Would you be surprised to learn that in most major local TV news markets, the daily weather report is the largest audience draw: surpassing actual news and even sports in attracting eyeballs and advertising dollars. Perhaps you’re a self-proclaimed weather junkie; or, maybe you’re a weather-hater: seeing meteorologists as nothing more than wanna-be Ron Burgundys who can’t even manage to forecast correctly most of the time (an especially remarkable feat given such overtly vague forecasts as “partly cloudy,” or “mostly sunny,” and, of course, “50% chance of rain.”)
If their Mega Dopplertrons were purchased with tax dollars instead of advertising dollars, we’d probably be hysterical with their lack of accuracy. But, it may be the weather forecasters know more than they’re letting on… Read the rest of this entry »
I was discussing fitness and health with a friend this past weekend so I thought I would share what I’ve learned from my doctor that might be useful advice. We guys should probably take this stuff more seriously as we get older so we don’t live our senior years in a nursing home!
- Take at least 1 gm of fish oil per day, cut back on Omega-6′s.
- Have a blood test once a year to include full lipid panel, vitamin d levels, blood sugar, PSA.
- Check blood pressure regularly – shoot for 115 over 80.
- Colonoscopy by age 50.
- Brush teeth twice a day thoroughly and cleaned by a hygienist twice a year; gum inflammation or gingivitis can spread to the cardiovascular system and cause more serious problems; mouth is number 1 area for infections to enter the body.
- Exercise and control weight.
- Keep vaccinations up to date – TDAP is only good for 10 years (tetanus, pertussis), flu shot every year.
There’s some solid pointers to keep you on the right path. If you have some good tips you’d like to add, do so in the comments below.
Below I have plotted the average annual income here in the US back to 1815 for the US Senate and 1967 for us little people. I mean that in all seriousness, because if ever there was a graph that said it all it is this one. The inset simply shows the same data for the period between 1967 and 2009, which is the timeframe where data is available for all percentiles. You will note the inset also has a number followed by the letter x, which if you remember back to any statistics or math courses you may have taken is simply the slope of a given trend (i.e., in this case it is a linear regression). The # that proceeds each x corresponds to the annual increase in each percentile’s average annual income.
There are two extremely disquieting trends in this data: 1) the “haves” (i.e, Top 5th percentile) and “have nots” spread is widening at an ever great clip, with annual income increases for the former 2.3 to 22× that of the latter percentiles and 2) the DC fat cats are gaining on this nation’s net-worth “elite” at a pace that one would hope would cause them a mild case of opprobrium. Fat Cat Fat Chance! Read the rest of this entry »
Okay so we live in a capitalist society where laissez-faire regulation allows for the efficient market hypothesis to drive share and commodity prices to-and-fro in a sublime manner that would make Ginger Rodgers and Fred Astaire jealous! The freshwater economists at the University of Chicago’s Booth School would have us believe that anything we want/need to know about a given stock or commodity is contained within its current price and valuation trajectory. However, it seems the supply and demand dynamics that govern markets writ large do not apply to oil markets globally or the stuff extracted from the Gulf Coast. Capitalism’s Gatorade (or HGH if you’re a baseball fan!) defies market norms in a manner that can only be explained by some twisted and decoupled Wizard of Oz-type forces. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m writing today to sound the call for All Hands On Deck in response to the monster taking life in the US Gulf of Mexico.
The impotent response to the oil spill is infuriating. This is an extraordinary humanitarian and ecological catastrophe of the highest order. We have poisoned the World’s Cup! We have possibly initiated the shutdown of the cradle of civilization. 100,000 barrels a day gushing from May through August is no fucking joke! Yet, I look at the paper and see only a handful of vessels responding.
It’s time to bring the full might of the American military. It’s time to bring in the naval forces of our allies. It’s time for the sons of Israel to respond to the distress of their sister, Liberty.
Port towns, salty dogs, seafarers, sea shepherds, engineers, swimmers and surfers from Maine to California; from Brazil to Portsmouth; from Somalia to Chennai; from Rotterdam to Singapore, we must unite in common humanity and rescue our planet. Now!
This is the moment of truth. We mustn’t let apathy, anger or arbitrary political divides seal a fate of centuries of suffering (or worse).
We all have interests at stake. This is a moment which begs us to transcend discrimination, greed and our insatiable lust for self-destruction. Even among pirates there are pure hearts. The salty sea lives in the blood: one and all!
Let the incredulous stay behind; the ambivalent stand aside. Let those with courage, heart, willing hands and able bodies rise to this rare occasion! It’s not their job to clean it up: IT’S OUR JOB!
Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I’m hit with something to bring me right back to a state of indecision. I’m talking about the waffling between libertarianism and conservatism that I struggle with, for those that can’t read my mind. Generally speaking, economics and money matters are simple…because there isn’t a huge difference between the two there. Legally, they are both pretty similar, too. I’m just now learning about some subtle differences between the two camps on the subject of substantive due process, but that is over my head for now. On many subjects, I find more similarities than differences…particularly when talking about conservatism as I define it, not about the hijacked version of it that goes under the name of Republicanism.
Read the rest of this entry »
Not all change is bad. In fact, change should be implemented often, though carefully and wisely, for its beneficial rejuvenating and innovating effects. Following below is an honorable mention of the Japanese luminous paint manufacturer, Nemoto & Co., LTD. Several sources, including NHK TV and the Japan Science and Technology Agency, tell the story of how Nemoto overcame incredible adversity in order to create a highly innovative product and secure a commanding global market share. Through patience, determination, rigorous testing, and a carefully adhered to set of protocols, Nemoto exemplifies the benefits of change. Read the rest of this entry »
Pasted below are excerpts from the widely circulated story of U.S. Infantry Capt., Joshua Mantz. (The particular excerpts belong to the writing of Thom Shanker of the New York Times. Click here to view the original article with pictures and much greater written detail. I wish to state up front that I don’t necessarily condone war as a practice, however I do respect the need for a nation to maintain a strong offense and strong defense. Violence should be treated as a last resort, though, employed only when there is serious jeopardy to one’s ability to do no harm. Joshua Mantz’s story is mentioned here for the purposes of reflection and inspiration: reflections on the lights which can be found in dark places (Alhamdulillah!), and inspiration in the exceptional will of nature to survive. Mr. Mantz owes his survival to the best in advanced medical technology, but also to the persistent determination, focus and preparation both he and the medical team displayed that fateful day. I believe with similar focus and determination among our general population, America can achieve equally wonderful accomplishments in meeting the demands of the 21st century.
This is a soldier’s story, a tale of life and of death and of life’s return. It is the story of one soldier, Capt. Joshua A. Mantz, who was shot in Iraq. Technically, he was dead, a flat-liner for a full 15 minutes — long past the time many doctors use as their mark for ordering a halt in life-saving efforts, since brain damage can start within just a few minutes without vital signs. Read the rest of this entry »
Embedded above is an amazing video I simply couldn’t resist sharing. The animation is great and the piece does an excellent job of illustrating essential concepts in the mathematical relationships inherent in life forms. Read the rest of this entry »
On What He Said…
A great deal of valuable conversation on the Net these days takes place in the Comments zone on posts. Post authors initiate a subject and the public takes to the boards to express their opinions and sway the opinions of others. This site is no different, so I’ll exercise little shame in using a Comments discussion to initiate a new post.
Following my recent post, “On Government,” an interesting and previously unrecognized divide emerged in the Comments. Put simply, a potentially irreconcilable rift between modern Capitalism and the American notion of Constitutional Republic. For in the most important issues of today, be it environment, Net neutrality, resource exploitation and even health care, we find Corporate causes deeply at odds with the causes of citizenship, common good and Constitutional powers. Read the rest of this entry »