tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35423962011-07-08T00:28:03.421-05:00Bluestarblog<b>archive and links</b>Scotnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6271100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1164180465714104482006-11-21T23:46:00.002-06:002010-11-29T02:09:41.480-06:00New site here.Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1107636008191907032005-02-05T14:30:00.000-06:002007-02-15T02:27:18.804-06:00All Good Things...... don't always come to an end. I have decided to stop posting here once and for all, but I will resume be writing and blogging at my new (though temporary) site. Until I can make a more complete website, this blogger stuff will have to do. As cozy as this site was, I couldn't get around the light letters on a dark background. Longer pieces are much easier to read with dark Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1105813451215601062005-01-15T13:23:00.000-06:002005-01-24T21:54:51.496-06:00Norman Podhoretz on the War
Every so often an essayist comes around with a piece on the War on Terrorism that reminds me exactly why I don't write more about it myself. It's certainly a topic of interest and after three years of reading, a topic I have become well acquainted with. However, the talent and scope of these writers simply makes it more fun to read than write. They strike that perfectScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1104532628999923302004-12-31T16:20:00.000-06:002005-01-27T00:25:44.433-06:002004: Good year or bad?
According to this article from Fox news, things look pretty good:
—America is healthier. Life expectancy in the U.S. is at an all-time high among men and women, black and white. People at every age can expect to live longer than anyone at their age in U.S. history. Heart disease, cardiovascular disease and stroke have fallen dramatically in the last 15 years. Incidence Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1104531183846921692004-12-31T15:49:00.000-06:002004-12-31T16:15:40.170-06:00Irresistable Delusions of Grandeur
Milli Vanilli's Rob Pilatus: Musically we are more talented than any Bob Dylan. Musically we are more talented than Paul McCartney. Mick Jagger, his lines are not clear. He don't know how he should produce a sound. ... I'm the new modern rock and roll. I'm the new Elvis.
Libya's Muammar Gaddafi: America was very worried that Libya might get a mass destruction Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1100879944659893032004-11-19T09:56:00.000-06:002004-11-19T09:59:04.660-06:00Bye bitch.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1099856245669239382004-11-07T13:36:00.000-06:002004-11-14T14:31:28.580-06:00Just die already
It is being reported that Yasser Arafat is on his deathbed in a France hospital (no kidding). 75 years old, the de facto leader of the Palestinian people and the front line general in the war against Israel is finally knocking on heaven's door. Unfortunately for him, that door will remain unanswered. He deserves no better than a long, excruciating, undignified death - and Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1096464994065466302004-09-29T08:35:00.000-05:002004-09-29T09:00:20.003-05:00Republican mind-reader alert!!!
You Should Vote For Bush
Which presidential candidate should you vote for?
Still confused? Try this.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1090357964327158262004-07-20T15:49:00.000-05:002004-07-20T16:17:25.336-05:00A couple of pieces on chess genius turned frothing conspirazoid Bobby Fisher by Garry Kasparov and Colby Cosh. Tyler Cowen at the Volokh Conspiracy brings up his arrest in Japan and a quote from the deranged Fisher (who writes of himself in the third person):
Bobby Fischer does not wish to return to the Jew-controlled USA where he faces a kangaroo court and 10 years in Federal prison and a Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1088403776344099182004-06-28T01:22:00.000-05:002004-06-28T01:36:47.276-05:00Some more fun before my updates. The Singson's! from Andrew Sullivan, a couple of neat little mind tricks from Michael Totten, and a look at some terrible early 70's European art deco courtesy of Blackfive.
Ali G interviews the Posh Beckams in classic G mode, and on the topic of videos, don't miss Will Ferrell's cover of Afternoon Delight on Launch Yahoo videos.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1087987354329672362004-06-23T05:42:00.000-05:002004-06-25T02:28:07.413-05:00I've been in a music state of mind recently, obsessively catching up on some of the tunes I missed in the last few months. Some recent (The Apples in Stereo, Franz Ferdinand, N.E.R.D.), and others I simply overlooked over the years. Through all this I've noticed a very likeable online trend - the proliferation and accessibility of music videos. Launch on Yahoo, which seems to change affiliations Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1087203390357614362004-06-14T03:56:00.000-05:002004-06-14T04:15:53.686-05:00You knew I couldn't come back without some fun links and other bloggy treats.
While I was looking for a friend's site titled 'another useless website,' I came across another with the same name. Much unlike the one I was looking for, this one provides absolutely nothing, declares it, and watches the hits fly in. It looks like some kind of experiment to prove how popular nothing can be, and by itsScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1086904028431051242004-06-10T16:46:00.000-05:002004-06-10T16:47:08.433-05:00The Underrated Beatle
The Beatles, like other popular culture icons, have attained such a level of fame and mystique that they have become excessively criticized far more than the rest. 'Were the Beatles really deserving of their success?' or 'Musically, they had little talent' are not unpopular sentiments among pop culture sophistos. From legitimate criticism to questionable deconstructionism Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1086838849958684662004-06-09T22:38:00.000-05:002004-06-09T22:47:57.230-05:00Too Much Time With the Animals?
I read an unusual piece in USA Weekend (a horrible supplement I found in the Sunday edition of the Niagara Gazette) some time back that I just couldn't let go. There was a fluffy piece titled The Smartest Animals on Earth that I probably wouldn't have paid much attention to had it not been for the contributions of noted zoologist Jane Goodall (best known for her Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1085597627521328482004-05-26T13:52:00.000-05:002004-05-26T23:20:58.210-05:00Take the quiz: "Which American City Are You?"
.You're competative, you like to take it straight to the fight. You gotta have it all or die trying.
Sounds about right.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1071998312169636592003-12-21T03:18:00.000-06:002003-12-21T03:23:03.356-06:00Some fun stuff before the holidays. While looking up the Red Wings-Predators hockey brawl from October (nine fights!), I came across an encyclopedia of hockey fighting. The site includes news, bios, fighting leaders and breakdowns of every NHL fight over the past several years.
More on hockey fighting - Colby Cosh links to this story from ESPN on the Battle of the Hockey Gladiators. First two Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1071907848606057162003-12-20T02:10:00.000-06:002003-12-20T18:06:14.686-06:00Mark Steyn:
Saddam looking like a wino round the back of Waterloo Station meekly submitting to a lice inspection by an American soldier is a much better photo than Saddam's bullet-riddled corpse at the end of a shoot-out. When was the last time a Middle Eastern thug wound up on the receiving end of an infidel tongue depressor? For fellow dictators like Boy Assad, the sight of the Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-10710801528470152003-12-10T12:03:00.000-06:002003-12-12T00:10:43.123-06:00Making a mixed Christmas CD? Don't forget these:
The Best Christmas Songs of all Time!
Stevie Wonder - One Little Christmas Tree
Run DMC - Christmas in Hollis
U2 - Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
Badly Drawn Boy - Donna and Blitzen
Ella Fitzgerald - Sleigh Ride
The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl - Fairytale of New York
Kate Bush - December Will Be Magic Again
Bon Jovi - Please Come Home for Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1070929451555631912003-12-08T18:24:00.000-06:002003-12-09T00:55:57.796-06:00Revisiting Discover
Some days luck just seems to go out its way to find you. Last month, in the middle of what already had been a good day, I walked past a sidewalk trashcan and saw the October issue of Discover atop a relatively clean heap of other dry papers. I reached halfway down the can and grabbed it from the pile. Unusual I know - I'm not a big reader of paper magazines. Nonetheless, I Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1068760140880436972003-11-13T15:46:00.000-06:002003-11-29T02:58:37.466-06:00I thought I knew album covers. I don't - not by a longshot. From Andrew Sullivan I found this wonderful collection: The Worst Album Covers Ever II (the first one is here).
And speaking of music, is White Stripes drummer Meg White a robot?
By way of the Gothamist I found this piece from last month's Guardian on their pick of The 40 greatest US bands today. I'm not going to get into the wisdom ofScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1068428298121849622003-11-09T19:38:00.000-06:002003-11-13T16:02:17.763-06:00I've been reading some interesting geopolitical pieces lately - and yeah, some on our friends 'Old Europe' too.
James Pinkerton writes on the power blocs he sees happening in the near future:
...the American Bloc, led by, obviously, the United States...the Eurasian Bloc, led by France, Germany, and Russia...the East Asian Bloc, led by China.
It's a terrific read about the shifting politicalScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1067538735178243902003-10-30T12:32:00.000-06:002003-11-09T19:14:51.123-06:00Now that Mars is almost gone I guess it's time to blog again. Actually the distraction of other blogs has been mostly responsible. After some slow reading in August, the past couple of months has been a delightful avalanche. There has been so much good reading that I've barely had time to catch it all - let alone read and rant about it. I did find quite a few goodies, big and small, that I Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1062177640970536142003-08-29T12:20:00.000-05:002003-08-31T01:35:25.520-05:00Wow - two days of posting in one month - you know I spoil you. A couple of different pieces to cap off the summer - nothing fancy. I wanted to post my blackout adventure as it was quite exceptional but one thing I didn't want this blog to be was a diary of any kind, and since I didn't really have a point to make about the whole ordeal I thought I would just leave it for another time.
For now, Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1062176368122030952003-08-29T11:59:00.000-05:002003-08-29T12:00:47.913-05:00The Claw-handed Whirlyball Girl
One interesting topic I've read much about in the last couple of years is a trend that has seen the polarization of people that either admire or respect power (as I tend to do) with those who hate or fear it (you all know by now who I'm talking about). Professional sports dynasties, war generals, great thinkers, world empires - political and economic, spacecraft, Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1062176153897761872003-08-29T11:55:00.000-05:002003-08-29T12:02:05.923-05:00A Homo Summer
The past few months has been busy for the gay community. With Canada's same-sex marriage recognition, the Supreme Court ruling on sodomy, and the queer Episcopalian priest, there's been a lot of gay in the air. Even Wal-Mart jumped into the fray with their non-discriminatory policy toward the hiring of homosexuals.
For a straight guy, I've known more than my share of queers. I've Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1060648469727822722003-08-11T19:34:00.000-05:002003-08-12T17:13:40.756-05:00I didn't have any music or reading room goodies this time around so I thought I'd serve up a few oddities:
* * *
A 1990 Guitar Player interview with Johnny Marr featuring his list of 10 Ways to Avoid Becoming a Guitar Hero
1. Quit a wildly successful band - and turn down offers from other successful bands - for musical reasons.
2. Avoid solos whenever possible.
3. Play few single-note Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1060645283018145822003-08-11T18:41:00.000-05:002003-08-12T17:27:29.000-05:00Post Iraq
Prior to the invasion of Iraq, I wasn't sure what kind of behavior we would see from the anti-war left during the occupation. They could either lick their (mainly self imposed) wounds and get ready for the next cause (Iran? Saudi Arabia? Syria?) or they could stagnate and dwell on past arguments. Interestingly, they have opted for the latter. With a renewed furor again directed at the Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-1059448317015133612003-07-28T22:11:00.000-05:002003-08-11T18:45:13.516-05:00CNN Beauty Pageant
I pretty much decided some time ago that compared to the news and analysis available online, CNN was and still is a joke. The sociological scatter of community oddities, pop medicine, entertainment tabloid, and diluted political debate all delivered with delicate concern for the tender viewer often makes CNN look too much like infotainment. Satisfying but never filling.
Like Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-959393912003-06-23T03:36:00.000-05:002003-06-23T18:30:21.000-05:00The reading room has been updated with something for cogsci (Andy Clark's Natural Born Cyborgs), military (The Commander by Fred Barnes), and music (a long Frank Zappa interview) fans.
I've also updated the blogroll - farewell to Dawson and Pandavox, hello to about a dozen others. A few notables - Boing Boing: a site of wonderful things is certainly that. Art, science, technology, and some Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-959317832003-06-22T21:54:00.000-05:002003-08-11T19:36:30.783-05:00Slappyfeatherwhistle
Ever heard of the nose flute? Neither had I until about two weeks ago. As esoteric as the ocarina or the didgeridoo, they seem to come in two main varieties - simple and exotic. These ones look and sound like mini flutes and from what I listened to, sounded quite nice. A smaller, wooden sound to go with the wispy breaths of the nose. I couldn't tell you if what I was Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-959316372003-06-22T21:48:00.000-05:002003-06-22T21:48:52.180-05:00Big media on the ropes
Since high school we've been taught that anything owned, managed, and maintained by lowly humans will be subject to the same gaffes, misperceptions, and biases that we ourselves are. We all screw up and we all cloud our judgments according to our unique tendencies to do so. Accepted is that even some of our most important services - government, medicine, and education - Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-951387222003-05-31T21:47:00.000-05:002003-06-22T21:52:21.000-05:00A curious email:
'Boris the Spider' is the coolest bass riff of all time. Thanks for the bone.
No name, nothing else, but s/he's right - the bass rarely gets its due in the pop-rock world. I actually prefer writing songs on the bass since I find it easier to play with the tempo, and surprisingly the chord progressions, when trying to figure out where I want the song to go. If I had one I'd Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-947240072003-05-22T00:55:00.000-05:002003-05-22T00:55:06.753-05:00The the opinion section of my linkroll, the music page, and the reading room have been updated (don't miss Paul Buhle's The New Scholarship of Comics and Steven Strogatz's Who Cares About Fireflies?).
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-942449682003-05-12T23:19:00.000-05:002003-06-21T01:50:37.000-05:00Rock's Greatest Guitar Riff
(note: for users of Windows 2000 and up, the audio samples should open in your browser - others will likely see default media players open)
Next to Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry wields perhaps the greatest influence in rock and roll's history. The two had much in common; they were the best at fusing popular country and blues styles into a definition of rock and roll, Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-940294562003-05-08T22:12:00.000-05:002003-05-09T04:34:49.000-05:00Well, after a finely rested month, I'm back at it. For several reasons, I needed a holiday from all things academic (philosophy), geopolitical (the war), humor (the U.N.), or pity (Canada). I didn't completely disappear - the music page and the reading room have been updated (including this gem on America's worst intellectual - the anti-Semitic, pro-Pol Pot Noam Chomsky). Though I don't plan on Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-921630552003-04-07T13:07:00.000-05:002003-04-07T13:07:14.606-05:00Ralph Peters on the intelligence booty that we can expect from Iraq:
The Iraqi regime was a bureaucracy of terror. But it was, above all, a bureaucracy. It kept voluminous files. The secret police, diplomatic and executive archives will hold information on all the region's secret deals, as well as on the private lives and personal corruption of virtually every leader, cabinet member and senior Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-921624412003-04-07T12:56:00.000-05:002003-04-07T12:56:36.013-05:00Canadian idiocy roundup:
Mark Kingwell:
This war is unjust by any measure considered valid in the long tradition of philosophical and legal argument that stretches from Saint Augustine, through Pufendorf and Grotius, to the Geneva Convention and the Nuremberg trials.
I wonder how much the typical liberated Iraqi cares about Western philosophical and legal argument.
Antonia Zerbisias:
It Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-921612122003-04-07T12:36:00.000-05:002003-04-07T12:36:43.246-05:00After two and a half weeks, allied military bases are springing up throughout Iraq, public and civilian interests have been remarkably tended to (low casualty rate, secure oil wells, aid delivery and distribution), and the cities have been more than successfully engaged. A generous guess would give another three weeks for total control of all the major cities, including Baghdad, and maybe anotherScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-920717962003-04-05T22:20:00.000-06:002003-04-05T22:23:17.000-06:00Also in the National Review, an excellent piece from Victor Davis Hanson. Amidst another lesson in geopolitics, he nails the Canada-Mexico connection:
There is not much need to speak of the governments of Canada and Mexico. More liberal trade agreements and concessions with Mr. Chretien are about as dead as open borders are with Mr. Fox. It is the singular achievement of the present Canadian Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-920715442003-04-05T22:14:00.000-06:002003-04-05T22:14:22.890-06:00Jonah Goldberg is thinking ahead:
Iraq has a bad brand name, marketing-wise. The country needs a fresh start. Any new name should be one a people can take pride in, while at the same time sending a positive, Western-oriented message to the world and its citizens alike. Also, we need to make it clear that we will not allow others to henpeck us. It seems to me there is one name which satisfies allScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-920708972003-04-05T21:58:00.000-06:002003-04-05T21:58:39.076-06:00What's more interesting - armchair Rumsfelds of armchair generals? Bill Keller has a bit of both.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-920703852003-04-05T21:46:00.000-06:002003-04-05T23:13:50.000-06:00Margaret MacMillan has a good piece in the National Post on the Arab fixation with Israel.
My working theory of how the Middle East became such a mess goes back another hundred years when the Arabs were usurped of their world power status by the Europeans and East Asians. They have been in a steady state of regression since the early 1800's and have contributed to the progress of world Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-920674502003-04-05T20:30:00.000-06:002003-04-05T20:30:36.293-06:00Only Mark Steyn could have linked SARS and the battle in Iraq:
I tuned in to the CBC the other night and saw the pews of a church. No church in particular, just the nearest church to the CBC's Washington office. But, as the lugubrious tones of Senior Correspondent Brian Stewart made clear, that was all they needed:
"Noon today in war time Washington. More churches offer moments of quiet Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-917994692003-04-01T16:39:00.000-06:002003-04-01T16:43:09.000-06:00Blogging has been light in the last week and will be for the next few days as I'm in the middle of a downloading frenzy. To date - 19000 songs, a couple thousand thousand videos, a couple thousand music lessons and transcripts, a thousand essays and articles, several hundred books, and about a hundred soundclips.
My name is Scot and I have a problem.
(I only have another 50 or 60 years left toScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-912499172003-03-23T19:15:00.000-06:002003-03-23T19:16:08.000-06:00Spin has its latest top 40 list up. I find it interesting how many different ways you can write 'current top 40 artists.' From what I remember, Spin has always worded this mantle awkwardly (this time, it's 'Top 40: The most important artists making music right now'). Then again, Spin still thinks of itself as the hippest thing going ever since they were one of the first magazines to carry Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-912479622003-03-23T18:34:00.000-06:002003-03-23T18:34:24.670-06:00I've been tidying up my favorites files the last couple of days and came across a few goodies:
The video of the AC-130 Gunship in action over the mountains of Afghanistan last year. Strategy Page has a pile of videos like these as well as some really cool pics.
20Q. No explanation - just go play it.
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Solar System Simulator. Ever wonder what Saturn looks like Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911495022003-03-21T16:38:00.000-06:002003-03-21T18:16:07.000-06:00I just listened to Iraq's Mohammed Aldouri lambasting the UN for allowing the Zionist charged, racist, imperial war on his country.
He really needs to work on his English.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911480322003-03-21T16:07:00.000-06:002003-03-21T16:10:10.000-06:00I've updated the reading room with another dozen essays and pieces. Here are a few favorites that I didn't get around to posting on my blog:
The Sound of Philosophy by Dmitri Tymoczko
(fascinating look at the music of Milton Babbitt and John Cage)
Which Is the Fly and Which Is the Human? by Lynn Snowden
(what a find! - an interview with William S. Burroughs and David Cronenberg)
The Starving Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911404252003-03-21T13:36:00.000-06:002003-03-21T13:36:08.780-06:00Executive Order: Confiscating and Vesting Certain Iraqi Property
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, and in order to take Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911396122003-03-21T13:20:00.000-06:002003-03-21T13:20:03.983-06:00Viking Pundit has the New York Times in his crosshairs:
Although I had girded myself, still I was shocked by the besotted equivocation of the New York Times’ main editorial today “The War Begins.” This noxious spackle, slapped against the wall in the most desultory and unprincipled manner, isn’t fit for The Mini Page, much less the paper that holds itself up as the paper of record. If Andrew Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911372032003-03-21T12:31:00.000-06:002003-03-21T12:31:37.310-06:00A roundup of some of my favorite Canadian columnists:
Margaret Wente
Your time's up, Saddam. History will judge you for exactly what you are. As for how history judges Canada -- well, I'm ashamed to think about that.
Clifford Orwin
The implications for Canada are clearer, simply because we have abdicated all responsibility in the matter. Never has our role in the world been less significant Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911318562003-03-21T10:50:00.000-06:002003-03-21T10:50:07.310-06:00Dan Goure on the crippled status of the UN and NATO :
What is clear, and frightening to some, is that different camps have emerged in the international system with rather diametrically opposed views about the basis for security in the 21st Century. One side, a radical faction led by France, Germany and Russia, believes in achieving security through the expansion of the powers of international Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911309752003-03-21T10:34:00.000-06:002003-03-21T10:34:19.653-06:00For the last couple of days I've been scanning as many news agencies and media outlets as possible (all found on my linkroll). I have a few go-tos based on quality and quantity of information since I don't have time to read everything I want. These are my most popular news sites:
ABC News
Washington Post / Associated Press - world
Kuwait Times - local news
Haaretz Daily (Israel)
White House newsScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-911300012003-03-21T10:16:00.000-06:002003-03-21T10:16:29.356-06:00I was going to do some bloggin yesterday but there was this REALLY COOL WAR ON TV.
BOO-YAH!!!
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-910152982003-03-19T15:40:00.000-06:002003-03-19T15:41:44.000-06:00Despite not having posted it, I keep getting search hits for this really old Maxim article on Saddam Hussein's sons called Blood Brothers. Enjoy.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-910118002003-03-19T14:38:00.000-06:002003-03-19T14:38:17.936-06:00A tale of two war strategies.
David Warren on Saddam:
His defence of Baghdad is intended as the main show. Around that he has placed a double-ring of conventional artillery formations, behind trenches many of which have been flooded with oil. The idea of creating a smokescreen against aerial attack is a vain one: GPS technology no longer requires clear sight on the ground. And the overt ring Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-910109252003-03-19T14:22:00.000-06:002003-03-19T14:23:09.000-06:00I had never heard of this before - the Blue Star Service Banner:
A Blue Star Service Banner displayed in the window of a home is a tradition in America. The Banner lets others know that someone in this home is serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. As citizens steel themselves for the long and difficult "War on Terrorism" the Blue Star Service Banner tradition reminds us all that this new war touchesScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909984602003-03-19T10:36:00.000-06:002003-03-19T13:45:26.000-06:00I need to read more from this guy. Jonathan Rauch (last month's most popular introvert) on what we are doing about North Korea.
(from Andrew Sullivan)
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909979002003-03-19T10:25:00.000-06:002003-03-19T13:44:55.000-06:00Terrific piece, with a couple of dozen linked references, from Edward Driscoll on Hollywood Stasism vs. Valley Dynamism.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909966872003-03-19T10:02:00.000-06:002003-03-19T13:43:49.000-06:00Good memes, bad memes, and the superstition of weather. Interesting piece from Sallie Baliunas.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909945412003-03-19T09:23:00.000-06:002003-03-19T09:29:18.000-06:00Richard Sezibera, Rwanda's ambassador to the United States, writes today in the Washington Post on The Lesson Of Rwanda.
Rwandans believe that the international community needs to learn from its mistakes. Sadly, that seems not to be happening. We are not members of the Security Council, and we do not know whether Saddam Hussein possesses weapons of mass destruction and is therefore a danger to Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909935512003-03-19T09:04:00.000-06:002003-03-19T09:04:26.546-06:00A few days ago I linked to a piece from John Ibbitson on how bilingualism dilutes Ottawa's talent. Here's another one from westerner Gordon Gibson.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909493732003-03-18T16:11:00.000-06:002003-03-18T16:30:05.000-06:00Koizumi backs Bush ultimatum threatening war on Iraq
Japan expressed support on Tuesday for U.S. President George Bush's ultimatum pressing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to choose within hours to go into exile or face war, effectively giving up diplomatic efforts to settle the crisis peacefully.
"Now that it is determined that the extremely dangerous regime of Saddam Hussein has no intention Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909490812003-03-18T16:05:00.000-06:002003-03-18T16:11:58.000-06:00A few goodies from Instapundit:
DaghtatorBlog has the latest from Denmark including Danish contributions to the war effort as well as an attack on Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen by a crazed activist.
This story from Yahoo - Powell: 30 Nations Support U.S. on Iraq
Secretary of State Colin Powell said Tuesday that 30 nations have declared varying levels of support and 15 others have Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909353522003-03-18T11:58:00.000-06:002003-03-18T11:59:43.000-06:00Social psychology and software. Interesting article from Discover's Steven Johnson.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909349182003-03-18T11:50:00.000-06:002003-03-18T11:50:28.186-06:00Rand Simberg lays a nice fisking on Michael Moore's letter to George Bush.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909345052003-03-18T11:42:00.000-06:002003-03-18T12:25:09.000-06:00I, Clone. Michael Shermer from Skeptic Magazine offers three ethical laws for the advancement of cloning:
1. A human clone is a human being no less unique in his or her personhood than an identical twin.
2. A human clone has all the rights and privileges that accompany this legal and moral status.
3. A human clone is to be accorded the dignity and respect due any member of our species.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909336202003-03-18T11:26:00.000-06:002003-03-18T11:26:46.856-06:00From Victor Davis Hanson's latest:
Critics have claimed that Mr. Bush has backed himself into a corner; it is hard to see how when his promise was democracy and freedom for a tyrannized Iraq. We should not underestimate the power of his message of human liberty or the need of overwhelming force to ensure it. The EU, the U.N., NATO, the European street, the American Left, and a host of others, byScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909328962003-03-18T11:13:00.000-06:002003-03-18T11:17:03.000-06:00Jeffrey Simpson still looking for any anti-American angle possible:
In this war, Americans -- whatever their hesitations and doubts -- are still so traumatized by 9/11 and fearful of future terrorist attacks that they support the President.
No, stupid. They are at war and THEY WANT TO WIN. They do not support the POTUS because they are scared and need someone to hold their hands. They support Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909324432003-03-18T11:05:00.000-06:002003-03-18T11:05:26.403-06:00Andrew Sullivan on the war:
This would be true even if Iraq were not already in violation of umpteen U.N. resolutions. It would be true even if Saddam didn't pose a genuine threat to the region and, via terrorists, to the West itself. How much more morally indefensible is appeasement when we also have complete international authority to do what must be done? I think we will look back in the Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-909319952003-03-18T10:57:00.000-06:002003-03-18T10:57:36.170-06:00Mark Steyn comes to Rummy's defence:
Alas, last week Rummy's ruminations on rummy nations finally alighted, as they were bound to eventually, on the United Kingdom. The Defence Secretary made some mild remarks to the effect that, if Britain weren't able to participate in the war on Iraq, it wouldn't make much difference. Even some of his cheerleaders on the right thought this was a tad Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908748622003-03-17T14:47:00.000-06:002003-03-17T14:48:45.000-06:00Canada will not participate in war: PM
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien said Monday that Canada would not participate in any war on Iraq without UN approval.
"We have always maintained that we need UN approval [to act]," he said, adding that this has always been Canada's position.
The Prime Minister made the statement in the House of Commons in Question Period, and it was greeted with thunderous Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908189882003-03-16T15:49:00.000-06:002003-03-16T15:49:45.326-06:00At this writing, a Google search for "Great French Inventions" yields 8 results.
(from Pave France, the British need more parking)
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908187052003-03-16T15:43:00.000-06:002003-03-16T15:43:06.653-06:00Tim Blair notes an interesting paradox.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908186322003-03-16T15:41:00.000-06:002003-03-16T15:41:35.076-06:00There's stupid, and then there's stupid.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908107862003-03-16T12:05:00.000-06:002003-03-16T12:05:18.436-06:00Spot On found this Italian blogger last week and I'm glad she did. Check out this post that already has my vote for comic of the year.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908106592003-03-16T12:01:00.000-06:002003-03-16T12:01:35.560-06:00The French don't exclusively screw with European domestic policy, they also screw with Canada's. Here's an interesting piece from the Globe and Mail on how Canada's bilingualism has reduced Ottawa's talent.
Whatever the intent, the effect of enforcing bilingualism in the mandarinate is to weight its numbers disproportionately in favour of Quebeckers. (Not all Quebeckers, though -- 54 per cent ofScotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908104252003-03-16T11:55:00.000-06:002003-03-16T11:55:05.233-06:00This interview with Inspector Hans Blix Clouseau has been all over the blogosphere so what the hell - here it is. A few money quotes:
Even so, personally I don't understand what they would use chemical or biological weapons for any longer
They've changed I tells ya. I can't prove it, but I have this hunch.
Every little part of our lives is dependent upon multilateral decisions.
Speak for Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908084182003-03-16T10:56:00.000-06:002003-03-16T10:56:17.030-06:00Another reason why David Warren is one of my favorite war journalists:
George Will pointed, this last week, to the height of absurdity to which the U.N. has ascended. "The Holy Roman Empire was neither holy nor Roman nor an empire, the United Nations is a disunited collection of regimes, many of which do not represent the nations they govern."
When its own Secretary General, Kofi Annan, avers Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-908083142003-03-16T10:53:00.000-06:002003-03-16T15:53:40.000-06:00I haven't done much blogging in the last few days as I've been tied up with a few music projects. As a result, my visits have been less frequent than usual. For search engine results at least, these cheap and tawdry stories should give my hits a bit of a boost.
Spice Girl Geri Halliwell: "I've had lesbian fling"
Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci to share a very hot, very naked lesbian scene Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905844882003-03-12T07:22:00.000-06:002003-03-12T12:31:44.000-06:00Lad-lit a new literary genre? Rick Marin's Cad: Confessions of a Toxic Bachelor is causing a bit of a stir.
(from Bookslut)
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905840442003-03-12T07:10:00.000-06:002003-03-12T07:13:00.000-06:00Clifford Orwin has a terrific article on America's justification for pre-emption. He concludes it with this:
There are only two possibilities, lefties. Saddam either goes, or he stays. "Objectively speaking," as you like to say, you're on the side of his staying. And he loves you for it. That the Americans will oust him in spite of you is good news for his suffering subjects, bad news only for Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905829682003-03-12T06:39:00.000-06:002003-03-12T06:39:22.043-06:00Reciprocation, retaliation, and revenge. Interesting piece from Susan Gaidos.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905614212003-03-11T20:53:00.000-06:002003-03-11T20:53:15.140-06:00Last week I posted an article about kinship and ants. Here's one on crows.
(from Science Blog)
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905569292003-03-11T19:30:00.000-06:002003-03-11T21:42:11.000-06:00David Warren confirms an uncomfortable suspicion:
Mr. Blair has started to hedge his bets. Though he declared he was willing to lose his job, to stand by what he believed in, he, too, has begun "to weasel". The British foreign office yesterday began to make distance from the U.S. position, and cast doubt on whether Britain would keep its promise to act in Iraq even without U.N. support. Mr. Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905555632003-03-11T19:04:00.000-06:002003-03-11T19:04:08.216-06:00Butterflies and wheels has put together a useful dictionary for those who prefer the more concrete disciplines such as pseudoscience and postmodernism. Here are a few choice entries:
Accuracy: Exploded concept. Foolish, Platonic notion that we can get our facts straight.
Argument: Unpleasant, testosterone-driven method of supporting one's assertions, to be avoided in favour of acceptance.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905542582003-03-11T18:39:00.000-06:002003-03-11T19:32:37.000-06:00Michael Fitzpatrick explains therapeutic pi:
'One in four' is the pi of the therapeutic society. With a remarkable consistency, surveys of the prevalence of different forms of illness or victimhood yield the same 'one in four' result. Thus 'one in four' women have experienced domestic violence, 'one in four' children are victims of abuse, 'one in four' children live in poverty, 'one in four' Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-905529832003-03-11T18:14:00.000-06:002003-03-11T18:15:48.000-06:00Eric Margolis plays the perfect foil for common sense with this piece: Why France is America's true friend. In case you haven't stopped laughing, let me say this article is no joke. Margolis is the Toronto Sun's favorite America basher and he is being nothing but sincere when he writes:
France, which speaks with the strongest, most logical voice of those opposing war...
...George Bush's Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-904012582003-03-09T08:38:00.000-06:002003-03-09T08:38:51.403-06:00Kay Hymowitz rips into Western feminists:
Today feminists celebrate International Women's Day. But don't expect to see any banners proclaiming the rights and dignity of women in the Muslim world, even though many women there are not allowed to drive, vote or venture out of the house alone. Nor will there be any mention of women who are expected to cheerfully endure, in the discreet words of the Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-904010392003-03-09T08:30:00.000-06:002003-03-09T08:30:38.140-06:00Good piece from Right Wing News on anti-Americanism throughout the 20th century. I particularly like his conclusion:
The truth is that if we're doing anything because we expect gratitude from another country, we're going to be sadly disappointed down the road. Maybe some of their citizens may appreciate what we've done, but even that is probably going to be very short-lived. Now why is that? Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-904003952003-03-09T08:05:00.000-06:002003-03-09T08:05:40.000-06:00This is too funny:
Terrified Iraqi soldiers have crossed the Kuwait border and tried to surrender to British forces - because they thought the war had already started.
The motley band of a dozen troops waved the white flag as British paratroopers tested their weapons during a routine exercise.
The stunned Paras from 16 Air Assault Brigade were forced to tell the Iraqis they were not firing at Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-904002722003-03-09T08:00:00.000-06:002003-03-09T08:00:24.436-06:00A few gems from the New York Times:
Charles Siebert looks at the psychology of face transplants.
The microcosm marriage - how nanotechnology, biotechnology, electronics and brain research is looking to converge.
A review of Jay Martin's The Education of John Dewey.
A quick interview with the White Stripes.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-903975902003-03-09T05:59:00.000-06:002003-03-09T09:43:39.000-06:00Don Sellar, Rick Anderson and Linda McQuaiq. All those who injected at least a modicum of thought into their editorials this weekend please take a step forward.
(not so fast McQuaig)
Don Sellar:
What was surprising was some offbase commentary in the Star.
Media columnist Antonia Zerbisias, inaccurately contended Mohammed "has been mysteriously promoted from a minor scowling face on the FBI's Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-903172852003-03-07T13:45:00.000-06:002003-03-07T13:45:46.920-06:00Thought of the day:
Hard work may pay off later, but laziness always pays off immediately.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-903169722003-03-07T13:38:00.000-06:002003-03-07T13:38:53.496-06:00Mark Kingwell: 'check'
Mark Steyn: 'checkmate'
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-903158052003-03-07T13:14:00.000-06:002003-03-07T13:14:51.920-06:00Slate has seen the Borg - and it is us.
(from Derek James)
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-901998552003-03-05T16:38:00.000-06:002003-03-07T12:11:33.000-06:00Headline in today's Toronto Star: Bush set to do battle alone. They must have missed this piece from Yahoo last week.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-901970432003-03-05T15:49:00.000-06:002003-03-05T16:18:42.000-06:00Steven Den Beste gives another lesson in logical discourse as the honest debater.
Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-901962682003-03-05T15:36:00.000-06:002003-03-05T15:59:27.000-06:00Screech has a rough night:
Childhood fans of "Saved by the Bell" may have gotten much more than they wanted Thursday night when Dustin Diamond brought his mostly adult show to the Indiana Memorial Union's Alumni Hall.
The show sold out, but any late arrival could have found a seat without much inconvenience. A few aisle seats and spots in the back row opened up halfway through the performance. Scotnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3542396.post-901908492003-03-05T13:57:00.000-06:002003-03-05T14:40:27.000-06:00Good read from Carol Tavris on one of modern psychology's favorite battles: scientists versus therapists.
I fear that the scientist-therapist gap is a done deal. There are too many economic and institutional supports for it, in spite of yearly exhortations by every president of the American Psychological Association for "unity" and "cooperation." That's why, in the late 1980s, a group of Scotnoreply@blogger.com