February 20, 2010 Political Slant
In the Washington Post recently, George F. Will traces historical precedent in Presidential elections to convince his readers that Palin will not be elected president in 2012. Why? Because Populist support hasn’t been large enough to win an election since Andrew Jackson. He concludes:
“Populism has had as many incarnations as it has had provocations, but its constant ingredient has been resentment, and hence whininess. Populism does not wax in tranquil times; it is a cathartic response to serious problems. But it always wanes because it never seems serious as a solution.”
I understand resentment. People want change because they are dissatisfied with the way things are now; they resent the policies (and the politicians) that led them there; and their resentment makes them speak out. They may even be whiny. All the same, his article is aimed at the wrong target. Read on »
02/20
Chart Porn! Don’t worry, it’s safe for work. There are no boobies (I agree, that’s kind of disappointing, because charts would be better with boobies).
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02/19
William Shatner to Play Dad in Shit my Dad Says, the new pilot sitcom based on a twitter profile.
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February 19, 2010 Culture, Technology
This is beautifully designed map of predictions for our future. It was made for WIRED by Density Design. The concept comes from research done by a non-profit organization, a sort of seer collective for science. Unsurprisingly, they are called The Institute for the Future. Read on »
“. . . whether we are describing a king, an assasin, a thief, an honest man, a prostitute, a nun, a young girl, or a stall-holder in the market, it is always ourselves that we are describing, for we are obliged to ask ourselves the following question: ‘If I was a king, an assassin, a thief, a prostitute, a nun, a young girl, a stall-holder, what would I do, what would I think, how would I behave.’”
Guy de Maupassant
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“Do not bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself.”
William Faulkner
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February 16, 2010 Culture
“Cosmology is the theory and lore of how the world or universe is structured. A kind of map or picture of the cosmos, cosmology is a way of naming things and putting them in their proper places.” James D. Tabor
Note, in the smooth illustration above, that the realm of the dead is called Sheol by the ancient Hebrews, to be distinguished from the Christian version of Hell. The difference is to some extent a matter of semantics. Eternal punishment for sin and life after death are conflated with the word Hell, whereas the “idea of Sheol is negative in contrast to the world of life and light above, but there is no idea of judgment or of reward and punishment.” The fascinating Biblical distinctions are traced through history by James Tabor in the rest of this essay.
Illustration by Michael Paukner (via)