How Dangerous Is It to Read on the Toilet? Maybe this will convince people to stop making phone calls in the crapper. No matter how much you try to muffle your grunts and ab-clench quietly, it still makes a gruesome impression, people.

Ron Paul speaks the truth about the Federal Reserve

The more I learn, the more disgusted I become. I transcribed the following quote from this YouTube video of a speech given by Ron Paul:

‘Bernanke decries any effort to gain transparency of the Fed’s actions to find out just who gets bailed out and who is left to fail. Instead, he proposes giving even more power to the fed to regulate the entire financial system. What he does not recognize nor does want to admit is that he is talking about symptoms while ignoring the source of the crisis: the Federal Reserve itself. [...] Regulation distracts from the real cause while further interfering with the market forces, thus guaranteeing that the recession will become much deeper and prolonged. Chairman Bernanke’s argument for Fed secrecy is a red herring: it serves to distract so the special interests that benefit from the Fed policy never become known to the public. Who can possibly buy this argument that this secrecy is required to protect the people from political influence. [...] Bernanke’s argument for protecting the independence of the Fed is his argument for protecting the secrecy of the fed. Chairman Bernanke concludes that “America needs a strong”–think cartel–”non-political”–think Goldman Sachs– “independent”– think secret– “central bank with the tools to promote financial stability in the midst of a horrendous financial crisis and to help steer our economy to recovery without inflation”. This belief is a dream that will one day become a nightmare for all Americans unless we come to our senses, stop our wild spending, runaway deficits, printing press money, massive beaurocratic regulations, and our unnecessary world empire. A crucial step to fixing these problems will be transparency of the Federal Reserve.”‘

Here’s to hoping his speeches make the difference.

To Build A Fire

Ontario seems to have forgotten that it’s December and time for winter and snow. This short story by Jack London, set on a merciless span of Yukon ice, will remind you what real Canadian cold is:

“He knew there must be no failure. When it is seventy- five below zero, a man must not fail in his first attempt to build a fire–that is, if his feet are wet. If his feet are dry, and he fails, he can run along the trail for half a mile and restore his circulation. But the circulation of wet and freezing feet cannot be restored by running when it is seventy-five below. No matter how fast he runs, the wet feet will freeze the harder.”

Sanders’s hold on Bernanke shows rising public concern about the Fed

The Bitch is Back (And shes going rogue… Ayn Rand, not Sarah Palin)

Beverly Hills Battles for Evolution (Against Intelligent Design)

Inspired Design is Essential, and All Too Rare

This is what happens when writers are blind to design. Some damned fine content, though.

The Best Used Bookstores in Toronto is not a complete list, but it covers the basics. The map at the bottom will guide my book hunt this weekend