Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Yemeni President Throws in the Towel - in Saudi Arabia
Ali Abdullah Saleh is now officially the ex-President of Yemen, according to FOX News. In the Saudi capital Riyadh, Saleh signed an agreement ending his 33 years in power and transferring his authority within 30 days to his vice president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.
The Opposite of Secession
A NewsMax.com article raises the intriguing possibility of Chicago becoming a separate city-state from Illinois. Not surprisingly, Republicans are behind this proposal. Cook County would have to agree to separate, and may want to take several suburban counties along with it. This idea has been in the air for a long time, as most of Illinois is more conservative than Chicago, and resents the power that the largest city exercises over the entire state.
Trust and Generosity Enhance Survivability, According to Study
An article in The Economist could challenge the assumption that science only supports the law of the jungle.
THE extraordinary success of Homo sapiens is a result of four things: intelligence, language, an ability to manipulate objects dexterously in order to make tools, and co-operation. Over the decades the anthropological spotlight has shifted from one to another of these as the prime mover of the package, and thus the fundament of the human condition. At the moment co-operation is the most fashionable subject of investigation....
Leda Cosmides and John Tooby, two doyens of the field, who work at the University of California, Santa Barbara, do not agree. They see no need for extraordinary mechanisms and the latest study to come from their group (the actual work was done by Andrew Delton and Max Krasnow, who have just published the results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) suggests they are right. It also shows the value of applying common sense to psychological analyses—but then of backing that common sense with some solid mathematical modelling....
For most plausible sets of costs, benefits and chances of future encounters the simulation found that it pays to be trusting, even though you will sometimes be cheated. Which, if you think about it, makes perfect sense. Previous attempts to study the evolution of trust using games have been arranged to make it clear to the participants whether their encounter was a one-off, and drawn their conclusions accordingly. That, though, is hardly realistic. In the real world, although you might guess, based on the circumstances, whether or not you will meet someone again, you cannot know for sure. Moreover, in the ancient world of hunter-gatherers, limited movement meant a second encounter would be much more likely than it is in the populous, modern urban world....
THE extraordinary success of Homo sapiens is a result of four things: intelligence, language, an ability to manipulate objects dexterously in order to make tools, and co-operation. Over the decades the anthropological spotlight has shifted from one to another of these as the prime mover of the package, and thus the fundament of the human condition. At the moment co-operation is the most fashionable subject of investigation....
Leda Cosmides and John Tooby, two doyens of the field, who work at the University of California, Santa Barbara, do not agree. They see no need for extraordinary mechanisms and the latest study to come from their group (the actual work was done by Andrew Delton and Max Krasnow, who have just published the results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) suggests they are right. It also shows the value of applying common sense to psychological analyses—but then of backing that common sense with some solid mathematical modelling....
For most plausible sets of costs, benefits and chances of future encounters the simulation found that it pays to be trusting, even though you will sometimes be cheated. Which, if you think about it, makes perfect sense. Previous attempts to study the evolution of trust using games have been arranged to make it clear to the participants whether their encounter was a one-off, and drawn their conclusions accordingly. That, though, is hardly realistic. In the real world, although you might guess, based on the circumstances, whether or not you will meet someone again, you cannot know for sure. Moreover, in the ancient world of hunter-gatherers, limited movement meant a second encounter would be much more likely than it is in the populous, modern urban world....
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Oldest Soldier Still Determined to Fight in Afghanistan
FOX News has the story of Staff Sgt. Don Nicholas, age 59, a Vietnam veteran who joined the Army after 9-11 and wants to stay in. The Department of the Army is unwilling to keep him on active duty when he turns 60. As a podiatrist, he has a waiverable skill that appears to be his only hope for remaining in uniform.
The T-Shirt Sales Index for Presidential Candidates
An article in the Daily Caller reports that anti-Obama T-shirts outsell pro-Obama shirts at CafePress by nearly four-to-one.
While Cain is in the lead (at 39%), his trend has actually been slipping, with sales dropping by 62 percent since mid-October — when he has well above 50 percent — and 38 percent since last week. Indeed, national polls have reflected a similar decline, but keep him in the pack.
Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul’s merchandise sold the second-best, coming in at 35 percent. Obama gear was in third with nine percent of sales, followed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with seven percent, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at six percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry at three percent and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann at one percent.
Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum all netted zero percent of sales.
The Real Clear Politics average, in contrast, shows Gingrich currently leading in Republican primary polls at 22 percent, followed by Romney at 21.6 percent and Cain at 18.4 percent. Perry has 7.6 percent of the vote, while Paul has 7.6 percent, Bachmann 5.2 percent, Huntsman 2.2 percent and Santorum 1.8 percent....
While Cain is in the lead (at 39%), his trend has actually been slipping, with sales dropping by 62 percent since mid-October — when he has well above 50 percent — and 38 percent since last week. Indeed, national polls have reflected a similar decline, but keep him in the pack.
Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul’s merchandise sold the second-best, coming in at 35 percent. Obama gear was in third with nine percent of sales, followed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with seven percent, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at six percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry at three percent and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann at one percent.
Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum all netted zero percent of sales.
The Real Clear Politics average, in contrast, shows Gingrich currently leading in Republican primary polls at 22 percent, followed by Romney at 21.6 percent and Cain at 18.4 percent. Perry has 7.6 percent of the vote, while Paul has 7.6 percent, Bachmann 5.2 percent, Huntsman 2.2 percent and Santorum 1.8 percent....
Monday, November 21, 2011
Over a Dozen CIA Spies Caught in Lebanon, Iran
ABC's Good Morning America/Yahoo News report that two espionage rings targeting Iran and Hezbollah have been exposed, and that some of the paid informants may already have been executed.
"Espionage is a risky business," a U.S. official briefed on the developments told ABC News, confirming the loss of the unspecified number of spies over the last six months.
"Many risks lead to wins, but some result in occasional setbacks," the official said.
"Espionage is a risky business," a U.S. official briefed on the developments told ABC News, confirming the loss of the unspecified number of spies over the last six months.
"Many risks lead to wins, but some result in occasional setbacks," the official said.
Should Barack Obama Step Aside for Hillary Clinton?
At least two pollsters who worked for Democratic Presidents think so. Patrick Caddell and Douglas Schoen at the Wall Street Journal wrote:
"When Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson accepted the reality that they could not effectively govern the nation if they sought re-election to the White House, both men took the moral high ground and decided against running for a new term as president. President Obama is facing a similar reality—and he must reach the same conclusion.
"He should abandon his candidacy for re-election in favor of a clear alternative, one capable not only of saving the Democratic Party, but more important, of governing effectively and in a way that preserves the most important of the president's accomplishments. He should step aside for the one candidate who would become, by acclamation, the nominee of the Democratic Party: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton...."
"When Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson accepted the reality that they could not effectively govern the nation if they sought re-election to the White House, both men took the moral high ground and decided against running for a new term as president. President Obama is facing a similar reality—and he must reach the same conclusion.
"He should abandon his candidacy for re-election in favor of a clear alternative, one capable not only of saving the Democratic Party, but more important, of governing effectively and in a way that preserves the most important of the president's accomplishments. He should step aside for the one candidate who would become, by acclamation, the nominee of the Democratic Party: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton...."
Super Committee Approaching Deadline with Nothing to Show for Their Efforts
FOX News says that automatic cuts of $1.2 trillion over 10 years will automatically kick in if the 12-member Super Committee fails to reach an agreement. Republican and Democratic members of Congress are scrambling to introduce bills to salvage their pet programs, while President Obama has the alibi that he is representing the United States on his latest Asian tour. One perceived stumbling block is that the Republicans absolutely refuse to increase any taxes. 60 Minutes points the finger squarely at Grover Norquist, head of Americans for Tax Reform, for getting nearly all the Republican politicians in Washington to sign an anti-tax pledge.
UPDATE: FOX News records this development: President Obama has threatened to veto any attempt to roll back any automatic cuts, and we believe this threat should be taken seriously. Expect all kinds of charges and counter-charges between the Republicans and Democrats between now and election day.
UPDATE: FOX News records this development: President Obama has threatened to veto any attempt to roll back any automatic cuts, and we believe this threat should be taken seriously. Expect all kinds of charges and counter-charges between the Republicans and Democrats between now and election day.
Ron Paul Tells Sean Hannity, "I Won't Rule Out Third Party Run"
While it is true that he qualified this statement by saying he had no plans to run as a third-party candidate, nevertheless this Townhall.com article will alarm Rep. Paul's many competitors. He is capable of raising enough money for his needs and has a nationwide network of fanatical supporters in place, enough to play the part of spoiler for the Republican nominee.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Most Americans Resisting Efforts to Push the Dollar Coin
A survey reported in the National Journal says that 83% of the public favors holding on to the dollar bill.
"Results from the Luntz Global poll indicate that the American people have lost faith in Washington’s ability to find real solutions to the nation’s debt problems, even as the congressional super committee races against a deadline to agree on a deficit-savings plan by Wednesday. A vast majority of respondents, 81 percent, agreed that Congress has a poor record when it comes to implementing efficiency. Seventy-three percent believed the coin proposal is a political ploy being misrepresented as a means of cutting government costs, and only 15 percent of those surveyed believed the proposal would save taxpayer dollars...."
Randy DeCleene, a spokesman for Americans for George, says that stopping the printing of dollar bills will cost the federal government money for the first several years, maybe break even after 10 years (or maybe not), and impose an extra burden on banks, retail businesses, and any entity accepting dollars as legal tender.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Gingrich Challenges Romney for Lead Position
A Weekly Standard article describes how former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich's presidential campaign, which was on the ropes just a few months ago, is now competing with Mitt Romney's.
"A new poll shows that, over the past month, Mitt Romney’s lead over Newt Gingrich in New Hampshire has shrunk from 35 points to 2. A month ago, a Magellan Strategies poll (a Republican poll) showed that Romney had the support of 41 percent of potential Republican primary voters in the Granite State, while Gingrich had 6 percent support. Now, the poll shows that 29 percent of respondents favor Romney, while 27 percent favor Gingrich...."
UPDATE: The Wall Street Journal points out that Gingrich's lead may be eroded by the consulting work he performed for Freddie Mac, for which he was well compensated [$1.6 million over 7 years].
"A new poll shows that, over the past month, Mitt Romney’s lead over Newt Gingrich in New Hampshire has shrunk from 35 points to 2. A month ago, a Magellan Strategies poll (a Republican poll) showed that Romney had the support of 41 percent of potential Republican primary voters in the Granite State, while Gingrich had 6 percent support. Now, the poll shows that 29 percent of respondents favor Romney, while 27 percent favor Gingrich...."
UPDATE: The Wall Street Journal points out that Gingrich's lead may be eroded by the consulting work he performed for Freddie Mac, for which he was well compensated [$1.6 million over 7 years].
Friday, November 18, 2011
Balanced Budget Amendment Goes Down in Flames
The Weekly Standard reports that the Republican-controlled House did not have a two-thirds majority to pass a proposed bill to add a balanced-budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Even House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan voted against it, saying that it doesn't protect the people from rising taxes, growing government, and less economic freedom.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
No Need to Wait for a B-1 or B-2 Bomber Strike - New Flying Bomb Reaches Targets in Less than an Hour
An AFP/Google News describes how a hypersonic flying bomb can reach targets anywhere in the world in an hour or less.
Launched by rocket from Hawaii at 1130 GMT, the "Advanced Hypersonic Weapon," or AHW, glided through the upper atmosphere over the Pacific "at hypersonic speed" before hitting its target on the Kwajalein atoll in the Marshall Islands, a Pentagon statement said.
Kwajalein is about 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) southwest of Hawaii. The Pentagon did not say what top speeds were reached by the vehicle, which unlike a ballistic missile is maneuverable....
Launched by rocket from Hawaii at 1130 GMT, the "Advanced Hypersonic Weapon," or AHW, glided through the upper atmosphere over the Pacific "at hypersonic speed" before hitting its target on the Kwajalein atoll in the Marshall Islands, a Pentagon statement said.
Kwajalein is about 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) southwest of Hawaii. The Pentagon did not say what top speeds were reached by the vehicle, which unlike a ballistic missile is maneuverable....
Is This for Real?
PJ Media has the latest production by Frank J. Fleming, who also blogs at IMAO.us:
Frank J. Fleming is one of the most brilliant writers in existence. Some call him the defining conservative voice of our generation. Others call him the defining conservative voice of all time. Still others get angry at him, as they’re easily confused by satire.... So there was probably no one more excited than I was when I learned he was going to have an ebook published by HarperCollins. But then I saw the title: Obama: The Greatest President in the History of Everything. Was Fleming really going to argue for President Obama? What kind of cruel joke was this? My world was shattered....
Many believe that Barack [middle name omitted because it's racist to draw attention to] Obama is just a regular person who puts his pants on one leg at a time like the rest of us, but this is fallacy. In fact, were you to witness the miraculous way in which Obama puts on his pants, your brain would hemorrhage trying to comprehend it, and you’d die....
Frank J. Fleming is one of the most brilliant writers in existence. Some call him the defining conservative voice of our generation. Others call him the defining conservative voice of all time. Still others get angry at him, as they’re easily confused by satire.... So there was probably no one more excited than I was when I learned he was going to have an ebook published by HarperCollins. But then I saw the title: Obama: The Greatest President in the History of Everything. Was Fleming really going to argue for President Obama? What kind of cruel joke was this? My world was shattered....
Many believe that Barack [middle name omitted because it's racist to draw attention to] Obama is just a regular person who puts his pants on one leg at a time like the rest of us, but this is fallacy. In fact, were you to witness the miraculous way in which Obama puts on his pants, your brain would hemorrhage trying to comprehend it, and you’d die....
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Facebook Plagued by P0rn Attack
Just when you thought it wasn't possible for computer hackers to sink any lower, the Wall Street Journal says that a "coordinated spam attack" has sent violent and pornographic images to Facebook users.
"Over the past several days, Facebook users have complained of disturbing imagery appearing to come from trusted friends showing up on the site's news feed, which houses posts and images shared by a user's network....
"Facebook said in a statement that some of its users were tricked into pasting and executing 'malicious Javascript' in their browser URL bar, causing them to share offensive content without knowing it.
"Facebook said that it is working on addressing browser vulnerability exposed by the bad code and that it has built "enforcement mechanisms" to shut down malicious Facebook pages and accounts.
"'We've put in place back-end measures to reduce the rate of these attacks and will continue to iterate on our defenses to find new ways to protect people,' a Facebook spokesman said...."
"Over the past several days, Facebook users have complained of disturbing imagery appearing to come from trusted friends showing up on the site's news feed, which houses posts and images shared by a user's network....
"Facebook said in a statement that some of its users were tricked into pasting and executing 'malicious Javascript' in their browser URL bar, causing them to share offensive content without knowing it.
"Facebook said that it is working on addressing browser vulnerability exposed by the bad code and that it has built "enforcement mechanisms" to shut down malicious Facebook pages and accounts.
"'We've put in place back-end measures to reduce the rate of these attacks and will continue to iterate on our defenses to find new ways to protect people,' a Facebook spokesman said...."
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
What Is Obama Doing in Hawaii? Golfing, but Not Winning Friends or Influencing People
Neil Munro at the Daily Caller spells out some of the ugly details that you will not hear from the Dinosaur Media:
"President Barack Obama annoyed the Chinese government, embarrassed the Japanese government and called Americans 'lazy' at the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Hawaii, held over the weekend.
"The diplomatic strike-out was accomplished by Obama during a trip that his aides hoped would portray him a global leader worthy of re-election in 2012.
"The trip’s absence of significant trade, investment or security deals, and Obama’s frequent claims that President George W. Bush reduced the nation’s standing in the world, created an opportunity for his domestic rivals to deride his trans-Pacific diplomacy...."
"President Barack Obama annoyed the Chinese government, embarrassed the Japanese government and called Americans 'lazy' at the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Hawaii, held over the weekend.
"The diplomatic strike-out was accomplished by Obama during a trip that his aides hoped would portray him a global leader worthy of re-election in 2012.
"The trip’s absence of significant trade, investment or security deals, and Obama’s frequent claims that President George W. Bush reduced the nation’s standing in the world, created an opportunity for his domestic rivals to deride his trans-Pacific diplomacy...."
What to Bring for Thanksgiving?
Chow.com provides an answer to a burning question that faces anyone who will be invited to someone's house for Thanksgiving, which will take place next week. (Click on link to see full-sized flowchart.)
How to Make Money from Insider Trading Without Spending a Day in Jail
The answer, as an article in The Atlantic implies, is to get elected to Congress.
Megan McArdle - Megan McArdle is a senior editor for The Atlantic who writes about business and economics. She has worked at three start-ups, a consulting firm, an investment bank, a disaster recovery firm at Ground Zero, and The Economist.
Is Your Congressman Trading on Inside Information?
By Megan McArdle
Nov 14 2011, 10:27 AM ET 155
"It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress" ~Mark Twain
CBS aired a report last night about congressional insider trading, based on a new book by Peter Schweizer of the Hoover Institution. The allegations are pretty lurid:
After seeing similar accusations floating around the web for years, I finally wrote a story about this phenomenon a few months ago. While I have not yet read Schweizer's book, the academic evidence on congressional insider trading is mixed: an older study found a huge effect (Senators outperform the market by 12%, while house members outperform by a still impressive 6%); but a newer study, as yet unpublished, showed that as a group, congressmen slightly under-perform index funds.
How to reconcile this with the eye-popping trades described in the 60 Minutes piece? Spencer Bachus betting that the economy would tank right after he was briefed on the financial crisis in 2008; John Boehner buying health insurance stocks shortly before the public option was finally killed; Nancy Pelosi getting preferential IPO shares in Visa right around the time a bill that would have hurt credit card processors was defeated....
Megan McArdle - Megan McArdle is a senior editor for The Atlantic who writes about business and economics. She has worked at three start-ups, a consulting firm, an investment bank, a disaster recovery firm at Ground Zero, and The Economist.
Is Your Congressman Trading on Inside Information?
By Megan McArdle
Nov 14 2011, 10:27 AM ET 155
"It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress" ~Mark Twain
CBS aired a report last night about congressional insider trading, based on a new book by Peter Schweizer of the Hoover Institution. The allegations are pretty lurid:
After seeing similar accusations floating around the web for years, I finally wrote a story about this phenomenon a few months ago. While I have not yet read Schweizer's book, the academic evidence on congressional insider trading is mixed: an older study found a huge effect (Senators outperform the market by 12%, while house members outperform by a still impressive 6%); but a newer study, as yet unpublished, showed that as a group, congressmen slightly under-perform index funds.
How to reconcile this with the eye-popping trades described in the 60 Minutes piece? Spencer Bachus betting that the economy would tank right after he was briefed on the financial crisis in 2008; John Boehner buying health insurance stocks shortly before the public option was finally killed; Nancy Pelosi getting preferential IPO shares in Visa right around the time a bill that would have hurt credit card processors was defeated....
Monday, November 14, 2011
Glenn Beck Answers Prayers of Colorado Women's Charity
GlennBeck.com reports that popular talk show host, author, and philanthropist Glenn Back has made a $55,000 donation to Hope Home and Liza's Place, which chose to forego federal funding instead of dispensing with prayer and Bible studies, which the charity regards as being at the core of its program. I, who have seen how Liza's Place has helped to turn the lives of women around, applaud his generosity.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Ohio Tea Partiers, Conservatives Push for Right-to-Work Law
The New American has an article about how the state of Ohio, which voted down a measure to restrict public-sector unions, may soon be voting on a law to end forced union membership.
"The constitutional amendment, known as the 'Workplace Freedom Amendment,' would make Ohio one of almost two dozen 'right-to-work' states in America. If approved by voters it would allow government and private-sector workers to freely choose whether or not to join a union and pay union dues.
"'No law, rule, agreement, or arrangement, shall require, directly or indirectly, any person or employer to become or remain a member of a labor organization,' reads the text of the proposed amendment. Federal employees in Ohio, however, would not be protected.
"Individuals would still be free to join or support a union — if they so choose. And the measure would not affect already-existing agreements. But “Big Labor” is gearing up to fight anyway...."
"The constitutional amendment, known as the 'Workplace Freedom Amendment,' would make Ohio one of almost two dozen 'right-to-work' states in America. If approved by voters it would allow government and private-sector workers to freely choose whether or not to join a union and pay union dues.
"'No law, rule, agreement, or arrangement, shall require, directly or indirectly, any person or employer to become or remain a member of a labor organization,' reads the text of the proposed amendment. Federal employees in Ohio, however, would not be protected.
"Individuals would still be free to join or support a union — if they so choose. And the measure would not affect already-existing agreements. But “Big Labor” is gearing up to fight anyway...."
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