Observations on the decline of the American Empire made by a recovering newspaperman from north of the border. Snacks will be served.
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29
Nov
I know I shouldn’t laugh, but come on….
Finally, an Olympic event we could win.
woo. i love this guy. this is definite radness
**Neil Young sings Fresh Prince of Belair
Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922) in entirety. Fantastic.
I wonder the same thing.
This video present a neat visualization of the evolution of four maritime empires (British, Frence, Spanish and Portuguese) year-by-year over the course of the last two centuries. As these empires both grow and eventually decline, bits of the circles break off to represent the countries that gained independence from the imperium. Needless to say, by the end of the video the circles have all but disappeared. (h/t Kottke.)
As usual, Thomas Friedman captures my thoughts perfectly. A chunk:
“… six things have come together to fracture our public space and paralyze our ability to forge optimal solutions:
1) Money in politics has become so pervasive that lawmakers have to spend most of their time raising it, selling their souls to those who have it or defending themselves from the smallest interest groups with deep pockets that can trump the national interest.
2) The gerrymandering of political districts means politicians of each party can now choose their own voters and never have to appeal to the center.
3) The cable TV culture encourages shouting and segregating people into their own political echo chambers.
4) A permanent presidential campaign leaves little time for governing.
5) The Internet, which, at its best, provides a check on elites and establishments and opens the way for new voices and, which, at its worst provides a home for every extreme view and spawns digital lynch mobs from across the political spectrum that attack anyone who departs from their specific orthodoxy.
6) A U.S. business community that has become so globalized that it only comes to Washington to lobby for its own narrow interests; it rarely speaks out anymore in defense of national issues like health care, education and open markets. …”
Just one, but there will be a room full of ‘em to sit around and talk about how the BEAR would have done it.
A classic.
How many of these types to stories is it going to take before you do something?
“Management at Nortel Networks Corp., already under fire for handing out executive bonuses, approved a plan this fall to give another round of raises to its top managers, according to an internal corporate document obtained by CBC News. The raises, in the form of increases in salary, investments or bonuses, are part of the company’s plan to retain employees as it restructures after filing for bankruptcy protection in January.
But they come at a time when many laid-off and retired Nortel employees are having to fight the company in court for their severance packages, pensions and disability payments. …”
Folks, we’re in the middle of a cash grab. Not just in the United States. Not just in Canada. But worldwide. The elite understand that, but by time the rest of us wake up to it, we’ll be fighting over table scraps. Actually, it looks like we’re already there. We’re witnesses to a robbery of a global scale, as wealth continues to accumulate in fewer and fewer hands.
It’s gonna come to revolution one of these days. Just as soon as the people find out who is going to win “Dancing with the Stars.”
26
Nov
I am a fan of the man. I cannot wait to get my hands on the book.
By the way Mr. Thornton, that terrible mood of depression of whether it’s any good or not is what is known as The Artist’s Reward.
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