Ghosts Do Not Scare Me

GOing, GOing, Gone. I’ll miss you buddy. Go dazzle the...

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:37:00 -0600

GOing, GOing, Gone.

I’ll miss you buddy. Go dazzle the National League.

People are always extolling the virtues of living in the moment, but mainly it just leaves you poor...

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:08:59 -0600

People are always extolling the virtues of living in the moment, but mainly it just leaves you poor and late to all of your classes.

The 20 best signs at the National Equality March

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:41:46 -0500

The 20 best signs at the National Equality March

Photo

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:13:37 -0500

airgordon: This is a little jarring.

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:02:20 -0500

airgordon:

This is a little jarring.

Who’s still letting Weezer make...

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:09:05 -0500

Who’s still letting Weezer make records?

carlovely:

weezer’s new album art for the upcoming ‘raditude’

Super high five? blackbunneh: Meet Whale

Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:10:57 -0500

Super high five?

blackbunneh:

Meet Whale

"One question we asked on this poll gives a good idea of how difficult it is to inform the public on..."

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 19:13:38 -0500

“One question we asked on this poll gives a good idea of how difficult it is to inform the public on this complicated issue. Medicare is obviously an inherently public program, but just for the heck of it we asked the somewhat tongue in cheek question of whether the government should ‘stay out of Medicare.’ 39% of Americans said yes with just 46% opposed. When such a large swath of the electorate claims not to even want government involvement with Medicare you can see what a tough sell Obama and Congressional Democrats have in convincing the public there should be a larger public role in the health care system.”

- Public Policy Polling (via airgordon)

4th of July photo set up on Flickr

Sun, 16 Aug 2009 21:18:17 -0500

4th of July photo set up on Flickr

"The tree of crazy is an ever-present aspect of America’s flora. Only now, it’s being watered by..."

Sun, 16 Aug 2009 18:20:13 -0500

“

The tree of crazy is an ever-present aspect of America’s flora. Only now, it’s being watered by misguided he-said-she-said reporting and taking over the forest. Latest word is that the enlightened and mild provision in the draft legislation to help elderly people who want living wills — the one hysterics turned into the “death panel” canard — is losing favor, according to the Wall Street Journal, because of “complaints over the provision.”

Good thing our leaders weren’t so cowardly in 1964, or we would never have passed a civil rights bill — because of complaints over the provisions in it that would enslave whites.

”

- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/14/AR2009081401495.html?nav=hcmodule (via sheivachalypsenow)

All You Can Eat

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:33:08 -0500

Tonight is the night! Tonight, Tuesday, August 11th, we are going to sit in the All You Can Eat seats at the Metrodome. Blackburn is pitching, so now even you increasingly numerous Liriano-haters have no excuse! Indulge yourself with a night of baseball and gluttony! It’s a once-a-year treat.

I’m walking to the Dome after work, so I should be there around 5:15 PM at the latest. There should be more than enough tickets to just buy one at the door, but you should probably still get there early so you can get a good start on chowing down before the game begins (you need to get your money’s worth!). Give me a call or send me a text if you’re coming and we’ll wait for you/save you a seat.

Eat a light breakfast and lunch. You’re going to want to save room for all the hot dogs, peanuts, pretzels, nachos, popcorn and soda you can eat. Regardless of the outcome of the game (which will surely go to the Twins if there is a just God), it is going to be a glorious night. See you there.

Is there a cooler baseball player than Denard Span after making this catch? (No.)

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:01:22 -0500

Is there a cooler baseball player than Denard Span after making this catch? (No.)

In Defense of Cash for Clunkers

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:37:23 -0500

I think people are being too hard on Cash for Clunkers. Yes, driving a gas guzzling car is still more environmentally than making a new one. And yes, allowing people to trade cars in for used cars would have probably been more environmentally friendly. But just because the policy hasn’t achieved peak environmental efficiency and may do little to boost the economy doesn’t mean it’s worthless.

First, I think it’s short-sighted to say that this cannibalizes future car sales. It’s possible, but because car sales dropped so significantly during the recession, it’s more likely that this is just fulfilling pent-up demand, making up for past sales more than hurting future ones. We also can’t assume that the people trading in their SUVs for more fuel efficient cars would necessarily buy more fuel efficient cars once the recession is over. It isn’t an unlikely possibility that once people start feeling comfortable about their finances again, they will continue to buy Hummers, trucks and SUVs. We can wait around and hope that when people eventually trade in their vehicles in the future that the economic and cultural climate is such that they will still buy a more environmentally friendly automobile, or we can take advantage of their current popularity and incentivize their purchase to get as many people in fuel efficient cars as we can while they’re still hot.

Sure, we could have been more strict in our regulations. We could have said people could only trade up if they purchased a car that got 35 mpg, or 40 mpg, but that’s missing the real point of this entire policy: to give people a little bit of good news. You can call it a selfish move by Congress to win cheap political points, and maybe that’s what it actually is, but that doesn’t change the fact that this program is giving some good news to a lot of people who haven’t had anything as uplifting as a new car in quite a while, not to mention our auto industry (lord knows they could use it). And maybe you aren’t a fan of encouraging more of the kind of consumption that arguably partially contributed to the mess we’re in, or maybe you don’t have much sensitivity towards or empathy for middle class America, which is fine. But even if you don’t think the U.S. government should be spending tax dollars to essentially be giving some Americas a nice shiny new car as a gift, consider the big picture.

Ironically, people who are calling Cash for Clunkers short-sighted are the ones who aren’t looking at the bigger picture. One the key components of Obama’s plan to fix the economy is comprehensive health reform, but you don’t need to be reading the Times every day to know that’s looking less likely as Obama’s perceived support dries up. Whether it actually is doesn’t matter, because it’s perceptions that sway the media and control momentum in Congress. Obama desperately needed to regain some momentum, and if that means spending the political equivalent of chump change on a few new cars, so be it. And while some economists in high brow publications may scoff at the immediate overall effectiveness of the program, it has been a smashing success with much of middle class America and given the president a significant tailwind again.

So could Cash for Clunkers be more environmentally friendly? Sure. You know what would be even better for the environment? If we didn’t drive at all. We should have spent the money on public transportation instead. Or, wait, you know what’s better than that? Bicycles. Oh! Or if we live in communes and don’t need to travel anywhere. And while I am being facetious, I do understand why environmentalists feel this program could be more “green,” and there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to improve the program’s effect on the environment. But you can always find some excuse about how a program can be more environmentally-friendly, and while this program is being billed as good for the environment as one of its selling points, that isn’t it’s main goal. Cash for Clunkers is just a small part of Obama’s much larger plan to get health care reform passed, and ultimately fix the economy.

The bottom line is that Cash for Clunkers slightly boosts the economy in the short term and ultimately gets more people in more fuel efficient cars for a bargain price. I’ve read more moral indignity over the measly $3 billion we’ve given Cash for Clunkers than the $160 billion we gave the lowlifes at AIG or the $700 billion we gave the corporate tools on Wall Street. And while I’m not saying that it’s ok to be irresponsible with $3 billion because we’ve made worse investments, it is a relatively small price to pay for something you can’t always put a price on: a little confidence.

boomshockalocka:

On the surface, Cash for Clunkers seems like a great idea. Get some money flowing into the economy through big purchases, help out car companies, and save the environment. However, its biggest accomplishment may be scoring political points without doing much for car companies or the environment.

First, economically, CfC is terribly shortsighted. These clunkers that are being traded in would likely have been traded in within five years time anyways. So, instead of spreading those sales out, we spent $3 billion dollars and crammed them all within a couple of weeks (or however the extra $2 billion lasts) thus cannibalizing future steady sales rates. With the industry moving towards greater mileage standards anyways (if it wants to survive), people would have bought higher mileage cars to replace their clunkers, except they wouldn’t have bought them quite yet, all at once, or necessarily new.

The problem environmentally is that making hundreds of thousands of new cars has an extremely high impact on the environment. The mileage requirements set in order for a new car to qualify for CfC aren’t stringent enough to offset the huge footprint of manufacturing a new car within a reasonable amount of time. Also, while yes, it is nice to get gas guzzlers off the road, most often it is better to run your current car into the ground. Instead, CfC influenced consumers to purchase new cars (possibly before a replacement was necessary) when a used car would be the obvious eco-friendly choice.

Overall, Cash for Clunkers was short-sighted economically, and environmentally, was mainly greenwashing. However, congresspeople who voted for it can go back to their districts and visit their constituents who will be in a cheery high from the effects of consumption.

The Economist: Congress just buying people cars now
The Washington Post: When the ‘Clunker’ is Greener

90% of pharmaceuticals taken by people are excreted through urination. Therefore our sewer systems contain heavy doses of drugs. A recent study by the EPA has found fish containing trace amounts of estrogen, cholesterol-lowering drugs, pain relievers, antibiotics, caffeine and even anti-depressants.

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 19:19:38 -0500

Good thing I hate seafood. Amiright?

mikesea:

fuckyeahfacts:

(source)

mikesea: stuffaboutminneapolis: notesfromminneapolis: Gotta...

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 19:18:57 -0500

mikesea:

stuffaboutminneapolis:

notesfromminneapolis:

Gotta say, TCF Bank Stadium looks pretty freakin’ amazing. New photos at GopherHole.com.

CLEAR YOUR CALENDAR

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:12:00 -0500

Next Tuesday, August 11th, we are going to a Twins game.

We are going to buy $34 tickets and sit in the all you can eat section.

We will eat unlimited hot dogs, soft pretzels, popcorn, peanuts, nachos, soda and water all night.

We will see Francisco Liriano beat the Kansas City Royals because Liriano is better than his numbers and critics will have you believe and because it is the Kansas City Royals, who are truly terrible.

In all seriousness, I did this last year and it was rad. Yeah, it’s a little bit of money for a Twins ticket, but you eat at least that much and the seats aren’t that bad. I guarantee it will be a fun time. Let yourself have a little fun next Tuesday night.

Not sure if we should get tickets online beforehand or not. I’ll let you know. Just clear your calendars for now.

Be honest.

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 18:41:21 -0500

Hear hear.

airgordon:

Is Shark Week really that exciting for you, or is it the idea of being one of those people who’s really excited by Shark Week? Or is it your love for 30 Rock?

Oh American public, you are ever so silly

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 19:13:00 -0500

People want something for nothing? Why, that sounds like how I feel everyday of my life.

boomshockalocka:

From NYT:

Most Americans continue to want the federal government to focus on reducing the budget deficit rather than spending money to stimulate the national economy, a new New York Times/CBS News poll finds. Yet at the same time, most oppose some proposed solution for decreasing it.

Fifty-six percent of respondents said that they were not willing to pay more in taxes in order to reduce the deficit, and nearly as many said they were not willing for the government to provide fewer services in areas such as health care, education and defense spending.

Arctic Monkeys - Still Take You Home This song contains every...

Sun, 26 Jul 2009 23:08:39 -0500

Arctic Monkeys - Still Take You Home

This song contains every reason I loved the Arctic Monkeys.

I am surprisingly beginning to miss NYC subways. I am clearly...

Sun, 26 Jul 2009 17:00:00 -0500

I am surprisingly beginning to miss NYC subways. I am clearly letting nostalgia taint my memories.