text:
A methodological point and its substantive implications
Starting from the status quo at any given time, tax cuts, spending cuts, deregulation, free trade agreements, and privatization (group 1) are policy changes. That means that they must go through the same policy process, legislative and administrative, that tax increases, spending increases, regulation, trade barriers, and nationalization (group 2) do.
It's methodologically illegitimate to use public choice-inflected scepticism about the policy process to the policy changes in group 2 but not to those in group 1. One can't criticize a proposal from group 2 on the grounds that really existing legislative and administrative processes will lead to a more-regressive, more market-incumbent-protecting, more corporatist outcome than its advocates imagine, and then advocate proposals from group 1 as if they'll be enacted in just the form that some economist imagines as the best policy. The sausage factory remains the sausage factory and politics remains politics. Those who are sympathetic to markets are often far too willing to pretend that a free market is the baseline, and so only group 2 policies require political action. They imagine that it takes active effort to hold up a state intervention, and that all that is required to restore the market is to relax that effort– let the ball drop.
In fact, the status quo is the baseline, and departures from it in either direction are vulnerable to the same procedural pathologies. Group 1 and Group 2 both require active departures from the status quo; neither is a passive relaxation.
The belief that ideally free markets are offer the best hope for sustained poverty relief and improvement in the well-being of the materially worst-off does not imply that one is morally entitled to just say "freer markets and smaller government" in lieu of attention to the actual distributive consequences of actual policy changes. The tax cuts, spending cuts, deregulation, free trade agreements, and privatization that we actually get in the world are vulnerable to all the pathologies diagnosed by public choice theory, which are often pathologies of capture by the already-wealthy, by market incumbents, by the already-powerful. Group 1 policies might well not have the virtues that the ideal market would have; indeed, they predictably will not. Without active attention to their effects on the less-advantaged, without an active insistence on "smaller and more progressive" rather than just "smaller" government, those who support markets are easily taken in by Group 1 policies that lack the moral virtues they want to claim for markets generally.
In other words, methodologically consistent application of the diagnosis of political pathologies pushes in the direction of something like BHL. (This is, as always, me calling for consistent non-ideal theory, rather than offering a supposedly ideal-theoretic position.)
FN: I think there's been some recognition of these points in libertarian circles with respect to free trade agreements, which at this point are often devices for exporting incumbent-protecting and regressive US intellectual property rules to other countries. I'm suggesting that we learn to expect and be wary of that kind of thing more generally.
Still, it seems funny to call deregulation a policy in the same sense that it seems funny to call vegetarianism a preference for how you like your steak prepared ("extra-extra-rare, with hooves intact, please").
Bruno Mynthi Showers
I think he's getting at something like this (credit Roderick T. Long):
Similar concerns apply to that other conservative virtue-term, "deregulation." From a libertarian standpoint, deregulating should mean the removal of governmental directives and interventions from the sphere of voluntary exchange. But when a private entity is granted special governmental privileges, "deregulating" it amounts instead to an increase, not a decrease, in governmental intrusion into the economy. To take an example not exactly at random, if assurances of a tax-funded bailout lead banks to make riskier loans than they otherwise would, then the banks are being made freer to take risks with the money of unconsenting taxpayers. When conservatives advocate this kind of deregulation they are wrapping redistribution and privilege in the language of economic freedom. When conservatives market their plutocratic schemes as free-market policies, can we really blame liberals and leftists for conflating the two? (Well, okay, yes we can. Still, it is a mitigating factor.)
Sean II
"But when a private entity is granted special governmental privileges, "deregulating" it amounts instead to an increase, not a decrease, in governmental intrusion into the economy."
That's not always true. Public provision is so bad that even a phony privatization scheme run by crony capitalists is usually better. For example: "privatized" DMVs are NOT a free market, but they're much better than pure state provision, as anyone can tell you who's experienced both.
A lot of this has to do with labor freedom. The crony capitalist may hold a monopoly for himself, but he at least can still fire non-performing workers. The characteristic feature of public agencies is that no one ever gets fired, and so as it were every job holder becomes a monopolist unto himself.
I take your point, but there's no sense pretending that, just because it's bad, pseudo-privatization is worse than direct public provision. It's not.
If Levy's post is aimed at conservatives who support bad ideas about privatization and deregulation, then I think you make a good point.
If, on the other hand, Levy writes to fellow libertarians who might be making that mistake, then I think he's overlooking something important: all policy proposals come from democrats and republicans. Forcing libertarians to assume that the only "real world" policy options are those coming from Ds or Rs ultimately casts aside the benefits of libertarianism itself.
I'm a bit lost. Is there anyone who advocates for "assurances of a tax-funded bailout" and also calls this a "deregulation"?
I don't recall coming across anyone who does, though this may be down to bad memory.
What passes for "deregulation" typically is different regulation. Every time I cross the Canadian border, I'm reminded that the North American Free Trade Agreement actually regulates trade rather than "freeing" it.
No argument here. So what is the solution? Do we reject deregulation in the "real world?" No libertarian economic policy will ever be proposed through the democrat/republican machine. Shall we stop saying we favor deregulation?
Yes. Don't favor "deregulation;" (except as a shorthand among people who already agree with you) favor specific changes in specific regulations.
Isn't this a needlessly laborious point to make? Do you really think it's a good idea, when talking to non-libertarians, to suggest that you don't favor deregulation, or that gee whiz you might or might not? That's just disingenuous. You can point to the flaws of past attempts at deregulation without having to hum and haw about it.
You can advocate "deregulation", but this word alone doesn't tell me much about what you advocate as a practical matter. "Deregulation" typically describes a policy change within an already complex system of regulation, and I typically eschew such policy discussion.
I'll discuss hypothetical policies for the sake of argument, but I don't expect libertarians ever to create an ideally libertarian society (in my way of thinking) from the top down by taking command of the most central organ of an established state, like the U.S. government, and substituting "libertarian" policies for established policy at this level.
The libertarian society that I imagine is possible only as people freely constitute self-regulating, intentional communities and effectively avoid regulation by established states. This society emerges through libertarian secession rather than ascension of libertarians to the heights of political power. As a practical matter, "libertarian central authority" is a contradiction in terms.
This is precisely what I was afraid of. It simply won't do to say that deregulation essentially reduces to "taking command" of anything. This is not Bizarro World, where deregulation means the opposite of what it means. Deregulation always means relinquishing command, and so it goes when I use that word. The fact that politicians engage in double-talk to sell ideas to less-careful thinkers does not imply that I should stop using words according to their actual definitions.
So Levy's point would be better stated as, "Be careful, because sometimes when politicians say they're deregulating or privatizing, really they're not." And who would disagree?
But to take it that extra step where we suddenly flip the definition of words like deregulation and privatization around to mean the exact opposite of what they are, just so that you can say, "Let's consider each policy on its individual merits" feels like trolling the libertarian community to me.
My apologies to Jacob Levy for saying so. I generally agree with him, and I agree with the gist of his point here, too. It's just that he's taken it too far, for no reason other than that it feels a little more disruptive to the libertarian psyche.
Another issue involves the scope of any "deregulation" or "privatization". Removing some regulatory constraints without removing others doesn't necessarily increase the freedom of most people from regulatory constraints. This sort of "deregulation" may only shift authority from one regulatory agency to another, nominally "private" regulator.
Yes, and it may be a shift that needs to happen first, before true privatization or deregulation can occur. Perhaps many other details on top that, too. As long as the compass points toward a freer world, that is what we mean when we say privatize and deregulate. I think this is more or less obvious to most of us, isn't it?
I think you and I could agree on what constitutes effective deregulation, but in a real policy debate involving the reform of an existing statutory system, you and I aren't the only or even very significant participants. For this reason, we might employ our time more fruitfully by discussing a "utopian" community that we might create ourselves outside of the regulatory framework of an existing state. This approach to libertarian reform is more entrepreneurial than political. How do we create a community beyond the reach of an existing state, and how do we make this community attractive to potential members? The FSP, Seasteading and similar efforts pursue this approach, and the approach seems more likely to succeed.
There are some cases where free-market liberals like me should curb their enthusiasm. I favour low taxes. The temptation is to favour tax exemptions, but that is the opposite of deregulations.
It's easy to understand my objection to that by replacing the phrase "taxes" with the phrase "summary executions." In that case, you'd find it perfectly reasonable to accept any exemption, no matter how poor the excuse for it was, because a policy of summary execution is simply unjust.
Or, if you take the "tax exemptions distort the market" approach to the problem, then the point is that it is taxes that distort the market, not tax exemptions.
Again, I feel that this line of thinking flips definitions and facts on their heads. Surely one tax regime is better than another, but the question is where the compass is pointing. A 20% tax on imports is one for which any exemption will improve outcomes, no matter how unfair it might be that a few of us are stuck paying the tax.
How about an exemption for those who make a large donation to the political party in charge?
Again, I don't see the problem. If you could buy your way out of the tax code, wouldn't you? Why should we fault rational agents for acting rationally? If the system is corrupt, that is the system's fault. It's pointless to lament the behavior of people trying to escape the iron first every chance they get. Some people emigrate, some people fight back, and some people try to play the hand their dealt.
I am afraid I missed something in your comments. I did not realise you were only discussing individual's responses to the system. I thought that your line of argument was intended to aim at the system.
My objection to a tax exemption given to those who donate to the political party in charge is that the system is corrupt. I think such a tax exemption would make pretty much any tax system worse.
I wasn't aware I was doing any lamenting on this point. As for faulting people for behaving rationally, well, if it's rational for me to do so, then why would you argue against that?
Just for the sake of argument, try replacing "tax exemption" with "exemption from summary execution." In that scenario, it would be difficult to argue that people shouldn't pay to save their own lives, if they can manage to do so, under the reasoning that some people cannot pay to save themselves, thus the system is corrupt. Don't you agree?
Then, does paying to save one's own life make the summary execution system worse? Personally, I don't think so. The problem with a corrupt system is not that people can find unequal means to bribe their way out of tyranny, but that tyranny exists in the first place.
So why not aim our criticism at that, rather than suggesting that it's not fair that the very rich can afford bribes. Putting an end to bribes will only result in more total disutility – whether through taxation or execution – because the source of that disutility is the state, not the bribe.
It's almost like saying the lives of homeless people could be improved if they stopped smoking crack. They are schizophrenic and self-medicating. The crack is not the problem. The schizophrenia is the problem. Treat the problem, not the symptom, that's my point.
A couple of thoughts. First, let's say Congress passes a law that lets the President just give any person or corporation any amount of money that the President wants, as long as that amount is less than that person or corporation's tax liability. Do you think that it would be fair to say that this law would make America more free or more libertarian than it was before the law was passed? How about the law that Congress passed within the past year or so that removed the exemption from insider trading laws that members of Congress have had for the longest time. Did that law move the country in a more statist direction? These seem like odd conclusions to me, but from what you've written here it seems like that's what you are saying.
Second, I'm not convinced that providing an escape valve for rich and/or powerful people is the way to minimize disutility (I'm also not convinced that minimizing disutility is what we should be aiming for at all, but that's another matter). I think you are absolutely right that the laws themselves are the problem and should be changed. But I think they are far less likely to be changed if people who are in a position to change them aren't affected by them.
Great points, and I mostly agree with you. I don't think anyone – libertarian or otherwise – would call the examples you cite "deregulation" or "privatization" or "tax decreases." (Although that first one sure sounds a lot like a Basic Income Guarantee, doesn't it?) That's why I can agree with you that such policies are terrible abuses of power, but still hold fast to my claim that there is nothing wrong with attempting to bribe one's way free from tyranny.
Where I agree with Levy is that details matter. If the rich pay to enact a Basic Pork-Barrel Guarantee for themselves, then this is bad for liberty. If the rich undermine tax compliance, then this is good. One strengthens the state and one weakens it. Assuming we are all right that the state has too much power, it's difficult for me to understand the "other side" on this one.
A system with summary executions would be very bad.
A system with summary executions where the rich could buy their way out by bribing the party in power would be even worse in my opinion than in one where summary executions were applied regardless of wealth.
The problem with a corrupt system is that it has an increased incentive to stay tyrannical, as that keeps the money flowing.
That's a fair point.
extra- extra- Hare… m i right? guys?
Kevin Vallier
I think the left-wing market anarchists have related thoughts about privatization.
One quibble, though: I think whether the methodological point holds is partly a function of your normative standard of evaluation. If we're just looking at getting from x to y via an increase in good consequences and a decrease in bad ones, your point is strongest.
I would add one point: there are ugly procedural things that happen when you initiate policy change, and those who propose change should have to take them into account, exactly as indicated. But there are also ugly procedural things that lead to policy inertia, where a policy lasts forever, even as the circumstances that motivated it radically change. In other words, to be truly consistent, you have to apply a set of public choice arguments to group 1 and group 2 policy changes. But you also have to apply a different set of public choice arguments to the absence of group 1 / group 2 policy changes. In many cases, the absence of a policy change is driven by the fact that, without change, status quo policies will increasingly help established interests.
Les Kyle Nearhood
Agreed, one of the worst of these inertia things is mission creep.
I'm not sure that either group understands government intervention in the economy, regardless of which party or ideology is behind the interventions or what form the interventions take, leads to less liberty, opportunity and prosperity for the majority of the people — each party favors powerful interests. It's power and control that remain steady and suppress economic growth and wide-spread wealth creation. Regulation can happen outside government intervention, especially in the Information Age. It's wrong-headed to think that regulation doesn't happen if an interventionist, progressive government is not involved.
"In fact, the status quo is the baseline, and departures from it in either direction are vulnerable to the same procedural pathologies."
Some years ago I listened to a lecture on the theory of "patchwork rights," as applied to Canada. The gist of the argument was that, because the political and legal system in Canada developed historically with different rights for different people (most specifically, aboriginals and French Canadians as distinct from everyone else), it was necessary to forever talk about rights in "patchwork" terms, where each group has its own special rights. In other words, a patchwork of rights, not strictly individual rights, is already the status quo in Canada and so it is simply methodologically incorrect to try to apply strictly individual rights, or blind justice.
The parallels to the argument above are obvious, and both arguments have the same flaw. Surely, it was wrong for Canada to not recognize the same rights for aboriginals, or for French Canadians, as it did for everyone else. So the status quo is not neutral, it is wrong by virtue of being the product of wrong reasoning and wrong action. Likewise, government policies that were wrong in the first place do not result in a neutral status quo, no matter how long they have been in place. Simply replace "tax increases, spending increases, regulation, trade barriers, and nationalization" with "slavery, censorship, genocide, and permanent martial law" and the point becomes obvious.
And no, I'm not equating the two lists in degree, only in kind.
I have some disagreements with you about the Canadian cases, but they're less important than this: you're talking about moral baselines. I'm talking about an empirical baseline.
Whether and when the status quo acquires moral baseline status is a complicated question, and the answer isn't "never." Expectations built on the basis of stable institutions matter; and sometimes the fact of stability itself counts as reason for us to hesitate even about our moral judgments against the state of affairs we dislike. (cf Hume, Burke, Hayek…) Often not, but sometimes.
But that has nothing to do with what I'm talking about here. The status quo is an empirical baseline, in a much more straightforward fashion; and I'm talking about what we predict will happen when changing it.
Jason, agreed that the status quo is an empirical baseline; however, part of that empirical baseline is that group 1 policy changes must surmount far many more obstacles than group 2 policy changes in order to be implemented.
This is related to a topic in economics: the theory of the second best. It means that when there are multiple departures from the optimum, removing one of them is not necessarily an improvement. So even if the corporate tax is a bad idea, creating one more loophole for one more industry is not necessarily a good thing. Every policy proposal bucket has to sit on its own bottom.
does not imply that one is morally entitled to just say "freer markets
and smaller government" in lieu of attention to the actual distributive
consequences of actual policy changes.
Surely, one's moral entitlement to say just say "freer markets and smaller government" in lieu of attention to actual distributive consequences comes from the interests of brevity?
I mean sure, in the real world, politicians can easily describe something as "deregulation" or "freer markets" when it's quite the opposite. But trying to word everything so as to stand up to the potential future manipulations means weighing down one's speech so much that I think one is morally entitled to often ignore that concern.
It's like "food". What's sustenance to me might be deadly poison to someone else (eg if they have an egg allergy), but it's jolly useful to be able to talk about food without spelling out all the exceptions and caveats all the time. The potential egg allergy only comes into play once you get down to specifics.
If a free market production system (or your preferred euphemism for capitalism,) is defined as the optimal possible distribution of property and income in which the only significant possible source of market failure is force, aka the state, the government, there is only one methodological discrepancy, over protective tariffs, an issue that has proven contentious for centuries now. Good luck resolving that one.
The methodological problem is not that the process can be captured in both categories of policies, the methodological problem is the assumption that only the state can be the cause of market failures. This is a gigantic counterfactual argument supported only by circular reasoning, double standards and selective evidence.
There is a methodological inconsistency, which is the bleeding heart's failure to consistently avow that what the market dispenses is good, regardless of how offensive to humanitarians sympathies it may be. Being a bleeding heart means being incapable of the market's tough love I guess.
Steve, capitalism does not need to be euphemized.
Theresa Klein
Nobody is defining a free market production system that way.
The argument is that within a certain legal framework, which includes government-enforced property rights, contract enforcement and liability (all of which are essentially government forcibly restricting the use of force in private affairs), that markets will tend to lead to pareto optimal outcomes.
Theresa: there are some other rather heavy assumptions needed to get to pareto-optimal outcomes, like average cost being equal to or below marginal cost at all points.
Yes, they do, they just don't like being caught at it!
Even if you could dismiss all the anarcho-capitalists that way, the so-called legal framework is not a foundation of world economy, which is conspicuously not run by a leviathan nanny state! It is not even a serious principle in the US, where only select government failures to enforce property rights, contracts and liability…but failure to enforce public safety on whole areas is not even a theoretical issue!
Uh, market failures are defined as failures caused by markets' unregulated operations. The normal libertarian criticism is that most commentators ignore government failures.
This comment really reads like your entire understanding of economics comes from reading a D-grade Econ 101 student essay.
Stephen Ryan
"Uh" is a noise one makes in conversation, kind of like a tic. It gives one time to think. It should not be used in email. If you do it again, I am going to tell on you.
True, I'll try to cut it out.
Yes, libertarians do avow that market failures are oxymorons for government failures. Those libertarians who come close to conceding there might be such a thing as market failures, are regarded with deep suspicion as being traitors to the cause. The heavy criticism levied at the OP for merely suggesting that not all tax cuts, spending cuts and deregulation/privatization are beneficial to the majority is precisely because all market outcomes are deemed to be optimal, by virtue of being produced by free markets. Any and all supposed defects of such a system are 1.) caused by government interventions which can only fail because they intrinsically violate the optimal justice of the free market 2.) misperceived or misrepresented by ideologists of one evil kind or another, who eristically argue against the good of the market 3.) nevertheless the best of all possible worlds given fallen human nature and the harsh laws of nature.
My comment was largely correct capsule descriptions in ordinary language pointing out the OP was violating libertarian dogmas in a futile attempt to make it look good Your impression that they are stupid thus is potentially enormously valuable to you. You should follow up post-haste with a study of real world economic history and anthropology and sociology and the use of everyday empathy.
Those libertarians who come close to conceding there might be such a thing as market failures, are regarded with deep suspicion as being traitors to the cause.
You've been reading that Econ 101 D-grade student essay again.
The heavy criticism levied at the OP for merely suggesting that not all tax cuts, spending cuts and deregulation/privatization are beneficial to the majority
So according to you: "Heavy criticism" = "thinking someone is a traitor to the cause". Oh dear, not only have you no idea what the words "capitalism" or "market failure" mean in common discourse, you also have no idea of the value of rational disagreement. .
May I refer you to this excellent essay by J.S. Mills on the value of freedom of speech particularly heavy criticism?
My comment was largely correct capsule descriptions in ordinary language pointing out the OP was violating libertarian dogmas in a futile attempt to make it look good
Nope. You said nothing of the kind. You waffled on using words and phrases without regard for their common definitions and then criticising them based on your misreadings.
Epic fail on your part, because my loose everyday English beats your phony "common definitions" like a Chinese gong. In "common definitions," the US is a free enterprise society, therefore claims of economic injustice have to be labeled market failures. The common definition of the government as class neutral and democratic means economic injustice is not a government failure. If you don't like it, your personal dictionary still doesn't count.
By the way, if you people understood genuine "common definitions" you could understand when to use the term "privatization" in preference to "deregulation."
Lastly, it's not me you or the OP need to convince, it's your fellow libertarians. Guess what? It is not agreed that corruption of the political process in tax and spending cuts or privatization/deregulation matters, because, just like I said, libertarians do not agree that there are any economic injustices (called by normal people "market failures.")
Yep, you're still stuck on that D-grade Econ 101 student essay, aren't you?
And you've made it clear that you understand zip about linguistics, while you're at it.
It may be that there are procedural pathologies for regulation and deregulation alike, but more extensive regulatory frameworks have their own state dependent pathologies which less extensive regulatory frameworks don't have.
Yes. Roughly, Levy seems to be arguing that in the real world pro free-market legislation is created in just the same sausage grinding process as interventionist regulation. This is correct. But the current legislation on the table is only one part of the picture. Legislation can also create and destroy bureaucracies which are subject to public-choice pathologies and they can create unintended consequences that bring in more legislation.
Legislating agencies away solves the first problem, and a political culture that is skeptical of new laws helps with the second problem. But Levy has a point that good legislation of this type need not be directly pro free-market. Repealing tax exemptions is helpful, even though thats a tax increase. EU machinery to enforce free trade is probably harmful, or at least some parts of it are.
a simpler tax code is arguably more free market than a more complicated one. If you think of it in terms of ease of doing business, knowing how to pay your taxes without hiring a team of lawyers makes doing business easier and ceteris paribus, cheaper.
Theresa Klein
This is sort of like arguing that Drano is just just as likely to clog the sink as coffee grounds because both of them go through the same pipe.
Les Kyle Nearhood
"Smaller and More Progressive", is sort of an oxymoron. I understand your point but the worst problem of highly involved progressive government is that it is usually large, both in scope and practice, and always growing.
This is an interesting read, I agree with Ryan Long– it is curious to think of deregulation as a policy. Last time I heard this idea it was in jest from Thomas J. Dilorenzo about policy written called deregulation-albeit was actual regulation not deregulation, but still, it seems like an oxymoron.
But, I think you are right and honestly I haven't done to much research into this. I spend most of my time loving free markets and learning about the theoretical economics and results of free markets. Basically, you have now shifted my focus from what I and liberty lovers feel the end scenario ought to be, to how we get there. Like it or not, that includes policy decisions.
Good points sir!
Theresa Klein
I think a structured approach to deregulation might work best. Instead of starting off by insisting that less regulation is always better, thus encouraging people to lobby for targeted tax cuts and regulatory exemptions, start off by insisting that regulations be uniform, and then, once uniformity is acheived, push towards making them simpler and less restrictive.
The benefit of this approach is that it reduces opportunities for corruption and cronyism as deregulation progresses, since it is harder to lobby for an exemption if the overriding governing principle is uniformity first.
That's a great idea.
'It's methodologically illegitimate to use public choice-inflected scepticism about the policy process to the policy changes in group 2 but not to those in group 1.'
Yes, but only if there is no Agent Principal Hazard, asymmetry of information, Preference Revelation problematic etc.
There really is no 'methodenstriet' here. True, in Steve Landsburg's la la land 'lump sum' taxes can be levied so he can prove stupid things like you'd rather be punched in the face than be punched in the face AND kicked in the balls.
But Landsburg is a joke.
What of your 'substantive implications'- are they sensible. You write- 'The belief that ideally free markets offer the best hope for sustained poverty relief and improvement in the well-being of the materially worst-off does not imply that one is morally entitled to just say "freer markets and smaller government" in lieu of attention to the actual distributive consequences of actual policy changes.'
This is mad. If I believe waving my magic wand will turn the world into treacle then this belief of mine does actually imply that if I wave my magic wand I expect to see the world turn into treacle. I am morally entitled to say 'yo, everything gonna be treacle coz I iz gonna wave my magic wand (give it me back, Bill Clinton, and put your dentures back in for Xssake).
Beliefs are beliefs, dude. They aint defeasible save by way of other supervening beliefs.
Getting back to the crux of your argument- what does it amount to? Institutional Rent Capture, nothing else. But, dude, we don't want Rent Capture AT ALL- either 'methodologically' (which is why we learn Game Theory to do Mechanism Design) or 'substantively' (which is why we aint fuckin Cyber Techno-Trotskyites or Gandhian goat herders or other such 'substantive rationality' with a predetermined terminus type shite.
I like the way you started frothing at the mouth with your italics re PATHOLOGIES OF CAPTURE. Clearly you have been captured and your captor is saying to you- 'It rubs the lotion on its skin or it gets the hose again'.
Heck, I feel for you dude. Same thing happened to my cousin Obama.
kay, just looked through your 'impossibility of ideal theory'- oh dear. Muth Rationality, dude? David Lewis on Conventions as Schelling focal points?
Coordination/ Discoordination problems actually do too exist and Evolution is clever at finding 'regret minimizing' 'zero envy' E.S.S solutions you cunt!
Fuck is wrong with you guys?
I think about wanting to be a nicer guy (Bleeding Heart) AND why my country (India) is so fucking poor because we have too many Vandana Shivas and Mahatmas and shite and also I fucking read the Mahabharata- the 'scripture for the stupid and slaves and drunkards and just totally shite'
– but that epic says do the fucking Statistical Game Theory- derive and then APPLY Hanann consistency or the multiplicative weighing algorithm or zero regret learning heuristics or whatever.
Why write the sort of shite I do? Fuck is wrong with you cunts?
Matthew DeCarlo
Did you just read Boettke & Martin's BIG critique again or something?
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text:
BENTON -- In a rematch of last year's Class 2 sectional match up, the Kelly Lady Hawks and the East Carter County Lady Cardinals will once again find themselves squaring off in the opening round of the Class 2 Missouri State softball tournament.
Holding the Lady Cardinals scoreless, Kelly scored a run in the first before adding two more in the seventh for a 3-0 win that advanced them to a quarterfinal contest with Belle High School, where their season ended with a 1-0 loss.
Though East Carter holds the edge this season after beating the Lady Hawks in their season opener, Kelly coach Melanie Heuring feels her squad has made big strides since then.
"We know we lost to them earlier in the year 2-1, but that was our first game of the season," she said. "I feel like we improved and we're a better team since that first game. I still look for it to a good game, but hopefully with a better outcome."
Much like the regular season, Kelly has continued their late-inning heroics into the post-season.
After opening up the Class 2, District 2 Tournament scoring two runs in the sixth for a 3-2 win over Crystal City, the Lady Hawks were forced to rally against St. Pius in the championship game.
Trailing 3-2 going into the sixth, Kelly once again came up with a 2-run rally and held on for a 4-3 win.
"I keep calling this team my comeback girls," Heuring said. "I don't know what it is about that they want to wait until the last couple of innings to decide to score, but it would be nice to get on the scoreboard early in this game."
East Carter also faced a close test in getting to sectionals, edging out Twin Rivers 4-3 in the championship game after opening up with a commanding 8-0 win over Thayer.
With her team sometimes struggling at the plate, Heuring credits the team's ability to manufacture runs and a strong defense as the key to her team's post-season success so far.
"We're definitely not hitting like what I want us to be, but they're doing other things to produce runs," she said. "They're getting their bunts down. They're getting those extra bases on stealing, being aggressive and things like that.
"If they can't produce at the plate they know they have to get their bunts down to get something started and put pressure on them. They also know that they can't have any 'E's' in the field so they don't give them any runs. Since we're not producing we can't give them very many."
Unlike last year, the Lady Hawks will have home field advantage at Kelly High School on Wednesday at 4 p.m.

subset: commoncrawl


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Researchers heal prostate cancer with novel cancer immune therapy
Leeds –UK researchers have cured mice xenografted with human prostate tumours with a new immune therapy approach. Until now, immune therapy approaches have been highly unsuccessful as each tumour has specific proteins and identifying the right antigens has been a huge challenge. However, researchers headed by Alan Melcher from University of Leeds and US researchers from Mayo Clinic in Rochester have solved this problem by expressing a virally expressed epitope library (VEEL) from normal human prostate. In mice, the researchers detected no autoimmunity. Furthermore, tumours that escaped immune selection adopted a new phenotype and could be treated with a second-line therapy. Most importantly, the DNA library which was expressed in the highly immunogenic vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), made the immune system 'self-select' the cancer antigens to which to respond and did not react against other healthy parts of the body. Also, the process of self-selection was triggered when the vaccine was injected into the bloodstream, an approach to vaccination that is far more practical than injecting directly into tumours. According to the researchers, use of the cDNA library led to presentation of a broad repertoire of undefined tumour-associated antigens, which reduced emergence of treatment-resistant variants and will permit rational, combined-modality approaches in the clinic.


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Other types of cooperation
An intergovernmental agreement concerning cooperation in the area of defence was signed in February 1997. The first joint committee on military cooperation was held in autumn 2002 in Tbilisi; the most recent one was held in Tbilisi in October 2006. The Satchkere mountain troop training centre, which was created with France's support and where French instructors provide training, was opened at the end of August 2006. In addition, several spots have been reserved for Georgian applicants in a training session in France (army health services, gendarmerie officer training school, CID, etc). French instructors provide training there and, at the beginning of 2010, NATO assigned the centre the status of training and coaching centre for the Partnership for Peace. The reinforcement of our defence cooperation with Georgia is symbolized by the presence of 173 Georgian soldiers within the French operation in Afghanistan.
Since September 2002, we have had an internal security attaché in Tbilisi with authority in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Minister Grigol Vashadze's visit to Paris in November 2009 was the occasion to sign a cooperation agreement in the area of internal security.
Updated on 25.11.10


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Be sure to check the steeple of the white church just beside the dock location. The First Lutheran Church is the favorite perch for the aptly named Bald Eagle, Luther.
The town had some nice shops, but, once again for a town of about 800, 23 jewelry stores seems like overkill.
Anchorage was good - highly recommend Flattop (watch for moose on the drive up) for viewing and City Diner for eating. We rented a car and drove to Seward - more spectacular scenery and wildlife. we visited Exit Glacier which was interesting and returned to Anchorage for some final shopping and departure home.
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The fiery and pervasive debate about war and nuclear weapons has been helpful in bringing global attention to its dangers. But there is one debate which has been conspicuous by its absence and is long overdue: the dangers of drones. This week US President Barack Obama appointed two drone 'enthusiasts' as his new defence secretary, Chuck Hagel, and his new CIA chief, Hohn Brennan. Obama himself is a great lover and great proponent of drones and has been employing this lethal weapon with supreme efficiency and scant regard for human lives, though not without criticism.
There is a dire need for a global debate on drones and the dangers it poses to global peace. According to latest reports, drones are now sweeping the world arms market. Around 10,000 drones are said to be in service, of which a thousand are armed and mostly American. The fact is these deadly flying machines have killed more non-combatant civilians than died in September 11.
The drone wars in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and the horn of Africa have caused killed children, women and thousands of other innocent people, but still there is no accountability, no questions asked about the legality and ethics, no justice to the victims, no remorse on the part of perpetrators of these crimes and what is more galling, there is no plan to either tone down or rethink the results of these operations. There reports in sections of Western media that Obama, who was emotional while talking about the Connecticut elementary school shooting last month in which 20 children were killed by a lone gunman, was hypocritical and insensitive, because far more innocent children have been killed in drone attacks. While the Connecticut shooting was carried out by a mentally deranged person, the drone attacks are perpetrated by American forces under the orders of Obama.
The drones have been especially causing devastation in Pakistan, where the entire population is seething with rage at the US insensitivity and cruelty. It must be clear by now that the war against terror cannot be won through drone attacks. Since the drone war began in 2008, there has been no decline in Taleban or Al Qaeda performance in the region. For each innocent person killed on the ground by the flying missile, scores would rise to take revenge.
Each week Obama apparently sits down and goes through a "kill list" of people he intends to eliminate, especially in Pakistan, with no judicial process and no more identification than the word of their agent on the ground. The president must change his policies on drones. It's unlikely that he would do that on his own. We need a global campaign to make him see reason.


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LG 42LH50YD LCD television
This 42in 200Hz LCD television has great motion control and good overall image quality
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Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2013 11:07 am
Post subject: Teething symptom??
I usually have to fight my 6 month old to have daytime naps (usually he wins, but today, he woke at 6 (quite a lie in) had half his bottle and a bowl of porridge, then had an hours nap at 7.30, he then woke and had another 4 ounces, was whining like a puppy for a it and then fell asleep again at 10 and is STILL asleep (now 12.00)he doesn't have a temperature but his first tooth came through about a week ago. Could this Lethargy be a symptom of the teething?
Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2013 8:46 pm
Post subject:
To be honest its hard to know because every baby deals with teething in different ways.
My daughter wakes in the night when she's teething, bites/chews everything, pulls at her mouth and is a bit grizzly.
She's got four teeth now (two bottom came through together, as did the top two) and it was different each time (the first seemed more painful, but this time was worse for sleep)
I would just let him do what he needs to do, as long as it doesnt completely disrupt your bedtime routine.


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CHARLESTON -- Bids packets for an EWP project are ready but contractors chomping at the bit for the job will need to wait a couple of weeks before they can get them.
Mississippi County Commissioners discussed during their regular meeting Wednesday the county's next ditch cleanout project approved for Emergency Watershed Protection Program funding. The Natural Resources Conservation Service's EWP provides 75 percent of the cost of approved projects.
County Clerk Junior DeLay said thanks to discussions about the upcoming project being covered in area newspapers, he has already received a half dozen inquires from contractors interested in bidding on the project.
"There's a lot of them calling right now," said Commissioner Steve Jones. "They're ready."
DeLay said the county received NRCS's specifications for the project from Mark Nussbaum, area engineer for the NRCS, earlier this week.
"I've prepared a bid packet so we're ready to go out for bids," he advised.
For the complete article and more stories from the Standard Democrat, click here to log on to the electronic edition.


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Just installed PMS 1.50.0 on a CentOs 5. But when starting PMS I get the GUI front-end on my PC, but the font is NOT readable. How to change to font to readable?
Also PMS doesn't recognize my PS3 yet when it is started. I don't see PMS on my PS3. I can see al other DLNA, media center devices. Logfile doesn't show me anything strange on this.
Can someone help me out?


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In Healthcare Reform, Words Do Matter
This guest post is by Stuart Spielman, Senior Policy Advisor & Counsel for Autism Speaks.
On January 13 and 14, the Institute of Medicine (IOM), the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences, held a public workshop on a critical part of the new healthcare reform law, the essential health benefits package. The law describes as essential the following general categories of items and services:
- Ambulatory patient services
- Emergency services
- Hospitalization
- Maternity and newborn care
- Mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment
- Prescription drugs
- Rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices
- Laboratory services
- Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management
- Pediatric services, including oral and vision care
The task of the IOM, and ultimately the Secretary of Health and Human Services, whom the IOM is advising, is to develop the rules for using this list in designing health plans that will be offered beginning in 2014 through state insurance marketplaces.
For families affected by autism spectrum disorders(ASD), the fifth item on the list holds a special meaning. The words "including behavioral health treatment" do not appear by accident; on the contrary, these words are part of the law because of amendments offered by Representative Mike Doyle, co-chair of the Congressional Autism Caucus, and Senator Robert Menendez. As Senator Menendez pointed out at the time he offered his amendment.
Behavioral health treatments help to reinforce wanted behaviors and reduce unwanted behaviors, and the treatments are critical for individuals affected by autism and a variety of other disorders.
They can help a child to communicate and care for themselves; they can help that child from — stop him from hitting himself and those around him; they can enable a child to attend regular education classes, rather than special education classes; they can enable a child to live at home, rather than an institution.
Representative Doyle and Senator Menendez (joined by Senator Richard Durban and Senator Robert Casey) have separately written the IOM, urging that the behavioral health needs of people with autism spectrum disorders be addressed and that applied behavior analysis be included in all health plans. The IOM and the Secretary should accept this counsel.
On January 18, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) considered health care reform and insurance coverage issues as part of its meeting agenda. These issues are likely to be further considered at the next full meeting of the committee on April 11. The focus on health care reform at the IOM and the IACC present a critical opportunity to correct a decades-long pattern of discrimination against people with ASD.
And We're Off!
This post is written by Shelley Hendrix, Autism Speaks' Director of State Advocacy Relations. She currently resides in Baton Rouge, La. with her two children, Liam and Mairin. Liam was diagnosed with autism age the age of two in 1998. She began advocating on behalf of her son and other children with autism almost from day one.
It's easy to tell the first Monday back after the New Year in the Government Relations department at Autism Speaks. It's full of sparks as rockets start taking off in every possible angle in the race to introduce autism insurance reform legislation in the states. States spend all fall hammering out policy details, knitting coalitions and growing their grassroots advocates and then BANG! It's off to the races. This mad pace continues throughout the first half of the year in the scramble to see whose states will achieve the objective this spring legislative session.
Earlier this week, Oregon entered the fray as the first state of 2011 to introduce autism insurance reform legislation with both a House and Senate version of the bill. Oregon has a legislative session that only meets during odd years. The team of volunteers in 2009 worked very hard but we just didn't reach this objective. We know more now. We are armed with more data and more states have enacted legislation. Oregon's volunteer leaders have spent time cultivating that fresh ground and sowing the seeds necessary for success.
Their time is now.
When you look at our map of the United States you see a swath of green across the nation utilized to signify the 23 states that have passed this legislation in the heartland, along the Gulf Coast and up the Eastern Seabord. But the west coast has remained unphased. All children with autism need appropriate health care coverage.
How is it possible that our nation has an entire coast where no coverage exists for our children to access the treatment and therapy they need?
2011 is the year to resolve that injustice. And Oregon Autism Advocates, I hope you will get involved and change your children's destinies.
Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, "Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle."
With Martin Luther King, Jr. day approaching on Monday, if you live in a state that has not yet turned green, listen to his words and let that motivate you. Do not give up. Do not sit quietly and depend on others to do this hard work for you. Roll up your sleeves, get busy and get it done. It is worth the struggle.
Yesterday, I spoke with a parent from a state whose law was recently implemented. Their child is severely affected by autism – and is a teenager. Their family had lost hope. With the advent of the child's new ABA therapy program, because they have access to this treatment, he is now learning independent skills. He is making small meals for himself. He is doing his laundry. He can perform chores around the house. He is contributing to the family unit and because he is more engaged it has changed the dynamic of the family's life and his.
These laws are changing lives.
They can change yours.
If you live in one of the 27 states that have not passed autism insurance reform and want to get involved to change that visit www.autismvotes.org and sign up today.
Good luck Oregon. We are rooting for you!
State Autism Health Insurance Laws Should Be a Part of a National Benefit Package
This blog post is by Stuart Spielman, Senior Policy Advisor & Counsel for Autism Speaks.
At the request of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) is undertaking a study on "essential health benefits" – the benefits that must be provided by insurance purchased through the competitive marketplaces created under the new healthcare reform law. The IOM will be holding public hearings in Washington on January 13th and 14th to consider the policy principles that should be taken into account in defining specific elements of the benefits package. The IOM has sought comment on a number of questions, including the methods the Secretary should use in evaluating state health insurance coverage laws for inclusion in the national benefit package. Autism Speaks has recommended that the Secretary judge these laws by the following principles:
- Efficacy in improving benefits and services to populations at risk of poor health outcomes. For individuals with disabilities, state health insurance coverage laws can remedy coverage determinations that reflect bad health policy. Arbitrary decisions regarding medical necessity, denials based on artificial distinctions between habilitation and rehabilitation, and faulty judgments that specific treatments are experimental can entirely shut out vulnerable populations from access to health care.
- The benefit of a law relative to its cost. Market decisions regarding coverage may place undue emphasis on short-term economic costs rather than longer-term gains. A broad-based calculus should be used when evaluating state health insurance coverage laws: extended life, reduced disability, and improved community integration should all be considered when evaluating laws that affect people with disabilities. A required benefit that enhances a child's ability to live safely at home and diminishes special education and social services costs pays for itself.
- Continuity of care. Americans, particularly disabled Americans, make fundamental choices based on health care. They decide where to live and for whom to work with an eye on benefits and services. State health insurance coverage laws influence their decisions. These laws, which are often the result of years-long efforts by mothers and fathers and children, deserve deference, as people continue to rely upon them. Failure by the Secretary to include in a national essential benefits package laws that protect people with disabilities would reduce their coverage and jeopardize their health.
These principles underscore the value of state autism health insurance coverage laws. The burdens of autism are exacerbated by gaps in insurance coverage that result from the denial of benefits for proven treatments. Children with autism are more likely than other special needs children to delay or forego care entirely. Their families have greater out-of-pocket costs, diminished work hours and lost income, and more negative health plan experiences.
Twenty-three states have responded to the challenges faced by individuals with autism and their families by requiring comprehensive coverage. Cost analyses suggest that the long-term benefits of autism health insurance laws will be substantial relative to their modest cost, which is often estimated at less than .5% of premiums. Millions of Americans now rely on these laws to establish a standard of care.
Existing state autism insurance coverage laws remedy the failure of the market to provide effective coverage for a significant public health challenge. Judged by any standard – justice, cost to benefit, or maintaining quality care for a vulnerable population –these laws should be integral to a national essential benefit package.
Happy 2011!
The change of the calendar year marks another pivotal step forward in the effort to pass meaningful autism insurance reform nationwide, as several state autism insurance laws go into effect on January 1, 2011.
The states that will begin requiring certain state-regulated health insurance plans to cover the screening, diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorder effective January 1, 2011 include:
New Hampshire
Some state autism insurance reform laws actually became effective earlier in 2010, but because the majority of health plans operate on a calendar year basis, the true impact of these laws will occur when the new plan years turn over on January 1, 2011. These states include:
New Jersey
In addition, Vermont's autism insurance reform legislation will become effective July 1, 2011.
If you live in one of the newly effective states or work for a company that is headquartered in one of them, you could potentially benefit from the legislation. You can find details and helpful links related to the specifics of your state's autism insurance law by visiting Autism Votes' State Initiatives page and then clicking your state on the provided interactive map. This information will continue to be updated as it becomes available in the various states.
In addition, it is important to check with your employer's human resources department to determine whether your health plan is subject to state law. Some employers chose to self-insure, and are thus not subject to state law, but rather ERISA, a federal law. If this is the case, please visit the Autism Votes resource page for self-insured plans. Many self-insured companies are choosing to voluntarily comply with state autism insurance laws once they are made aware of them.
With twenty-three states now requiring health insurance to cover autism treatment, the momentum of this national trend is undeniable. It is our hope at Autism Speaks that the remaining states pass meaningful autism insurance reform as quickly as possible, and that the states with laws on the books properly implement and enforce them so that families dealing with the challenges of autism at long last have the coverage they need.
NBC Nightly News featured Autism Speaks and new insurance policy laws being passed in 2011.
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Autism Speaks Calls on the National Community to Join Michigan Lt. Governor-Elect Brian Calley to "No Longer Remain Silent" on Autism Insurance Reform
Autism Speaks Calls on the National Community to Join Michigan Lt. Governor-Elect Brian Calley to "No Longer Remain Silent" on Autism Insurance Reform
Nation, families in Michigan need your help today to get autism insurance reform passed before the end of their session and to become the 24th state to pass this legislation. After four years, Michigan stands poised to finally join nearly half of the country in passing autism insurance reform legislation. The House has already passed the bill, but the State Senate must take up this issue before the end of the legislative session this week.
We are asking the national autism community to come together in support of this effort on behalf of Michigan families by taking just five minutes to call Michigan State Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop at (517) 373-2417. Urge him to please bring autism insurance reform to the floor for a vote before the end of the legislative session.
Michigan Lt. Governor-Elect Brian Calley and father of a daughter with autism has been an outspoken supporter of the autism insurance reform effort in the state. Watch his video and share it with friends across the country. Together we can join Lt. Governor-Elect Calley in saying "We will no longer remain silent."
For more information visit www.autismvotes.org/michigan.
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IACC workshop addresses strategies for streamlining services and supports
This guest post is by Carrie Masur Gillispie. She is a Government Relations intern at Autism Speaks with a Master of Education in school psychology.
The Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) Services Subcommittee held a workshop on November 8th called "Building a Seamless System of Quality Services & Supports Across the Lifespan," in Rockville, Maryland (view the agenda here). The all-day event focused on policy issues related to the system of services and supports for people with autism spectrum disorders and their families. The workshop was open to the public, and several community members attended the event including parents, educators, medical professionals, and researchers.
Nancy Thaler of the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services, Bill East of the National Association of State Directors of Special Education, and K. Charlie Lakin of the University of Minnesota painted a picture of the current state of autism services. They noted that while services have come a long way over the past few years, families still need help with accessing service providers and support agencies who can meet their unique needs. They also noted concerns about the increasing demand for autism services due to increased prevalence and the fiscal challenges many states are facing in funding these services.
Self-direction care programs give people with autism more power over deciding how to use public funds to fit their individual needs. Several states have secured federal waivers that give individuals with autism a budget, and the authority to choose how to spend that money among a selection of services and supports. They can tailor a combination of providers to best support their needs. These programs are sometimes referred to as "Cash and Counsel." Michael Head of the Michigan Department of Community Health and James Conroy of the Center for Outcome Analysis discussed how to implement and evaluate these programs.
There are many different types of services and supports out there, and there is no one-size-fits-all combination to suit the unique needs of each person with autism. Donald Clintsman from the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services emphasized that it is important to cater those services according to each person's needs. He presented a standardized way to assess each person's needs in order to deliver the most appropriate services possible.
The training of professionals who work with people with autism was a key topic for three speakers. Kevin Ann Huckshorn from Delaware Health and Social Services presented training strategies to prevent and reduce the use of seclusion and restraint. Her model emphasized preventing conflict escalation and encouraging positive support. Carrie Blakeway of The Lewin Group and Erika Robbins from the Office of Ohio Health Plans highlighted issues surrounding hiring, educating, and supporting those who work with people with autism.
Sheldon Wheeler from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services presented examples of innovative strategies to give adults with autism better housing options such as individualized housing, homeownership, positive social environments, and housing modifications. Lisa Crabtree of Towson University and Julie LaBerge of the Bonduel School District in Wisconsin described peer support programs creating positive relationships and raising autism awareness in their schools. Jim Sinclair, co-founder and coordinator of the Autism Network International, described the advantages of people with autism providing peer support for others with autism.
Highlighting the need for streamlining the many service agencies within each state, John Martin from the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities discussed strategies for integrating government systems that provide autism-related services.
The subcommittee, as well as members of the IACC, had the opportunity to ask speakers questions about the most effective ways to build a more efficient system of services and supports. It was an information-packed day that fostered interesting discussions and several recommendations for achieving this important goal. Links to the speakers' presentations are expected to be posted on the IACC website next week.


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Already that time of year! Once again the Awards will be held in Johannesburg, and the list is rather short on Australian cricketers this time around.
Firstly congrats too Mitchell Johnson (twice), Michael Clarke, Peter Siddle (twice), Michael Hussey, Ben Hilfenhaus, Phillip Hughes, David Hussey, David Warner, Shelley Nitschke, Karen Rolton, Lisa Sthalekar, Steve Davis, Daryl Harper, and Simon Taufel upon being nominated for their respective categories within the cricket world, while representing Australian cricket.
Cricketer of the Year
While Mitchell has carved a strong reputation for himself on the oppositions 'threat list', his Ashes performances were below par and may have taken him away from taking this award. He has done a tremendous amount of growth as an emerging front-line Australian bowler, whilst also making some memorable moments in the middle!
However the three players I see strongly in favour to win this category are:
Tillakaratne Dilshan (SL), Andrew Strauss (ENG), AB de Villiers (RSA). Dilshan has had a really consistent average for Sri-Lanka and provides a dynamic to all forms of the game, and he does appear in nearly every category too! AB de Villiers has just seemed to become a really well marketed cricketer in all forms of the game, and performs when needed too.
Test Player of the Year
Michael Clarke would be my front-line runner for this award. While The Baggy Green's results have been far from impressive, Michael has stood out with the many runs behind his name and the very clear signs of his maturity at the elite level of the game. I think he's in with a strong chance. Sri-Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan (as mentioned above) has been a strong performer for his team, while Andrew Strauss has made his major impact in the Test scene and after leading England in their Ashes victory it has probably boosted his chances! AB de Villiers has shown very similar trends to Michael Clarke, and I find them to be very comparable cricketers. I think the two of them are head to head in alot of ways here. Dale Steyn was CSA player of the year, and has really become a spear-head Test bowler, with many wickets too his name. This will be my guess for this category!
ODI Player of the Year
Quite likely MS Dhoni will walk away with this award, like he did last time. An explosive batsman, and he deserves a pat on the back with his leadership. He seems to have tamed the Indian's down quite alot. It is brilliant to see Michael Hussey with a nomination. His one-day game has been very strong, and this ODI series (if it contributes to the awards) can push his chances dramatically. It would be fantastic if he were too walk away with this, but it would seem tough looking at some of the contenders stats and the impact of their performances.
Emerging Player of the Year
Martin Guptill (NZ) has a real fighting chance to take this award after his duties with the bat in hand have steered New Zealand in a brighter direction, while Amit Mishra has been a big find as an emerging spin-bowler.
Ben Hilfenhaus, while a young man, has waited a while for his opportunity to get out there and wear a Baggy Green. But Peter Siddle is my choice to win this award, and I hope he does. He is such a breath of fresh perspective to this team for his attitude, courage and fighting ambition. He has taken a bit of flack with lack of confidence from on-lookers, but he has made an impact worth noting in each Test he has played. Phillip Hughes was front-line to take this, but the Ashes series didn't go his way, and no further cricket till the awards to add to his Australian career, I can't see Phillip in the final running's for this one.
Twenty20 International Performance of the Year
Shahid "Boom Boom" Afridi is a real entertainer and stands in-line to take this award in my opinion. This form of the game is just up his street and he had a major role in Pakistan's 2009 Twenty20 campaign. Tillakaratne Dilshan was the player of the tournament in the 2009 ICC T20 Cup and was very productive with each role he played. Wayne Parnell was a dangerous bowler during the Protea's Twenty20 campaign in England, but he may be just short on performances outside of that tournament to walk away with the award. David Warner started off as an eye-opening prospect with an Australian debit, before even having a First-class game behind his name. He has that now, but he has struggled in ODI's and has only had a few notable performances. But in Twenty20, matching up to 89 is not easy at all!
David Hussey is a Twenty20 specialist, but I just don't think it's been quite significant enough on his part to win the award. Hopefully more to come from Dussey!
Women's Cricketer of the Year
Charlotte Edwards led England to many a victory, and is not shy in her performances leading her team. Karen Rolton (Who ended her reign as Australian skipper after the 2009 ICC T20 Cup), Lisa Sthalekar (Australia), Claire Taylor (England) and Aimee Watkins (New Zealand) will be strong contenders in the Women's Cricketer of the year category.
Umpire of the Year
As always I go with the main man Simon Taufel (Australia). He is consistent, rarely faults and after all he went through after the shooting incident during the Sri-Lanka vs Pakistan series, he deserves it yet again! He sets the benchmark!
Feel free to discuss further, and don't forget Friday is the 1st ODI against England. Time to clean up the remains before heading off to the Champions Trophy. Another big series ahead!
02 September 2009
Labels: ICC awards
3 comments:
- Christopher Poshin David said...
Woah......many underperformers in the list......
- September 03, 2009
- Sidthegnomenator said...
totally agree on Simon Taufel, though.
- September 03, 2009
Yeah pretty boring list this time around, except for Shahid Afridi and Dilshan. They both should get awards. The emerging player should be given to Ben Hilfy, simply because he did his thing quietly and was pretty much the underdog. For me, he was definitely the best bowler in the Australian line by a mile. Sid might get it because of the hype but doesn't really deserve it.
- September 03, 2009
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Brave Companions
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moreFrom Alexander von Humboldt to Charles and Anne Lindbergh, these are stories of people of great vision and daring whose achievements continue to inspire us today, brilliantly told by master historian David McCullough.
The bestselling author of Truman and John Adams, David McCullough has written profiles of exceptional men and women past and present who have not only shaped the course of history or changed how we see the world but whose stories express much that is timeless about the human condition.
Here are Alexander von Humboldt, whose epic explorations of South America surpassed the Lewis and Clark expedition; Harriet Beecher Stowe, "the little woman who made the big war"; Frederic Remington; the extraordinary Louis Agassiz of Harvard; Charles and Anne Lindbergh, and their fellow long-distance pilots Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Beryl Markham; Harry Caudill, the Kentucky lawyer who awakened the nation to the tragedy of Appalachia; and David Plowden, a present-day photographer of vanishing America.
Different as they are from each other, McCullough's subjects have in common a rare vitality and sense of purpose. These are brave companions: to each other, to David McCullough, and to the reader, for with rare storytelling ability McCullough brings us into the times they knew and their very uncommon lives. less
Simon & Schuster; May 2007
256 pages; ISBN 9781416561231
Download in secure EPUB
Title: Brave Companions
Author: David McCullough
256 pages; ISBN 9781416561231
Download in secure EPUB
Title: Brave Companions
Author: David McCullough
Buy, download and read Brave Companions (eBook) by David McCullough today!
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Learn what your credit union should include in its board governance plan.
While directors should be continually asking why, they should also stay out of daily operations.
Many directors fail to understand the significance of motivation in accomplishing their mission and vision.
I enjoyed reading Sarah Snell Cooke's support of paying directors. I think paid directors will give credit unions another tool to manage their credit union better.
Credit union people are an eclectic bunch. When they're all in one place, variety becomes more pronounced.
BOSTON — Conference attendees hold forth on the tax exemption, director pay and that old time credit union feeling.
Volunteer of the Year awarded posthumously to longtime Alabama credit unions board member.
"We compensate board members more out of a sense of fairness than anything else," explained Lin Hodges, president/CEO of Associated Credit Union of Norcross, Ga.
Part two of this analysis of credit union board compensation by Credit Union Times. From our July 10 print edition.
I'm very much what you see is what you get. I feel the need to forewarn bosses that I will always be honest with them, and occasionally more honest than I should be for self-preservation. I'm respectful about it and always do it for the right reasons, but there you...


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White-tailed deer are very adaptable and occupy a wide range of habitats. In Indiana, preferred habitat includes a combination of woodland, brushy areas, and agricultural land. The presence of deer in some of Indiana's most agriculturally intensive and urbanized counties is evidence of their adaptability. Deer habitat is found in every Indiana county, but the abundance of habitat varies widely among counties. In general, the southern half of the state has more acreage deemed to be deer habitat than the northern half. To find a deer hunting guide in Indiana please click on the links below.
2008 Indiana Deer Hunting Tag Fees:
$24 resident, $150 nonresident
2007 IL deer harvest:
124,427 Deer Harvested
For public hunting in Indiana check out the Hoosier National Forest. The Hoosier National Forest is composed fo 200,000 acres scattered over a few different tracts in the southern part of Indiana. Another popular stop for Indiana deer hunters is the 3,400 acre Tri-County Fish and Wildlife Area in Kosciusko County. There are also several Fish and Wildlife areas in Kingsbury and Kankakee that offer some great habitat for deer hunting.
The deer count in Indiana has been on the increase since 1999 according to the Indiana DNR.
2007 Indiana Deer Harvest - 124,427
2006 Indiana Deer Harvest - 125,381
2005 Indiana Deer Harvest -125,526
2004 Indiana Deer Harvest - 123,058
According to deer biologist Chad Stewart Indiana deer hunters could expect to see record harvest this season. The Deer in Indiana are deer scattered all across the state, but urban areas hold the most potential for the 2008 season according to Stewart. The urban season starts on September 15th and bowhunters can kill up to four deer (One of the more liberal deer tag limits in the US), but only one of them can be a buck. According to Stewart it is pretty typical for some nice bucks to be harvested durring the urban season. This year the state of Indiana is trying to attract more deer hunters to the woods by allowing new hunters who have not completed a Indiana hunters safety course to harvest a deer as long as that new hunter is accompanied by a mentor. To become a mentor in the state of Indiana you must have a valid hunting license and be 18 years old or older.
External IN Hunting Links:


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Answer The Phone!
Man what a start to the morning. I usually get up between 3:30 and 4:00 each morning. After my early morning coffee and constitution, I take my shower and get dressed. I try to leave by 5 so I can get to the office, read the paper, and have daily reflection meditation with, RJ Hawk. When I leave I tell my wife goodbye with a kiss and head out the door. This morning I was startled by the newest addition on the property, a Scarecrow! That DARN thing was not there last night! Out of the corner of my eye I see this guy advance towards me. Before he can move a second step, I'm on him like Bobby Petrino during a losing halftime speech to ANYBODY! After a brief scuffle I return inside the house to take another shower. I head back towards work. Once at the station I start making my wake up call home. No answer. After 15 minutes I start calling my sons number but, he works late and the sound of waves crashing sound affects he has going on in his room is too loud for him to hear his phone so he was not picking up. Finally after trying and trying for 45 minutes I have to leave the station before Tommy and David get there and head home. Boy the stupid, horrible things that can go on in your head in that situation I would not wish on anyone. Well, maybe one guy but he's already dead so. I make it home and everything is fine other than the phones are on SILENT!!! I hug my wife a little tighter and as I walk back to the vehicle I get another look at the scarecrow mugger and put him back in the ground and all is well.
Bruce James had the phones going this morning. Look, Bruce says what he feels and that rubs some the wrong way. To a few he sounds anti Razorback. Don't ever think that no matter what he may say about the coach, offense, or defense. (He never says a word about the special teams) He was born in Moss Point, Mississippi. He is a Razorback by choice just so you know where his loyalties are. Tommy also had a second week of RIGHT NOW with number 85.
Yesterday at The Little Rock Touchdown Club, the speaker was, Larry Lacewell. If you've never heard him speak at a relaxed function, if you will, you are missing a good hour of laughter. Lacewell has earned all he has received through hard work in the football business and has some great stories about his time with legends including another Fordyce, Arkansas boy, Bear Bryant. I don't have the audio but, he started his appearance at the Embassy Suites saying David Bazzel's new short cropped hair looked like a monkeys butt! It was all good after that.
Tomorrow 'Wild Man' Wilson, Mrs. Lindy Blackstone-Lanford star us off and we celebrate RJ Hawk turning 26. Yes, yes, yes, we will talk Hog Football, if'n ya on't to.
Remember you don't have to buy a new car to be treated like you did. Fletcher Dodge has a wide selection of cars to fit every budget. Just for stopping by and talking with the Fletcher guys you get dinner for two at Benihana Japanese Steakhouse.
Check out THIS WEEKS deals. 2009 Toyota Carolla Sport, 34 mpg, 45k miles, only $14888.
Or this 2011 Kia Forte 2 door Coupe, brilliant red, great gas mileage, just $16997
Check everywhere you want but, check with Fletcher Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Sherwood before you make your final decision. You will be glad you did.
Thanks for listening and making The Buzz 103.7 your #1 station. Join The Show With No Name from 6am-10am Mon-Fri with Tommy Smith, David Bazzel, RJ Hawk, and myself.


text: Host Parks These locations are not owned or operated by HTR, but are available for our members to use as part of their membership. Seal Bay RV Park Reservations Call: 250-339-1837 Address 1901 Larch Road Courtenay, BC V9J 1X7 Website http://www.sealbayrvpark.com/ Members May make reservations after April 15 Alberta Beach Golf Resort Reservations Call: 780-924-2421 Address P.O. Box 120 Alberta Beach. AB T0E 0A0 Website http://www.albertabeachgolf.com/


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Developing Breakthrough Treatments for Human Disease
Corporate Overview
Lexicon Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of breakthrough treatments for human disease. We have advanced multiple drug candidates into clinical development. We are presently devoting most of our resources to the development of our two most advanced drug candidates, LX4211 for the treatment of type 1 and type 2 diabetes and Telotristat etiprate (LX1032/LX1606) for the treatment of carcinoid syndrome.
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Our most advanced drug candidates, as well as compounds from a number of additional drug discovery and development programs that we have advanced into various stages of clinical and preclinical development, originated from our own internal drug discovery efforts. These efforts were driven by a systematic, target biology-driven approach in which we used gene knockout technologies and an integrated platform of advanced medical technologies to systematically study the physiological and behavioral functions of almost 5,000 genes in mice and assessed the utility of the proteins encoded by the corresponding human genes as potential drug targets. We identified and validated in living animals, or in vivo, more than 100 targets with promising profiles for drug discovery.
Monetizing Our Discoveries
We are working both independently and through strategic collaborations and alliances with third parties to capitalize on our drug target discoveries, and we intend to pursue the same strategy for our drug candidates in clinical development. Consistent with this approach, we seek to retain exclusive rights to the benefits of certain drug discovery and development programs by developing and commercializing drug candidates from those programs internally and to collaborate with other pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with respect to the development and commercialization of drug candidates from other programs, particularly when the collaboration may provide us with access to expertise and resources that we do not possess internally or are complementary to our own. We also seek to collaborate with other pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, research institutes and academic institutions to capitalize on our drug target discoveries.


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OAKLEY -- A raid of a large marijuana grow in Oakley on Friday evening yielded several thousand plants, but no suspects, police said.
At about 5:30 p.m., the Contra Costa Sheriff's Office helicopter was patrolling the Delta when officers spotted a pot farm on the outskirts of Oakley, spokesman Jimmy Lee said in an e-mail. Oakley police officers and sheriff's deputies from the Delta Station discovered several thousand marijuana plants and evidence of a camp at the site. Officers initially believed a suspect was at the scene, but they didn't find anyone, Lee said.
Oakley police Sgt. Jeff Solomon said the pot farm was off Sellers Avenue and near the Contra Costa Canal. He described the landscape as marshy, with many large bushes.
"It's hidden pretty well," Solomon said.
The investigation is ongoing.
Lisa P. White covers Martinez and Pleasant Hill. Contact her at 925-943-8011. Follow her at Twitter.com/lisa_p_white.


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Raghbendra Jha & Raghav Gaiha
When evaluating the recently-announced policy of permitting FDI in multi-brand retail (FDIMBR), it is pertinent to ask the question: is FDIMBR a policy tool? If yes, then what are the policy goals that this tool should serve? Or is FDIMBR a policy objective in itself? If yes, whose policy objective is it? Most