Soak the Oligarchs!

Did anyone read the NYTimes article today "Graduate vs. Oligarchs?" Excerpt:

"So being in the top 10 percent of the income distribution,
like being a college graduate, wasn't a ticket to big income gains.

But income at the 99th percentile rose 87 percent; income at the 99.9th
percentile rose 181 percent; and income at the 99.99th percentile rose 497
percent. No, that's not a misprint.

Just to give you a sense of who we're talking about: the nonpartisan Tax
Policy Center estimates that this year the 99th percentile will correspond
to an income of $402,306, and the 99.9th percentile to an income of
$1,672,726. The center doesn't give a number for the 99.99th percentile, but
it's probably well over $6 million a year."

You can download the academic paper on which these data are based from:

www.brookings.edu/es/commentary/journals/
bpea_macro/forum/200509bpea_gordon.pdf

I haven't read all 106 pages yet, but it's pretty interesting so far. They are basically saying that our tax system is totally skewed toward super-star athletes and big corporate CEOs, and recommend a modest increase in the upper tax bracket from 33% to 50%. As they put it, this likely won't cause Tom Cruise to stop making movies... (too bad!)

Ricin Found at Moore_Hill Dorm

FROM THE DAILY TEXAN:

Law enforcement officials have taped off a second-floor Moore-Hill dorm room and a first-floor laundry room Saturday after investigators found traces of the deadly toxin Ricin in the building.

A Weapons of Mass Destruction Operations Unit picked up a sample of the toxin in Austin Saturday and will take it to a government facility in Quantico, Va. for more definitive testing, FBI special agent Rene Salinas said. The FBI has been investigating since Friday when a white powder found in the building was identified as Ricin in preliminary tests, Salinas said.

Two female students from Moore-Hill dormitory were still being treated late Friday for Ricin exposure after coming into contact with the toxin Thursday afternoon, law enforcement and UT officials said.

The taped-off dormitory room belongs to kinesiology freshman Kelly Heinbaugh and business freshman Casi Adams, neighbors confirmed Saturday. The women have not been seen in the building since residents have returned, neighbors said. Calls to the dorm room and to Heinbaugh's cell phone have not been returned.

Students began evacuating the dorm shortly after 11 p.m. when University Residence Hall resident assistants began knocking door-to-door evacuating residents.

According to authorities, no other students are exhibiting symptoms of exposure to Ricin, a protein-inhibitor that can lead to death or serious injury, which has been used as a biological warfare agent. Authorities would not release the names of the girls involved.

"There is no threat coming from this," said Theresa Spalding, associate director of Student Health Services. "The authorities do not believe there is any type of terroristic plot against the University of Texas."

Moore-Hill dormitory is now a crime scene and a criminal investigation is under way, said Dr. Adolfo Valadez, medical director of the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department.

The toxin was first discovered around 2:30 p.m. Thursday when one of the students who received treatment discovered a white powder after opening a roll of quarters from a non-local bank to do laundry on the first floor, Spalding said. The quarters had been in her dorm room on the second floor for several months, Spalding said. The powder fell out on the student's hands, which she washed immediately before reporting the incident to the UT Police Department, Spalding said.

Workers from the University Environmental Health and Safety Department cleaned and decontaminated the area Thursday afternoon, according to a UTPD press release. Firefighters from the AFD Special Operations Hazardous Materials Regional Strike Team in full-body, silver hazardous material suits were also seen entering the building along with other emergency personnel at the scene Friday evening.

Although they are still receiving medical attention, the girl and her roommate are not exhibiting any symptoms of Ricin exposure that would usually develop within 36 hours, Spalding said.

The decision to evacuate was made more than 24 hours after the powder was first found because samples of the substance had to be expedited to a lab in Atlanta, Spalding said. The substance was reported back from the lab as Ricin from preliminary tests, Valadez said.

Students were still able to access the exposed areas of Moore-Hill, including the first floor laundry room. No areas were closed until the dorm was evacuated at 11 p.m.

"It's bad luck and bad timing," said Chao Zhang, a finance senior whose clothes were in a washing machine in the quarantined area. "Hopefully I'll get them back tomorrow and I won't have to go shopping any time soon."

After being evacuated, students were informed of the details about the contamination in Jester Auditorium and were allowed back into the dorm by midnight.

"I live on the second floor - if I can get back in my room then we're just going to go hang out; we're not worried," said Jenna Delaney, a business administration sophomore.

Initially, students were allowed into all areas of the dorm, but were later forced to leave certain areas as decontamination teams, in full-body suits and oxygen tanks, swept the building, beginning around 12:30 p.m. The laundry room was still sealed off early Saturday morning.

Twenty-first Street was closed off from the Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium to Speedway Avenue during the evacuation and decontamination.

Ricin exposure occurs through ingestion or inhalation. Symptoms include severe respiratory problems, severe nausea, bloody vomit, bloody diarrhea and eventual death, Valadez said. Ricin is not contagious and cannot be absorbed through the skin, he said.

The Austin Police Department, Austin Fire Department, EMS and UT Police Department were called to the area after the substance was confirmed to be Ricin.

Wm F. Buckley Comes Out Against Iraq War?

In the National Review Online, Friday Feb. 24, 2006, William F. Buckley Jr appears to be calling on President Bush to acknowledge defeat in Iraq. See for yourself:

http://www.nationalreview.com/buckley/buckley200602241451.asp

Does this mean Buckley is in league with the unpatriotic traitors like Cindy Sheehan and Rep. Murtha?

Germany

We just got word that Patrick has been recommended for a job in Stuttgart. If they accept him, we will be in Germany this Summer, probably by early July (his time in Kansas is done in mid-June and we will do some visiting and using up of vacation before leaving the country). When does the World Cup start? end? Can we look forward to visitors? It would be wonderful to see any and everybody :)
Julia

Are Media Companies Evil?

From the page:

If anyone has any doubts about the content industry's resolve to destroy fair use and usher in new ways of charging you for uses that were previously both free and fair, look no further. As part of the triennial review of the effectiveness of the DMCA, a number of content-related industries have filed a joint reply (PDF) with the government on the effectiveness of the DMCA and the challenges that lay ahead for copyright. As you might expect, the document is a celebration of the DMCA, and the industries are pushing for even more egregious abuses of technology to fatten up their bottom lines.

With regards to the argument that the DMCA is bad law because it prevents users from making backups, the joint reply dismissed such arguments as "uncompelling." First, they argue that there is no evidence that "any of the relevant media are 'unusually subject to damage in the ordinary course of their use.'" This "cart-before-the-horse" argument suggests that people do not need to backup anything that does not have a high failure rate--a view that fundamentally misunderstands the purpose of backups. Furthermore, they argue that the success of DVD sales vis-à-vis VHS demonstrates that whatever problem there might be, it's not big enough to matter to consumers, because DVD sales are skyrocketing while VHS isn't. Thus high sales volumes are indicators that the consumer are well served, which is an argument that we'll hope never takes hold in the pharmaceutical industry (Vioxx sure did sell well!).

Such are the lengths they will go through in order to keep the anti-circumvention provisions of the DMCA intact. But supporting the status quo isn't in their interest. No, the idea is to embrace and extend. To wit, the joint reply also argues that making backups of your CDs is also not fair use.

Guns Don't Kill People...

Vice-President Dick Cheney accidentally shot one of his hunting buddies when he was actually trying to shoot a quail. It would be kind of funny if not for the fact that some of the birdshot lodged in the victim's heart and he suffered a minor heart attack on Tuesday because of it.
But before you go attacking Cheney and NRA, gun-totin' hunters across this fair land of ours, you should try shooting quail yourself. It's not as easy as it looks. Try it for yourself at http://dickcheneyquailhunt.cf.huffingtonpost.com/
Enjoy!

Violent Islamic Fundamentalists and the KKK

Journalist Rips Tucker Carlson a New One

HERE IS A COPY OF AN E-MAIL THAT THE MANAGING EDITOR OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE SENT TO TUCKER CARLSON AFTER CARLSON USED A TAPED INTERVIEW ON HIS SHOW IN A SEGMENT ABOUT THE TRIBUNE'S DECISION "NOT" TO RUN ANY OF THE MUSLIM CARTOONS THAT HAVE SET OFF SUCH A FIRESTORM OVERSEAS.

Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2006 3:39 PM
To: [Tucker Carlson]
Subject: Response to Tucker

Dear Tucker,

Taping your show that ran on MSNBC last night was a real lesson for me. I now understand why you have so few viewers. Who wants to deal with someone whose backbone is as flimsy as his bow tie. Your personal and derogatory comment about me after my taped appearance on your show to discuss why the Chicago Tribune decided not to publish cartoons offensive to Muslims was cowardly.
When I was in the Army (an experience I'm sure you've not shared), we referred to people like you as "guys who back up to the pay table." It is one thing to disagree with me about the decisions we make in what we run and don't run in the Chicago Tribune. You even had the gall to say "I respectfully disagree but I appreciate your coming on (to the show) to explain it." That was when I was being taped, or as close as you could come to looking me in the eye. After the tape ran on your live show later and I (and the hundreds of millions of other Americans who don't watch Tucker) were otherwise occupied, you referred to my newspaper as "cowardly" and to me personally as a "corporate worm." You didn't even have the guts to say that to me on tape. It is no wonder that people don't want to appear on your show.
I know I won't appear on your show or MSNBC and I would guess that would apply to my colleagues at the Chicago Tribune. I resent your comment about my newspaper even more than your craven characterization of me. The Chicago Tribune is an honorable newspaper run by people who believe journalism is more than a game show. The people who work here are brave, courageous reporters and editors who make tough calls everyday, an experience I know you can't understand since you've never done so. Many have risked their lives bringing news to our readers. For someone like you to imply they are cowardly is disgusting.
Then again I guess I should be more understanding. When someone is at the bottom of a well in the ratings and desperate for attention, I shouldn't be surprised that they slide so naturally into name-calling.
I suspect that the Chicago Tribune will be around a lot longer than you, Tucker, and if I'm wrong, I will buy you your drink of choice, which is probably a sarsaparilla.

Disrespectfully,

James O'Shea
Managing Editor
Chicago Tribune

Travel

I almost never travel for business.

So the fact that I write this on my third day of being in Boston is a bit strange. I'm here to support on-going operations for NASA's Chandra X-ray observatory. Ball Aerospace built some key pieces of Chandra. One of them is the Aspect Camera, which allows high-resolution X-ray images to be registered to the celestial sphere to an accuracy of about an arcsecond. Anyway, the guy who wrote the software that controls the Aspect Camera will be retiring soon, and I have to take over responsibility for providing any patches that the Chandra team might need in the future. One scary piece of this, however, is that I have to become an expert in the FORTH programming language. Oh well, job security, I suppose. Anyway, I go back to Colorado tomorrow evening.

Stranger still, next month I'll be in Washington, D.C. for a few days. Who hangs out around that part of the country? Russell?

Mold on Rotten Meat

Recent goings on in the U.S. patent circus makes me nauseated. I think that software patents are evil. Does anyone here disagree? I'm interested in your opinions.

From the page:

What would happen if a rogue actor managed to get hold of a powerful patent and threatened to detonate it and destroy e-mail as we know it? You'd have the BlackBerry NTP v. RIM case--the tech world's very own Dr. Strangelove. NTP, a one-man Virginia firm, armed with nothing but patents, currently threatens to bring down BlackBerry and with it the sanity of millions of e-mail addicts. A textbook "patent troll," he wants a billion dollars to stand down. What to do?

It is telling that the dilemmas created by software patents today are routinely compared to those created by nuclear arms, with patent trolls playing the role of the nuclear madman. But while it's easy to bash trolls as evil extortionists, to do so may be to miss an important lesson: Patent trolls aren't evil, but rational and predictable, akin to the mold that eventually grows on rotten meat. They're useful for understanding how the world of software patent got to where it is and what might be done to fix it.

Three Lies

Compiled by a friend of mine:

"On May 22, I stated in very specific terms and I state again to every one
of you listening tonight these facts - I had no prior knowledge of the
Watergate break-in; I neither took part in nor knew about any of the
subsequent cover-up activities; I neither authorized nor encouraged
subordinates to engage in illegal or improper campaign tactics. That was and
that is the simple truth." -Richard M. Nixon, August 15, 1973

"I never had sex with that woman - Ms Lowinski" Bill Clinton, Apr, 1996

"Now, by the way, any time you hear the United States government talking
about wiretap, it requires - a wiretap requires a court order. Nothing has
changed, by the way. When we're talking about chasing down terrorists, we're
talking about getting a court order before we do so. It's important for our
fellow citizens to understand, when you think Patriot Act, constitutional
guarantees are in place when it comes to doing what is necessary to protect
our homeland, because: we value the Constitution." -George W. Bush, April
20, 2004

Which ones do you think does the most damage to our liberty and trust in our
leadership?

Physics humor

A (red) bumper sticker on a Volkswagen Westfalia on UT campus yesterday:

"If this sticker is blue, you're driving too fast"


(If you're not familiar with the Westfalia, it's the camping version of the VW Bus.)