In other news, water is wet.

Whaddaya know, groups of atheists aren't as crazy as groups of sun-worshippers, idolators, and hate-filled carpetbaggers. We do, however, rampantly and lazily paraphrase. From Balloon Juice:

Turns out, societies that have more non-believers murder and rape each other on a much lower level than we here in America:

In his new book, Society Without God, Phil Zuckerman looks at the Danes and the Swedes—probably the most godless people on Earth. They don’t go to church or pray in the privacy of their own homes; they don’t believe in God or heaven or hell. But, by any reasonable standard, they’re nice to one another. They have a famously expansive welfare and health care service. They have a strong commitment to social equality. And—even without belief in a God looming over them—they murder and rape one another significantly less frequently than Americans do.

Denmark and Sweden aren’t exceptions. A 2005 study by Gregory Paul looking at 18 democracies found that the more atheist societies tended to have relatively low murder and suicide rates and relatively low incidence of abortion and teen pregnancy.

So, this is a puzzle. If you look within the United States, religion seems to make you a better person. Yet atheist societies do very well—better, in many ways, than devout ones.

****
The sorry state of American atheists, then, may have nothing to do with their lack of religious belief. It may instead be the result of their outsider status within a highly religious country where many of their fellow citizens, including very vocal ones like Schlessinger, find them immoral and unpatriotic. Religion may not poison everything, but it deserves part of the blame for this one.

Unsurprising, and worthy of a discussion.

No more Studio 28

Not many multiplexes are worth a moment's notice, but for seven years Grand Rapids' Studio 28 was THE multiplex, the largest in the world with 20 screens (the '28' comes from 28th Street). Tonight was its last night; falling attendance doing it in as it's dropped 75% since its '96 peak of 1.7 million.

Odd to think that pretty much the only theater we attended while in college could be mostly empty, and not sure why attendance plummeted there worse than elsewhere.

slacker

The lucky problem with having a job that is so wide-ranging is that the avenue to goofing off is often within only one step of actual work. Thankfully it leads me to things like this.

UDPATE: Doug mentioned that the above was something he'd hang over his fireplace, and talking about it reminded me of another of my favorites, Boccioni's Dynamism of a Cyclist. Interestingly, Boccioni's cyclist is moving right to left, not a common direction for cyclist paintings that I can think of but pretty common for photography.

a human rights upside to global recession?

In 'The Human Rights Vacuum,' (a very quick read, so go read it) Samantha Power makes the correct assertion that China's insatiable need for resources and lack of concern for human rights, paired with the US' loss of stature in that arena, has led to a global environment that meets genocide with shrugs, violent oppression with averted eyes.

However, with gas at four bucks a barrel or whatever it fell to today, and China laying off wave after wave of workers, will that diminished appetite allow it to pause and take a breath long enough to reconsider the atrocities it endorses (through trade and its essential UN Security Council vote/veto)? Will it at least open the door to the UN (and maybe a new US administration, flush with international goodwill the likes of which we haven't had since 9/11) convincing them that over the long term, it is not in their interests to tolerate (and promote, in the case of Burmese weapons sales) activities that the rest of the world would condemn (as has the Bush administration) if only they weren't so damn afraid of what it would do to their business ties in those countries?

Unfortunately, I think the window of opportunity is too small. The recession probably won't last long enough to allow perspectives to shift in this way, the UN is too ineffectual in ending rights abuses, etc... But... if the mood of the increasingly angry American consumer could be further stoked with the realization that dollars go to China so they can be turned into things like rocket launchers and sent to Sudan and Burma, then there would be multiple threats to China's continued course of active inaction.

A boy can dream, can't he?

Detroit 3 Bailout Smackdown: Brooks vs. Lessenberry

David Brooks:

"...the biggest threat to a healthy economy is not the socialists of campaign lore. It's CEOs. It's politically powerful crony capitalists who use their influence to create a stagnant corporate welfare state."

"There seems to be no one who believes the companies are viable without radical change. A federal cash infusion will not infuse wisdom into management. It will not reduce labor costs. It will not attract talented new employees. As Megan McArdle of The Atlantic wittily put it, 'Working for the Big Three magically combines vast
corporate bureaucracy and job security in one completely unattractive package.'"

"...capital that could have gone to successful companies and programs will be directed toward companies with a history of using it badly."

Jack Lessenberry:

"Yes, something needs to be done for Detroit's automakers, though they've worked for years at not deserving it. But that something needs to be intelligent, creative and long-term. We need a creative vision for the future. Anderson says: 'It is not unreasonable to believe that [the Big Three] might survive as self-sustaining companies if government money can get them over the credit crunch and deep recession that is expected.'"

"That's a gamble that I reluctantly think our government should take. I have no interest in helping creatures like William Clay Ford, for the long-term, stupidly arrogant leaders of General Motors — or, for that matter, the shortsighted leaders of the United Auto Workers union. But this entire region doesn't deserve to be punished for their sins."

"What everyone has to get through their noggins is that it is never, ever going to be like it was. Things are going to get worse before they get better, if they get better, no matter what."

kindergartners in a world of wolves

'Fine! If you don't agree with me, I'm not going to share my cookies and grape juice!'

South Carolina priest and diocese deny communion to Obama voters

As part of our Travel and Adventure series we have The Fly Trap, A Finer Diner, in Ferndale. This place lives up to its self proclaimed reputation because a finer diner it is. This statement being based on the 2 dishes we sampled: The Cheapsteak Sandwich and the Hot Spiced Beef Brisket Sandwich. I thought the Cheapsteak was very good, although better eaten with a knife and fork, until I was offered a taste of the Brisket....The Brisket won hands down this day...by far one of the best sandwiches I've had in a long time.

Even The Nights are Better

Hola Kiddies!

I've come out of hiding.

I have a 200 disc carousel CD changer that, I swear, has a personality. The discs are shoved in this thing randomly with no organization as to genre, artist...whatever. It really likes The Rolling Stones....which, I think is because The B enjoys them too....but it will just as often toss in several selections from The White Stripes or Mel Torme while cycling through the collection in the random setting. Yesterday mornings combination made me want to stay at home and keep my stereo company....the songs came out in this order:
Come Sail Away-Stix
Old Enough-Raconteurs
Adia-Sarah McLachlan
Dear Life-Chantal Kreviazuk
Mandy-Barry Manilow
Start Wearing Purple-Gogol Bordello
Even The Nights are Better-Air Supply
(mystery segment while in the shower and when I got out I thought that maybe the mood had changed)
Stick Shifts and Saftey Belts-Cake
Girl-Beck
Finishing with.....
It's A Crime-Magnetic Fields.

I gave the old girl a hug at this point and went about my day.

SO glad

from Defective Yeti

shifting tide?

From Balloon Juice, an interesting map showing voting shifts by county between 2004 and 2008. I was surprised by the implied prevalence of blue in the first place - there is only one state filled with counties that are dark blue, which tells me most weren't blood red to begin with. I'm not discounting the notable shifts to blue (20%+), just noting that the degree of the shift in most cases wasn't huge (10-19%), which is both reassuring and not: it's nice to know the country as a whole is more moderate than it can sometimes feel, but I hope we're not a small shift back to pink that undoes any good that will be done in the next four years.

Anyway, check out the accompanying post at Balloon Juice.

Finally

For the first time in nine years, I'm not fearful or depressed about the direction our country will be taking.

Now we wait...

Today's the day.

"A memorable day. We do not know yet for what. Perhaps for the disintegration of the country, perhaps for another proof that the North is timid and mercenary, perhaps for demonstration that Southern bluster is worthless. We cannot tell yet what historical lesson the event of November 6, 1860, will teach, but the lesson cannot fail to be weighty."

~diary entry from a New York supporter of Abraham Lincoln

We've been hearing the Kennedy comparisons, but I'm enjoying the Lincoln comparisons more: senators from Illinois, country at a tipping point, painstaking intellectual rigor, and of course, the issue of equality.

Given the rivers of money involved and the chasm between the two campaigns in terms of execution, reach, efficiency, and ability to remain on the offensive, the McCain campaign should be ruined. But it's not. It's existence doesn't just speak to tenacity, but to a very real and insidious current flowing through American minds; the same politics of fear, contempt, and division that brought us the rise of DeLay, Hastert, Gonzalez, Wolfowitz, Pearl, Bush 43, et al. The fact that their ilk could be elected to anything higher than mayor of Wasilla speaks to our greatest deficiencies; deficiencies which threaten us still, maybe more than ever, today.

From the instant I heard about Barack Obama's keynote convention speech I knew that this guy was in the pipeline, that he was destined to run for president, and with my first impression I was fully on board with that. So, I've spent the last two years working to overcome that initial buy-in and my disappointment with his few missteps with a sometimes dogged and absurd openmindedness, partly to ferret out what candidates might actually do instead of what they say to get elected, but mostly to avoid what I fear will be crushing disappointment because in this case the bar has been set so high. Many believe this is a forgone conclusion, but it's not. Lincoln felt the same way, nervous to the last minute, wondering even if he'd carried his hometown of Springfield. Obama said as much the same thing the other day with his 'snatching defeat from the jaws of victory' quip. We could very easily throw this thing away, today, bowing to our weaknesses and choosing the devil we know.

C'mon America. Surprise me.

Fw: Lance at the 2009 Giro d'Italia

Some weeks ago I heard Lance Armstrong was going to be coming out of retirement, it was said to win another Tour de France. In my inbox the other day, though, was an offer from Trek Travel to take me to the Giro d'Italia to see him compete in that.

"One of the greatest regrets in my cycling career was never doing the Giro d'Italia.” -Lance Armstrong

Seven-time Tour de France champion, Lance Armstrong, will wipe away all regrets and race the Giro d’Italia for the very first time. And this is your one and only chance to witness it live with Team Astana’s Official Tour Operator and the only company endorsed by Lance himself—Trek Travel.

However, a VeloNews article mentions five races he's supposedly planning (Amgen TofCali, Paris-Nice, TdGeorgia, Dauphine Libere, and of course the TdF), none of which offer the Giro's pink jersey. What's up? Further, the VN piece quotes an Astana press officer as saying, "He is no part of our team."

So whatever. It looks from a Google search that he's coming back, most likely with Astana, although I don't have time to verify the Giro thread. If this is true, it will be interesting because my only gripe with the guy was that he never really did much except win the Tour. If he can compete in or even win the Giro (which features a harder climb than can be found in the TdF, and that is really saying something), without the 'Blue Train' of his now dismatled and scattered US Postal/Discovery Channel teams, it will be a nice feather in his cap. I seem to remember that first mention of his return mentioning that he was doing it to raising cancer awareness. Not sure that's the case, but whatever his motivation, I'll bet he's cool as a cucumber and not giving too much thought to establishing himself a little higher in cycling's vaunted hierarchy.

your HOLY CRAP factoid of the day

...the 20th-century industrialization of agriculture has increased the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by the food system by an order of magnitude; chemical fertilizers (made from natural gas), pesticides (made from petroleum), farm machinery, modern food processing and packaging and transportation have together transformed a system that in 1940 produced 2.3 calories of food energy for every calorie of fossil-fuel energy it used into one that now takes 10 calories of fossil-fuel energy to produce a single calorie of modern supermarket food. Put another way, when we eat from the industrial-food system, we are eating oil and spewing greenhouse gases. This state of affairs appears all the more absurd when you recall that every calorie we eat is ultimately the product of photosynthesis — a process based on making food energy from sunshine.

~ from Farmer in Chief, by Michael Pollan