Althouse

"The fact is that CO2 is not a pollutant."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:57:00 +0000

"CO2 is a colorless and odorless gas, exhaled at high concentrations by each of us, and a key component of the biosphere's life cycle."

Plants do so much better with more CO2 that greenhouse operators often increase the CO2 concentrations by factors of three or four to get better growth. This is no surprise since plants and animals evolved when CO2 concentrations were about 10 times larger than they are today. Better plant varieties, chemical fertilizers and agricultural management contributed to the great increase in agricultural yields of the past century, but part of the increase almost certainly came from additional CO2 in the atmosphere.

"It’s like asking a priest not to pray..."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:36:00 +0000

"... they have acquired skills and want to use them in real life."

"Dublin dole office bans those in pyjamas."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:27:00 +0000

"There is a psychological aspect and pyjamas are associated with sleeping at night and comfort in the home... You have to get into the mindset of what you are doing that day. So if you are wanting to get a job, go dressed prepared to get a job."

Oh, come on. People dress to express themselves. These "pyjama"-wearers are telling the government something important about the way they feel about the "dole." Don't squelch the communication. Don't stanch the flow of information between citizen and government.

How Romney's new debate coach seems to have affected what Romney said about religion.

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:22:00 +0000

Sarah Posner looks at his new answer to the debate question about how religion would affect what he does as a President and compares it to what he said back in October.

Romney's answer was clearly aimed at making sure no one thought that his Mormonism would impact his decision-making, but that his embrace of the Christian right's "Judeo-Christian values" framing would.

Valentine's...

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:13:00 +0000

... gifts.

"What about low IQ and Liberal beliefs? Did the study link those to anything?"

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:10:00 +0000

"Say, gullibility? Conformity? Susceptibility to cults of personality? Unhealthy narcissism? Vanity? Shouting down governors? Locking one's own head to gallery railings? Chanting? Drumming? Occupying? Incessant blowing of vuvuzelas? Did those questions make it into the study?"

"This stuff stings, man."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:04:00 +0000

Lethal injection. Last words.

"The Secret Power Of Introverts."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:01:00 +0000

Jenna Goudreau, writing in Forbes:

In the last few decades, this “Extrovert Ideal” has transformed workplaces, says [Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking]. Independent, autonomous work that favored employee privacy was eroded and practically replaced by what she calls “The New Groupthink,” which “elevates teamwork above all else.” Children now learn in groups. Ideas are formed in brainstorming sessions. Talkers are considered smarter. Employees are hired for “people skills,” and offices are designed to be open and interactive.

Yet, according to Cain, it’s only worked to damage innovation and productivity. Research shows that charismatic leaders earn bigger paychecks but do not have better corporate performance; that brainstorming results in lower quality ideas and the more vocally assertive extroverts are the most likely to be heard; that the amount of space allotted to each employee shrunk 60% since the 1970s; and that open office plans are associated with reduced concentration and productivity, impaired memory, higher turnover and increased illness.

... “Introverts living under the Extrovert Ideal are like women living in a man’s world,” says Cain. “Our most important institutions are designed for extroverts. We have a waste of talent.”

A good reason to stay out of institutions, if you ask me.

"I promised the Almighty God that if he took hate out of my heart I would never hate again... He did and I have not."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:54:00 +0000

Justice Clarence Thomas, in a speech yesterday, describing an experience that occurred "on the morning of April 16, 1970."

Does the ABA Journal shed any new light on last year's troubles in the Wisconsin Supreme Court?

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:50:00 +0000

Well, there's new junk commentary from far-off observers, like this:

Also, it’s possible that some of [Chief Justice Shirley] Abrahamson’s colleagues have had problems taking directions from a woman, says Deborah Rhode, a Stanford Law School professor whose work focuses on gender, law and public policy. She notes that many studies suggest women in leadership positions face trade-offs that men don’t.

“What’s assertive in a man is abrasive in a woman,” Rhode says, mentioning a report on women in leadership roles by Catalyst, a nonprofit group that focuses on expanding opportunities for women in business. It surveyed female executives, and many of them attributed some of their success to finding a management style that made men feel comfortable.

Speaking of things that are "possible"... it's possible to say something more generic about the relations between men and women in the workplace.

And there's this from Leah Ward Sears, the former chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court:

“You have to know when to hold them, and know when to fold them. Sometimes people don’t know when to walk away... Because everybody is a sovereign state... sometimes you have to push hard, because some justices can be bullies. But that doesn’t mean you choke anyone or push anyone out the window.”

Noted.

Hillary Clinton climbs down from "the high wire of American politics" on the theory that "it's a good idea to just find out how tired I am."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:40:00 +0000

She says "It’s a little odd for me to be totally out of an election season... But, you know, I didn’t watch any of those debates." And "I am happy to work with Vice President Biden, who does an excellent job..."

"I feel like I'm prepared emotionally to perform in a state like I've never been prepared before."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:13:00 +0000

"When you're exposed to some slightly crazy people in arctic conditions, there's no way the state can hurt me now."

That's "The Daily Show"'s John Oliver, who's performing in Milwaukee tonight, and the preparation he's referring to is his coverage of the Wisconsin protests last year. At the link, there are 3 clips from that coverage, and we just laughed hysterically at this one where he interviews state senator Jon Erpenbach, as if he's a terrorist, hiding out in his "cave" in the tribal stronghold of Illi-no-EEZ.

"You have a movie coming out, a fragrance, a new album and a tour—and now the Super Bowl. Was this a master plan?"

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:48:00 +0000

"No, everything kind of converged in a bottleneck. I was always planning on making a record when I finished my film but I ended up finishing my film much later than I had expected so, because I had already scheduled time with all the producers and writers for my record, I had to multitask and work on my record at the same time I was finishing my film. And then somehow it worked out that the record was being finished right around the time the movie was coming out. Then I got talked into doing the Super Bowl."

Madonna sounds quite smart, normal, and appealing in this interview with the Wall Street Journal.

Larry David hired Fred Stoller to write for "Seinfeld," but then it turned out...

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:17:00 +0000

... as Fred tells it, that "Mr. David had hired Mr. Stoller, at least in part, because his schnooky personal life might lend itself to story lines."

At one point, Mr. Stoller finally got up the nerve to pitch an idea to Mr. David and to Jerry Seinfeld, and Mr. David immediately interrupted, asking: "Where'd you get that shirt? Do people help you? What's the process of someone like you buying a shirt?"

"Larry would just look at me and go: 'How do you talk to a woman?' " Mr. Stoller recalls.

From a WSJ article on Stoller, whose $1.99 book "My Seinfeld Year," is #1 on the Kindle Singleslist.

"Wouldn’t it be nice if people didn’t make accusations somewhere else that they weren’t willing to defend here?"

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:05:00 +0000

"I think it’s important for people to make sure that we don’t castigate individuals who’ve been successful."

Last night, Romney owned Gingrich.

ADDED: The phrase "Romney owned Gingrich" also appears in this MSNBC piece, introducing this text:

If Mitt Romney wins the nomination, we'll look back and say the first hour of last night’s debate and say that was when he finally put it away. Romney dominated Newt Gingrich -- from the opening barbs over immigration to his effective response to Gingrich on Freddie/Fannie money (“Mr. Speaker have you checked your own investments?”) to squashing Gingrich’s attempt to co-opt the audience once again (“Wouldn’t it be nice if people wouldn’t make accusations somewhere else that they aren’t willing to make here?”). Romney was aggressive without being petulant. He finally looked comfortable sparring. He looked for the first time like he deserved the moniker “front runner” on stage. And it certainly helped that he had a new debate coach. Romney just wasn’t the same guy.

"The most important debate yet" — according to the intro to the CNN debate starting now.

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 01:04:00 +0000

I'm not going to say I'll live-blog, because such promises seem to sap my energy these days, but feel free to talk about it in the comments, and I'll update if I've got anything to say (beyond the mundane descriptions and transcriptions).

ADDED: "I want anguish to be the official language of government," says Newt, or so it it almost sounds, as he pronounces "English."

AND: My son John is live-blogging, and I really do think he's an ace live-blogger.

"This is what your brain on drugs really looks like."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:31:00 +0000

Fascinating!

Psychedelics are thought of as ‘mind-expanding' drugs, so it has commonly been assumed that they work by increasing brain activity," explained [neuropsychopharmacologist David] Nutt in an interview with Nature's Mo Costandi. "Surprisingly, we found that psilocybin actually caused activity to decrease in areas that have the densest connections with other areas."...

Decreased activity within and between the brain's hubs, conclude Nutt and his colleagues, allows for "an unconstrained style of cognition."

Polls in sidebar.

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:12:00 +0000

Keep an eye out for polls in the sidebar on this blog. My ad service, BlogAds, is gathering info that might be useful for getting more ads. Like right now, I'm seeing a question on the extent to which you like Sarah Palin.

The return of Joe Biden's "slight Indian accent."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 19:42:00 +0000

That's our VP.

"Despite a heavy tax burden, Warren Buffett’s secretary last year was able to purchase a second home in Arizona..."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:18:00 +0000

"... a residence complete with a swimming pool and a 'professional PGA putting green'..."

Oh, now, now. I clicked through to the pictures of the house, pool, and putting green and it's not really that nice.

In the 1980s, Gingrich "often spewed insulting rhetoric at Reagan, his top aides, and his policies to defeat Communism."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:15:00 +0000

"Gingrich was voluble and certain in predicting that Reagan’s policies would fail, and in all of this he was dead wrong." — Elliott Abrams.

ADDED: That article is regarded as one element of a concerted effort by conservatives to destroy Newt.

AND: Newt himself seems to be joining the effort:

He totally lied.

Scott Walker's State of the State speech...

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:23:00 +0000

... and the protesters who made it an occasion for themselves.

Protesters gather for State of the State speech: fox11online.com

Slate's Jessica Grose is surprised the internet wasn't cruel after "Queen of the Mommy Bloggers" Dooce announced her separation from her husband.

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:35:00 +0000

Grose says "the tone of the response has been extraordinary in its relative kindness."

We think of Internet commentary—especially toward women who write about their personal lives—as full of vindictive bile. Certainly, Armstrong is not immune from such cruelty, and some bloggers are taking her to task for making her every move so public. However, most of the response to Armstrong’s split has been concerned and sweet.

Do we really expect the internet to be such an asshole?

It's just plain upsetting to see this idealized married couple break up... which Grose eventually gets around to:

Many of her readers want and appreciate what she appeared to have—a thriving home business with a “[l]over, business partner, best friend,” which is how Armstrong described Jon three years ago. Her marriage seemed aspirational, yet attainable—particularly because their lives weren’t entirely perfect, given Armstrong’s depression and anxiety, and her husband’s own mental health issues.

It’s precisely because of this notional attainability that Armstrong’s separation is so jarring for her readers. Fans of Seal and Heidi Klum might be sad about their split, but I doubt many of them could imagine themselves in the shoes of an uber-wealthy Teutonic supermodel. But plenty of Armstrong’s readers would love a companionate marriage that meshed work and life seamlessly, and her separation may dash those dreams.

Adam Clymer says Newt Gingrich may seem to relish denouncing journalists, but actually he "enjoys consorting with the enemy."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:13:00 +0000

Here's Clymer's column in the NYT. You may remember him as the Times's Washington correspondent back in the day.

(Speaking of politicians' denunciations of journalists, Clymer received the best one ever.)

""[I]t’s no surprise that a visiting professor is teaching Admin; professors at Yale love to dump..."

noreply@blogger.com (Ann Althouse) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 13:57:00 +0000

"... the black-letter teaching duties on visitors, so the YLS tenured professors can teach 'Law and Literary Theory' or 'Law and Robots' or 'Law and __' (yes, blank in the original; this meta-course was all about the interdisciplinary study of law)."

David Lat, discussing a current student problem at Yale Law School, in the larger context of the differences among law schools. He continues:

In the grand scheme of things — global poverty, domestic unemployment, the war in Afghanistan, climate change (presumably you believe in it) — the inability of third-year students at Yale Law School to take Administrative Law is not a huge problem. But it is an interesting illustration of the very real differences between law schools. At how many other law schools would students take to the streets — Occupy 127 Wall Street, if you will — over being denied the right to wallow in the nuances of Chevron deference?

Credibility assessment please.
	I take the lady at her word. True until proven otherwise.
	She's a diplomat. It's essentially true, but slathered in niceties.
	She's a Clinton. That says it all. Anything that's not lies is there because it's useful.
	These options don't express my subtle insights. Write polls that sound more like my thoughts.

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