Things that make you go "Hm", laugh, or cry

Laugh:

Human race will 'split into two different species'. So sayeth Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics. (Those wacky economists!)

Top 10 Most Terrifyingly Inspirational 80s Songs

Hm:

Biofuels 'crime against humanity'.

The UN special rapporteur on the right to food, Jean Ziegler, said he feared biofuels would bring more hunger.

The growth in the production of biofuels has helped to push the price of some crops to record levels.

It was, he said, a crime against humanity to divert arable land to the production of crops which are then burned for fuel.

He called for a five-year ban on the practice. Within that time, according to Mr Ziegler, technological advances would enable the use of agricultural waste, such as corn cobs and banana leaves, rather than crops themselves to produce fuel.

and more 'hm':

The literary criticism of J.K. Rowling has begun. Potter is a lefty, says French philosopher ("Harry Potter is a left-winger and the seven books by J.K. Rowling are a diatribe against Thatcherite Britain, a French philosopher said Friday on the day of the last novel's publication in French.")

I like the phrase "Thatcherite Britain". Hard to say why.


Cry:

American kids, dumber than dirt

FEMA "Sorry" Faked Newscast. No, they're not. They're just sorry they got caught. Typical of this Administration.

The collapse of Bush's foreign policy: From Turkey to Iraq to Pakistan, the mounting chaos proves the White House is just winging it (by Juan Cole):

Like a drunken millionaire gambling away a fortune at a Las Vegas casino, the Bush administration squandered all the assets it began with by invading Iraq and unleashing chaos in the Gulf. The secular Baath Party in Iraq was replaced by Shiite fundamentalists, Sunni Salafi fundamentalists and Kurdish separatists. The pressure the Bush administration put on the Pakistani military government to combat Muslim militants in that country weakened the legitimacy of Musharraf, whom the Pakistani public increasingly viewed as an oppressive American puppet. Iraqi Kurdistan's willingness to give safe haven to the PKK alienated Turkey from both the new Iraqi government and its American patrons. Search-and-destroy missions in Afghanistan have predictably turned increasing numbers of Pushtun villagers against the United States, NATO and Karzai.

Various Coolnesses

The Flushing Remonstrance, triggered by colonial Gov. Peter Stuyvesant being an intolerant dick. Read about it here. I love the Society of Friends (Quakers). I think, based on my scattered readings of Elaine Pagels The Gnostic Gospels, that Quakers are the most true to the form of early Christianity.

I'll gradually be changing my cosmetics usage (yes, I do wear cosmetics pretty regularly now) based on this site: http://www.safecosmetics.org/

Goth Raggedy Ann and Andy! My twin and I used to have RA&A. Not goth, though. Too bad.

TV Torture Changes Real Interrogation Techniques

TV Torture Changes Real Interrogation Techniques

David Danzig:

It used to be [on TV] it was always the bad guys who used [torture] .... When they used these kinds of techniques, they never worked....This stuff doesn't work in the real world...

Terri Gross asked Col. Harrington, what are some of the myths of the effectiveness of torture?

His answer:

* that it works at all
* that information can be obtained quickly

Plus, the ticking time bomb scenario, in the real world, just doesn't happen.

Col. Harrington: "Harsh conditions...[are] counterproductive."

Terri Gross: You keep saying that professionals know better than to use these kinds of torture techniques. Are you implying that amateurs who really didn't know better who were responsible for putting these techniques into place?

Col. Herrington: I'll do better than implying. I'll say it. Yes.

Catching Up

This past week-plus, since last I updated, have been filled with:

Turning another year older, an important personal holiday.
Observing the other extremely important personal holiday of "Papa's Birthday".
Attending The Role of Law Schools in Fostering Commitment to Pro Bono Publico, which I believe to have been a very useful conference.

Finding out information about the new federal loan forgiveness act.

Students, take out federally-funded or federally-guaranteed loans (i.e., Stafford, GradPLUS), and then when you graduate, go to the Dept of Education website for the form(s) to consolidate everything into a *federal* direct consolidation loan. Look up your (federal) loan info here. If you already have a private consolidation loan, you may have to fill out an extra form, or otherwise affirm that the private deal isn't good enough, to re-consolidate with a federal one, and unless it has loan forgiveness, it ain't good enough. You may even need to use the contact number for the Dept of Ed's Ombudsman, which is 1-877-557-2575. Then, if it's not 2009 yet, sign up for Income Contingent Repayment, to keep your payments down. Payments will be based on your adjusted gross income. In 2009, sign up for Income Based Repayment, to keep your payments down even further, *and* get loan forgiveness after 25 years . If you work in public service (govt job, any 501(c)-type org) for 10 years (non-consecutive!!), from the time you sign up for IBR, you'll get loan forgiveness after the 10 years instead of 25. If you make shitloads of money, you may not want ICR or IBR, because a payment schedule based on your income may mean higher payments than the standard repayment schedule. This advice is for the rest of us. You go enjoy driving your expensive car.

There's a third-party ICR & IBR calculator here, among various other calculators and financial aid related tools.

Having the easiest walk through security at an airport, ever.
Reading Daniel Defoe's Journal of the Plague Year and wondering if a similar book using Hurricane Katrina would make sense or not.
Visting one set of friends, and missing a visit from another set of friends.

Interesting Discussion of How We Consider Exercise and Weight

The Scientist and the Stairmaster: Why most of us believe that exercise makes us thinner—and why we're wrong.

Huh.

The Haven Foundation - Supporting Freelance Artists

The Haven Foundation.

Supporting Family Values -- and Valuing Families

Way to go, San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders. Embracing same-sex marriage, for all the right reasons.

How to Make a Foxhole Radio

That's just cool. Here's how. (PDF instructions here.)

Petraeus says US surge has 'not worked out'

Petraeus says US surge has 'not worked out'. I think that's pretty self-explanatory. How 'bout you?

Local Memorial Planned to Honor Fairbanks Musical Legend

My dad[*] is heading up for Fairbanks next week to participate in the memorial performance for the late, great, Jim Bell. He was a Boom-dee-yay Boy for Jim in his time.

I wish I could be there. Jim was a legend, and, of course, as a kid in Alaska at the time, I didn't appreciate what I was seeing, watching a show at the Palace Saloon in Fairbanks, AK.

Jim's obit -- written with a great sense of humor -- may be read here.

[*](living, as opposed to my father, who's not.)

One Woman Tells the Truth About Iraq

Blogger Riverbend of Baghdad Burning has fled the country, with her family.

This is what we did to Iraq:

Made armed incursions and death at the hands of masked men "normal".
Made roadblocks, checkpoints, and vehicle explosions commonplace.
Ripped families apart.
Denied women any autonomy.
Killed.
And Killed.
And Killed A Nation.

Leaving Home, by Riverbend, who had to leave her home, because of what George Bush did to it. What *you* and *I*, and every American, let him do to it.

Newsflash: Global Warming is Real, and We Cause It

NOAA Study Says Greenhouse Warming Was Main Cause of Unusual Heat in 2006

Warming caused by human activity was the biggest factor in unusually high temperatures recorded in 2006 in the United States, according to a report by researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The analysis, released Tuesday, is being published in the September issue of Geophysical Research Letters, published by the American Geophysical Union.

Mankind to blame for warming but can slow damage

The report gives a first overview of 3,000 pages of research by the U.N.'s climate panel already published in three installments this year about the science, the likely impacts and the costs of slowing climate change.

The authoritative summary, obtained by Reuters and meant to guide governments in working out how to slow warming, reiterates that humans are to blame for climate change but that clean technologies are available to offset the most harmful emissions.

"Most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic (from human activities) greenhouse gas concentrations," it says.

UN Issues Desertification Warning

UN issues desertification warning

"Desertification has emerged as an environmental crisis of global proportions, currently affecting an estimated 100 to 200 million people, and threatening the lives and livelihoods of a much larger number," the study said.

The overexploitation of land and unsustainable irrigation practices are making matters worse, while climate change is also a major factor degrading the soil, it says.

The report can be found at the BBC website (PDF).

Katrina, Then and Now

First: A Katrina Timeline

Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake wrote For the Love of Cheney, two years ago, and now, For the Love of Cheney — The Second Anniversary Edition.

Author Poppy Z. Brite refused to leave the city, though she doesn't live in the same area anymore:

• Not OK
• We Are Still Not OK

There's also a New Orleans community on livejournal.

And, of course, there's Digby: What, Me Worry?

Bush, Katrina, and the Shame of a Nation -- Two Years Later

Fool me once... Fool me twice...

The Great Iraq Swindle

It was an awful idea, perhaps the worst America has ever tried on foreign soil. But if you were in on it, it was great work while it lasted.

C'mon, everybody! Let's line our pockets while Baghdad burns!