Monday, August 31, 2009

Will 8/31/09

Washington Is Seriously Unserious


My take on George Will's latest. His essay was published in the Newsweek Magazine.

Summary: On at least two main issues in the news, health care, global warming, the legislation before Congress does not seriously face the facts. The global warming bill is called “cap and trade”.

Quote:
That legislation is a particularly lurid illustration of why no serious person nowadays takes seriously Washington's increasingly infantile bandying of numbers.

My Views: I’ve been drawing attention to the articles by George Will and Charles Krauthammer because they make serious criticisms of the issues. I fear that too much of the press is too infatuated with Obama to give these issues the kind of objective analysis that they deserve. In this essay, Will’s points ought to be addressed by responsible people in power.




George Will almost didn't make it as a syndicated columnist. His style was considered too erudite for a general audience.

Whatever one thinks of his views, read his work for use of language and for how he marshals facts and uses logic.

Here's his Wiki bio.

His latest book is at the right.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Mafia Wars


I started playing this game a couple of days ago because my Facebook friends were playing it.

This is an internet-based role-playing game. You play it on Facebook or on MySpace. In a role-playing game, you create a character which represents you in the game world.

It is also a social game. This means that the more people you can recruit into your character’s “mob”, the stronger it becomes. This encourages you go go out and get “friends”, since only “friends” can be recruited. I put the word friends in quotes because, I notice that most people seem to connect as friends just to play the game. But that doesn’t mean that these “friends” cannot develop some personal relations as a result of the shared experience of playing this game.

Game strategy sites talk about “power-leveling”. This term means that people want to grow in strength. (I think that the phrase “take it to the next level” comes from the role-play game mechanics.) Levels is how the game defines advancement.

I think that the leveling process is largely an illusion, though. Yes, you gain more power and money as you level up, but the risks and costs go up, too. There is an inflation factor (in effect) built in to each role-playing game. For fights, what is important is the risk/reward ratio. For finances, it is the revenue/cost ratio.

My conclusion is to not worry about power-leveling, too much. I think that players will get the most enjoyment from just playing the game at the level they are at. Advancement in levels will come naturally.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Quote for the Day 8/29/09

I spent the last few days in Ohio at my 10th year college reunion, but before I could write anything about it, something occurred to me: on this date four years ago, Beauty and the Geek first hit the airwaves and turned me into an international superstar. Or at least put my face on TV—the “superstar” status is questionable at best.

Four years… wow.

- Shawn Bakken, who made it to the penultimate episode in Season 1 - from Shawn Bakken's Blog

And even the quote is 2 months old now. How time flies!

Friday, August 28, 2009

Coulter 8/28/09

Left's Healthcare Lies - Part 2


My take on Ann Coulter's latest. Her column was published on Townhall.com.

Summary: This installment covers abortions, rationing, and cost control with a humorous play on the CIA angle to distract attention from the Healthcare issue.

List: The New National Health Care Plan will:
  1. Have no rationing.
  2. Reduce costs.
  3. Not cover abortions.

Quote:
With the Democrats getting slaughtered -- or should I say, "receiving mandatory end-of-life counseling" -- in the debate over national health care, the Obama administration has decided to change the subject by indicting CIA interrogators for talking tough to three of the world's leading Muslim terrorists.

My Views: I doubt that Obama is using the prosecution of CIA agents as a device to distract attention to the issue. This is just Coulter humor. As for the main topics, she makes some effective points. Abortion funding may not be explicitly included in the bill but does anybody seriously think that when passed and it comes to Obama implementing it, that abortion funding won't be there? As for rationing, well . . . how can it be otherwise? Others have looked at the costs of this thing is a very seriously way and there is a great deal to be concerned about.

Part 1Series SummaryPart 3





Anybody who is as hated as Ann Coulter is must be doing something right. She is very right-wing but every left-wing blogger would love to write like her. I hate rants; opinion pieces must argue from the facts. Pay attention to how she uses facts and draws politically incorrect connections among them. People would do well to think and not just be outraged.

Here's her Wiki bio. Her latest book is at the right.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Kennedy RIP: End of an Era


Lots of eulogies of Edward Kennedy. Here's a larger view of the significance of this event.

This is the first time since 1956 that there has not been a Kennedy on the national scene in the first rank. At the 1956 Democratic National Convention, John F. Kennedy mounted a short-lived bid for the Vice-Presidential nomination. While he lost to Estes Kefauver, he emerged from that convention as a national figure and a contender for President in 1960.

Since then, there has been a Kennedy as a possible contender for top honors through the 1980's. After Ted Kennedy's loss of the presidential campaign in 1980 to Jimmy Carter, he gradually fell back upon Senate power. He was a major player in the Senate until his death a couple days ago.

There are other Kennedys, of course. A Kennedy may even be elected to replace him in the Senate. But no Kennedy will have front-rank stature and this marks a change in America's politics.

No Kennedy in the front rank. An era has passed.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

The Political Line of Work

Politics is a great line of work. If you disgrace yourself, you can always write a book. Of course, you must first possess the ability to write one. - Or hire a ghost writer.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

USCF Politics - Ugh!

I've spent wa-ay too much time on the USCF's Forums in the past few months. I had a reason: the campaign against Paul Truong and Susan Polgar. But that's over now. The USCF has expelled them entirely. So now the attacks become ever more petty and the gimmicks to purnish Polgar supporters (me) ever more arbitrary. They won; we lost. And they've made it clear that there will be no olive branch to the loosers.

I can go into the latest problem but why bother? (It was another attack on Susan's Chess Discussion Forum of which I am a Moderator.)

The USCF's forum still has useful information that comes up from time to time so I recommend that you still go there if you can. But I can't recommend becoming too involved in it. Most of the time, they're just going round in circles in meaningless discussions on lawsuits. The central questions surrounding the Delegate's verdict are all hush hush. So, forget trying to find them out.

As for much else, well. It's all so sad, really. On a more positive note, there are several really good chess sites - like the much maligned Susan Polgar's Chess Discussion. And Chessvine, too.

(Yes, I am a contributor to both.) Which brings me to my main point of this: I really need to start spending more of my time on those places (and here, too!) than on the USCF's Forums.



Monday, August 24, 2009

Grammar Knowledge 8/24/09

The exclamation point:

Which of the following sentences is punctuated correctly?



Which one is it?

  1. “Halt!” shouted the corporal.

  2. “Halt,” shouted the corporal.

  3. “Halt!.” shouted the corporal.

  4. “Halt,!” shouted the corporal.


Hint: This involves an emphatic interjection.



And the answer is . . . .

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Thinking of Podcasting

I've been thinking of starting of a podcast. This would be like a regular radio show. Here's a video on podcasting for anybody else who may be thinking of this.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Why There’s More Lawyers Than Doctors

The lawyer told the doctor, “I have no money but I’ll pay you out of the malpractice suit.” What can a doctor say nowadays? He asked the lawyer what caused him to be such a know-it-all. The lawyer said, “I’ve consulted a fortune-teller, a palm reader, Tarot cards, and a faith healer.”

“And what dumb advice did those quacks give you?”

“They told me to go see you.”

When he checked with his malpractice insurance, he enrolled in law school. It was just as well. He only became a MD in the first place because he screwed up his earlier job as a kidnapper. His handwriting was so bad that nobody could read his ransom notes. At the time, doctoring seemed to be the next logical switch.

He wasn’t such a good lawyer, either. He chased an ambulance 10 blocks only to find the patient inside was another lawyer. – Yet another malpractice suit to add to his collection. He finally settled. He ended up owing an arm and a leg – one set to the lawyer he had doctored and the other to the lawyer he represented in the ambulance. Now he's quadriplegic but he still owes the lawyer who settled the cases.

Nobody likes a crooked lawyer until he needs one. But now what? He's gone back to kidnapping - pharmacists.



Based on material from this book by Milton Berle. Buy it because you will want to keep it as a reference book.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Krauthammer 8/21/09

The Truth About Death Counseling


My take on Charles Krauthammer's latest. His column was published in the Washington Post.

Summary: It lies somewhere between the extreme statements of Sarah Palin and Barack Obama. Not "Death Panels" but not "non-existent", either.

Quote:
It's surely not a death panel. But it is subtle pressure applied by society through your doctor. And when you include it in a health-care reform whose major objective is to bend the cost curve downward, you have to be a fool or a knave to deny that it's intended to gently point the patient in a certain direction, toward the corner of the sickroom where stands a ghostly figure, scythe in hand, offering release.

My Views: I find myself quoting CK so much because he gets so much right. I've watched MSNBC where all the concerns about death counseling are dismissed as so much lies, so it is nice to read a reasoned analysis of what the issue is really about.




Charles Krauthammer is a more establishment columnist. He came to punditry by way of psychiatry (at Massachusetts General Hospital) via the New Republic Magazine. He appears on TV where you never see his wheelchair. Here's his Wiki bio.

He wrote a book which is pictured at the right. I am drawn by the substance and the thinking than any particular writing flair.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Battlestar Gallactica



I’ve been watching Battlestar Gallactica on Netflix the last months. I watched all four seasons. Here’s my thoughts on it.

First, I this kind of show needs to be seen on DVD’s because it is really one huge extended movie umpteen hours long busted up into episodes. Which makes me wonder why they didn’t save the original director’s cuts and just use them for the DVD’s? The commentary continually refers to the problem that important scenes were cut in order to fit into the timeslots for television. It seems a simple matter to save the original uncut versions and just transfer those to DVD. It would also make the DVD sets more marketable to those who have seen the shows originally on tv.

Second, the creators went in big for surprise twists. The trouble is that not all the plot points resolved the hanging threads created by the surprise twists. The resolutions that were given were of an ad-hoc nature. The creator’s commentaries admitted that they gave plot twists that created long range plotting problems and postponed thinking about the resolutions to those problems until later. For example, Kara’s resurrection was never fully explained.

Third, one wonders what the Cylons were about, whether they had a plan or not. They went through a lot of trouble to destroy the remnants of the human race in Adama’s rag-tag fleet through 4 years and who knows how many light-years distance, while doing precious little to create their own civilization in the meantime. The show bases the Cylon behavior on the need for human sperm for reproduction. They have ships that can travel the galaxy but they can’t get sperm banks?

But I dwell on the negative. The positives of this series far outweighs those. The story holds up. Some of those plot problem resolutions were pretty ingenious. I really got interested in the characters.

My favorite episodes were those on the occupation and escape from New Caprica.

I recommend this series. If you wish, you can rent the videos like I did (Netflix) or buy them from somewhere like Amazon:
Battlestar Gallactica 1, 2.0, 2.5

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Coulter 8/19/09

Left's Healthcare Lies - Part 1



My take on Ann Coulter's latest. Her column was published on Townhall.com.

Summary: She lists a number of Administration talking points and then refutes them. This installment's discussion concerns the insurance companies.

List: The New National Health Care Plan will:

  1. Punish the insurance companies.
  2. Increase competition and keep insurance companies honest.
  3. Stop insurance companies denying legitimate claims.

  4. Give Americans "basic consumer protections that will finally hold insurance companies accountable."
  5. Be the only way to provide coverage for pre-existing conditions.
Quote:
You want to punish insurance companies? Make them compete.

My Views: There's been a lot of coverage of this issue and I fear that I am over-doing it myself. I can't help but notice that it has a number of dimensions: 1) The importance of the issue itself; 2) the political calculations involving the emphasis on the shortcomings of the insurance industry and not others such as the law firms; 3) the elitism towards public concerns expressed at town hall meetings and elsewhere; and 4) Obama's Administration imploding.

If I were Obama, I would at this point shift attention away from townhalls by challenging the Republicans to a debate - a real one - face to face using something like the old Buckey Firing Line format. Two teams line up and take turns banging away at an issue. D's vs. R's. Or else go one on one with a prominent R - like Sarah Palin. Presuming she would score badly, he could recover momentum.

Of course, there's the danger that the R's concerns aren't as bad as the D's and their amen corner in the media make it out to be - and that people like SP aren't as dumb as they're portrayed as being, either. Danger, yes but at this point if I were Obama, I would take the chance.

Series SummaryPart 2





Anybody who is as hated as Ann Coulter is must be doing something right. She is very right-wing but every left-wing blogger would love to write like her. I hate rants; opinion pieces must argue from the facts. Pay attention to how she uses facts and draws politically incorrect connections among them. People would do well to think and not just be outraged.

Here's her Wiki bio. Her latest book is at the right.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Battlestar Gallactica Finale



This is from the series finale of Battlestar Gallactica. This Youtube emphasizes the special effects of this series and centers on the fate of the ship, the Battlestar Gallactica. This is simply wonderful!

In a couple of days I shall do a wrap-up of my thoughts on this series.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

France's Wars: The Suez Affair 1956-1957

** THIS POST STILL BEING DEVELOPED **
Did you ever notice that in almost every great war in history, France has been involved in some way? Here’s an example: France's intervention with Britain against Egypt in the Israeli War.

Summary:

Background:

Major Players:
. 1) France:

. 2) Other Countries:

. 3) The Leaders:

Narrative:

Pictured is a map showing the area of operations.

Aftermath:

For Further Reading:

Wikipedia



Previous WarMaster ListNext War

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Susan and Paul Expelled

Susan Polgar and Paul Truong have just been expelled from the US Chess Federation. The Executive Board started the process last month; a final hearing was held last night; and the Delegates rejected the final appeal this afternoon. Susan and Paul appeared with their lawyer shortly after 2 p.m. Eastern Time. The meeting lasted until after 6:30.

The preliminary numbers we have to uphold the EB action was:

Paul Truong: 58 for, 18 against, 5 abstaining
Susan Polgar: 55 for, 21 against, 5 abstaining

Bill Hall, the USCF Executive Director has banned any discussion of the meeting from the USCF's Forums. This does not prevent this blog or any other independent news organization from reporting the news about events they deem the public has a right to know.

Paul Truong, Mikhail Korenman, Susan Polgar, and Randy Bauer
from Susan Polgar's Blog. Artwork used with permission.


This picture was from the 2007 campaign and happier days. Of the three, Mikhail Korenman lost; the others all won. Randy Bauer became Chairman of the Litigation Committee and voted to expel Susan and Paul.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Coulter 8/6/09

The R's Have the Birthers But What Do the D's Have?


My take on Ann Coulter's latest. Her column was published on Townhall.com.

Summary: Okay, the Birthers may be a little nuts. But before we judge the conservatives and the Republicans we also ought to look at the nutjob politics that the other side have tolerated - and even supported!

Quote:
And as has been recently noted, a 2007 Rasmussen poll showed that 35 percent of Democrats believe Bush knew about the 9/11 attacks in advance, while 26 percent aren't sure ...

My Views: It bothers me that so much of news coverage seems to be designed to influence rather than inform. The selective outrage at crazy political theories and the selective concern at the degree of crazy opinions and behavior in the political system is just one case of bother.

I would be a lot share the left's concern about the birthers a lot more if they weren’t so opportunistic in jumping on this story




Anybody who is as hated as Ann Coulter is must be doing something right. She is very right-wing but every left-wing blogger would love to write like her. I hate rants; opinion pieces must argue from the facts. Pay attention to how she uses facts and draws politically incorrect connections among them. People would do well to think and not just be outraged.

Here's her Wiki bio. Her latest book is at the right.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

France's Wars: World War II 1939-1945

** THIS POST STILL BEING DEVELOPED **
Did you ever notice that in almost every great war in history, France has been involved in some way? Here’s an example: the great war against Hitler and the Axis Powers.

Summary:

Background:

Major Players:
. 1) France:

. 2) Other Countries:

. 3) The Leaders:

Narrative:

Pictured is a map showing the French Campaign in 1940.

Aftermath:

For Further Reading:

Wikipedia



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