Wanted: full-time elected officials

Mike and I were talking about our annoyance with Massachusetts governors who pay more attention to the national stage (and a possibility of getting a starring or supporting role on that stage) than they do to running the Commonwealth.¹ He said he was tempted to run for governor with just one basic platform: I'll treat this like a full-time job for one term, and I won't run for re-election.

Pamela Julian of Brookline is tired of part-time elected officials, too, so she's launching a campaign to unseat her current rep. According to the Universal Hub, "Julian says her main issue is that she'd pledge to be a full-time state rep; she says Rush has the second-worst record in the House for missing roll call votes."

Julian's ire was sparked when her current state representative, Mike Rush, didn't return her calls. She is his constituent, and she expects that her state rep will remember that he represents people. Apparently, he's not very good at reading those little message sheets.


¹This is, by the way, all of them, as far as I can tell.

Wanted: full-time elected officials

Mike and I were talking about our annoyance with Massachusetts governors who pay more attention to the national stage (and a possibility of getting a starring or supporting role on that stage) than they do to running the Commonwealth.¹ He said he was tempted to run for governor with just one basic platform: I'll treat this like a full-time job for one term, and I won't run for re-election.

Pamela Julian of Brookline is tired of part-time elected officials, too, so she's launching a campaign to unseat her current rep. According to the Universal Hub, "Julian says her main issue is that she'd pledge to be a full-time state rep; she says Rush has the second-worst record in the House for missing roll call votes."

Julian's ire was sparked when her current state representative, Mike Rush, didn't return her calls. She is his constituent, and she expects that her state rep will remember that he represents people. Apparently, he's not very good at reading those little message sheets.


¹This is, by the way, all of them, as far as I can tell.

Senior citizens go virtual

What do you do when you're elderly, of limited mobility, but you really miss things like bowling? If you're a regular habitué of one senior center, you may get to go virtual. That's what happened when one Suffolk University administrator in Franklin, Massachusetts decided that a Wii was a great investment for seniors:

After reading that senior citizens are the second largest market for Nintendo Wii, Susan Bonvouloir, director of enrollment for Suffolk University students at Dean College, decided to bring the video game system, to the Forge Hill Senior Living Center.

Last week, one dozen seniors offered stiff competition for six students in the Suffolk University Networking Club based at Dean, in their first Wii-bowling tournament at the center.

That's pretty cool...and it's fascinating that seniors are getting into the whole Wii phenomenon. Stories like this make me quite proud of my employer and our community.

Next time, though, I hope the seniors beat the pants off of the students. :-)

Senior citizens go virtual

What do you do when you're elderly, of limited mobility, but you really miss things like bowling? If you're a regular habitué of one senior center, you may get to go virtual. That's what happened when one Suffolk University administrator in Franklin, Massachusetts decided that a Wii was a great investment for seniors:

After reading that senior citizens are the second largest market for Nintendo Wii, Susan Bonvouloir, director of enrollment for Suffolk University students at Dean College, decided to bring the video game system, to the Forge Hill Senior Living Center.

Last week, one dozen seniors offered stiff competition for six students in the Suffolk University Networking Club based at Dean, in their first Wii-bowling tournament at the center.

That's pretty cool...and it's fascinating that seniors are getting into the whole Wii phenomenon. Stories like this make me quite proud of my employer and our community.

Next time, though, I hope the seniors beat the pants off of the students. :-)

Nope, no slavery here. Honest.

The country of Niger is being taken to court by an ex-slave. Niger finally passed a law in 2003 outlawing slavery, but many people (including Hadijatou Mani, the plaintiff in the suit) are still held in slavery in that nation.

How many? Upwards of 43,000 says one Niger civil rights group.

But Niger's government says that they're mistaken. There's just a rigid caste system and "members of lower castes have been mistaken for slaves." Yep. Sure. They've been mistaken for slaves by themselves.

If it walks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, I guess it's just the lowest caste version of a goose.

Nope, no slavery here. Honest.

The country of Niger is being taken to court by an ex-slave. Niger finally passed a law in 2003 outlawing slavery, but many people (including Hadijatou Mani, the plaintiff in the suit) are still held in slavery in that nation.

How many? Upwards of 43,000 says one Niger civil rights group.

But Niger's government says that they're mistaken. There's just a rigid caste system and "members of lower castes have been mistaken for slaves." Yep. Sure. They've been mistaken for slaves by themselves.

If it walks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, I guess it's just the lowest caste version of a goose.

When is a stereotype not a stereotype?

Answer: when it may be a hardwired trait.

According to one study, men are significantly more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors if they see an erotic image before the decision-making.

I know, I know. "Why, Deb! That's a shock!"

According to ScienceDaily,

The study showed that when heterosexual men are exposed to positive emotional stimuli — in this case, erotic photos of a man and woman — an area of the brain associated with anticipation of reward is stimulated. In the immediate aftermath of that stimulation, men are consistently more likely to take bigger financial risks than they otherwise would, said Brian Knutson, assistant professor of psychology.

A couple of caveats: (1) the study dealt with heterosexual men and images they would find stimulating; (2) the study participants are the ever-convenient college student sample population; (3) participants had a very limited time frame in which to make the decision, and (4) the study is a preliminary only. As lead author Brian Knutson noted,

"This is just a first step," he said. "It's an existence proof that some irrelevant emotional stimuli can influence some immediate financial decisions and that we can track down one brain basis for this influence."

I wonder what would act as a similar stimulant for women, given what we know about women and visual images? And would homosexual men follow the same pattern if homoerotica were shown?

When is a stereotype not a stereotype?

Answer: when it may be a hardwired trait.

According to one study, men are significantly more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors if they see an erotic image before the decision-making.

I know, I know. "Why, Deb! That's a shock!"

According to ScienceDaily,

The study showed that when heterosexual men are exposed to positive emotional stimuli — in this case, erotic photos of a man and woman — an area of the brain associated with anticipation of reward is stimulated. In the immediate aftermath of that stimulation, men are consistently more likely to take bigger financial risks than they otherwise would, said Brian Knutson, assistant professor of psychology.

A couple of caveats: (1) the study dealt with heterosexual men and images they would find stimulating; (2) the study participants are the ever-convenient college student sample population; (3) participants had a very limited time frame in which to make the decision, and (4) the study is a preliminary only. As lead author Brian Knutson noted,

"This is just a first step," he said. "It's an existence proof that some irrelevant emotional stimuli can influence some immediate financial decisions and that we can track down one brain basis for this influence."

I wonder what would act as a similar stimulant for women, given what we know about women and visual images? And would homosexual men follow the same pattern if homoerotica were shown?

Not a candidate for eHarmony

I'm hoping that this man's dating video is really a scripted bit of fun...because it makes me feel better to think this was a joke. It makes me feel lots better.

Via PopGive.

Not a candidate for eHarmony

I'm hoping that this man's dating video is really a scripted bit of fun...because it makes me feel better to think this was a joke. It makes me feel lots better.

Via PopGive.

When the flu invades my body...

...I would not want a talking tissue box. Even if it's only $19.99. Would. Not. Want.

Sadists.

When the flu invades my body...

...I would not want a talking tissue box. Even if it's only $19.99. Would. Not. Want.

Sadists.

Greenest transportation *evah*!

A man in Japan, tired of seeing disposable chopsticks discarded (and wasting all of that wood) decided to do something about it. This is the result:



As Pink Tentacle reports,

A former city employee in the Fukushima prefecture town of Koriyama has built a 4-meter (13-ft) long canoe from thousands of used disposable chopsticks recovered from the city hall cafeteria. Bothered that perfectly good wood was going to waste after a single use, Shuhei Ogawara — whose job at city hall involved working with the local forestry industry — spent the last two years of his career collecting used chopsticks from the cafeteria. An experienced canoe builder, Ogawara spent over 3 months gluing 7,382 chopsticks together into strips to form the canoe shell, to which he added a polyester resin coat. The canoe weighs about 30 kilograms (66 lbs), which is a bit heavier than an ordinary cedar canoe, but Ogawara is confident it will float. A launching ceremony is planned for May at nearby Lake Inawashiro.

Greenest transportation *evah*!

A man in Japan, tired of seeing disposable chopsticks discarded (and wasting all of that wood) decided to do something about it. This is the result:



As Pink Tentacle reports,

A former city employee in the Fukushima prefecture town of Koriyama has built a 4-meter (13-ft) long canoe from thousands of used disposable chopsticks recovered from the city hall cafeteria. Bothered that perfectly good wood was going to waste after a single use, Shuhei Ogawara — whose job at city hall involved working with the local forestry industry — spent the last two years of his career collecting used chopsticks from the cafeteria. An experienced canoe builder, Ogawara spent over 3 months gluing 7,382 chopsticks together into strips to form the canoe shell, to which he added a polyester resin coat. The canoe weighs about 30 kilograms (66 lbs), which is a bit heavier than an ordinary cedar canoe, but Ogawara is confident it will float. A launching ceremony is planned for May at nearby Lake Inawashiro.

Comcast is watching...and that's not a bad thing

ruthling posted a link that explains the Comcast response to my blog post about our phone problems over the weekend.

Apparently, Comcast is doing general blog monitoring to help improve service, according to ZDnet. In our case, it didn't work so well (probably since Comcast service people couldn't call us because of the number snafu), but overall I think it's a very proactive approach to customer service.

Thanks, ruthling!

Comcast is watching...and that's not a bad thing

ruthling posted a link that explains the Comcast response to my blog post about our phone problems over the weekend.

Apparently, Comcast is doing general blog monitoring to help improve service, according to ZDnet. In our case, it didn't work so well (probably since Comcast service people couldn't call us because of the number snafu), but overall I think it's a very proactive approach to customer service.

Thanks, ruthling!

Olympic Torch protest in SF means scaling the Golden Gate Bridge

CNN notes the protests over the China-Tibet situation have heated up domestically, with several protesters scaling the Golden Gate Bridge in advance of the Olympic Torch's arrival in San Francisco on Wednesday.

Those scaling the bridge, carrying a "Free Tibet" banner, are members of the group Students for a Free Tibet, said group spokesman Tenzin Dasang.

The banner reads, "One World. One Dream. Free Tibet."

Protests in London and Paris over the weekend appear to be just the beginning.

Oh, by the way: No fly-bys are tolerated here. Sign it or don't post it.

Olympic Torch protest in SF means scaling the Golden Gate Bridge

CNN notes the protests over the China-Tibet situation have heated up domestically, with several protesters scaling the Golden Gate Bridge in advance of the Olympic Torch's arrival in San Francisco on Wednesday.

Those scaling the bridge, carrying a "Free Tibet" banner, are members of the group Students for a Free Tibet, said group spokesman Tenzin Dasang.

The banner reads, "One World. One Dream. Free Tibet."

Protests in London and Paris over the weekend appear to be just the beginning.

Oh, by the way: No fly-bys are tolerated here. Sign it or don't post it.

Living Worldcon Chairmen

An email list discussion got me curious about how many former Worldcon chairmen were still living (since I'd never met the chairs of Clevention, held in my home town when I was 2). This is the list I came up with, but there are some I'm not sure of. I did this based on my own limited information by looking at the Long List. Are there people here who shouldn't be, and who are deceased? And have I missed people who I just don't know, but who are still around and kicking? ( I'll tuck the names back here, to minimize this on people's friends lists... )

Living Worldcon Chairmen

An email list discussion got me curious about how many former Worldcon chairmen were still living (since I'd never met the chairs of Clevention, held in my home town when I was 2). This is the list I came up with, but there are some I'm not sure of. I did this based on my own limited information by looking at the Long List. Are there people here who shouldn't be, and who are deceased? And have I missed people who I just don't know, but who are still around and kicking? ( I'll tuck the names back here, to minimize this on people's friends lists... )

Oh, please, just stop

She's been dead 11 years. Not shockingly, a court just figured out that she was killed in a car crash when some idiots were driving badly.

Can we quit talking about it, now?

Oh, please, just stop

She's been dead 11 years. Not shockingly, a court just figured out that she was killed in a car crash when some idiots were driving badly.

Can we quit talking about it, now?

How to make a little league game very, very special

Get Improv Everywhere, NBC Sports, and the Goodyear Blimp involved.

How to make a little league game very, very special

Get Improv Everywhere, NBC Sports, and the Goodyear Blimp involved.

Taking your computer to Starbucks...

...just got a lot funnier. At least, when Improv Everywhere does it...and it's not a laptop.

Taking your computer to Starbucks...

...just got a lot funnier. At least, when Improv Everywhere does it...and it's not a laptop.