This is an excellent collection of hipster wallpaper images.

The Desktop Wallpaper Project | The Fox Is Black

There is a lot of anger among my Facebook friends regarding North Carolina's gay marriage ban. I thought it might be worth explaining some of the strategic context - why pass a constitutional amendment to ban something that is already banned?

The strategy is to motivate conservative voters to show up for the primary. Primaries typically have low voter turnout. People who vote in the primary are more likely to vote in the general election. As North Carolina is considered a "battleground state," reinforcing conservative voter's commitment to vote in that state is part of the Republican strategy to win the general election.

So in other words, most of the people who put this amendment on the ballot don't really give a damn about gay rights one way or the other. They care about the Presidency, and they are using people's hate to rally their troops so that they can win it. Its worth understanding the bigger game that is being played.

There are many years and another major bottom left in this bear market.

Long Term Secular Cycles on S&P | The Big Picture

I received the list below (of “Significant Cyber Attacks” on Federal systems since 2004) from sources on Capitol Hill last week.  After reading through it and checking the data, it seemed worth making the list part of the public record.

Lawfare › Significant Cyber Attacks on Federal Systems — 2004-present

Somebody with an actual clue about basic social issues. Don't worry, this will never take off. People are too petty for this.

Lincoln High School in Walla Walla, WA, tries new approach to school discipline — suspensions drop 85% | ACEs Too High

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Parents Were Terrified Of The Beastie Boys Back In 1986 - YouTube

Your myopic greed is the reason that you are poor.

Summers and Krugman: Another lost decade ahead

My mother always pours salt on everything. Apparently its because she's Canadian...

New research published this week in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that the answer to this question depends largely on your home address.

For instance, the salt content of fast-food French fries was nearly three times higher in Canada than in France (1.4 vs 0.5 g of salt per 100g of fries, respectively), and higher than that of every other country surveyed, including the US (0.6g/100g), UK (0.8g/100g), and Australia (0.8g/100g).

Canada’s fast food: the saltiest in the world? | Obesity Panacea

Hiroshi Nose, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of sports medical sciences at Shinshu University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan enrolled thousands of older Japanese citizens in an innovative, five-month-long program of brisk, interval-style walking. The walkers' depression scores dropped by half.

Exercise makes you happy

Computer Hacker: “A person who devises clever solutions to programming problems.”

     Weight Hacker: “A person who devises clever solutions to losing weight.”

Welcome to Weighthacker, a site that provides smart strategies and tips for geeks who want to lose weight and get healthier.

Weighthacker