grist for the mill
A not-so-secret research cacheFriday, July 30, 2004
Thursday, July 29, 2004
Tuesday, July 27, 2004
Monday, July 26, 2004
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Monday, July 19, 2004
Bloggers to join the mainstream at conventions: "''They're certainly not committed to being objective. They thrive on rumor and innuendo,'' McPhail says. Bloggers ''should be put in a different category, like 'pretend' journalists.''"
Poynter Online - Romenesko: "Inviting bloggers to the political conventions is 'a gesture of respect for the growing influence of the blogosphere,' says Shorenstein Center director Alex Jones. 'But make no mistake, this moment of blogging legitimization -- and temporary press credentials -- doesn't turn bloggers into journalists. Few bloggers add reporting to their personal views, notes Jones, 'and they see journalism as bound by norms and standards that they reject. That encourages these common attributes of the blogosphere: vulgarity, scorching insults, bitter denunciations, one-sided arguments, erroneous assertions and the array of qualities that might be expected from a blustering know-it-all in a bar.'"
Sunday, July 18, 2004
The New York Times > International > Middle East > In Iraq War, Death Also Comes to Soldiers in Autumn of Life: "The war deaths of middle-aged soldiers are a consequence of a specific moment in American history. With a shrinking roll of full-time soldiers and no draft to replenish it, the nation's armed forces have had to reach deeper into the Reserves and the National Guard, where men in their 50's typically train and serve alongside soldiers in their teens. About 5,570 of the 275,000 American troops in or about to leave for Iraq and Afghanistan are 50 and older, nearly all of them members of the Guard and Reserves."
Thursday, July 15, 2004
Wednesday, July 14, 2004
Monday, July 12, 2004
Group wants absentee ballot reform, Detroit clerk's resignation: "The issue of counting absentee ballots in Detroit elections has been a subject of controversy and speculation over the past decade with Currie as clerk.
In 1998, ballot-counting problems, which included the loss of poll books and miscounting of precinct totals, delayed the August primary vote for nearly two weeks.
During the November 2001 mayoral election, Currie refused to hand count some absentee ballots despite an order from the Michigan Bureau of Elections to do so. That refusal resulted in a city audit of the clerk's office. "
In 1998, ballot-counting problems, which included the loss of poll books and miscounting of precinct totals, delayed the August primary vote for nearly two weeks.
During the November 2001 mayoral election, Currie refused to hand count some absentee ballots despite an order from the Michigan Bureau of Elections to do so. That refusal resulted in a city audit of the clerk's office. "
Friday, July 09, 2004
The New York Times > National > Report: CIA Gave False Info on Iraq: "President Bush called it a ``useful report'' about where the intelligence community ``went short.''
``We need to know. I want to know. I want to know how to make the agencies better,'' he said at a political stop Friday in Kutztown, Pa.
Sen. Pat Roberts, a Kansas Republican who heads the committee, told reporters that assessments that Iraq had chemical and biological weapons and could make a nuclear weapon by the end of the decade were wrong.
``As the report will show, they were also unreasonable and largely unsupported by the available intelligence,'' he said."
``We need to know. I want to know. I want to know how to make the agencies better,'' he said at a political stop Friday in Kutztown, Pa.
Sen. Pat Roberts, a Kansas Republican who heads the committee, told reporters that assessments that Iraq had chemical and biological weapons and could make a nuclear weapon by the end of the decade were wrong.
``As the report will show, they were also unreasonable and largely unsupported by the available intelligence,'' he said."
Thursday, July 08, 2004
The New York Times > Opinion > Guest Columnist: The New Cosby Kids: "It's time to start picking on a more up-to-date pariah group for the 21st century, and I'd like to nominate the elderly whites. Filial restraint has so far kept the would-be Social Security privatizers on the right from going after them, but the grounds for doing so are clear. For one thing, there's a startling new wave of 'grandpa bandits' terrorizing rural banks. And occasionally some old duffer works himself into a frenzy listening to Cole Porter tunes and drives straight into a crowd of younger folks.
The law-abiding old whites are no prize either. Overwhelmingly, they choose indolence over employment ? lounging on park benches, playing canasta ? when we all know there are plenty of people-greeter jobs out there. Since it's government money that allows them to live in this degenerate state, we can expect the Heritage Foundation to reveal any day now that some seniors are cashing in their Social Security checks for vodka and Viagra. Just as welfare was said to 'cause poverty,' the experts may soon announce that Medicare causes baldness and that Social Security is a risk factor for osteoporosis: the correlations are undeniable.
And the menace posed by the elderly can only get worse, as ever more of them sink into debt. What's eating up their nest eggs? In many cases, drugs. How long before the streets are ruled by geezer gangs mugging us to support their insulin and beta-blocker habits?
All right, before the AARP issues a fatwa against me, could we please acknowledge that the demonization of welfare recipients wasn't based on reality either? Contrary to the stereotype, welfare moms in 1996 averaged two children per family, not six, and in surveys always expressed a desire to work, should child care become available. Incidentally, only a minority of"
The law-abiding old whites are no prize either. Overwhelmingly, they choose indolence over employment ? lounging on park benches, playing canasta ? when we all know there are plenty of people-greeter jobs out there. Since it's government money that allows them to live in this degenerate state, we can expect the Heritage Foundation to reveal any day now that some seniors are cashing in their Social Security checks for vodka and Viagra. Just as welfare was said to 'cause poverty,' the experts may soon announce that Medicare causes baldness and that Social Security is a risk factor for osteoporosis: the correlations are undeniable.
And the menace posed by the elderly can only get worse, as ever more of them sink into debt. What's eating up their nest eggs? In many cases, drugs. How long before the streets are ruled by geezer gangs mugging us to support their insulin and beta-blocker habits?
All right, before the AARP issues a fatwa against me, could we please acknowledge that the demonization of welfare recipients wasn't based on reality either? Contrary to the stereotype, welfare moms in 1996 averaged two children per family, not six, and in surveys always expressed a desire to work, should child care become available. Incidentally, only a minority of"
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
A Cosby show we should listen to: "Right about now some folks in reader land are calling Cosby an Uncle Tom for pointing to the huge elephant in the room that everyone pretends not to see.
While it is fair criticism to say Cosby generalized in his comments, he also seized on a boulder -- forget a grain -- of truth. It's about time someone with clout delivered a hard punch line, emphasis on punch.
Call it tough love.
Cosby, who earned a doctorate in education, is breaking from shackles of political correctness to sound the alarm for a certain segment of black America.
Notice I said 'certain' -- not all.
This particular segment has wrapped itself in a comfy blanket of victimhood, conspicuous consumption and the sensibility that 'the man' is culpable for all that is wrong.
If Cosby were white, he'd be called a racist for saying what he did. His message, though, could just have easily applied to other groups, including Latinos in the inner city or poor whites. By several statistical measures -- poverty, education, health and crime -- they, too, are in dire straits."
While it is fair criticism to say Cosby generalized in his comments, he also seized on a boulder -- forget a grain -- of truth. It's about time someone with clout delivered a hard punch line, emphasis on punch.
Call it tough love.
Cosby, who earned a doctorate in education, is breaking from shackles of political correctness to sound the alarm for a certain segment of black America.
Notice I said 'certain' -- not all.
This particular segment has wrapped itself in a comfy blanket of victimhood, conspicuous consumption and the sensibility that 'the man' is culpable for all that is wrong.
If Cosby were white, he'd be called a racist for saying what he did. His message, though, could just have easily applied to other groups, including Latinos in the inner city or poor whites. By several statistical measures -- poverty, education, health and crime -- they, too, are in dire straits."
Best remedy for a child's cough? Water: "To conduct the study, researchers recruited 100 children with upper-respiratory-tract infections who had been coughing for an average of more than three days.
The children were given one of three treatments 30 minutes before bedtime: a cough syrup containing dextromethorphan, a cough syrup containing diphenhydramine or a placebo syrup.
Children in all three groups showed a dramatic reduction in cough frequency, but those taking the placebo -- essentially flavored water -- had the best results. On four other measures, the three treatments had virtually identical outcomes.
Paul said this demonstrates that time and proper hydration are the best treatment for most respiratory infections and that the benefit that comes from cough syrups is likely psychological."
The children were given one of three treatments 30 minutes before bedtime: a cough syrup containing dextromethorphan, a cough syrup containing diphenhydramine or a placebo syrup.
Children in all three groups showed a dramatic reduction in cough frequency, but those taking the placebo -- essentially flavored water -- had the best results. On four other measures, the three treatments had virtually identical outcomes.
Paul said this demonstrates that time and proper hydration are the best treatment for most respiratory infections and that the benefit that comes from cough syrups is likely psychological."
Friday, July 02, 2004
News sues City Council - 07/02/04: "Council President Maryann Maffahey declined comment Thursday but dissolved the personnel committee.
She, Sharon McPhail and Kenneth Cockrel Jr. comprised the committee, which whittled a list of candidates for the post to five from about 20. The research and analysis director is an attorney who acts on council direction. "
She, Sharon McPhail and Kenneth Cockrel Jr. comprised the committee, which whittled a list of candidates for the post to five from about 20. The research and analysis director is an attorney who acts on council direction. "
Thursday, July 01, 2004
Q & A about Conflict Diamonds: "Why should American jewelers care about conflict diamonds?
Diamonds derive their unique value from consumers' association of the gem with love and commitment. However, the international trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone and Angola have enriched and empowered some of the cruelest fighting forces in the world. Increasingly, diamonds are associated not with love but with rape and amputation by the RUF in Sierra Leone. It is vitally important that the trade in diamonds be reformed quickly so that their image is not irreparably damaged. Otherwise legitimate producers like South Africa will be seen as peddlers of war spoils rather than symbols of love, and value of all diamonds will be forever tarnished."
Diamonds derive their unique value from consumers' association of the gem with love and commitment. However, the international trade in diamonds from Sierra Leone and Angola have enriched and empowered some of the cruelest fighting forces in the world. Increasingly, diamonds are associated not with love but with rape and amputation by the RUF in Sierra Leone. It is vitally important that the trade in diamonds be reformed quickly so that their image is not irreparably damaged. Otherwise legitimate producers like South Africa will be seen as peddlers of war spoils rather than symbols of love, and value of all diamonds will be forever tarnished."
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