tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62247222012-02-02T20:37:19.332-05:00TigerHawk (ti*ger*hawk): n. 1. The title of this blog and the nom de plume of its founding blogger; 2. A deep bow to the Princeton Tigers and the Iowa Hawkeyes; 3. The nickname for Iowa's Hawkeye logo. Posts include thoughts of the day on international affairs, politics, things that strike us as hilarious and personal observations. The opinions we express are our own, and not those of each other, our employers, our relatives, our dead ancestors, or unrelated people of similar ethnicity.TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.comBlogger118371100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-33185332839769411572012-02-02T15:33:00.000-05:002012-02-02T15:34:50.361-05:00

Indeed.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-25430479594562351812012-02-02T00:17:00.002-05:002012-02-02T00:21:13.726-05:00

Mostly the second one.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-75749261141097288052012-02-01T23:16:00.001-05:002012-02-01T23:16:16.158-05:00

An entirely different -- and essentially nonpartisan -- way to think about the buying of votes in our democracy. Help the helpless, but do not help the clueless. That simple rule would (i) save us trillions, and (ii) give those people with choices to make a powerful incentive to decide against cluelessness.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-49691411119751020422012-02-01T18:32:00.002-05:002012-02-01T18:32:42.829-05:00

There are aspects of Japanese culture that most Westerners find surprising. None may be more surprising than this. What would cause a significant percentage of young people to lose interest in sex? Or are they just lying for some other cultural reason we are unlikely to understand? No arguing with the birth rate, though.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-89744366135342690242012-02-01T17:51:00.001-05:002012-02-01T17:51:53.150-05:00

Sometimes, one must repeat the obvious to the point of tedium. Apparently, so it is with the need for smaller government.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-71799287104132913732012-02-01T16:37:00.000-05:002012-02-01T16:37:13.030-05:00

How many of you know what paregoric is? I had gone my entire 50 years without ever having heard of it (other than, perhaps, in a passing reference in some old novel), until the THGF mentioned that it is a very effective symptomatic treatment for, well, vomiting. Too bad the gummint banned it. Must have been the opium.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-62969331054499989142012-01-30T16:50:00.001-05:002012-01-30T16:50:24.894-05:00

My young nephew sure knows how to pick the subjects of his art work...

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-75823638761328436732012-01-29T21:55:00.002-05:002012-01-29T21:58:01.762-05:00

Troll: One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argumentExample: "Don't listen to him, he's just trolling. It's obvious from the way he said the Jews caused 9/11."

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-89563029117657385122012-01-29T00:56:00.000-05:002012-01-29T00:57:28.036-05:00

Word.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-86875428508958558822012-01-28T21:09:00.000-05:002012-01-28T21:09:05.890-05:00

I took a few hours off and went on a nice bike ride on a beautiful San Diego day, from Encinitas down the coast to the top of Torrey Pines, and back again. I borrowed a bike but wore the colors along the 101... Parasurfing, or whatever it is called, along the beach at Cardiff. I responded to the challenge and took the long hill in the Torrey Pines preserve, all the way to the top. On a

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-9112108287178011832012-01-28T11:58:00.001-05:002012-01-28T12:00:25.667-05:00

I've been off the blog for a few days on account of my duties as a corporate tool at my company's annual national sales meeting in San Diego. These are smart reps -- they are well educated and have to be credible and of value to neuro and orthopedic surgeons -- and, perhaps because of the Obama administration's relentless rhetorical, legislative, and regulatory assault on our great industry,

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com61tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-67465272106632791952012-01-25T01:02:00.000-05:002012-01-25T01:11:16.034-05:00

I watched the State of the Union so you do not have to. Suffice it to say, I have a few comments, pro and con, paragraph by paragraph. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, members of Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow Americans: Last month, I went to Andrews Air Force Base and welcomed home some of our last troops to serve in Iraq. Together, we offered a final, proud salute to the colors

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-37738029074793332812012-01-24T21:11:00.003-05:002012-01-28T11:19:48.372-05:00

It will be interesting to see the headlines long about 2037, if I live that long... UPDATE: Apparently this is a PhotoShopped forgery. Oh well, never trust your Facebook feed. Sorry to be late on the correction -- I've been more or less totally committed for the last four days.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-90916417850823080832012-01-24T09:30:00.003-05:002012-01-24T10:43:23.986-05:00

With the recent hype over the Stop Online Piracy Act and PROTECT IP (Yes, that's an acronym. It stands for Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property...Act.), the issue of piracy has gotten a lot of focus from a lot of people that don't understand the Internet, or have any idea what people actually do on it. From the way I'm sure the MPAA and RIAA

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-62203893460939369662012-01-24T08:56:00.000-05:002012-01-24T08:56:00.689-05:00

A nifty list of the "100 most beautiful" words in the English language. Never mind that several of them are only provisionally English.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-86494084110154667522012-01-24T00:06:00.003-05:002012-01-24T00:11:13.909-05:00

The RIAA and the MPAA are working under obsolete business models. Don't let idiots throw away our civil rights and privacy just because they can't change. It's been proven with programs like Steam and iTunes and Netflix that Internet piracy goes *DOWN* when ease of access goes up. The only reason I download any copyrighted thing from the Internet is because they don't have it on either iTunes or

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-35768266372336524282012-01-23T23:44:00.003-05:002012-01-23T23:56:16.720-05:00

An interesting blog post on the NYPD and the phenomenon known as Walking While Brown, otherwise known as "Stop and Frisk."

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-55515396592324466212012-01-23T22:20:00.002-05:002012-01-23T22:20:28.510-05:00

Lake Carnegie, almost six years ago.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-26580945269424017382012-01-23T20:45:00.003-05:002012-01-23T20:45:57.946-05:00

Frankly, I rather enjoy both Christie and Palin in this clip. We need more politicians who will say "panties in a wad" on national television.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-92062271404183642032012-01-23T20:16:00.000-05:002012-01-23T20:18:32.935-05:00

The big Chicago law firm Mayer Brown has produced a "legal update" that describes new rules from the Internal Revenue Service that require employers to calculate and report the cost of health insurance provided to employees on each W-2. So, yes, beginning in 2013 (for the 2012 year), employers have to tell the government what they spend on health insurance. Since employer-provided health

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-73480371032050390262012-01-23T20:07:00.002-05:002012-01-23T20:07:20.226-05:00

A useful compendium of the growth of the national debt by presidential term. Suffice it to say there is something there for everybody.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-19299771324932772922012-01-23T16:55:00.003-05:002012-01-23T16:57:33.197-05:00

Katie Sackhoff and Dirk Benedict in a Starbucks.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-1349799534996907532012-01-22T21:27:00.002-05:002012-01-22T21:27:22.818-05:00

The (Toronto) Globe and Mail documents the concerted efforts of environmental activists to turn the Obama administration against the Keystone pipeline and Canada's oil. In the article, the president of the Natural Resources Defense Council makes it quite clear that she would prefer to keep shipping money to Saudi Arabia and Venezuela than for Canada to increase its own exports. The article

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-87492616950644146312012-01-22T20:06:00.001-05:002012-01-22T20:30:36.936-05:00

Could somebody please explain to me why the White House communications office thought that this was a smart "blog post"? Sheesh, talk about doing the work of the opposition. As for the president's "ambitious plan to make this country the #1 tourist destination in the world," I have a couple of thoughts. First, the "details" were not disclosed. Uh, so how are we to know it is "ambitious"?

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-43267973017237016842012-01-22T18:02:00.002-05:002012-01-22T18:02:37.425-05:00

The New Jersey Giants are going to win...

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-55628320086504562862012-01-22T17:36:00.002-05:002012-01-22T17:36:37.177-05:00

The costs and benefits of safety measures seem easy to measure, but we always give up something for actual and sometimes only perceived security. I wear a helmet when I ride, but it is not clear that helmet laws improve the public health. How many parents have spent how many millions of hours and billions of gallons of gasoline schlepping their ever fatter children out of some small risk that

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-85922030279958349542012-01-21T17:25:00.000-05:002012-01-21T17:25:41.039-05:00

In another lame attack on Sarah Palin, Andrew Sullivan unrolled this bit of ill-informed snark: I increasingly suspect the primary reason Palin is not running right now is McGinniss' book. She knows there's more where that came from. She fears journalism - which is why she only appears on Fox. I have no idea whether Sarah Palin "fears journalism," but it is highly unlikely that is why she "only

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-37325054970141507802012-01-21T14:13:00.000-05:002012-01-21T14:13:21.986-05:00

The good people at Foreign Policy took in President Obama's visit to Orlando's Disney World resort, and concluded there were five more appropriate theme park destinations for our president. Snarkier by some margin than I would have expected.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-88384597726111653862012-01-19T19:51:00.001-05:002012-01-19T19:51:42.200-05:00

Garden Staters know that their governor, Chris Christie, yesterday announced a proposal to cut state income taxes 10% across-the-board, a genuinely substantial reduction and the fruits of his, er, gargantuan struggle to beat back the government monster that is choking New Jerseyans. The statists reacted, and here is Governor Awesome's response: I, for one, am hoping for a Romney-Christie

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-6106676752643312052012-01-18T23:15:00.000-05:002012-01-18T23:15:03.749-05:00

The looming tax on medical device revenues -- not profits, but revenues -- is just one of the current government's policies that obviously destroy jobs in what was one of America's most competitive industries. The effects of the tax on jobs in the industry was so predictable it is hard to believe it was not intentional, rooted in the Obama administration's intense desire to break down

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-28988042977668609982012-01-18T22:35:00.000-05:002012-01-18T22:35:39.368-05:00

Megan McArdle makes what ought to be an obvious point about relative, as opposed to absolute, income inequality, of which the left has been making a big deal of late. I've said before that I don't care about income inequality per se, and that focusing on it seems more like institutionalized envy than sound policy. I care about the absolute condition of the poor--do they have the basics of a

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-41113014229481795912012-01-17T15:31:00.002-05:002012-01-17T15:47:44.117-05:00

This blog will be up, but a number of big websites including Reddit, Wikipedia, and Mozilla are all scheduling blackouts in protest of SOPA/Protect IP. If you haven't done so, call or mail your Congressman and urge them to oppose this downright evil bill. This will drastically change the Internet as we know it and it cedes power to the entertainment industry and the government to destroy websites

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-38467538670564776062012-01-17T13:55:00.004-05:002012-01-17T13:55:42.940-05:00

Heh:

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-13783204854672075012012-01-15T21:31:00.001-05:002012-01-15T21:31:11.427-05:00

For those of you long Euros, or otherwise, perhaps this describes their future.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-12008529665504191932012-01-15T15:57:00.001-05:002012-01-15T15:57:00.640-05:00

A "warmist" and a "skeptic" four years ago bet that global temperature would, or would not (respectively), have set a new record high by the end of 2011. Results here. Forecasting with an attached wager does have the benefit of forcing some measure of commitment, certainly more than prognostication in the air. For one thing, there is more publicity when you lose a "bet" than when merely

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-47726996910951171372012-01-15T12:36:00.002-05:002012-01-15T21:19:33.671-05:00

Hmmm. Abstaining from alcohol significantly shortens life. The tightly controlled study, which looked at individuals between ages 55 and 65, spanned a 20-year period and accounted for variables ranging from socioeconomic status to level of physical activity. Led by psychologist Charles Holahan of the University of Texas at Austin, it found that mortality rates were highest for those who had

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-19615365667850070022012-01-14T13:30:00.000-05:002012-01-14T13:31:19.189-05:00

At George Bush International Airport in Houston, the last stop after a week of travel. The monorail to Terminal C, whence I blog, a few minutes ago, plus the reflection of your blogger in the window. Other stuff: For you Fed-haters out there, this was all predictable. Note that I am a big supporter of central banking, which I may or may not explain in a pending lengthy post. Twinkies: a

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-51592288684781464472012-01-13T06:35:00.005-05:002012-01-13T06:35:51.058-05:00

Beats me, but Andrew Sullivan sees a connection. So does Tom Maguire.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-18769473881735332792012-01-11T08:55:00.001-05:002012-01-11T08:55:43.679-05:00

I am a lawyer, but also in business actually to create something. I have many times fantasized about writing a letter like this, restrained only by fiduciary duty and my obvious need to cling to some shred of professionalism. I do, however, occasionally send friendly Christmas cards to people who are suing me. I recommend it. Not only does it bring a moment of civility in to our

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-78541056217261401642012-01-11T01:11:00.000-05:002012-01-11T01:11:48.966-05:00

Sorry about the absence -- I have been in San Francisco attending the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference, the biggest event in my industry. My schedule starts between 6 and 7 each morning, and does not end until around 9 at night. This year has been particularly busy, so I have had neither the time nor the energy to blog. I did, however, get a few pictures. The TH Son, and some pig parts...

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-69518792591284015902012-01-07T17:47:00.002-05:002012-01-07T17:47:29.172-05:00

The TH Daughter and I went for a good walk this afternoon, out my front door, around town, and past the one-time capital of the United States three blocks from my house. The others listed here.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-13323811185058704272012-01-07T17:26:00.002-05:002012-01-07T17:26:16.666-05:00

Dave in Texas at Ace has a couple of important observations regarding the Republican debate tonight. OK, really only one. And "dumb, dumb, dumb" it is.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-90075596581918632122012-01-07T15:29:00.002-05:002012-01-07T15:29:23.518-05:00

If you are looking to get a date with a celebrity, this just might be the way to do it. Even if Segal doesn't bite, this girl is has raised her game considerably.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-84856977707718118502012-01-04T22:48:00.003-05:002012-01-04T22:48:46.193-05:00

Byron Wien's annual predictions for the "top ten surprises" for the coming year are a Wall Street tradition. Herewith, this year's edition. Interesting that he predicts a change of control in both the Senate and the House. Top Ten Surprises for 2012var docstoc_docid="110262482";var docstoc_title="Top Ten Surprises for 2012";var docstoc_urltitle="Top Ten Surprises for 2012";

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-69432655160475732622012-01-03T20:00:00.000-05:002012-01-03T20:00:04.390-05:00

This week's O'Quiz is a special end of year version. I scored a seemingly pathetic 13 out of 25, and I was disgusted with myself until I saw that the average score for this week's version, thus far, was 5.88 out of 25. Take the special huge O'Quiz, and report your score in the comments. If, you know, your pride permits.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com39tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-29358207984754107492012-01-03T16:19:00.002-05:002012-01-03T16:21:08.519-05:00

This is my video of my cover of a song from MS Paint Adventures.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-80003841717263059622012-01-02T17:35:00.000-05:002012-01-03T15:12:32.448-05:00

We are still a few days from Epiphany, but for most of the world Christmas is receding until next year. A colleague, though, sent me this picture of ein tannenbaum on his dock, Priest Lake, Idaho. I thought you might enjoy it. CORRECTED the name of the lake.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-35291053474509197612011-12-31T13:56:00.001-05:002011-12-31T13:56:33.643-05:00

Because we are nothing if not devoted to the good fortune of our readers, we render for your well-being this list of New Year's Day "good luck" customs. Something tells me we will need all the luck we can get in 2012.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-26484999397230945662011-12-31T10:23:00.001-05:002011-12-31T10:23:25.192-05:00

So, last night I was playing cocktail hour Scrabble with the THGF, who almost always beats me senseless. Lady luck and a solid red Zin, however, conspired to deliver unto me the greatest Scrabble hand I have ever had the privilege to play, a solid 83 points (including the seven-letter bonus) for the word "risible." I rock. Less self-congratulatory blogging will resume shortly.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-81392138144874536172011-12-30T08:25:00.003-05:002011-12-30T08:31:01.349-05:00

I mean, this is just scary. And Felonius Monk agrees!(Bad Words in this awesome video, beware. Skip about 15 secs in)

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-11408481893583668092011-12-29T10:38:00.002-05:002011-12-29T10:38:44.079-05:00

The short life of Ben Breedlove, as recounted by Ben, a student at Westlake High School in Austin. Ben died on Christmas Day, leaving the world behind just a bit emptier, and not a little deprived.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-63697126581712653002011-12-29T08:22:00.001-05:002011-12-29T08:22:08.280-05:00

In case you want to feel ignorant this morning, take the annual quiz from King William's College, Isle of Mann. If they "teach to the test" over there, the students will at least know a lot when they are done.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-1764287481230162992011-12-28T11:30:00.000-05:002011-12-28T11:30:00.282-05:00

Via Maggie's Farm, a useful video showing on the proper use of a kitchen knife. You know, for the aspiring cooks out there. More of the same through the link.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-12142863499708634812011-12-28T09:23:00.000-05:002011-12-28T09:25:24.122-05:00

Two giants of the righty blogosphere, Power Line's John Hinderaker and John Hawkins of Right Wing News, have articulated the pro and con cases for Mitt Romney. Since that is a debate that has raged in the comments in this diminutive blog, we provide both links for your reading pleasure. Hinderaker: The “anybody but Romney” mentality that grips many Republicans is, in my view, illogical. It led

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com52tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-11341313697363630052011-12-26T12:47:00.000-05:002011-12-26T12:47:07.166-05:00

Given events in Egypt, I'm not sure which revolutions to support and which to fear, so I am not sure what I think about President Obama's policies with respect thereto. That said, this picture from Syria has gotta hurt.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-25695481613809972072011-12-25T21:00:00.000-05:002011-12-25T21:00:02.124-05:00

Late this afternoon, I walked alone.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-27519218974251177782011-12-25T20:30:00.000-05:002011-12-25T20:30:00.321-05:00

John Hawkins of Right Wing News has a nifty list of the year's best quotations. Assuming, of course, you're right wing.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-50130390491082517842011-12-25T17:05:00.000-05:002011-12-25T17:05:57.602-05:00

I had some spare time this morning waiting for the team to get out of bed, so I topped off my charitable giving for the year, well ahead of the usual New Year's Eve scramble. My giving has not changed much in recent years -- I re-upped for all the charities on the 2009 list -- but I added a couple on the advice of reader comments in posts over the last few years. Learning Ally, which used to be

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-45015088039786201402011-12-25T16:00:00.000-05:002011-12-25T16:00:00.751-05:00

Hard as it may be to believe, Amazon has rolled out its huge page of after Christmas deals!. If you buy through the link above, you will help me create jobs, for America.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-55151677081708972852011-12-25T11:45:00.000-05:002011-12-25T11:45:00.579-05:00

Simon Johnson at Baseline Scenario argues rather forcefully that Jon Huntsman is the only candidate of either party who understands how to avoid the next financial crisis. I myself like Huntsman more than any of the others -- I view him as competent and smart and sort of Romney-with-sincerity -- but despair at his inability to get traction.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-55620070274487558182011-12-25T10:14:00.002-05:002011-12-25T10:14:17.245-05:00

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-88965854247534441992011-12-25T10:03:00.000-05:002011-12-25T10:03:24.664-05:00

Heh: If Jesus were born today, and how the media and government might react.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-11283337492204861972011-12-25T09:17:00.000-05:002011-12-25T09:17:07.628-05:00

The son and I took a short hike yesterday afternoon, and once again I brought along my camera. Herewith, for those of you without snow, pictures from a white Christmas in the Adirondacks. If your monitor has decent resolution, you can see a sprinkle of snow off the tree, falling to the road and sparkling in the sunshine. In summer, this a bog at the end of a trail in the woods. Natural spires

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-22262287250303721622011-12-24T20:39:00.000-05:002011-12-24T20:39:09.718-05:00

The Wikipedia entry for potato is a lot more interesting than I would have guessed, not before knowing much about potatoes. I mean, I thought I knew something about them, but it turns out I was a potatoramus.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-60862151706973978772011-12-24T15:30:00.000-05:002011-12-24T15:30:00.792-05:00

An amusing list of ten "new" words Americans used this year.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-7096913750240886542011-12-24T15:17:00.001-05:002011-12-24T15:17:19.648-05:00

Bill Whittle puts Barack Obama's record in, er, perspective.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-58070054069661977932011-12-24T12:12:00.001-05:002011-12-24T12:12:57.254-05:00

I'm up in the Adirondacks to get me some white Christmas, and woke to beautiful sunshine on new fallen snow and 4 degrees Fahrenheit. It seemed like a good idea to take the big camera for a spin.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-60776029763372144122011-12-24T11:54:00.000-05:002011-12-24T11:54:00.100-05:00

OMFG.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-44021059437958604322011-12-24T10:48:00.000-05:002011-12-24T10:48:00.625-05:00

If you love factoids, this ginormous graphic of the logistics of the holiday shopping season will fill you with seasonal joy. The arresting complexity of our mass consumer economy is a thing of beauty, and surely one of the great wonders of the age.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-23631929278036469752011-12-24T09:21:00.001-05:002011-12-24T09:23:51.316-05:00

Because of the temporary two-month structure of the payroll tax cut just passed, the IRS has developed a "recapture tax" to be levied on federal income tax to recover the money from anybody whose wages in 2012 may exceed the Social Security maximum (around $110,000 per year). In other words, the federal government is forcing employers to bear the expense of distributing cash to workers, and

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-3018126079569977312011-12-23T19:36:00.001-05:002011-12-23T19:36:03.592-05:00

At a mall in Minnesota, a "flash mob" performance of "Joy to the World." If this does not bring a smile to your face, you are a Scrooge. Or perhaps just not a Christian, or maybe just not a Minnesotan. Still, a beautiful middle American moment.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-49680045061293801482011-12-23T12:58:00.001-05:002011-12-23T12:58:07.143-05:00

Regarding Newt, Ann has, er, misgivings: Every few years, heinous Democratic policies — abortion, gay marriage, affirmative action, Hillarycare, Obamacare, to name a few — compel previously uninvolved Americans to leap into politics. This is great, except for two things: (1) We have to get heinous Democratic policies first; and (2) newcomers have short memories, sometimes no memories at all.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-36788438550370411462011-12-23T02:11:00.001-05:002011-12-23T02:11:50.560-05:00

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-36913853770696643522011-12-22T14:32:00.003-05:002011-12-22T15:34:43.887-05:00

Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.comSo my high school recently put on a play/dance recital called Occupy North Pole. I don't really have many details, but it sounds like typical George School fare.On the first segment they did about this, they got the town wrong, calling it Newton PA instead of NewtoWn PA. There's about 2 hours worth of driving in between those places, so that's sort of

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-72338728599148497072011-12-22T11:39:00.003-05:002011-12-23T12:08:27.137-05:00

Lest there is even a shred of doubt, a two-month extension of the payroll tax holiday is asinine, and any politician who proposes it, votes for it, or supports it, of either party, is a moron with something less than the best interest of the country at heart. MORE: Zerohedge expresses more or less the same sentiment, only with facts and reason.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-30363878352433558622011-12-21T21:51:00.000-05:002011-12-21T21:51:00.423-05:00

A big difference between, say, me, and most academic social engineers, is that I believe that in the success of big projects scale matters a great deal. Do not, for example, tell me that the United States should adopt a particular health care system because it works great in Switzerland, or a sex ed policy because the Swedes have shown it can reduce teen pregnancy. Neither will work across a

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-46343861821051884872011-12-21T21:07:00.002-05:002011-12-21T21:07:22.794-05:00

Even as I agree with conservatives -- and I almost always do, unless matters involving sex or religion are in play -- I often cringe at the things GOP talkers choose to carp about. Today, for example, Sarah Palin (whom I like in many respects) decided to take issue with the Obama family's holiday card: "It's odd," Palin said, wondering why the president's Christmas card highlights his dog

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-36352670935924569322011-12-21T14:49:00.002-05:002011-12-21T19:20:04.502-05:00

This is one of my friends from high school. She's trying to make it as a folk artist and could really use your support!Her YouTube page is mostly covers, but her Myspace page has more original music on it.

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-64280876045109106252011-12-20T23:20:00.002-05:002011-12-20T23:20:31.084-05:00

The answer to this presumably rhetorical question is "yes."

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-15872566538778178162011-12-19T17:10:00.001-05:002011-12-19T17:10:50.151-05:00

Herewith, the latest Intrade futures on the relative prospects of Mitt and Newt in the Iowa presidential caucuses in a couple of weeks. Oh, there's nothing halfway About the Iowa way to treat you, When we treat you Which we may not do at all.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-53820686640661621892011-12-19T15:22:00.001-05:002011-12-19T15:24:02.340-05:00

It has been ages since I remembered to post the O'Quiz. This week's quiz is particularly challenging, with an average correct score of only 2.53 (as of this writing) out of ten. (Your blogger scored an almost miraculously high 7 out of ten, probably because he spent most of Saturday in a Lay-Z-Boy nursing a fever and reading stupid stuff online.) Post your own score in the comments. If, that

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-37062196441937256522011-12-19T11:22:00.002-05:002011-12-19T11:44:35.269-05:00

Dunno if this is in fact the "tweet of the year," but it has to be on the list: “I’d like to think God let Havel and Hitchens pick the third.”

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-79505668018011859002011-12-18T12:14:00.002-05:002011-12-18T13:50:23.420-05:00

There are spoilers and some offensive language, so be aware of that. I also realize this review is pretty late and anyone who was interested in this game has already played it. I'm mostly writing this because I need to vent about the stuff that annoys me. I've only made it 2/3 of the way through, which took me about 20 hours and two out of three game discs. Setting/Backstory:It's not really *

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-80175394114379646842011-12-17T22:22:00.003-05:002011-12-17T22:33:16.260-05:00

Slate organizes the best work of Christopher Hitchens in that publication, by topic. Lots of stuff there. Such as, for example, this spectacular and sanguinary flaying of Jimmy Carter.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-70053193560913147632011-12-16T20:10:00.002-05:002011-12-16T20:13:34.925-05:00

Apparently edited out of President Obama's most recent Sixty Minutes interview:Sounds like something Newt would say. Unfortunately, the press will not protect Newt from himself with quite the same efficiency as it does Barack Obama.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-7714586549882546162011-12-16T19:24:00.003-05:002011-12-16T19:26:47.541-05:00

One attempt to locate and rank the "15 most memorable" quotations of Christopher Hitchens. There could be a dozen such competing lists, none duplicating the next, and each plausible.For my part, I do not know whether it is kinder to wish he were in heaven, or not.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-19110915644405763582011-12-16T18:25:00.002-05:002011-12-16T18:31:13.838-05:00

Tom Maguire, conceding that he does "not have as nimble a mind as Newt," struggles to substantiate Gingrich's claim that he has been "fighting against the individual mandate" for years. Rather, he discovers the reverse.Since the individual mandate is inextricably linked to community rating and you cannot find a Republican against that, Newt's conversion has moved him from an intellectually

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-40066518285135260342011-12-14T09:23:00.002-05:002011-12-14T09:23:00.227-05:00

A list of the "top ten stocks for 2012" lists, with links. I always have fun reading these, especially when they confirm my own thinking, but never act on them.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-15686132928458105082011-12-14T08:20:00.002-05:002011-12-14T08:30:41.845-05:00

I admit, three years ago I had hopes that the Obama administration would not do this sort of thing:SolyndraGate was no isolated case of corrupt government misspending. The U.S. Navy was just forced to buy 450,000 gallons of biofuels from an Obama-connected firm at an outrageous $16 per gallon.The massive Obama stimulus was supposed to generate millions of jobs, but the $535 million loan guarantee

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-56580405272995260532011-12-13T21:42:00.004-05:002011-12-13T22:41:30.621-05:00

I am a third of the way through Harvard historian Niall Ferguson's latest book, Civilization: The West and the Rest, and thought the principle question posed so interesting that it warrants reproduction below. Of course, we hope the link to Amazon above will induce sufficient click-throughs that Professor Ferguson and his publisher will forgive the long excerpt:If, in the year 1411, you had

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-34131836848995051172011-12-13T19:13:00.002-05:002011-12-13T19:30:57.703-05:00

Congress is working on a bill whose primary purpose is to try to stop Internet piracy, because Hollywood puts a lot of people into Congress."The bill would allow the US Department of Justice (DOJ), as well as copyright holders, to seek court orders against websites accused of enabling or facilitating copyright infringement. Depending on who requests the court orders, the actions could include

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-72486286461249815712011-12-13T07:18:00.003-05:002011-12-13T07:30:22.910-05:00

We have fallen off the list in recent times, perhaps because of our transparent dislike of most of the rightier GOP presidential candidates (not, however, because they are rightier), or more likely because of our desultory blogging. Regardless, our boundless commitment to service to our readers requires us to link to the Right Wing News list of the "top 40 conservative blogs" for the last

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-19474208185462525852011-12-12T07:16:00.002-05:002011-12-12T07:19:52.556-05:00

Human Events, as reliably righty as it comes, says that the events of 1998, more than 1994 or 1995, define Newt Gingrich as a leader. It is not pretty. For example:The key to the budget disaster was Gingrich’s leadership style, he said.“Because Lott was just going to go along with whatever, it came down to the White House and the House,” he said.“Gingrich’s ego was so huge, he insisted on

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-66110902906740772782011-12-11T10:41:00.004-05:002011-12-11T11:32:55.105-05:00

The New York Times -- the motives of which are, admittedly, always suspect -- has an almost heartwarming story about Mitt Romney's personal frugality. Tidbits:Soon after Mitt Romney handed out eye-popping bonuses to top performers at his private equity firm in the early 1990s, a young employee invited him to ride in his brand-new toy — a $90,000 Porsche 911 Carrera.Mr. Romney was entranced by

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-59664091596302792322011-12-11T09:15:00.002-05:002011-12-11T09:19:48.960-05:00

Shut up Aegon01, like anyone even cares.I just learned that there's another shortcut that I didn't take there that could save me another few seconds, so I might delete this video and re-upload a better one.Parents, video games can make you better at math, managing money and time, reading maps, critical thinking, problem solving, vocabulary ("equip" was a word I learned from video games when I was

Aegon01http://www.blogger.com/profile/00529164968253264747noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-47613589778237323052011-12-10T13:34:00.002-05:002011-12-10T13:34:00.248-05:00

There has been another death at an Occupy camp, this time in Texas.The Star-Telegram is reporting a death at the Occupy Denton campsite on the University of North Texas campus. The body of 23 year old Darwin Cox was discovered Saturday night, and the campsite has since been dismantled.Though there is no ruling on the cause of death yet, it's being speculated that Cox's drug addiction might have

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-81404958090985976912011-12-10T11:59:00.002-05:002011-12-10T12:17:27.298-05:00

The left's latest villains in the class war they want to start are the heirs to Sam Walton, who are said have as much wealth between them as the bottom 30 percent of Americans.Who knows whether the math is true? Whether it matters, or not, is a question of taste more than objective justice. There are, however, three true points about the Walton fortune.First, it will dissipate sure as the Lord

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-3078247468129669142011-12-10T10:51:00.003-05:002011-12-10T10:53:25.529-05:00

For those of you who come here before Instapundit, check out Glenn's morning poll. My guess is that the results will bounce around all day and ultimate become fodder for small bore campaign propaganda.

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-6312417756320475002011-12-10T10:05:00.004-05:002011-12-10T12:30:30.252-05:00

The Red Cross just got its last contribution from me. When I give money to charity, I want it used for the purpose intended, and that manifestly does not include investigating whether people who play video games might be in violation of international human rights law (although it does confirm my long-held suspicion that human rights law has become just another means for bludgeoning people). The

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6224722.post-70670378502952950112011-12-09T07:44:00.002-05:002011-12-09T08:12:08.730-05:00

I'm in a mood this morning, and for one reason or another have seen lots of snarky little items that the righter half of our readers, anyway, ought to enjoy.Item:[Regarding Obama's "class warefare" speech on Tuesday] Where to begin? A country spending twice as much per capita on education as it did in 1970 with zero effect on test scores is not underinvesting in education. It’s mis-investing. As

TigerHawkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07478818024748287426noreply@blogger.com4