Archive for the ‘All Posts’ Category
Tax Breaks Aren’t Stimulating
Republicans are against the stimulus bill. Why? Because it is “wasteful government spending.” Anyone see the utter irony in that? During the last eight years they have presided over the most prolific spending spree and largest increase in the national debt in our nations history. Tax cuts for big business and the rich, tax rebates for people who buy HUMMERS(!), etc… Now we need to spend money to save jobs. Not the fat cat executive jobs, but middle class jobs. And what does the Grand old Party say? “Nope. That is wasteful spending, and we are the party of fiscal responsibility. Give some more tax breaks to big business and they will make the jobs for us.” One problem (well there is a whole host of them, but here is an obvious one), tax breaks don’t really do much for a business (or peaople) when there isn’t much money coming in.
Contrary to what the right wants you to think, we are probably not going to spend enough on the stimulus. In an attempt to woo republican congressmen it has been stacked nearly half way with tax cuts. Most economists say tax cuts get you approximately ZERO bang for your buck. But we still put the tax cuts in there to appease the irrational elephant. And surprise surprise, they are still against it. They say screw the infrastructure spending we need more tax cuts. They complain about lack of bipartisanship, when nearly half the bill follows what they want. And every time they claim to worry about saddling our children with the bill I’d like to ask: Who is picking up the bill for the last eight years and two wars?
They must have missed the last two elections. We voted against their failed policies. And I for one believe that they have gotten much more then they deserve in this stimulus bill.
Student’s Free Speech Case May Lead To Legislation — Courant.com
So the same institutions that are teaching our children that they have the right to free speech are punishing them for exercising that right. And what is this? Judges are supporting the SCHOOLS. What a beautiful country we live in.
I am amazed that this is an issue. Such a well thought out argument for banning free speech of students online: “Off-campus speech can become on-campus speech with the click of a mouse.” But then, under that rationalization, anything can easily become on campus speech if you wrote it down and someone else brought it onto the campus. Might as well stop pretending that Constitution applies to students.
It’s particularly interesting that the speech she was punished for was criticism of the administrators. Granted, it was a little strongly worded, but isn’t this the exact type of thing the first amendment is supposed to protect?
Take Our Planet Back
will.i.am is quickly becoming a new favorite. His mix of very political content, great music, and powerful imagery just makes for an ideal combination.
Negative Cost Employees
These financial guys are geniuses. First they come up with mortgage backed securities that they can sell at several orders of magnutide greater than their worth. Now they come up with this other increadiblly brilliant idea. Charge the interns to work for you!
This could solve all our problems at work. If we got enough of them we could increase revenues AND finish our projects ahead of schedule.
Its win-win. Too bad prospective engineers aren’t as gullible as burgeoning bankers.
In China, a Grass-Roots Rebellion – washingtonpost.com
In China, a Grass-Roots Rebellion – washingtonpost.com.
It is nice to see more regular people in China participating in this somewhat passive dissent. Probably nothing will come of it any time soon, but I can’t believe that China will remain totalitarian forever.
I have to say I do feel pretty lucky after reading this. While there are a large number of things that I am unhappy about with America, at least I am able to blatantly, and publicly, voice my problems with the government without any real worry of retribution. But all of those people who signed the charter are packed, ready, and expecting to be hauled off to jail. And yet, they still signed.
I wonder if I would be so brave. I like to think so.
Studies Show Vegetarians Have Better Sex
Posted by: David in Health, Vegetarian on January 28th, 2009
This sexually charged add from PETA was rejected by NBC for air time during the Super Bowl.
‘Veggie Love’: PETA’s Banned Super Bowl Ad
I’m sorry, but it really doesn’t seem all that racy to me compared to some other things on TV. What about this add of Paris Hilton and her Hamburger fetish? It is just as sexual as the PETA add.
Maybe there are other reasons NBC doesn’t want this video shown? Do they have something against vegetarians? I wonder how many people would eat meat if they understood the process that produces those perfect little shrink wrapped slabs of beef. It is a gruesome and cruel process for the majority of meat consumed in the US. Even the best practices aren’t pretty.
In case you haven’t already guessed. Carrie and I are both vegetarians. Now we have one more reason to stay away from meat. And I have to say, I think it is a pretty good one.
Weight Loss and Health
Everyone knows that the US has an obesity and health problem. And things just seem to keep getting worse. I can completely understand though. How easy is it to just eat junk all of the time? It is usually cheaper. And how easy is it to eat healthier? Since eating healthy usually means you actually have to cook, it can be pretty challenging.
When we moved to California over 2.5 years ago, I weighed about 200 pounds. Within six months I weighed around 182. What changed? Well first, we had time to cook at home (and really had a hard time affording to eat out at California prices), so most of our meals were home cooked and healthy. Additionally, not being in Grad school anymore allowed me to get a lot more exercise. I was running just about every day. Mountain biking once a week, and doing yoga at least once a week.
Over the last year (or so) my weight has been creeping back up. It is hard to find time to exercise with a new baby in the house. It can also be hard to find time to cook.
Well, I think it is time to get back in gear. I am sitting at 192. I want to be under 185. To help me out, I have started keeping track of my weight. And since I am tracking it publicly, I have even more incentive.
So, what am I doing to help me on my way? Ramp up yoga to three times a week. Running with Carrie at least 3 times a week. Biking in to work at least once a week.
Oh, right, and let’s cut down on treats, those can’t be helping.
Allomancers, Oculators, and Librarians. Oh my!
I recently discovered a new author. Brandon Sanderson. While I read a lot of books, there are only a few authors whose work I really love. Brandon has made the list.
- Robert Jordan
- Robin Hobb
- Brandon Sanderson
(<—— See, right here. On my most cherished authors list.)
- George R.R.Martin
- Robert A. Heinlein
Ironically, I found out about Brandon through the most crushing literary event of my life. My favorite author, Robert Jordan, passed away September of 2007. Jordan’s works have been a valued companion since the tender (and impressionable) age of 12. He left unfinished his series The Wheel of Time, which is how we were introduced. Brandon was asked to finish the final book of the series by RJ’s wife and editor, Harriet. It was with some trepidation that I heard the news. I know he had been a fan of the Wheel of Time even long than I have, but how could anyone but RJ finish the Wheel of Time?
Well, it has taken me over a year, but I have finally read some of Brandon’s books, and I can’t get enough. So, some of my fears have been allayed. It is still strange to have someone else finish the series, but I am also glad that the series will be finished.
Anyways, more about Robert Jordan in future posts. Right now I am talking about this fantastic new author I have discovered.
So, I won’t give a synopsis (you can find them at Brandon’s site), and I will try to avoid spoilers, but I want to talk about these books.
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Inventiveness. If any one word could describe Brandon Sanderson, inventiveness would do a pretty good job. But his stories are also captivating. I had (and still have) a hard time putting down his books. I have been staying up later then intended (by an hour or two) because I want to keep reading. I started off reading Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians (I know it sounds silly. And, yes it is. But very fun to read, and so interesting.) One of my favorite parts of this book is the idea that what we consider flaws (like being late, falling down.. etc) are incredibly powerful talents.
After reading Alcatraz, I went to the book store and bought Mistborn: Final Empire instead of waiting for it to come from the library. Yes, I did that despite the fact that times are tough, and money is tight. It was worth it. The prophesied hero lost to the super powerful, immortal, Evil Lord. So for several millennia the Evil Lord has been in charge, setting up his brutal and cruel empire and enslaving the entire human race. Maybe some regular people can overthrow the empire?
Many authors of Sci-Fi create their own system of magic for their world. Unfortunately often times there is no structure to the magic, or the structure is inconsistent. I know its magic, why does it need to be consistent? For me, it makes it more believable. Yes, you heard me. Believable. If there is a structure, some governing rules, it feels like an extension of the natural world. Like it is something that just hasn’t been discovered yet. Or, a scientific theory that has been neither proved or disproved, like string theory. If it has no structure, or an inconsistent structure, then it feels more like I am playing a game, but the person I am playing with keeps changing the rules for their convenience. Anyways. Mistborn has a very nicely structured system of magic.
OK. I am loving these books. Enough already. Time to read more.
Let Me Introduce Myself
Posted by: David in Uncategorized on January 14th, 2009
Hi. This is me.
My name is David, and I have decided to start writing a blog. This blog in fact. (OK, I know, what a pathetic attempt to be clever. You don’t need to worry, I have already been informed that I am not even remotely funny by a very trustworthy 9 year old.) Anyways, a little about me. I live and work in Northern California with my wife and baby toddling daughter. I am an electrical engineer, and I think mathematics are fun and cool.
I don’t plan to really have any theme to what I talk about here. I am just going to talk about what I find interesting and/or what I am thinking about. So, what might that include?
- Books. I read a lot, and I like to both talk and think about what I have read.
- Yoga. I really enjoy Ashtanga yoga. I practice as often as I can. Which unfortunately is about once or twice a week unless I am lucky.
- News and Politics. The world around us is fascinating. It also tends to piss me off (particularly people doing stupid and mean things), which leads to interesting things to talk about.
- Alternative Energy. Fossil fuels suck. Need I say more? Well, I probably will. At great length.
- Natural Building. I don’t mean “Green” Building. This is something different.
- Personal Projects. I might talk about the Kombucha that I am trying to grow (ferment?). Or the Cabinet and Furniture making class I am taking. Or other random projects I have started.
There are about a million other things I am interested in, so we will probably see a lot of posts on random things I have been thinking of.
I am going to try to set a rough schedule of posts. Three a week. My favorite blog is Coding Horror. Jeff Atwood talks a lot about blogging in his blog, and suggests setting a schedule and sticking to it. I like that approach. Especially since I probably will not write if I don’t set a schedule.
The last thing. Why the name Rational Irrational? Well, one reason is the mathematical reference to the field of Real numbers. But it also reflects my own inner conflict. I am both rational and irrational, usually at the same time.
One day I might actually have a reader (or two!). In the mean time the main point here is for this to be fun. For me. So far, so good.