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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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The Network's Finest Hour |
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| Topic: Humor |
1:08 am EST, Nov 10, 2003 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FROM: Les Moonves, CBS Chairman
TO: Our Loyal Viewers
RE: Upcoming Programming Changes ... Re: last Wednesday's broadcast of the Country Music Association Awards -- We dearly hope that during the star-studded tribute to country music legend Johnny Cash, any references to his hit song "A Boy Named Sue" did not offend either our fine religious right groups or our fine transgender groups. For purely creative reasons, all future CBS references to this song shall henceforth appear as "A Boy Named Whatever." ... To further demonstrate our commitment to artistic integrity, we will employ that once-every-12-minute-crawl for all our programming, including the uproarious "Everybody Loves Raymond," to assure you, our loyal viewers, that anything and everything you see is merely empty-tainment and that no inferences are to be drawn from anything, at any time. The Washington Post pokes fun at CBS for waffling on 'The Reagans'. The Network's Finest Hour |
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| Topic: Science |
10:58 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
As Clone Chops Inch Closer, I Reach For a Side of Self-Awareness Don't get me wrong: I'm no vegetarian. But a mix of scientific evidence and quasi-spiritual contemplation has left me convinced that the adage "You are what you eat" is true on many levels. At Stake on Your Table |
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| Topic: War on Terrorism |
10:52 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
America shouldn't be subcontracting torture. But saying that much is the easy part. The harder question is what should be done with a suspected al Qaeda associate in such circumstances. Authorities faced this choice: torture in Syria or freedom on the other side of the longest undefended border in the world. ... The trouble with [sending him to Gitmo] is that the legal process given alleged enemy combatants is so opaque and unfair. Comments from the Washington Post editorial page on the case of Maher Arar. Freedom vs. Torture? |
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Have You Heard the New Neil Young Novel? |
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| Topic: Arts |
7:33 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
It is best to consume "Greendale", Neil Young's newest work, by treating it as a hybrid between a printed work and a book-on-tape -- to read it as one reads a novel. Mr. Young really has done something new, rendering into this combination of print and audio a novel that is surprisingly sophisticated and satisfyingly complete. ... the fusion of news and entertainment media has completely eaten up everything we used to think of as concrete reality. With the multidimensional twists that bind his music to his narrative, he's stitched the novel into a whole new set of clothes. I thought, "Cool!" when I read the title of this article, because I recall having discussions along these lines back in college. Kudos to Neil Young for being innovative. It will be interesting to see how the idea is received by other artists. In another year, will you overhear one teenager asking another, "have you heard the new Hilary Duff novel?" Perhaps the term "duet" will take on a new meaning. Consider the collaborations corporate chiefs could concoct: Marilyn Manson and Steven King; William Gibson and the Future Sound of London; Liz Phair and Candace Bushnell; Leonard Cohen and Elmore Leonard; Rudy Rucker and DJ Shadow. And if you could go back in time, or bridge eras, creating a "duet" without one or both artists: Louis L'Amour and Gene Autry; Yo-Yo Ma and Miyamoto Musashi. It's the new turntablism. Have You Heard the New Neil Young Novel? |
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PRAXIS Advanced Suspensions by Bridgestone |
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| Topic: Cars and Trucks |
7:22 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
Praxis Advanced Suspensions will allow the driver to control performance with the push of a button. These systems represent a comprehensive approach to performance tuning. They are individually developed for the particular chassis and model. Debuting on the Subaru WRX in 2003. PRAXIS Advanced Suspensions by Bridgestone |
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Driving: Couture in Las Vegas: A Fashion Show for Cars |
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| Topic: Cars and Trucks |
7:16 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
By replacing the springs and shocks with air struts and adding a small computer and an air compressor, Bridgestone says its new Praxis system will let you ride comfortably to the track. Flick a switch inside the car, and the air struts lower the car and stiffen the suspension. Step out and adjust the dampers on each strut for track driving, and you're ready to hug the curves. The Praxis system is now available only for the Subaru WRX, popular with car customizers, but will be available on other cars starting next year. Driving: Couture in Las Vegas: A Fashion Show for Cars |
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Machine Politics in the Digital Age |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
6:49 pm EST, Nov 9, 2003 |
"I am committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year," wrote the chief executive of Diebold, to 100 wealthy and politically inclined friends. At least 8 percent of voters may cast their ballots using Diebold machines next November, including voters in Georgia and California, among other states. According to an analysis by SAIC, "the system is at high risk of compromise." A Stanford computer scientist said that "it would be very easy to steal an election [such that it would not] show up ... as an anomaly." Diebold machines do not have a paper trail, and the software is considered a trade secret. The Sunday New York Times surveys the controversy over electronic voting. Machine Politics in the Digital Age |
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Spying in the Post-September 11 World |
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| Topic: War on Terrorism |
1:29 pm EST, Nov 8, 2003 |
Forty years ago Roberta Wohlstetter wrote the definitive analysis of the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor -- until recently the nations most costly intelligence failure. The problem, she said, was "signal-to-noise" ratio. This problem of signal-to-noise ratio is so fundamental in the intelligence business that today, if one refers to the "Roberta Wohlstetter problem," almost everyone knows exactly what you are talking about. Never underestimate the value of a good tool properly employed. But don't expect it to solve everything, especially over the long term. Your enemy is watching you, he has read his Claude Shannon, and he has some good tools of his own. Innovation creates, and evolution destroys, in a cycle that is both virtuous and vicious. Intelligence is a microcosm of the world. In technology. In culture. In nearly everything, it seems. Perhaps this is to be expected; like information theory, fractals are everywhere and nowhere, all at once. Maybe the theory of everything is also the theory of nothing, and so every theory is the theory of everything, in its own way. Spying in the Post-September 11 World |
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Terrorism and the U.S. Criminal Justice System |
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| Topic: War on Terrorism |
1:13 pm EST, Nov 8, 2003 |
My experience in Washington was in many ways very satisfying. I served in the Department during historic times ... I did some very interesting things ... But it is the work on the terrorism front that I found special. Recently there has been a lot of controversy surrounding our counter-terrorism efforts; I would like to share with you some of my observations and beliefs about what we need to do in our fight against terrorism while preserving the Rule of Law. ... I was duty bound to zealously protect the United States ... The [Justice] Department's focus could no longer be on just investigation and prosecution; [we] also had to be concerned about prevention and disruption. "At times, the price of truth is so high that a democratic society is not prepared to pay it." The text of a speech by Larry Thompson, Senior Fellow at The Brookings Institution, and former senior official at the Justice Department, with excerpts from a 1999 decision of the Israeli Supreme Court. Terrorism and the U.S. Criminal Justice System |
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The City Life: Can You Walk and Chew Pizza? |
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| Topic: Society |
12:33 pm EST, Nov 8, 2003 |
People have undoubtedly been eating while walking since the beginning of time, but the habit most likely became part of modern civilization with the invention of ice cream cones. Since then, city dwellers have taken their hot dogs, pizza, pastrami sandwiches and fried chicken wings into the streets. I even saw a man in a business suit digging chopsticks into a lo mein combination platter while navigating the crowd on Broadway. Musings on mastering the modern multi-tasking of meals on the move. The City Life: Can You Walk and Chew Pizza? |
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