The Agitated Mutterings of a Budding Maniac

Thursday, March 15, 2001

Salon.com Technology | Bush's shaky hand

Buried in this article is the most poisonous aspect of liberal ideology: Give the money to rich people, and they'll spend it in bad ways. If the government keeps it, they'll do the right thing.

I have just two questions:

Are we sure that those rich people are *worse* at making financial decisions that most people? Such an assumption seems counterintuitive at least.

If government does such a great job of aiming money at the most important targets, how come Salon had an article just a few days ago about pork-barrel spending?
posted by Jason Larke 11:30 PM

CNN.com - Taleban answers critics of Buddha demolition - March 15, 2001

As revolting as the destruction of these works of art is, the second part of the story caught my fancy. They're sacrificing cows to apologize for taking so long to destroy the statues.

How can a self-described "progressive religion" justify animal sacrifice?

Are those Hindus glad their idols have been spared when the government is ordering cows to be butchered?

Makes me wonder which non-Islamic religion they're going after next. Maybe they'll rebuild all their buildings so there are no crosses anywhere. Hmmm. How do you drive a practioner of Shinto into a frenzy, anyway? I need to learn more about Eastern religion.
posted by Jason Larke 6:43 PM

Tuesday, March 13, 2001

CNN.com - Sci-Tech - Space - X-ray map finds universe teeming with black holes - March 13, 2001

Apparently the world will end neither with a bang nor a whimper but with a giant sucking sound.
posted by Jason Larke 11:09 PM

CNN.com - Private group says federal 'pork' spending reaches record level - March 13, 2001

I'm mostly writing this to prove that I can be objective when I absolutely must. Look, I think the entire institution of government could be usefully replaced by a herd of moose, OK? I hate pork as much as the next guy. But IMO part of the test for "pork barrel spending" should be the value the government gets for its money. Erosion control, keeping Pearl Harbor in shape, and building assault ships for the Marines are functions that probably contribute a certain amount of value. We can question whether those expenses are the best use possible for those dollars- which they aren't, because the best possible use would be to give them to me- but let's not lump them in with giving schools more money so they can put up posters saying, "tell a teacher about bullying today!"
posted by Jason Larke 11:04 PM

Monday, March 12, 2001

Am I ALL YOUR BASE or NOT?

Too much is never enough, and taking a joke too far never takes it far enough.
posted by Jason Larke 10:59 PM

CNN.com - Santana got federal help to deal with bullying - March 12, 2001

"Students were encouraged to come forward and report bullying incidents, said local officials."

Am I the only person who looks at that sentence, remembers school, and finds it amazingly stupid?
posted by Jason Larke 10:54 PM

Salon.com Politics | Let the hogfest begin!

I can't even fathom the bizarre view of human nature propounded by this article. Are people really constitutionally incapable of saying "no" to credit? Can people not decide, on their own, to live within their means? Are banks villains for thinking that people ought to be able to pay off the debt that they assume?

Nobody holds a gun to anyone's head and says, "run up debt on your credit cards." For people who do make those mistakes, there are any number of credit counseling services. I constantly get offers for credit card insurance that would pay off my credit cards if I lost my job. It is *not hard* to avoid getting behind on your credit card debt. If you do, I don't see why the banks and courts should bend over backward to allow you to keep your stuff.

Also, I'm in the market to buy a house in a year or so, and with any luck we can kick some deadbeats out of their homes and I can move in for cheap.
posted by Jason Larke 3:06 PM

Salon.com Life | China jails teacher over Web remark

Love that Chinese human rights record. Umm... is there any evidence that this "trade will bring democracy" policy actually *works*?
posted by Jason Larke 2:52 PM

Senator Feinstein Re-Introduces Measure to Curb Sales of Powerful .50

Ah, yes, the usual Feinstein crap.

These weapons cost $7000. They are heavy, long, and can only be fired from a prone position. They are, in short, thoroughly impractical to use for any sort of criminal activity.

I think the remarks in the article about the possibility that a .50 can penetrate an armored limousine reveal the real reason Feinstein is concerned. This woman is such a hysterical paranoid that she won't rest until the only man in the USA with a gun works for her.

(For those of you wondering how I made that last leap, do a news archive search for Diane Feinstein. Despite opposing civilian gun ownership, she's applied for a permit to carry a gun and has gun-carrying bodyguards.)
posted by Jason Larke 2:33 PM

Sunday, March 11, 2001

Salon.com Technology | Man admits posting bounty for abortion provider

He hates abortion and loves child pornography. You have to give him credit for logical thinking. I wonder if he has an "Abortion Kills One of My Potential Victims" bumper sticker?
posted by Jason Larke 5:39 AM

Salon.com News | Childhood's end

While the author of this piece has good intentions, I just don't buy it. I think children can easily become confused, make mistakes, and break the law. I think such incidents justify the existence of a juvenile justice system.

But in this case we have a 12-year-old who stomped a child half his age to death. This was not a single blow, a mistake, or an accident. He hit her so hard, so many times, that "part of her liver was ripped off".

I don't care how they try this person as long as it ends up in the death penalty (which, sadly it can't.) Anyone who would commit such a crime should be gone. Forgotten. It's not even worth the expense to try to punish or rehabilitate him. He should be killed and thrown out with the trash so that the sane human beings can go with their lives.
posted by Jason Larke 5:36 AM

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