Free speech is violence

And war is peace.

I'll just leave this here:

Elon Musk is Making My Job at Twitter Unsafe!!! pic.twitter.com/YZQqgRc2K7

— Danny Polishchuk (@Dannyjokes) April 14, 2022

Thursday blend: postponed edition

Exhausted, probably sick with something I'm guessing. Just don't have the energy or time. And it's Halloween in a few days. I never ever have enough time to properly prepare for and enjoy this "holdiay."

So I will be postponing this Thursday blend for a little while. It will be the Halloween blend (I hope).

Until then, here's stuff:

So revealing that Facebook employees never even *think* to have internal debates about the propriety of non-conservative media. Just doesn't occur to them that those outlets could also be responsible for propagating "misinformation" or causing "harm." Never crosses their minds pic.twitter.com/b5GIB3WuEg

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) October 27, 2021

Financial independence: movie day

It's one of those days, like in a questionably competent public school where the teacher is lazy and makes the class watch a plausibly educational movie.

But I think I found some good videos and I do want to share. Enjoy:

And this one gave me a chuckle toward the end:

Internet politics

Just checking in

Sometimes I go for weeks (or months) without really wanting to write. Well, I want to, just not bad enough to log in and write something minimally intelligent and fairly coherent. It's like twitter is too short and weird, and a blog is just too formal (not really--that's just how I perceive it, which probably inhibits me from writing more frequently). I guess it's a psychological hurdle I should just plow through more often.

Like so:

Hey guys, I'm gonna share a video because I thought it was kinda funny, and stroked my ego because I, too, am a grammar nazi (all you 80s kids & nerdy types will probably particularly enjoy this as well):

By the way, I did finish the book I promised to review. I took notes, bookmarked several pages, have sort of a draft in my head, but never got around to writing it when it was still blogospherically relevant. So, unless I'm stricken with acute debilitating lethargy, it will be up soon.

Dude

I was going to put this in the Mystery Link in the sidebar, but it's just too good (too good to check as well).

But my skeptical spidey sense is going crazy.

He's like, living the life of James Bond, without any actual spying . . . just consistently escaping death in sensational ways.

Little late on this

But good stuff.

Maybe I should hang out on twitter more often.

Linkables

Lot's of interesting stuff, not enough energy (nor expertise) to write about them. So here's some links:

Funding fake charities and sock puppets.

Restaurant googles you before it seats you.

I never knew how precariously efficacious the IRS really was.

Kyriarchy.

Utah police search entire prescription history of United Fire Authority employees, because some morphine went missing, which nobody was ever charged with stealing. Sounds like good fishing.

Rand Paul is too scary! Well, he's a lot better than his dad, but he is different. Can't have that.

List of Democrats who took money from the Koch brothers. A sizable list, too. I guess it's time to find a new bogeyman and MoveOn.org.

Civil Disobedience: King versus Huemer. Should one accept punishment for breaking an unjust law or no?

Sunday Miscellany

So I've been reading a few Neoreactionary blogs. Frankly, because they are several standard deviations more interesting (wild, really) than your ubiquitous conservative or liberal blog. Also, a dark-libertarianish blog, some Cathedral (according to neoreactionaries, Cathedral refers to the media-academic-politcal complex, but as an adjective it usually means mainstream) blogs. And an eco-something blog--haven't got too far into this one yet, but talented writing so far.

Jump down the blogospheric rabbit hole with me, it's a fun ride.

In no particular order:

Outside In

Marginal Revolution

Archdruid Report

Conversable Economist

Slate Star Codex

Vox Popoli

Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality

Occam's Razor

Unqualified Reservations

Broke Bad

I started watching Breaking Bad in 2010, I think. I quickly got caught up and watched it every week since. I have to say it was my favorite show. Sad to see it go, but content it never went on long enough to get boring.

What I appreciated most, was the way Mr. White always got out of a bad situation. It was always plausible, cleverly done, and the show's execution of such escapes were flawless.

The show had its flaws and a few plot holes, but the way it was done made it difficult to notice.

[Minor Spoiler Alert]


That being said, I thought the ending could've been better. It was only mildly clever. A lot of White's plan depended on everything going just right with a good dose of luck. Sure enough, it did (although for a moment it looked like it could've gone south, which would have been another way to end the series--having Mr. White's luck run out). Compared to some of his other clever stunts on the show, his last trick seemed subpar. I mean, it's comparable to a deus ex machina: Hey look at this gadget I built that will save the day! I'm not a fan of deus ex machina--that's just bad writing.

Don't get me wrong, the ending was good, it just wasn't Breaking Bad good.

[End Spoiler Alert]


I guess the point of this post is that Breaking Bad is a good (arguably the best) show, go watch it; also check out The Wire.

Libertarians the new Commies?

Nick Gillespie reviews a shabbily written op-ed in Bloomberg, to which Instapundit asks:

DOES THIS MEAN THAT IN 50 YEARS OUR PLATFORM WILL BE LARGELY ENACTED WITHOUT ANYONE ADMITTING IT?

Here's hoping.

A primitive, but flamboyantly promiscuous species, Captain

If you're one of the few who haven't seen this yet, please do. A quick and dirty critique of our evolving culture, using beloved Trek icons.

First contact doesn't go so well: