General Stuff: General WisdomThis category encompasses General Stuff's thoughts on things in general.A Belated Rebuttal to Dennis Miller, That Fucking Hack- February 26, 2004 This is an old item, but since some ignorant moron recently responded to my "Dennis Miller is a Fucking Hack" piece, I thought I would link to it now because (a) I just found it and (b) it quite comprehensively refutes Dennis Miller, that fucking hack. See "Rebuttal to Dennis Miller's Cute Simplifications."http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/26.html#a139 You Can Find Me in The Woods- February 23, 2004 I've been thinking about studying up on survival skills. There are always tales of armageddon in the news, but lately the tales have begun to sound more probable. Something about the combination of oil shortages and global warming that gives me the creeps. Think I'll look into a nice wooded plot. A few weeks ago there was a column in the Toronto Star about the impending oil shortage. Estimates are anywhere from 5 years to 30 years, but given the numbers I'd say it's going to...http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/22.html#a133 New Documents Illuminate Calamities of "Old" Europe and Its Neighbours- February 21, 2004 Whenever I read about WWII, I am reminded of how insulting the Bush administration's characterization of "Old" Europe is. It's a characterization that usually envelopes the United Nations and other agencies, economies, and governments that have been dwarfed by the military superiority of the United States. America has never known suffering on the same scale as the war that was fought most viciously in and around Europe from 1939 to 1945, and yet Bush and his supporters dismiss Europe..http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/21.html#a131 Privatized American health care far less efficient than Canadian model- February 17, 2004 As always, Paul Krugman is addressing the issues that matter, and exactly how they matter. In today's column, he goes after the Bush administration for their lack of a policy for improving American health care. It's true that the U.S. spends far more on health care than any other country, but this wouldn't be a bad thing if the spending got results. The real question is why, despite all that spending, many Americans aren't assured of the health care they need, and American life expectancy is...http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/17.html#a125 The Science of Love: Like Snorting Cocaine- February 16, 2004 Check out this item from The Economist: http:www.economist.comprinteditiondisplayStory.cfmStory_ID=2424049 "Parts of the brain that are love-bitten include the one responsible for gut feelings, and the ones which generate the euphoria induced by drugs such as cocaine. So the brains of people deeply in love do not look like those of people experiencing strong emotions, but instead like those of people snorting coke. Love, in other words, uses the neural mechanisms that are activated during the...http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/15.html#a122 There Is No Added Threat of Terrorism After 911- February 14, 2004 I've been debating with an "Order of the Day" reader for a few days now over one of the items I posted recently. The reader mentioned the "added threat of terrorism" in a post, as a response to one of my arguments, and I challenged this idea. I wish I could speak to the American people and have them understand (my intention not being to villify America) that America has contributed to far more "terrorism" in the last century than any of the countries now aligned with the term by the current...http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/13.html#a119 Canadians Hate George Bush but Love Conan O'Brien- February 7, 2004 Two recent items in the Canadian press tell the story of Canadian-American relations these days. The first is a February 9 Maclean&146;s magazine cover story (&147;Hope you lose, eh&148;) that reports only 15% of Canadians polled would vote for George W. Bush in the upcoming election. The second item is the news of comedian Conan O&146;Brien visiting Toronto for a set of shows next week. They may not seem like comparable stories, but I think they speak to a distinction in Canadian.http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/07.html#a105 A good summary of human rights abuses resulting from the Bush doctrine, and how things could have been handled differently- February 1, 2004 America's approach to human rights Economist: Opinion Excerpt: Around the globe, America's human-rights policy has visibly softened, subsumed under the all-encompassing banner of the &147;war against terrorism&148;. And at home, the Patriot Act, military commissions, Guantánamo and the indefinite detention of American citizens have placed America in the odd position of condoning deep intrusions by law, even while creating zones and persons outside the law. At this point, you are..http://blogs.salon.com/0003158/categories/generalWisdom/2004/02/01.html#a100 |