A leading US securities regulator Tuesday issued a rare warning to investors over the record $321bn of debt being used to buy stocks and bonds.
Debt underlies every good thing in America
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Author Archives: the editor
I always knew that fancy toilets were a bad idea.
Inspired to terror by uncompromising evening newspaper headlines such as “Toto to fix buttock-scorching bidets”, nearly 50,000 Washlet owners yesterday jammed the company’s information lines. Although no injuries have yet been reported in connection with Toto’s combustible conveniences, many “near-miss” victims have come forward to describe horrified disbelief as their lavatories unexpectedly set themselves ablaze.
Some of the benefits of exercise may be related to the placebo effect.
How is this for an abstract….
ABSTRACT—In a study testing whether the relationship between exercise and health is moderated by one’s mind-set, 84 female room attendants working in seven different hotels were measured on physiological health variables affected by exercise. Those in the informed condition were told that the work they do (cleaning hotel rooms) is good exercise and satisfies the Surgeon General’s recommendations for an active lifestyle. Examples of how their work was exercise were provided. Subjects in the control group were not given this information. Although actual behavior did not change, 4 weeks after the intervention, the informed group perceived themselves to be getting significantly more exercise than before. As a result, compared with the control group, they showed a decrease in weight, blood pressure, body fat, waist-to-hip ratio, and body mass index. These results support the hypothesis that exercise affects health in part or in whole via the placebo effect.
It’s the little things that make a job enjoyable…
This fun little essay that I found (h/t The Survival Blog) just goes to prove that it is the small things that can make a job enjoyable. Who won’t enjoy making a navy fighter jock feel slow?
What do you get when the Chicken Man flies for the first time?
For some reason, his first flight brought forth a sermon from the Chicken Man. We were hoping for a tale of disaster and woe. But we will excuse him for we know that he was disappointed when he did not get to see any real mountains.
Poem of the Week: 4/15/07-4/21/07
For Tatterdemalion’s sake, this week’s poem is Polonius’ advice to his son Laertes in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Rant of the Week: 4/15/07-4/21/07
For this week’s rant, we bring you a rant from the Tatterdemalion. It is part a review of a site devoted to fashion watching on the streets of New York City and part mockery of people’s views on fashion.
Essay of the Week: 4/15/07-4/21/07
The Washington Post did an experiment. If they got the man who is thought by some to be the world’s best violinist to play as street musician for an hour, how many people would stop and listen?
For this week’s essay we have selected the article that detailed the results of that experiment.
It made me think of how many interesting, talented, and knowledgeable people are ignored in this world because they are not labeled by the authorities as being worthy of note.
The other side of the coin
There has been a lot of mockery of the British military as a result of the recent performance of the British hostages in Iran. If you have read that mockery, and more importantly, if you have taken part in that mockery, you ought to read this piece by Michael Yon who rode with the British into what they knew was going to be an ambush.
For a less personal view of the battle, you can read this piece in the Telegraph.
Some people just can't be made happy….
I am always being told that global warming is going to raise sea leaves and such. So you think that people living on an island would be happy to have an earthquake that rises said island up in the air by 10 feet. But no, they are crying about what a catastrophe it is (h/t Pierre Legrand).
In an instant, the grinding of the Earth’s tectonic plates in the 8.0 magnitude earthquake Monday forced the island of Ranongga up three metres (10 foot).
Submerged reefs that once attracted scuba divers from around the globe lie exposed and dying after the quake raised the mountainous landmass, which is 32-kilometres (20-miles) long and 8-kilometres (5-miles) wide.
Corals that used to form an underwater wonderland of iridescent blues, greens and reds now bleach under the sun, transforming into a barren moonscape surrounding the island.
The stench of rotting fish and other marine life stranded on the reefs when the seas receded is overwhelming and the once vibrant coral is dry and crunches underfoot.
Dazed villagers stand on the shoreline, still coming to terms with the cataclysmic shift that changed the geography of their island forever, pushing the shoreline out to sea by up to 70 metres.
Snark aside, I do feel for the actual people affected, but I think that it is cool that an earthquake can raise an entire Island by 10 feet.