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| "I don't think the report is true, but these crises work for those who want to make fights between people." Kulam Dastagir, 28, a bird seller in Afghanistan
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'Freedom Just Around the Corner': Rogue Nation |
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| Topic: Society |
1:02 pm EST, Mar 28, 2004 |
This unusual book by Walter A. McDougall is the first of what will be a three-volume history of America. If this volume, which covers the period 1585 to 1828, is any indication of the promised whole, the trilogy may have a major impact on how we Americans understand ourselves. A "candid" history, its major theme is "the American people's penchant for hustling." We Americans, he claims, are a nation of people on the make. If today we are shocked by shenanigans like the Enron debacle, insider trading, mutual fund abuses and the prevalence of special interests in politics, we need to get some perspective on our history. His beautifully produced vignettes include not only the major figures like Hamilton and Jefferson, but also lesser ones like Hugh Henry Brackenridge, Eli Whitney and "a true American hustler," Cornelius Vanderbilt. Calling CNN -- can we get Anderson Cooper to interview McDougall? 'Freedom Just Around the Corner': Rogue Nation |
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Are You Going to Eat That? |
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| Topic: Health and Wellness |
6:40 pm EST, Mar 14, 2004 |
I wouldn't want to let anything go to waste ... "Hey, tubby! Want another Pop Tart, tubby?" Are You Going to Eat That? |
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| Topic: Local Information |
11:42 am EST, Mar 11, 2004 |
Joss Stone, George Clinton, and many others are among the acts set to appear at the 11th annual Music Midtown festival. The event will be held April 30 and May 1-2 on a 42-acre site in Atlanta; tickets go on-sale Saturday (March 13) via Ticketmaster. Music Midtown |
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Robot Race Is Giant Step for Unmanned Kind |
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| Topic: Technology |
9:33 am EST, Mar 10, 2004 |
Police cars swarmed them. "They had never seen anything like it. They thought we were terrorists." No, officers, we're computer scientists and engineers. Be sure to check out the photos and video. Robot Race Is Giant Step for Unmanned Kind |
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Evolution Scenarios for Future Networking Technologies and Networks |
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| Topic: Technology |
11:09 pm EST, Mar 6, 2004 |
This study provides an analysis of the development of electronic networks in Europe and North America and their technical, economic and political drivers. It includes four scenarios depicting possible futures of electronic networks in Europe, a framework for policy formulation, analyses of selected current policies and observations regarding possible policy measures and the input of experts and stakeholders in the field during a workshop in Brussels. It concludes with a series of observations and recommendations for policy action and further research. The most interesting recommendation here is that copyrights should last about as long as patents. Evolution Scenarios for Future Networking Technologies and Networks |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
10:42 pm EST, Mar 6, 2004 |
Here in the land of middle-class self-loathing, we want to make sure that the guy we elect to the White House has lived a life nothing like our own. It's a tremendous advantage to have been instilled with the habit of self-assertion since infancy. If you can project a physiological comfort with power, others around you will begin to accept your sense of self-worth. There aren't too many normal people waking up in normal suburban split-levels assuming they should rule the world. But God bless the upper class. They've lost their legitimacy, but they haven't lost their self-confidence. Clash of Titans |
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| Topic: Society |
10:39 pm EST, Feb 29, 2004 |
What are the forces that will continue to shape the US workforce and workplace over the next 10 to 15 years? With its eye on forming sound policy and helping stakeholders in the private and public sectors make informed decisions, the US Department of Labor asked RAND to look at the future of work. The authors analyze trends in and the implications of shifting demographic patterns, the pace of technological change, and the path of economic globalization. If you are presently underemployed or deeply interested, it is worth spending the time to read the full 304 page report. You can also check out the research brief on the same topic; here's the abstract for the brief: Trends in workforce size and composition and in the pace of technological change and economic globalization will have implications for the future of work. Employees will work in more decentralized, specialized firms; slower labor growth will encourage employers to recruit groups with relatively low labor force participation; greater emphasis will be placed on retraining and lifelong learning; and future productivity growth will support higher wages and may affect the wage distribution. Given this, some policies may need to be reexamined. I recommend reading the summary, which consists of approximately 30 pages at the beginning of the full report. The 21st Century at Work |
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What's labor going to do about offshoring? |
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| Topic: Business |
10:35 pm EST, Feb 29, 2004 |
The increasing move of white-collar jobs overseas is inevitable, says one longtime Silicon Valley activist. So the fight for workers' rights has to go global. If your job has been offshored to another country, where someone else will do it for a fraction of your former salary, should you: (a) beg;
(b) rail against the prevailing trend;
(c) get a different, less vulnerable job? Amy Dean has a more radical, if wonkier, idea. Dean: "The obligation of the employee is to constantly keep skills upgraded and keep really current in whatever field that you work in. It also means that the social networks that you're a part of become increasingly important, because they become the vehicle that connects you to employment." Salon: What do you think that Silicon Valley will be like 20 years from now? Dean: "The economy will become increasingly hollow. ... There will be people who are working on the very top end of innovation, and there will be people servicing them, with very little in between." Decius: I have this ingrained distrust for unions. I used to be in one, until I found out that the money I was paying into it was being used to fuck me in Congress on Social Security. The majority of the people in said union were under the age of 30, but the union was primarily responsive to the interests of people over 50. What this amounted to was that I was "collectively bargaining" with a bunch of people who had no idea what the hell to bargain for, and let others worry about figuring that out. Apathy is its own reward. However, I strongly agree that our society needs to seriously revamp the social structures around the 40 hour work week. Our health insurance, our taxes, our pensions, our labor laws... basically everything typically handled by an HR department is structured around the idea that you work for one company and you do it for 40 hours a week. There is no room for flexibility, for employee or employer. I spent some time working for RHIC. I really like them. They are very professional. They do offer pensions and insurance for their consultants. They are a stab at the problem. But the legislation doesn't support their model. Insurance is only available if you are doing so much work with them that you pretty much look like a full timer on paper. Furthermore, they have a model which is so decentralized that it actually has a negative impact on geographic flexibility. They had no ability to transfer me to another office in an area where my skills were more in demand. Different RHIC city offices are totally autonomous. They are like different companies. I want more flexibility. My employer wants more flexibility. So whose holding up the show here? What's labor going to do about offshoring? |
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Is Biotechnology Losing Its Nerve? |
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| Topic: Technology |
10:17 pm EST, Feb 29, 2004 |
Many biotechnology companies appear to be taking fewer chances lately -- to the point that the industry seems to have lost its nerve. More and more start-ups now seem focused on scrounging around ... "There's a fair question: Where's all the new stuff going on?" As big pharmaceutical companies have become even larger, they have concentrated on drugs with blockbuster potential rather than devote time to drugs with smaller markets. [Hmmm ... Where have I heard that story before?] I bet Norah Jones is popular at biotech firms, both as inspiration and as consolation. Is Biotechnology Losing Its Nerve? |
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| Topic: Society |
9:32 am EST, Feb 24, 2004 |
Looking Out to the Year 2025 ... and the major forces shaping the world. Population; Resource Management; Technology; Knowledge; Economic Integration; Conflict; Governance. Seven Revolutions |
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