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New York: Some Feel Your Pain |
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| Topic: Society |
9:24 am EST, Nov 7, 2004 |
Disconsolate New Yorkers describe the rest of us as "obtuse," "shortsighted" and "redneck." Now that's what I call "honoring diversity and having compassion for people with different lifestyles"! New York: Some Feel Your Pain |
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| Topic: Society |
9:11 am EST, Nov 7, 2004 |
I have read "Two Nations Under God." I wish to write you as a representative of the "other nation." That Two-Nation Feeling |
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| Topic: Society |
10:50 pm EST, Oct 31, 2004 |
Look-Look is a youth culture company dedicated to building a community of young and powerful voices and getting their ideas heard by corporations, the media, and adult culture at large. For the past four years, we have been building up a network of contributors -- sort of our own CNN but staffed by people between the ages of 14 and 30. We started out with one person and we're now 30,000 strong. Over and over again, we kept hearing from our correspondents that they wanted a showcase for their creativity, one that would treat their work with respect and push them beyond their limits. Look-Look Magazine in exactly that. Follow the "submissions" link to view the photo gallery. Look-Look Magazine |
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Thomas Friedman at the United Nations |
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| Topic: Society |
6:10 pm EDT, Oct 30, 2004 |
On the morning of October 27, Thomas Friedman gave a keynote address at the United Nations in which he outlined the key themes of his next book, "The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century." It is liable to make you think, "I could have written that." Thomas Friedman at the United Nations |
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| Topic: Society |
8:39 am EDT, Oct 28, 2004 |
Some have marveled at Mr. Bush's refusal to admit any mistakes in Iraq. But what looks like negative feedback to some of us ... may be positive feedback, proof that God is there, testing your faith, strengthening your resolve. This, I think, is Mr. Bush's optimism: In the longest run, divinely guided decisions will be vindicated, and any gathering mountains of evidence to the contrary may themselves be signs of God's continuing involvement. It's all good. Faith, Hope and Clarity |
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Americans Getting Taller, Much Heavier |
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| Topic: Society |
9:51 pm EDT, Oct 27, 2004 |
Americans are getting a little taller and a lot fatter. Obesity, aided by poor diet and lack of activity, threatens to overtake tobacco use as the leading preventable cause of death. "Everyone has a leaf blower. Ten years ago, people had rakes." "What will happen with the next generation of adults is really scary." An average 15-year-old boy weighed 135.5 pounds in 1966 and 150.3 pounds by 2002. The full report is at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad347.pdf Americans Getting Taller, Much Heavier |
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How To Think About Public Diplomacy |
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| Topic: Society |
1:39 am EDT, Oct 26, 2004 |
This short paper is worth reading; there are some good thoughts here on some hard problems. Increasingly, I find a certain confluence between the uninspired laziness of the American mass[ively] media^hocre and the weak-spiritedness of our public diplomacy. Care should be taken in the labeling of adversaries so as not unintentionally to disparage those to whom the United States is trying to appeal. Whether there are circumstances in which intentional disparagement may be warranted remains an open issue. The vituperative rhetoric of pre-prison Nelson Mandela stands in stark contrast to the modulated discourse of Martin Luther King. Perhaps Mandela in his pre-imprisonment phase considered attaining the support of moderates to be so unlikely that the way to move forward was not through internal change, but through a greater polarization to galvanize the situation to crisis levels and thereby compel action from the international community. The Middle East must be Born Again! How To Think About Public Diplomacy |
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John Gilmore: 'I'm Right, And You Know It!' |
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| Topic: Society |
1:02 am EDT, Oct 26, 2004 |
It's clear that freedom of speech also includes freedom to listen. John Gilmore drops his rhetorical sledgehammer on TSA's pinhead, drawing on a century of Supreme jurisprudence to demonstrate the error of their ways. He is, of course, absolutely right on point, but that does not excuse his extreme Constitutional fixation. John seems determined to prove the Wrongness of TSA's plan, and in the process totally misses (or ignores) the folly of it. Russ Nelson promptly chimes in, echoing the nugget of wisdom proffered by a short pull on the cord of his Bruce Schneier talking plush doll. "Hey, guys -- it won't even work!" (We would have also accepted: "Security is a Process!") The question we should ask ourselves is, What should we do? John Gilmore: 'I'm Right, And You Know It!' |
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| Topic: Society |
10:21 am EDT, Oct 24, 2004 |
I found an abandoned grocery list in a Schnuck's parking lot in St. Louis in 1996 or 1997. I decided to keep them every time I came across one. And the internet is a great place to do stupid things. So here it is. Grocery Lists |
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Freedom Is Not Just a Slogan |
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| Topic: Society |
9:50 am EDT, Oct 24, 2004 |
The essential element of a democratic society -- trust -- has been weakened, as secrecy, mendacity and intimidation have become the hallmarks of this administration. Rhetoric matters. Freedom Is Not Just a Slogan |
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