Notes

This section contains posts describing noteworthy news items or commentary from other websites.

The corrupting influence of money in politics

June 19, 2012
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While it’s no secret that concentrated wealth negatively influences the political system, most people are probably unaware of the extent and the details of the corruption. One good source of information on this subject is the American writer Thomas Frank, who recently published an interesting article in Harper’s, appropriately titled “It’s a Rich Man’s World: How Billionaires Pick America’s Candidates.” Here he is, on the same topic, in interview with Bill Moyers. 

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More on economic inequality and the Occupy Movement

May 18, 2012
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Among mainstream or major media organizations Al Jazeera deserves credit for its attention to the issue of economic inequality. One recent opinion piece by Noam Chomsky (Plutonomy and the precariat: On the history of the US economy in decline) provides a concise overview of the causes of the growing economic inequality in the US and the disastrous consequences it is bringing about. (For more on how inequality is at the root most social evils, see this powerful lecture by Richard Wilkinson). Additionally, Chomsky’s article helps to explain just why the Occupy Movement  is so important, really one of the most…

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Recording everything: digital storage as an enabler of authoritarian governments

May 18, 2012
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The Brookings Institution recently published a paper entitled “Recording Everything: Digital Storage as an Enabler of Authoritarian Governments“. The executive summary reads as follows: Within the next few years an important threshold will be crossed: For the first time ever, it will become technologically and financially feasible for authoritarian governments to record nearly everything that is said or done within their borders—every phone conversation, electronic message, social media interaction, the movements of nearly every person and vehicle, and video from every street corner. Governments with a history of using all of the tools at their disposal to track and monitor their citizens…

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The vision for Microsoft’s search engine

May 3, 2012
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The vision for Microsoft’s search engine

As we have previously written about the Internet Filter Bubble it is worth keeping an eye on its latest developments and notice that Microsoft is apparently determined to step up the game.  A recently surfaced Microsoft patent application reveals its next generation search engine, equipped with advanced content and context comprehension capabilities to read Facebook status reports and Twitter tweets. Using tracking cookies, direct search engine entry pattern recognition, and so on, this system is capable of picking up advanced user information, such as mood, interests, and even the person’s education level and his or her comprehension of specific topics. The search…

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Obama vs Romney on energy and climate change issues

April 27, 2012
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Obama vs Romney on energy and climate change issues

Rebecca Leber of Thinkprogress put together a comprehensive chart outlining the different stands Obama and Romney have on energy and climate change issues. The chart is accompanied by a detailed list of sources and further elaborations.  

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The meat-free diet catches on in Korea

April 11, 2012
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Anyone familiar with traditional Korean food will find it hard to understand why modern Koreans ever switched to the “standard american diet” (SAD), for much of the traditional diet is amazingly good food, both from a gastronomical and a health perspective. And the traditional Korean diet just so happens to involve very little meat. The good news though, as this Yonhap News article points out, is that the return to a vegetarian diet is quickly catching on in Korea. This will be interesting to watch, because when social change happens in Korea, it really happens quickly.  

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The paranormal challenge

April 3, 2012
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James Randi, retired professional magician (“The Amazing Randi”), author, lecturer, and amateur archaeologist/astronomer, dedicated his life to debunking the paranormal, pseudo-scientific, and supernatural. To do so, he founded the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) and with the help of generous donors set up the “One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge“. The official description reads as follows: At JREF, we offer a one-million-dollar prize to anyone who can show, under proper observing conditions, evidence of any paranormal, supernatural, or occult power or event. The JREF does not involve itself in the testing procedure, other than helping to design the protocol and approving the conditions…

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Nine strategies to end corporate rule

March 21, 2012
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Yes Magazine has put together an interesting collection of articles, written by various writers, around the question of the century: What can we do to bring an end to corporatocracy and help build a sustainable society that prioritizes human needs above corporate profits. The collection of articles can be found here. The nine strategies: 1. Amend the constitution to end corporate personhood. 2. Dive into grassroots campaigns.  3. Hold corporations accountable to our laws. 4. Get Past the Propaganda 5. Support independent media and keep the Internet free. 6. Protect the Commons 7. Vote. Protect our democracy. 8. Make your…

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What public relations can do for human excrement

March 21, 2012
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Most of us are taught from an early age that human shit is taboo–it should neither be touched nor touched upon in polite conversation. Consequently, most people probably don’t think much about what happens to their shit after they flush it down the toilet. But perhaps they should, and perhaps this taboo around shit needs to be abandoned, for there are people, businesses, entire industries working in dark corners of the waste economy finding clever ways to sell you your own shit.  How is this possible? Why would anyone want to buy it? Good questions and very much related to…

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Death with courage and dignity

March 16, 2012
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Peter Goodwin was a physician and a right-to-die activist who took his own life last week (March 11, 2012). This article from Time magazine contains a video of the last interview he conducted before his death. He was remarkably rational–even though emotional–right up to the end, and this video is well worth watching, especially for those who are opposed to euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide, or the patient’s right to die.   

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Are Wall Street traders psychopaths?

March 16, 2012
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One has to be pleased that Time magazine even considers the question. Their answer can be found here. Also worth reading is the article that got them thinking about this, the insider’s account of what it’s like to work for Goldman Sachs.

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Media failures in the Iran war debate

March 16, 2012
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Has the American media informed or mislead the public on the debate about whether or not the US should initiate or support an attack on Iran? In this article, originally published in Foreign Policy, Stephen Walt, Professor of International Affairs at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, provides a helpful list of the top ten media failures on this issue. He also participated in this related discussion on an NPR radio program.   .  

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Was bailout the only option?

March 9, 2012
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Apparently not, as Iceland proves to be very successful with its 110 percent rule.  Due to this rule, Icelandic households were forgiven of debt exceeding 110 percent of home values. On top of that, a Supreme Court ruling in June 2010 found loans indexed to foreign currencies were illegal, meaning households no longer needed to cover krona losses. The decision to reject foreign debt deals, causing harsh criticism from abroad, seems to have paid off. Here are some quotes from a Bloomberg article on this matter written by Omar R. Valdimarsson: “You could safely say that Iceland holds the world record in household debt relief,” said Lars…

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Cancer rates rising

March 7, 2012
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Many people wonder whether cancer rates are really rising and, if so, whether this is due to an actual increase in the incidence of cancer or whether it is due rather to an increase in the availability and efficiency of methods for detecting cancer. According to this article from the BBC, commenting on data recently released by Cancer Research UK, there has definitely been an increase in cancer rates in the UK that go beyond what could be explained by better methods of detection. The CRUK says that the increase is due, not only to better screening, but also to…

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Chemical castration for pedophiles?

March 7, 2012
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According to this BBC news article, Moldova’s parliament has just voted to make chemical castration compulsory for those convicted of sexually abusing children under the age of 15 as well as for the perpetrators of certain cases of adult rape. The law was passed in part because Moldova has become  an international sex tourist destination and has experienced an increase in the number of cases of pedophilia. This is clearly a controversial law. While pedophiles and rapists certainly violate the rights of their victims, does that justify stripping them of their right to their own physical integrity? Amnesty International has…

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The Earth is Full (TED lecture by Paul Gilding)

March 1, 2012
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This TED lecture by Paul Gilding should be translated into just about every language in the world and made available to the widest possible audience. It’s a frank discussion that needs to be had about our unsustainable economy and the inevitable crisis that human civilization faces.  It also cuts to the core of what this blog, The Examined Life, is all about. The message that Gilding presents is indeed dark, but he’s not a pessimist. In fact he thinks that the human species is remarkably creative and capable of adapting to life on an overcrowded planet. Like Al Gore in one…

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Higher social status is correlated with lower ethical behavior

February 29, 2012
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It may be true that cheats don’t prosper, but it seems equally true that those who are prosperous cheat. And this is not just an impression: there is now scientific evidence to back it up. The Los Angeles Times has a very interesting article on recent researching demonstrating that people with a high social status are less ethical than others in their daily behavior. According to the article,  People driving expensive cars were more likely than other motorists to cut off drivers and pedestrians at a four-way-stop intersection in the San Francisco Bay Area, UC Berkeley researchers observed. Those findings led to…

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Too big to jail (by Simon Johnson)

February 28, 2012
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Simon Johnson, former chief economist of the IMF, and co-founder of a leading economics blog, BaselineScenario, a professor at MIT Sloan, and senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics published recently published “Too big to jail” on project-syndicate. Though I highly recommend to read the whole article, the first paragraph sums it up quite nicely: Among the fundamental principles of any functioning justice system is the following: Don’t lie to a judge or falsify documents submitted to a court, or you will go to jail. Breaking an oath to tell the truth is perjury, and lying in official documents…

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The future of meat

February 28, 2012
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Over at Gizmodo there is a brief article entitled “The Future of Farming is Brain-Dead Chickens?” about a provocative art project created by an architecture student at the Royal College of Art. The project is described as follows: Architecture student André Ford has presented a very radical solution to increase the efficiency and humaneness in raising poultry. Under his plan, birds would have their frontal cortexes surgically severed, rendering the animals permanently unconscious with no zero sensory input while maintaining their lower brain functions—breathing and such—so that they continue to grow. The form and function of a chicken plant would change…

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Egypt: football violence and revolution

February 27, 2012
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This post aims to provide information and insight to everyone left puzzled by the latest football violence in Egypt and the obfuscating mainstream media coverage that followed. Two articles are especially relevant. The first is written by James Montague, author of When Friday Comes: Football in the War Zone, a book about football and politics in the Middle East. The second is by Dave Zirin, author of “Bad Sports: How Owners are Ruining the Games we Love” and the documentary “Not Just a Game.” AlJazeera featured both articles in their opinion section. Some quotes from James Montague’s article (Egypt’s politicised football hooligans)…

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