Monday, July 16, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
"the process of polarization is not symmetrical. The parties have not become equally ideologically..."
“the process of polarization is not symmetrical. The parties have not become equally ideologically homogenous or moved equally far toward their extremes. They do not behave in the same way or share the same attitude toward established social and political norms. Republicans have moved farther right than Democrats have left.”
- The left’s gone left but the right’s gone nuts: Asymmetrical polarization in action | Grist
- The left’s gone left but the right’s gone nuts: Asymmetrical polarization in action | Grist
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Sunday, July 01, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
"A study led by Dr. Jessica Savage of Johns Hopkins University found that children who had high..."
“A study led by Dr. Jessica Savage of Johns Hopkins University found that children who had high levels of triclosan and parabens in their urine, were at increased risk of both food and environmental allergies. According to US News HealthDay, the children with the highest levels of urinary triclosan had more than “twice the risk of food allergies and nearly twice the risk of environmental allergies as children with the lowest levels.””
- Antibacterial soaps can double the risk of allergies in kids | BabyCenter Blog
- Antibacterial soaps can double the risk of allergies in kids | BabyCenter Blog
This is why unions are important
Fair wages and reasonable hours and vacations are all well and good, but the most important reason for unions is the same reason they are getting targeted by Gov. Walker in Wisconsin and the national Republican Party.
They are the one and only source of middle class political power that can stand up to corporations.
"If it were true that lower tax rates and more wealth for the wealthy would lead to more job..."
“If it were true that lower tax rates and more wealth for the wealthy would lead to more job creation, then today we would be drowning in jobs. And yet unemployment and under-employment is at record highs.”
- Was Nick Hanauer’s TED Talk on Income Inequality Too Rich for Rich People? | Business | TIME.com
- Was Nick Hanauer’s TED Talk on Income Inequality Too Rich for Rich People? | Business | TIME.com
Friday, June 22, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Why I will not buy the new Macbook Pro
MacBook Pro with Retina Display 15” Mid 2012
Repairability Score: 1 out of 10 (10 is easiest to repair).
Proprietary pentalobe screws prevent you from gaining access to anything inside.
As in the MacBook Air, the RAM is soldered to the logic board. Max out at 16GB now, or forever hold your peace—you can’t upgrade.
The proprietary SSD isn’t upgradeable either (yet), as it is similar but not identical to the one in the Air. It is a separate daughtercard, and we’re hopeful we can offer an upgrade in the near future.
The lithium-polymer battery is glued rather than screwed into the case, which increases the chances that it’ll break during disassembly. The battery also covers the trackpad cable, which tremendously increases the chance that the user will shear the cable in the battery removal process.
The display assembly is completely fused, and there’s no glass protecting it. If anything ever fails inside the display, you will need to replace the entire extremely expensive assembly.
Wednesday, June 06, 2012
Tuesday, June 05, 2012
Monday, June 04, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
Monday, May 07, 2012
"Mystery of the Disappearing Bees: Solved!” announced a Reuters headline. Ah, if only that were true...."
““Mystery of the Disappearing Bees: Solved!” announced a Reuters headline. Ah, if only that were true. Even if neonicotinoids were banned tomorrow, honeybees would still be in big trouble.”
- The honeybees are still dying - Boing Boing
- The honeybees are still dying - Boing Boing
Sunday, May 06, 2012
Approaching taxes from data, not politics
I came across these two analyses months ago and never had time to share. Basically, it's an analysis of our federal income tax system doing two things:
- Finding out if there's anything to the Laffer Curve
- Determining what the optimal top marginal tax rate is for maximizing economic growth
The short answers are: no, it's upside-down; and, 65% should be the top marginal tax rate.
In more detail, then. Economist Mike Kimel tackles the Laffer Curve first - an upside-down 'U' chart that purports to show an optimal top marginal tax rate to maximize growth. In practice, partisan Republican "economists" use this to argue that tax rates should always be lower because it will actually mean more tax revenue.
The data disagree. Kimel illustrates that the proper Laffer Curve is a right-side-up 'U' – the Kimel Curve – with a minimum around 32% for the top marginal tax rate (the top rate is currently 35%, down from 90% or more during the 1950s and 60s, 50% during Reagan's first term and ~40% during the first Clinton term). In other words, both raising or lowering taxes could theoretically raise revenue.
However, tax policy isn't really about maximizing revenue. It's about providing services most efficiently and getting the best economic growth for the amount of taxes collected. And the historical data suggest that the optimal top marginal tax rate is 64%. It's a number that fits a lot better with the theory that government spending juices the economy (think education, infrastructure, and R&D) than the theory that government is stealing from the private sector's growth potential.
Fascinating.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Thursday, April 26, 2012
"In 2010, as I reported at the time, Amnesty International released a damning report about pregnancy..."
“In 2010, as I reported at the time, Amnesty International released a damning report about pregnancy and childbirth care in the United States. That report noted that American women are dying during pregnancy and childbirth at double the rate they were 20 years ago (from 6.6 per 100,000 live births in 1987 to 13.3 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2006).”
- Yes, childbirth is more dangerous for women than the abortion pill | MinnPost
- Yes, childbirth is more dangerous for women than the abortion pill | MinnPost
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