many happy occasions, and, most of all, the finest wife and child any man could ever desire. Now my life has changed, for no apparent reason. People who call and write are exasperated and feel helpless. They know I’m innocent and want to help. But in this nation, the world’s greatest democracy, there is nothing they can do to prevent me from being punished for a crime they know I did not commit. Some who have called have said that I am a modern day Job. Judge [Malcolm] Muir is also noted for his medieval sentences. I face a maximum sentence of 55 years in prison and a $300,000 fine for being innocent. Judge Muir has already told the press that he, quote, “felt invigorated” when we were found guilty, and that he plans to imprison me as a deterrent to other public officials. But it wouldn’t be a deterrent because every public official who knows me knows that I am innocent; it wouldn’t be a legitimate punishment because I’ve done nothing wrong. Since I’m a victim of political persecution, my prison would simply be an American gulag. I ask those that believe in me to continue to extend friendship and prayer to my family, to work untiringly for the creation of a true justice system here in the United States, and to press on with the efforts to vindicate me, so that my family and their future families are not tainted by this injustice that has been perpetrated on me.”

At this point, Dwyer stopped with his prepared text and called to three of his staffers, giving each an envelope. One of the envelopes contained a suicide note to his wife. The second contained an organ donor card and other related materials. The third contained a letter to Pennsylvania Governor Robert P. Casey, who had taken office only two days before.

After handing out all three envelopes, Dwyer opened a manila envelope and withdrew a .357 Magnum revolver, advising those in the crowd, “Please leave the room if you think this will offend you.” Those in attendance cried out to Dwyer, pleading with him to put the gun down; “Budd, don’t do this!”, “Budd, this is not right!”, and “Budd, listen to me!” can be heard off-screen. Some tried to approach him. “Don’t, don’t, don’t, this will hurt someone,” he warned. Amid the cry of “Budd, Budd, Budd!” Dwyer put the gun barrel into his mouth and pulled the trigger. He collapsed against a wall in a sitting position, blood pouring from his nose and an exit wound at the top of his head, all in front of five television news cameras while witnesses were screaming and using profanity in shock. Dwyer was declared dead at the scene at 11:31 a.m.

(Source: Wikipedia)

The day of the press conference happened to be a snow day in many Pennsylvania public school districts. A good portion of the state’s children witnessed, either live or via repeatedly replayed videotape, the dramatic death of a real human being. Video of Mr. Dwyer’s death is easily found in various places on the internet; I do not recommend that you go looking for it.

Reading into his Wikipedia article a little further, I happened upon a link to the article for Loren Cass. As it happens, at least a portion of the footage of Mr. Dwyer’s death was used in Loren Cass.

And now, I am contemplating a drive to St. Petersburg, but that probably isn’t likely to happen.

Florida: a guide to the southernmost state.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:02:00 -0400

Florida: a guide to the southernmost state.:

Written in 1939, by the federal Works Progress Administration, with detailed information about what was once called “America’s last frontier,” apparently.

From Google Books.

Nix v. Hedden - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:03:16 -0400

Nix v. Hedden - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

samstarkey:

…A case where the U.S. Supreme Court decided whether tomatos were fruits or vegetables.