John Hodgman at Radio & TV Correspondents' Dinner

John Hodgman at Radio & TV Correspondents' Dinner | quietube

Nice video of Hodgman's speech including the slides of his presentation. Geeky highlights include references to Dune, hobbits, Conan (the Barbarian), and of course ... Star Trek (mainly Spock and the Vulcan salute).

And the three-part answers are (from geeky memory): Shai-hulud, a thumper, and the Water of Life.

Enjoy

BSG at the UN: Wow, That Actually Worked!

BSG at the UN: Wow, That Actually Worked! | Geekdad from Wired.com

Now, if we can only run the rest of the world according to proper science fiction principles.

On a more serious note, it is a bit ironic that our "real" leaders don't seem to be interested and/or able to move us toward the more utopian views of the future. Maybe we do need more creative folks to get involved. They can't do as bad as the existing class of professional oligarchs.

I, for one, am looking forward to working with our new sci-fi overlords.

Obligatory: "So say we all!"

Does ABC News understand how income tax works?

Media Matters -
Does ABC News understand how income tax works?

Are people really this stupid (or more charitably, ignorant of how the US tax system works)?! And the people in the article are highly educated (an attorney and a dentist, for example).

ABC covered fairly well-off people talking about reducing their income to below $250k to avoid the increased taxes (or reduced reductions, more accurately) proposed by the President. They seem to think that as soon as you earn that last penny to go over the line, all your income is suddenly taxed at a higher rate. Very wrong. Only the incremental income beyond the line ($250k in this example) is taxed at the higher rate. If you earned $251k, only the last $1k would be taxed at the higher rate.

Do people really think someone making $251k would pay huge amounts more in taxes than someone making $249k?! This would explain a great deal about why various arguments about increasing rates on the highest tax brackets get any traction.

Banking on the Brink

Banking on the Brink

Another nice analysis of our financial situation by Paul Krugman.  I hate seeing people dance around the taboo on using the work, "nationalization".  And here, Krugman lays it out: the only stock value left in some of these banks is provided by government guarantees or hopes of a government backstop.  Some of these big banks are already effectively nationalized in all but name, because they are entirely dependent on government funds and promises to avoid failure.  As has been stated before: we are nationalizing risk and privatizing gain.

Is Google Really Using 21x The Bandwidth It Pays For? | Techdirt

Is Google Really Using 21x The Bandwidth It Pays For? | Techdirt

Good article discussing the lunacy of the telcos' anti-net neutrality arguments.  It boils down to one thing: they want to charge twice for the same thing.

And this makes a hat trick for Paul today, as I play catch up.

Capitol Words: What Your Congress Person Really Talks About - ReadWriteWeb

Capitol Words: What Your Congress Person Really Talks About - ReadWriteWeb

Another great link from Paul.  We should be making better use of the technologies of the Internet to make information like voting records, donations, and statements available to everyone.  For a democracy to function, accurate and timely information is a requirement.

Credit Suisse to Use Illiquid Assets to Pay Bonuses

Credit Suisse to Use Illiquid Assets to Pay Bonuses

A great idea via by friend, Paul.  This would help out and it is very poetic.  The assets they helped create and buy should be the basis of their bonuses (if any).

Nobel Physicist Chosen To Be Energy Secretary - washingtonpost.com

Nobel Physicist Chosen To Be Energy Secretary - washingtonpost.com

It is such a nice change to have someone who actually knows something about science involved.  Maybe it is from watching too much semi-Utopian Star Trek as a kid, but I feel more scientific and logical thinking would improve things in Washington.