Better Weather, Richer Color

It's been so gray, rainy, cold and dreary here that I feel compelled to post a picture from my garden from last Spring. Behold one of my favorite peonies------a named variety called Old Faithful. It's too early to be looking forward to Spring, but still.....

Have a great Weekend!

Finally!

My only full size tomato is finally almost ripe. But it does not even look like a "brandywine" tomato! Supposedly that was the variety I bought, but the flesh of this one does not look burgundy, and it is very regularly shaped. Brandywines are darker (less orange) and kind of lumpy. Maybe the color will continue to darken.....

I had to bring it indoors because the nights are getting too cold.

Yay, We're......... Above The Median!!!

A friend of mine had this posted on Facebook, so I put it here for more people to enjoy. So enjoy it already.

Health Care Competition is dead. Today.

First, a definition, from Wikipedia.

In economics, a monopsony (from Ancient Greek μόνος (monos) "single" + ὀψωνία (opsōnia) "purchase") is a market form in which only one buyer faces many sellers. It is an example of imperfect competition, similar to a monopoly, in which only one seller faces many buyers. As the only purchaser of a good or service, the "monopsonist" may dictate terms to its suppliers in the same manner that a monopolist controls the market for its buyers.

Now we can get to the good stuff. Wanna know why the American Medical Association came out strongly for the health care public option, after decades of loudly shouting down any hint of government intervention in health care?

It's because of that definition up there. In pretty much every region in the country, one or two insurance companies have gotten so big that they set the prices for doctors, and the doctors are out of luck. If they don't like their compensation they can take their medical equipment and go home, because if the doctor isn't in the preferred patient network for the monopolist insurance company, no one will be their patient. Monopsony. It's good. If you are the monopsonist insurance company. Otherwise, not so good.

How does this work from a patient angle? Like buttah. The patient, unfortunately is the buttah. Or spread of choice. Quoting from the AMA report:

While large health insurers have posted very healthy profits since 2000, premiums for consumers have increased without a corresponding increase in benefits. In fact, during the same time period, consumers have faced increased deductibles,
co-payments and co-insurance. This has effectively reduced the scope of their health benefits coverage.

Got that? Once someone is big enough, they can charge whatever they want. If you are priced out of the marketplace and, say, die for lack of coverage (22,000 approx. last year), too bad suckah. Free market wins, dontcha know? The whole AMA report detailing the exact amount of (non-)competition in the US can be found here.

Iowa Votes No

For those of you wondering about the outcome of the vote in Iowa regarding Michael Jackson's inclusion as a butter sculpture in the upcoming Iowa State Fair, the vote is in, and Jacko is out.



But of course there are more than enough celebrations of his life and art to satiate our appetite for memorializing him. Consider chocolate Michael Jackson; although it looks nothing like him, and certainly fails to capture his pallor, at least he represents Jackson's roots.

From an array of horrible wax figures there is this likeness (on the left!) which is excellent compared to the others in the gallery. (Cher must be really pissed! Check it out.)















But still, some people can never get enough.

But who would stoop low enough to steal a prosthetic nose, reputedly Michael's, which has gone missing from the morgue?

Cheney seems like the only person evil enough, but I doubt he was a fan.

DIY?

Some people blame the recession and others blame body dysmorphic disorder or BDD. But more and more people are attempting crazy (stupid) do it yourself plastic surgery procedures.


This woman injected her face with cooking oil ?!? She was a model before, and now.....!

So if you can't stand the way you look, get professional help: a plastic surgeon, or perhaps better yet, a psychiatrist. After all, the plastic surgery route did not seem to work wonders for Michael Jackson if memory serves.

Morality, Stupidity, Random People on Street Corners and Me.

I have had this curious feature, endlessly documented on this blog; my intelligence level has fluctuated for the last three-somewhat years. I'm trying to process this in a way that is at least slightly interesting.

Me, stupid--FUN FUN FUN. CONFIDENT CONFIDENT CONFIDENT, SMART SMART SMART (In my own head, subjectively. Objective results may differ). I have decided that there is an inverse proportion between how intelligent someone feels and how intelligent they are. This makes choosing US presidents and presidents of corporations somewhat problematic. Proof? Turn on the radio or media thingie of choice. Because, of course, confidence, which I have at least a bit of proof about, is inversely related to competence.

Me, stupid--not so sensitive; also great fun; me somewhat closer to my normal level of intelligence? On the way to the Dr's this morning, there was this girl, 20 something, with a sign at a street corner. Sign said "Victim of current Economic Downturn, anything would help. God Bless." I didn't have any change to give her. I'm haunted. If dumbbb, I wouldn't care. It's better to be stooopid.

Grammar Nazi's

I found this clip at a site devoted to grammar.


In spite of their professed enthusiasm for grammar, they entitled their post, "Who do you think you are kidding, Mr. Hitler?"




Ahem,....the correct pronoun would have been 'whom'. This mistake is not nearly as egregious as the improper use of 'whom' when 'who' is called for. I often let this sort of error go by, but at a site dedicated to proper usage? ( I took this screen print of that page just in case they correct it after they see my comment on their blog------I'm so petty).

Pete Doherty has excellent taste in hats

And a huge pile of a house somewhere in the countryside. And, with a bit of looking, can find his mail, in a super secret location in front of his mail slot. After some work, he also discovers his bedroom. However, electricity, hot water, not so much.



This post is much more entertaining than, I'm afraid, my precis indicates.

The Banks are Insolvent, Duh.

If those banks out there swallowed up $350 billion with nary a burp, what insane brain-dead rich important stupid-head thinks another $350 billion will have some magical effect? It will be delivered by Unicorns, perhaps? Really? Really?

How did Obama put the people responsible for this mess in positions of responsibility to get us out? Will it work? No. And why is Tim Geitner being quizzed about a paultry $35,000 in back taxes?

Notice, no links. The analysis can be performed as a thought experiment.

H/T Bosch plus this site for the pic., The Unicorn of Earthly Delights, or something.

Really Not So Strange

This sure seems like a labor intensive project, but this is, after all, exactly what is done with the wool from sheep goats and, yes, rabbits.

Four hundred bucks (her most expensive) seems like a high price , but it may be a better expenditure than exorbitant veterinary procedures opted for by owners of aged (and suffering) pets who can't bring themselves to let go of the cherished animal. Kidney transplants for cats cost several thousand dollars.

So are you an "ewww-person" or an "ahhh-person"?

Bubbles, all alike

The good folks at Irvine Housing Blog have created an all-purpose bubble chart. Housing bubble? Oil Bubble?



OK, here's an Oil Bubble Chart, courtesy of those fine folks at Calculated Risk.

Compare and contrast. Feel free to talk amongst yourselves.

Next Year or 2024. When Gay Marriage will be ruled a constitutional right?

My, sez Djinn, prediction. Next year. Or 2024. It's a long post, I know, but this is as short as I can make it. Want more info? Just ask.

California put on its ballot, this year, a citizen initiative to change the California constitution to declare marriage as allowable between only a man and a woman. The famous Proposition 8.

Subsequently, the California Supreme Court declared gays a protected class, subject to strict scrutiny; which means under the 14th amendment to the Constitution, they have a right to marry.

All discrimination is not created equal. In US law, there are three distinct categories, strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, and rational relationship.

Strict scrutiny, as you may be able to ascertain from its name, is the strictest, and only applies when a fundamental right is infringed, or when a "suspect classification" is used. Race is a suspect classification. Under suspect classification, for example, blacks and whites cannot have separate water fountains, "separate but equal" does not win.

The California Supreme court has determined that Sexual Orientation is a "suspect classificaion" with the effect that laws applying to sexual orientation must be justified by a "compelling government interest," must be "narrowly tailored," and must be the "least restrictive means" of achieving the compelling governmental interest.

Gays in California used to have, and currently have the option of entering into "domestic partnerships" which have most, but not all, of the benefits of marriage at the state level. They have no benefits at the federal level.

Under "strict scrutiny," such "separate but equal" rights are clearly disallowed. It's why you or I cannot put up separate water fountains for blacks, or whites.

So.... The people of California have amended their constitution (with only 52% of the vote! But that's for a different rant.) to require marriage (this is a completely civil right, in that the benefits are granted totally by the government) to be between only a man and a woman.

But, under strict scrutiny, there are only two possible ways to handle one group being denied rights granted to another group. 1. Give the rights to the denied group (integrate schools, no separate water fountains) or, 2. Take the rights away from the privileged group. Bang, Zoom, thank you m'am, or sir.

The California constitution, by disallowing marriage between two people of the same sex, has now invalidated reason 1 of the possible solutions. Gays cannot be given marriage rights. However, reason 2 is still open; that is, Marriage can be denied to all. This is, I suspect, what the actual outcome will be. There is 3; another choice, the amendment could be declared a "revision," and thus subject to stricter standards to pass, that is 2/3rds majority in both CA governmental houses and a vote by the people. This would invalidate it, but there is very little case law to determine the probability of this, so let's think of the exciting possibilities.

Assuming the court doesn't choose revision, the only option available is to deny Marriage to all Californians, and give them all civil unions. This has serious consequences, as civil unions are not recognized by the US government, which would deny those couples now able to get married that right.

That is an important point, because state constitutions can add extra rights not guaranteed by the US constitution, but cannot subtract rights guaranteed by the constitution to all.

So, when (or if) California declares all marriages invalid under their constitution, we will be in a unique situation. For the very first time, the issue of Gay Marriage will be "ripe" to be heard by the Supreme Court.

Currently there are four almost 100% probable no votes for gay marriage, one unknown vote (Kennedy, the only vote that counts, because he is the swing) and four at least potentially probable yes votes. So, there's probably even odds, if the Supreme court hears this issue, that they will say "No."

However, Kennedy wrote the opinion in "Lawrence v. Texas," the ruling that gave gay people the constitutional right to have sex (in 2003!) and so is at least a probable "yes" vote.

In Lawrence, Kennedy penned that

"our laws and tradition afford constitutional protection to personal decisions relating to marriage, procreation, contraception, family relationships, child rearing, and education." ... "Persons in a homosexual relationship may seek autonomy for these purposes, just as heterosexual persons do.”

Sounds like he sees Gay marriage as a fundamental right. If so, then Americans might soon have a constitutional right to gay marriage, fueled, (ouch. My irony meter just broke...back to the shop.....) by the diligent efforts of the "Yes on 8" people in California.

Scalia, in his angry dissent in Lawrence agreed, stating:

Today’s opinion dismantles the structure of constitutional law that has permitted a distinction to be made between heterosexual and homosexual unions, insofar as formal recognition in marriage is concerned.

Assuming Kennedy votes "no", I ran a statistical analysis on the ages of the conservative justices to determine the average year one would die. (I possess such superpowers; but, to compensate look somewhere between silly and stupid in a bodysuit and cape. Not true, I can rock the cape, but no bodysuits or tights for me.) It's just about 16 years from now. If there is a Democrat in the White House in 2024, and an interceding Republican administration hasn't installed an anti-gay conservative (bit, uh opinionated, Djinn? Hell Yeah!) we, after every single other country in the first world (assuming we're still in that group) will finally decide that gay people have the right to get married. Pretty depressing.

Postscript. There are only five conservative justices, so the error bars on my prediction are pretty wide, but I used what material was at hand for my prediction. So there.

Yet another obsession

I swear, I'm preparing a post on the mid-nineties Japanese economy, the great depression, Weimar Germany, and the current state of the US Economy. But, wonkiness, and esp. short wonkiness (my gold standard) is difficult. So, in lieu of many many many numbers, I give you "Babyshambles," (with my favorite bad boy Pete Doherty) singing I'll *u*k forever, so don't listen if you think the FCC let Janet Jackson off too easy. Eveyone else, HOLY SHIT! (Oooops.) Live version. Without Babyshambles, and with bonus daisy.

The Official Mormon Church is a bunch of Sissies!

The Mormon church has been hiding behind its membership to avoid taking responsibility for the passage of proposition 8. They say in an official statement:

"It is disturbing that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is being singled out for speaking up as part of its democratic right in a free election. "

The Mormons provided Just over 50%(updated numerous times--trying to get it right here) of the funds and most of the actual effort to get Prop. 8 passed (also updated). An amazingly well-run campaign. Non-alcolhoic champagne all arround. You should be proud! Why this whine? You did it. Step up to the plate and admit it.

What a bunch of sissies! Grow a pair, boys, (and they're all boys, so it's at least a theoretical possibility). Why this sudden unwillingness to take credit? The sudden realization that the 18,000 people whose marriages you just destroyed might be just a tad upset?

(Grammar conodrum; "are a bunch of sissies?")

The Shirt Off Her Back

From the Huffington Post

Reporting from Phoenix -- Sarah Palin left the national stage Wednesday, but the controversy over her role on the ticket flared as aides to John McCain disclosed new details about her expensive wardrobe purchases and revealed that a Republican Party lawyer would be dispatched to Alaska to inventory and retrieve the clothes still in her possession...

The repo man better look in Piper's closet for the expensive Louis Vuitton bag. (Can anyone hazard a guess how much one of that size costs?)

OPERATION LEPER

Palin fans at Redstate are working now to silence McCain campaign staffers who have juicy tidbits about Palin:

Wednesday, November 5, 2008 at 10:43PM CST

RedState is pleased to announce it is engaging in a special project: Operation Leper.

We're tracking down all the people from the McCain campaign now whispering smears against Governor Palin to Carl Cameron and others. Michelle Malkin has the details.

We intend to constantly remind the base about these people, monitor who they are working for, and, when 2012 rolls around, see which candidates hire them. Naturally then, you'll see us go to war against those candidates.

It is our expressed intention to make these few people political lepers.

They'll just have to be stuck at CBS with Katie's failed ratings.

Initial list:

1. Nicolle Wallace
2. Steve Schmidt
3. Mark McKinnon

P.S. ...... We are rooting for Sarah Palin. Don't make us add you to our list. Do you really want to be next to Kathleen Parker in the leper colony?

So, the far right conservatives are telling the staffers that they'd better not cut off their noses to spite their faces, because if they do, they'll be treated like lepers.
Palin's people operate in just the petty, vindictive way I always expected they would. I'm so glad she's not VP. And I sure hope this doesn't dry up the stories we are waiting to hear.

Just Quibbling

With both candidates opposing the use of torture, our country will soon be able to stop thinking about the substance of this question. Perhaps then we will be able to turn our attention to other vital matters......like grammar!
And yeah, the question really should be "Whom Would Jesus Waterboard?"
(Likely answer: Grammarians!)

A Very Brief Rebuttal of Hasslehoff

For those of you flummoxed by the Hasslehoff Recursion, take comfort in this brief response: (Caution, for some reason, when you click on the play arrow, it sometimes skips the intended clip and shows other options. Simply click on the replay symbol in the upper left corner.)

crazy flip book


We are ultimately all composed of bar codes as this plainly shows. We are not mere fractal "junk"! The very idea!

Is Djinn Spiralling Out Of Control In Her Obsession With Palin?

No!

A good number of those palicentric posts were submitted by Kerfuffler, a new-to-the-blogosphere friend of Djinn's from way back. I, Kerfuffler, do hereby apologize for the obsessive (incessant?) posting on this most painful of topics, but I really needed to practice from one day to the next posting things just to get a hang of linking, embedding, and what not.( And Palin kept supplying so much material!) You see, I am my family's resident techno-phobe. Until quite recently, merely sending an e-mail was a source of jaw-clenching tension for me. So, yay me!

I have posted other items as well. (Fruitfly foolishness, Western Spaghetti, inflatable street art, those evolving-painting videos and a bunch of other stuff.) I started on Sept. 30th. I guess Djinn and I have similar styles and interests, so many of you did not notice. I did not mean to be an impostor! In any event, I'm pleased to make your virtual acquaintance.

By the way, the image above is a FANTASTIC OPTICAL ILLUSION, but to get the full effect, you need to enlarge the image, and I might add, the bigger, the better! (Just hit Ctrl+ a few times and let the dizzying swirling begin.) Djinn, I know you like optical illusions, but you just might want to avoid this one!