[ I wish i could watch this now... but I'm at work and don't want to go so far as to watch video. As an alum, I'm very interested in what she had to say today...

Anyone who lives in Nashvegas go see this today? -k]

Vanderbilt University: Commencement 2004 Webcast - Condi Rice

[ Sorry to link a PDF, and a poll at that, but some interesting things going on in here, particularly in the way that the independents are breaking.

All in all, bad news for Bush, relatively good news for Rumz, and conflicting views on the validity/worth of the sacifices made for Iraq (which shows, of course, how sensitive polls are to the exact wording of the question). -k]

CBS Poll == Iraq, Bush, & Prisoner abuse - iraq_0512.pdf

] It's not that "Troy" is a bad movie. It's a good movie --
] if you don't care about Homer. It could have been a great
] movie if the people who created it cared about the power
] of this fantastic tale.
]
] But they decided to make a movie like every other movie.
] And that's what they got.

[ Not a ringing endorsement. I'm a lot more likely to accept generic movies if they came straight from a screenwriters head, or from the mass-market fiction that pervades bookstores, which is itself already generic (by which I don't claim to deny it's entertainment value).

I'm a little sensitive to ruination of classic stories, for the very reasons outlined in this article. I support modernizations (a glut of which were made a few years ago, with somewhat varied results) and even reinterpretations, but something about purporting to tell one story, and then changing it with no warning strikes me as unsavory. Movies are so popular, and so widely viewed, I worry about them becoming the definitive version of a story. Am I just being an academic elitist here, or is this a shared concern (beyond the author of this review, who i'd guess agrees with me)?

Followup: Does it matter if the derivative work isn't obviously connected with the original source? Does the sin still occur if only the experts can see the connection? -k]

Beware of flicks bearing myths

] Hybrid cars are hot, but not as hot as their owners, who
] complain that their gas mileage hasn't come close to
] well-advertised estimates.
]
] Don't knock the car companies for inflated claims:
] Experts say the blame lies with the 19-year-old EPA
] fuel-efficiency test that overstates hybrid performance.
] ...

[ Also, " The EPA test "has inherent shortcomings, irrespective of what kind of car is being driven," says Philip Schmidt, professor of engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. Schmidt says hybrid cars use computers to more precisely control the flow of gasoline and have more efficient catalytic converters, which reduce the amount of emissions. Schmidt "wouldn't rule out" that hybrid cars' ability to limit emissions contributes to the disparity in EPA versus real-world numbers.

Federal law requires that auto manufacturers use only EPA estimates when promoting their vehicles' fuel economy, according to Toyota spokeswoman Nancy Hubbell.

I don't imagine this is the last we'll see of this issue. Certainly, my car doesn't get near the stickered milage, though i blame most of that on the way i drive, which is to say, fast and at higher RPM. Still even when i was trying to be efficient, i didn't get there, so clearly the tests are overstating the reality in most cases.

Does anyone get MORE miles to the gallon than indicated by their sticker? -k]

Wired News: Hybrid Mileage Comes Up Short

The issue at hand is that clearly the press does not make choices about what footage to air and what footage not to air on the basis of the nature of the footage alone. The press makes these decisions on a political basis. While this author's reference to footage of "partial birth abortions" is partisan and oversimplified, the general point must be considered. The press makes political decisions about what to air. In that sense they cannot be seen as objective. Once we've reached that conclusion we must ask what the political motives of the press actually are, and whether we feel like those motives are in line with our interests.

[ I've spoken and written about this from time to time as well, usually in the context of bloggers' impact on the balance of media bias. In all, I still feel that if the press is going to be biased, which I think is a fact difficult to refute, I'd rather know it, and let them be honest and straightforward about their leanings. For a news outlet to claim neutrality while spinning to one side or another undermines their credibility, and ultimately damages the entire institution. If Fox News' tag line was "We're right..." i'd have a lot less enmity than I do... but they hold up this flag of idealistic journalism "FAIR AND BALANCED" while being irrefutably right-leaning on a consistent basis. Let's can the doublespeak, I say. -k]

Jonah Goldberg on Abu Ghraib on National Review Online

] Michael Berg said he blamed the U.S. government for
] creating circumstances that led to his son's death. He
] said if his son hadn't been detained for so long, he
] might have been able to leave the country before the
] violence worsened.
]
] "I think a lot of people are fed up with the lack of
] civil rights this thing has caused," he said. "I don't
] think this administration is committed to democracy."

[ Idealistic young man goes to Iraq to help rebuild telecom infrastructure, gets detained at an Iraqi checkpoint, handed over to the US, then detained for a few weeks by the US for unknown reasons, then relased, only to be captured, and publicly executed by al Qaida linked terrorists. Doesn't get much worse than that.

I don't know if I blame the US for this one though, until more details come to light. Still, fuel for the fire, home and abroad. -k]

Newsday.com - World News

Second Clip - "Abuse is different from torture." - Rumsfeld

[ Oi. -k]

COMEDY CENTRAL: Daily Show on Abu Ghraib - 2

If you don't already have reason to vote for anyone other than the incumbent, including any household appliance that might suddenly gain sentience and make a bid for the US presidency, this might help you out.

[ This would be more compelling if the items were phrased in a more serious and straightforward manner, and if they included links to stories which support the assertion.

I don't disagree with really any of these, but as it is, it preaches only to the converted... anyone on the fence is more likely to be put off by the tone and lack of supporting evidence.

Now, someone with a few hours, access to google news, and some will power could probably use this list as a jumping off point to create a strong case, supported by articles and quotes, and which makes an actual case.

Ideally, addressing and debunking the more frivolous counter arguments would be nice.

Quick anecdote on the ABB tip... went to Alfredo's to eat some badass Italian food a couple weeks ago, and when I came out there was an "Anyone But Bush '04" bumper sticker under the windshield wiper on my car... -k]

Anyone but Bush

What kind of mother doesn't love Roni Size?

[Roni Size is pretty baddass... -k]

Strictly Social

] Microsoft's increasing concern over information security
] has translated into its decision to bite the bullet and
] make its upcoming SP2 (Service Pack 2) security patch
] available to all users - including those using pirated
] copies of its Windows XP software.

[ Huh. -k]

Computer Times - Technology