2015 archive
The Snaring Society 0
Der Spiegel takes a look at the megalomaniacs of Silicon Valley and finds it’s not a pretty sight. Here’s a bit; the entire article is worth your while.
That message holds that technology can change humanity for the better. The people from the valley who hope to reshape the world fundamentally believe that their high-tech solutions will create a better future for all of mankind just as pious Hindus believe in reincarnation. But they are not interested in external interference. The Silicon Valley elite has little use for policymakers and considers regulation to be more than just a hindrance, they see it as an anachronism. Their message seems to be: If societal values such as privacy and data protection stand in the way, then we simply have to develop new values.
Plus Ca Change, Redux 0
Nixon’s odious Southern Strategy rides again!
The Wrong Horse 0
Dick Polman questions Republican tactics on “net neutrality”–that’s the idea that ISP’s should not be able to charge websites for a “fast lane” to their users or otherwise censor or regulate content that they do not like.
Here’s a bit of his reasoning:
I suspect that most of you would cite the companies – the “service providers” who give you the Internet, but who fail to show up at your house when they’re supposed to. Indeed, these companies are widely loathed, as evidenced by their nadir ratings in the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index. Heck, even conservatives who hate “big government” really hate it when their Internet is down and the service guy is AWOL.
Yet these are the companies that Republicans have aligned themselves with. A bad political move.
Republicans claim they are somehow standing up for freedom. In a way, they are; they are standing up for Comcast and Time-Warner and their ilk to have the freedom gouge those who would use the inner webs.
They just can’t help themselves. Siding with big business is what they do.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Facilitate familial politeness.
(snip)
Relatives say the youngster, named Hayden, loved to play cops and robbers with his little brother and told local news station KHOUthat they fear the boys may have thought the weapon was a toy.
The Genesis of Gunnuttery 0
The Kraken tries to understand the right-wing fascination with firepower. A snippet:
(snip)
So it may be said that an American blackshirt is armed to the teeth with guns but aside from some military surplus largely lacks a uniform dictated by some ultimate authority. Their modus operandi is the lone wolf terror attack with a gun.
Follow the link. Read the rest.
Twits on Twitter 0
New Age twit meets science. Science wins.
Breaking an Impasse 0
Jon Stewart discusses Republicans scaredy cats scare tactics.
Video below the fold in case it autoplays.
Wo-Wo-Wo Those Wildwood Days 0
Heaven forbid that the town of Wildwood, which owns and maintains its beach, should host events and raise money for the town on its own damn beach.
Full Disclosure:
Back in my Philly days, I vacationed at Wildwood several times. Nobody does tacky like Wildwook.
Fantastic Voyage 0
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Christian Schneider follows a thought as it journeys through Scott Walker’s mind.