Aaaagh!

The point of Hardin's article was that "mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon" was necessary to prevent overuse of a common resource. He thought that the restrictions could come either from privatization OR from state regulation. This article simply ignores the "or regulation" half of Hardin's argument, thereby creating a nicely puffed-up straw man for ideological purposes.

Now, Hardin was indeed wrong in one of his... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by grimmelm at 10:42 AM on August 30, 2008

i think what gives some people a sense of absurdity about the 'information' argument is that information needs a social vehicle to carry it. a poor rural ugandan may have great knowledge, but without social ties to recognize the value of that knowledge, there is no way for that person to improve his/her political/economic condition. furthermore, even if you have great capacity to receive and transmit, it may be useless unless you're receiving from and transmitting to the right people, and that... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by LoneWolfMcQuade at 8:59 AM on August 27, 2008

Have any of you actually purchased and used a mobile phone in the developing world? Here's how it works, at least in urban Southeast Asia (specifically Bandung, Indonesia, a city of 4 million people, where I lived for a year).

First, you take extremely inexpensive public transportation (less than 20 US cents from one side of town to the other) over to the giant electronics mall; if you've ever been to Singapore, think of Sim Lim Square, but with... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mdonley at 10:59 AM on August 27, 2008

You are both right. I am actually in Andhra Pradesh, and having to see these kinds of things every day, and read about them in the news paper, makes some of the window-dressing that people suggest to fix things really frustrating.

But that is not a reason or an excuse to be a jackass, which I was. So, I'm sorry for that.
posted to MetaFilter by paisley henosis at 7:03 AM on August 28, 2008

"And yet, people do it all the time. (Note me trying not to rise to your bait here.) We say Russia invaded Georgia, when in fact Russia is just a concept and can't take any physical action at all. We do this because it's a lot more convenient than listing the names of the X number of Russian soldiers who actually invaded Georgia, with a footnote as to the identities of people we think probably told them to do it. It's less than perfect, but we accept that imperfection so we can... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by klangklangston at 9:58 AM on August 13, 2008

Dear Giles:

Thank you for your letter. I have to confess at the outset that my removal of the indefinite article 'a' before the word 'nosh' was entirely accidental. I certainly didn't mean to cause any offense, as I do honestly respect your writing and look forward to editing your weekly column.

Of course that's a joke. I have absolutely no respect for you. Not a drop. The truth, and this is an unassailable Platonic truth, the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Pastabagel at 8:07 AM on July 24, 2008

"In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice. Then He made School Boards."

—Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar in Following the Equator
posted to MetaFilter by grouse at 3:16 AM on July 9, 2008

The EU, the UN, and US and the UK cannot get involved in this. Any attempt to remove Bobby by the west will simply add fuel to the Zanu-PF fire.

The only people who can legitimately sort this out is the SADC and specifically South Africa. Unfortunately Mbeki, as noted above, is a fucking joke.
posted to MetaFilter by fatfrank at 7:24 AM on June 23, 2008

Going out as far as I dare on my bicycle, keeping carbed up and hydrated . . . becoming one with the bike, no pains, no cares, just the road ahead; pushing, pushing, making my own way through this world.

Hiking up a good hill. Back in Japan, finding a prospect like this.
posted to Ask Metafilter by tachikaze at 10:29 PM on June 5, 2008

I agree that the definition of genius will determine how this argument plays out, and that it will probably not end well.

Here are a couple of (half-remembered) remarks about Feynman, who a lot of people consider a genius: "Dick's method? His method is to write down the problem, think very hard, then write down the answer" and "[some other scientist] was very intelligent, but only the way you'd be intelligent, if you were ten times as... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by AmbroseChapel at 11:02 PM on June 4, 2008

I wonder if a joint military force should be sent in to do the job that the junta is not doing. Am I out in left field here?

Yes. First of all if there is anything we should have learned from the past 6 years it is that using the military for essentially anything but defending yourself from a serious threat is a recipe for disaster no matter what your intentions are. The military is a blunt instrument. You bash and break things with it. That's it.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Justinian at 6:21 PM on May 9, 2008

Tom Waits is a living national treasure, and a glorious ramshackle mess of infinite dimensions. We should all be blessed to have him throw some confetti in our hair, fry us up a piece of oily fish, and roll us down the hill in an old oil barrel. Committing all manner of magnificent misdemeanor, impeccably stumbling from one door to another, his voice has holes in its shoes and someday will swallow up the whole of the universe, or at least Cleveland. Mash up the crickets and the lemon grass!... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite at 8:39 PM on May 7, 2008

BinGregory - Just about any social structure you can think of has been used at one point or another as a weapon against the poor: land ownership, religion, economic stratification, educational discrimination, etc. etc. If population control has been used that way as well, that doesn't make population control inherently "anti-poor". As I've said in other threads, ecologically speaking the population control of the rich is far more important, in that the rich are consuming vastly more... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by arcadia at 2:54 AM on April 23, 2008

For breakfast this morning I made scrambled eggs with ham and cheese, grilled tomatoes, bacon, toasted bagels with cream cheese, grits, sliced cantaloupe, orange juice, and coffee.

Then I went back to bed and slept for three more hours.

Breakfast is EXHAUSTING.
posted to MetaFilter by BitterOldPunk at 8:33 AM on April 18, 2008

I pledge allegiance to the National Logo
and to the brand for which it stands...
Impatient Thundergod!
With low credit and trickle down economics for all. Amen.
posted to MetaFilter by kuujjuarapik at 1:59 PM on April 15, 2008

the Portishead moment (if there ever was one) has very much come and gone

My god that's the truth. I caught this on current TV (I watch that channel much more than could be good for me) and instantly it was 1993, I'm sitting in every dark hipster bar in San Francisco, having achieved that perfect level of inebriation that results from one gin martini, 2 Red Hooks, and 3 bong hits. We're at the cusp of the dot com boom. Everyone can just taste the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Slarty Bartfast at 1:42 PM on April 14, 2008

SE Draft: Super-strong components, simple assembly, insanely cheap, good mix of road/mountain parts.
posted to Ask Metafilter by tmcw at 10:05 AM on April 9, 2008

But Petraeus' efforts since last September justify some faith in his ability, and for supporting him as he continues, while he still has hope for the situation.

What efforts justify faith? Buying off Sunni militias to stop blowing up americans by giving them even more guns stops the fighting now, but it is setting up Iraq for major problems in the future. The basic fact is that U.S. forces in Iraq will be drawn down in the next year or so, simply... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by afu at 7:16 AM on April 9, 2008

I have nothing bad to say about Heston but do note that when someone dies who may be very disliked by some people, the convention is that no evil be said of the dead person. After time has passed, it is permissible as an "assessment." One take: the dead person unable to defend himself. But then biographers etc seem not to worry about this ...just an odd thing worth noting, I think.
posted to MetaFilter by Postroad at 10:08 AM on April 6, 2008

Ulysses 31. Mind-bending sinister greek legend-based space opera, with obligatory comic robot side-kick and the most funk-ass theme tune ever.

"Mortals! You defy the Gods?!..."

Also, Cosmos by Carl Sagan. Equally mind-bending TV for a saucer-eyed kid. I still play the soundtrack ad nauseum to this very day.
posted to Ask Metafilter by freya_lamb at 6:03 PM on April 3, 2008

Not that I'm letting go of my love of all things Obama, but he lost me right about here:

and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.

posted to MetaFilter by Jimbob at 9:40 PM on March 18, 2008

I am convinced that a world without religion would be better for all

A world without religion is impossible. Broadly interpreted, UFOs, ghosts, psychic phenomena are all religions. The belief that there is more out there than there is here coupled with the notion that one has a personal experience with that other.

If there isn't a religion available, people will make one up. They have to do this even in the face of SCIENCE,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Pastabagel at 8:42 AM on March 5, 2008

These are great. My personal favorite master of the witty retort is F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead. He was a legendary barrister who fired off amazing retorts in open court.

Examples:

Judge: What do you suppose that I am on the bench for, Mr. Smith?
Smith: It is not for me to fathom the inscrutable workings of Providence.
__________

Judge: Are you trying to show contempt for this court, Mr... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by dios at 12:10 PM on March 3, 2008

I can say, 100% hands down:

Fog of War (2003)

Battle for the Commanding Heights (2002)

I saw both these movies as an undergraduate (not for a class). I had an interest in current events for as long as I can remember, but it was these two documentaries that made me fall in love with the perpetual drama of international relations. I am now an IR Ph.D. student.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by chrisalbon at 5:28 PM on February 12, 2008 marked best answer

If 500 people favorite this comment, I'll disable my account.
posted to MetaFilter by hermitosis at 3:54 PM on February 10, 2008

C.J. Cherryh's Cyteen is one of my favorites.

Also, I very much like Ursula K. LeGuin's The Dispossessed.

I also found that I enjoyed Sherri S. Tepper's books, but haven't read them for a long time - they are/were rather kneejerk 2nd Wave Feminist fantasy. I think the first two titles/authors are by far my favorites.
posted to Ask Metafilter by kalessin at 5:16 AM on February 8, 2008

Like rows and rows of heads on pikes as you stroll up to MeFi's homepage.
As a warning to others.
posted to MetaTalk by Balisong at 8:46 AM on February 4, 2008

"Y'know, suddenly I really want a cheeseburger.

Et, whaa la!"

Et two, miss lynnster?
posted to MetaFilter by mr_crash_davis at 5:50 PM on January 30, 2008

Oh, WWII bombing again! Guardian review of Frederick Taylor's defence of the bombing of Dresden. Same book reviewed in the Independent:

Thousands of impressed foreign workers and slave labourers toiled in the city's armaments industries. Dresden had not been turning out harmless porcelain or consumer goods for years. More than 120 factories were devoted to the German war effort. On an average day in 1944, 28 military trains passed through its marshalling yards.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by alasdair at 7:59 AM on January 19, 2008

If I'd known that everyone one at Mefi was such bad asses I'd have been a lot less lippy at the Meet-ups.
posted to MetaFilter by oh pollo! at 4:25 PM on January 17, 2008

Ah, I wish my web gallery was still up. I spent two summers in Derry and Belfast studying the conflict.

Check out the Nerve Centre, really an artists collective that started out of the need of some highschool kids wanting a space for their band to practice, that wasn't part of the conflict. The guy who work there knew their stuff, and were awesome folks to hang out with. They had an amazing sound system and put on some great shows also.

Of note... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mrzarquon at 3:01 AM on January 14, 2008

Some more help with the topic: read Eric Lott's classic "Love and Theft" on blackface minstrelsy; read Eileen Southern's older classic "The Music of Black Americans." Read Henry Louis Gates' *The Signifying Monkey.* Read Sam Floyd's *The Power of Black Music,* and then get back to me about what a shock -- shock! -- it is that Scots also line out hymns.

If you want to hear the continuation of the Anglo-Celtic version of this lining out tradition... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by fourcheesemac at 6:56 AM on January 11, 2008

Off belay...

.
posted to MetaFilter by speug at 4:55 PM on January 10, 2008

panamax: Had they been at all competent in the occupation, the costs involved to us and the Iraqis might be entirely a net good

I'm ashamed to say that this was my view before the war started. You should be ashamed that it's your view now.

It has become clear that the only moral way to evaluate whether military action is justified (given that we aren't pacifists who would likely say it is never justified)... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Justinian at 2:51 PM on January 10, 2008

The batshitinsane is strong in this thread.

There is absolutely no way you can seriously and intellectually debate the net "good" of the Foundation's efforts versus the net "evil" of Microsoft's illegal business conduct and/or of software quality or "lack" of standards support. They aren't in the same ballpark, league, nor even the same fucking sport. (to paraphrase) If you think you can, I advise you to put down the keyboard and mouse -... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Cathedral at 5:57 PM on January 7, 2008

....but perhaps we could maintain a bit more, you know, dignity.

I think that the ideal place to start working on that is a thread about farting.
posted to MetaFilter by louche mustachio at 1:05 PM on January 1, 2008

I had met BB several times this year, and while she had previously been a flawed Prime Minister, she was an inordinately charismatic, courageous and astute woman who said that she had learned from past mistakes. Her death is a great personal loss and an incalculable loss for the people of Pakistan. She was, more than anything, a symbol for national unity, of progressive beliefs, for democracy and for enlightenment (whether accurate or not). Her party was the front-runner in the election and she... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Azaadistani at 2:15 PM on December 27, 2007

It seems a little crass to bash Bush over a photo taken of him shedding a tear at a ceremony honoring a soldier "killed when he jumped on a grenade to save fellow members of his Marine patrol."

I'd say. Take your axes elsewhere and flame out already.
posted to MetaFilter by Avenger50 at 8:19 PM on December 18, 2007

Mmmmm, bacon.
posted to MetaFilter by notsnot at 8:21 AM on December 9, 2007

                   .

_____/                           \___________  

posted to MetaFilter by popcassady at 1:57 PM on November 30, 2007

The addition of a dragon would improve any flag. Even ones that already have dragons on them.

You can never have too many flagdragons.
posted to MetaFilter by mr_crash_davis at 1:55 PM on November 28, 2007

Please stop doing that LH, it makes an otherwise interesting discussion so unpleasant.

You're right, I jump to that too easily. Thanks for the heads-up.
posted to MetaFilter by languagehat at 4:54 PM on November 24, 2007

The sentence that made me angry was the "we're just going to be outnumbered" one. Who is "we," exactly?

These comments were racist and hateful.

I'm not a religious person, although I am from a Muslim family from a largely Muslim place (Sarajevo) and I perceive myself as culturally Muslim, if nothing else.

I'm educated. I contribute to American society in innumerable ways. I support freedom of... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Dee Xtrovert at 4:39 PM on November 22, 2007

The dwellings made by people on the spot for local conditions are quite possibly better than something designed far away.

Perhaps the answer is to formalize the informal ownership of property in developing world poor areas. Hernando de Soto, a Peruvian economist advocates this.
posted to MetaFilter by sien at 8:58 PM on November 15, 2007

Talking Points Memo and every other blog relies on traditional journalists-- either directly through hiring and paying some themselves or indirectly by cannibalizing content gathered by journalists and commenting on it.

If there was no traditional media, the blogs would rapidly run out of stuff to comment on-- or would have to hire more reporters to get off their butts and go out in the world and report, rather than sitting around pontificating.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Maias at 1:21 PM on November 14, 2007

Did he just diss people who read Terry Pratchett? I don't know how to feel about that. It's like the first time you see your mom punch your dad really hard.
posted to MetaFilter by Lentrohamsanin at 10:06 AM on October 29, 2007

Wow at this link.

Um... I was a raver in 1989. It was my senior year of high school. I can attest to the immense sense of freedom and future social benefits that this culture had on me.

I attended my first warehouse party in November 1989. I remember every fiber in my being telling me that this sound, this music, was the future. I was listening to "Welcome to Techno City" by the legendary Juan Atkins. At this time, ecstacy was legal and... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Unicorn on the cob at 11:00 AM on October 24, 2007

So yeah, you need to lighten up.

Torture is not something that you "lighten up" about. Torture is not something that good men will agree to disagree upon. There is no middle ground to torture. If you are a torturer, you're out of humanity. Out. Gone. You're not one of us anymore. You're something else. Some other kind of creature.

You offer us these scenarios wherein we might be tempted to... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Avenger at 10:41 PM on October 10, 2007

Possibly unlike many posting to this thread I've seen the effects of torture in the flesh*. I've also known actual torturers who committed these crimes. Its hard to speak academically about such matters when you've witnessed the terrible scarring (physical and psychological) that torture has left on both victim AND torturer. However, I thought I would say a few things on the matter.

The primary purpose of torture has always been akin to terrorism as someone already... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by monkeyx-uk at 3:37 AM on October 11, 2007

This discussion has turned completely insane.

paulsc, let me paint a scenario for you- instead of the US bombing Iran, what if they bomb us? What if Iran using a truck or a rocket blasts a ship in Norfolk or an military C4 taking off from a runway? Whatever, think of any attack that IRan could mount on US soil. Say they blow up a WalMart in Dubuque, whatever.

Then what?

You can drop every single bomb the US has on Iran,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Pastabagel at 7:15 AM on October 2, 2007