Pearl Harbor

Today was the beginning.  A lot of good came from that sneak attack by Japan.  World War II changed the soul of Japan.  In the blinding flash of a thousand suns brutal, imperial Japan became non-militarist, democratic Japan. World War II also ended Prussia as a geopolitical entity.  Out of that destruction came peaceful, democratic Germany. World War II changed the soul of England.  The English, like the French, became a race of appeasing whores after World War I.  World War II produced Winston Churchill and he saved England and the English soul. Unfortunately, World War II did not change Soviet Russia's soul and the post-war world was debased for 45 years by that state's existence.  World War II changed the world for the better. 

Wanna Get Away?

"Kepler 22b" above Who names these things? I move that Kepler 22b's name be changed to Barkevious Mingo might be the place.

Kepler 22b is a planet in another solar system. It is noteworthy This is the big news story today because it is the first planet found outside our 'hood that is in the "habitable zone" for life.  It has an average surface temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit. As for the fine print: (1) the image above is an artist's rendition. If K-22b actually looks like that it's Kiribati, but nobody knows what it looks like. (2) it's 600 light years away, so unless you find a way of breaking the interstellar speed limit you can't go there. (3) "If it has a surface, it would have a very nice temperature...," William Borucki, NASA. If it has a surface?  What do you mean "if it has a surface?"  Isn't that, like, key?  How do you calculate the "surface temperature" without, like, a surface? 


You wanted news, this is news. 

You want another art review?  It's a slow news day. 

Naming Names.

Do you like your name?  I like “Benjamin Harris.”  I like that it’s three syllables and then two syllables, bum-bum-bum, bum-bum.  I like the way it sounds.  I don’t like the way one syllable-one syllable names, like “John Clarke,” sound.  But Benjamin Harris is very white bread.  No pizzazz.  Not like these names:

 “Vontavious Burfict.”

“Furious Bradley.” 

“Barkevious Mingo.”

Those are the actual names of actual people who play actual college tackle football in America.  Those are the most tremendous names in the history of names.  If there is reincarnation I don’t care what I come back as but I want my name to be Barkevious Mingo.

Well...some good economic news for once.  At least good if you're American.  Unemployment "unexpectedly" (the adverb is Business Week's) fell to it's lowest level in 2 1/2 years in November.  The overall unemployment rate is down from 9% to 8.6%.  Paul Krugman* will find bad news in there somewhere.

*Spellcheck for Krugman is "Frogman" and "Krugerrand."  Spellcheck rocks. 

The Things Things Say. Jonathan Lamb

I have had this book for over two months. I cannot read it. Professor Lamb cannot write.

Shutting Down Penn State

How could it be done?

Penn State suckles at the teats of the state and federal governments.  Those beneficent expressions of the common weal exempt legitimate institutions of higher learning from taxation.  The common weal is not benefited by conferring this coveted exemption on a corrupt entity. End those exemptions.

Penn State also gets a large share of its funds from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  The Commonwealth could end that funding.  As a major research university, Penn State also gets substantial funding from the U.S. government. End that.

And Penn State could be subject to criminal prosecution under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) acts at both the state and federal level. Penn State is both an organization and corrupt under the meaning of that legislation.