One of the reasons that all humans are valuable is the possibility that the outlier is occasionally right when the vast majority are wrong. It’s a surprise, but we advance by discovery not always by deduction.
Elections and Atom Blasters
“It’s a poor blaster that won’t point both ways”
Issac Asimov, Foundation
U.K. Orders Apple to Let It Spy on Users’ Encrypted Accounts:
“Security officials in the United Kingdom have demanded that Apple create a back door allowing them to retrieve all the content any Apple user worldwide has uploaded to the cloud, people familiar with the matter told The Washington Post.
“The British government’s undisclosed order, issued last month, requires blanket capability to view fully encrypted material, not merely assistance in cracking a specific account, and has no known precedent in major democracies. Its application would mark a significant defeat for tech companies in their decades-long battle to avoid being wielded as government tools against their users, the people said, speaking under the condition of anonymity to discuss legally and politically sensitive issues.”
The 2024 US election marked a choice between two alternatives, between a chance at restoring the constitutional republic and a continued, perhaps even accelerated, slide into progressive materialism.
Live Not By Lies
It’s often been observed that many great scientific discoveries, as well as evidence of criminality, often begin with someone casually glancing at some kind of anomaly, saying to themselves, “Hmmm – that’s odd!” and curiosity drawing them into taking a closer look at the matter. Such was the case when an activist for matters to do with native American tribal identity (these would be the folk who used to be called Indians of the feather variety) was watching a TV interview. The activist was one of those who specialized in unmasking so-called “Pretendians” – those who claim Indian descent for reasons of social advantage or monetary gain. (Yes, looking at you, Senator Elizabeth Warren.) Remarks made during the interview, by singer-activist Buffy St. Marie, triggered a “Hmm, that’s odd!” reaction. Those remarks concerned St. Marie’s search for her real parents among a Canadian First Nations tribe, and the circumstances under which she was adopted by a white American couple as a baby. “Gee,” thought the activist, “That’s what all the other Pretendians say!”
That may not have been the absolute beginning of the thread-pull which unraveled the tangle of St. Marie’s decades-long claims, but it had the same eventual result.
Worthwhile Reading
Attacks on Churchill…from the Right. This sort of thing feeds the same “aren’t we just awful” mindset that we see so much of from the Left.
Student expectations for careers versus actual outcomes.
Trump, Peggy Noonan, and the Old Guard.
How the Past envisaged our Present.
Martin Gurri on the importance of free speech: The Great American Debate Begins Again. Indeed, a lot of people seem to reject the whole idea of debate and of adversary proceedings in courts: they want an Authority to tell them what is true.
Related: Obama’s messaging machine.
Do graphic design and aesthetics affect the credibility of political communications?
Propellers versus paddle wheels: a case study in the introduction of a disruptive technology.
Jet engine turbine blades and single-crystal casting. Interesting that this sort of thing is rarely referred to as ‘tech’ by the media.
What are the health effects of replacing incandescent bulbs with LEDs?
Not So Random Super Bowl Thoughts…
First
Somewhere back in the misty halls of my memory I remember that Americans need a communal celebration, a party, about every month or two. That sounds about right, if only because companies need new marketing opportunities and retailers need new merchandise to stock their “seasonal” swing racks.
How else to explain Cinco de Mayo? That Halloween has become more or less an adult holiday? That doesn’t mean it’s all just sacrilegious and fun. Thanksgiving has become the American secular family holiday and Easter is well on its way, fully stripped of its religious significance, to being celebrated as a combination of a paganistic arrival of Spring and a family ham dinner.
So it is with the Super Bowl. The growth of the Super Bowl as a cultural phenomenon of course has matched that of the NFL. However, as the date of the actual game has been extended later into the calendar, its cultural significance has actually grown. Through 1980 the game was generally played on the third Sunday of January, placing it in the uncomfortable position of being a cure for a post-New Year’s hangover.
Now, thanks to an extended regular season, a bye week or two, and an extra round of playoffs, the game is held on the second week of February where it reigns alone. New Year’s Day is long in the rear view mirror, the pall of winter hangs heavy, and America is ready for another party (Valentine’s Day doesn’t count). Given the communal nature of watching sports on TV, the game essentially functions as a combination of a secular holiday and an indoor version of a backyard BBQ.
Second
A bit of family history.