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Quote of the morning
At eighteen our convictions are hills from which we look; at forty-five they are caves in which we hide. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald,
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Quote of the moment
I was perusing Marginal Revolution (about vouchers) and came across this comment
In other words, even if a child’s chance of going to the state university is not increased by his new school, the kid’s chance of ending up in the state penitentiary is radically decreased. This consideration might not be of primary concern to many who support vouchers, but to those who live in the ghetto, it is of PRIMARY concern. Schools, more than anything, breed gangs. Like the projects of old, when you are FORCED to a geographical location, you make gang recruiting easier – and your kids chances of entering the prison system that much greater.
I saw a lecture by Nobel Laureate James Buchanan many years ago and before he veered off into pure math he said that there were three types of social organization, which he dubbed (something like this anyway), the closed circle, the open circle, and the broken circle. The closed circle is a prison, the open is free association, specifically where members have the right to exit and the right to exile rouge members and the broken circle, which is no association at all.
The Buchanan point came to mind…
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Happy New Year and all that
I’m not feeling it this year.
On another note, work on the Batcave has begun. I do believe it will be a multi-year project.
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Recommended viewing
The stuff of thought, an interview with Steven Pinker. It’s a lovely interview with braniac Steven Pinker on the development of language. Not safe for work, surprisingly.
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John Mayer supports Ron Paul
Sorority hearththrob John Mayer seems to be a Ron Paul supporter. I suppose he’ll make inroads in new arenas now Some friends of mine used to play with him many years ago at open mics here in Atlanta.
If only he could get Merle Haggard, he’d be set.
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Toil and trouble
Since the internet was down most of the day, I decide to do some more stuff around the house. I take advantage of a short break in the rainfall to apply some quick drying concrete to some areas between the driveway and the foundation. I find that it really does dry in 10 minutes or less. Happily I’m able to finish before then. That does not seem to solve all of my basement moisture problem.
Since it started raining shortly after the cement was dry, I opt to install outlets in the basement. For some reason, all but one of the junction boxes do not match the descriptions in any of my wiring books. The ones that does does not seem to be connected to the circuit box in any findable way. Being a coward when it comes to live electricity, I opt not to install the outlet in that box.
Happily, while looking for further junction boxes, I come across a working outlet set up to the furnace! I count the day a win.
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A late Christmas present from the War Nerd
He has a very interesting article on the War of the Triple Alliance. RTWT.
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Your Friday links
As the implications of the Bhutto assassination are too scary to think about, here’s some links for you.
- Via ZenPundit, check out this time lapse mural
- Jack Nicholson on Politics, he usually doesn’t talk about it, and judging from the statements in this interview, he knows very little. It’s nice when that happens.
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Civil Rights at work
This is a good thing
NRA seeks hundreds whose guns were seized after Katrina
The National Rifle Association has hired private investigators to find hundreds of people whose firearms were seized by city police in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, according to court papers filed this week.The NRA is trying to locate gun owners for a federal lawsuit that the lobbying group filed against Mayor Ray Nagin and Police Superintendent Warren Riley over the city’s seizure of firearms after the August 29, 2005, hurricane.
In the lawsuit, the NRA and the Second Amendment Foundation claim the city violated gun owners’ constitutional right to bear arms and left them “at the mercy of roving gangs, home invaders, and other criminals” after Katrina.
It’s nice they’re doing it for everyone, not just their members.
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Merry Christmas 2007
A Merry Christmas to all. I don’t think I’ve posted this image before.
And of course, it’s just not Christmas without this…
Update: It’s snowing! Actually it’s sleeting, but I think I’ll take what I can get.