Where did 'Exile on Main Street" come from? Choose me for the answer.

Those bad Stones.  I truly love Exile; Mick, Keith and the rest started as a blues cover band, where they basically covered, almost note for note, blues standards.  Then, they magically transformed; they somehow created their own sound based on the great blues singers, but still their own--much of Exile has a definite Son House vibe.   Listen.  Don't get me wrong, I listen to "Exile" about as much as I listen to Son House.

Warning, flash flash, (bad scary graphics)  don't make the mistake of listening to Keith Urban covering "Tumblin' Dice" on the Jimmy Fallon show.  Unless you want a serious Migraine.  Not good.  Green Day rocked the joint with "Rip this Joint."  Hard.  I especially loved the rewritten (or not quite remembered) lyrics.  (Geebee corrected me on the spelling of that song; thanks, sweetheart; plus how stupid of me; i've only listening to this song since it came out when I was 14.  I blame rock and roll.  Or me.  You choose.)

"I didn't know I loved her, until they let her down."  I can't speak for everyone, though i'd dearly love to imagine I could; but this sounds to me like humanity in 10 words.

Finally, A "Journalist" Asks Some Real Questions

Too bad it had to be a comedian who dared to ask the Swiss Ambassador genuinely tough questions! John Oliver from the Daily Show does a fantastic job revealing what a lame excuse it is to fall back on "That's just our policy" when justifying their "neutrality" during WWII. (Unfortunately this clip begins with a commercial, but then you can skip ahead to around t=5:00 for Oliver's bit, or t=7:50 if you are really in a hurry and only want to see the most heated part of the exchange. Happy viewing!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Oliver's Travels - Switzerland
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Peter Galbraith Should Not Get Away With This

Apparently, during the years that hawkish democrat, Peter Galbraith, was promoting war in Iraq, and helping draft the new Iraqi constitution, he had a deal on the back burner brewing which now appears to be poised to score him about $100 million. He sleazily and corruptly kept his oil company involvement secret for years while writing thought pieces for the NYT and others. He was contractually obligated to reveal any conflict of interest, but dishonestly ducked that requirement. For an in depth account, check out Glenn Greenwald's write-up.

We all knew that Cheney and Bush were oil men, and that Cheney's company Halliburton had benefited extraordinarily from the war in Iraq. (I still, for the life of me, can't understand why that connection garnered such a collective yawn from our populace.) Read here how Dennis Kucinich was called a liar for trying to warn America about the corruption leading us into war:

Dennis Kucinich on Meet the Press, February 23, 2003:

MR. RUSSERT: Congressman, you made a very strong charge against the administration and let me show you what you said on January 19. "Why is the Administration targeting Iraq? Oil." What do you base that on?

REP. KUCINICH: I base that on the fact that there is $5 trillion worth of oil above and in the ground in Iraq, that individuals involved in the administration have been involved in the oil industry, that the oil industry certainly would benefit from having the administration control Iraq, and that the fact is that, since no other case has been made to go to war against Iraq, for this nation to go to war against Iraq, oil represents the strongest incentive...

MR. PERLE: It is a lie, Congressman. It is an out and out lie.

Richard Cohen, February 25, 2003:

"Liar" is a word rarely used in Washington...So it was particularly shocking, not to mention refreshing, to hear Richard Perle on Sunday call Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) a liar to his face...

Kucinich himself seemed only momentarily fazed by Perle's sharp right to his integrity and went on, indomitable demagogue that he seems to be, to maintain that the coming war with Iraq will be fought to control that nation's oil...How did this fool get on "Meet the Press"?

[S]omething truly awful has happened. The looming war has already become deeply and biliously ideological. By that I mean that the extremes on both sides -- but particularly the war's opponents -- no longer feel compelled to prove a case or stick to the facts.

—Jonathan Schwarz

A big round of applause for Jonathon Schwarz for finding all those quotes!!!!

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!

Pumpkin carving is an art

My inestimable brother-in-law carved this pumpkin of him, my dear sis and my two most charming nieces. A round of applause, please.

"Funtheory"

Enjoy some Scarlatti (eventually) while learning about fun, and how it changes our behavior.



Hat tip to Rob!

Anti-Spanking Article Rebuked Sharply

This is really just a comment that was too long so I decided that it would make a better post.

The article that djinn cites includes the graph on the left. Notice that the bottom axis of the graph is labeled "number of times spanked". They include once, twice, or 3+ as studied categories, but they do not specify over what time period they are referring. Is it once a week, once a year, or once ever?

The text of the article suggests that they are referring to weekly occurrences.

First, corporal punishment is extremely stressful and can become a chronic stressor for young children, who typically experience corporal punishment three or more times a week.

Frankly, I find the omission of the time period from the graph very suspect. It makes the author appear willing to mislead the readers because he, himself, disapproves of spanking. The article maintains:

IQs of children ages 2 to 4 who were not spanked were 5 points higher four years later than the IQs of those who were spanked.

Looking at the graph, this statement is not even true. Four years later, the young children (age 2-4) who were not spanked had IQs 5 points higher than only the very most spanked category. (3+ per week, or more than 150 time per year! Anyone spanking their child that often must be an idiot, so no wonder their kids don't fair well on IQ tests. ) The difference between the unspanked and the rarely spanked (once a week) was more like two points. And frankly, if "rarely" spanked is 52 times a year, that is not very rare.

They did not even include a category, it would seem, for parents who truly only use an occasional moderate swat-----about a handful of times over the course of the early years. Furthermore, the steeply sloping curve on the graph creates the false impression (at first glance for the inexperienced graph reader) that IQs plunge significantly if you spank your child once or twice or three times ever. How many people understand what the zero level in this graph means for the 'thrice spanked'? I think it is wrong to scare parents about rare swats with misleading graphs and studies.


I am completely against spanking by which I mean the highly ritualized punishment ("Just wait till your father gets home!") used with children lain, for example, across parent's laps for a specified number of blows or lashings (in the olden days with pants down! No wonder the sexual dysfunction.... ) in punishment for badness (messy room, sassing, poor grades, fibbing, meanness....). And I am against all slaps or blows dealt in anger.

But sometimes with toddlers who are too young to understand explanations of danger, and who will not desist from dashing into the parking lot (or street, swimming pool area.....) a parent needs a way to communicate that they are not kidding. Many toddlers love being chased, and when they notice that parents always chase them if they head towards parking lots, they think they know how to force a fun game. When stern words have failed to work, caregivers need a way to communicate right then that the parking lot is OFF LIMITS. A rebuking tone accompanied by a theatrical 'firm tap' and then pointing at the forbidden zone may be the most effective way of communicating this idea to a toddler with very limited language.

This kind of lesson may need to be given several times in one day, or over a period of a week while the child checks out the new limit. But parents will not find that this translates into a regular campaign of spanking that needs to be maintained for years. The behavior should disappear very quickly, especially if swatting has been reserved exclusively for dangerous conditions. And as the child grows older and develops more language and the concepts necessary for understanding danger, the explanations about why parking lots are dangerous should be repeated.

Even if such rare, mild swats lowered IQ scores by two points, I suspect that most parents would rather have a slightly dumber child than a dead one.

By and large, I agree with djinn's mother that spanking is not well suited to teaching children not to hit.

My mother stopped spanking when she came to the realization that "you can't teach a child not to hit by hitting them."

But I did once have a situation where I needed to teach a toddler not to bite other children. I was a home daycare provider, and one of the six toddlers I was watching over started to bite other children out of aggression. I had an obligation to the other children and their parents to protect everyone's well being, and so I discussed with the biter's parents a strategy to curtail this new behavior.

His parents decided that I should say "No!" and immediately 'tap' him right next to his mouth so he would know exactly what he was doing that was forbidden. (I watched him like a hawk so I could catch him right as he was about to bite. Such communication with the very young transgressor must be immediate!) After that I would set him down far from the child he had just tried to bite and offer him a different toy. This worked surprisingly well. After three or four attempted bites over the course of two or three days, he stopped biting.

Older children who understand language and who can make the connections between their misbehavior and delayed punishments (losing desert, having a toy confiscated, not being allowed to watch TV or play with friends) need never be spanked. Striking them really does send the wrong message.

A long time ago, before they invented the inserts that protect young children from electrical outlets, and when parents had many more children typically and could not watch their every single move, it was more obvious that children needed to know how to be obedient. Nowadays we put up child gates to keep kids out of kitchens, staircases, laundry rooms etc,and we dread visiting homes that are not "child friendly". The onus has shifted to grownups to anticipate and prevent all problems. The inserts, the gates, the latches.....these are all good, but they are ways to increase a young child's safety. They do not supplant the basic safety that comes from a child knowing to stop when their parent says so. After all, not every dangerous situation can be anticipated.

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.

Mount Wilson Observatory Safe!

According to the LA Times, and they should know. No cool pics, though.

Mount Wilson Observatory Threatened

Mount Wilson Observatory, outside of Los Angeles, was the place that Edwin Hubble discovered the redshift-- it taught us that the universe is expanding; one of the most important scientific discoveries of the 20th century.

Now, it's threatened by the Station fire. (Updated) The picture, above, seems to be the last webcam photo available, from just before 5 am, Sept. 1. I finally got it to load.

Please be safe, Observatory.

At 6 in the morning, Sept 1, as shown in the picture above, the Observatory looks safe, but the right-hand side glow from the fire looks pretty menacing.


Here's a site with time lapse photography of the fire approaching.

And here's the Mount Wilson Observatory webcam site. You might get through. It could happen.

A Fresh Outrage In The Campaign Of Deception

A new poll sent out as part of a national Republican fund raising effort features the following question:

"It has been suggested that the government could use voter registration to determine a person's political affiliation, prompting fears that GOP voters might be discriminated against for medical treatment in a Democrat-imposed health care rationing system. Does this possibility concern you?"

Oh, really? Suggested by whom? Was this before or after they doffed their protective, foil headgear?

For Steele to release materials like this suggests to recipients that there is a legitimate reason for people to worry about this issue. This is how these crazy rumors get started. People at the very top of the Republican party are orchestrating this frenzied panic over the possibility of healthcare reform using horrific and baseless lies.

The fact that they won't discuss the options honestly and openly reveals their lack of any ability to attract voters to their side with the truth.

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.

Bravo!

I came across this video at The Daily Dish.

I just wish an American had had the.....um,....guts to do this.

Good With Numbers

Chris Jordan creates images that help us to experience in a different way the collective impact our civilization is having in different dimensions. He depicts our consumption habits, (bottles, plastic bags, cars etc.) as well as our society's soaring prison populations among other things. Check here to see more of his works.

A Detail


A Partial Zoom

Complete Picture Depicting 106,000 aluminum cans, the number used in the US every thirty seconds


The images can be overwhelming, but perhaps the way we should look at it is that if we each just make small changes, collectively we can start to make things much better. No nagging here, just feel good whenever you find yourself doing one of many small things that can make a difference like: keeping your tires full, eating vegetarian food every now and then, reusing your own plastic bottle for water rather than buying bottled water all the time, turning the thermostat a little bit down.....


You can also hear him discuss some of his works in the short feature below.

What does it mean to be open-minded?

On the heels of kerfuffler's American Taliban post, a video on what it means to be openminded vs. believing in (**something without evidence.**)



Sceptics rock!

"Openmindedness isn't about believing in things."

American Theocracy?

I read an interesting piece comparing the political aspirations of the religious right in this country to the regime in place in Iran. Since it was written by a onetime, inner circle religious wing-nut, Frank Schaeffer, this is not just speculation. He knows what the intentions are because he was involved when plans were laid out and goals identified. Just click to read his piece, and be very thankful that we do not have to go through what the Iranian people are experiencing to be free from such authoritarian governance.

What Does Ahmadinejad Stand For?

I was really hoping that the Iranians would vote Ahmadinejad out of office as a signal that they wanted Iran to move forward in a reality-based way. Now it appears that even though he was voted out, he is unwilling to let Iran move in a different direction.

This is terribly important as Ahmadinejad is even more extreme in his beliefs than most Westerners seem to want to understand. To get an idea of just how extreme he is, one need only consider his role during the Iran-Iraq war. Ahmadinejad was a trainer and organizer of the basij, the children martyrs that would roll on the ground, detonating the mines so that soldiers and expensive equipment would be spared. (Handicapped children were often preferred for this duty, because that way families could keep their able-bodied children.)

In pondering the behavior of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, I cannot help but think of the 500,000 plastic keys that Iran imported from Taiwan during the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-88. At the time, an Iranian law laid down that children as young as 12 could be used to clear mine fields, even against the objections of their parents. Before every mission, a small plastic key would be hung around each of the children’s necks. It was supposed to open for them the gates to paradise....

....Today, however, Ahmadinejad appears in public in his Basiji uniform. During the war, he served as one of the Basiji instructors who turned children into martyrs. The generation that fought in the Iran-Iraq War has come to power along with Ahmadinejad. He owed his election in Summer 2005 to the contemporary Basiji movement. In Fall, he announced a “Basiji Week.”

Ahmadinejad subscribes to the extreme fundamentalist view that this life is of no value, and that suicidal, homicidal acts in the name of Islam are the highest form of virtue. His anti-Israel and the West rhetoric needs to be taken at face value. His regime would be likely to use nuclear weapons against Israel and the West, should they be able to build them.

Some would rationally argue that that would make no sense as it would kill even more Palestinians than Jews, but that consideration is meaningless to anyone of Ahmadinejad's mindset. Any Muslims killed during an assault on Israel would be guaranteed martyr status, so really, he would be doing them a favor. Any Iranian citizens killed by the inevitable retaliation would likewise join that enviable designation, so Ahmadinejad would be doing them a huge favor too.

Sadly, the restraint imposed by MAD just does not apply when delusionally apocalyptic tyrants are at the helm. Let's hope that Iranians are able to dislodge this evil megalomaniac once and for all.

So Much For The Bad Apple Theory Of Torture In The Military

You may want to skip over about the first part of this report, but you should perk up your ears at around t=1:40. Rachel Maddow does a brilliant job laying out geometrically the involvement of the administration in the development of the torture programs. Then examining the timeline with Ron Suskind, an alternative motivation for the program emerges.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Jason Linkins reported on the interview Rachel Maddow conducted with Ron Suskind.

Suskind noted that the "impetus was not to foil potential al Qaeda attacks. The impetus here was largely political and diplomatic. The White House had a political/diplomatic problem. It wanted it solved in the run up to the war."

People were tortured, FOR THE SAKE OF "SPIN."

So much for ticking bombs and bad apples!

Amazing Tree Houses In A New Book

According to the LA Times, a new book on elaborate tree houses will be coming out soon. ( You can see more of their pics if you click the LA Times link.) I was kind of half expecting to see Gritty Pretty's tree house there as well! It's pretty amazing too. (I'll try to post a link when I find her best tree house post.)

A Behavioral Economist on what went wrong with the economy.

And, why often, our intuitions are wrong, wrong, wrong. Highly recommended.