December 31, 2004

Best Linkage of 2004

Just like my My Totally Incomplete Best Of's List, here is my list of Interesting Writing/Interesting Links of 2004. This list is much more complete, and is a "best of" of all the links I made this year.

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My Totally Incomplete Best Of's List

Here is my totally incomplete Best of 2004 List. I have had this in my queue for well over a month trying to come up with items I like and order them in groups of 5. But I have failed. Badly. So here is my incomplete (and missing important subjects) list of things I liked best in 2004. Isn't this just a pathetic little list?

Music

  1. The Grey Album - Jay Z and DJ Danger Mouse
    What can I say? Take one part Jay-Z lyrics, add one part Beatles White Album, mixed well by an unknown DJ and you get an album that has been imitated to death this year. If you haven't downloaded and listened to this album, you don't know what a good mix tape is.
  2. A Night at the Hip-Hopera - The Kleptones
    The Kleptones are at it again with a mash-up between Queen and all sorts of Hip Hop they have collected. It is interesting that my two top favorite albums of the year are both illegal and only available over the internet. Hello, record companies, this should tell you something about your "product."
  3. Permission to Land - The Darkness
    OK, so it is a silly album, and the band dresses all silly too, but damn can The Darkness Scream!
  4. Good News For People Who Love Bad News - Modest Mouse
    Yes, Virginia, the first time you hear this album you probably will not like it - give it time
  5. Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
    What another silly band.

Photoblog Sites (in no discernible order)

Best new Insert Noun Here

Best "Best of 2004" List

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December 29, 2004

December 28, 2004

December 26, 2004

December 25, 2004

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! I don't make it a point of preaching on this site - mostly because I don't believe in evangelicalism. If you want to talk about faith and Christianity (and how they are distinctly different) I am open to that. But preaching the good word does does not mean forcing it into peoples heart.

With that through, I want to share two of my favorite Christmas songs. The first is Hark! the herald angels sing and the second is O come, all ye faithful.

Hark! the herald angels sing

Hark! The herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn king;
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled."
Joyful, all you nations, rise;
Join the triumph of the skies;
With angelic hosts proclaim,
"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"
Hark! The herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn king!"

O come, all ye faithful

Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God
In the highest:
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.

When my grandmother died, my granddad said that every time he heard the line in O come, all ye faithful, "Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!" he thought of grandma singing from heaven to all of us. Every time I hear this song I recall that conversation, and remember all of the good times with my grandparents and I can't help but cry. But they are also tears of joy because there is Heaven, where we are brought back to God when we pass from this life onto the next. There is a great force in the world which creates a great faith but which sometimes becomes twisted by men's religion. But that is a conversation for another time.

So, Happy Christmas!

There will be light posting until the new year.

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December 22, 2004

December 21, 2004

Christmas Music

Make-a-Flake - A snowflake maker by Lookandfeel new media

So, I love good Christmas music. Unfortunately it is harder hand harder to find good (or contemporary) Christmas music. I just heard Avril Lavigne try to sing O Holy Night and falling flat on the ground, lacking any dynamic range needed for O Holy Night.

In order to help spread good Christmas music, here are links to sites who have put together good Christmas music mixes. More will be added if I find them or if people point me to them.

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Kodachrome, They give us those nice bright colors

movie poster

Check out Justin Ouellette's new short film, Le Requin Mort shot on an old 8mm camera. It is pretty good. He shot it on a Nikon 8x Super Zoom camera on Kodachrome, had it digitized and edited on Final Cut Pro. The draw for me is the use of old and new technology to create art which, a few years ago, would have cost thousands of dollars. We really are in an age of artistic production where barriers of entry are falling.

I found an old 8mm or 16mm (I can't remember) camera at a junk sale last year, but didn't buy it because I didn't want to dive into another expensive hobby. That, and I didn't have a clue where to buy or develop the roll film. But after seeing Justin's short and his accompanying links to an inexpensive developer - K14 Movies - and digitizer, I might have to go and find myself an 8mm or 16mm camera.

I already have an idea of what I would want to shot. It would (somehow) involve riding the subway and watching people go by in the express car when you are in the local car. Something about being able to see through the darkness to the other subway car beside you as you travel through the NYC subway system is very provocative.

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The People Have Spoken

cartoon

I can't believe I missed this cartoon from MNFTIU - Get Your War On. This is what you voted for, and this is the result:

A document released for the first time today by the American Civil Liberties Union suggests that President Bush issued an Executive Order authorizing the use of inhumane interrogation methods against detainees in Iraq. Also released by the ACLU today are a slew of other records including a December 2003 FBI e-mail that characterizes methods used by the Defense Department as "torture" and a June 2004 "Urgent Report" to the Director of the FBI that raises concerns that abuse of detainees is being covered up.
...
The two-page e-mail that references an Executive Order states that the President directly authorized interrogation techniques including sleep deprivation, stress positions, the use of military dogs, and "sensory deprivation through the use of hoods, etc." The ACLU is urging the White House to confirm or deny the existence of such an order and immediately to release the order if it exists. The FBI e-mail, which was sent in May 2004 from "On Scene Commander--Baghdad" to a handful of senior FBI officials, notes that the FBI has prohibited its agents from employing the techniques that the President is said to have authorized.

I know I have said I am trying to move away from wholly posting about politics, but there is absolutely no use America has for torture. Period.

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December 20, 2004

December 19, 2004

MoMA gates

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The gates of the MoMA at night.

December 18, 2004

December 17, 2004

Statue

Statue

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Statue from the MoMA.

Reclamation of Space

Parked in Desert, Waiting Out the Winter of Life

Five miles down is the sign, "Welcome to Slab City," marking the entrance of this former World War II military base. The only suggestion of life this night was the flickering of campfires. At a makeshift mission, some men stood around a fire, casting silhouettes with a vaguely sinister feel.

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Misspelling "Challenges" - Unpossible!

image

Right from the President's Economic Conference, complete with large signs in front and on the backdrop (supposedley so the President can remember where he is), comes this gem. They spelled "challenges" with two "a's" - "challanges." I know I don't always spell words correctly, but I'm not employed by the Executive Branch and I know how to use spell check.

This would all be very funny if this "Economic Conference" wasn't about ending Social Security and creating a false Social Security crisis. Let's be very clear about this: Social Security is fine until 2042-ish according to a 75-year projection. 10 years ago the Social Security fear mongers said Social Security was doomed (doomed!) in 35 years. Now we are 10 years down the road, and the same doomsday'rs say that Social Security is doomed (dooooooomed!) in 38 years. That's right, their claim is actually farther away than ten years ago! The President's whole argument is built on a lie that there is a crisis looming, and therefore we should destroy Social Security. And make no mistake, that is exactly what they are doing with "forced savings."

Keeping Social Security as is, and then letting people take money out of their paycheck (lets say 1-2%) in addition to current Social Security payroll taxes is a plan that I could agree with - and it would be actual reform. You get the safety net of the current plan, plus private savings accounts which would be icing on the cake. You could even take that extra 1-2% out pre-tax, thus saving middle-income citizens any penalty for private accounts. Add into this means-testing - those who make a lot of money don't need the safety net - and you can avert any made-up "crisis" down the road. Social Security does not need to be fundamentally changed and abolished for it to continue its' fundamental job as a safety net.

Do I expect the Bush Administration to even consider this proposal? No (and not just because I'm just some guy with a website). Conservatives have literally been chomping at the bit for years to end social programs and turn back New Deal programs. Now they make shit up about an impending crisis in order to incite fear among the populace. There is no crisis broad enough that Social Security must be abolished according the President Bush's plan. None. Small changes, yes. But do you really believe, or even trust this Administration who constantly lies about everything, to safely make changes to Social Security? Would you trust a doctor who continually performs the wrong operations on patients? No, no you shouldn't.

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December 16, 2004

Oil Can

image

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Great patina on metal (sterling silver?) can reflects more than light.

American Gentrifier

family image
image from from the Box Tank

I missed this, but apparently Queens is right for gentrification:

"It seems to be the next big thing,'' says Pamela Liebman, the president and chief executive of the Corcoran Group. "Queens has this gritty feel to it in parts, which makes it feel cool. When I go to speaking engagements and people ask what is the next big thing, a lot of speakers are starting to say, 'Queens, Queens, Queens.' "

"there is sort of constellation, almost a critical mass, of visual art in Long Island City," Mr. McMillan said.

"You get the artists and sculptors hanging around, opening up studios and living in that area," he said. "That is exactly the kind of thing you want for the development and creation of a new neighborhood."

Sounds about right: figure out which neighborhoods have large artist populations, talk up the neighborhood as the "next big thing," allow large developments, raise rents, displace the poor and artists leaving the Upper East Side-like neighborhoods where a thriving, ethnically-diverse neighborhood was.

How to fight it? I don't know - but I think there may be no way to fight gentrification.

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December 15, 2004

MoMA Gallery

MoMA Gallery

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From the top gallery of the new MoMA space.

Jargon and Rail

So tooling around some rail-geek forums, one constantly encounters jargon and acronyms, seemingly used as barriers of entry for the uninitiated. Case in point:

First off, the Grand Jct. would be totally out of the way. Secondly it is FRA Excepted track, which means no revenue service could be run over it in it's current condition.
- CSX Conductor

I also forgot to mention that many avatars and usernames either come directly from railroads or railroad-type nouns - ie: CSX Conductor. Uber-geeky, indeed. The point of this story, is that often I have to google search things to figure out what the crap people are talking about. In this case I wondered what "FRA Excepted track" was - a combination of an acronym and apparent jargon.

Well, FRA is the Federal Railroad Administration which is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation which oversees all railroads in the U.S. - interstate commerce clause and all. As for Excepted track, here is a summary:

The revised track safety regulations include a stricter, safer standard for "excepted track." Track lines designated by railroads as "excepted" are exempt from compliance with minimum requirements for roadbed, track geometry and track structure. The excepted track provision, which has been part of the track safety regulations for more than 15 years, permits railroads to conduct limited, slow-speed operations over substandard trackage on low density lines where it is unlikely that a derailment would endanger anyone along the right-of-way.

Under the revised regulations, excepted track will have to meet a minimum gauge requirement, and railroads will be obligated to perform periodic inspections of switches on excepted track. This change is designed to reduce the number and severity of derailments on trackage of many marginal lines.
- FRA 25 JUN 1998 Briefing

So there you go, we have two new words for our vocabulary, kids. Go forth and use them well!

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Women Wrestling

photo montageTara Neal, from Girl Wrestler

If you can, check out Girl Wrestler a short from Diane Zander which follows Tara Neal, a 13 year-old girl wrestler from Texas, on your local PBS station. The film touches, of course, on the impact of Title IX on girls' and boys' sports but also on how Tara works through a system which is both, brutal and adverse to change.

My policy on girls and women in such sports as wrestling, football, or rugby is similar to my stance on women in the military: if the girls can pin, wrestle, or chuck with the boys - let them. Same thing with women in the military: if women can kill people the same as men, they deserve to work in a forward position. However, we need to step back from these issues and look at what sport is. Sport itself, is the battle between two entities with the aim to win. Sport is the most beneficial when both sides have parity in ability, and most gripping when both sides are evenly matched.

With that being said, how do we allow girls to participate in contact sports, especially in high school, where there is a chance that girls will be overpowered by boys in many contact sports? I don't believe there is a "bright-line rule" which can be drawn. Where possible, there should be girl's contact sports available and as a last resort, allow girls to play on a case-by-case basis with boys. Seems easy enough, huh? If the girl can hit or pin she's in. Right...nothing is that easy.

It never is that easy because men, boys, and coaches probably won't allow girls to play, citing a need to "protect" the girl. How long did women fight to get into the Army, or into military academies? I don't have a solution to this, and in Tara's case, when she went to high school there were no other girls in her division, much less her weight class. She ended the season by sitting on the bench, and then later quit wrestling. To me, this is a shame: sport itself is not glorious - our exertion during sport is what is both exceptional and glorious and Tara was denied this. I am all for chivalrous protection of women, but they aren't fragile creatures for us big burly men (ha!) to protect. Again, if women want to kill (joining the military) or hit (by playing football) who are we to stop them? I have known many women who could (and have) kicked my butt - should we deny their chance at sport because we adhere to a faulty notion of gender? The answer is no.

An aside:
By the way, in the course of writing this post, I became more and more supportive of girls in contact sports. I just think that if people can play, they can compete. Maybe I am putting too much faith in people as being decent, fair, and adult about this issue.

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December 14, 2004

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe

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Our Lady of Guadalupe, patron saint of Mexico, was celebrated this past weekend in Greenpoint by the growing Mexican population. A processional worked its' way down the street on Saturday night and Sunday morning complete with Mariachi's (too bad the sun was so sharp because this is a great picture) playing in the rearguard.

See also the Our Lady of Guadalupe photo set.

Santacon 2004

photo by rayolivares

Santacon 2004 was this weekend, and while I was not able to attend, there are some great photos by rayolivares (photo above) and a gazillian images by smudge. For those not in the know, Santacon is a gathering of people dressed in Santa costumes who partake in a day-long pub crawl. NY Times covered it during the weekend:

Santa got drunk yesterday. He cursed. He smoked. He took off his clothes in public. It was Santacon, an annual gathering of nasty Santas, in which some 500 naughty Clauses marched through the city, shouting, drinking, raising gentle mayhem.

Santacon began 10 years ago in San Francisco, where 30 friends, disheartened by the happiness of Christmas, got together in their Santa suits and set out to have some fun. They crashed a dinner dance and stole people's drinks. Went to a strip club. Drank themselves silly. Some made it home. Others slept in the streets.

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MoMA Art Discussion

MoMA Art Discussion}

MoMA Art Discussion · by plemeljr

Photos from MoMA. More photos here.

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Umm, you had logs?

Before and after in the rain}

Before and after in the rain · by mathowie
"If they had logs over there (<---), and they had logs over there (--->), you would think that a phone call could clear things up."
- Brian Reagan

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December 13, 2004

North is That'a'way

North is That'a'way

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A compass rose in the sidewalk in Brooklyn Heights

Kerik burninated (but not by the DHS)

From today's Press Gaggle, Scott McClellan fields questions about Bernard Kerik, here is an interesting passage:

Q: Scott, Mr. Kerik said that when he was finally filling out some of those detailed forms, that's when it dawned on him that he might have a problem.

McCLELLAN: That's right.

Q: Would it be better, in the vetting process, to have that filled out beforehand, before he is nominated?

McCLELLAN: Well, I pointed out that they go through an awful -- they go through a pretty thorough vetting process in the initial phase. He did, and this -- I would point out to you that if you look at the nominations we have made, which I think are well over a thousand, less than -- well less than 1 percent have had to withdraw their nomination. I know Linda Chavez during the transition into the first term did, and then you have Commissioner Kerik. And I think that's -- it's a pretty solid record.

The fact is that the vetting process, as I mentioned, continues after the intent to nominate is made. And it was through that vetting process that this was discovered and brought to our attention. And so there are safeguards built in throughout the vetting process, and this was before the nomination went to the Senate.

Q: But I guess my question is, why wouldn't that stuff that caused the discovery be --

McCLELLAN: Well, as I pointed out in the initial phase of the vetting process -- I mean, before a nomination goes to the Senate you have to fill out more detailed confirmation or clearance forms. But as I pointed out in that -- in the vetting process, to some degree you have to rely on that candidate to provide you with all the information you need. And we make that clear up front that it's important that we are provided with all that information, and an accurate accounting of information.

I think that stands for itself, but may I add something more. Funny how the love den, or the multiple cases of infidelity, or Kerik's longstanding ties to mob-linked Jersey construction company, or Riker's becoming new Tammany Hall, or his unexplained departure from Iraq never came up in this "thorough vetting" (done by AG-nominee Albert Gonzales). Isn't anyone else a bit scared that the future AG can't handle a simple Cabinet-level vetting? It must be keeping someone up nights at 1600 trying to figure out which is the best way to spin this:

  1. Kerik didn't tell them the whole truth thus their vetting process didn't do its' job, or
  2. The President made the decision without proper vetting, and no one could (or would) properly advise him

Talk about balancing the world on a pin. This all goes back to the fact that DHS isn't a high priority and apparently no one at 1600 can properly advise the President, or, he doesn't listen to anyone once his mind has been made up. My guess this is latter case (see Iraq, 2002 Invasion of) but you can make up your own mind.

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December 12, 2004

December 11, 2004

December 10, 2004

Build your own Lens

To do: Build my own tilt-shift lens. Why should I pay $1000 for a Canon TS Lens? Time to scour eBay and the local shops for broken lenses.

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Make-a-Flake

Make-a-Flake - A snowflake maker by Lookandfeel new media

Make-a-Flake - A snowflake maker by Lookandfeel new media - tre cool.

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December 9, 2004

Darkened Cathedral

Darkened Cathedral

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I'm not all that hot about this picture, but I like the slight perspective distortion at the edges of the frame. They make St. John the Divine look like it came from a sci-fi movie. Cross-processed slide film, TS-24mm Canon lens.

See also Cross-processed Jesus, Peacock, Divine Powers, Retro Drain, FDNY Memorial

Hyper Accurate Camera (uses smoke and mirrors)

Photo by Clifford Ross courtesy of the NY Times

Via Boing Boing, comes a story of a hyper-accurate camera (image above) by Clifford Ross which uses 9-by-18-inch negatives and once scanned yields a 2.6-gigabyte file.

[The camera was] unusual enough to capture the attention of serious scientists, including the kinds who work for the government, experimenting with nuclear fusion, space travel and spy systems. What grabbed them were photographs Mr. Ross took that allowed them to see with astonishing clarity a tiny footpath on the top of a Colorado mountain seven miles from the camera.

Yesterday and today, Mr. Ross is talking gigapixels, art and the essence of visual comprehension with a dozen scientists, at a meeting at New York University. This summit, closed to the public, was organized by Mr. Ross and his new scientific pals at the government's Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, which specializes in matters pertaining to nuclear weapons and threats to national security.

"We're good at making big computers," said Carl Diegert, lead computational and imaging scientist at Sandia. But, Mr. Diegert said, when scientists look at pictures of the space shuttle, for example, they may not see things as clearly as they might. "We're trying to find how the human emotional part comes into play in finding a crack in the space shuttle. Clifford has figured out how to catch all this information at a moment in time."

I have seen large format cameras before, which allow you to take very sharp pictures due to the fact that your negative is larger than the standard 35mm film size. I use 4" x 5" negatives for my pinhole cameras and the resolution is great because there is close to 4 times the amount of information on the negative (web resolution does not accurately show off the resolution). What I was interested in, was how he got the negatives so crisp. I figured it was a combination of large negative, very slow film - probably in the 10-20 ISO range, and using a view camera. This AP report starts to shed light on how Ross' camera achieves the high level of accuracy:

...the camera's precision focusing is achieved with what Ross calls "meat and potatoes" innovations.

A vacuum pump ensures that the film is flat to within one-thousandth of an inch, and a dual-mirror device keeps the film parallel to the lens. Sand bags strapped to the camera and tripod prevent the machine from shifting, and a reinforced aluminum cradle maintains the parts of the camera in perfect alignment.

Because the camera uses film meant for aerial shots, its negatives must be chemically treated to reduce their unusually high degree of contrast. That leaves sharp details but muddy colors.

Mirrors, huh? I wonder if his camera operates much like a modern telescope. In modern telescopes, such as Keck Telescope and The Multiple Mirror Telescope, you could use either adaptive optics or active optics and multiple images combining them through interferometry to form a hyper-accurate image. I am sure Ross is using small mirrors focused together though adaptive optics - where the mirrors move to reshape the overall shape of the mirror. In this case, I bet the extra mirrors also operate as a focus aide and brings additional light to the negative. But who knows, if I were him, I would pay out to the highest bidder and continue making great photographs.

The vacuum induced suction for the negative is a nice touch - I wonder if that alleviates dust or creates even more particulates he must worry about. My guess is that the vacuum system also acts as a filter removing particulates in the photo chamber. A great trick would be creating a full vacuum, removing all the air on the inside of the camera, so that there would be zero image distortion due to the slight air mass.

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Three Card Monte

Republicans are rewriting the rules concerning budget scoring and Social Security in order to hide the expected $2 trillion budget deficit when they try to privatize Social Security using "forced savings" accounts. The new language would direct the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to "score social security over 30 or more years," instead of five or ten year period which has been done for years. I think we can officially drop the idea that Republicans are fiscally responsible - as if the huge budget deficits and pork spending by the Republican Congress wasn't what broke the camel's back.

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Justice Thomas: rolling back 800 years of history

So everyone is pissed off that Senator Reid called Justice Thomas "embarrassing." In a word, boo-hoo. I would like you to read a post by Publius entitled, Justice Thomas - Not "Embarrasing," Just Radically Wrong. Also read all of the links in his post about what America would look like if Thomas got his way. Thomas makes Scalia's views quaint:

The first, and by far the worst, of these opinions was his concurrence in Hamdi. This was one of the post-9/11 cases involving the detention of a U.S. citizen who was unilaterally declared an "enemy combatant" and deprived of access to the courts. Of the nine Justices, only Thomas believed that Hamdi had no due process rights because such a decision was part of the president's war powers.

In other words, Thomas would allow the executive to be completely unrestrained in wartime and also be the final arbiter of his or her own powers. Under this theory, Bush could deprive any America citizen of due process rights in wartime by labeling that person an enemy combatant. This is radical stuff, especially considering that conservative thought is supposedly premised upon individual liberty and restraining the power of government. The Magna Carta offered citizens more protection against the executive than Thomas's concurrence. He's turning back the clock about 800 years.

But more interesting, Publius has this to say about Thomas the "Conservative:"

Thomas has expressed several times that he gives no weight to precedent (or stare decisis) if he feels the Court has gone astray from the "original understanding" of the Constitution. In other words, Thomas is willing to throw away generations of collective wisdom and impose his own views upon the Constitution, which in turn depend entirely on how he chooses to interpret and apply fragments of materials from the 1790s to 21st century problems.

Publius makes a great point: Thomas is as far away from classical conservative thought (think George Will) than any other Justice. Conservatives value the past as a knowledge handed down from the ages - and Thomas throws that away when it doesn't jibe with his personal feelings. How much more of an activist judge can you be?

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December 8, 2004

Fishmonger

Fishmonger

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Somewhere in Chinatown, New York this photo was taken of a man and his fish.

Pale Male's nest destroyed

I was sad to hear that Pale Male, the red tailed hawk who had made his nest on Fifth Avenue, had his nest destroyed opon order from his co-op board. I heard of tough co-op boards, but this is heartless. Pale Male lived atop 924 Fifth Avenue (at East 74th Street) for 11 years and had his own PBS Documentary (which is very good):

The story of Pale Male and his offspring has been well documented. Marie Winn, whose 1998 book on the subject, "Red-Tails in Love," was the basis of a PBS documentary called "Pale Male," said yesterday that the nest had been removed once before, in 1993, the year it was built.

She said the nest was built amid metal spikes that were placed on the 12th-floor cornice to discourage pigeons from roosting, and that the spikes had the unintended effect of providing a strong structure to brace a hawks' nest against the wind. After it was destroyed in 1993, Pale Male rebuilt, Ms. Winn said.

That experience, she said, might provide evidence that Pale Male will again rebuild.

But another of the bird's most ardent observers and proponents, Lincoln Karim, an engineer who has observed the nest for years with a telescope from Central Park, said he had seen workers take away the spikes yesterday.

Pale Male was a fixture in New York City, and I hope he can rebuild his nest. Check out the Pale Male website for more information. Much like other parts and people of the city, the removal of Pale Male is indicative of forces who wish to over-sanitize New York.

More On the Removal:
Hiding In Plain Sight
As The Hawk Flies: Bird Lovers Vs. 927 Fifth Avenue
Newly Homeless Above 5th Ave., Hawks Have Little to Build On

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Google, Jews, and Jesus

20041208-google.jpg

Search Google for "i love jews" and Google asks "Did you mean: I Love Jesus"

Nice. Happy Chanukah.

UPDATE - 09 DEC 2004
It look like google has "fixed" or changed this. I wonder if someone emailed them about being anti-Semitic. I really don't know how an algorithm can be racist, but I'm sure you could build something approaching racism into a search algorithm. But I doubt this was on purpose - why would google piss people off when their whole business resolves around getting people to (well) Google?

google search: i love jews (doesn't say 'Did you mean: I Love Jesus'

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December 7, 2004

Remembrance

20041207.jpg

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Today is the anniversary of Pearl Harbor - an event which changed America and whose repercussions reverberate even today. You can see a very similar photo here.

Social Security Privatization

Paul Krugman on Inventing a Crisis:

But never mind: the same people who claim that Social Security isn't an independent entity when it runs surpluses also insist that late next decade, when the benefit payments start to exceed the payroll tax receipts, this will represent a crisis - you see, Social Security has its own dedicated financing, and therefore must stand on its own.

There's no honest way anyone can hold both these positions, but very little about the privatizers' position is honest. They come to bury Social Security, not to save it. They aren't sincerely concerned about the possibility that the system will someday fail; they're disturbed by the system's historic success.

As they say, read the whole article.

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December 6, 2004

Skeletal Systems of Cartoon Characters

Skeletal Systems of Cartoon Characters We linked to this earlier, but the Skeletal Systems of Cartoon Characters gallery must be dying under the load. So this is the one picture we could find in our cache. The whole site is pretty cool, so we hope the server can regroup so everyone can see it.

UPDATE: Temporary Mirror (waxy.org)

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Evolution of a Agenda

Hullaboo hits it on the head with, Evolutionary Theology (which everyone should read), but I thought one item was particularly interesting. Here is a list of 5 characteristics all fundamentalist ideas have in common, regardless of race, religion, or location:

1) Men rule the roost and make the rules. Women are support staff and for reasons easy to imagine, homosexuality is intolerable.

2) all rules must apply to all people, no pluralism.

3) the rules must be precisely communicated to the next generation

4) "they spurn the modern, and want to return to a nostalgic vision of a golden age that never really existed. (Several of the scholars observed a strong and deep resemblance between fundamentalism and fascism. Both have almost identical agendas. Men are on top, women are subservient, there is one rigid set of rules, with police and military might to enforce them, and education is tightly controlled by the state. One scholar suggested that it's helpful to understand fundamentalism as religious fascism, and fascism as political fundamentalism. The phrase 'overcoming the modern' is a fascist slogan dating back to at least 1941.)"

5) Fundamentalists deny history in a "radical and idiosyncratic way."

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Declaration of Independence banned?

This is just getting out of hand. A New York Times article, God, American History and a Fifth-Grade Class, gets the story oh so wrong. You might of heard that a California school district banned the Declaration of Independence. That is what the echo-chamber would want you to believe. But that isn't what happened - no one bans the Declaration of Independence.

So here's what really, happened. Instead of distributing the Declaration of Independence, the teacher distributed only the first, part of the second, and last paragraph, highlighting the following words contained in those paragraphs: "Nature's God", "Creator", "Supreme Judge of the world" and "Divine Providence." The principle ordered the teacher not to distribute a highly edited Declaration of Independence to the children. He sued the principle and the school district because:

Steven Williams, a fifth-grade teacher at Stevens Creek School in the San Francisco Bay area suburb of Cupertino, sued for discrimination on Monday, claiming he had been singled out for censorship by principal Patricia Vidmar because he is a Christian.

Let me say this again: the teacher highly edited one of the most important documents of our country in order to to convey the notion that our country was founded on Christian principles (they were theists people - know the difference!). Enter in the Right Wing Echo Chamber and the NY Times he-said-she-said story, and now the non-issue has legs. I don't know about you, but my Bible doesn't take false-witness very lightly.

Here is a long summary for those who care.

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Falling Upwards?

Marshall Wittman has a concise handle on the current Bush Cabinet:

Despite the mass exodus, the incompetent one remains -Rummy. All that happened on his watch was an abysmal post-war plan and a prison scandal. This confirms that the only ones held accountable in this Administration are welfare mothers and struggling third grade students. For them, standards and accountability apply. For Rumsfeld, he is just passed along to the next grade (or term) regardless of his performance.
- Bull Moose

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December 5, 2004

Nice Chords

One of my favorite chord progression is from a Pantala Naga Pampa, a song by the Dave Matthew's Band:

E B G D A e
0 2 2 0 3 3 - Em/D
0 0 2 2 2 3 - A add G
0 0 0 2 3 2 - D
3 0 0 2 0 3 - D add G

If you ask my roommate, he will assure you that I play this chord progression often, and I do listen to Dave Matthews. We all have to have our guilty pleasures. Don't forget this cool chord progression:

E B G D A e
0 3 2 0 1 0
0 2 0 0 1 0
0 0 2 2 1 0
1 3 1 2 1 1

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This is me (on CNN)

This is me (on CNN)}

This is me (on CNN) · by mathowie

It isn't everyday that someone you know, mathowie in this case, is on CNN.

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December 4, 2004

And the Kerik Smote the DHS

Today President Bush officially nominated Bernard Kerik, former jail warden, New York City cop, bodyguard, and NYPD Commissioner to Secretary, Department of Homeland Security. I agree with Benjamin Wallace-Wells that Kerik talks the good talk, but can he really be effective at DHS?

It is important to view Kerik's nomination in context of the last four years, keeping in mind the goals and aspirations of the Bush Administration. After September 11th, there were many calls to consolidate bureaucracies and create the DHS. What did the Bush Administration do? They fought the creation of DHS tooth and nail, only embraced it when the political winds so fully changed that it would have been political suicide to oppose creation of DHS. The Bush Administration had the same reaction to the formation of the September 11th Commission and fought the Commission throughout their proceedings. DHS is either the largest bureaucracy, or second to Department of Defence, who is their most natural competitor. It is no secret that Donald Rumsfeld is very protective of his turf - reports say that he was instrumental in killing the recent intelligence reform bill because it would take the power of the purse away from Defence.

This brings us to the President's Cabinet. At the Cabinet positions most crucial to waging the President's version of the war on terror - DHS, State, Justice, the CIA, and HHS (think bio-weapons) - all but one of the President's nominees are all within 100'-0" of the Oval Office; these nominees are his most trusted advisors and those most willing to tow the Bush line. But what about Homeland Security? Why is this seemingly important position outsourced (so to say) to someone outside the President's inner circle? In other words, why has the President implicitly made it clear that DHS is not as important as CIA, State, Justice, or Defence? My theory is that, the President talks a good talk about DHS, but didn't really want the department in the first place and doesn't want to step on Rumsfeld's (and Cheney's by extension) turf.

Think about it - why nominate the first two Secretaries who have absolutely no experience in managing Washington bureaucracies, inter-agency turf wars, and all without a mandate from the President? Secretary Ridge was Governor of Pennsylvania for six years and Kerik was a cop and NYPD Commissioner - both very honorable position where they excelled at - but both are not the type of administrator who could cut through the crap and get DHS in line.

Just look at the official White House bio on Tom Ridge:

Ridge was twice elected Governor of Pennsylvania, serving from 1995 to 2001. He kept his promise to make Pennsylvania "a leader among states and a competitor among nations." Governor Ridge's aggressive technology strategy helped fuel the state's advances in the priority areas of economic development, education, health and the environment.

Then Governor Ridge cut taxes every year he was in office. To ensure Pennsylvania was home to the jobs of the future, the Governor created industry-led Greenhouse initiatives in advanced computing technologies and the life sciences.

He signed into law the Education Empowerment Act, to help more than a quarter-million children in Pennsylvania's lowest-performing schools. His education technology initiatives brought anytime, anywhere learning to Pennsylvanians from pre-school to adult education.
- Biography of Secretary Tom Ridge

Nowhere does it praise his anti-terrorism experience (he had none or very little) or his law enforcement background (none as I can recall). What exactly, besides color-coding, has Ridge done The new Secretary will have ample law-enforcement background and has an aura around him as a "tough guy" willing to shake things up - which could be useful. But Kerik has a m.o. as a not great administrator and no experience running a bureaucracy this large - which isn't so useful. But he is connected - reports say that Guiliani had made multiple phone calls about Kerik's nomination.

I want to make this very clear: I do not think that the President is looking to harm Americans. What I am saying is that they are indirectly (and sometimes directly) limiting the effectiveness of DHS by nominating ineffectual leadership, not clearly defining DHS' role vis-a-vis the other agencies, and most important, not clearly defining what exactly DHS is. The administration is not explicitly placing structural roadblocks in front of DHS, as far as I can tell, but the administration is not going out of their way to full integrate DHS with State, Defence, the CIA, among others. You also cannot overlook the inter-agency turf battles which have plagued DHS from day one and will continue to plague it unless Kerik can chart a well defined course - because the President has not and will not. The President has not given DHS a clear direction because Cheney and Rumsfeld still hold the President's ear - and Rumsfeld is still on his course to military transformation. How DHS integrates with Defense is still a mystery.

For another view of this matter, read Phil Carter's article, All Homeland Security Is Local. I'm inclined to trust Phil on this matter - if the President or Kerik could explicitly outline the role of DHS. For more negative views of Kerik, Questions for Kerik and Matthew Yglesias' take, titled simply, Kerik and a retort to Yglesias.

See also, Kerik burninated (but not by the DHS)

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December 3, 2004

Subway Scaffold

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The steel scaffolding holding up the #7 Train in Long Island City.

Slashdot reviews Flickr

Just like when Slashdot.org reviwed the iPod, they just don't get it: Flickr Online Photo Service Reviewed. Here are some quotes:

Hi! I was wondering what the rates are for getting my business mentioned as a front-page Slashdot story? At first I thought that I might have to insert open-source code into my commercial product and claim it as my own, but now that seems to not be necessary.

Thanks in advance for your help.
- Anonymous Coward

The flash usage is just one of many things about flickr that I can't take. It could potentially be great, if they removed about 80% of the features and fluff.

I'm currently using http://www.fotothing.com/. It's nice and simple, like fotolog, but without fotolog's 500,000 Brazilian camgirls and ridiculously bad performance.
- jefp (90879)

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December 2, 2004

Little Brass People

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Artist Tom Otterness created these insanely great little brass people entitled, "Life Underground," which inhabit the 14th Street/8th Avenue station. At first I did not like them, but they grew on me. See more of Tom Otterness' creations along Broadway.

Daisy Duke 2.0

So I rarely post things like this, but I can make an exception. Here are pictures from the upcoming Dukes of Hazard, specifically Jessica Simpson as Daisy Duke - 1 & 2.

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Abstinence programs lie to kids

Some Abstinence Programs Mislead Teens, Report Says

Many American youngsters participating in federally funded abstinence-only programs have been taught over the past three years that abortion can lead to sterility and suicide, that half the gay male teenagers in the United States have tested positive for the AIDS virus, and that touching a person's genitals "can result in pregnancy," a congressional staff analysis has found.

Why use facts when you can just lie to the "dumb" kids? It's not like they would, you know, not listen to adults or anything.

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Highline as freight line?

So this is interesting. The Forty Plus Foundation, doing business as Manhattan Central Railway Systems LLC (MCRS or Manhattan Central), filed with the Surface Transportation Board on October 26, 2004, to take over the Highline and begin using it as an industrial short-line track. (pdf)

For those not familiar with the Highline, (its' official name is the West 30th Street Secondary Track) it is below grade, then at grade, then above grade rail line along which runs along 10th Avenue starting at 37th Street then runs above ground from 30th Street to Gansevoort Street. The Highline was part of the former New York Central freight line which replaced an existing at grade right-of-way. The Highline has been dormant since the construction of the Jacob Javits Center, when the Highline was severed from the National Rail Network at Penn Station.

Continue reading "Highline as freight line?"

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December 1, 2004

Subway Busker

20041201.jpg

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Deep below 14th Street, a busker plays while hurried citizens move about.

Random inconsequential thoughts

Christmas is definitely coming - the full weight of the commerce machine is geared up for mass consumerism. But more importantly, Christmas Trees made their appearance yesterday on the streets of Brooklyn. Fresh pine scent can be smelled on the whole block - which is better than the alternative. The giant tree was lit - there was much rejoicing. But it won't be Christmas until big pots of fish line the sidewalks in my neighborhood. Go figure.

December rain sucks in New York. The combination of weather systems from the West, Canada, and the Atlantic create a windy, rainy mess. Must invest in some good rain wear.

This week it has been Talk week on public transportation. It seems that any subway car or bus I get on has one (or more) Talky McTalkerson's who like to come up to strangers and chat it up. Normally you can pick out the mentally disturbed ones and ward them off, but these people are normal, but don't just shut up. It is fairly disturbing when all you want to do is read your New York Magazine.

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