Call Al Gore's Office: We've Got Major Devastation in Scandanavia!

Go ahead and add the devastation of Scandanavian gingerbread houses to the ever-growing and never-ending list of things we can blame on global warming. The Terra Daily reported that both wholesale manufacturers of ginger-houses and home-based amateur builders are suffering. One retailer received 40+ complaints from angry customers whose houses collapsed due to overly-moist gingerbread and icing that wouldn't dry and harden. "The damp weather spells immediate devastation for gingerbread houses," said a spokesperson for Sweden's leading gingerbread wholesaler. "The problem is the mild winter."

Ta-Nehisi Coates: The Audacity of Bill Cosby's Black Conservatism

Just read this excellent piece on Bill Cosby in the May Atlantic Monthly. (I'm a big Cosby fan, from his stand-up days to his sitcoms to his conservative politics.)

Facts Are Stubborn Things

“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclination, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” -- John Adams

Chuck Muth: The Yucca Mountain Gold Mine

After my post re: the Bob Loux letter re: his objections to the DOE's plans for Yucca, the always lucid Chuck Muth emailed me the link to this post on his new Yucca Facts blog. In it he presents the many possible Pros for a nuclear waste repository. Although I still think the DOE's Not-Yet-Invented Supercalifrajalistic Robots are pretty funny, Chuck makes many excellent observations. (Let's call them Muthservations for purposes of this discussion.)

The first Muthservation is that the great state of NV currently has a variety of problems: a budget shortfall, water shortages, high energy costs, road construction needs, and a lack of quality higher education opportunities. (Agreed. Actually, as Muth points out, these are all Facts so agreement is quite beside the point. Therefore, I withdraw it and just nod knowingly.) The next Muthservation (as recently reported in the Lousville Courier-Journal) is that uranium is now selling for around $73 a pound and that We-Have-The-Technology to extract it from "worthless" nuclear waste, so the uranium that could be recovered from the "waste" would be worth $7.6 billion. (wow!) Muth suggests that if Nevada became the site for our Great Nation's nuclear reprocessing center as well as the storage site for all the waste, Nevadan's could/would benefit in the form of a major budget surplus, plus a lot of highly skilled high-paying jobs, not to mention lots of cheap electricity from the plant (me Like-ee).

Chuck further Muthservates (that is the verb form) that some of the surplus money could be used to build a water pipeline from the Pacific to Yucca Mountain, where the power from the Nuclear Power Plant could be used to desalinate the ocean water (again, We-Have-The-Technology, given the ability to generate enough heat, which a nuclear reactor could do and then some) and solve all our water shortage problems. (This is freaking brilliant, so why is this the first time I've heard about this idea? Am I That out of touch with the talking points in favor of Yucca? If so, shame on me. I'll take comfort in the fact that I'm not alone because a small straw poll of Nevada residents (i.e. a few friends and family members) revealed that no one else had heard of this being a viable idea either.)

Finally, as a result of the nuclear "waste" repository (I shall never again think of it as waste), Muth says that with the reprocessing and uranium extraction center, the power plant, and the desalinization facility, we'd then have every reason to establish a Yucca Mountain Nuclear Technology University, complete with (and this may be my favorite Muthservation of all): an NCAA basketball team. (Muth suggests we name them the "Fighting Neutrons." With respect, I think we can do better with the Name-ology and shall proceed to think of ideas.) Oh yes, one more thing. All of this would likely lead to the necessity for a four-lane super highway connecting Yucca Mountain with Las Vegas and Reno (wouldn't THAT be nice), plus enough extra money to build enough roads to solve all our other gridlock problems.

Note/Update: a Yucca Facts reader, Bruce Jackson, pointed out that another benefit could be a major hydrogen production station/distribution system making Nevada a world leader in motor vehicles (and other power-using things) that use hydrogen fuel cell technology. Many believe this is the future of New Energy (and that bio-fuels are not, which now also seems to be the consensus of the entire world in light of recent food shortages/rising food prices).

Stanford Metaphysics Research Lab: "The Theory of Abstract Objects"

I try to read something new in the Wide World of Metaphysics at least weekly. Often I have to re-Google and/or hyper-clickalate in order to find stuff I haven’t already read (and which I can sort of understand). Any-hoo, this week’s Read was a great Find on the principles and language of abstract objects. The gist is that a research group at Stanford came up with metaphysical formulas supporting two Principles of the Abstract: “existence conditions” and “identity conditions.” (For those who aren’t clear on the difference between Physics and Metaphysics, all theories of the abstract or conceptual fall under the heading of Metaphysical theory whereas Physics deals with concrete objects.)

Before they present, the Stanford guys explain that their theories of Abstract “existence” and “identity” are supported by Ernst Mally's distinction between exemplifying (typifying) and encoding (instructing) a given property. This distinction can be seen in the difference between the atomic formulas ‘Fx’ (where ‘x exemplifies F’) and ‘xF ’ (where ‘x encodes F’). The formula ‘Fx’ could be used to logically analyze simple sentences like ‘Anne is happy’, ‘Bush is president’, and ‘Leo is a cat.’ Mally's idea was that we should not represent sentences about fictional objects, such as ‘Sherlock Holmes is a detective’, ‘Pegasus has wings’, or ‘Zeus lived on Mt. Olympus’, in terms of the notation ‘Fx’...because only real, concrete objects can exemplify the properties of being a detective, having wings, or living on Mt. Olympus. Nevertheless, Mally reasoned that there must be some mode of predication, i.e. some sense of the words ‘is’ and ‘has’ for which it is true to say ‘Sherlock Holmes is a detective’ and ‘Pegasus has wings’ (for we wouldn't understand the story/myth properly if we didn't imagine objects that were instances of the properties in question). So, Mally informally introduced the notion ‘x encodes F’ as a new mode of predication that is more appropriate for the logical analysis of sentences about fictions and other Abstract objects.

What is so beautiful about Mally’s thinking is the exactness of the language in relation to the thing it describes. He skillfully analyzes and explains what the real meaning of the word “is” is, both in the Real and Fictional: something we all thought only Bill Clinton could do.

Stay tuned for Part II which will answer the burning question: Are theories postulating Abstract objects incompatible with the theories of natural science?

War, Actually

Anne of Idaho sends along this excellent Jonah Goldberg quote from his Corner post on War and its Moral Equivalents:

But as a general proposition, I think it's true that the people who invoke the moral equivalents of war as an organizing principle seek to expand what the conservative proponent of actual war wishes to contract, to prolong (or make permanent) what the conservative hopes will be only temporary, and to celebrate as essential what the conservative sees as an unfortunate necessity.

"Help Me Tom Cruise, Help Me Woody Harrelson!"

For today's Entertainment News don't miss this Associated Press story about Wesley Snipes' three year prison sentence for tax evasion. In an attempt to soften the judge, Snipes offered glowing character references from various Hollywood pals including...Woody Harrelson...? Don't mean to be too hard on anyone here, but is that really the best go-to guy for a strong personal reference?

Update/Note: A friend asked about the header for this post. It's a reference to the movie Talledega Nights starring Will Farrel. The main character - Ricky Bobby - a NASCAR driver suffering from anxiety and paranoia after a bad crash and a nervous breakdown, believes he has caught on fire. He leaps from his vehicle and starts running around the racetrack, screaming: "Help me, Jesus! Help me Jewish God! Help me Allah! Help me, Tom Cruise! Tom Cruise, use your witchcraft to get the fire off me!"

Be Wary of the Cassowary

According to this piece on Oddity Central and as confirmed in the Guinness Book of Records, Cassowaries are the world’s most dangerous birds. (Note: the photos are worth the click-thru.) Apparently these birds can deal fatal blows and are rather unpredictable, aggressive creatures. Residing in the rain forests of Australia and New Guinea, they're considered "shy" if undisturbed -- but make a mis-step and become a perceived threat to this fierce and feathery fowl and you could receive a bone-breaking kick or get sliced up by its blade-like claws.

(From an Australian Broadcast Network interview with a neighboring tree squirrel who witnessed the crime: "He seemed like such a nice, normal bird. I mean, he never caused any trouble or anything. This is so hard to believe. It's a real tragedy.")

For more reading on this fascinating creature, click here. (Note: As soon as the page loads, your screen arrow turns into an in-flight hummingbird and "flits" around as you move your mouse. Cute!)

Hat Tip re: the Oddity Link: Jonah Goldberg's OLG (Odd Link Gal) on The Corner

The Hyphenization of America

What is the meaning and effect of the rampant spread of Hyphenization in our cultural dialogue? The variants are many: African-American, Asian-American, Jewish-American, Italian-American, Hispanic-American, to name a few. Are these handles an attempt to carve out personal Identity? Are they a source or sign of ethnic pride? Yes, yes, and yes.

Unfortunately they are also sometimes employed as a means to set aside minorities who believe that in addition to respect for their ancestral origins, they deserve special treatment in the Now. Nowhere is this more evident than in the ramped-up discourse in some corners of the African-American "community." Their leaders – the Jesse Jacksons, Louis Farrakans, and Rev. Wrights of our podiums and pulpits – speak of (or scream about) the so-called modern-day subjugation of African-Americans. These trouble-mongerers tirelessly beat the drum of Entitlement, demanding the ear of our nation. And their angst-driven pounding is amplified by the presence of that tiny dash.

Their labels, like the hyphens within, serve more to separate than unite. As that-which-comes-after the Hyphen, the term “American” does not transmit as strongly as what precedes. This divides us into factions, unconnected and unable to relate to one another. As Roosevelt once said, “There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism…. A hyphenated American is not an American at all. The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities.''

Those words were spoken in 1915. Nearly one-hundred years later, the subject still bears examining. Is the American Melting Pot coagulating and separating as it simmers over the flame of socio-political fervor? Will the soup be spoiled? Perhaps not: if we turn down the heat, fish out the Hyphens, and gently stir.

Credits: Teddy Roosevelt’s words were read by Laura Ingraham on her radio talk show this morning. She wondered about the effects of Hyhenated Americans feeling greater solidarity with their countries of origin - whether African, European, Asian, or Hispanic – than with America.

What Is Conservatism?

An imaginary reader e-mails in and asks about Conservatism. What is it, what good does it do, and who says so? Excellent questions, all. To answer I will go at once to the writings of Russell Kirk who reminded us that conservatism is not an Ideology. As Kirk once wrote, "there is no Holy Writ, no Das Kapital and no Thirty-Nine Articles to provide and preserve conservative dogma." It is perhaps as Kirk once stated: conservatism is a state of mind, a type of character, and a way of looking at the civil and social order. A conservative person is one who values historical and permanent things...yet also knows that change can be worthy (and sometimes, ironically, a means of preservation). Conservatives believe there exists an enduring moral order and that certain aspects of human nature are also constants. Sometimes the twain shall meet, and sometimes, Not. Both harmony and disharmony are therefore indicated – but Harmony can better be attained and maintained when the fact of fallible men is remembered, not denied or ignored. Conservatives believe that Utopia, the land toward which our well-intentioned and left-leaning Ideologue friends ever-sail, cannot exist here on earth. We must do what we can, of course - but what that "What" is turns the wheel that will help us cruise happily on, or steer us all into the rocks.

And Another Thing

On the subject of Jimmy Carter again with a kill-two-birds Bonus (i.e. Obama's foolishness on the same subject). Initially, Obama said Carter’s meet-up with Hamas was none of his business. Then a spokesman for Obama said he did "not agree with President Carter's decision to go forward with this meeting because he does not support negotations with Hamas until they renounce terrorism, recognized Israel's right to exist, and abide by past agreements." (As quoted in the Washington Post) But hasn't Obama said he wishes to meet with Ahmadinejad, whose position is identical to that of Hamas?

White Sox Ban Bottled Water in Dugouts

Many remember Tom Hanks’ oft-quoted classic line from the movie A League of Their Own: “There’s no crying in baseball!” Now, as reported by Ed Price at NJ.com, there’s no water allowed either. Apparently there are signs between the locker rooms and dugouts in the White Sox’ U.S. Cellular Field which read, “NO BOTTLED WATER ON THE BENCH.” The official party line is that Gatorade is MLB’s official drink, and all players are forbidden to swig anything else in the dugout. White Sox management said if the players revolt and take bottled water to the bench, all water will be removed from the clubhouse as “punishment.” There’s a lot I could say about insane corporate sponsorship deals murdering the spirit of American sports, but we’ll just call this one Stupid and leave it at that.

Nevada State Board of Education Blocking Charter School Expansion

If you’re interested in public education issues, make sure you read Chuck Muth’s blog post on the Nevada DOE's hostility toward charter schools and the desperate parents who wish to home school and/or who have their children on charter school wait lists due to the failing public schools here in Nevada. Among other incomprehensible decisions, the Board of Education has put a moratorium on all new charter school applications and is also denying existing charter schools permission to expand. The bottom line (for me) is simple: If parents wish to home school and their kids can pass the DOE’s mandated profiency exams, that ought to be sufficient. And if there’s a waiting list for charter schools, then we should allow those schools to do what ought to be common sense in a free market: meet consumer demand through addition to or expansion of such schools.

"Parts of Speech" by Green Baker of Freedman's School, circa 1865

Basic grammar is still taught in our schools (isn't it?) but tonight Mama-Kiszer e-mails wondering whether we oughtn't return to simpler times - and simple rhymes - that can help children remember things (like the following, on parts of speech). I daresay there's an adult or three that could use the help as well...

Three little words you often see
Are articles – "an," "a," and "the."

A noun is the name of anything,
A school or garden, hoop or swing.

Adjectives tell the kind of noun,
As great, small, pretty, white or brown.

Instead of nouns the pronouns stand –
Her hand, his face, your arm, my hand.

Verbs tell of something being done –
To read, count, laugh, sing, jump or run.

How things are done the adverbs tell,
As slowly, quickly, ill or well.

Conjunctions join the words together,
As men and women, wind or weather.

The prepositions stand before
A noun, as in or through the door.

The interjections show surprise,
As Oh! How pretty! Ah! How wise!

The whole are called the nine parts of speech
Which reading, writing, speaking teach.

Source: An American Antiquarian Society Online Exhibition

I say Nevada, You say NevODDa

Just in case you were wondering: the name of the Silver State is derived from the Spanish word nevada, which is the feminine form of "covered in snow." And just in case you were also wondering: the proper local pronunciation of the second syllable of the state's name is not like the "o" in "odd" but like the "a" in "glad". In 2005, the state even issued a specialty license plate that lists the name of the state as Nevăda. Why, you ask? Natives of the state strongly resent hearing Nevada's name mispronounced in the national media – which it has been of late (being an election year). Please take special care to utter the State's name correctly in all polite conversation, and please forward this Information Alert to any and all of your media pals, forthwith.