Douthat on Meritocracy

"If Robert Rubin’s mistakes helped create an out-of-control financial sector, then naturally you need Timothy Geithner and Lawrence Summers — Rubin’s protégés — to set things right. After all, who else are you going to trust with all that consolidated power? Ron Paul? Dennis Kucinich? Sarah Palin?

This is the perverse logic of meritocracy. Once a system grows sufficiently complex, it doesn’t matter how badly our best and brightest foul things up. Every crisis increases their authority, because they seem to be the only ones who understand the system well enough to fix it."

Trenchant. That's the basic gist, although the whole thing is more or less interesting.

Link Dump, Special Health Care Edition

If you don't care about American politics, this post may not contain much valuable information for you. However, if you're reading this blog, you probably should care about American politics, because it almost certainly impacts your life. With that caveat...

First, some explanation/analysis of the health care bill signed into law by President Obama today. David Frum is his usually contrariarian but common-sense-filled self in a nice explanation of what the law will do on CNN.com. "[T]oday's defeat for free-market economics and Republican values is a huge win for the conservative entertainment industry." Tyler Cowen predicts the effects of the bill (warning: a little wonky) on the middle class. Nate Silver runs through the math of repeal (not likely.) The editors of National Review offer a conservative call to arms - Some substantive critiques, but I tire of invective rhetoric. And of course, no truly great reform can be enacted without asking that all-important question: How does it affect the Amish?

David Brooks has had some excellent columns lately that I haven't had a chance to post. From Feburary 2: "According to Julia Isaacs of the Brookings Institution, the federal government now spends $7 on the elderly for each $1 it spends on children...In the private sphere, in other words, seniors provide wonderful gifts to their grandchildren, loving attention that will linger in young minds, providing support for decades to come. In the public sphere, they take it away."
Then, later in Feburary, he turns his sights on the role of the elite (again): "As we’ve made our institutions more meritocratic, their public standing has plummeted. We’ve increased the diversity and talent level of people at the top of society, yet trust in elites has never been lower...The promise of the meritocracy has not been fulfilled. The talent level is higher, but the reputation is lower."

And have I mentioned that I love Ross Douthat - From February 23, a great post: This isn't the GOP he (or I, if I may humbly associate with the thought) had in mind. "Republicans are well on their way to sounding like Bill Clinton circa 1996 on entitlements, and Jim DeMint on everything else."

And because it wouldn't be a true post without a mention of culture and/or sex, here's an academic article on the shift in teenage sexuality over the past 100 years. From the abstract: "As contraception has become more effective there is less need for parents, churches and states to inculcate sexual mores. Technology affects culture." From the paper: "In 1900, only 6% of U.S. women would have engaged in premarital sex by age 19. Now, 75% have experienced this." Haven't read the whole thing yet, but plan to...

Some early Christmas presents for you all

A couple thoughts from my First Amendment professor's end-of-semester lecture. Let me know if you find them as thought-provoking as I did:

• How would you change the way you live your life if you knew that you would receive $5,000,000 a year for the rest of your life?
• For the rest of your life, you will never again be as free as you are right now as a college student.
  

I love the way this is described: The Aids Healthcare Foundation is trying to make sure that all films which "demonstrate unprotected exchange of bodily fluids" are required to protect their actors/actresses from AIDS...

This little post at a site called "The League of Ordinary Gentlemen" may describe a little of why I really do enjoy "The Office:"
"Of course, just like most of us don’t have the body types of movie-stars, most of us will also not be millionaires or celebrities. Most of us will only ever achieve moderate financial success. Most of us will only be content with our work. We will dislike many of our bosses and co-workers and will have to learn to live with them as best we can, just like we learn to live with our imperfect families. Are we all just under-achievers then?...Really, all the characters are in one way or another. I think the show is about hope more than it is about despair. It is about how we achieve something good in our lives beyond our work and career."

In this difficult economics times, it's nice to know there's one industry that's still growing: USA Today reports that "Federal employees making salaries of $100,000 or more jumped from 14% to 19% of civil servants during the recession's first 18 months — and that's before overtime pay and bonuses are counted."

I've seen videos like this before, but it never hurts to see it again. The American Museum of National History presents: The Universe, as we know it.

If you haven't been reading Ross Douthat regularly, you should. Here's his take on James Cameron's Avatar.

And this has been making the rounds recently, but if you haven't heard what English sounds like to foreign speakers, it's pretty amusing.

Quote of the month:

Courtesy of David Brooks's piece "Cellphones, Texts and Lovers" in today's NYT:

• "In today’s world, the choice of a Prius can be a more sanctified act that the choice of an erotic partner."

And he's absolutely right.

XKCD has too much time on its/their(?) hands, but the result is pretty epic: Movie Narrative Charts.

Also, I came across this letter in the National Archives museum and thought it was amazing. Read it and laugh at how some things never change: "If you do we shall just about die."

Back to School Flurry of Miscellany

Beyond the kind of flippant title, this blog post does have some interesting sociological implications/stuff in it...

As usual, Medved has an insightful take on politics in the near future, although I still think talking about 2010 is very premature.

Two ABCNews.com medical stories: The Girl Who Could Feel No Pain and The Girl Who Was Addicted to Abortion.

This is a fascinating graphic that takes a while to load, showing the amount of time different groups of people spend doing different things during their day. I dare you to spend less than 5 minutes on there (and I bet it's impossible.)

Two pictures that are a little creepy and probably inappropriate but have been used to try to spread positive societal messages (don't click on the links with children around): "AIDS is a Mass Murderer" and "The Media Messes With Our View of What Beauty Is" I'm all for PSAs against AIDS and for accepting yourself, but is this not too much?

Although it's not entirely accurate (and I like Pepsi's taste better,) this graphic was kind of cute:

Hurray for tradition.

Speaking of tradition, here are some Notre Dame related links to warm your heart: The Notre Dame online jigsaw puzzle (also available in real life.) Someone at the ND gameday site has been going crazy with panoramic camera recently, so check that out as well.

Also, we're being reviewed? Goodness GE is getting desperate.

High Glitz. Lunacy, and Fox News

These photos make you think America is pretty messed up - It's an art gallery casting a spotlight on the truly creepy ways people dress up their kids in the search of fame these days...Like Little Miss Sunshine but real.

David Frum is generally pretty solid, and I like his recent take on the stupid "Obama has no birth certificate" conspiracy people. "So here’s the hypothesis. Barack Obama Sr. has brought his new wife to Kenya. (A journey for which there is precisely zero documentation.) There, she bears him a child. Then — in an era before jet travel and at a time when plane fares cost many, many times more than they do now — she immediately gets on a plane from Mombasa to Nairobi, then another plane from Nairobi to Cairo, then a third from Cairo to London, then from London to Gander, Gander to maybe Chicago, Chicago to Los Angeles, Los Angeles to Honolulu. Arriving in Honolulu she presents her — what? two-week old infant? — to the authorities and asks for a birth certificate. Oh — and she also retroactively places birth announcements in the local papers." Uh-huh.

In related news, Gawker put together an interesting little cross-section of the approval/TV ratings of Fox News Channel and the Republican Party:

And speaking of lunacy, this pretty much qualifies: "Call these unpaid internships that you pay for...A company called the University of Dreams, the largest and most visible player in an industry that has boomed in recent years as internship experience has become a near-necessity on any competitive entry-level résumé...says it saw a spike in interest this year due to the downturn, as the number of applicants surged above 9,000."

Sunny with a high of 95?

Mr Saletan has an interesting challenge for those of challenging political persuasions:

• "I'm not ruling out water-boarding. But before you tell your pals around the water cooler that it's a vital interrogation tool or that the bastards deserve it, check out one of the demonstrations posted on the Internet, such as the waterboarding of Slate and Vanity Fair columnist Christopher Hitchens. You can also read David J. Morris' firsthand account of a water-boarding, published here six months ago.

The same goes for any other violent or lethal practice you countenance from the comfort of your desk. Capital punishment? Watch an execution. Eating meat? Check out a slaughterhouse. Abortion? Peruse the video library or, if the pregnancy is yours, look at an ultrasound. And don't think that opposing these practices insulates you from the same responsibility. If you think capital punishment is never warranted, acquaint yourself with the handiwork of a few murderers. Before you defund international family-planning agencies, meet some malnourished children."

Also, I know Japan is creepy but this guy with a pillow takes it to a new extreme [caution, some medically accurate terminology.] Another tour de force of Japanese culture: RapeLay. "Players earn points for acts of sexual violence, including stalking girls on commuter trains, raping virgins and their mothers, and forcing females to get abortions, according to the group's online statement." Rah rah Captialism!

Gay marriage etc

Courtesy of 538, two gay marriage items of interest. First, current law and attitudes -



Secondly, some predictions for all 50 states: Will Iowans Uphold Gay Marriage?


If you don't regularly read Ross Douthat, start. Every Monday in the NYT. Here's his (trenchant) thoughts from July 13.

SO TRUE SO TRUE SO TRUE - I don't agree with the hypothetical causes, but it's still funny: "The generation that ignited Pottermania as preadolescent readers is approaching college graduation or entering the workplace, and they have kept alive this flame of their early adolescence." Cute.

Attack of the Linx! [Part IV]

Did you know you can make a gift to the Federal government? "This account was established in 1843 to accept gifts, such as bequests, from individuals wishing to express their patriotism to the United States." Joe Biden was right.

As Sports Illustrated would say, This Week's Sign of the Apocalypse is: Charlie Weis has a twitter account.

This was one of the most amazing inside-the-Beltway stories I have ever read. Keith Olberman did a funny interpretation of it, if you search for it, but above all, DON'T CALL HER LIZ!

Go Britain Go..."More people in Britain think religion causes harm than believe it does good, according to a Guardian/ICM poll published today [In Dec 2006.] It shows that an overwhelming majority see religion as a cause of division and tension - greatly outnumbering the smaller majority who also believe that it can be a force for good...A clear majority, 63%, say that they are not religious - including more than half of those who describe themselves as Christian."

An article about gender bias in theatre in the NYT comes to some interesting conclusions - "Ms. Sands sent identical scripts to artistic directors and literary managers around the country. The only difference was that half named a man as the writer (for example, Michael Walker), while half named a woman (i.e., Mary Walker). It turned out that Mary’s scripts received significantly worse ratings in terms of quality, economic prospects and audience response than Michael’s. The biggest surprise? “These results are driven exclusively by the responses of female artistic directors and literary managers,” Ms. Sands said. Amid the gasps from the audience, an incredulous voice called out, “Say that again?” Ms. Sands put it another way: “Men rate men and women playwrights exactly the same.”" Take that chauvinist misogyny!

In honor of Vincenz Czerny

For all you ladies eyeing each other with envy and longing, your waiting is over: Presenting My Free Implants

Thank you, New York Times, for bringing attention to something that has always bugged me about Mr. President's rhetoric: His fondness for men of straw. Also, I call on every loyal son (and daughter) of Notre Dame to rally and protest his latest outrageous comment. Last NYT piece of note - I thought Kristof's column about disgust and politics hit home: "People who would be disgusted to find that they had accidentally sipped from an acquaintance’s drink are more likely to identify as conservatives." That explains a lot. :)

Nate Silverof 538.com is at it again with an interesting little analysis of the number of abortions in each state plotted against the number of people who self-identify as pro-life. Intuitive, but interesting.

Um?

Putting the "never" in never-been-kissed...

Special Interesting things

From a NYT Magazine elegy to his father , by Christopher Buckley - "The term “control freak” is pejorative. Put it this way: Few great men — and I use the term precisely, for Pup [William F. Buckley] was a great man — do not assert total control over their domains. I doubt Winston Churchill ever said, “Whatever.”" Love it.

Let's all get married - "Married people earn more, save more and build more wealth compared with people who are single or cohabiting. (Say what you will about the benefits of cohabitation, it's a categorically less stable arrangement, far more prone to division than marriage.)" And as far it goes, I agree, to an extent.

People.

This sounds like it can be filed in the "Scientific Discoveries that Could Very Well Cause Ethical Headaches Down the Line" category: "Scientists have produced strong new evidence challenging one of the most fundamental assumptions in biology: that female mammals, including women, are born with all the eggs they will ever have...Although much more research is needed to confirm and explore the findings, the work raises the tantalizing possibility that it could someday lead to new ways to fight a woman's biological clock, perhaps by stockpiling her egg-producing cells or by stimulating them to make eggs again."

In other reproductive news, it doesn't get any easier for mothers in China after they do get pregnant - "These and thousands of other children stolen from the teeming industrial hubs of China’s Pearl River Delta have never been recovered by their parents or by the police. But anecdotal evidence suggests the children do not travel far. Although some are sold to buyers in Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam, most of the boys are purchased domestically by families desperate for a male heir, parents of abducted children and some law enforcement officials who have investigated the matter say...“If you have only girls, you don’t feel right inside,” said Ms. Zhen, who has one child, an 11-year-old son. “You feel your status is lower than everyone else.”"

From the Sunday Times: I'm not a big fan of Frank Rich, but I can agree with him in this respect - If there is any good that could come out of this recession, it will be the death, or at least injury, of what he calls the "Money is King" narrative.

Lastly, a few weeks back I brought you the "discrete affair" service. Now you can just drop all pretense with "Seeking Arrangement," a new site for all you sugar daddies/mommies/babies out there.

Single and dead mothers

It's the controversy that will not die, for better or for worse: "Notre Dame is regarded as an academic powerhouse and conservative Catholic bastion..." I'm honestly surprised that the controversy has had the legs that it has.

With a tip of the hat to April 6's "Best of the Web Today" from The Wall Street Journal: "Ludwig Minelli described suicide as a “marvellous opportunity” that should not be restricted to the terminally ill or people with severe disabilities." Commentary:

• "Except for the method of death, this is indistinguishable from suttee, the Hindu practice of widow-burning. Suttee is very rare today, thanks in part to laws enacted by both the British Raj and the government of modern India. But here we see a new form of it arising in Europe under the guise of progressive ideas about the "right to die." It is an example of how moral relativism can lead to absolute barbarism."

Lastly, the CDC just came out with statistics about the rate of births to unwed mothers - 38.5 percent. Basically, 2 out of every 5 children being born today are born to single mothers. Point for debate: This is good for society/no. Discuss.

Crossing my Ts and dotting my Irish eyes

For those who are hoping for an exciting football season next year, team profiles by MSNBC/The Sporting News and ESPN.com can not help but raise anticipation and excitement a little.

I apologize for the following heft. My virtual post-it is groaning under the weight of so many abandoned links.

"I think me and the person I do it with will both profit greatly from the deal." - I can't see how that $2.5 million investment is worth it for any sane male at any stage in life, but what do I know...After all, America's consumed with an irrational obsession with purity, apparently. So what better to do than turn it into a game? Rah rah capitalism!

In the mood for music? Zap! Jesus is a friend of mine that has got to get into my life. Two for one! The accompanying videos are what basically make the both of them, though. Please share.

***PARTISAN INTERLUDE*** "Fannie Mae, the nation's biggest underwriter of home mortgages, has been under increasing pressure from the Clinton Administration to expand mortgage loans among low and moderate income people and felt pressure from stock holders to maintain its phenomenal growth in profits." In 1999.

"In another [study,] a white rat in a maze repeatedly beat groups of Yale undergraduates in understanding the optimal way to get food dropped in the maze. The students overanalyzed and saw patterns that didn’t exist, so they were beaten by the rodent." Innnnnnnteresting.

From your local Heritage automaton: A Doctor's Right. But seriously, though, why can't we just let them do what they think is right? Please?

That's enough for now.

It's 10:27 and it's 61 degrees.

Far be it from me to complain, but our windows are open and I'm still hot here in our nation's capital. My goodness.

Speaking of disturbing...Judith Warner kind of makes me throw up in my mouth. Fantasizing about a sitting president? I think I liked it better when people hated the President instead...

Counter-message, cautiously optimistic good news? It appears so...Maybe that handbasket is moving a little slower than has been reputed.

One more for the reference stack: FamilyFacts.org...And finally, an economically verifiable reason to hate Michigan!!

Institutions and fluidity

I'm usually a big David Brooks fan, for the way he looks at more than just the day-to-day political brouhahas and the political, ethical, and moral underpinnings of the issues of the day, and today's column "What Life Asks of Us" doesn't disappoint. I'm not sure if I completely agree with the totality of his conclusion, but I would generally agree with him up to about 85% or so...

I've been reading so much newsy, scholarly junk for work and school, so I apologize there aren't better links up here. I'll work on it. If things get too boring I can just talk about $5,000 breast implants for 19-year-olds...

First post from our nation's capitol

A modern-day love potion? The author hypothesizes this discovery could lead to being able to stop people from falling in love, make people feel more attracted to people, increase or decrease men's attraction to breasts, enhance or eliminate people's level of trust in others...Just imagine the possibilities...I'm not sure I'd ever drink from an open container again.

Interesting to hear a liberal advance the idea that corporations aren't the devil after all...I mean, yes, I don't like sweatshops anymore than the next person, but certainly a small level of development is better than none at all? And it opens the possibility to more humane treatment later, rather than condemning the poor to live in filth...At least, that's my elementary understanding.

This lady used to give me toys at church...

"SEATTLE JOURNAL: A Holdout Against Developers Leaves a Legacy" 

Also, I've decided to use some of my $15 iTunes gift card to buy the movie "Mean Girls." There are a couple cliche parts and it's a little weird to see Lindsay Lohan back when she was normal, but overall I really really liked it :) Good messages, funny, and just a good movie.

Musings, Edition i

I wonder if more people celebrate Halloween than do Christmas?

It's funny how the NYT and the rest of the media/elite is starting to come to the same realizations that good, old-fashioned (Judeo-Christian?) common sense has been telling us all along..."Stop Being Stupid," by Bob Herbert.

Re: The media frenzy over Obama in Hawai'i? Really? Can we please stop now? Is it not enough that you fawned all over him in the campaign that you have to drool over him and his family eating shaved ice, for goodness sake? With the "First Family" obsession and the hyperventilating over the train from Springfield and the Lincoln Bible, I'm giving it a plus or minus 3 years after he leaves office before the cry to engrave him on Mt. Rushmore is raised...Who knew Hillary was up against a hybrid JFK/Lincoln? Let's just start the human sacrifices right now...

Hello world

This is mainly to be used as a repository for my own benefit to store links, articles, facts, trains of thought, and whatever philosophical, societal, cultural, or political tirades I feel the need to express at the time. 

For example, this article by Nicholas Kristof of the NYT, published a couple days before Christmas, comes to the same conclusion from a Progressive standpoint that I could have intuited for years: Namely, that liberals are ready to talk a big game about government taking your money away to fund charity and social programs precisely because they are so loathe to give up any of their own wealth voluntarily. "Bleeding Heart Tightwads."

Also, I have consistently regarded Dinesh D'Souza as one of my personal favorite writers to pay attention to, and this 2006 article from the San Francisco Chronicle is a pretty good introduction to one of his major themes. "God Knows Why Faith Is Thriving." 

I saw "It's a Wonderful Life" today for the first time, and really liked it, particularly the note at the end: "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends."

Also, while listening to the homily in Mass, I liked my tangent of thinking of God as a limit concept, and offered the poor analogy of a light being refracted in infinitesimally many ways through the manifestations of grace. More work to be done here.

Enjoy future posts, everyone, and Merry Christmas.