All those topics that i wish i had time to pursue more earnestly.

Jared Diamond interview: “

There’s an excellent interview with Jared Diamond in Salon—I’m definitely going to have to buy his new book, Collapse.

Toward the end of ‘Collapse’ you describe two crucial factors for determining whether or not a civilization will survive, and one of them is whether there’s a willingness to discard unhelpful values. Clearly we have some values in this country that are very important to us, but some of them, like anathematizing family planning, aren’t very helpful in this day and age.

—snip—-
.

Foolish Jared, expecting people to do the reasonable, rational thing.

“

(Via Pharyngula.)

yep, foolish…. sarcasm prevalent.

riverfronttimes.com | Eat More Beaver | 2005-01-05: “For 69-year-old Lorraine Wells and her husband, Joe, barbecued coon is the only way to go. The Wellses soak the creature in a mixture of vinegar, water and salt overnight, and then parboil the carcass with seasoned salt, garlic and pepper. When the meat is tender, Joe tosses the carcass on the grill and smokes the meat for a few hours. They insist raccoon tastes better than roast beef.”

(Via .)

this traditions seems to me, to be more real than most.

UPenn vs. Dover: “

This has already been brought up at The Panda’s Thumb, but this open letter from UPenn faculty to the Dover school board deserves even wider distribution. I like it as a short, simple statement of why we shouldn’t be peddling Intelligent Design creationism in classrooms.

5 January 2005

Dover Area School Board

2 School Lane

Dover, PA 17315

An Open Letter to the Dover Area School Board:

As scientists, scholars, and teachers, we are compelled to point out that the quality of science education in your schools has been seriously compromised by the decision to mandate the teaching of ‘intelligent design’ along with evolution. Science education should be based on ideas that are well supported by evidence. Intelligent design does not meet this criterion: It is a form of creationism propped up by a biased and selective view of the evidence.

——-snip—-plenty more to read–

(Via Pharyngula.)

this is precisely what universities should do when faced with this sort of thing in the u.s. they should send a letter explaining their position and what they think should resolve the issue.

Busted Tees : Jokes you can wear! Hilarious T-Shirts!: “”

(Via .)

i need some new t-shirts, don’t think these will work though….

when do we finally say | Metafilter:

The Reality of Red-State Fascism, by Lew Rockwell. We consistently say ‘Man, we’re on the road to fascism’ yet people fall all over themselves to say ‘We’re nowhere near it.’. Well, when do we say ‘Holy shit…we’re there’? Everybody’s favorite libertarian gives us a timeline of the descent, and lets us know how we are now not just on the brink, but in the midst of Americanized Fascism:
“

(Via .)

fascism comes in on cat’s feet. read arendt, read adorno.

if you are going to celebrate christmas, today is the day. the 12th day of christmas, epiphany.

MilkandCookies – Blue Christmas: “”

(Via .)

classic

The Top 10 War Profiteers of 2004: “list plus info on major USA tax-subsidized corporations according to the The Center for Corporate Policy ~’War Profiteers’: now there’s a term you won’t ever hear on FOX or CNN. Or read in the Wall Street Journal. (Maybe ironically?)…”

(Via Spitting Image.)

——-

hmmm, not the usual suspects…. but pretty bad blokes nonetheless

One-page intro to OA: ”

“

(Via Open Access News.)

——

this is a nice short overview.

Joel on Software – Advice for Computer Science College Students: “Without further ado, then, here are Joel’s Seven Pieces of Free Advice for Computer Science College Students (worth what you paid for them):”

(Via .)

worth a glance.