Politics

Read the Wikipedia piece below http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outsourcing Which do you think is more convincing, the argument for offshore outsourcing or the argument against?

In another thread Bascule made the interesting (and as I later determined by visiting the Congressional Budget Office, *correct*) point that income revenues have been lower under the Bush administration in spite of the Bush tax cut. Apparently there's been a bit of a turnaround. I guess the general idea (whether true or not) is that you cut taxes, wait for the change to percolate, and then look for a result. But of course that's a Republican ideal, and the real picture is obviously going to be far more complex than that. Still, it seems that Republicans will have something to cheer about this fall. http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/business/12758013.htm …

This story really touched a nerve with me. For some reason the administration seems very forthcoming to those who hold no official position, your Robert Blake type. Yet official inquiries into information are often flat out denied with no explanation. Secrets are needlessly kept from both the public and government officials, and the administration asks Congress to make decisions in ignorance. That's an absolutely abhorrent idea to me which seems to run directly counter to a free and open democratic process, and instead the information is kept within a small oligarchy who seems to think they should pull all the strings. So, think of this as a case instance of wh…

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/08/science/08cnd-brain.html?ei=5094&en=7f83ee9b96d40611&hp=&ex=1126238400&adxnnl=1&partner=homepage&adxnnlx=1126224003-zyBKE45IEICeBUIKvUHFdg "Two genes involved in determining the size of the human brain have undergone substantial evolution in the last 60,000 years, researchers say, suggesting that the brain is still undergoing rapid evolution... ...The new finding, reported by Bruce T. Lahn of the University of Chicago and colleagues in the journal Science, could raise controversy because of the genes' role in determining brain size. New versions of the genes, or alleles, as geneticists call them, appear to …

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4298814.stm The third space tourist ever has launched in a Soyuz and is headed for a 10-day stay at the ISS. I think this again is going to spark a lot of debate among space-program skeptics, saying that "if all we're doing is flying tourists, what's the point of the ISS?" Frankly I don't know if NASA should be a tourist destination. It would be rather entertaining to have a billionaire on a Mars flight, but I don't know why they wasted cargo space on a dinky Soyuz just because someone forked over enough money. Opinions?

Allard (R-CO), Bond (R-MO), Coburn (R-OK), Cochran (R-MS), Cornyn (R-TX), Inhofe (R-OK), Roberts (R-KS), Sessions (R-AL), Stevens (R-AK) Yes, here we have a Republican sponsored bill which 90% of Senators, 45 Republicans and 43 Democrats, all voted for. This is McCain's bill banning the use of torture in military investigations. This is from McCain's statement on the bill: So, like the topic says... the people who voted against this bill are assholes. One of my senators is among these people, and he will definitely be receiving a very nasty letter from me...

The United States' military expendatures were between $455 and $462 billion in 2004. The lower estimate comes from a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute and the higher one comes from a newer NATO report. Here's some interesting number crunching on these figures: US defense spending comprises 47% of the world total, and is more than the military spending of the next 32 most powerful nations combined. The next highest nation was China with $67 billion. The US is #1 in military spending per capita at $1,540/person compared to the next highest nation, Israel, at $1,451/person. However, that $1,451/person figure includes $2.16 billi…

"The only relevant divisor of humanity is socioeconomic. There are those with money and power and there are those without. Everything else--race, gender, and religion--is a smokescreen." Would you agree with this statement?

As you may have heard, Florida's new "stand your ground" law goes into effect today. I was perusing the news and ran across this interesting item: "Tourists travelling to Florida are being warned to avoid aggressive arguments with locals because they risk being shot." http://www.itn.co.uk/news/63537.html At first it sounds like something the British government or tourist authority might do. But in fact it's an action being taken by more extreme elements of the American gun control lobby. In particular, this effort is being lead by Sarah Brady, whose husband was shot alongside President Reagan in the Hinckley assassination attempt in 1981. Seems like a …

For those of you not familiar, the story concerns the statement made by William Bennett (a former Secretary of Education in the Reagan administration) on his radio show to the effect that if you were to abort every black baby then the crime rate would go down. Here's the actual quote: (Source: http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110007342) As Ellis Henican said in Newsday, yikes! Clearly he's speaking of a hypothetical which even he considers to be abhorrent, but my question is, is the statement so antagonistic and insensitive that it requires an apology? His position basically prosecutes an idea put forth in the best-selling new book "Freakonomi…

Gorillas have been seen for the first time using simple tools to perform tasks in the wild, researchers say. Scientists observed gorillas in a remote Congolese forest using sticks to test the depth of muddy water and to cross swampy areas. Wild chimps and orangutans also use tools, suggesting that the origins of tool use may predate the evolutionary split between apes and humans. You can find the full BBC article here.

Astronomers have discovered an object in our solar system that is larger than Pluto. They are calling it the 10th planet, but already that claim is contested. It is the first time an object so big has been found in our solar system since the discovery of Pluto 75 years ago. Position: about 3 times sun-pluto distance, inclination 45° The new world's size is not at issue. But the very definition of planethood is. Alan Boss, a planet-formation theorist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington, called the discovery "a major step." But Boss would not call it a planet at all. Instead, he said Pluto and other small objects beyond Neptune should be called, at be…

Info on Tanya Andersen's case: http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com/2005/10/oregon-riaa-victim-fights-back-sues.html Info on the RICO act: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RICO_(law) This looks like it will be an interesting case to follow, even if it doesn't get very far. Tanya Andersen is one of thousands of individuals who has been sued by the recording industry for illegally downloading music. In many of these cases, the sued have settled out of court with the RIAA, and in many of these cases it could certainly be argued that the RIAA had a valid point about theft. The counter-argument is that they're using a very blunt weapon, smacking a lot of peop…

The government purchase card (credit card) spending limits have been raised in the recent Katrina relief spending bill, for purchases of items for the rebuilding. The old limit was $2500 for items not on a government contract schedule. The new limit? $250,000. No competetive bidding involved. These are cards that have been used and abused in the past with the low spending limit. I hear the stories every time I have to go through training for my own card, when they add rules because of abuse they discovered somewhere. The system seems to be set up on the assumption that two employees couldn't conspire to defraud the government.

Was about to hit the sack when I ran across this little gem from Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream: There are so many things wrong with this statement that I hardly know where to begin! - Okay, funding was "cut", but only in the sense that one amount was asked for during the budget process and another amount was provided (in 2001 and 2004). Isn't that how budgets always work, with too much being asked for and not enough being given? So what? Clinton did the same thing, which makes you wonder what Cohen's motivations are, but then he's a well-known ABB guy. But more to the point, the Corps of Engineers doesn't think it would have many …

Fascinating, in-depth story about the case of Joseph Mangan, an American engineer who "blew the whistle" on Airbus, accusing them of knowing and covering-up design flaws in the pressure valve control systems of the A380. An error could lead to a depressurization tragedy like the recent one in Greece. The story goes into quite a lot of detail about the technical issues involved, and is well worth a read. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-whistleblower27sep27,0,7486292.story In a nutshell, Mangan is an engineer (an expert in fluid dynamics) who worked on the chip that is supposed to control the pressure valves in the A380. The system is unique in civil avia…

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=1173194 In a nutshell, the Russians continue to sell technology and build a nuclear power plant for Iran, which is putting a strain on its relationship with the United States. The political angle to this that I think is interesting is that it seems to suggest that if Russia wants to continue its space program, which is an important part of its national pride, then it may need to stop dealing with Iran. Thoughts?

What do you believe is at areas 51/19? Personally, I think we test experimental aircraft/weapons at area 51. As fo 19, I don't know. Oh, and for those of you who don't know what area 19 is, It's a place in Nevada even more secluded than area 51. It has a 34.5 kilovolt power line that comes out of the ground and stops in the dead center of area 19.

Here's a link to an article at Reuters for those who missed it: http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-09-28T191517Z_01_YUE863422_RTRUKOC_0_UK-DELAY.xml DeLay is considered the #2 Republican in congress. The position is party-only, not a constitutional one, and not in the succession of power. Basically he rallies other Republicans to whatever the cause of the day happens to be. House ethics rules require the person in that position to step down when indicted. He will, of course, get his day in court. If convicted, he could face a couple of years in the slammer. My personal opinion on it is that DeLay is a representa…

Most have probably realized that the US media isn't reporting 1/100th of what's going really on in Iraq. Well, this guy has been there for 8 months and is one of the few journalists that weren't "embedded" (in bed with) the army. He has been in touch with Iraqi civilians (not just Americans and state officials). He has had to work undercover, for fear of terrorists but mostly for fear of the US army, which killed more reporters in the first year of Iraq than in all the years of Vietnam. This is a very interesting video where he sums up his experiences. http://dahrjamailiraq.com/multi_media/Dahr_Jamail_Sonoma_State_Project_Censored_4_10_2005.html You can check …

There's a new journal that follows on from The National Interest called The American Interest. The first issue has an essay by Condoleezza Rice, which argues that the US should continue to try to 'democratise' other countries despite the difficulties. Here's an excerpt from The Australian. The problem I have with this viewpoint is that it creates a false dichotomy, where you either embrace the neo-conservative democratisation strategy, or you sit back and do nothing. There's obviously a debate within the conservative US politics between isolationists and democratisers. But conservatives will need to look outside their own foreign policy writings if they aren't going…

I thought the You might be an extremist... thread was clever, but whats even more fun is to admit that on the inside almost all of us hold an extreme view on one thing or another. Please note: this is a place to confess your own extreme views, not to post other peoples views. And if you try to say that you dont hold some kind of weird view or support something that may be just out of the mainstream of your party, or even worse try to pass yourself off as an "independent", you will be forced to wear a dunce hat for the rest of the day If you want to criticize someone for their extremist views, be nice about it I'll go first: I'm generally a reasonab…

Einstein's equation turns 100 From Wikinews, the free news source you can write! September 27, 2005 The man behind E=mc2, Albert Einstein.Albert Einstein's best known equation, and probably the best known aspect of all physics, E=mc2, turns one hundred today. September 27, 1905 is generally considered the birthday of the equation because that is the day that Einstein's paper outlining the significance of the equation arrived in the offices of the German journal Annalen der Physik. In the equation, 'E' stands for Energy, 'm' stands for mass, and 'c' stands for the speed of light. The equation shows that matter and energy are, essentially, two aspects …

A 9/19 poll by USA Today, CNN and Gallup included the following question: 9. If you had to choose, which of the following would you say would be the best way for the government to pay for the problems caused by Hurricane Katrina? The results were as follows: 54% Cut spending for war in Iraq 17% Raise taxes 15% Increase federal budget deficit 6% Cut spending for domestic programs 5% Other 3% No opinion http://www.usatoday.com/news/polls/2005-09-19-poll.htm I don't really disagree with any of these options, but I think it's interesting that ABC's George Stephanopoulis was representing, in his interview with John McCain on Sunday, that this poll show…

Top Ten Headlines for Cindy Sheehan's Arrest in Tomorrow's New York Times: 10. "Tragically misunderstood mom to miss Regis" 9. "Protest party purloined per party pogrom" 8. "Sheehan says see shells drop on the shia" 7. ?