*Originally published March 12, 2012 “I want this many foreigners in my country.” In the last fortnight French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been waging a campaign to “save the European way of life.” He recently warned that if the flow of immigrants into Europe is not abated, France will withdraw from the Schengen Agreement, which allows citizens … Continued
This past Halloween, the scariest thing for the World Bank and the United Nations wasn’t the costumes. It was the children. News that the world population passed 7 billion October 31, 2011 has brought the usual doom-and-gloom predictions about famine, resource scarcity, and poverty. To many, it seems, people are a problem The U.N. Population … Continued
Congressional Republicans are pressuring the White House this week to intervene in Syria. They are basing their case, bizarrely enough, on the president’s war in Libya. “I think the Libyan model could serve us well,” Sen. Lindsay Graham said this week. “We need to help the rebels militarily, economically, and let Assad know that he is an … Continued
The Story Leaked emails from the intelligence company Statfor show that one of the company’s executives did not believe Osama bin Laden’s corpse was buried at sea after being killed in Pakistan last year. Needless to say, conspiracy theorists are going ape-shit over this, claiming that the handful of dubious emails leaked by Wikileaks prove some as yet … Continued
When Vice President Dick Cheney held secret meetings for his energy task force in the early days of President George W. Bush’s first term, he was excoriated by the left and even some on the right. Both Judicial Watch and the Sierra Club sued, but the Supreme Court found the proceedings were protected by executive … Continued
Speaking at TEDxMileHigh, philosopher Michael Huemer lists a few signs that you might be irrational about politics: Do you become angry during political discussions? Do you have strong opinions about a subject before acquiring relevant empirical evidence? Do your opinions fail to change as you acquire more evidence? Do you seek information only from sources already agree … Continued
At the start of yet another completely pointless GOP presidential debate, CNN’s John King asked the candidates to briefly introduce themselves to the audience. Their responses are incredibly telling about their underlying political philosophies. Ron Paul said, “I am the defender of the Constitution. I’m the champion of liberty. This shows the road map to … Continued
My last post from Michell Waldrop’s book The Dream Machine: J.C.R. Licklider and the revolution that made computing personal discussed Norbert Wiener’s discovery that feedback loops can give automated, mechanical systems purpose, and therefore, allow the human mind to possess purpose while remaining utterly natural. Meanwhile, how the brain physically performed the necessary calculations to … Continued
