Political philosopher H. L. Mencken said “The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins.” However, politicians do not want people to get so alarmed that they panic, stop going to work, riot or try [...]
Last week, U.S. President Barrack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. Right-wing pundits predictably attacked him for it. Left-wing pundits predictably then attacked the right-wing pundits for it. But that’s not the story. The Nobel Peace Prize is one of five prizes bequeathed by Alfred Nobel. In his will, it said that the Peace Prize [...]
A while back, I tried to explain why the world was so screwed up. I explained that the ubiquitous societal problems we experience (bad transit infrastructure, dependence on fossil fuels, unnecessary wars, etc.) stem from a fundamental problems with governance: Laws imply the design of the systems that enact them Lawmakers don’t know sweet fuck [...]
The law has, long ago, ceased to apply to the powerful. That is why a poor person who murders someone gets the chair, whereas a CEO who murders someone through the actions of his corporation gets a bonus (see, for example, TASER). That is also why Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld have not been prosecuted despite [...]
Previously, I described eight possible events that would likely destroy civilization as we know it. These include diseases, climate change and nuclear war. Today, it’s time to take on “Imaginary Existential Threats” – those risks that are inflated by governments, special interest groups and the media, often for political reasons. 5. Mad Scientists I blame [...]
The rich generally understand that unregulated capitalism supports massive wealth transfers from the poor and middle class to the rich. This continues until there is no middle class left – just a rich aristocracy and a populations of serfs – as in 21st century Russia. These malevolent, avaricious fuckheads think this is a great idea [...]
If you haven’t seen the Cairo speech, you can get the transcript here or the video here. As a political statement to assuage the so-called ‘muslim world,’ I suppose it’s not bad. Interpreted in the light of facts, history, and a rational, ethical perspective, however, and it’s overwhelmingly bullshit. Here are the 10 worst examples [...]
Below is a short note I wrote to Megan McCain, the daughter of former presidential contender Jon McCain. I have a hunch that she will become very important over the next few years. Dear Megan, It seems to me that you are fixing to drag the Republican Party kicking and screaming into the 21st Century. [...]
Just watch Jesse Ventura tell it like it is to Larry King, then smack down Sean Hannity and finally make a fool out of that cunt on The View, Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
I have seen two separate defenses of torture from U.S. officials, media and pundits. I call these the Jack Bower defense and, since he gave it a few days ago, the Barrack Obama defense. Jack Bower Defense The Bower Defense goes like this: ‘If you’ve got a nuclear bomb about to go off, and the [...]