Baby Names Reveal Parents' Political Ideology | LiveScience:
"The results revealed that overall, the less educated the parent, the more likely they were to give their child either an uncommon name (meaning fewer than 20 children got the same name that year in California), or a unique name (meaning only one child got that name in 2004 in California). When parents had less than a college education, there were no major ideological differences in naming choice.
However, among college-educated whites, politics made a difference. College-educated moms and dads in the most liberal neighborhoods were twice as likely as college-educated parents in the most conservative neighborhoods to give their kids an uncommon name. Educated conservatives were more likely to favor popular names, which were defined as names in the top 100 in California that year."
Friday, June 07, 2013
No Cop/Bad Cop
No Cop/Bad Cop | National Review Online
I was chugging along buying Jack Dunphy’s argument on the NSA business, “A Small Price To Pay“, until I got to this bit:
As for Major Hasan, who needs surveillance? He put “Soldier of Allah” on his business card and gave a PowerPoint presentation to his military colleagues on what he’d like to do to infidels – and nobody said a word, lest they got tied up in sensitivity-training hell for six months.
Jack will forgive me when I say this is less good cop/bad cop than no cop/bad cop. Because the formal, visible state has been neutered by political correctness, the dark, furtive shadow state has to expand massively to make, in secret, the judgment calls that can no longer be made in public. That’s not an arrangement that is likely to end well.
There are people living in the United States right now, many, many of them, who are no less committed to jihad than the Tsarnaev brothers or Nidal Hassan.Well, how’d that happen? How did all these Tsarnaevs-in-waiting wind up living in the United States? They were let in by the Government, and many of them were let in in the years since 9/11, when we were supposedly on permanent “orange alert”. The same bureaucracy that takes the terror threat so seriously that it needs the phone and Internet records of hundreds of millions of law-abiding persons would never dream of doing a little more pre-screening in its immigration system – by, say, according a graduate of a Yemeni madrassah a little more scrutiny than a Slovene or Fijian. The President has unilaterally suspended the immigration laws of the United States, and his Attorney-General prosecutes those states such as Arizona who remain quaintly attached to them. The ID three of the 9/11 hijackers acquired in the 7-Eleven parking lot in Falls Church, Virginia and used to board the plane that day is part of a vast ongoing subversion of American sovereignty with which many states and so-called “sanctuary cities” actively collude.
As for Major Hasan, who needs surveillance? He put “Soldier of Allah” on his business card and gave a PowerPoint presentation to his military colleagues on what he’d like to do to infidels – and nobody said a word, lest they got tied up in sensitivity-training hell for six months.
Jack will forgive me when I say this is less good cop/bad cop than no cop/bad cop. Because the formal, visible state has been neutered by political correctness, the dark, furtive shadow state has to expand massively to make, in secret, the judgment calls that can no longer be made in public. That’s not an arrangement that is likely to end well.
20 Completely Ridiculous College Courses Being Offered At U.S. Universities
20 Completely Ridiculous College Courses Being Offered At U.S. Universities | Zero Hedge:
"16. "The Textual Appeal of Tupac Shakur" (University of Washington) - The UW is not the first college with a class dedicated to Shakur -- classes on the rapper have been offered at the University of California Berkeley and Harvard -- but it is the first to relate Shakur's work to literature."
"16. "The Textual Appeal of Tupac Shakur" (University of Washington) - The UW is not the first college with a class dedicated to Shakur -- classes on the rapper have been offered at the University of California Berkeley and Harvard -- but it is the first to relate Shakur's work to literature."
Stealth Edit: The New York Times Has Lost all Credibility
Stealth Edit: The New York Times Has Lost all Credibility:
"But to do it on the sly and not even note that the article has been updated, is dishonest.
And nowhere did the Times note that they had cooled some after learning of their lover's betrayal, and then went back to leave the door open for some sweaty make-up sex.
We are not talking about fixing a typo here, or even finding a better word to clarify a point. In the course of a few hours,
The New York Times went from claiming the administration had lost all credibility -- period -- to something less. That is a huge position shift.
And this is not the first time the Times has been caught backfilling with stealth edits, either."
"But to do it on the sly and not even note that the article has been updated, is dishonest.
And nowhere did the Times note that they had cooled some after learning of their lover's betrayal, and then went back to leave the door open for some sweaty make-up sex.
We are not talking about fixing a typo here, or even finding a better word to clarify a point. In the course of a few hours,
The New York Times went from claiming the administration had lost all credibility -- period -- to something less. That is a huge position shift.
And this is not the first time the Times has been caught backfilling with stealth edits, either."
Dishonor and Disrespect on D-Day
RIGHT SPEAK: Op-ed: Dishonor and Disrespect on D-Day:
"...on a day when our president should have been paying our nation's respect at the D-Day Memorial, we had a president who has NEVER visited that memorial nor made any mention anywhere in the past three years about this most solemn of days.
NO.. yesterday we had a president who jetted off to a photo-op in North Carolina and a fundraiser in California (http://www.whitehouse.gov/schedule/complete) for that was more important to him than honoring those who helped saved the world."
"...on a day when our president should have been paying our nation's respect at the D-Day Memorial, we had a president who has NEVER visited that memorial nor made any mention anywhere in the past three years about this most solemn of days.
NO.. yesterday we had a president who jetted off to a photo-op in North Carolina and a fundraiser in California (http://www.whitehouse.gov/schedule/complete) for that was more important to him than honoring those who helped saved the world."
Logan's Law would create animal abuser registry
Logan's Law would create animal abuser registry | Lansing State Journal | lansingstatejournal.com:
"That gray and white husky has become the face of a proposed law that would force convicted animal abusers to register for a new database to be used by animal control and humane society shelters in adopting animals.
Under the law, the shelters could not adopt animals to those on the registry for five years.
“They can check this registry to find out if they are giving (the animal) to a monster,” said Falk, of Wales, Mich.
In a room packed with supporters of the proposed “Logan’s Law,” the House Judiciary Committee today began hearing testimony on whether Michigan should become the first state to create such a registry.
Proponents say it would be funded through $250 in annual fees paid by offenders and would prove a valuable resource for shelters and individuals who want to find out whether they are letting a convicted animal abuser adopt a pet."
"That gray and white husky has become the face of a proposed law that would force convicted animal abusers to register for a new database to be used by animal control and humane society shelters in adopting animals.
Under the law, the shelters could not adopt animals to those on the registry for five years.
“They can check this registry to find out if they are giving (the animal) to a monster,” said Falk, of Wales, Mich.
In a room packed with supporters of the proposed “Logan’s Law,” the House Judiciary Committee today began hearing testimony on whether Michigan should become the first state to create such a registry.
Proponents say it would be funded through $250 in annual fees paid by offenders and would prove a valuable resource for shelters and individuals who want to find out whether they are letting a convicted animal abuser adopt a pet."
Retiree benefits and ObamaCare collide
Retiree benefits and ObamaCare collide: Column:
" Then there's the very real uncertainty surrounding the ACA's ultimate cost — illustrated by the impact of Medicare alone, which the Office of the Chief Actuary of Medicare estimates could cost cost $10 trillion more than claimed."
" Then there's the very real uncertainty surrounding the ACA's ultimate cost — illustrated by the impact of Medicare alone, which the Office of the Chief Actuary of Medicare estimates could cost cost $10 trillion more than claimed."
States that offer extremely generous health benefits for government retirees, and which have little to no pre-funding for those benefits, could choose to move their retirees into the Affordable Care Act's new exchanges.
.......The impact doesn't end with a collection of states relieved to have better balance sheets and financial positions. What does it mean for taxpayers?
It's not as if taxpayers in those states will suddenly be free of the financial burden of providing retiree health care benefits. A significant portion of the tab would be passed on to the federal government. But the overall tax burden will shift, and in ways that Americans in other more fiscally responsible states may not appreciate. Since the exchanges are federally sponsored, much of their cost will ultimately be shared among all the nation's taxpayers. So residents in those states who push retirees onto the exchanges will get to off-load some of their financial burden to the rest of us.
....So the impact of the insurance exchanges could be good news for some state and local governments and residents, while not so good news for the rest of us.
Thursday, June 06, 2013
Greece Slides Into The "Fourth World" - The Full Photo Album
Greece Slides Into The "Fourth World" - The Full Photo Album | Zero Hedge:
"With Greek government bonds at multi-year highs (up 300% in the last year), the Athens Stock Index still up 100% in the last year, and leaders all over the Euro-zone proclaiming the crisis is over (and that Greece has "made big strides"); we thought it perhaps useful to look at the reality behind the propagandized talk and manipulation.
The sad truth is Greece is rapidly dissolving into a 'fourth world' nation with unemployment rates (broad and youth) at unprecedented levels, poverty widespread, and homelessness rife.
Perhaps, as Germany today stated that there will be no more debt reduction for Greece, it is 'math' in the first image that the TROIKA and the Greek representatives should pay special attention to..."
"With Greek government bonds at multi-year highs (up 300% in the last year), the Athens Stock Index still up 100% in the last year, and leaders all over the Euro-zone proclaiming the crisis is over (and that Greece has "made big strides"); we thought it perhaps useful to look at the reality behind the propagandized talk and manipulation.
The sad truth is Greece is rapidly dissolving into a 'fourth world' nation with unemployment rates (broad and youth) at unprecedented levels, poverty widespread, and homelessness rife.
Perhaps, as Germany today stated that there will be no more debt reduction for Greece, it is 'math' in the first image that the TROIKA and the Greek representatives should pay special attention to..."
Online 'Fairness' Tax Could Hit Your 401(k)
Online 'Fairness' Tax Could Hit Your 401(k) - Investors.com:
Additional concerns include the indirect impact on middle-class investors — the tax would hit trades done by mutual funds and retirement plans such as 401(k) accounts — and the competitive effects on particular jurisdictions, as the tax creates incentives for such transactions to move across borders.
Given these concerns, one would think that the U.S. Congress would carefully debate the merits of a financial transaction tax, not rush to approve it. Yet the U.S. Senate just passed a bill that may enable states to impose their own financial transaction taxes — a recipe for increasing economic uncertainty.
Supporters of the Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA), which the U.S. Senate passed on May 6 on a 69-27 vote, claim that online retailers enjoy an unfair advantage over their brick-and-mortar competitors. The bill, they maintain, addresses this imbalance by allowing states and localities to require "remote sellers" to collect taxes for "sales" to their residents.
However, the bill is silent on the particular products and services of "sellers" and "sales" it covers. Thus, it could open the door for state and local governments to tax financial transactions they deem as "sales" on businesses throughout the country.
County plans 60-day stop-work order on Detroit jail project
County plans 60-day stop-work order on Detroit jail project | Crain's Detroit Business:
"The highest "worst estimates" for the jail's final price tag were $391 million, Lee said, almost double the original estimated price of $220 million. "
"The highest "worst estimates" for the jail's final price tag were $391 million, Lee said, almost double the original estimated price of $220 million. "
Spanish Sub Too Heavy Thanks to Math Mistake
Spanish Sub Too Heavy Thanks to Math Mistake | TheLedger.com:
"A new, Spanish-designed submarine has a weighty problem:
The vessel is more than 70 tons too heavy, and officials fear if it goes out to sea, it will not be able to surface.
And a former Spanish official says the problem can be traced to a miscalculation — someone apparently put a decimal point in the wrong place."
"A new, Spanish-designed submarine has a weighty problem:
The vessel is more than 70 tons too heavy, and officials fear if it goes out to sea, it will not be able to surface.
And a former Spanish official says the problem can be traced to a miscalculation — someone apparently put a decimal point in the wrong place."
5 Michigan cities may qualify for $100M in federal funds for home demolitions
Report: 5 Michigan cities may qualify for $100M in federal funds for home demolitions | MLive.com:
"The fund is designed to help homeowners in states hit hardest by the recent housing crisis by providing mortgage assistance for the unemployed, matching funds for principal reduction and other assistance to avoid foreclosure."
"The fund is designed to help homeowners in states hit hardest by the recent housing crisis by providing mortgage assistance for the unemployed, matching funds for principal reduction and other assistance to avoid foreclosure."
Supt. Mike Flanagan: 55 Michigan school districts have budget deficits
Supt. Mike Flanagan: 55 Michigan school districts have budget deficits | MLive.com:
"Three schools, Muskegon Public Schools, Romulus Community Schools and Aisha Shule/DuBois Preparatory Academy, began the year in the black but are projected to end the year with deficits, according to MDE analysts."
"Three schools, Muskegon Public Schools, Romulus Community Schools and Aisha Shule/DuBois Preparatory Academy, began the year in the black but are projected to end the year with deficits, according to MDE analysts."
Red light cameras could come to a Michigan intersection near you under proposed legislation
Red light cameras could come to a Michigan intersection near you under proposed legislation | MLive.com:
"Bipartisan legislation before the House Transportation Committee would allow local municipalities to install red light cameras at intersections of their choosing and use the evidence to issue civil infractions when a vehicle fails to stop."
"Bipartisan legislation before the House Transportation Committee would allow local municipalities to install red light cameras at intersections of their choosing and use the evidence to issue civil infractions when a vehicle fails to stop."
Back on the beaches one final time: D-Day heroes return to Normandy to mark the 69th anniversary of the landings
Back on the beaches one final time: D-Day heroes return to Normandy to mark the 69th anniversary of the landings | Mail Online:
When freedom came ashore: Stunning shots of Allied troops storming Omaha Beach in Normandy by war photographer Robert Capa and how they were almost lost forever
When freedom came ashore: Stunning shots of Allied troops storming Omaha Beach in Normandy by war photographer Robert Capa and how they were almost lost forever
Remember All Those Passwords? No Need
Remember All Those Passwords? No Need - NYTimes.com:
"Dashlane has two primary features.
First, yes, it’s a password memorizer. Every time you type your account name and password into a Web page and press enter, Dashlane pops up, offering to memorize that information and fill it in the next time."
"Dashlane has two primary features.
First, yes, it’s a password memorizer. Every time you type your account name and password into a Web page and press enter, Dashlane pops up, offering to memorize that information and fill it in the next time."
Wednesday, June 05, 2013
Michigan has 2 top violent cities in US; search preliminary FBI crime data
Michigan has 2 top violent cities in US; search preliminary FBI crime data | MLive.com:
"It also shows that Flint is the most violent city in the U.S. for the third year running, followed in second place by Detroit."
"It also shows that Flint is the most violent city in the U.S. for the third year running, followed in second place by Detroit."
The Daily Caller presents: The first annual College Stupidity Awards
Daily Caller first annual College Stupidity Awards | The Daily Caller:
"Lehigh University: Most outrageous lawsuit
Lehigh University graduate Megan Thode sued Lehigh for $1.3 million because she was unhappy that she got a C+ in a class in 2009.
Thode, 27, said the grade ruined her dream of becoming a licensed professional counselor.
Her civil suit alleged breach of contract, sexual discrimination and a broader attempt to force her to abandon the graduate degree she had been pursuing.
The Pennsylvania judge in the case ruled in favor of Lehigh.
(RELATED: Lehigh University student got a C+ and now seeks $1.3 million)"
"Lehigh University: Most outrageous lawsuit
Lehigh University graduate Megan Thode sued Lehigh for $1.3 million because she was unhappy that she got a C+ in a class in 2009.
Thode, 27, said the grade ruined her dream of becoming a licensed professional counselor.
Her civil suit alleged breach of contract, sexual discrimination and a broader attempt to force her to abandon the graduate degree she had been pursuing.
The Pennsylvania judge in the case ruled in favor of Lehigh.
(RELATED: Lehigh University student got a C+ and now seeks $1.3 million)"
Atheists Want Their Own Military Chaplains
Atheists Want Their Own Military Chaplains:
"For weeks now Breitbart News has reported on religious liberty in the military, both the freedom of service members to share their faith and also the plight of military chaplains being censored on what they can say in religious counseling.
Now atheists are demanding their own chaplains. "
"For weeks now Breitbart News has reported on religious liberty in the military, both the freedom of service members to share their faith and also the plight of military chaplains being censored on what they can say in religious counseling.
Now atheists are demanding their own chaplains. "
What Enron and the IRS Have in Common
Steven Law: What Enron and the IRS Have in Common - WSJ.com:
Any good CEO will tell you that ethical meltdowns like the IRS political-targeting scandal are rarely the work of a few rogue employees. Such messes are the result of a toxic culture that has been allowed to fester.
Any good CEO will tell you that ethical meltdowns like the IRS political-targeting scandal are rarely the work of a few rogue employees. Such messes are the result of a toxic culture that has been allowed to fester.
When I was chief of staff at the Labor Department, we investigated the ethical and financial disintegration of Enron in connection with the collapse of its pension funds in 2001. What we found was a small circle of certifiably bad actors who acted without regard for the law or for anyone else. Surrounding this inner circle was a culture that gave these employees tacit permission to run roughshod over others and break the law.
While lower-level Enron employees did their jobs honorably, senior management cultivated a malignant esprit de corps that corroded the company's ethics. The C-Suite view was that no one was smarter, faster or more aggressive than these executives. Mortals couldn't possibly understand what they did. That belief created its own closed-system logic, leading to deceptive accounting schemes, self-dealing and, ultimately, a battery of criminal convictions for Enron's top brass.
What does Enron's collapse have to tell us about the shocking revelations of IRS political targeting?
Plenty.
While lower-level Enron employees did their jobs honorably, senior management cultivated a malignant esprit de corps that corroded the company's ethics. The C-Suite view was that no one was smarter, faster or more aggressive than these executives. Mortals couldn't possibly understand what they did. That belief created its own closed-system logic, leading to deceptive accounting schemes, self-dealing and, ultimately, a battery of criminal convictions for Enron's top brass.
What does Enron's collapse have to tell us about the shocking revelations of IRS political targeting?
Plenty.
The Hidden Jobless Disaster
Edward Lazear: The Hidden Jobless Disaster - WSJ.com:
"First, the better measure of a strong labor market is the proportion of the population that is working, not the proportion that isn't.
In 2006, 63.4% of the working-age population was employed.
That percentage declined to a low of 58.2% in July 2011 and now stands at 58.6%.
By this measure, the labor market's health has barely changed over the past three years."
"First, the better measure of a strong labor market is the proportion of the population that is working, not the proportion that isn't.
In 2006, 63.4% of the working-age population was employed.
That percentage declined to a low of 58.2% in July 2011 and now stands at 58.6%.
By this measure, the labor market's health has barely changed over the past three years."
Increase In CO2 Means A Greener Earth, Say Researchers
Increase In CO2 Means A Greener Earth, Say Researchers - Investors.com:
"Carbon dioxide concentrations in our atmosphere recently hit the 400 parts-per-million mark.
So is all that CO2 scorching the planet?
No.
But it does seem to be making our deserts greener.
Listening to the global warming alarmists, one would think that man-made CO2 emissions are threatening the globe.
But that's speculation.
Let's deal in reality.
And the reality, according to Australian research, is that in this era of higher carbon concentrations, plant life in dry regions has grown lush.
The greening of the deserts is due to the "fertilization effect" — the impact carbon dioxide has on plant life."
"Carbon dioxide concentrations in our atmosphere recently hit the 400 parts-per-million mark.
So is all that CO2 scorching the planet?
No.
But it does seem to be making our deserts greener.
Listening to the global warming alarmists, one would think that man-made CO2 emissions are threatening the globe.
But that's speculation.
Let's deal in reality.
And the reality, according to Australian research, is that in this era of higher carbon concentrations, plant life in dry regions has grown lush.
The greening of the deserts is due to the "fertilization effect" — the impact carbon dioxide has on plant life."
RNC hires Facebook manager as chief technology officer
RNC hires Facebook manager as chief technology officer - The Hill's Hillicon Valley
“Pleased to announce we have hired Andy Barkett as the RNC's CTO,” RNC Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted Thursday evening.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) has hired a Facebook engineering manager as its new chief technology officer (CTO).
“Excited to get to work growing digital operation,” Priebus continued.
After suffering a tough loss in the 2012 presidential election, the RNC in March said the Republican Party must close the digital divide between the GOP and Democrats if it wanted to win the upcoming midterm elections and 2016 presidential race.
As part of that effort, the RNC said it wanted to hire a chief technology and digital officer by May 1 who would be responsible for recruiting a team of savvy data scientists, tech and digital advocates who would build a new data and digital operation for the upcoming contests.
Barkett's profile on the University of California, Davis Graduate School of Management website also lists experience as senior director of engineering at Livescribe, senior management consultant at Taos Mountain and technical program manager at Google.
On that page, Barkett is described as a “Renaissance man!” who is “[d]eeply interested in philosophy, literature, film and economics.”
Barkett received his Master of Business Administration from UC Davis in 2009. He also holds a bachelor's degree in political economy from the University of California, Berkeley.
How do you spell "mole"?
........yet another example of school idiocy
Instapundit » Blog Archive » THIS STORY WAS TOO LATE FOR MY USA TODAY COLUMN, but it’s yet another example of school idiocy: Boy…:
"THIS STORY WAS TOO LATE FOR MY USA TODAY COLUMN, but it’s yet another example of school idiocy:
Boy suspended for talking about guns on school bus.
“The principal told me that with what happened at Sandy Hook if you say the word ‘gun’ in my school you are going to get suspended for 10 days.”
The principal’s name is Darrel Prioleau.
But wait, there’s more: “The boy was questioned by the principal and a sheriff’s deputy, who also wanted to search the family home without a warrant.”
Sue ‘em and shame ‘em.
Posted by Glenn Reynolds at 11:31 pm"
"THIS STORY WAS TOO LATE FOR MY USA TODAY COLUMN, but it’s yet another example of school idiocy:
Boy suspended for talking about guns on school bus.
“The principal told me that with what happened at Sandy Hook if you say the word ‘gun’ in my school you are going to get suspended for 10 days.”
The principal’s name is Darrel Prioleau.
But wait, there’s more: “The boy was questioned by the principal and a sheriff’s deputy, who also wanted to search the family home without a warrant.”
Sue ‘em and shame ‘em.
Posted by Glenn Reynolds at 11:31 pm"
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