Tuesday, June 19, 2012
The Hypocrisy of Political Parties
Ezra Klein could be my near soul mate as far as my basic premise that the political parties have made a complete and utter mess of things and do not deserve to exist in this noble experiment we call America, but he is a bit more tolerant of their existence than I. However I do need to give him all the credit for some excellent research and commentary.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Global warming...us???
Yes, humans....think about it...think long and hard since no one in Congress or who belongs to any political party is obviously going to have the intelligence or courage to do so.
Think people!
Think people!
Don't let facts get in the way....
of an opportunity to pontificate and recast the 'facts' according to your prejudices.
This is Really Cool
to think about...no matter what kind of continuing nonsense is going on down here on the polluted orb we inhabit. An excerpt from the Phys.org site linked on the right:
"Data from NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft indicate that the venerable deep-space explorer has encountered a region in space where the intensity of charged particles from beyond our solar system has markedly increased. Voyager scientists looking at this rapid rise draw closer to an inevitable but historic conclusion - that humanity's first emissary to interstellar space is on the edge of our solar system."
This is a 34-year old spacecraft and the transmissions from it take almost 17 hours...one way...and we are just geting out of our local solar system.
Feeling small yet?
The rest of the phys.org item is here.
As always, dear readers - happy thinking!
"Data from NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft indicate that the venerable deep-space explorer has encountered a region in space where the intensity of charged particles from beyond our solar system has markedly increased. Voyager scientists looking at this rapid rise draw closer to an inevitable but historic conclusion - that humanity's first emissary to interstellar space is on the edge of our solar system."
This is a 34-year old spacecraft and the transmissions from it take almost 17 hours...one way...and we are just geting out of our local solar system.
Feeling small yet?
The rest of the phys.org item is here.
As always, dear readers - happy thinking!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Stephen Hawking
If you haven't read Stephen Hawking or otherwise had an occasion to appreciate his intelligence and sharp wit, you have missed the opportunity to appreciate one of our greatest living thinkers. Just a quick snippet from a recent appearance in Seattle at which he commented on his "M-theory" of other, alternate dimensions as a potential 'theory of everything':
"I feel to ignore it would be like claiming that God put fossils in the rocks to trick Darwin into believing in evolution,"
In response to a journalist's question about time-travel at a press conference:
"I have experimental evidence that [backward] time travel is not possible. I gave a party for time travelers, but I didn't send out the invitation until after the party. I sat there a long time, but no one came."
"I feel to ignore it would be like claiming that God put fossils in the rocks to trick Darwin into believing in evolution,"
In response to a journalist's question about time-travel at a press conference:
"I have experimental evidence that [backward] time travel is not possible. I gave a party for time travelers, but I didn't send out the invitation until after the party. I sat there a long time, but no one came."
Friday, June 15, 2012
Book Review - Descent Into Chaos
I am posting another of my Goodreads book reviews, this one on a book that discredits thoroughly almost every assumption and move that the US has made in the last 12 years in the Middle East, particularly in regards to Pakistan.
Descent into Chaos: The United States & the Failure of Nation Building in Pakistan, Afghanistan & Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It took me a long time to read this book, mainly because of all the names of people and places. It is a complex and very detailed look by a respected Pakistani journalist at the mess that is Pakistan and Afghanistan. That it was largely due to the incredibly inept bungling of the Bush administration I knew before reading the book, but just how culpable, how willingly the administration chose the wrong road each and every time and how thoroughly they played into the hands of al Qaeda and the Taliban was something of a revelation.
Another fact that came out with glaring clarity was just how thoroughly the Bush administration lied to the American people - while Rumsfeld was praising the ability of the warlords to govern Afghanistan and Bush was extolling the wonderful aid Musharaff giving the US in tracking down al Qaeda they were both taking American aid money and using it to clamp down and solidify their own power in the first case or feed the money through the Pakistani army and the ISI intelligence service to the Taliban. The US would have been much better off (and closer to dismembering al Qaeda) if they had invaded Pakistan at the outset, but this would have taken too long since they had something resembling a real army and Bush would have been delayed in his blood lust to invade Iraq.
Telling as well is the insider's view of the lack of coodination in NATO between the countries, and the way their reluctance to get involved at all played out in scenario after scenario where NATO countries tried to do at least some nation-building/rebuilding but a disinterested US turned its back (and closed its wallet) to any meaningful recovery activities for the country's infrastructure or the government.
The author has personal relationships with many of the top players in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and brings a depth of knowledge about the ethnic strife and politics of the area that can only can come from living it, and watching your part of the world being savaged by faraway countries with more money and guns than common sense.
Descent into Chaos: The United States & the Failure of Nation Building in Pakistan, Afghanistan & Central Asia by Ahmed RashidMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
It took me a long time to read this book, mainly because of all the names of people and places. It is a complex and very detailed look by a respected Pakistani journalist at the mess that is Pakistan and Afghanistan. That it was largely due to the incredibly inept bungling of the Bush administration I knew before reading the book, but just how culpable, how willingly the administration chose the wrong road each and every time and how thoroughly they played into the hands of al Qaeda and the Taliban was something of a revelation.
Another fact that came out with glaring clarity was just how thoroughly the Bush administration lied to the American people - while Rumsfeld was praising the ability of the warlords to govern Afghanistan and Bush was extolling the wonderful aid Musharaff giving the US in tracking down al Qaeda they were both taking American aid money and using it to clamp down and solidify their own power in the first case or feed the money through the Pakistani army and the ISI intelligence service to the Taliban. The US would have been much better off (and closer to dismembering al Qaeda) if they had invaded Pakistan at the outset, but this would have taken too long since they had something resembling a real army and Bush would have been delayed in his blood lust to invade Iraq.
Telling as well is the insider's view of the lack of coodination in NATO between the countries, and the way their reluctance to get involved at all played out in scenario after scenario where NATO countries tried to do at least some nation-building/rebuilding but a disinterested US turned its back (and closed its wallet) to any meaningful recovery activities for the country's infrastructure or the government.
The author has personal relationships with many of the top players in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and brings a depth of knowledge about the ethnic strife and politics of the area that can only can come from living it, and watching your part of the world being savaged by faraway countries with more money and guns than common sense.
Monday, June 11, 2012
The Picture that Makes You Stop
I came across this a few months ago and just found it again. I have mentioned before that in another life I could enjoy a career in photojournalism. The best images simply take your breath away for a moment. This example is one of the best of the craft I have seen recently...I hope it wins some recognition.
What does this image say to you? Are the graves in this converted city park marching inexorably toward the swing, and the innocence of youth it represents? Perhaps toward the boy?
(The full caption from the Tulsa World is included to acknowledge the photographer, the image was originally dated in March of 2012.)
A boy swings in a park converted to a cemetery in the northwestern Syrian town of Idlib on Saturday. RODRIGO ABD / Associated Press
What does this image say to you? Are the graves in this converted city park marching inexorably toward the swing, and the innocence of youth it represents? Perhaps toward the boy?
(The full caption from the Tulsa World is included to acknowledge the photographer, the image was originally dated in March of 2012.)
He Probably Was "One of Them"
If you ever saw the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind you might remember a scene as the World War II Air Force pilots disembark form the alien ship and one of the scientists marvels "They haven't even aged. Einstein was right." and the team leader replies, "Einstein was probably one of them."
Well, Einstein just keeps being proved right -- there have been some minor areas where he was wrong, but he somehow seems to have gotten the "big stuff" right. The latest challenge to his theories pretty much bit the big one.
That's one of the beauties of science -- ideas and theories only last until a better one comes along (or the theory is disproved) by peer review and experimentation. Unlike politics, science just keeps self-correcting and honing itself to be ever closer to a new understanding of truth. No wonder when politicians try to belittle science, they don't use the tools of science, but rather the prattle-brained rhetoric of people who long ago gave up any right to even a pretense of the pursuit of truth.
Well, Einstein just keeps being proved right -- there have been some minor areas where he was wrong, but he somehow seems to have gotten the "big stuff" right. The latest challenge to his theories pretty much bit the big one.
That's one of the beauties of science -- ideas and theories only last until a better one comes along (or the theory is disproved) by peer review and experimentation. Unlike politics, science just keeps self-correcting and honing itself to be ever closer to a new understanding of truth. No wonder when politicians try to belittle science, they don't use the tools of science, but rather the prattle-brained rhetoric of people who long ago gave up any right to even a pretense of the pursuit of truth.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Book Review - Country Driving (China)
Here is my Goodreads review of the third book in the amazing, interesting, personal, fascinating, informative, and thoughtful three book series on China by Peter Hessler. My earlier reviews of the first two books are here and here.
Country Driving: A Chinese Road Trip by Peter Hessler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This final installment in Peter Hessler's China trilogy is in itself a trilogy. Three books in one covering a seven year period after Peter got his Chinese driver's license. Getting a license in China is a process that is equal parts bureaucracy and and unintentional humor (imagine a driving test in the US that was based largely on the way people actually drive).
The first of the three books covers a 7,000 mile trip across northern China, chasing the outlines of the Great Wall. The Wall, like most near-legendary places and things turns out to be much more than the common pictures of a sturdy-looking stone and brick structure that we usually see in magazines. Not only can "it" not be seen from space but is actually not one wall but several different fortifications built out of many different materials including tamped earth in many spots, over a wide span of time.
The second book covers six years Hessler spent living in a small agricultural village north of Beijing, where he sees both the struggles and the adaptations necessary in rural China brought by the wrenching changes in recent decades. He also gets an inside look at the impact of national politics at the village level.
The final book covers several driving trips through the rapidly-urbanizing south of China, where he sees factories spring up where mountains used to be and watches those same factories move locations literally overnight to save a few dollars in costs, and sometimes disappear altogether. He also observes the emerging entrepreneurial class, where status and position are marked by the brand of cigarette smoked.
Throughout the book Hessler writes with the same personal, compassionate, observant viewpoint that marked his other books. From rushing a sick child to a hospital in Beijing and calling on doctor acquaintances in the US for help when the Chinese doctors don't seem up to the task, to sitting at a meal in a one-room hut with a family whose father and daughters all have taken up the urban factory semi-migrant lifestyle in the south, you sense Hessler's compassion and commitment to the real story in China -- the people.
Country Driving: A Chinese Road Trip by Peter HesslerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This final installment in Peter Hessler's China trilogy is in itself a trilogy. Three books in one covering a seven year period after Peter got his Chinese driver's license. Getting a license in China is a process that is equal parts bureaucracy and and unintentional humor (imagine a driving test in the US that was based largely on the way people actually drive).
The first of the three books covers a 7,000 mile trip across northern China, chasing the outlines of the Great Wall. The Wall, like most near-legendary places and things turns out to be much more than the common pictures of a sturdy-looking stone and brick structure that we usually see in magazines. Not only can "it" not be seen from space but is actually not one wall but several different fortifications built out of many different materials including tamped earth in many spots, over a wide span of time.
The second book covers six years Hessler spent living in a small agricultural village north of Beijing, where he sees both the struggles and the adaptations necessary in rural China brought by the wrenching changes in recent decades. He also gets an inside look at the impact of national politics at the village level.
The final book covers several driving trips through the rapidly-urbanizing south of China, where he sees factories spring up where mountains used to be and watches those same factories move locations literally overnight to save a few dollars in costs, and sometimes disappear altogether. He also observes the emerging entrepreneurial class, where status and position are marked by the brand of cigarette smoked.
Throughout the book Hessler writes with the same personal, compassionate, observant viewpoint that marked his other books. From rushing a sick child to a hospital in Beijing and calling on doctor acquaintances in the US for help when the Chinese doctors don't seem up to the task, to sitting at a meal in a one-room hut with a family whose father and daughters all have taken up the urban factory semi-migrant lifestyle in the south, you sense Hessler's compassion and commitment to the real story in China -- the people.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Book Review - Oracle Bones (China)
I just finished the third in Peter Hessler's China trilogy of books last night. Here is my Goodreads review of the second book, Oracle Bones:
Oracle Bones: A Journey Between China's Past and Present by Peter Hessler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Hessler continues his thoughtful writing and narration style in this second book and I won't repeat my admiration and enjoyment of it again (earlier review of River Town).
This book comes after Hessler's "Two Years" as a Peace Corps teacher in Fuling, and finds him a freelance writer in Beijing, and nicely brings together the past and present (up to 2002) of China. If you have not read the "Two Rivers" book, I recommend you do so before reading this one. It is not a requirement, but it will enhance your enjoyment since many of Peter's more memorable students from that book return in this one as he follows up their lives post-graduation - they provide much of the 'now' insight into China.
The primary theme of the book is Chinese history centered around some fascinating old archaeology (themed around the enigmatic Oracle Bones that give the book its title) and new (the slow current-day mapping of a buried walled city). Through research and speaking to some of the last living survivors of the Cultural Revolution and Great Leap Forward eras where Chinese history or the study of it was distorted, twisted and in some cases broken Hessler weaves a story of not only of a long and complex history, but the people who study it despite some great obstacles.
But the book is much more than this - there are 'side threads' and stories throughout, one of the most significant is Hessler's friendship with a Chinese ethnic minority Uighur who eventually emigrates to the US, giving Hessler the opportunity to think anew about the differences and similarities between China and the US. There is also a thread running through the book about one of the primary scholars of Oracle Bones inscriptions, who was a casualty of the social upheavals in China but left an interesting trail of work, friends, and knowledge.
Finally, the book is organized with chapters called 'Artifacts' that are short side journeys looking at specific items and people from the far past of China that do not fit in the main narrative of the book. I found these to be welcome respites from the main story and fascinating in their own right. There is also a very usable map (in the edition I read) so that you can keep track of the various places mentioned in the book which I much appreciated - it had a sticky note marking it the whole time I was reading.
One quotation from this book stuck with me because it is a simple idea but one that leads to some interesting possiblilities - from the Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu:
A fish-trap is for catching fish, once you've caught the fish, you can forget the trap. A rabbit-snare is for catching rabbits; once you've caught the rabbit, you can forget about the snare. Words are for catching ideas, once you've caught the idea, you can forget about the words. Where can I find a person who knows how to forget about words so that I can have a few words with him?"
The idea that words are of impermanent utility probably applies to this book, but it is a very memorable book nonetheless - the ideas are permanent and I know I will be reading and researching more about China because of it. It is a book to be read slowly and one of those I did not want to end since I know there is much more to tell and Hessler is a very talented writer - I look forward to the next.
Here is a video from 2006 at a Google Authors event in Which Hessler talks about the content of this book.
Oracle Bones: A Journey Between China's Past and Present by Peter HesslerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Hessler continues his thoughtful writing and narration style in this second book and I won't repeat my admiration and enjoyment of it again (earlier review of River Town).
This book comes after Hessler's "Two Years" as a Peace Corps teacher in Fuling, and finds him a freelance writer in Beijing, and nicely brings together the past and present (up to 2002) of China. If you have not read the "Two Rivers" book, I recommend you do so before reading this one. It is not a requirement, but it will enhance your enjoyment since many of Peter's more memorable students from that book return in this one as he follows up their lives post-graduation - they provide much of the 'now' insight into China.
The primary theme of the book is Chinese history centered around some fascinating old archaeology (themed around the enigmatic Oracle Bones that give the book its title) and new (the slow current-day mapping of a buried walled city). Through research and speaking to some of the last living survivors of the Cultural Revolution and Great Leap Forward eras where Chinese history or the study of it was distorted, twisted and in some cases broken Hessler weaves a story of not only of a long and complex history, but the people who study it despite some great obstacles.
But the book is much more than this - there are 'side threads' and stories throughout, one of the most significant is Hessler's friendship with a Chinese ethnic minority Uighur who eventually emigrates to the US, giving Hessler the opportunity to think anew about the differences and similarities between China and the US. There is also a thread running through the book about one of the primary scholars of Oracle Bones inscriptions, who was a casualty of the social upheavals in China but left an interesting trail of work, friends, and knowledge.
Finally, the book is organized with chapters called 'Artifacts' that are short side journeys looking at specific items and people from the far past of China that do not fit in the main narrative of the book. I found these to be welcome respites from the main story and fascinating in their own right. There is also a very usable map (in the edition I read) so that you can keep track of the various places mentioned in the book which I much appreciated - it had a sticky note marking it the whole time I was reading.
One quotation from this book stuck with me because it is a simple idea but one that leads to some interesting possiblilities - from the Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu:
A fish-trap is for catching fish, once you've caught the fish, you can forget the trap. A rabbit-snare is for catching rabbits; once you've caught the rabbit, you can forget about the snare. Words are for catching ideas, once you've caught the idea, you can forget about the words. Where can I find a person who knows how to forget about words so that I can have a few words with him?"
The idea that words are of impermanent utility probably applies to this book, but it is a very memorable book nonetheless - the ideas are permanent and I know I will be reading and researching more about China because of it. It is a book to be read slowly and one of those I did not want to end since I know there is much more to tell and Hessler is a very talented writer - I look forward to the next.
Here is a video from 2006 at a Google Authors event in Which Hessler talks about the content of this book.
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