Al the Shoe Salesman

Obama has a tax calculator on his web site, and they got Ed O'Neil, aka Al Bundy, to fill it out "in character".....funny, informative and not at all negative.




Makes you wonder why McCain can't do something like this. Oh yeah, because he....can't.

Can America Afford the Illusion of Exceptionalism?

As always, the election season gives us an opportunity to learn about how our fellow citizens think about our country, our path forward, the road behind, and the nature of country.

I bleed Democrat...but I can understand the Republican ideals of limited government. Granted, I believe it's not 100% optimal for growth, but at least it has it's own internal logic.

But I don't think I'll ever understand the belief in American Exceptionalism. This belief that we're God's new chosen people. Why, intrinsically America is the best place short of Heaven.

It seems that it's the single element that has most driven the Bush administration. It's the reason we're in Iraq. It gives us a Not-Invented-Here mentality that is the reason we don't have better health care system, better educational system, and a better environment. It holds back our view or the world, which is no longer(if it ever even was) the cesspool of incompetence some seem to intrinsically think it is. Ultimately, it's an unproven, romantic ideal that, after George Bush, we can no longer afford.


And this means I can never be a Republican.

It's a Great Time to Invest!

Princeton Economists on the Bank Hoo-ah

Wanna watch the first Obama/McCain debate?

The NYT has a page up, with the full video as well as footnotes on what the candidates are saying.

Watch it here.

Just Like 9/11, No One Saw it Coming...

Oh, maybe they did.

Say, have you seen that barrel of tar I had sitting around here?

Robert Reich

I've linked to his blog before, but Robert Reich, the Clinton Secretary of Labor, has posted some interesting thoughts about our wall street bailout on his blog.

http://robertreich.blogspot.com/

Dog Days

A fantastic video from the NYT:
http://video.on.nytimes.com/?fr_story=dd8d41770945c6b1d0b7f3d7efae02b4197beecd

RNC 2008: Democracy Immobilized, Republican Inaction?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0UUsdCx3Qg

Common Lisp: Preserve Case

Sweet! I found a way to preserve the case of symbols entered into the repl!

Technology and Globalization: A Nation Security Issue?

No Child Left Behind is a joke

My town's school district, despite having the highest proficiency in both math and reading in the state of Minnesota(with scores of 84 and 90%), failed No Child Left Behind this year.

Bushies. What a joke.

Word For Word Podcast: How the rich get richer

New Paul Record Out/Old Paul Documentary

Paul Westerberg has a new record out.