circle of pointing fingers.

The people say "We're tired of bureaucrats telling us what to do!" The bureaucrats tell us "We're just doing what Congress has legislated," and Congress tells us "We're passing laws the American people want." Am I missing something?

enough with the surveys already

I recently got a survey from Kaiser Permanente with a cover letter: "Good is not good enough." Well, good IS good enough; most of life is OK, not everything can be excellent, so why drive ourselves nuts trying to get fives?

the pure good of sleep

One of the best things about not having a steady job is sleep. I get up at 9, read for an hour, take a half hour nap, and i'm ready for the day; meanwhile the rest of the East Coast has been well along fucking up the atmosphere.

buttbook?

I don't need a system that will burden me with new 'friends,' so how about something that will make me enemies, help me to have more time for my REAL friends?

conservatives have it easy

Liberal politicians have the difficult job of demonstrating that government can do certain things well; conservative politicians not only argue the other side but, given their insider status, can prevent government from functioning. An unfortunate asymmetry.

sour (and poisonous) grapes

The pundits go on about how the US is being overtaken by China, India, Brazil - and even Russia - on various indices. Yet many of us don't want to compete in more races that are destructive to an already dying planet.

marriage as innoculation

as a confirmed misanthrope, i'm convinced that a life partner inures one to others. tolerating the sounds, smells, habits of a spouse enables me to suffer the rest of humanity with more grace than if i were the hermit i'd otherwise be.

the risk society

i couldn't help hearing in the various testimonies of Coast Guard, USGS, EPA, NOAA, etc. officials an undercurrent of satisfaction that their agencies were again being called upon to prove their worth. so many people benefit from catastrophe. what would we do without them if the world weren't so perilous?

politics and whom you're willing to kill

If you're conservative you're willing to kill youngish people (soldiers and prisoners); if you're liberal you're willing to kill fetuses and old folks. Why the difference?

mediocrity

Copernicus taught us that the world is not the center of the universe and Darwin that humans aren't special. But now we're thinking that this time is unique and not mediocre - global collapse is coming. Finally, something special!

human / nature

I've been studying ecology for about a decade, and watching nature shows all my life. You must be impressed with the intensity of natural innovation; every organism, population, and species is innovating in ways that will give it an edge.

Humans are doing that as well, but unfortunately we have no competetor nearly as resourceful as we are, so we're driving ourselves over some edge.

Does one answer lie in being less 'natural' and doing less: less innovation, less disruption, less territoriality?

Homo vehicularis

During the 20th Century Homo vehicularis became the dominant life form on Earth. It is growing faster and occupying more space than any other species. Whether or not you believe in intelligent design as a historical phenomenon, it is certainly happening now. Whether the personal vehicle of the future is powered by fossil fuels, nuclear energy, the sun, or the flatulence of its occupant, the car/spute/truck is going to dominate the planet for a long time.

Science and change

Scientists routinely complain about diminishing support and standards of scientific knowledge, but:
Scientific research continues to explode in papers, conferences, new journals that mystify even scientists, and:
Scientific research continues to support an accelerating rate of technological change that stresses us all out.

Maybe people want a bit less science?