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| compos mentis. Concision. Media. Clarity. Memes. Context. Melange. Confluence. Mishmash. Conflation. Mellifluous. Conviviality. Miscellany. Confelicity. Milieu. Cogent. Minty. Concoction. |
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| Topic: War on Terrorism |
11:02 am EST, Mar 28, 2004 |
Mr. Bush himself insouciantly declared that, had he known that terrorists were planning to fly airplanes into buildings, he would have done something to stop it -- a statement that suggested that he has not bothered to reflect on the serious questions the commission is examining. ... drowned out by the chorus of Rice and Powell ... Other witnesses didn't show much courage either. Mr. Clarke may be wrong, but his case is coherent. A Poor Defense |
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| Topic: Elections |
10:56 am EST, Mar 28, 2004 |
Maryland legislators are moving to address a serious defect in the touch-screen voting machines that the state has been introducing over the last several elections. The problem, pointed out by experts studying the system, is that glitches in the machines' programming could be difficult to detect. Before Maryland proceeds to install its complete new system, legislators should insist on the fundamental safeguards called for in this legislation. Want to get out the youth vote? Why not offer online voting through the Playstation 2? Glitches? What glitches? Voting for Better Voting |
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New Way for Teenagers to See if They Bounce |
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| Topic: Recreation |
10:18 am EST, Mar 28, 2004 |
Six members of two restless clans called the Street Ninjas and Gravity Pac circled each other at Grand Central Terminal last Sunday. ... Satisfied, they started clasping hands, knocking elbows and throwing down French slang. The spread of parkour into the woods of Georgia and the deserts of Arizona occurred almost entirely through the boundlessness of Internet message boards. "The American scene is a sleeping Joe at the moment," he said, adding that it is only a matter of time before an American leader emerges. "You need an open mind, and away you go." Transatlantic divide? Says who? New Way for Teenagers to See if They Bounce |
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| Topic: Elections |
10:02 am EST, Mar 28, 2004 |
George Bush's vision of the nation's future will undoubtedly be one focus of the presidential campaign. We suggest the debate start with the question of whether Mr. Bush actually has one. Ouch! It's the Vision Thing, stupid. A Long, Long Muddle |
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'Freedom Just Around the Corner': Rogue Nation |
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| Topic: History |
9:52 am 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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| Topic: International Relations |
4:23 pm EST, Mar 27, 2004 |
Thomas Friedman hasn't been this worked up about free trade since the anti-World Trade Organization protests in Seattle. But never mind the details. In Friedmanworld, call centers are the front lines of World War III: The Fight for Modernity, bravely keeping brown-skinned young people out of the clutches of Hamas and Al Qaeda. Naomi 'No Logo' Klein squeezes Victoria's Secret, outsourcing, Al Qaeda, the intifada, and the presidential campaign into 1,000 words. Outsourcing the Friedman |
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RE: The Outsourcing Bogeyman |
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| Topic: Business |
3:28 pm EST, Mar 27, 2004 |
Decius wrote:
] You see, I understand the value of offshore outsourcing.
] I honestly think it's a great idea. However, there is a
] REAL problem with employment in the IT/Engineering industry.
]
] If you cannot take this on directly and discuss the
] implications of it in the face of offshoring, then you
] cannot defend offshoring. To paraphrase Homer Simpson: "Statistics. Is there anything they can't do?" You appear to be refuting the thesis of the article on the basis of an exception in a specific industry. I do not believe your argument (that a real problem exists in IT/EE) is incompatible with Drezner's overall assessment that offshore outsourcing does not affect most jobs. A point that Drezner raises in his article, and that you do not directly address in your response, is that employment trends have as much to do with the large-scale structural shifts brought about by technological development as with the labor policies of big business. As I've stated before, my view is that the source of the problem, as well as the solution, is education. The boom years produced a pool of 'engineering' and 'computer science' 'professionals' who viewed the learning process as one of accumulating a collection of key facts and demonstrating an ability to regurgitate them on cue. (By no means does that imply everyone is in that pool. EE/CS readers should not reflexively take offense. But if the shoe fits ...) Just as Bruce Schneier says about security: engineering is a process, not a product. Going forward, "IT/Engineering" must be part of the service sector, not the manufacturing sector. Evidence of the problem can be found in the simple fact that people are still referring to it as an Industry. Despite the stigma of statistics, I would be interested in seeing some data that shows the unemployment rate as a function of grade point average in college, both overall and by industry/specialty. RE: The Outsourcing Bogeyman |
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Why Nobody Saw 9/11 Coming |
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| Topic: War on Terrorism |
1:00 pm EST, Mar 27, 2004 |
It's the Vision Thing, stupid. The words "neglect" and "failure" keep cropping up, and there is something to these accusations -- although perhaps not in the sense that the people making them intend. According to the classically "realist" mindset, only states can pose a significant threat ... With the end of the cold war, however, things changed. But the Washington hawks failed to see what was happening. The world around them had changed, but their paradigm hadn't. In the end, the intelligence failure stemmed from longstanding problems ... but it was also a failure of vision. And here I thought hawks were well known for their excellent vision! Why Nobody Saw 9/11 Coming |
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How Good Intelligence Falls on Deaf Ears |
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| Topic: Military |
12:48 pm EST, Mar 27, 2004 |
The testimony of Richard A. Clarke illustrates the perennial problem with intelligence: how do you get leaders to accept information they do not want to believe? Intelligence will always be incomplete; it will often run counter to what people want it to say. Leaders, however, are paid to overcome these obstacles. They can only lead when they deal with reality -- and then take steps to help us plan for the worst. David Kahn, author of "The Codebreakers", provides today's history lesson. How Good Intelligence Falls on Deaf Ears |
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| Topic: Business |
1:02 am EST, Mar 26, 2004 |
According to the election-year bluster of politicians and pundits, the outsourcing of American jobs to other countries has become a problem of epic proportion. Fortunately, this alarmism is misguided. Outsourcing actually brings far more benefits than costs, both now and in the long run. If its critics succeed in provoking a new wave of American protectionism, the consequences will be disastrous -- for the U.S. economy and for the American workers they claim to defend. This article appears in the May/June 2004 issue of Foreign Affairs. The Outsourcing Bogeyman |
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