September 2008
38 posts
Congress Needs to Take Accounting 101
The biggest problem with the $700billion plan was that it didn’t fix the fundamental problem—balance sheet woes—afflicting the firms that need help. Even if the legislation were passed, we likely would have seen a short-term recovery followed by more failures.
John P. Hussman, Ph.D., of Hussman Funds has a great, easy-to-read essay about these fundamental problems that you...
Hello I'm Famous Starring John Hodgman
Hilarious outtake from More Information than You Require, John Hodgman’s new book.
Paper Planes
All I wanna do is (BANG BANG BANG BANG!)
And (KKKAAAA CHING!)
And take your money
Pirate skulls and bones
Sticks and stones and weed and bombs
Running when we hit ‘em
Lethal poison through their system
Back from the Ren Fest and exhausted.
WatchThe sequel will feature a congenial WASP from the Northeast who tends to put his foot in his mouth. It will be released straight to DVD.
I don’t know if I’m talking about W or Biden.
Why do comics use a double-dash instead of an... →
Interesting essay on the history of comics lettering. (via Tor)
There’s an evening haze settling over town
Starlight by the edge of the creek
The buying power of the Proletariat’s gone down
Money’s getting shallow and weak
These People Disgust Me
Sarah Palin had an extramarital affair with her husband’s (now former) business partner.
Yes, the story is from the National Enquirer. But if it’s a good enough source for Jonah Goldberg at the National Review it’s good enough for me.
We don’t need any more presidents or vice presidents who have such a lack of morals and common decency.
I am curious about whether this...
There, Fixed That for You
Field Notes-brand notebooks were created buy some people who didn’t like that their Moleskine Cahier notebooks didn’t have enough gratuitous shit on the cover.
Certain corners of the web are currently aflutter because Field Notes is now selling an ugly calendar. Said calendar is—as you might expect—covered in gratuitous, masturbatory, “designer” garbage. One...
Disease
Last night I saw this followed by this.
Anyone else see an eerie similarity?
Football
Modern American-style football is an amazing game. The more I study it the more it reminds me of a turn-based strategy game and less like an athletic sport. The minds of NFL coaches are more interesting to me than those of chess grandmasters, and that’s saying something.
There have been a couple of really interesting profiles of football coaches in the past two days that have really...
4E MM Stats
If the post title means nothing to you, then flee. Flee!
An awesome nerd god over at Enworld—a community devoted to role playing game discussion—did an awesome analysis of the Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition Monster Manual.
I love this stuff. Posted here for future reference.
Obama's Personal Email Account Hacked Too →
“As of 2003, the rhetoric of the enterprise is fucked. 95 percent of political...”
– David Foster Wallace, The Believer, Nov 2003
But it’s true
When I do
I see you
Loaded like a gun
Every time you look at me
Every time you look at me
Didn't See That Coming
Interesting. We now have nationlized health care while living under a Republican administration.
Joshua Middleton
Love this so much. Click the pic for the full version. (via Tor.com)
Sarah Palin Baby Name Generator →
Thanks!
We’re full!
Looking for Fans of Improv Theater
There is room for 1 or 2 more players in my Dungeons & Dragons game.
Here’s your game if league bowling or volleyball aren’t your thing, but you want to meet and hang-out with new people in a casually competitive atmosphere.
I host a fun game by adults, for adults. We’ll be getting together for 3-4 hours on Monday nights starting at 7:00p.
The first get-together is...
Man Factory creates and performs rock opera pieces about the classic arcade game “Street Fighter”.
If that doesn’t excite you, it should.
Damn Scientists, Always Destroying the World →
The Media Weren't Impressed by Palin Either →
Of course, the New York Times, LA Times, Washington Post, MSNBC, New Republic, Associated Press, and the Boston Globe are evil and biased, so take the reviews with a grain of salt.
Re: The Palin Interview
That was painful.
She looked and sounded like a high school student whose parent’s had done all the work.
Fun? Saying “The Funnest iPod Ever”. (And it is true!)
Not fun? Being an uptight prick about saying “Funnest”.
Pluto Should Never Have Been a Planet →
Palin Is a Bad Mom
I’m just getting plugged back in after being mostly off the Internet this weekend.
I didn’t think Mrs. Palin was that bad of a person when I first read about her last week.
But then I found out about her flying from Alaska to Texas while eight months pregnant, beginning to leak amniotic fluid, giving a speech anyway, then flying back to Alaska before seeking medical attention!
...
FM & FM
Moral of the Story: It is OK to effectively nationalize the mortgage industry, but we can’t nationalize the health care industry where the problems are even more systemic and chronic.
AKA: It’s OK to bail out giant corporations, but it’s not OK to help actual human beings.
4E
Here’s the thing about the 4th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons:
It’s pretty much the same as every other edition of D&D outside of combat. (Except that I, as the judge, can make weird things work without making up yet another rule and the math usually makes more sense.)
Except in combat.
When you enter combat in 4E you are essentially playing a new game. Learn the rules, pay...
Super Easy, Super Good Stir-Fry Sauce
Ingredients
1 tsp vinegar (I prefer balsamic, but any will work; rice is more authentic)
1 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp oil (I prefer olive, but canola is fine; peanut is more authentic)
1 minced clove garlic
Optional:
1/3 cup soy sauce
or
1/3 cup citrus juice (orange or lime are best)
1 tsp grated citrus peel (use the same as the juice)
Directions
Combine all ingredients.
Add...
Super Easy, Super Good Stir-Fry Marinade
Ingredients
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp vinegar (I prefer balsamic, but any will do)
1/2 tsp ground, dried ginger (1 Tbsp peeled, minced fresh)
1/4 tsp crushed, dried red pepper flakes
1 lb cubed meat
Directions
Combine first four ingredients in a shallow dish.
Add meat and turn to coat.
Let stand up to 1 hour at room temperature; up to 4 hours refrigerated.
Rhetorical Beatles Question
Does it make me a bad person that “Helter Skelter” is possibly my favorite Beatles song?
WatchFun at the lake.
Monk: What is the greatest obstacle to enlightenment?
The Buddha: Laziness!
Pancakes
Ingredients
1 1/4 C flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1 large egg
1 1/4 C milk
3 Tbsp butter, melted
Directions
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Beat the egg, then combine the wet ingredients in a medium bowl.
Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined.
Measure out by 1/4C onto medium high...
Nice Comparison of McCain & Obama's Science... →
Anyone who says either candidate doesn’t have enough policy detail (cough The Forum cough) either doesn’t know how to use the Internet or is full of bullshit.
Both McCain and Obama have extensive issues pages, and sites like the one I linked above are all over.
It’s up to us as citizens to be informed enough to make considered choices at the polls. The tools are there, we...